LULLA DOLL: MY GENUINE REVIEW

I first bought the Lulla doll in desperation for baby Finn, on the 100th wake up for the night when he was around 6 weeks old.

I paid for express delivery and hoped it would arrive the next day and be the answer to all of our sleep problems.

It wasn’t. But it was the beginning of a really special bond. Finn was a tiny baby, so I put the doll in his cot and he slept with her every time. I bought 4 rechargable batteries so I could exchange them as they ran flat as she runs for 8 hours straight so chews through the normal ones.

It didn’t magically make him sleep all night but as we soon discovered, poor Finn was dealing with some stomach issues and was in a fair amount of pain and discomfort, so sleep was not on our cards at that point (still isn’t!)

It did help him to settle for sleep quickly and a lot of the time, independently.

Now I am quite vocal on my opinions on leaving babies alone to cry in the dark. It’s never been a method I would use or agree with. But I have tried to give the boys the chance to learn to fall asleep in their bed, with my constant support. This generally looks like me sitting next to them as I am shushing or patting them to sleep.

Lulla gave Finn the comfort to often snuggle himself off to sleep without me needing to shh or pat him, which was a huge huge win when I also had a 2.5 year old running around!!

Fast forward to Finn being a walking, talking, hurricane of a one year old. Lulla was still a huge part of his life and a big source of comfort for him. We removed the sound box by the time he was carrying her around to make the doll lighter. He would whinge in the car, be handed Lulla and cuddle her to his face and fall asleep. She was our secret weapon and she went everywhere we went - cafes, Nan’s house, holidays. When she needed a bath he would watch her spin around in the washing machine and then through the dryer door.

He is now 2.5 years old and still loves her. He sleeps with her most nights, he takes her to preschool and if he gets upset at drop off, she is his comfort.

I was gifted a new Lulla for Teddy’s birth by Sleeptight Babies; the same company I bought Finn's from back in 2016.

Teddy was sleeping like a “normal” breastfed newborn. Waking around 3 hourly to feed at night, with the occasional 4-5 hour block of sleep. He went into his cot swaddled, happy and wide awake and would look around until falling asleep himself.

This was amazing for us as Knox and Finn had been such shocking sleepers until well into their 2s (Finn still struggles). So Lulla stayed in his drawer, waiting for her chance to shine.

Then the 4 month regression hit us like a ton of bricks. My goodness, he needed to be rocked to sleep and delicately transferred, every 45 minutes he would scream and after 3 weeks of being a zombie with two other kids to run around after, I finally remembered to give Lulla ago.

I bought 4 rechargable AAA batteries again and off we went. Night one he slept 6pm-7:30am with three wakes; 10:30pm, 2:30am and 5:30am. I felt like I had woken from a 8hr block.

Night two, same thing. Back to waking roughly 4 hourly and going to sleep snuggled up to her happily by himself. This was huge for me as I’m also trying to get Knox and Finn fed, bathed and into bed at the same time!

So my assessment... I absolutely love Lulla! She sounds a little like a creepy Darth Vader so Knox hated her sound at 2 years old when Finny would sleep with her. But for babies, the sound is soothing and makes them feel like they aren’t alone. The sound box can actually be felt through her tummy like a heart beat. The sound runs for 8 hours straight which I love, as it helps to resettle them as they come out of a deep sleep cycle and into a light sleep.

She is a very neutral looking doll and plenty of insta shops now sell clothes for her if that takes your fancy.

The doll comes with Velcro in her back to attach to the side of the cot for safety. Teddy is snuggled up to her for photo purposes only. Always follow SIDS guidelines and never leave loose toys or blankets in the cot with your baby. For more information on SIDS and safe sleeping, please visit Red Nose.

Lulla is $99 and available from Sleeptight Babies (clothes can be bought separately here also).

Wishing you sweet, sweet sleep...

Note: This review is not sponsored. This is my honest opinion and I’m not being paid in any way for this blog. I purchased the doll for Finn in 2016 at full price. I was then gifted a second doll for Teddy at his birth.

This photo was posed for cuteness only. He was moved away from Lulla and onto his back after photograph was taken. Always follow SIDS sleep guidelines.

Swaddled in a ‘Love to Dream’ zip swaddle.