Well, we’ve made it past the 0-3 months baby stage, and boy-it’s going too fast! Sweet Amélie has grown so much, and she’s blossoming and showing her personality more and more each day. I thought I’d take a moment to share with you our must-have baby products that have made life easier over the last few months. These are the things that have saved our sanity, helped comfort our little one, and been helpful.
Must-Have Baby Products for 0-3 Months
So, without further ado, here are our must-have baby products from the past few months… Aside from the obvious, I’m not going to worry about listing a car seat or a stroller, you know those are must-haves. If you are curious-we chose the Chicco KeyFit 30 with the Bravo stroller combo and it’s been great. We chose it because it sits a little higher than the others with the infant seat in, and because it’s a pretty shade of dark teal…
Must-Have Baby Products for Bedtime
It’s no doubt that bedtime can be one of the hardest times for little ones and their exhausted parents. Here are some things that have made life a little bit easier on us…
A Good Co-Sleeper
We’ve been lucky that Amélie has been mostly sleeping through the night from about 6ish weeks, but she still doesn’t like to sleep in her own bed. She mostly sleeps on me, but when I can get her to sleep in her own bed, it’s in her SwaddleMe By Your Side Sleeper which is right next to me in the bed. I like that the bottom is soft so I’ve been able to prop up part of the mattress (with my pediatrician’s advice) so shes not laying flat.
Note: We’ve also gotten her the Newton Wovenaire Crib Mattress (which I will be doing a full review on very soon) that she’ll be using when she moves into her crib in the next few months. I’m obsessed with it because if they roll onto their face-they can breathe through it!
Good Swaddles
Swaddling has saved our sanity on more than one sleeping occasion, but swaddling with blankets only lasted so long. We love our muslin swaddle blankets still for use as blankets, but using actual swaddlers helped her stay swaddled without breaking out of it. Our favorite, by far, are the Love to Dream Swaddles (pictured above), because they’re easy to zip up and they give her some use of her arms. She can comfort herself by putting her hands to her face still, and she looks like a super cute little flying squirrel.
We also picked up a few other swaddles like these cute Unicorn, Rainbow, and Cupcake Velcro Swaddles for cheap, and we’ve liked them too. Plus, she’s adorable.
Must-Have Baby Products for Bathtime
We started out with the Blooming Bath in the sink, and it’s been great. It’s so soft, but she’s getting a little too big for our sink. So we’ve graduated on to using a baby bath sling in the tub and she just showers/bathes with me. We still use the cute flower sometimes, but I try to just get my shower and her bath done together. One benefit to the sling is that when it’s dry, I let her sit in it sometimes (under supervision) because she just really likes sitting in it. And sometimes, when she wont give me 5 minutes to run to the bathroom, putting her in the bath sling at my feet will keep her happy enough. #momlife, am I right? I may never pee alone again… haha!
Good Bath Products
Babies have suuuuper sensitive skin, so they need baby products. I remembered (from my time as a nanny) how much I loved the sleepytime baby bath, shampoo, and lotion. To be honest, we use it all the time, not just at bedtime, because it smells sooooo good. I also recommend getting some baby lip and face balm because they just get so dry. We love the Babyganics Lip and Face Balm because it’s nice and thick, and it cleared up her dry skin really quickly in our harsh Utah Winter air.
Must-Have Baby Products for Health and Care
Aside from the basics, which you can buy in a handy dandy kit just about anywhere, there are a few significant things I’d recommend… Honestly, within those basics, you need a humidifier and an air purifier… Maybe multiples. We have two of each, one for each floor-and our house is super small.
Snot Tools
You never know how many things you need for handling snot until you become a parent. Our poor baby girl has had a lot of congestion, which the doctor didn’t seem too concerned about, but it was driving her crazy. We started with saline drops and a bulb aspirator, but the bulb thing-well, it sucks. Or doesn’t suck, which is what it needs to do… At the recommendation of a friend we picked up the NoseFrida Snot Sucker from FridaBaby. It seems so gross at first, but it’s the most helpful product we’ve bought so far and it works ten times better than the bulb. We also picked up the OogieBear Ear and Nose Cleaner and it’s been significantly helpful.
A Better Thermometer
We bought a kit that included a thermometer, but it wasn’t any good and we could never figure out the settings. So I ordered the OCCObaby Forehead Thermometer and it came with a regular one you can use elsewhere as well. It’s been really nice to use.
Hand Sanitizer
It’s no joke that you’ll need buckets of hand sanitizer with new baby, but some are better than others. We started with a giant bottle of generic (that we still keep around the house), but quickly learned that we prefer the softer alcohol-free kind. My favorite are the Honest Spray Sanitizer because it’s so easy to spray on, it smells amazing, and it actually doesn’t make my hands feel dry and gross. We also like the Babyganics Foaming Hand Sanitizer for similar reasons.
