At WeNatal, we believe true wellness starts long before conception with supported hormones, restorative sleep, and intentional preparation for parenthood. That’s why we were thrilled to sit down with Lexi Montee Busch, Vice President of Marketing at Happiest Baby (the company behind the revolutionary SNOO Smart Sleeper) to talk about motherhood, leadership, sleep, and self-care.
As both a mom of two and a marketing executive, Lexi understands firsthand the delicate balance between nurturing a growing family and a thriving career. In this exclusive Q&A, she shares how better sleep supports parental mental health, family wellness, and even fertility, why SNOO is changing the way parents experience those first few months, and how small shifts in mindset and rest can create big ripple effects for healthier, happier homes.
If you’re preparing for pregnancy, navigating postpartum, or simply trying to find more balance, Lexi’s story offers insight, humor, and hope, grounded in both science and lived experience.
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Meet Lexi Montee Busch: VP of Marketing at Happiest Baby and mom of two
Can you share a bit about yourself and Happiest Baby’s mission, and tell us about some of your most loved products like the SNOO Smart Sleeper that help babies (and parents!) sleep better?
I’m Lexi Montee Busch, VP of Marketing at Happiest Baby (we make SNOO), and mom of a baby and toddler. At Happiest Baby, we’re on a mission to help families live their happiest, healthiest lives. That starts with making sure babies sleep safely, that they sleep more, and that the whole family gets the sleep they need!
Our company was founded by Dr. Harvey Karp, renowned pediatrician and author of the bestselling The Happiest Baby on the Block, who pioneered the 5 S’s method for soothing babies: swaddling, shushing, swinging, sucking, and stomach/side position for calming fussing, not for sleep. (He also happens to be my dad and an amazing grandpa to my daughters.) The science behind those 5 S’s is the foundation of our hero product, SNOO Smart Sleeper. SNOO is a responsive baby bed that automatically replies to babies’ cries with a combination of gentle motion and white noise, mimicking the soothing sensations of the womb to calm crying and extend sleep for babies (and their exhausted parents!).
When you work at a baby brand, not everyone gets to use the product for themselves. I got to. And I’m a superfan of SNOO! It truly saved us when we had a baby, giving us the sleep and support we needed to be able to balance parenting and work. I love and have used all our products, but my other two favorites are SNOObie (our Smart Soother white noise machine that also teaches mindful “magic breathing” to little kids and has a ready-to-wake trainer built in) and SNOObear (our white noise lovie that listens to cries and is responsive, like a mini SNOO on the go). We legit—and I’m not just saying this because I work here—have the best sounding white noise on the market. I turn it on and immediately am calmer and more peaceful. And the babies are immediately drowsy. Oh, and one more awesome product: I have a special place in my heart for our new washable Silk SNOO Sheet we made in collaboration with the ultimate cool brand, Lunya. I came up with the idea for it when my older daughter was a baby with bald spots on the back of her head from all the friction of sheets, car seats, and strollers. My youngest was one of the beta testers, and it’s incredible the difference it’s made!
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Balancing motherhood and leadership: Lexi’s real talk on the mental load
As a mom of two and a marketing executive, how do you balance the mental load of motherhood with the demands of leadership? And what strategies help you maintain work-life balance and mental wellbeing?
Ask me again in 10 years? LOL
The thing is, for me at least, balance is the hardest part of being a working parent. (Or I would surmise even of being a non-working parent?) You have to lean into a place where you can find some semblance of acceptance… that instead of “having it all” you often feel like you’re failing at it all. One day you’re a great mom and maybe not your best self at work, another day you’re a badass exec or coworker but maybe not the best mom… And most days you’re not good at being a great “self” when it comes to self-care and your own needs. (Washed hair and healthfully balanced meals, who?)
I’m someone who refuses to offload the mental load. Which is an interesting choice in my high-stakes high-stress world. My husband chips in a lot with the kids. But when it comes to the rest of the load, like groceries, shampoo and personal products, or what have you, he strongly suggests removing the burden of mental load by setting recurring subscriptions and deliveries. I, however, am old fashioned and love going to the store. So I don’t want to give it up. It’s like my way of having a little fun. Which is hilarious since it’s also often something that can put our family into a precarious position if a work deadline or missed nap messes with my schedule and can no longer make it at the last minute. He’s also a huge fan of meal planning. Whereas I love food too much and want to be able to decide what’s for dinner that day, rather than 7-21 days in advance. So this is a work in progress.
But the best piece of advice comes from my dad’s book The Happiest Baby on the Block, where he says if parents of new babies had a bumper sticker, it would read: “Be flexible… or die!” Truer words were never spoken. Flexibility is critical. And it can help you navigate the mental loads of both motherhood and leadership. Sometimes you just let your kid crawl on the ground at the airport, or give food with sugar or some screen time, even though you swore you’d never before you had kids of your own (key words “before you had kids”, ha).
