By India Lopez
Editorial & Production Manager
As the mum of a primary school–aged child, I spend much of my day in Meltdown Prevention Mode. While no gadget can completely end the daily battles, there are a handful of products that have genuinely made my life easier – and they’re all available in New Zealand for under $100.
6am: Make mornings less painful with a sleep-trainer clock
Nothing sends chills down a parent’s spine like the sound of little footsteps coming down the hall at 4am. Sleep trainer clocks like the Tommee Tippee Groclock ($49.99 from Chemist Warehouse) change colour during your chosen sleep and wake times. I tell my son, “When the clock is blue, stay in bed. When the clock is yellow, you can come wake me up.” And, believe it or not, he listens.
12pm: Avoid lunchbox complaints with a meal-planning app
Once a week, my son gets to commandeer my phone and plan his school lunches with the free LaLa Lunchbox app. He “feeds” a hungry cartoon monster by tapping his chosen lunch items, and I get the full week laid out for me, complete with an automatically generated shopping list. Mental load? Reduced. Number of dehydrated carrot sticks and soggy sandwiches tipped in the bin? Also reduced.
3pm: Enjoy car rides with a car seat organiser
Sick of pulling over every 5 minutes to fish action figures and half-eaten muesli bars out from under your seat? This Back Seat Storage with Table ($15 from Kmart) keeps everything in order and has become an essential part of road-trip prep for us. My son loves picking out toys, snacks and art supplies and packing them into the little compartments in advance. Once we’re on the road, he can fold down the tray table, crank up his tablet (which lives in its own see-through pocket, away from sticky fingers) and enjoy the journey, business-class style.
6pm: Transition away from baths with an adhesive shower head holder
Maybe you don’t have time for a full bubbles-and-rubber-ducky production every night, or maybe (like me) you don’t have a tub and your kid has outgrown the laundry basket that you used to bathe him in. Either way, there are times when a shower makes more sense. “But Muuuummm, I’ll get water in my eyes!” Not anymore, thanks to this self-adhesive shower head holder ($6.99 from Dick Smith). Attach it to the shower wall at a kid-friendly height, so you can move the shower head down when it’s their turn to lather up.
7pm: Gamify teeth time with a kids’ smart toothbrush
Okay, this one isn’t “cheap” compared to a basic analogue toothbrush, but think of the dental bills you’ll avoid down the track! I opted for a smart electric toothbrush that performed excellently in Consumer NZ’s tests, and it’s become a beloved fixture in our bathroom. It’s linked to an app on my phone, featuring a fluffy little monster with gunky teeth. Every time my son brushes for the allotted time, the app rewards him with a gift – usually some food or a new accessory for his monster. Toothbrushing tantrums are a thing of the past, replaced with (gleaming white) smiles.