Must-Have Baby Products for Diapering
Ah diapering, not all of us can be rockstars and cloth diaper. I wanted to, but we don’t do laundry often enough, and C put his foot down and refused. He also put his foot down that we needed A&D Ointment, which I thought we needed Desitin, but behold-he was right. She does so much better with the ointment.
Good Diapers
Believe it or not, you can’t just use any diaper. We’ve tried a ton, so I thought I’d do a quick share of what we tried and found (in order of trying it) so far.
- Huggies (NB): Pretty decent diapers, and they worked well enough. Will use/probably wont buy just because I prefer the Little Snugglers in the same brand.
- Seventh Generation (NB): Very nice diapers, really liked that they are biodegradable and better for the environment. Did find that I missed the little stripe that changes colors when they’re wet though… Also, they’re a bit pricier than regular diapers. Will use/buy when I feel like it’s in the budget.
- Pampers Swaddlers (Size 1): Alright diapers, but they feel kind of thin/flimsy and we had quite a few blow-outs with them. Will use, but won’t buy going forward.
- Luvs (Size 1): These had a scent, which I hated, and they gave baby the worst rashes and red bottom. We ended up giving up after half a sleeve (out of a giant box we received at the baby shower). Won’t use or buy.
- Honest Co. (Size 1): I really wanted to love these, for the same reason that we loved the Seventh Generation ones, but they run really small and generally did not fit well. More blowouts with these. Will use if gifted, but wont buy.
- Huggies Little Snugglers (Size 1): These are by far our favorite, and the ones we’ve ended up continuing to buy. I’m glad to see that I have a couple of big boxes in bigger sizes from the baby shower too. They’re very soft, they feel like they’re put together well, and we’ve had the best luck with them out of all of them. Plus, I like Winnie the Pooh on them. Will use/buy.
Good Wipes
As with diapers, not all wipes are created equal. We love the Huggies Natural Care Wipes because they’re soft and gentle, and they’re great in the house where we have the big dispenser and can add the refills to it. On the go, we like the Pampers Sensitive Wipes because they have a great travel pack that’s held up well. The Honest wipes are fine too, but I don’t love their smell and they’re a lot more pricey.
Diaper Pail
I was told that a diaper pail was not something we needed and we could avoid getting one, but honestly-I love having them. We have a Diaper Genie my manager gifted to us second hand when he was done with it and we used it a ton. However, when we decided to order a second one (one for each floor) we ordered the Dekor Hands-Free Diaper Pail and I prefer it. I don’t have to push the diapers down in, I can just step on the lever (like a garbage can) and then drop it in. I do think the Diaper Genie is better at keeping the smell in, though the Dekor one isn’t too bad, but I still like the way the Dekor one works better-and bonus-it matches my living room colors.
Portable Changing Pad
We were lucky our diaper bag came with a portable changing pad, but if yours doesn’t-get one. They are so handy! I can lay it down on a couch or bed without issue, or put it on top of one of those fold down changing tables in the bathroom at the store/restaurant. I like that it gives her a little extra padding and blocks her from some of the gross.
Diaper Caddy
Upstairs, we have diaper/wipe storage on the side of the pack and play (which also doubles as our changing table), but downstairs we had no organization for diapers. I picked up the Munchkin Portable Diaper Caddy and I keep it next to the bed-plus, it comes with a changing pad and cost less than just buying a changing pad on it’s own. It’s been very useful, and we’ve been glad to have it.
Must-Have Baby Products for Transportation
When I say transportation, I mean to go along with their carseat/stroller. Here are a few favorites from the first few months:
Carseat Canopy
We bought a super cute Wonder Woman Carseat Canopy with minky fabric (similar to this one) and we’ve been very happy with it. It’s thick, so it keeps her warmer and blocks the wind when we’re outside, and I like to keep it down in the store to kind of help keep germs out. It also keeps people from trying to put their face or hands near her, so that’s good. We also got a lighter jersey canopy for this Summer, but I’ll tell you how that is after we use it.
Babywearing Wrap
I’m very pro babywearing, and even though I was before, I am more so now. Sometimes, baby wont let you put her down-and then I can just strap her on and in the Moby Wrap (we also have a Boba Wrap, which is similar but slightly different material) and do what I need to do. We also have an infantino carrier, but we prefer the wraps. I’m dreaming of a beautiful woven wrap, but they’re spendy and hard to get your hands on.
Car Mirror with Light
One thing you’ll want to do before choosing a car mirror for baby, make sure it’ll work with your headrest. The first one we bought didn’t, because it needed to go under the headrest and ours don’t move in the backseat. But we rigged it up and used it anyway… Except it didn’t have a light, and at night I can’t see her at all. So I just ordered a car mirror with a light (and it’s controlled with a handy remote) so I can check on her when we’re out after dark.
