I wanted to do a post on my must have list for babies not only for the benefit of others, but I KNOW I will need to look back at this for the next baby (which is a loooong way off!). I know when I went to register for Collins I was extremely overwhelmed by all of the "stuff" that is out there now for babies. I went in
Buy Buy Baby (awesome store to register) clueless and left with less knowledge than I had when I walked in. First of all NEVER go alone to register, especially if you are a new mom. I would suggest taking someone with you that has some sort of knowledge about baby supplies. Or if you are going with someone who is just as clueless as you are, make an appointment so that someone in the store can walk around with you to answer any questions you may have. I printed out my sister in law and cousin in law's registry list to look over before hand and that helped somewhat, but I still had no idea what I was in for when I walked into the store. It also helps to ask around to see what other mommies favorites are. chances are if several people like the same thing then it's probably going to be worth it to add it to your registry. Bottom line is, I got a lot of stuff I do not need and never really used. So here are MY must haves for baby! In no particular order!!
Once Collins was able to take a real bath we did use the typical Johnson and Johnson baby wash/shampoo and lotions. After several baths I noticed how dry her skin was. She had some flaky spots on her face and hair line and her legs just felt really dry. This was even using the lotion twice a day. My sister in law had the same problem with her little girl so she told me about aveeno bath products. (before I get too far into this, I should warn you that I am probably going to be referring back to my sister in law A LOT! Her little girl, Mason, is 7 months old so she JUST went through almost everything I'm going through. So her knowledge is still fresh in her mind. So most of my recommendations came from her. She's a life saver as I'm sure you already knew from reading my previous posts) Anyway! So we got some aveeno wash/shampoo and I LOVE it! It has a light scent to it, but it smells sooooo good! And the aveeno lotion is unscented so I lather munchkin up with that and then I still use Johnson and Johnson lotions for their smell :) Collins hasn't really had any dry skin issues since we started using these products.
Our favorite diapers are pampers swaddlers. Love the yellow line that turns blue when shes wet or dirty and yes she did have a few blow outs in the beginning, but we've got that under control now too :) As far as wipes go I sill don't have a favorite. I think its a trail and error thing when choosing your favorite. I do have a wipe warmer despite my skepticism. Some come without a pad that you wet and those dry out wipes. This particular warmer (prince lionheart) has that pad and it keeps the wipes warm and moist. Here's the link
Prince Lionheart Wipe Warmer
We use Dr Brown's wide neck bottles and she loves them. Even when I was nursing and bottle feeding she never had a problem with latching on to one or the other (no nipple confusion). We also have the dish washer basket and we take it everywhere. It holds 3 bottles and fits in the bottom rack of the dishwasher and the left over dirty bottles take up the rest of top rack.
Collins ended up being a paci lover like her daddy. I wanted her to use the avent soothies because they have that hole in the middle and you could see her little tongue going to town, but of course she didn't like those. She ended up going for the bpa free regular avent pacis. I would suggest getting several different types of pacifiers until you figure out if/when she likes one better.
Of course we love our bumbo! When Collins started holding her head up I could put her in it and set her by the sink while I did dishes or where ever I was doing something and she would just watch :)
We have the lamb swing for Collins' day time naps and the nap nanny to sleep in at night. When Collins was around 1 month old we moved her nap nanny into her crib and set up our video monitor so we could see her. She made too many noises during the night and mommy was not getting the sleep she so desperately needed. With Collins in her room I can cut the volume low enough to where I only hear her when she wakes up. I know a lot of people leave them in a bassinet when they are that little, and for nursing mom's I'm sure that works best. She has slept very well in her room and now mommy and daddy get good sleep when we get that chance.
Speaking of video monitor. I DO NOT KNOW how anyone lived/lives without one of these, (although obviously it is possible). To this day if I wake up in the middle of the night I stare at the monitor to make sure she is still breathing. I'm getting better at that, but I am so glad I have it right there for me to look at whenever I want to.
Since the first time I felt Collins move in my tummy I knew she was going to be a busy bee. She kicks and wiggles non stop! Even in her sleep. We tried swaddling with regular swaddle blankets, but she could break out of those in no time. So once again A-Ash (that's what our nieces call my sister in law) to the rescue. She told us about
Summer Swaddleme wraps. These have been such wonderful thing to have! They velcro so she can't get out of them and she sleeps so well without "startling" herself awake. Those swaddle blankets have made great light summer blankets though! And they are soooo cute :)
Collins loves bath time and the bath tub that we originally registered for and got was great when she was little and used the sling, but now she wants to kick and play and squirm all over the place. When we took the sling out it had no grip for her so she was all over the place. Now we have the First Year's bath tub and it has grip at her head and bottom so she can kick and splash and she doesn't fall over.
We use lots and lots of burp cloths and bibs. Collins spits up occasionally and it doesn't take much to ruin a bib. Before you know it you are out of clean bibs and burp cloths. I love kissy kissy bibs and burp cloths. They are super soft and cute. The bibs aren't huge like the other ones I have so they look cute on her as well. Speaking of kissy kissy, I LOVE their clothes as well. They fit really well and they are just as soft as their bibs and burp cloths. They are kinda pricey, but they hold up well (for future siblings) and Collins wears them all the time. So I think we get our money's worth out of them! Here are a couple of websites where you can get anything kissy kissy.
Green Daisies ,
www.diapers.com, and
Sweetest Little Baby.
We have a
Chicco car seat and a
City Mini stroller and I love them. The stroller opens and closes so easily and both are pretty light compared to some others I've seen. Collins and I will go for walks at the track and it literally takes no time to open up the stroller and sit the car seat in it. If I didn't have these I very seriously doubt I would attempt to go walking by myself. Since this is not a travel system you have to get the
adaptor for the car seat, but it goes on easily and the car seat just snaps in perfectly!
For keeping up with everything from feeding schedules to diaper counts I recommend downloading the total baby app. I think it's like 1.99, but well worth it. You will need all of that information when you go to the pediatrician. And you will have too much going on to keep up with that off the top of your head.
And last but certainly not least pj's!!! In the first few weeks we lived in gowns (for frequent diaper changes) when her bm's became more regular we moved on to footie pj's. Again due to having a little wiggle worm these are fabulous. She can kick and squirm and you don't have to worry about a gown riding up!
All of these things can be found at
Buy Buy Baby and
Target. If you are expecting I hope this helps!!
With love,
Amanda
Phillipians 4:13
