Alright. I’ve worked on this list continually through the beginning of my motherhood journey. And I have sent it to many expecting parents. But I thought why not just share it openly? People can look at these suggestions and choose for themselves what they will or will not buy! I like writing reviews! It’s something I’ve gotten into over the years because I like to READ reviews before I buy things or go places. I’m always grateful for the reviewers. So here I shall be your reviewer
As an expectant mother I was asked to create a baby registry… and I was like UH I dunno what I need!? How am I supposed to know that? And I had to dig through the inter-webs and ask all the people and find out what I would need to purchase. It was time consuming but I think I got some very helpful things and avoided too much useless crap. 😂
So if you are here now, dear expectant Mother, it is okay. You do not have to know what you need. Because I have made a super list of things we found helpful. And I will update it as we go. And I plan to have at least one more baby but maybe 9 more so who knows. 😂
New mama recommendations
For mid to late pregnancy I highly recommend some slip on runners. I had some sketchers hands free slip ons so I never had to bend down to put my shoes on. Game changer.
Late maternity undies that are great for post partum as well as they put zero pressure on your greatly expanded lower belly.
Nipple shield “silverettes”. These protect your nips from friction between feedings. They also just keep your nipples in the right shape for when you do feed. Pricey but super helpful in the first month of breastfeeding. Could probably use a cheaper kind for the exact same effect. You only need them about a month until your nipples become elastics. 😂
Lanolin cream for your nips. My midwife told me to put it on and then a piece of Saran Wrap over my nipple to keep it from being absorbed by my bra. Helpful especially if you don’t have nipple shields👌🏻 ALSO there’s a prescription nipple cream.. Jack Newman’s. Ask your midwife. You could probably get it before the baby comes cuz it’s magical and helps so much but you can only use for a week at a time. I have used it on numerous occasions as my son would have sleep regressions or if he got sick and only wanted to nurse in the toddler days.
Burp cloths. Sprinkle them everywhere in your home. 😂 really love cosy cubs muslin ones because they are super absorbent and stay on your shoulder. They work great later on too for cleaning child when there’s less barfing and more solid food all over their face and hair.
Velcro swaddle wraps. These helped him sleep so much cuz he just was more squished. We learned he liked to have his hands up by his face too so we squished him in that way. Sometimes his arms escaped mid snooze but after a while that stopped startling him. But looking back we should have pinned his darn arms down cuz it probably would have helped. I was just such a sucker for him and wanted him to have what he wanted. 😂 Honestly there are probably better ones than these. I would’ve tried the love to dream ones but these are what we used.
As he got a bit bigger we really liked the Halo swaddle. Kept his arms in way better. It’s a little weird giving your baby a straight jacket to sleep in but they love it for about the first 2-3 months😂😅
Pads. I’d probably get a Costco sized box level 2 or 3 absorbency. And if you have time make yourself some padsicles. Truly one of the mostly helpful healing things I received!!! The ones in the hospital also were just frozen with water on them and that was great as well. Like. Such a gift on a sore and stitched up new mom.
Nursing bras. These came with removable cups that are essentially useless hahah. Used these with nipple shields and disposable breast pads. Wear the breast pads for day 3 when your milk comes in. Or you may wake up in a puddle. I honestly got 3 packs of these in all different sizes and they all fit hahaha. They come with a band extender too which is very nice. You’ll want lots because you’ll get milk all over them and your child will puke on you lots and you may have stinky postpartum sweat. 😂 oh the joys!
Kimono style onesies! Or rompers! They are the easiest to get on the newborn baby without too much fuss because they lay wide open. I used to think zippers only but snaps are great for newborns. Zippers are great too but snaps are more peaceful to get on when they are tiny. Our son was born in the summer so all he wore was onesies and was in a little blanket all the time too so we didn’t really need little pants.
Also these snap rompers. They work well with pants overtop as well.
The oogiebear nose picker. I felt oddly concerned about his nose being free of boogers so he can breathe easy while breastfeeding as a newborn. 😂 this thing is a handy little picker. I used it almost every morning. It is probably slightly unnecessary but their nose holes are so tiny they are near impossible to pick yourself.
