I’m currently in my third time around in what is often referred to as the 4th trimester- the first three months after a baby is born. These are the items I consider must haves. With a baby born around cold and flu season I have needed quite a few more items for sickness. Check out that post here!
Daily Use Items For Baby
Swaddle- we swaddle our baby to keep her warm and cozy.
Footies- my baby just used footie pajamas all the time. Get ones that zip up starting at the top instead of the bottom, it makes diaper changes easier.
Diapers- We stopped using cloth diapers with this baby, but obviously she needs some disposible ones still.
Cream- diaper cream can help your baby’s rashes, so we use it as needed.
Butt brush- This helps so much with keeping my fingers clean while I apply the diaper cream.
Boppy- my go to breastfeeding pillow is my boppy. It works great at keeping my baby near me while I nurse her.
Burp cloths- babies spit up so having some burp cloths around is necessary. I used my old cloth diapers
Moby wrap- I love my moby wrap for newborns. It keeps them feeling like they’re in the womb and I have free hands for taking care of my toddlers and myself.
Car seat- we buy a convertible car seat that will work for my baby until she is probably about 5 or 6.
Warm blanket- my daughter was born in the winter so a warm blanket kept her warm going to and from the car.
Daily Uses For Mom
Water bottle- staying hydrated is super important for a nursing mama, I have 2 huge water bottles I always keep around to help me to drink lots of water.
Nursing dress- I love my nursing dress’ they are comfy and allow quick and easy access for my baby.
Nursing shirts- I wear a nursing shirt every day.
Nursing/ pumping bra- a good nursing bra makes nursing quickly and frequently easy.
Snacks!- snacks are a must for a nursing mom, some easy healthy ones include an apple or banana with peanut butter.
Baby app- for keeping track of nursing and sleep, I have used the glow baby app for all 3 of my babies.
Prenatal vitamins- to keep me and baby healthy I took prenatal vitamins every day.
Doggie pee pad (for night time leaks)- I used these under my chest for any extra milk that leaked so I didn’t need to change my sheets daily.
Used On Occasion
Breast pump- I tried to pump a few times so I wouldn’t always be needed.
Milk bags- to store any milk I used a few milk bags.
Haakaa- I used a haakaa a few times for leaking.
Baby bottles- I tried to use a baby bottle a few times, but almost exclusively nursed.
Humidifier- we used my essential oil diffuser as a humidifier on occasion.
Nose sucker- my little one got RSV and pneumonia in the first 3 weeks of her life so we did use a nosefrieda on her.
16 Things You Don’t Need For A Baby
Things I Never Used
Changing table- we never bought a changing table for our kids. Instead we always changed them on the ground. I actually don’t like using changing tables at public places not just because they are disgusting but because it is hard to change a baby from the side, it’s much easier to change them from the bottom or top.
Crib- we never bought a crib for any of our kids either. We have used pack and plays, bed sharing, or a floor bed instead.
Bassinet- just like a crib we never bought a bassinet, it’s just another thing your baby will use for maybe 3 months then outgrow and be useless.
Infant car seat- we always buy car seats that will last for the first 3-5 years of our kids lives. We love the Graco slimfit
Rocking chair- some moms say a rocking chair is a necessity, but we had one with our first and hardly used it for him, so we didn’t keep it.
Nursing pads- I used these a lot with my first baby, but I literally never used one this time around. There was some leaking, but to me that didn’t matter so much.
