3.15.2010

Product Review: Prince Lionheart Silicone Bottles

I've been meaning to write up a little review of our bottles for a while there, and now I'm finally getting around to it. You see, bottles have become a whole "thing." BPA was not a problem when I was pregnant with the twins. We were gifted a set of Dr. Brown's bottles from a very lovely twin mommy. Let me tell you, our kids didn't have "colic," (don't even get me started on that whole umbrella diagnosis) but those bottles have four pieces that need to be disassembled and washed. These pieces seem to be instrumental in the colic prevention. It was a huge pain. We bought a second set of bottles that we loved, but because of the design, the nipples only lasted for a month or so. They also went off the market around the time the girls started sippie cups. Both were BPA plastic. (The horror! The horror!) So we tossed both sets as we dragged out the baby stuff from storage. So here's what I was looking for: easy to clean, not going to poison my child, and I didn't want to spend thousands of dollars on the things.
I did a bit of research. There are tons of BPA-free plastic options out there, but now there's a concern about phalates. So I decided to nix the plastic all together just to be safe. And Clutsy McDropper over here wisely crossed out the glass bottles. I do not enjoy vacuuming glass shards from the floor while screaming for both kids and dogs to stay back! Stay back!
I had heard of silicone bottles, and it piqued my interest. But boy, are they hard to track down! I briefly spied the Prince Lionheart bottles in Babies R' Us, but they stopped carrying the line. So minus four points for that. Easy accessibility has to count for something. I had to order mine from Amazon. And because I had to order them, I ordered 12. A good call, as we seem to be washing and sanitizing bottles all day long as it is. We ordered the 8 oz. because really, how long is a baby taking less than 4 oz.? You can mix anything from 1-8 oz. in the bigger ones, but they come with 3-6 mo. nipples. I ordered extra 0-3 mo. nipples, but the boy had a hard time getting anything out of those. So it was all for naught. 12 big bottles suits our needs just fine.

Now, can I just tell you how much I love them? Not only do they look awesome, the tactile experience of these bottles is amazing. You can literally squeeze them! It's fun!
The instructions tell you to squeeze the air out to prevent excessive air-gulping. But this has proven to be a hassle, when you only make 3 oz. in these big bottles, the suction at the top tends to fail and then you get a lap full of formula. Little man has not had a problem with bubbles- so it's a non-issue. It's fun to trip out your friends with the squishy bottle, too. Two gold stars.

The silicone has the ability to be heated. (I don't do this- my kid has room temperature formula! Which to some seems to border on abuse- silly people) You can also toss these babies into the dishwasher, (the bottles, not the actual baby- silly people) sanitizer or I even think microwave, etc. Easiness. And they're fairly inexpensive! $20 for 3 is a deal in my book!
Can I tell you how many times we have dropped them? It's a substantial number. And everytime it hits the tile floor I thank myself for being smart enough to have avoided those glass bottles. Even with those silicone sleeves, they would have been toast in our house.

The only downside to these bottles seems to be the texture when they are shoved into bottle sleeves in diaper bags, they tend to stick. But is that really a problem? Not to me!
Ten million points for this upgrade kit to make these bottles into transitional sippie cups- coming soon. (ecstatic)

Also, they are Little Man-approved:
I am sad to see the silicone options dwindling so quickly. They are so awesome! Why do people settle with plastic or glass? Is silicone really a hard sell? It shouldn't be. I am 100% happy with mine! Almost enough to have another chickadee... but just almost... I haven't lost my mind.

1 comment:

  1. so happy to hear a 'real' review on these! they've been my number 1 pick for bottles since i started researching such things. they are affordable + the clean design is a bonus! i agree with the whole silicone vs. plastic/glass (although i do have some glass on my list) i would much prefer the silicone.

    thanks for this! i love when you review baby/kids products!

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