Every mother knows, that the first year with your first baby is a roller coaster ride.
I have learned so much. Before my son arrived I researched as much as I could, and I asked around which things we would definitely need.
I knew we would need a lot of wipes and diapers, but what else?
I was such a rookie.
What are the Must Have baby products for the first year?
I asked every mother I spoke to the same question, what was the best, most used item she got, and what things end up not being used at all. This way I learned to bypass the diaper genie and wipe warmers. And I learned about Activity Gyms and Boppy Nursing Pillows.
I also read many lists of best baby products online. I frequented the Hellobee blog making notes on all the newborn essentials for baby’s first year.
I was so organized and prepared, I had my checklist ready! Still, there were a few items that I missed at first, and a few that in hindsight I didn’t really need.
Everyone told me to have plenty of receiving blankets, although true, and yes, we used them a lot in the beginning, I went a little overboard and got way too many.
To return the favor, I’m putting my list out in the universe. The favorites which made our first year with a newborn baby 100% easier, and they should be on your baby registry now!
Top 10 Baby Must Have List
Every mother knows, that the first year with her first baby is a roller coaster ride.
Make it all a bit easier with these Top 10 Must-Haves for Baby's First Year!
My husband practiced swaddling our baby almost continuously when i was still in hospital, asking the nurses to show him how to swaddle with a regular old-fashioned swaddle blanket. I think he was a master at it, but he wasn’t too sure.
Is it tight enough? Not too tight? Once home, we quickly moved to the more modern swaddle blankets.
We started with the SwaddleMe Original Swaddle blankets, then moved on to the Halo Sleepsack Swaddle when our baby was ready for a little more leg freedom.
At one point he did his Houdini and managed to get out of all of them. I bought a Woombie, which I think was the best of all, but we didn’t use it for very long, since at that time baby was ready to sleep without.
He is now sleeping in his regular Halo SleepSack Wearable Blankets at night which I am a big fan of.
You need diaper rash cream, but there are so many, where do you start. We went for a lot of great reviews, and a funny name.
Boudreaux’s Butt Paste. Look out for coupons and use them when the paste is already on sale if you are on a budget. Baby’s cost a lot of money, save those pennies wherever you can!
Every mother I spoke to told me to get a boppy pillow.
Online I found reviews from mothers who swore by it, and some who
barely used it. I listened to the real-life feedback and bought
one.
We loved it. We used the Boppy Pillow for nursing, and later for tummy time and to prop baby up when he was learning to sit.
A favorite baby buy in the second half of the first year was definitely the Convertible High Chair.
I’m a big fan of items that are multi-purpose, and this high chair easily transitions into a toddler chair and table.
Zippered one-piece pajamas means no messing around with snap buttons that don’t align in the middle of the night when you are totally sleep deprived. Zip and done.
We don’t have any baby gates in the house, so a portable playard is perfect if we need to do something and have our hands free.
Plus you can easily roll it around the house. Baby loves to play in it, but
also doesn’t have any problems taking his naps in it.
When our baby was born we were living in a walk-up apartment, no elevator. Getting out of the door with a baby is time-consuming, even without having to haul a stroller down the stairs.
So I loved my baby carrier. I searched around and went for affordability and positive reviews. The Infantino Baby Carrier.
Not the Rolls Royce under the carriers, but it worked well for short walks around the neighborhood.
I used it a lot until the carrying got a little heavy for me (it carries up to 32lbs. My baby could still be in it technically, but my back won’t be happy).
And good news, we moved to a new home in a building with elevators. Hello, easy stroller rides!
Before the baby arrived I wasn’t sure if we would need a baby monitor at all. Maybe a sound monitor?
Living in a one-floor apartment, wouldn’t we hear the baby cry even without a monitor?
But then a dear friend told me, girl, splurge on this, you will not regret it, get a video monitor. And I am so happy we took her advice.
It is super nice to be able to look at the baby without having to tippy-toe into the nursery.
For a baby bouncer, we got this Bright Starts Bouncer. We used it a lot in the early days.
Our newborn baby liked taking his naps in it. He really didn’t care for the vibration mode, but as a regular rocker chair, it worked perfectly.
If you bottle-feed, or breastfeed and pump, you will be using a lot of bottles.
And they need to be cleaned. Enter the Bottle Brushes.
We started out with cheap bottle brushes from the Dollar Store. I thought this was an easy item to go low budget on. But in no time the brush part broke off.
One step up, Disney brand bottle brushes, lasted a little longer, but couldn’t handle thorough cleaning action either. Again the brush part broke off.
Thinking about having to buy a new one every couple of weeks, I
moved on and spend a few extra bucks. Definitely not one of the most expensive items on this baby must-have list, and not the most exciting, but definitely one that is being used daily.
We ended up with the Munchkin Bottle Brushes. Months of usage, still going strong. Just bypass the others.
What was it that you couldn’t go without during baby’s first year? Leave a comment and share!