Nose Frida snot sucker. Alright this thing seems gross but it works. The only thing I find tough is pinning Mav down enough to snot suck him. Also an automatic one might be nice cuz my lungs run out of power with this sometimes. 4 stars but does the trick. I really didn’t want to have to use this but Mav got sick 4-5 times from January to June. It was rough but eventually didn’t phase him or me too much.
Breastfeeding pillow. “My Brest friend” The most comfy way to feed the child. There’s a clip on this so it stays around you. We started cradle hold but then switched to football hold and that was much easier. This pillow made breastfeeding sooooooo much easier. Now that he’s bigger we are back to cradle hold. My only qualm with this is the Velcro for the strap has snagged a few of his cute little clothes so I’d cover it up with something cuz you don’t need more reasons to cry postpartum. Hahaha
Baby nail filer. The child came out with razor sharp little nails to scratch his own face with and also my super sensitive new mom nips. This filer is the one we have and it worked well at first but power seems to have decreased although maybe it’s just a safety measure so you don’t hurt your baby. It stops if you put too much pressure. I’m sure there’s a better one but this was very helpful when he was small. Then he got to strong and didn’t want to sit still so for a while it was near impossible to trim his nails. Now he’s 12 months and I can use regular nail clippers. You could probably use them from the get go but I tried once and cut his finger cut their skin is so thin and smooth. It was sad for both of us lol.
Nuk comfy orthodontic pacifiers. We tried some other ones too that were only okay (avent) but he held onto these best. I would probably try the Tommee Tippee ultra lights too if these didn’t work because the Nuk ones are a bit heavy. I can’t stress how helpful these have been. Helping to calm him in the car, calm him in general, teething, giving something for Dad to offer so the baby can have the sucking hormone help them sleep. Never not having a pacifier baby. Hahah. He also just decided he didn’t want them anymore when he was 17 or 18 months old so we didn’t have to wean him off them thankfully!
Pacifier clips that are just fabric. We got some that have silicone balls and they aren’t very bendable and are heavy. Prefer a simpler one. These are nice and maybe a bit too long though.
Crinkly books. Mav LOVED these when he was little and gave him very much entertainment.
Play gym. Get one. Mavi spent so much time in there lookin around and kicking and yapping. He loves it and it both helps him learn and gives you some time to make yourself food. We got the baby Einstein one. It’s a bit of an eyesore but I was thrilled with it because our baby loved to play in it. The piano broke though after 4 months of use. 😩
Stroller toys. Something to look at in the car. Easy grasp ball. Oball. Sophie the giraffe. Straw teethers. Rattles.
Sleep sacks! Around 3 months baby gets over being swaddled. Wants to free those arms at night and stab themselves in the eye if they so choose. We had him in the snoo then so it was the snoo sleep sack. But. When we switched him to a regular sleep sack we had perelimpinpin ones at first. They were fine. Now we have Kyte ones. I love them. They are expensive though but everyone sells these on Facebook marketplace when they are done with them so you could get second hand. They pill a bit but if you use a pill shaver they will look brand. 1.0 tog is the most common and ideal for a normalish temperature home 22 degrees. I got a bubble panda one on Amazon that is 0.5 tog for summer and I love it. I’m sure these are just as nice as kyte.
Places to put the baby! “Circle of neglect” great for 5 months - 9 months ish. Like so great. Baby loves it. Gives you free hands to make food. We had the skip hop one that we got used on market place. Some of the best money I’ve ever spent in my life. We also had the ergobaby bouncer for when he was littler. It was awesome. Sometimes he slept in there. It helped with acid reflux I think because it helped him be more upright after a feed. I probably would have loved a swing that was automatic.
The angelcare bath seat. Gives you a break while baby wiggles around in the bath. Loved this. Was sad when he didn’t wanna use it anymore around 7 months.
The snoo. We used this around 1 month to about 5 months old. We were so desperate for sleep. I’m convinced it helped. But was a nuisance because we felt like he wouldn’t nap being still. But eventually he just stopped wanting the motion as they do.
