Five years ago when I was pregnant with my first son, I was overwhelmed by the amount of baby items on the market. What should I include in my registry and what was junk? How would I know? Well, after the baby came along and I got into a routine, I quickly figured out what worked for us and what didn’t. A few of my girlfriends were pregnant with their first babies around that time, and they asked me to put together a list of items that I liked. So, if you’re a new mom or mom to be, here is a list of what I thought of as the top 10 essentials for newborns.
- Baby swing. This thing is like gold and will make any infant fall asleep instantly! We had one similar to this.
- Boppy pillows (2). Two pillows guarantees there is always one around if the other is dirty. Plus, get a few extra covers. Find them here.
- Dr. Brown’s bottles. Lots of parts but great for stopping gas.
- Breast pump. I used one that was similar to this. Definitely go for the double electric if you plan on pumping regularly.
- Video monitor. Essential. And soothing for you to be able to see her/him without her/him seeing you. Find a cool one here.
- Infant car seat/stroller. We had a Chicco “travel system” because the infant car seat can pop out of the stroller and straight into the car seat base. When the baby gets bigger you can put him/her straight into the stroller without the infant car seat. It’s a little expensive, but very functional. You could also get the carseat and base and then just get a carrier stroller like this one.
- Swaddlers! These look like torture devices, but they are awesome and babies LOVE them. They love being swaddled to sleep and snuggling. But, sometimes re-doing their swaddle blankets in the middle of the night is a pain in the you know what. These things keep them locked up safe and warm!
- Blankets. You can’t have enough blankets for on the go diaper changes, swaddling, spit up, play time, etc. These are the best ones I have found. In fact, my son STILL snuggles with his now at 3 years old. They are good for everything!
- Baby carrier. These things are awesome for getting stuff done around the house once you’re up to it, but just a warning, the baby doesn’t want to be put down. There are a hundred styles, but I stuck with the original Baby Bjorn and loved it.
- Bouncy seat. Any style works. It’s just a good place to put the baby down safely when you want to take a shower or do the dishes.
What do you think? What would you add or take away?
Wow! What a great list. I LOVED my running stroller (BOB) and definitely used my Ergo (baby carrier) way more than I ever envisioned – especially with the second.