My oh my it’s been over a month since I gave birth to my second daughter, Aveena. It wasn’t long ago, just only three years, that we became a family of three by welcoming our oldest daughter, Alida. Even though we had experience with a newborn before, we kind of forgot how tiny, helpless and delicate infants are. We know time will go by so quickly with babies, that’s why we are doing our best to continue to keep having our joyful moments around.
I know you might be feeling the same with your kids. Some of you might have sent your kids to college by now or are just starting to send them to school for the first time. Isn’t that crazy how lighting fast all those baby moments went by?
I have heard a lot of people say that it’s tough to have two kids. You know what, I don’t feel that way at all. I feel like things are getting even better and better. This time around my husband and I aren’t freaking out over our baby crying or being over protective of her. Our lives are just getting better with the new addition of joy to our family.
Today I finally had some time to sit down and start writing this blog post about “Newborn Essentials” which I planned to publish a while back. Today is a perfect day and actually perfect timing because I know exactly what I’m using in my everyday life with my brand spanking new baby girl.
If you are looking to put some products in your baby registry list or buying for your mom-to-be friends, definitely check out the below list. I have used all of these during my first month after giving birth and I know I will continue to still use most of them.
#1 Bassinet + Covers
This is by far one of the newborn essentials I use the most, day and night, 24/7. I love this Monte Design Rockwell bassinet a lot. The sleek and modern design is beautiful and goes well with our bedroom theme. I love the soft and protective sides that are covered by a removable and machine-washable fabric. The bassinet has a rocker base that makes it easy to sooth my new baby in. Make sure you get extra covers because you might go through a lot each day. So when you do laundry, you will be sure to have some clean ones to use.
#2 Car seat + Stroller
One of the major requirements when having a baby at the hospital, is needing to have a car seat. You cannot leave the hospital without having a proper car seat installed. With our first daughter, we had a traditional one where you would have to carry your newborn around in and was very tiring. When we discovered Doona, the only car seat with integrated wheels; our lives became a whole lot easier. It has swivel wheels, one touch brakes and machine-washable seat covers. I especially love the rocking feature when I need to set the car seat down and can sooth my baby when she is crying.
#3 Nursing pillow
I had used a nursing pillow with my first daughter and loved it. You can actually use a normal pillow when feeding but the nursing pillows wrap around you and are easier to use whether you are in bed, on a rocking chair or sitting at the dining room table. My husband uses this pillow too when he feeds our newborn her bottle as it’s easier than just holding her with one arm and feeding with the other.
#4 Nightlight
Since we have our babies in our bedroom, we use a nightlight. It’s very convenient to just grab the remote and click on the nightlight while we are barely awake. Even though the light is very small, it does a great job filling the room with enough light to see where we are going and not waking everyone up if we were to turn on the very bright bedroom light.
#5 Swaddle Blanket
We used this in the hospital and during our first week at home but have since stopped using it. The reasons why I recommend this product as one of your newborn essentials are because it helps soothe babies while experiencing the startle reflex and also makes the new world more similar to the womb when they were in during those 40 weeks of their lives.
The second night in the hospital, Aveena was having a hard time falling asleep, I tried to feed her for several hours, but she kept crying and looked very uncomfortable. I was still waiting for my milk to come in, so my husband and I decided to call the nurse in to help swaddle the baby. The second she was in her swaddled blanket, she passed out. So, this swaddle blanket really helps comfort the baby and recreate the womb environment she was used to before she was born.
#6 Diapers, Wipes and Diaper Pail
You are going to need a lot of diapers and wipes. It’s a good idea to have these two items in your baby registry list to help save some money. We did it with our first daughter, but we didn’t have a baby shower for Aveena, so we had to get them ourselves this time. But when someone asked about what we need, when went right to diapers as our first choice.
You don’t need to get a lot of the newborn size, maybe only a pack or two. This is because babies grow really quickly and when our daughter, Aveena, was only two weeks old, she couldn’t wear her newborn size diapers anymore.
A Diaper Pail is also a great idea too because it can keep unwanted smells out of your space. We use it for both of our babies.
