As a new mom I read so many blog posts about all the products other moms deemed life saving. It was a little overwhelming looking at all these items and having everyone from strangers, to family and friends, tell us what we really needed to buy. We’re 2 months into this parenting gig and there are definitely a few things I’m so glad we got that people suggested but, there are also a lot of items that we sadly just don’t use because they didn’t work for us. If there’s one thing I’ve learned so far about being a mom, it’s that every baby is different and every situation is different. I could write a whole other post on mom comparisons so I’ll save my rant for that but, what works for one person might not work for you and that is okay. Also, don’t set high expectations. It will take a few weeks, maybe more, to figure out what works for you and finally I feel like we’re getting into a good groove so here are the things we are so glad exist:
1. Fisher-Price Auto Rock ‘n Play Sleeper
The Rock ‘n Play was one of those products that so many people recommended to us. I read a lot about this and how so many babies slept so soundly in it but I was dead set on having Brayden sleep in his bassinet. While a lot of moms loved the Rock ‘n Play, it’s also one of those items on the no-no list. You’re not supposed to let baby sleep in there for long periods of time and they are supposed to be flat on their backs. However, I was not getting any sleep at all. Brayden was up every hour and refused to sleep anywhere but in my arms. I was exhausted and desperate and as I was texting my good friend, who is also a new mom, she said they had the same issues and put their son in the Rock ‘n Play and he slept great. We decided to give it a try and it was amazing. We got our first long stretch of sleep and used it for 7 weeks before deciding to transition back to the bassinet. I’m so glad we did use it because he’s now sleeping through the night.
As a new mom, baby stores really get you with the tiny cute outfits and we got so many outfits at our shower that we thought we wouldn’t need to buy any clothes for a long time. However, once we got home we hated the snap pajamas and changing him out of onesies and pants was such a pain. Brayden wiggled so much and hated diaper changes for the first couple weeks and would just scream. We were always missing buttons and in the middle of the night, that made diaper changes so much more frustrating. I remembered a mom mentioning zip up pajamas as one of her couldn’t live without items and had my mom get some for us. We loved them. Seriously, Brayden lives in them now and is hardly in any cute little outfits. Honestly, they spit up so much and pee is going to leak through their diapers at least once and it’s so much easier to just zip and unzip a one piece then it is to change an entire outfit. Plus, they have the little covers for their hands so you don’t have to wrestle the mittens on them. We unfortunately only got a couple newborn pajamas at our shower and they were all snaps so we ended up sending our moms out to buy zip ups and as he’s grown out of them, we still go out and buy more. The Carter’s dinosaur sleeper is my personal favorite.
The Halo Sleepsack is another item that we sent Steve’s mom out to buy when we got home. As I’m writing this, he’s napping soundly in his crib thanks to the Halo. I’ll admit, we got a lot of different swaddles at our shower. From flannel swaddles, to muslin blankets, to Swaddle Me swaddles, we seriously have them all and tried them all within the first few days of being home. Brayden was like a magician and was busting out of all the swaddles we put him in which was another reason he was not sleeping at night. The Halo is pretty pricey but was seriously amazing for us so it was worth the expense. The Halo and Rock ‘n Play are the main reason we got any sleep in the beginning. We just ended up buying a new one because he was growing out of the newborn size. The only thing we both find sort of frustrating is the zipper. It zips from bottom to top and I have accidentally hit B in the face trying to get it unzipped…
This was one of Steve’s favorite things that we got but Brayden is starting to push himself up off it so we’ve had to stop using it and Steve is so upset. We have 2 dogs and I didn’t feel comfortable leaving Brayden in the living room alone while I used the bathroom so I would bring the Boppy Lounger in the bathroom with me. B also ended up getting thrush and we had to give him drops for his mouth so putting him in the Boppy on the counter was so convenient for us. It’s super light and easy to travel with and he liked sitting in it so much more than his swing.
This is such a small thing but as someone who is extremely forgetful and clumsy, this is one of my favorite things. We did use the Wubbanub at first but it was too heavy and Brayden couldn’t keep it in his mouth. He also had a hard time taking a pacifier at all in the beginning and would continuously spit them out and cry because he wanted it back. It was so frustrating, especially since most of the time he would spit them out and they would tumble to the floor and get covered in dog hair. I would lose track of where I left the pacifiers or forget he had it and it would fall on the floor when I picked him up. Once I clipped this on him, I always knew where it was and it was so much better than constantly having to bend over and pick it up off the floor while trying to fend off the dogs, who thought it was their new toy, and hold B at the same time.
Brayden has had some serious congestion and even with running humidifiers all the time, it’s still pretty constant. Saline spray and the NoseFrida have come in so handy with helping clear out his nose and helping him breathe better.
I had registered for a baby camera that didn’t hook up to wifi because we have a lot of issues with our internet but for some reason it interfered with our router. We have a small house and I can hear my husband talking to me from one end of the house to the other. But for some reason, the monitor to our old baby camera would just stop working if I was too far away from the nursery or too close to the router. The monitor didn’t have long battery life and made an obnoxious beeping noise when it was dying. I finally decided to buy the Lollipop after asking my husband a million times what his opinion was and reading a ton of reviews on it. I love it. It connects to wifi and the monitor is an app on my iPhone. I can even peak and see what’s going on when I’m not home. The Lollipop sends notifications to my phone when the nursery gets too noisy and even notifies me that Brayden is crying loud. The Lollipop is so much easier to move from room to room and you can mount it or twist it around the crib rails. The picture quality is so amazing that I can see his chest rising and falling when he breathes. It helps settle my sometimes anxious mind. It doesn’t pick up unnecessary noise and unlike my old monitor, goes into night time mode even during sunrise and sunset so I can see him. Another amazing feature is the sound. You can chose from different music and sounds to play while baby is sleeping and can adjust the timer and volume for them. I would definitely recommend this monitor.
The last few things you definitely need with a new baby are caffeine, patience, and support. More than any product, these are the things I seriously couldn’t live without. I’m so grateful to have a loving husband who helps as much as he can and our amazing moms who are always there for us and love our little so hard.
What are some of your favorite things as a new mom?
Life With B 