Must-Have Baby Products for Play
You may think they’re too little to play much, but she’s already getting into playing, and here are a few things that have helped with that.
A Swing/Bouncer
Honestly, we spent so much money on a really nice swing (the Graco Everyway Soother) and she doesn’t even like it that much yet… She’s only just starting to get more excited about it, and we chose it because it takes up less space than some of the swings and it’s super fancy. But even if your baby doesn’t care to sit in the swing long, you’ll still want a swing or a bouncer (which we haven’t tried yet, but a lot of moms recommend) because you’ll need to be able to put them down somewhere safe every now and again so you can get something done.
Boppy Newborn Lounger
I loved the little Boppy Newborn Lounger. It’s a soft pillow that baby can lay in, but that props them up a bit so you can see them better. Baby girl loves it too, because I can sit her in it safely while I’m folding laundry or painting, and she can see me. It’s been useful, and I’ll be sad when she outgrows it.
Simple Toys
A few of the simple toys we’ve really enjoyed having for Amélie include:
Baby Books: They may not understand them yet, but research is showing that even reading to your baby when they’re very small can give them a head start on their learning. We love reading around here, and I want to support the love of books right from the beginning.
Hand Rattles: These are great, because she can’t grasp the idea of holding on to toys yet, but I can loop it over her wrist and
Laugh and Learn Smart Stages Puppy: She may not seem old enough for the Play and Learn Puppy, but she’s FASCINATED by it. She loves that the heart lights up, and she gets excited for the songs. She started paying attention to it at only 6 weeks, so she’s definitely learning from it.
Must-Have Baby Products for Feeding
Feeding baby is so important, and if you end up bottle-feeding like we did (she just refused to breast feed), a good product can even make more of a difference.
Bottles
My favorite bottles were the Evenflow Balance Wide Neck Bottles. I liked that the nipple was closer to natural shape, and they were a comfortable hold in my hand. C, on the other hand, prefers the Dr. Brown’s Options Bottles. They’re more like a standard bottle and nipple, but out of all of the nipples we liked their flow the best. I also appreciate the vent in them so it helps prevent gas and colic.
Bibs
Personally, I thought bibs were only for when babies start eating and thought about putting away all the bibs we’d received. I was wrong. Baby girl is such a messy eater, that they really save her outfits (and my sanity of not having to change her from being soaking wet all the time) by having a good bib on when we feed her. I’m cool with any bib, really, but C loves the pull over towel bibs because he’s disabled and only has the use of one hand. I have to admit, they’re soft and easy to use, and she likes to gnaw on them.
Pacifiers and Accessories
I guess binkies don’t really qualify as feeding, but it’s to satisfy the suckling urge so I’ll fit them in this section. I really thought we were going to try to avoid the binky all together, but that went out the window fast. Plus, research is showing that pacifiers actually help reduce the risk of SIDS, which is a huge benefit.
Binkies
Every baby is different and will have different binky preferences. We bought just about every type of binky and tried it. Ultimately, she’s been able to use most of them, but she never did take to the big round ones they give you at the hospital. One thing I do recommend is making sure to pick up a few glow-in-the-dark binkies. They make waking up in the middle of the night to baby crying for binky easier, because you can see it to pop back in their mouths.
Pacifier Clips
Whoever invented the pacifier clip is a genius. No joke. You can’t count the number of binkies that were lost around the house and out and about before I started religiously using them. Also, they help keep binkies from getting all gross when dropped.
Binkie Wipes
Even with pacifier clips, there will inevitably be binkies that hit the ground and get dirty. Thank goodness for pacifier and bottle wipes to make it easy to clean up. You can totally use them on the bottle nipples too. Real lifesavers.
Must-Have Cleaning Products for Baby
Babies are suuuuuuper sensitive to so many things in cleaning products, so you need good baby safe products. We really like Dapple Dish Soap, because it smells amazing and it has an easy pump top that makes washing dishes a breeze. Also, make sure you get a really good baby-safe laundry detergent.
Our Favorite Baby Cleaning Accessories
Along with baby safe products, you’re going to need some extra tools to help do your job. I highly recommend buying the Drying Grass or something similar to have a safe rack for drying baby bottles. You’ll also want good bottle brushes, and my favorite has been the Munchkin bottle brushes. They’re very sturdy, and they scrub well.
Must-Have Baby Clothing
Of course you’ll want cute clothes and onesies, but there are a few things you’ll really need. For example, babies do NOT keep their socks on. They get kicked off so easily… I recommend stocking up on plenty of footie jammies to avoid socks all together at night… I mean you can get really warm ones if it’s cold, or nice thin cotton ones, but get some for sure.
You’ll also want to invest in some Sock Ons. Sock Oms are another amazing invention meant to just slip over baby socks and keep them snugly in place. So genius.
