Today
I am going to share with you my own list of baby essentials and baby items I
love. Every mom/dad/parent has their own view of what they would like for their
child and what they think they should have, so this is not a go-to set guide
for everyone. I’m just a mom sharing my own perspective and putting it out
there for anyone who wishes to read. So let’s get started!
Nail
Filer
One
thing for sure is baby nails are a lot longer and sharper than you might think,
so it is important to have a way of cutting them. I’ve had people recommend to
me to bite them off. To me that is not sanitary when they put their hands near
their face and in their mouth. And also the thought of chewing on my child
sounds weird, so that was out. We bought baby nail clippers but with her
fingers being so little we were clipping her skin and causing her to bleed, so
we’re saving those clippers for later. Baby mittens covering her hands never
stayed on her, so the only other route was a nail filer, which I think is the
best and safest way to go.
Diaper
Rash Cream
There
are of course ways to prevent diaper rash, such as frequent diaper changes and
keeping your baby dry down there. But sometimes accidents happen and it is nice
to have diaper rash ointment of some sort on hand for when the time arises. My
daughter has been sleeping through the night ever since she was six weeks old,
so she goes 10-12 hours not being changed during the night. Luckily in her
seven months of living, we’ve only had to deal with diaper rash on 3 accounts. We
use Earth’s Best Organic Diaper Relief Ointment and it starts working at the
first use and clears it up completely within a few days. You don’t have to get
a big bottle of your diaper rash cream of choice, but like I said, it’s nice to
just have some on hand so that way you don’t have to run to the store really
quick when it does happen.
Baby
Bath Tub
Many
people say you don’t need a baby bath tub, but I found it really useful while
giving my daughter a bath. I can lay her down while still keeping her a little upright,
and I have the bathtub to support her so that way I can use both hands to wash
her. I didn’t like the idea of just laying my child flat in a bathtub, so I
just got a little $10-$15 bathtub. She’s seven months old and we still use it
every bath time.
Nasal
Aspirator
The
first few weeks of her life, my daughter had the stuffiest nose and always had
boogers. Why? I don’t know. She wouldn’t be sick, but it was nice to have a
nasal aspirator to suck it out. We had to use a nasal aspirator almost every single
day for the first two month of her life.
Flexible
Thermometer
The
most accurate way to take your baby’s temperature is rectally, so a flexible
thermometer is more comfortable for your baby because it bends with them if
they squirm around, rather than a regular, stiff one.
Gripe
Water
Gripe
water is something my boyfriend and I always used as a last resort, when we
couldn’t find anything wrong among the list of: is she too hot or too cold,
does she need a diaper change, is she sleepy and want to be put down for a nap,
is she hungry, etc. We usually could find out what she was fussing or crying
about, but if not, we turned to gripe water. With Mommy's Bliss Gripe Water, if she didn’t instantly
calm down, it wouldn’t take her long to. One time she had a crying spell that
lasted half the day and she wouldn’t go to sleep even if she was tired, she
wasn’t eating, wouldn’t play, she would just be fussy. We gave her gripe water
and she stopped crying while we gave it to her then about five minutes later
she fell asleep then she was back to normal once she woke up. It’s just nice to
have to save everyone’s sanity. It's good for colic, fussiness, stomach discomfort, and more.
Sound
and Light Soother
My
daughter uses a sound and light soother every night. We have Wyatt the Whale Storytelling Soother and I liked him better than all the others I had looked at because it plays
good music that sounds like real instruments, fills the room with stars in the
dark, plays nature sounds, and tells stories. You can also download the app to
load your own songs and add more stories. This was something we wanted her to
have because I find music so soothing and have fallen asleep to music ever
since I can remember. My boyfriend and I play soft music in our bedroom for when we
go to sleep and we wanted her to do the same. It’s really relaxing.
