The second a woman finds out she's pregnant, a lot of things can run through her mind, “Oh my gosh, a baby is on the way!!!”
After the rush of excitement passes by and she has a clear head to actually think, and she starts browsing through her phone, the next thing she might think about are apps. Downloading as many baby apps she thinks would be useful now that she's going to be a mother.
As a new mom, the first thing I did after I found out I was pregnant with my daughter after telling my family was to download as many pregnancy and baby apps that were around. Some I enjoyed more than others, and after time, I found a few apps that I absolutely found very helpful. There’s no turning around, you are and will forever be a parent. We want to know what is going on in our tummy, we want to compare the size of our baby to a fruit, and want to know what to expect throughout our pregnancy.
Once we have a baby and they start to get older, now we want to know where other moms hang out, kid friendly areas, what to do when the kids are sick, and of course parental control.
There are millions of apps that you can download, but most of them aren't worth your time. That's not the case with these 15 apps. Most of them are free or cheap so you can always give them a shot.
15 What To Expect
Remember the book "What to Expect When You're Expecting?” This app is exactly just that. Now you can ditch the book and use it on your smartphone.
Once you enter your due date, this app guides you through your pregnancy each day and week. You’ll receive the latest parenting news and health information.
Want to know how your baby is developing? What to Expect provides week- by- week pregnancy videos to help you understand how your body is changing.
When I was pregnant, I used this app almost everyday. You can even connect with other moms and share stories, advice, and photos. So if you have a friend that can’t relate to what your going through and is tired of listening to you talk about this whole pregnancy thing, just talk to one of these moms on the forum, they are always there to listen. Why? Because they are going through the exact same thing you are.
After your little one is born, you will still receive advice and guidance as you navigate life as a new parent.
This is one of the most popular apps for parents and it’s a MUST HAVE to stay up to date on your baby’s development.
14 Baby's First Selfies
What better way to track your belly than to take a bumpie each week? During my pregnancy, I kept track of my bump with this app because it’s was very convenient and very neat to scroll through each week, seeing my belly get bigger and bigger. Even now, few month later, I still go back and look through my pictures.
Similar to the app “What to Expect,” you can enter your due date and this app will guide you through your pregnancy, educating you on your baby’s development, pregnancy tips, and giving you advice on food and nutrition, weekly checklist, reminders, and even health and pregnancy exercises.
This amazing app also compares the fetus to a similarly sized fruit through each stage of development.
Once your baby is born, you will still receive daily updates on their first year of life including the stages they will go through, feeding tips, health and safety, sleep guide and lullaby music for babies, and even tips for taking care of yourself.
13 Sleep Baby Sleep
I have used this app throughout my whole pregnancy and during the first month my baby was born. It was a lifesaver! At 3am when your trying to sleep and all you feel is your baby kicking all night, there was something about the sleep sounds that always calmed her down.
The great thing about this app is that there are a variety of sounds you can choose from and it allows you to combine variety of sounds, from thunderstorms, to a rainforest, waves, a flowing river, and lots more.
You and your baby can enjoy full nights of sleep while playing the sounds and melodies with this app.
Relax Melodies can be used in many situations. It’s excellent to use when taking naps, relaxing at a spa, and during massage sessions. The best thing about this app is that it’s ideal for putting your baby to sleep.
This is the most popular sleep app to use and it’s free!
12 Don't Miss A Milestone
This is the perfect app for parents! New parents love to keep track of their pregnancy and make a scrapbook for baby pictures. It’s very easy to use and allows you to keep all your memories stored in this app.
Many parents capture every little milestone and use fun decorations including filters, fonts, frames, and hand-crafted artwork where you can transform your photos with a single tap.
Personally, I am not a big fan of buying the milestone stickers and sticking them on my daughter's clothes. With Adorable, you can take a picture of your baby each month and add the milestone onto the picture without having to spend money doing so.
Don’t feel like you have to spend big bucks on long projects, with Adorable, expecting parents can start documenting their baby’s journey with a smartphone.
Grab your baby’s photos and enjoy this free app to start editing your photos.
11 Baby Tracker
New parents get really busy after their baby is born. What if your life can be made a bit more simple to track your baby’s daily moments.
Breastfeeding? Forgot which breast you last used to feed? No worries! Baby Tracker can track the time nursing per breast and pumping totals and feedings. During the first month my daughter was born, I was so overwhelmed, exhausted, and just wanted to sleep. I always forgot which breast I last fed, so when I downloaded this app, it helped tremendously with timing and which breast to feed next.
Don’t remember the last time you changed the diaper? Or want to track your baby’s sleep schedule? No worries, this app can track that, too. Know the date that your baby started sleeping through the night.
Baby Tracker is very helpful, especially for new parents trying to get used to a different schedule. This app is a must have with a newborn.
10 Baby Monitor 3G
Why not turn your phone into a baby monitor? Many parents want to make sure their baby is safe and sound in their crib, no matter if they are traveling, outside mowing the lawn, or in the next room sleeping at night.
A friend of mine told me about this app when she knew I was one of those new parents that worried about everything. I’d wake up a few times each night just to check on my daughter. This app allows your baby to hear your voice, you can set lullabies to soothe your baby, adjust a night light, it provides vibration alerts, and you can hear every sound and see every motion. So if you do not want to invest in a baby monitor from the store, download it right from your smartphone for only $3.99.
This app requires two devices, it can be an iPad, iPhone, or both. One stays with you and the other one stays in your baby’s room.
Thanks to Baby Monitor, parents will have the reassurance that their baby is safe. If you are like me, this is one you don’t want to miss.
