8 things that made my first year of parenting easier
Before I had my first child, I spend hours researching, googling, watching YouTube and asking friends for recommendations on baby items I couldn’t live without. I reviewed, analyzed and edited my baby registry multiple times. Trying to decide what were newborn must haves versus what wasn’t worth the hype.
I now have a year and a half experience in the parenting world, I can share with you what was worth every penny and made my first year of motherhood a million times easier.
Sleep sacks
We registered and received two of these sleep sacks. I can’t say enough about the use of sleep sacks. Our little bean loved to be swaddled when he slept. We used the Summer Infant Swaddle Me Original Swaddle for months!
White noise
The day we were discharged from the hospital the nurse said to us “You’re going to want a white noise machine, it helps the baby sleep because it reminds them of the womb”
Introducing our trusty friends, mister owl. Hands down, couldn’t’ live without it. Cloud b Nighty Night Owl.
Zippered Pajamas
Why do they even make newborn sleepers with buttons? You’re half asleep and changing 2-3 diapers per night, you’re going to want a fast and easy zipper. Carter's Oshkosh has the cutest newborn sleepers, for an affordable price.
Pee-Pee Teepee
Being a boy mom means you will absolutely be getting peed on at least once a day while they’re newborns! It felt like every time I opened his diaper pee was flying up and soaking the change pad. I would highly recommend these little things.
A Baby monitor
A video baby monitor is well worth the investment! We’re still using our Levana Lila 2.4 and our son is a year and a half.
Baby wrap
When I was pregnant with Cameron, I wasn’t sure if I was going to be a baby-wearing momma or not. A friend recommended the maman kanagrou and after watching several YouTube videos, I finally figured out how to tie the wrap. It came in very handy on days and afternoons where he refused to nap in anything else. The snug comfort of being close to Mom was all it took to put him to sleep.
Burp clothes
Our baby had reflux and a lot of it! It was almost a guarantee that after he was done nursing or had a bottle he was going to spit up all over the place. Someone made us a bunch of burb clothes and they were a lifesaver! If you don’t want to invest in buying burb clothes, a swaddle blanket or any sort of thick fabric would totally do the trick.
Snot sucker
So I was hesitant to register for this item, so I didn’t. But at Cameron’s 1-month check-up he had a bit of a stuffy nose and the doctor recommend one. We bought this one, and we’ve used it ever since.
A quick disclaimer: All babies are different, so none of the items above are one-size-fits-all. But I wanted to share the things that worked well for our family and as a first time Mom, in hopes that these might help someone else.
Newborn photography courtesy of Melissa Gauthier
