MUST HAVE BABY PRODUCTS FOR FIRST YEAR

July 09, 2023

Hello my friends! Carter is going to be one in just a week or so and I cannot believe how fast time has flown! I remember feeling SO incredibly overwhelmed when creating my registry with the endless list of baby products on the market. I had absolutely no clue where to begin or what we would actually need! I am sharing with you my must have baby products we’ve used the most during Carter’s first year! 

Feeding

Breastfeeding

• Medela hand pump: absolute must have! So much easier for on the go pumping and quick pumping sessions, I found this more comfortable than other pumps!
• Haaka: I hated using this when nursing, but would use this alongside the medela hand pump to catch leg down when pumping 
• Medela milk storage bags
• Lansinoh round ice packs: I struggled with terrible engorgement and these really helped to reduce the pain and clogged ducts!
• Silverettes: life savers especially at the beginning!
• Boppy: honestly we used this more to prop him in for bottle feeding and as he got older for sitting him up, tummy time, etc.
• Notes: I have both the elvie wearable pumps and spectra pumps, I would do some personal research to see what pumps work best for you! They worked fine for me but there are a million to choose from!

Bottle feeding

• Dr. Brown’s & Comotomo bottles: we initially started with Dr. Brown’s and switched to Comotomo due to some issues with Carter’s feeding but I liked both! Also, make sure whatever bottles you purchase have different options for nipple flow (had no idea about this) so you can start with a slow flow and progress as baby gets older!
• Microwave quick steam bags: you pop them in the microwave for a minute and they quick sterilize - game changer especially for travel and middle of the night feeds!
• Bottle warmer: I’m sure there’s a million brands out there we just didn’t love the Dr. Browns one and this one fits bottles of all sizes!
• Baby brezza sterilizer: we still use this every single night, I like that is dries the bottles too so we never had to use a dry rack on our counter!
• Baby’s Brew portable bottle warmer: absolute MUST have if you are planning to be out and about! We never had to worry about going out during feeding times because we always brought this to heat, we still use it all the time!
• Muslin burp cloths
• Notes: along with bottle feeding you’ll need a bottle brush, bottle soap, and probably a separate bowl of basin to soak and wash the bottles in!

Solids

• Haaka pop: we use this almost every day and it was a great way to start introducing flavors to Carter! Pop a frozen fruit in it, perfect for teething, or if he is just fussy or if I need 5 minutes to do something, it’s great!
• Silicone bibs
• Silicone spoon
• Silicone dish
• High chair

Sleep

• Monitor: The picture and battery life are really good and I love that it's not on Wi-Fi!
• Hatch: any sound machine will do!
• Egg tap light: necessity for late night feedings!! We ended up buying multiple of these and brought to the hospital too!
• Sleep Sacks: So I was very confused with all the sleep sacks, basically they start in a swaddle (he loved the dreamland one the most, we also used the halo ones too) then after like 3 months they can’t be swaddled anymore because they start rolling so that’s when you switch over to just normal sleep sacks. The Merlin suit is like an in-between the swaddle and sleep sacks, we used it from months 4-6ish and now he’s fully just in the Kyte/Burt’s bees sacks! Very confusing but I was so overwhelmed and had no clue with any of the sleep stuff 😂 I would recommend just getting one of a couple different kinds of swaddles to start and then once you find a swaddle you love grab a few back ups for middle of the night changes!
• Dreamland weighted swaddle / halo swaddles
• Magic Merlin suit
• Kyte sleep sacks / Burt’s bees sleep sacks
• Solly baby wrap: my absolute life saver! I couldn’t have started working again without this, Carter loveddddddd to nap all wrapped up while I worked! I have 3!
• Portable sound machine (I like skip hop owl one the best): these worked great for travel or if I had Carter wrapped to me for a nap around the house!
• Nestig Crib: I love this because it starts as a mini crib (bassinet we had in our room from birth - 5 months) then expands into the full size crib in his room, and then will expand into a toddler bed!
• Newton mattress 
• Notes: you’ll also need crib sheets & footies! To be honest Carter lived in pjs for the first 6 months, just have a few footies in each size and some plain basic onesies 

Awake & Play

• Mamaroo swing (0 - 3 months): we used this every single day, perfect place to put him in to grab coffee, or honestly do anything hands free for a few! He loved the movement, music, and the little mobile on it!
• Snuggle me (0 - 3 months): another great product to just pop him in if I needed to be hands free, we would use this every night on our counter while we ate dinner!
• Baby bjorn bouncer (1 - 6 months): he also loved this, I would put him in here so I could do some work and this is also great for travel and bringing to friend’s & family’s houses!
• Fisher price Piano kick mat (0 - 8 months): the MVP of playtime! It is super versatile so it grows with them and he was mesmerized by the music! 
• Skip hop activity center (4 - current): once Carter started becoming more mobile and growing out of his swing & bouncer this was the perfect place to put him to be hands free! It converts into a table so we are still using it now as a play table and he loves it!
• Play pen (7 months - current): once Carter started crawling around we set this up around his play area to keep him contained and it’s perfect!
• Fold up play mat (2 months - current): this is perfect for in the home (If you want to put something down in the playpen) but also for travel! We bring this to our parents house, outside, and honestly everywhere it folds up so nicely and is very portable and soft!
• Walker (7 months - current): Carter absolutely loves this, even before he started standing he loved playing with the front panel and now he walks all around with it!
• Lovevery play kit subscription (3 months  - current): these are basically the only toys we have, Carter loves them and they keep him super entertained and engaged!
• Notes: we have the lovevery playmat and it’s good but honestly I would just recommend getting the fisher price play mat and opting for the lovevery playkits! You’ll probably also need some teether toys, Carter didn’t love too many of them but his favorite was this one!

Bath

• Angelcare bath tub (0 - 7 months): we put this in our sink to start and then in our bath tub
• Summer my bath seat (7 - 12 months): we just stopped using this, but this was the perfect transition from the angelcare seat to the full bathtub!
• Tub liner: now that he is sitting in the tub this is great for non slip!
• Notes: you’ll also need some baby soap and towels, we love the tubby todd & hello bello products!

Changing

• Munchkin wipeable changing pad: I like this much better than the keekaroo, for some reason the keekaroo changer is always sooooo cold and would make Carter cry when he was a newborn!
• Ubbi diaper pail
• Earth mama diaper rash balm
• Fold up changing pad: we use this now as our downstairs changing station and for travel!
• Diapers
• Wipes

Travel

• Nuna infant car seat
• Uppababy Vista 2 Stroller
• Graco Convertible Car Seat: we are just transitioning Carter to this now
• Doona: probably my #1 recommendation! This was so convenient for bringing Carter absolutely anywhere and everywhere! Makes going out to restaurants so easy, errands so easy, and honestly just made leaving the house 10x easier! 
• Car monitor
• Pack n Play: we used this as a downstairs station for a while and now we use it all the time for travel at friend's and family's houses!
• Pack n Play foldable mattress

First Aid/Care

• Medical Kit: You need a rectal thermometer, and this pacifier was perfect for giving medicine! This nasal aspirator is the only thing that worked for Carter when he was sick, 10/10 recommend this kit!!!
• Electric Nail File
• Cradle Cap Brush

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