#7 Baby Bath Essentials
Baby wash, baby oil, baby lotion and baby bathtub are the four items we use. We don’t give our newborn baby a bath everyday, but we wipe her down instead. So, we use baby oil and lotion every day to keep her skin nourished and healthy.
#8 Newborn Nail Clipper Set
The newborn grooming set is definitely an essential item to have. We use the brush to keep her hair clean, the nail clipper and nail filler to prevent our baby from scratching herself and the thermometer to make sure her temperature is normal. It has other handy little items too if you might need them.
#9 Baby Blanket
Make sure you have plenty of blankets as they can get dirty very easily and you will probably go through a lot of them. The blankets we have are supper soft and thick enough to keep our newborn warm and snuggled in her bassinet when she is sleeping.
#10 Bodysuits/Mittens
It goes without saying that you will be going through lots of baby clothes when dressing and undressing your newborn. Bodysuits are much easier to put on and take off when cleaning your baby. My husband and I love the zip up body suites as they are very easy to change into in the middle of the night when it’s pretty dark to see. We also use mittens to keep our baby girl from scratching herself and to keep warm at night too.
#11 Changing Table + Pad + Covers
I used to be against the idea of having a changing table. I felt like it was unnecessary to have to change the baby on the changing table as you can pretty much change her anywhere. But I was wrong. Since the birth of my daughter, I found that using a changing table has been very helpful. It has the right height and made our changing routine a lot easier when it comes to changing all day and night long.
With that being said you will need a changing pad and lots of covers to go with your table.
#12 Burb Cloths
The burb cloth is a life saver for those moments when you need to make a quick clean up on both baby and you. It’s important to have a lot of these handy as we sometimes go through a lot in one day.
#13 Breast Pump/Milk Storage Bags
Breastfeeding has many health benefits for both mom and baby. You might want to take a look at this article I found on HealthLine. I breastfed my first daughter for 3 years and had a great experience with it. So, having a breast pump will help you with breastfeeding journey.
The reason why I recommend having a breast pump and storage bags are that it’s good to have a backup of milk and to use if your baby is sleeping and you need some relief from breast pain.
With Alida, I used the breast pump a lot for the first 6 months and would freeze the storage bags for later use. Now with my second daughter I used it on a roll for the first few weeks and now I only use it when I really have a lot of milk, my breasts start to hurt and when we need to take the milk with us when we’re going out and about.
Having a breast pump also helps you with your milk production levels. If you have a hard time producing milk, try making a pumping schedule and stick with it for several weeks. It works for a lot of new moms this way.
#14 Formula/Baby Bottles
As you might already know from reading my blog, I am not a big fan of dairy products. So, when I use formula, I use a non-dairy brand. It’s very convenient to have some on hand if I didn’t pump any breast milk. I will make a bottle and bring it with me when I go out. I mainly breast feed my daughter but it’s good to have some when you need it.
#15 Diaper Bag
The diaper bag is one of those items I can’t go without when taking my newborn out of the house. You can just use any large sized bag and bring all your essentials in, but a diaper bag really keeps everything organized and easy to find when you’re racing to grab your burb cloth our getting out the ready-made bottle. Most diaper bags come with a changing pad, which is convenient when changing your baby in a public restroom and knowing you have a clean area to rest your baby on.
Those are all of my recommended items. I hope this list helps you find the right essentials for your newborn. All of the items I listed I really use and find them very helpful with my baby. I want to make ever parent-to-be to have a smooth journey and wonderful memories with their newborns. That’s why I wanted to share this 15 Must-Have Newborn Essentials with you. Not everyone will need the same things or the exact same items I do, these are just from my experiences and I think will be helpful for you to know.
We are feeling like new parents again, but this time with more skills. We are grateful to have Aveena in our lives and are cherishing every moment.
Thank you for stopping by All About Good Vibes today. I will be sharing the New Mom/ Postpartum Essentials blog post soon, hope to see you there.
What are your newborn essentials?
“A baby fills a place in your heart that you never knew was empty.”- Anonymous
xoxo,