Diaper
Bag
I
originally thought I could get by with a purse or backpack that I already had,
but nearing the end of my pregnancy and thinking about all the things we’d
actually be taking with us for her on an outing, I decided we would need to
invest in a diaper bag. I got the Skip Hop Chelsea Diaper Bag in Black because
it’s a decent size, has many compartments, and it’s really chic. They have
cheaper ones, but I invested in a more expensive one and one that I really
liked because it’s also something I want to contine using even after my
daughter is older and doesn’t need me carrying her stuff around anymore. I can
use it as a carry-on bag while traveling in the future. It will serve me good
and I will definitely get a good use out of it.
Changing
Pad
One
thing I also liked about the diaper bag is that it came with a changing pad,
something I was going to buy anyway, so it was nice that it came together. I
wanted a changing pad so that way when I’m out at the grocery store or a
restaurant, I don’t have to lay my baby straight down on the fold-down baby
changing station. They just don’t seem sanitary to me because everyone lays
their baby on it to change them. A changing pad also protects the baby changing
station or carpet from poop or pee accidents while changing your baby.
Baby
Book
You
will not believe how many people I have come across that say that they hate baby
books! This can go either way. Yes, it is a waste of money if you’re not going
to fill it out and just let it sit on the bookshelf taking up space and
collecting dust, but it is so worth it if you’re going to actually put the time
and effort into it. To us, this was an essential because it is something we
wish our parents had done for us. My boyfriend and I have filled out the
majority of everything we can at this point, we just need a few pictures put
in. We got the C.R. Gibson Wish Upon a Star Memory Book and we love filling it
out and putting pictures in it. It goes up to your child’s first five years of
their life, obviously the majority of it will be during pregnancy and the baby’s
first year, but I think it is something our daughter will treasure her whole
life.
Dreft
Stain Remover
This.
Is. ESSENTIAL! Whether from spit ups or food, poop or pee, stains on your baby’s
cloths, bibs, and bedding will be inevitable, and you need a way to remove them. I have never had a stain remover that removes stains as well as Dreft does.
It’s like nothing even happened. I use this on my own clothes.
Swing
We
really love her swing. She really loves her swing too. At seven months, she’s
starting to outgrow it, but it definitely served us well. The first three
months of her life, she slept in it about every other night because it was the
only place we could get her to sleep, so the Fisher-Price Deluxe Cradle 'nSwing was our life saver during the first few months. We would also use it when
we needed a safe place to put her in while we were making food, going to the
bathroom, taking a shower, or getting groceries out of the car.
Pack
N’ Play
I
love her pack n’ play because we have used it on a regular basis as it comes in handy. My daughter
slept in her pack n’ play the first few months of her life, apart from the
swing, until we put her in her own crib. We now keep our Graco Pack 'n Play Playard at my grandmother’s
house where my mom babysits her and she uses it there as a crib and is able to
keep her in there if she needs to set her down for a minute to make food or go
to the bathroom. When we go swimming, we are able to take it outside with us
and she is in a safe spot while we’re laying out in the sun. We also take it
travelling with us and use it as a crib while we’re in hotels. It’s good for so
many different things and is lightweight and easy to pack up and put back
together.
Waterproof
Mattress Cover
These
come in handy when your child has accidents in the night. Since my daughter has
had a lot of them with her sleeping through the night, the mattress cover has
kept the mattress itself clean and stain free. We just have to wash the cover,
which is easier than trying to get stains out of the mattress.
Burp
Cloths
Sometimes
when you burp your baby, spit up will happen. No matter how big or small, I
like burp cloths because the majority, if not all, spit up will be caught on
the cloth rather than my outfit. And if it does get on anything else, like the
couch, I have something right there I can wipe it off with.
So
that’s it for my baby essentials list! I didn’t put the obvious, like a crib, clothes,
and food, but these are some "non-essential" essentials that I found to make life easier for me and my
baby. I hope you enjoyed this post and let me know if you used
any of these things or what you found to be essentials for your baby!
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