After Liam was born, I had so much better of an idea of what items I actually like, don't like, and what products I absolutely can't be without. That's what I want to share with all you lovelies today!
For the hospital (and before):
Summer Infant Swaddleme Blankets: A few friends had HIGHLY recommended these to me, and I just figured I would throw them in my hospital bag. I am SO glad I did, because Jordan and I never really mastered swaddling techniques, and these things are miraculous! Babies LOVE a tight swaddle, and it is pretty much impossible for them to wiggle out of the Swaddleme blankets since they have velcro keeping them in place. We ended up getting at least 4 (two 2 packs) and it is worth having several (think spit up, blowout diapers, baby boy pee pee accidents etc.)
Burt's Bees Baby Newborn Coveralls: For your baby to ride home, he/she will need to be in an outfit with legs (not a footless gown as cute and snuggly as they are) to ride home in his/her car seat from the hospital. also you’ll want to wash the clothes in baby detergent before you bring them to the hospital. Burt's Bees newborn coveralls are so so soft and cozy for baby! And BONUS - it comes with a matching hat!
Gerber onesies: These long sleeved, basic white onesies are awesome since they have the mitten cuffs. The hospital will provide the white wrap around shirts for baby, but I packed extra outfits just in case (and I'm glad I did since we ended up in the hospital for a week waiting for Liam to finish his antibiotic in the NICU).
Nursing bra: I got this one from Target and absolutely love it! I ended up buying another because there is something so nice about feeling pretty and practical at the same time! Ladies, this one won't let you down! (see what I did there? haha!)
Maxi-Cosi Mico AP Infant Car Seat: This is the car seat we got and I recommend it to all my friends all the time! Why? Way cheaper than the brands everyone has heard of, got great reviews, comes in gender neutral all black and is only 8 pounds. This will come in handy when you’re carrying that sweet baby around everywhere in it for the first few months.
Me and Jordan getting ready to take Liam home from the hospital!
Diapers, Bathtime and First Aid
up & up diapers: I am such a huge fan of these diapers. They work great and are so much cheaper than name brand! I am picky about diapers too! I recommend starting to use Target brand in size 1 though (not even sure Target makes newborn size). For newborn size I liked Pampers Swaddlers the best.
How many boxes of diapers do you need to buy/have before baby arrives? Here’s my advice: take a deep breath and don’t stress about it! Buy ONE jumbo box of newborn size diapers and then just wait and see how fast your baby grows. Babies are all different and it’s a little unpredictable what sizes they’ll be in at which ages and for how long.
For nighttime, it's a good idea to buy a pack of diapers one size up and put that size on baby to sleep in (if baby is wearing size 1 during the day, baby sleeps in size 2 at night). When Liam was about 8 months old, I started buying overnight diapers since he was sleeping 10-12 hours at a time most nights (believe me, it took a lot of sleep training!) I started with Pampers overnight protection diapers until I found these babies at Target. Once again, these work great and are about $7 cheaper than Pampers or Huggies.
SKIP THE DIAPER GENIE TYPE THINGS! I know people that bought them, and their nurseries still smelled bad. Plus, once baby is eating solids, you're gonna want to take poop diapers out after each diaper! We use a tall kitchen trash can with Febreze odor control bags, and put poop diapers in grocery bags to throw in the outside trash can at the end of each day! Saves money and works!
Wipes: Once again, Target wins! I have tried almost every brand...even store brand from several stores. These work great and are huge money savers as well.
Butt cream: If you're gonna register for one, I like Boudreaux's. I will say, recently Liam had a terrible, red rash blotchy, irritated bottom from teething. Butt paste made him scream and cry when I rubbed it on. The only thing that felt good to him and did miraculous wonders for his bottom? Coconut oil and one drop Young Living lavender essential oil. You can buy a big jar of coconut oil at your grocery store in the aisle you find cooking oils. Make sure it's unrefined pure coconut oil. To order from Young Living, you can use me as your enroller/sponsor i.d. if you'd like: 2328563. Comment below if you do! :)
Munchkin Arm and Hammer Diaper Bag Dispenser: Super handy for in the car and when you're out and about! The bags are great at masking smelly diaper odor!
