As working parents, we love our smartphones. They keep us connected and productive even as we feed, chase and soothe our kids. But smartphones can do more than help us stay in the loop when it comes to the latest news and office dramas. In fact, when baby is having trouble getting to sleep, or needs some distraction, there's an app to turn to. Here are 10 apps for parents on the go.
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Total Baby
$4.99 USD. Available for iPhone and iPod Touch from Andesigned.
What sleep-deprived new parent couldn't use some help with baby's progress? Total Baby lets mom track feedings (right or left breast, and when), diaper changes, bottles, naps, as well as doctor visits, shots, growth and behavioral milestones. With metric-imperial conversions, charting, and an email export feature, it's the ultimate app for tech-obsessed parents.
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aSleep Kids Edition
$0.99 USD. Available for iPhone or iPod Touch from Signs Studios.
aSleep offers 15 lullabies to help ease your child to sleep, not to mention some fun features like the “shake-to-shuffle” option, autoplay, settable timer and friendly design. It works as a night light, too.
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White Noise
$2.99 USD. Available for iPhone, iPod Touch, BlackBerry and Android from TMSoft.
When lullabies won't do, try a little white noise. Beach waves, rain and chimes are some of the soothing ambient sounds to lull the little one to sleep. Not a bad idea for the parent who may need some calming, too.
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Baby Rattle Bab Bab Lite
Free. Available for iPhone and iPod Touch from baby to i.
If baby is restless and no rattle is at hand, give this free app a go. Shake the phone and let baby watch kaleidoscopic shapes move across the screen to tinkly sounds. Or let baby give the phone a shake -- if you don't mind baby touching your $200 iPhone, that is.
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Baby GO!
Free. Available for BlackBerry from Zeebu Mobile.
So simple, so fun, so educational -- block letters bounce across the screen when your toddler presses the keys. Each letter is pronounced and the diehard Canadian can even select the "zed" option.
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My Train
$0.99 USD. Available for iPhone and iPod Touch from Appsminded.
Little train spotters will have lots of fun watching the different trains appear on the screen and hearing the various sounds they make.
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iStoryTime
$1.99 USD per story. Available for iPhone and iPod Touch. Android coming soon. From iStoryTime.
Simple narrated boardbook-style stories, designed so little fingers can turn the page. And leave mom to drive in peace. Seven stories are available, with more on the way.
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Toddler Cards
$0.99 USD. Available for iPhone and iPod Touch from Sai Services.
Flash cards made fun: an image, such as a shape, a number or a food, flashes on the screen and the child calls out what it is. For the answer, the child just taps the screen and the word is pronounced in English, Spanish or any language you record.
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Scribble
Free. Available for iPhone and iPod Touch from Zintin.
Let your children explore their creative sides with Scribble, a simple four-colour drawing app powered by finger movements. When your little Matisses have finished their drawings, they can save the image and email it. A simple shake of the phone erases the image to start over.
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HippoMobile
Free. Available for BlackBerry from HippoPost.
HippoMobile is really for Grandma, Grandpa and all your other relatives and friends who still appreciate getting pictures the old-fashioned way. Snap a photo of your little one doing something cute and email it to HippoPost, which will print the image onto a postcard and mail it for you for free – as long as you don’t mind the ad on the card.
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Marc Reppin specializes in content, marketing and ebusiness for web and mobile. He is the former general manager of financial web sites CanadianBusiness.com, MoneySense.ca and PROFITguide.com.
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