9 There's A List For That
Grocery shopping and meal planning just got a whole lot easier. With kids, you need anything that can make life simpler, especially when it comes to food. AnyList allows you to create a grocery shopping list and create and organize your recipes. You can even share your list with anyone, for free!
Mom, if you’re at home, tied up with your kids and didn’t have a chance to stop at the grocery store to pick up stuff for dinner, just share the list with dad. He can stop at the store after he gets off work, pull up the app, and know exactly what you need.
There is also a recipe feature which allows you to save recipes to the app, organize the ingredients, and import the ingredients not a grocery list. This app can save you time when deciding on what you want to make for your entire family.
8 Keeping Baby's Perfect Temp
No more having to wake your sick child up a million times to check their temperature or having to put that annoying device on their head.
What if I told you that there was something a lot easier to use? All you need is a soft high tech patch that goes under your child’s arm. This patch senses and transmits body temperature via bluetooth directly to your smartphone.
TempTraq allows you to have a peace of mind when your child has a fever and you are trying to get some sleep. Every update goes straight to your phone.
Have multiple kids? The coolest thing about this app is that it can monitor multiple patches!
As a parent, we worry a lot when we have to take our children to the doctor. This app can track how a fever behaves and how a child responds to medication. So, when the doctor is asking all these questions about your sick child, just pull up the app and you have all the information he needs.
7 Never Too Young To Censure
OurPact is a parental control app that enables parents to manage their family’s screen time through internet and application blocking. Parental control can support you in keeping your kid’s internet experience safe and productive and it’s used best when you're being open and honest with your kids.
Nowadays, kids are on their phone more than we were growing up. You never know what they are browsing or who they are talking to on the internet. They might just be wasting time, while they can be using the time to do something more productive. Luckily this app allows you to enforce bedtime, dinnertime, family time, and how much time you spend on your phone.
You can easily manage your children’s online activities and block distracting apps such as Facebook, Instagram, and Snapchat. Connect more with your teenager who spends most of their time on social media and download OurPact to take back control.
6 Kids Eat Free
A good advantage you have about having kids is…..they eat free!!! You’ll be surprised on how many restaurants allow your child to eat for free or offer discounted kids' meal. Lucky us, we save a little cash, right?
This app is very convenient because it allows you to update your location, and with just one click, you have a whole list right in your smartphone.
Parents have a better time taking their kids out to eat if they eat for free. It also helps a lot for the family who has multiple kids. Ever had to leave a restaurant early? Or yell at your kid the whole time because they want to try and run around or play with the forks and spoons?
Kids Eat Free is a fun app to help you save some cash and have kid friendly restaurants right on your finger tips.
5 Chore Monster
ChoreMonster can help parents manage chores for their children. The cool thing about this app is that the parent creates a list of chores for the child to complete and they are able to set values or rewards. Parents can also set a time when the chore must be completed. Once a chore is done, the parent can confirm or deny the chore.
This app makes chores so much more fun for kids. I found out about ChoreMonster from a friend of mine who has two kids. She says it makes duties a lot easier because her kids know that they are getting a reward at the end of it.
Children learn about responsibilities, meeting expectations, building self- esteem, and being rewarded for positive behaviors.
This app is a must have for parents wanting to make chores much more fun for kids.
4 For The Organizer Mom
We all have a really hard time organizing time. Juggling between kids, work, and family can be challenging. Sometimes you even forget to do things, especially for us moms. We develop what we call “pregnancy brain,” or the “new mother brain,” we forget and lose everything since we always have so much on our minds now.
Thanks to Picniic, your life can get easier. An app that helps families become more organized, productive, and connected. You're able to share your location with the whole family and even track where your kids are. This app allows you to share a calendar with your entire family, look at a schedule of each individual, track to-do lists and assign it to a specific person, create and share grocery lists, and even plan an event.
This app is definitely worth checking out, if you have a family, or just living with a significant other. Picniic is a very engaging app and easy to use.
3 Getting A Routine Down
HomeRoutines is another essential app to help manage chores. Chores are broken down by the days of the week and each day is broken down into morning and evening chores. Give yourself a sense of accomplishment when you see a list of stuff that your did for the day.
As a stay at home mom, I tried to juggle cleaning the whole house all at once, and it’s just overwhelming. When I learned about HomeRoutines, it definitely took the stress away.
Why do you want to clean the whole house in one day? Why not just break it down into sections? HomeRoutines makes it easy to stay on top of housework and having a checklist helps you stay on track.
I highly recommend this app for both moms and dads. Make your life a little less hectic and create a routine checklist.
2 Know Your Neighbors
Every parent should have the Sex Offenders Search app. Our world is a dangerous place and we should be aware of our surroundings, no matter where we're at.
It helps keep your family protected by letting you know when offenders are in your area or near your child’s school. This app also alerts you when there is a new offender, and you’re able to see a picture, name, address, and offence.
So before you decide to buy a new house or send your children to visit a relative or friend, pull up this app and check the area. Protect your family and make sure you are aware of what is around you.
1 Baby's Health At Your Fingertips
ContinuousCare app is your health and medical records all in one. Stay connected with doctors and get medical advice all in one. Not sure if you should take your child to the doctor late at night? This app makes it easy for you to find your answer.
As new moms, we tend to overreact to symptoms as non-threatening as the sniffles. So it's a helpful tool in calming down some irrational worry and letting us know when it's time to worry.
This app gives you the ability to access your health information from anywhere, allowing you to store your doctors appointments, medications, and reduce stress of travel, time, and costs.
It's so important to be able to access your family’s health information immediately.