The First Years Infant To Toddler Tub with Sling: I liked that this tub is available at Target and easy for people to buy for you on a registry. It's very affordable and the newborn sling is perfect for that first at home bath when baby's umbilical cord is still attached and can't be submerged in water. The toddler side is still great for Liam (14 months old). It comes in pink or blue...we have the blue and I hope baby girl on the way doesn't mind! Haha.
Aveeno Baby Wash and Shampoo: We started with good ol' Johnson's baby wash, and quickly noticed Liam's skin developing eczema spots all over his back and upper arms. His pediatrician said to try switching to Aveeno because it is made with oatmeal and is so soothing for baby's skin! After a week of just using Aveeno baby wash...no more eczema! It also makes his hair smell so delicious!
Boon Flo Water Deflector: This was given to us as a baby shower gift, and I had never seen these before! We love this for bath time since it keeps baby from hitting his head on the hard faucet and Liam loves that it shoots the water toward him like a waterfall! It's very helpful for rinsing his shampoo out too!
Aveeno - Baby Calming Comfort Lotion Lavender & Vanilla: This scent is my favorite and I feel like it is really calming when I use it to massage Liam after his bath right before bed (must be nice, huh?! Oh to be a baby...)
Hooded towels: I love hooded towels for wrapping baby up, and they're just really cute! We were gifted Target Circo hooded towels and love them!
The First Years American Red Cross Deluxe Grooming Essentials Kit: I was too afraid to try and trim or clip Liam's nails, so the little nail files in this kit are awesome! I filed his nails while he breastfed or when he was asleep in the newborn days. The toothbrush is the perfect first toothbrush when baby sprouts their first tooth!
Nosefrida Nasal Aspirator: When I first saw these, I was like, "Eww gross!" To me, snot is grosser than vomit. Then I started reading reviews online from parents stating that it's honestly impossible for baby's snot to reach anywhere near your mouth unless you're the incredible Hulk. It's so true. Those bulb things can't be cleaned out all the way, get moldy inside and they do nothing for your baby when he/she has a stuffy or runny nose! When we use Nosefrida it clears Liam's nose out and we don't have to wipe his nose every few minutes when he has the sniffles. The parts are dishwasher safe, and I wash the filters with soap and reuse at least 3 times before grabbing a new filter. Bottom line: MUST have for any parent!
Feeding and Pacifiers
Lansinoh - Disposable Nursing Pads: For the breastfeeding days, it's necessary to have a big box of these. I produced a lot of milk, and these pads do the job absorbing leaks!
Milkies Milk-Saver Breast Milk Collector: This is one of the coolest inventions ever! You use it for the side you are not nursing with/pumping with. Nobody told me before Liam that while nursing or pumping just one side, you leak on whatever side is free. This thing catches all that leaked milk! I was able to save up to a whole ounce one time from both sides!
Avent Breastfeeding Starter Kit: Another thing nobody told me is how painful your ladies are when first starting to nurse! Oh my word. The gel pads, frozen were wonderful when I was in pain, and heated they were great when I got lumps that were painful from having too much milk. The heat also helped get the milk flowing when pumping!
Tommee Tippee bottles: I love these bottles. The nipples are like mama's, so it was great for pouring whatever I had pumped into these bottles and Liam had no issue! They're easy to clean unlike the Dr. Browns that have 100 pieces! For a registry, definitely register for 5 oz. and 9 oz. Also, nobody told me before Liam was born that you're supposed to upgrade the bottle nipples to a faster flow at a certain age. Don't forget to add the medium and fast flow nipples to your registry along with the bottles!
SKIP THE BOTTLE WARMER! They get the milk too hot sometimes and we would just microwave water in a wide mug for a minute and put the bottle down in the mug.
Mam pacifiers: These are great for newborns. Easy to keep in their mouth! And we love these for 6 months and up.
Ulubulu universal pacifier clips: These hold any kind of pacifier out there and they come in really trendy, cute prints! The one I got for Liam has a mustache on it with chevron print background and has a place to write his name on it! We use it for naps and nighttime so when the pacifier falls out in his sleep, Liam can find it easily instead of looking for it all over his crib! We learned this the hard way by having to find his pacifiers during the night in the dark to put back in his mouth.