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The science of sleep: How SNOO supports parental mental health
Sleep deprivation is one of the biggest challenges for new parents. How does the SNOO Smart Sleeper support healthier sleep habits for both babies and parents? And improve mental health and overall family wellbeing?
The pressure on new parents is super intense. We have no village, and very little infrastructure or societal support here in the US. Everything depends on the nuclear family. When you have a baby… you’re the adult! The mom and dad people call for help? That’s you now!
This is especially true when it comes to sleep. There’s this expectation that you should just know how to help your baby sleep. And worse, that exhaustion is simply the price of parenthood and you have to just tough it out. But the truth is, sleep deprivation can seriously impact one’s mental health and wellbeing.
That’s where SNOO comes in. By helping babies sleep an extra hour or two each night, SNOO not only chips away at that exhaustion, but it lightens the load. It gives parents a sense of relief knowing they have a responsive tool to help soothe their baby and keep them safe every time they sleep. SNOO is also the only baby bed that secures babies on their backs—the safest sleep position recommended by pediatricians and health experts around the world. So, when you put your baby in SNOO, you don’t have to worry about your baby rolling into a dangerous position. No more running over to them going “are you alive?” every 10 mins. That built-in peace of mind is priceless for stressed-out new parents.
The combination of better sleep and enhanced safety helps ease the emotional toll of those early weeks, which is a game changer for mental well-being. We hear from parents all the time that SNOO didn’t just help their baby, it helped them feel like they could breathe again.
I’d like to also acknowledge the unspoken but vital bonus of SNOO: calming crying. People don’t really talk much about how grating, stressful, irritating, heartbreaking, and overwhelming a baby’s crying can be. Especially when you’re sleep-deprived, hormonal, anxious, or afraid. In fact, it’s actually one of the biggest triggers of postpartum depression, can elicit cognitive effects and even physical effects, or worse, harmful responses or child abuse.
You know that saying “Sleep when the baby sleeps”? My adaptation of that with my first baby was “Cry when the baby cries.” But man, when that SNOO level 4 sound hit and she immediately stopped crying, it was the Best. Thing. Ever. The relief was primal and profound. That was probably even more worth it than the added sleep. Because when you’re desperate and can’t stop the crying, and don’t know what your baby wants because she’s been fed and burped and changed—and babies can’t speak to tell you what’s wrong or if something hurts—there’s absolutely nothing that feels better than when they stop crying and seem soothed or content.
Preparing for motherhood with intention
What advice would you give to working women who are preparing for motherhood, especially those balancing career goals, fertility preparation, and the transition into parenthood?
There’s no “best time” to have kids. If you’re interested in starting a family, dive in and just do it. My husband is a professor but also an author and public speaker who travels a lot and used to work—with pleasure and delight—7 days a week. When we decided to have a baby his biggest fear was that it would take away from his ambition or productivity. But in fact, he found the opposite to be true. He found even more meaning in everything he did. It was like becoming a parent gave him even more purpose and drive, and strengthened his aspirations to leave behind a great legacy. I love that experience so much that I wanted to share it. Because instead of negatively impacting your career, which might be a concern for some people, it can really positively impact your career! And I’ve heard this from countless other people as well!
My experience was different. Having a child gave me more perspective, so that work wasn’t 100% of my life and identity. And it took the edge off the perfectionism and compulsivity because my identity broadened to include the new role of motherhood. And my new reality simply didn’t allow for work to be all of who I was because I had to make room for this new little person as well as the new person I became. So it helped me grow, but in a different way, to be more well-rounded by essentially de-prioritizing my career a little bit. Not in a bad way, just taking a step back and gaining a more holistic perspective. Additionally, it taught me better time-management skills. Your EOD Wednesday work deadline can’t mean the end of the literal day at midnight. It needs to mean the end of the business day, because you can’t pull an all-nighter when there’s a baby or toddler who needs to be fed and held and paid attention to. Plus, moms make the world go ‘round. They’re the best multi-taskers and mountain-movers. So I think moms make the best employees, problem-solvers, and team members. And I’ve seen many other executives endorse that thought on LinkedIn and in the media, so it’s not merely a Pollyanna perspective, it’s an accepted one. And that’s why you see more and more parents putting “mom” or “dad” in their online bio or in their resume. Because instead of being a deterrent or a stigma like it has been in the past, it’s now more of a val prop.
All in all, it’s not only possible to build your career even when becoming a mother, but becoming a mother can improve your career trajectory and sharpen your professional skills. You can do it!
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At WeNatal, we emphasize the power of intentional preparation before and during pregnancy. What were your non-negotiables when it came to supporting fertility health, prenatal wellness, and preparing your body for motherhood?
I was raised in a super organic and health- and environmentally-conscious household. As my mom says, “We were green when green was just a color.” My parents taught me a lot about the chemicals and toxins in our foods and environment from my early childhood years. So for me, making sure I ate as much organic, wild-caught, grass-fed, or pasture-raised food as possible was always a priority, but in particular when pregnant. And so was taking prenatals and other vitamins/supplements.