Diaper reviews
Okay so my favourite are pampers swaddlers. They come up nice and high on the back and really absorb well without blowing up like a balloon. They also have a nice scent which I at first thought was dumb. To have fragrance. But I learned to really love that fresh baby smell haha. I have now made a subscription on Amazon and it’s a good deal though sometimes I purchase them at superstore for the best deal.
Pampers baby dry are probably in second. They are cheaper and near the same ish but I can’t explain why the swaddlers are just better. Both roll up nicely for trashing. If these had a blowout barrier they’d be so much better.
He is using pampers cruisers now too which are like pull ups because around 10 months he started to hate sitting still to get his diaper changed. And he was near impossible to change a diaper laying on his back until he was 21 months.
Rascal and friends. These are pretty awesome tbh. Super sturdy. They have intense Velcro straps that feel ultra strong. I don’t find they absorb poop super well. But they are really well made and feel quite “industrial” my husband says.😂
Kirkland. Surprisingly great and the cheapest diapers out there and available at Costco. They have a blowout barrier and no dimples on the inside. No scent. Patterns are kinda cute too. The Velcro straps are stretchier and longer so they wrap around the baby really well.
Huggies. They expand too much when wet. They have some dimples on the inside that I found would imprint on Mavs body haha. They also are harder to roll up because they get so thick. They don’t absorb evenly. If he had a big pee it wouldn’t carry all the way to the back of the diaper. Sometimes it would leak out the sides instead. Pampers would absorb all way around. They are fine I just grew to like pampers better. But these are sold at Costco.
Hello Bello. They are ok. They have cute designs but they were like low riders in the back. Mav wasn’t a big blowout baby so it didn’t matter much but I always felt like his crack was on the edge of sticking out. I only tried newborn size though so perhaps bigger ones would have been nicer but I already had my favorites.
Mom tools/ wisdom
The huckleberry app.
This has helped us track feeds and sleep mostly. But you can track diapers and many other things. Very helpful to make sure your baby is having appropriate wake windows.
The wonder weeks website (they have an app and book too)
Info about babys “leaps” aka growth spurts aka fussy times. It’s wild to me how spot on these leaps are. Mav had some unexplained super hunger non sleepy times around 4 weeks and it was growth spurt and we survived. 8 weeks there’s a big leap too. And we survived. Just after 3 months he started sleeping weird. We’ve survived. All these leaps are explained in the wonder weeks. The child is more advanced with each leap so while it is hard times it is also good times.
The womanly art of breastfeeding book
So much more than a breastfeeding book. Honestly the best birth advice I read. I was afraid to read about giving birth until a few months before. This made me feel like it was gonna be okay and like my body was designed to do this. And it WAS and IS.
Baby clothes.
I’m a huge fan of old navy. They have tons of deals and most things are really nice quality. Have got most things from old navy for him. Gap is really nice too but wait for a good sale.
We had one snap up 3-6m kyte footie sleeper that was a hand me down from Eric’s sister. Honestly loved it so much when he was tiny. Even getting it used by two babies it was really nice. I have ordered many things through kyte one time on a big sale. I was less impressed. Buy kyte used.
I find I really like the style of H&M but the quality is only ok.
We got a really nice blanket from belan-j that we love so much!!! For the stroller. But honestly we got a ton of blankets. From all the grannies hahaha I have so many knit blankets I dunno what to do with them. 😂
Breastfeeding snacks.
I cannot emphasize enough how hungry I feel and especially felt in the beginning of my breastfeeding journey. You thought you ate a lot during pregnancy? Prepare yourself for the hunger that hits any and all times of day. Nuts, trail mix and dried fruit ( big fan of dried mango) were an ultimate necessity as well as massive amounts of water. Just put snacks right where you’re going to be breastfeeding. Protein bars. Feeding yourself while feeding a human is a challenge but these snacks are very helpful! Get a massive water bottle for your breastfeeding zone.
A comfy chair to breastfeed in. I honestly wish I got a recliner. But I had a decent chair that I’ve definitely slept in while breastfeeding. You will spend much time here.
The slumberpod. Alright. We got this for camping but we have ended up using it over Mavs crib all the time. A black out tent. Breathable. I didn’t realize how much light was effecting his sleep. This helped SO MUCH. We didn’t have to worry about light under the door anymore either.
