While I was still pregnant, I spent a lot of time researching what kind of things we might need/find useful with having a newborn. As a first time mom, I wanted to make sure we had everything we thought we might need before baby arrived so we could be as prepared as possible. It helps to have other young moms in your life to ask these kinds of questions to as well. My best friend had a baby 6 months before I did so she has been a tremendous resource for so many of my questions and baby item recommendations! (Thank you Anna♥) Also, being a nanny for many years exposed me to tons of different baby items, too!
Now that I’ve been a mom for almost 4 months, I thought I would share the things that I personally have found to be “must-haves” for me and my family (some aren’t even necessarily must-haves but just more so items we LOVE. I know that our son’s needs will change as he grows, but the things I have listed below are the things that have helped make the newborn/beginning baby stage very helpful so far!
I don’t want to waste any time – so let’s get right to it!
***CLICK THE TITLE OR IMAGE OF EACH ITEM FOR A DIRECT LINK TO PURCHASE**
(items are in no particular order)
1. Hatch Rest Sound Machine
The Hatch Rest Sound Machine is a daily use in our home! With the many different sounds like ocean, white noise, and forest; this will provide some background noise for your little one to rest to. The ring on the top of the hatch is turned on by touch, and everything can also be controlled by an app on your phone. It makes it very convenient and is an item that you will use for a long time!
2. OXO Tot Perfect Pull Wipes
One thing you’ll be doing a lot of with having a baby is changing diapers!!! So anything that can make that easier and stress free is awesome! Having been a nanny and working in child care for many years, I’ve changed thousands of diapers, and always found most wipe containers to be really annoying because 97 wipes would come out at once! The OXO Perfect Pull wipe container is great because it has a weighted plate that allows only one wipe to come out at a time. The lid also has a silicone suction around the perimeter so it keeps the wipes fresh. You just push your finger once on the lid to open or close and it makes changing a poopy diaper a lot easier.
3. WiFi Bulb
Alright, so I know this one doesn’t necessarily scream “baby” item, but it’s something my husband I use EVERY SINGLE DAY. If you have not heard of a WiFi Bulb, it’s basically just a light bulb that you put in your lamp like normal, but you can control it using an app on your phone. This wifi bulb has been so nice to use, especially in those first few weeks in the middle of the night for diaper changes and feedings when our son was still in our room sleeping in his bassinet. The wifi bulb can be set to any color and any dimness level! My husband and I each have a wifi bulb in our lamps on our night stands, as well as the one we have in our sons nursery in the lamp on the table next to the rocking chair. We mostly use the red color (do your research on why red is a good color) and keep it on a very low dim level, and I swear this has played a HUGE role in making sure our baby does not get over-stimulated during the middle of the night. Our son has been a great sleeper since about 2 months old. When he does wake during the middle of the night, he wakes just to eat and has always gone right back to sleep without a single fuss. Call me crazy, but I believe every parent should have one of these in their child’s nursery, if not every single lamp in their home! SO SO SOOOOO convenient to be able to control the light right from your phone.
4. Ubbi Steel Diaper Pail
This Ubbi Steel Diaper Pail was recommended to me by my neighbor who was also pregnant at the same time I was. This diaper pail is great and I’m really happy we got it because 1, our sons room never smells of poop because this really locks in the odors! And 2, you can use regular trash bags inside of it instead of having to buy specific bags. This diaper pail also comes in a variety of other colors, too!
5. Halo Swaddle & Sleep Sacks
There are so many different kinds of swaddles and sleep sacks out there so really it all comes down to your own preference, but we personally have loved using the HALO brand of swaddle and sleep sacks in one. The grey photo on the left is the swaddle and sleep sack combo. The white photo on the right is JUST a sleep sack. The swaddle sleep sacks help keep your baby’s arms nice and tightly wrapped up (which help with the startle reflex), and also are a great transition to sleeping with arms out. Now that our son is starting to roll, we have him sleeping in just the HALO sleep sacks, but for the first 3 months these were our favorite to use! This brand is also our favorite because they come in a variety of colors and materials! They are also very affordable compared to other ones on the market.
6. Mini Dimmable Alarm Clock
So this is another one of those items that don’t necessarily scream “baby”, but during feedings or even just rocking the baby at night or for naps, it’s nice to be able to quickly glance at the clock and check the time. I usually have my phone on me, but there’s also a lot of times that I don’t, so in order to keep track of time, this dimmable clock has come in handy for us to be able to know what time it is. I made sure it was dimmable because I did not want the numbers to light up our sons room at night. This has been a great addition to our sons nursery!
7. Portable Sound Machine
So first off, I swear the battery life on this portable sound machine is like 9 years long, lol. The charge on this thing seriously lasts forever!!!! It clips right on to the car seat and provides a relaxing white noise sound for your little one. We also use this when we travel to peoples houses, we put it in the pack and play while my son naps and it helps calm him to sleep. We LOVE this and use it so much!
8. Cloud Island Mitten-Cuff Zipper Onesie Sleepers
I’m sure if you talk to any parent, they will tell you that zipper sleepers vs button ups are the way to go! I would have to agree. Button clothes don’t really bother me to be honest, but zipper ones definitely make it easier! Another thing that Josh and I have found that we really like about these sleepers, is that they have mitten cuffs on the hands! Especially at night with a tiny newborn who weighs just itty bitty, (PLUS during colder months), having something to keep your little ones hands warm at night make us feel good about putting our son to sleep so he doesn’t wake up with his fingers feeling like icicles! These are also great for stopping the little ones from scratching their faces. If your child is born in the summer these might not be as needed, but none-the-less we love them. We use these sleepers every night!
9. Baby Nail Trimmer Kit
Baby nails grow SO fast! So naturally you are going to have to trim them often. Never worry about cutting your little ones fingers or toes when you use this thing! It works like a nail file and is very gentle for trimming your little ones nails!! My son loves when I trim his nails and seems to be so intrigued (at least right now he doesn’t mind haha), this makes it very easy and worry free!
10. Oxi Clean
Ok, so my last must-have item again, isn’t necessarily “baby”, but has been a must have for us. I’ve been using oxi-clean for a long time for soaking stains out of clothes and keeping my whites crisp and fresh looking, but once having a baby and noticing our breast-fed sons poop was staining some of his clothes, I would soak his shirts in oxi-clean and then wash them as normal and the stains would be gone. Oxi-clean is safe to use in your little ones laundry. They do make a baby specific oxi-clean, which I’m sure is very similar to the regular, but I do not have experience using that one since we have not tried it. Either way, a stain fighter is a must have for sure with a child due to spit up, blow outs, food, etc.
Any questions, please leave a comment and I’d be happy to answer! 🙂
xoxo
Cady
My daughters name is Cady, it was my mother’s maiden name…