Simple and natural teething "toys".

Sophie The Giraffe never did the trick for my teething daughter and after a lot of wasted money, I ultimately found my daughter (like most kids) enjoyed cutting teeth on things she wasn’t supposed to, for example, a dirty pair of shoes.

Instead of adding another basket full of unused products to my home, I received a few tips from my friends and found that the best teething products were natural and some even in my own kitchen.

I’ve put together a list of a few simple items that worked for my daughter.

#1 Fingers

It’s natural for a baby to bring whatever they can get their hands on, straight to their mouth. It’s how they learn, but its also soothing for their gums to chew on their parent’s fingers.

I considered it the very early stages of the teething process. Having clean and well-groomed fingernails is a good idea when caring for a young baby, especially if they're going to be used as a teething toy. Fingers seem to work for the first few days and weeks, but they'll quickly desire to move onto something that's not attached to someone else. Something they can handle on their own and move around freely.

#2 Wooden rings

You can find these all over Etsy and other websites. Some even come with soft materials hanging from them, giving your baby different textures and materials to chew on. Wood rings are hard, but a giving material and that can be soothing for teething gums.

You can even get some wood out of your yard and do a DIY. Oh I love a good DIY from Pinterest

If you prefer someone to do it for you, Amazon is a lifesaver.

#3 Cold/solid Food

Once your baby is 6 months old and their gut is now ready to handle solids, solid food and a watchful eye is ultimately the best teething "toy". My go to were celery and raw potatoes. Celery is cool and can help reduce inflammation and can help sooth those sore gums. To be safe, take away any celery that becomes stringy and replace with a fresh stock and do the same for any other food.

Potatoes, have a hard raw texture and your baby will enjoy cutting teeth on the cool hard potato. Avoid potatoes that have any green coloring, they can be toxic.

If you're not comfortable with your baby handling solid food, no worries, there are products out there with mesh nettings that allow babies to chew on food without large pieces getting into their mouth.

These are some simple and easy teething tips that helped me and I wanted to share, but always consult your pediatrician for medical and nutrition advice.