Now that we’re on to baby #2, I feel like I can give an honest evaluation of what gadgets and gizmos are “essential” for each stage. Here are a few of our favorite baby and mom items for ages 1-3 months…
Eating/Breast Feeding
Spectra Pump – My first go at this I had the Medela pump. And it works well. It’s just a little painful. So thank goodness for a much more smooth, natural feeling, and MUCH less noisy, Spectra. I can’t rave enough about this pump! It initiates a “natural” let down in the beginning and when you’re ready to convert to a full on “pump” it isn’t nearly as painful. Either way – call your insurance company and make sure you get a breast pump FOR FREE!!
Pumping Bra – Being a working mom, I spend a lot of time pumping. So a bra or tank is totally necessary. Unless of course I want to sit there holding the suctions the entire time. But 30 mins, 3-4 times a day is valuable time that I could spend doing other things…driving my car, putting on my makeup, eating breakfast, etc.
Dr Brown Bottles – We have always used Dr Brown’s bottles and love them. I was turned on to them because they aerate the milk and prevent bubbles from forming in the bottle when the baby drinks. And we’ve never had an issue with them leaking or seeming to cause excess gas.
Bottle Brush – You can grab any one, but a brush is a MUST have!
Bottle Drying Rack – Everyone loves the Boon grass lawn looking thing, but to be honest it gives me anxiety. ha ha. It seems like it would always be a mess with stuff falling all over the place. And it goes OUT. I like this rack because it goes UP! Takes up less space but has two tiers for drying.
Bibs – Our little Hudson is a MAJOR spitter. And it drives me CRAZY! Her sweet little outfits are always covered with bibs…and spit up. ha ha. We’ve quickly learned which ones are the good and the worthless. The bigger, and more absorbent, the better! And that’s why these are our faves.
Haakaa – If you’re a breast feeding momma and you don’t have this —— girl you are missing out on like an extra 12 oz of milk a day! LITERALLY! I had NO idea until I ran into a friend at the mall who had just given birth to her second child and she shared this magical little “rain catcher”. It just suctions to the boob that you’re NOT feeding on and it literally catches all the milk that was dripping all over your baby ha ha ha. In the beginning, I was “catching” 2-3oz per feeding. Which adds up QUICKLY when you are feeding every 3 hours! The best $25 you will ever spend.
Nursing Cover – I personally use the Muslin blankets and just tie them around my neck. Mostly because they are lightweight, not so hot, but also because they’re always around. But here are a few other options for covers…
Boppy – Highly recommend. Your upper back and shoulders will thank you! You can try to wedge a pillow under your elbow the old fashion way, but the firmness of the Boppy is clutch. I use it for breast feeding and Tom uses it when he gives the baby a bottle. And as the age you can use it for tummy time. (but don’t forget the cover…or two! You will need it for sure)
Sleeping
Most of these things were recommended by the sleep training program, Moms on Call, that we follow religiously. You can read all about it here!
Rock N Play – both of my girls started out in a Rock N Play next to our bed. Parker lasted 2 weeks. But Hudson lasted almost 2 months. And still sleeps in this, but in her bedroom. I like that it’s elevated for those reflux babies (like our little Huddy). And the new versions rock and sing songs/sounds. Ours is an “old” version which doesn’t do any of these fancy things, but it serves the purpose.
**since I published this post, the Rock N Play has received terrible reviews. My personal opinion is that all baby products can be UNSAFE if used UNSAFELY! However, I’m no pediatrician and they recommend you don’t use it. We on the other hand would have died without it!
Sleep Sacks/Swaddles – If a swaddle blanket isn’t your thing, or you cant figure out how to swaddle tight enough (it’s harder than learning to speak a new language), then get a sleep sack. Or some sort of a velcro swaddle wrap. This is the brand we use and love, although I know there are many out there.
Sound Machine – Let’s just say we have one in every room of our house. And one that hangs on the carseat and goes with us everywhere. These white noise machines are clutch for EVERYONE to sleep.
Baby Monitor – We never tried any other monitor than the Nest Cam, so I can’t really compare to others. But I absolutely love the Nest. It’s wifi and runs off an app from any device. We have an iPad in our house for our nanny/babysitters. And we use the app on our phone for our own personal use. I love that I can see them from anywhere…literally ANYWHERE! When we’re on vacation, on a dinner date, or just in the other room. We actually love it so much we’ve purchased cameras for our living room and playroom. Oh and the quality of the video in the dark is amazing! So when the girls are sleeping I can see them really well. The ONLY downfall is that there isn’t a traditional “monitor” screen. So when you go to bed at night, it’s not like you can have a monitor beside your bed “listening” for your baby. There is a feature that allows you to turn on notifications for sound and movement, but most people don’t wake in their sleep from just the “ding” of a notification. Our house is small enough that we can hear our kiddos when they cry out so it’s never been a problem for us. But I can see where that would bother someone.
Another reason I love this “monitor” is that its so small and portable. We bring it when we travel and just connect to the wifi. Not like public wifi in hotels because I’ve horror stories of that. But when we go to my parents or during baseball season when we pay for our own wifi service and it’s a secure, password protected account. We’ve also been known to move it around the house to see the dog while we’re away.
And the last amazing feature is the ability to talk both ways on the monitor. For example, when I’m watching parker play in her bed during naptime, I can talk to her via the monitor. “Lay down right now or I’m throwing all of your toys in the trash” ha ha ha. I can even watch her if I’m out running errands and there is a sitter at the house. I can watch her and talk to her. It’s pretty funny at night when we’re doing bedtime and Tom (who is in Florida for Spring Training) starts talking to us. It’s pretty cool because it allows him to be part of bedtime.