Ingenuity Trio 3-in-1 highchair: This chair is so affordable, cute, can be used by baby AND toddler at the same time (great if you're having two kids close together like we are!) and has a tray on top of tray that pops off easily to wash leaving the underneath tray for baby to use while you wash top tray! Seriously the MOST bang for your buck!
Monitor, Carrier, Stroller and other gear
We have The First Years Talk and Soothe Video Monitor and love it! For the price, it is great! It's not an HD camera, but we enjoy watching Liam sleep like an angel and using the walkie talkie feature if one of us are in his room and need the other to bring something.
As you can see, we can clearly see what Liam is doing.
MyBaby by Homedics SoundSpa - Lullaby Relaxation Machine: Incredibly great price and my favorite sound machine out there! The ocean and rain sounds on this thing sound very real and the projector light is really fun! I have thought about getting one for mine and Jordan's room haha! EVERY baby needs a good sound machine to block out outside noise, and babies don't like sleeping in silence...the womb is actually pretty loud!
Stroller: We went with the Maxi Cosi Kaia and Mico NXT Travel System. Amazing price for a car seat with car seat base and a stroller you can use with the car seat and then convert into a toddler stroller. The stroller is nothing fancy, but I'm a practical person and it does the job. It folds quickly and easily and I can throw it into my car with no problem. I'm just not into travel systems costing $400+ ya'll.
Baby K'tan Breeze Baby Carrier: I absolutely am in love with this carrier. It is the easiest carrier to put on (once you watch a Youtube tutorial of how to put it on and practice), it keeps baby so snuggly close to you and secure, baby can face in or out, it supports baby's hips correctly and...you honestly cannot beat that price! You can throw it in your washing machine, and you get it in the size shirt you normally wear. I went to Buy Buy Baby and tried it on for size just to be safe.
Terrible pic from my phone, but here's Liam in the Baby K'tan at 1 month old.Eddie Bauer Reversible Cart & Highchair Cover: This is such a great baby shower gift! So practical and I use it at restaurants to cover their nasty highchairs and every time I go shopping and put Liam in the buggy. This one is large enough to fit Sam's giant buggies (or carts...whichever you say). These covers also gave me peace of mind when first putting Liam in a buggy at 6 months old and he was still a little wobbly sitting up...nice to have some soft padding around baby!
Fisher Price Newborn Rock 'n Play Sleeper: These are literally life savers! Definitely a MUST HAVE for parents! Liam didn't have acid reflux or anything, but he hated sleeping flat on his back in the first few months. The rock 'n play is so cozy like a hammock and it vibrates. Also, it's great to put baby in so you can get something done...you know like fold laundry or eat your lunch! It folds flat and is so lightweight, so it's great for traveling with tiny babies!
Ingenuity ConvertMe Swing-2-Seat: This swing was great for those tiny baby months. Again, practical mom here, I loved that it is inexpensive, can be a swing or seat and the batteries last a long time since the swing motion comes from a magnetic force pushing it rather than a battery operated motor. Also, I like being unique and not getting the brand everyone and their sister gets, and then discovering it's a great brand! I got the bouncer of the same line, and it was great, but if you're gonna purchase anything, I say go for the swing.
Ingenuity Baby Base 2-in-1 Booster Seat: We LOVE this chair! Compared to the Bumbo, this seat is cheaper, supports baby better with a seat belt and tray and can last into toddler years! The Bumbo is useless after baby can sit up supported and doesn't even come with a tray. Lame! This was Liam's first highchair-like seat!
Infantino Go GaGa Deluxe Twist & Fold Gym: Liam absolutely loved this tummy time mat! He loved the musical mobile and looking at/swatting the animals before he could roll over, and the pillow it comes with propped him up to help strengthen neck and back muscles. We used it for months and months and it was one of the first things Liam enjoyed and interacted with.
Baby Einstein Take Along Tunes: I don't know why this is every baby's favorite toy, but it really is! This is a MUST for baby for sure! Liam was enthralled with the lights and music, and this was the toy that got him to roll over! Also great for taking in the car to keep baby entertained.
Are you still reading this?! I know this was such a LONG list, but I'm really hoping it helps the first time moms out there that are so confused by all the options of products or the person shopping for a practical baby shower gift. If you have any questions, leave them in the comments, and please let me know what items you can't live without!
Thanks SO much for taking the time to visit, stick around and I hope you come back!
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