I’m someone who never drinks water and rarely takes my vitamins. (I mean to! I believe in them and buy so many! But then just forget…) But there’s so much data now demonstrating correlations between positive outcomes and certain supplements. Take, for example, omega-3 and DHA. Low levels may impair fetal neural development, but high levels are linked to better cognitive function in children according to some studies. So if I’m going to be imperfect/unhealthy, maybe I can offset that by trying to give Baby the best head start possible? I sort of engage in a little mom math with these things: Good quality food, vitamins, minerals, and supplements undo the pregnancy pizza and polluted air I exposed this baby to in-utero, right?
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Sleep strategies for new parents
Sleep can feel impossible in those first few months with a newborn. What misconceptions do new parents often have about infant sleep? How does SNOO help support better rest, mental health, and family wellbeing during the postpartum period?
One of the biggest misconceptions I hear is that newborn sleep is always chaotic, exhaustion is inevitable, and there’s nothing you can do about it. While it’s true that babies wake often to feed, there is hope when it comes to newborn sleep. What my dad’s work teaches us is that there are things parents can do—even without SNOO—to calm fussing and get babies to sleep. He found that by recreating womb sensations with swaddling, swinging, and shushing, they don't just feel good to a baby, they trigger a baby’s “calming reflex,” which is like their “off switch” for crying and “on switch” for sleep. (His work on the 5 S’s should be required reading for expecting parents!)
SNOO automates those soothing sensations and gives them to a baby in a way that is safe for sleep. SNOO soothes babies in the same way a mom would: when baby is calm mom sings and sways low and slow and when they’re Defcon 1 screaming, you rock and bounce and bit more vigorously and shush a little louder. When SNOO detects crying, it increases the soothing sound and motion, giving the perfect thing that the baby needs right then to result in less crying, more sleep, and a much calmer household. By doing this, SNOO makes it possible for both babies and parents to sleep. Instead of feeling helpless, parents gain confidence that they can help their baby sleep better—starting right now.
Why sleep is foundational to family wellness
Sleep plays a huge role in hormone health, fertility, and overall mental health. As a mom of two, did you experience sleep challenges during early motherhood? What practical strategies helped you improve your sleep hygiene and recovery?
One of the best things that we did for our sleep is actually one I initially didn’t want to do. My dad and husband had to talk me into it, but it was life-changing. We split up and took turns. I love to do things together with my husband, and was so excited to be a complete little family, so “dividing and conquering” didn’t come naturally to me. But they could both see I was going to crash out if I didn’t stop doing every overnight feeding and diaper change, week after week.
Something else that really helped me prioritize sleep was having two SNOOs. I know that can be out of reach for people, but a lot of my friends followed suit because they got a SNOO for free from their employer as a part of their HR benefits. (If you’re interested in getting your company to sign up, email us at corporaterental@happiestbaby.com.) We also offer a really great rental program, where you pay as you go and can cancel and send back your SNOO at anytime.
Having two SNOOs allowed both of us to get a full night’s sleep every night, rather than alternating nights in the original divide and conquer plan. My husband would take the early shift, sleep in one room with the baby in one SNOO, then feed, change, and bring her to my room and put her into the other SNOO while I was asleep. Then when she needed to be fed again, I’d wake up to her already in my room and do the same. Within just a few days, we both felt so refreshed, and could wake up and be good parents and productive people in the world.
At WeNatal, we emphasize supporting both partners before pregnancy. How does improving sleep, both before and after baby, impact fertility, hormone health, postpartum recovery, and overall family wellness?
We talk so much about nutrition and fitness when preparing for pregnancy, but sleep is often left out of the conversation. The truth is, sleep is foundational to hormonal health, cognitive function, mood regulation, and fertility, for both partners. Prioritizing rest before pregnancy helps set a solid foundation for the physical and emotional demands ahead.
And after the baby arrives, sleep continues to be the glue that holds everything together. When parents sleep better, they communicate better, cope better, and bond more deeply with their baby. SNOO isn’t just about sleep—when we take care of ourselves, we’re better equipped to take care of our families. It’s like the directions on the airplane to put your own oxygen mask on first, before helping dependents. That’s why we see SNOO not just as a baby product, but as a crucial family wellness tool!
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A note from WeNatal on sleep, hormone health, and postpartum recovery
At WeNatal, we know that healthy families start with rested, nourished parents. Lexi’s story is a beautiful reminder that supporting sleep isn’t just about the baby, caring for the whole family’s wellbeing.
From optimizing nutrition, hormone health, and fertility health before pregnancy to creating calm, restorative environments once your baby arrives, sleep is one of the most important foundations for fertility, postpartum recovery, and mental health.
If you’re looking to gently support your body’s natural ability to unwind, our Rest + Digest Magnesium was formulated to help promote deeper relaxation, smoother digestion, and more restorative sleep, because when parents rest well, the whole family thrives.
As you prepare for parenthood, remember: giving yourself permission to rest is one of the most loving things you can do for yourself, for your partner, and for your baby.
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