Makin' a List: Baby Registry Must Haves
I know many soon to be Mama's and I love passing on suggested baby items for registries. I loved getting product recommendations when I was pregnant with V. One thing I honestly can't believe is how much baby items change in such a short time....really, what more can we need? For example, we just bought another convertible car seat for when I returned back to work in November, for daycare pick-up/drop-off ease. Only a few short months later and there is a WAY better option on the market (we despise putting in the seat and Britax has come out with a genius new click system). So, these are the items that I found to be most useful when V was a babe.
Gear
Yep, we are those weird parents who become obsessed with some random baby gear item and rave about it to everyone. I didn’t realize how much we loved this bucket seat, until we upgraded to a convertible car seat and discovered my husband’s our strong dislike for the new seat. I’ve learned it’s because we were tainted due to the first seat being so damn good! So user-friendly. Light weight. Smart design. Can’t say enough good things about this seat! Rated as the #1 infant car seat to install. I have recommended this seat to a few friends and they absolutely love it too.
Originally I was looking at the larger Valco tri-mode stroller, then it just happened that we didn’t have our stroller yet, babe had arrived, and we needed to make a purchase. Right now. At the baby store my husband placed our bucket seat with V into the stroller and started cruising around the store and in my new baby daze (I rarely agree to on the spot purchases, especially for something like THE stroller purchase!) I eagerly agreed. Our bucket seat was a perfect fit and this stroller is so easy to manage. I can still hold my wiggly one year old on one hip and collapse the stroller with my other hand and load it into the trunk. Love. Note- it looks like our exact model is no longer available, so I've linked the closest product on the site.
V wasn't much of a swing kid. Actually, she hated it. Our baby swing saw roughly 15 minutes of use. We got this little seat when she was 2 months old and absolutely loved it. It's by no means fancy, but more than did the trick! I highly recommend this product if your babe isn't crazy about the swing.
Bed, Bath & Body
Sleep Sacks are one of those items that even a few years ago weren't super popular (or at least I'm told). I love this product! Safe for baby to sleep and keeps baby covered, especially if you have a kid that covers every inch of their crib in the night. I specifically listed this brand because I have used another brand only to have their zippers split at least 5 times. At the price they sell for that is ridiculous to me! The Grobag has been amazing and is super cozy.
These swaddle blankets are amazing for not only wrapping baby up, but also to drape over car seats etc. They get softer with each wash (which will be many). That plus the length alone sets these apart. Before we used sleep sacks we swaddled V in these (arms out, at her demand). Lot's of adorable patterns to choose from.
I was super lucky that V didn't have a diaper rash until she was around 9 months old; and, I didn't realize just how lucky I was until she had her first one. It is the absolute worst. I can't say enough good things about this cream from Shopper's Drugmart. It worked like a charm to clear up her rash right away. I keep some on hand and if it looks like some irritation is starting I will use it and it's gone in no time. Plus, it's a Canadian-made product. Win.
This may seem like a weird addition to a baby must have list (especially if you are a first time parent... you want me to do what?), but let me tell you when your tiny babe has their first cold you will thank me. The nasal aspirators you get in the baby swag bags from various stores or the hospital seem just too big for tiny nostrils and didn’t do a thing for V. This has been a saving grace for a few colds.
We had a few different hooded towels and our Aden & Anais one was always the first one I'd reach for. The size is perfect for making the sweetest baby burrito!
Nursery
We actually never had this until V was almost 6 months old. We always used cloths and would just wet them with warm water. When we temporarily changed houses that became more inconvenient, so I ended up purchasing this warmer. It works perfect to have half filled with disposable wipes and half with facecloths.
This is a really great diaper pail, if you are looking at getting one. A few friends have used other brands and say they don't work as well. What I liked about this one is that you choose when to change the bag-- the refills are one long continuous liner and you tear it off when you need to change it. And for a diaper pail, it doesn't look half bad; the grey/white went perfectly with V's nursery. No diaper pail is glamorous, but this one comes close! You will also want at least one package of the refills on hand.
I was just reminded how handy it is to have a humidifier for the nursery since V just came down with a stuffy nose. I liked how this one fit with my grey/pink/white theme.
Toys & Play
We love loved this for our daughter. We, like most new parents, were given nearly the entire suite of Sophie toys, with the exception of this smaller ring version. Despite having every other Sophie imaginable, I went out and bought this with one of our gift cards. It is perfect for little hands to grasp onto, is easy to attach to your stroller, car seat, etc. with a few links, and it has smaller parts for babe to rub on their gums. Side note- V found this around the time she turned 1 and was cutting some of her molars and she fell right back in love with it!
Activity Mats are a great first "toy" for babies. There are tons of brands to choose from. We had this Skip Hop one and V seemed to love it. Whatever one you get make sure it is machine washable and easy to remove parts. I've seen some with battery pieces etc. which seem unnecessary and inconvenient to me.
Nursing & Feeding
Nursing covers are amazing. I could literally walk around the grocery store and nurse and no one was the wiser. (No really, I did this). I had the Classic Eyelet in Black and I loved it. Hindsight tells me that many of baby related messes with breastfeeding (read: spit up) are white and they showed pretty easily on black. I would still buy the black myself (I pretty much live in black so it blended in with 90% of my wardrobe), but this is something that you may want to consider when choosing a pattern. What I really liked about this particular brand is the patented open neckline that holds the cover away from mom and baby. You can see what's going on, get a proper latch, there is good airflow and the fabric isn't sitting on baby's face.
There are tons of different nursing pillows to choose from; I purchased this one on a recommendation from another blogger. I loved it! I find that some are almost too much pillow and too structured; the Bobby is a comfortable size, and is significantly less bulky than other brands. Plus the assortment of slip covers to choose from are so sweet. Whatever one you get, just ensure that it has a removable, machine-washable cover. (I am assuming this is standard, but you never know!).
We are probably the only people who didn't have a Bumbo well in advance of baby's arrival (and really, you don't need it right away anyways). We got given this Mama's and Papas version-- the Baby Snug-- as a hand-me-down a few months down the road and it is a really great product. Babies' legs just seem to fit better in this brand (its a little more roomy) and you can remove the coloured insert to use as your baby grows (hello chunky baby thighs!) We have got great use out of this seat.
Everyone has their own experience with bottles; I do know that I have recommended these to others who have tried different brands and they said they were the only ones that worked for their babies too. I would suggest getting a pack (2 is fine) of small 4oz bottles, and a pack of 3 or more 9oz bottles. You will also want a few different nipple flows-- newborn (2ish), slow/1 (2-4), and medium/2 (4+). The little 4oz bottles might seem like a waste but I find that we are still using them now that V has small bottles in the afternoon and before bed as she transitions away from bottles.
