Baby Stuff You Need

7.17.2020


I really don't feel like talking about The Virus, and I have several friends who are pregnant right now, so let's talk about cute babies and some things you need for babies. Truthfully, you actually don't need a ton of stuff. But you do need some essentials and basics.

Probably none of these things are new, but several are new to me and so useful with F! Others are oldies that I've used and loved now with all three kiddos.

>> As always, I am using affiliate links where applicable because believe it or not these posts do take some time to put together, so yes, I'm that person right now. Clicking costs you nothing and gets me like ten cents ;) I'm thisclose to quitting my day job, wouldn't you know it.

Okay, in no particular order...

Haakaa Silicone Breast Pump - Definitely one of the greatest inventions for nursing/pumping moms everywhere. I have over 550 ounces of milk in our freezer, and most of it came from using this during the day. It also came in super handy when I had a work conference over zoom that took up the entire day. I may or may not have used it while running a virtual editorial meeting.

Breastfeeding Bar - I don't know if these have actually increase my milk supply, but they are yummy! I like the blueberry coconut flavor (and I don't even like coconut usually). A friend sent me some, and when I ran out I bought 2 more boxes for myself.

Baby Bum Brush - A friend gifted this to us when J was born, and it's been so handy. Diaper rash cream is so annoying to try and wash off your fingers, and this makes applying cream so easy. I love that there is also a travel size that I can carry in the diaper bag.

Oball Rattle - We've used this ball for all 3 kids now, and it's one of F's current favorites. I don't know why, but they have all loved it.

Infant Activity Toy - A friend gifted this to F, and it is his absolute favorite toy. He gets so crazy excited and loves chewing on it and holding it.

Sensory Crinkle Toy with Squeaker - I clipped this to F's carseat strap, and he loves playing with it. I think he likes that it makes that crinkly sound, and I like that it squeaks when you press the middle!

Compact Infant Bath - My friend was getting rid of some baby stuff and gave me this for F. It's been amazing! I'm so sad I didn't use something like this with the other kids. He's 5 months and will outgrow soon, and I'm sad because I've used this for the majority of his baths. It's foldable, dries quickly, and has been perfect for baths in the sink!

Baby Bath Seat - When he's taken a bath in the actual bathtub, we use this seat, which we got for R and have used for all 3 kids. Super basic, but it's been great, and I'd say we've gotten our money's worth considering it's really cheap to begin with.

Copper Pearl Burp Cloths - I've shared about my love for Copper Pearl fabric bibs on the blog before, but I'd never tried their burp cloths until we got some from a friend for F. LOVE. They are large and thick and my favorite burp cloths to use.

Copper Pearl Blanket - That same friend also bought us this blanket, and oh. my. word. It's stretchy and thick and super soft. This would make a fantastic baby shower gift or a splurge gift for yourself. Seriously this is my favorite blanket!

Cradle Cap System - Buy this! For your own baby, for a friend's baby. Everyone needs one. All of our kids have had cradle cap issues (are there babies that don't? Maybe this is not a thing everyone deals with), and I distinctly remember going to church with R and a friend telling us she had cradle cap, and Jordan and I being like, "what's cradle cap?" We thought her head was just scabbing from using the vacuum to get her out, but actually she had really bad cradle cap! J had it too, and finally with F I actually looked up what I could get to help and bought this scrub brush. It totally works and I'm going to recommend it to everyone forever. Don't be like us.

Love to Dream Swaddle - The. best. swaddle. Basically a sleep sack really. All babies are different, but F LOVES this. He's slept in it every night since he was a tiny baby. I randomly bought two of these off a buy/sell/trade page months before he was born, never thinking it would be so great for our little guy. I wish I had used this for the other two! He was in a size small for a while, is currently in a medium, and I'm about to buy the size large so he can transition to having his arms out. Get this!

Baby Memory Book - I've used a different baby book method with each kid, and this is the one I bought to use with F. It's definitely my favorite. Super simple, classic designs and not a lot of frill. They have a girl, boy, and a gender neutral. The online description says it's "LGBTQ friendly," which just means that it doesn't specifically refer to mom or dad anywhere. Only mentioning that because I sent this link to a friend and she texted back and was like, um, what does that mean? So that's what it means.

Baby Rocker - Everyone is going to have a different opinion about baby seats, loungers, rockers, etc. We've used this same rocker for all three kids, and honestly, it's not the cutest design ever, but it's been fantastic. It's easy to carry around the house, and it can rock back and forth or stay still depending on if you have the back legs down. The toy rack comes off (actually we haven't found it for F yet; it's somewhere in the attic). Personally, we have never used a big swing thing or activity seat. I feel like we wouldn't have used them enough to justify the cost or the space. A rocker like this can be used for a long time (R and J like to sit in it and pretend to be babies lol!), and it can be easily moved around.

We do have a MamaRoo, but only because I got one for free for a sponsored blog post several years ago. It is a really neat seat, but for the price I think there are other seats that serve essentially the same function for much cheaper.

Boppy Pillow - I would guess in the last 5 years since I had R they've come out with a new version of the original boppy pillow, but I've used mine for three babies and find it super useful. As F gets older, I don't use it every single time I nurse, but it is really helpful at the beginning, and I just personally like using it.

Sound Machine - We are DUMB. This is baby #3 and the first time we've used a sound machine. Wut. Yes, dumb. And actually, we've never even used this for F yet... it's in the room where R and J sleep. But anyway, this is the sound machine we registered for and got from a friend, and I recommend it. Pro tip: get your kids used to the "rain" setting, and then when it actually rains outside they aren't phased and wake up in the night because it just sounds like their sound machine.

Sound Monitor - You can get a fancy video monitor with extra cameras and all that jazz. But, if you just want a simple sound monitor, no frills or fancy gadgets, this is what we've been using since 2015. We've never used a video monitor, if you can believe it!
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I'm sure there are lots of other things I could link to, but those are what came to mind. Babies are fun! Baby stuff, however, can be overwhelming (okay, babies can be overwhelming, who am I kidding); but like I mentioned above, you really don't need a ton of stuff. Hopefully this list is useful to get you started, and if there's something I missed that you love, feel free to leave a comment!

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