Heath/Wellness
Thermometer – There’s nothing more scary than thinking your child has a fever! Especially your little tiny baby! And at this age, the best, most accurate reading you will get on their temperature is via a rectal thermometer. And trust me, it doesn’t phase them at all!!
Thermometer Sleeves – Just make sure you get the plastic sleeves for it.
Nose Frida – That big brown bulb they give you at the hospital to suck “junk” out of your kids nose —- yea throw it in the trash! I can never get the darn thing to work correctly plus you can’t see if you even get anything. And then to get it out. Yea. Just forget it. The Nose Frida is where it’s at! It seems strange to manually SUCK the “junk” out of your babies nose, but don’t worry…it doesn’t get in your mouth. And most importantly – it’s SUPER effective.
Clothing
Zip Up Sleepers – Let’s be real! The ONLY thing your newbie is going to be wearing are zip up sleepers! You’re sleep deprived. They poop or spit up every 10 minutes. You’re constantly changing their clothes or their diaper. Oh and they can’t even sit up to show off those cute little outfits! So….just invest in a TON of zip up sleepers. You don’t want to be fighting the buttons in the middle of the night.
Hair Bows – now if you have a baby girl, DEFINITELY invest 1/2 of your annual income in these AMAZING bows. Made of pantyhose-like material, they are one size fits all! Just like your pantyhose, throw them in the washer and dryer and they shrink right back up. Parker and Hudson wear the same ones.
Pee Pee Tee Pee – if you’re having a little boy – ENOUGH SAID 😉
Diaper Bag
Backpack Diaper Bag – I HIGHLY recommend a backpack diaper bag! With a newborn there is NO other way to go! Heck, with ANY kids, there’s no other way to go. I personally like this one for a thousand reasons. Easy to wipe down. Durable. Compact (if you need more stuff than can fit in here – then you don’t need it). Tiny “crumb” holes in the bottom to shake out all of your crumbs. Side pockets for water bottles. Front pocket for my wallet. Changing pad included.
Bath Time
Towels – I personally like an adult size bath towel. Call me crazy, but it’s big enough to wrap the baby a few times. And most importantly – it’s actually absorbent! Most baby towels drive me crazy because they don’t actually absorb any water.
Bath Tub – One of the best products I was ever given with Parker was this baby tub with a thermometer attached to it. It fits perfectly over our sink and the thermometer allows me to relax a little and know that I’m not scorching my baby! It has since been discontinued because the company wanted to focus on other products. I’ve found another similar one but haven’t used it personally. The other alternative is the thermometer that attaches to any faucet.
Baby Wash – Since having kids I have vowed to use safer products on their skin. So I’ve chosen to use Beauty Counter baby wash.
Baby Balm – My pediatrician swears by Vaseline for ALL things baby. I use the Beauty Counter version of Vaseline for a handful of reasons. One, its a “cleaner” product. And two, its less greasy! It seems to stay put on the skin better!
Gadgets
Swing – The Momaroo is a MUST have in my opinion. I know it’s pricey, but it is worth EVERY. SINGLE. PENNY! Parker pretty much lived in it until she was about 5 months old. Hudson isn’t quite as fond, but I don’t think it has anything to do with the swing….but more that she can’t see her sister running around like a mad woman when she’s in it. ha ha. Its small and compact. It fits neatly into a corner of your house without the big wide legs of a swing. It has a much sleeker look which is never a bad thing. I do love that it has different motions. So a swing usually only goes right to left or front to back. Which would get old after a while — in my opinion. This offers more of a rocking motion in a handful of various patterns. And the noise options are great as well. There are a handful of soothing sounds you can play OR you can hook up an iPod to play your own musical selection. But the best part…it’s QUIET!!! Basically…you need this!!
Baby Carrier – So we have two baby carriers that we swear by! We love the Ergo carrier for when the baby is about 6 mos +. You can definitely use it for smaller sizes, but I just felt that it was too large and structured for a tiny human who can’t hold themselves up. So when I was trying to find a soft cloth carrier for Parker I tried a handful. And NEVER could figure out the ones that were just a long string of fabric that you had to wrap and tie. But thank goodness I found the K Tan. A friend of mine used it with her niece and said if a “non mom” can figure it out…anyone can figure it out!! And it is so easy!
Stroller – In my opinion, The UppaBaby system is the best stroller system to invest your money in. Again, it’s super pricey! But if you do it right, its the ONLY system you will need for up to 3 kids! The reason I chose this system is because it expands UP and not OUT! With as much traveling as we do, I needed a stroller that would fit through doorways and escalators even with two kids. It also has interchangeable seats. So the carseat and the toddler seat can be arranged on here to make like 16 different combinations. You can have two carseats, two toddler seats, or a mix of both in a ton of different combos. I could go on and on about this, but two other great features are how easily it turns with one hand and also the size of the basket beneath. Perfect for grocery (or Target) shopping.
Car Seat – And because we chose the UppaBaby stroller system, we also chose the Mesa carseat. Again because of its functionality, ease of use, and compatibility with the stroller. The base that the carseat sits on is extremely sturdy and ratchets down once strapped into the car. The carseat then snaps right into the base and is easily lifted out with one lever.
Diaper Genie – Because come on, who wants to smell baby poop any longer than they have to?!?!
Below are a few other things we’re using and loving right now!
