Must Have Baby Registry Items

Yahhh you’re having a baby (or someone you know is :))!! Creating that baby registry can be daunting and overwhelming, there’s so many options out there and sooooo many opinions from family and friends (yes, they’re just trying to help….).

I mistakenly took the route of basically ignoring everyone and just buying the basics, thinking aw it’s a baby, how much stuff do they REALLLYY need?

Well, babies need a lot of freakin stuff, at least to make your life more convenient (which, I’ll take all the help I can get!)

I’m sharing some of my favorite baby items with you, some of which I didn’t buy to start out with and really wish I did. Again, everyone will have a different opinion of what you need and don’t and what brands worked for them.  You truthfully won’t know until you’re in the moment, but do your best to be prepared and most importantly, do what feels right for you!

Happy shopping 🙂

Sleep

• Convertible Bassinet (great muli-use option for those first few months)
• Crib (for when you’re ready to transition to baby’s own room)
• Mattress (we opted for a “green” mattress)
• Crib Sheet (buy at least 2 sets)
• Sleep Sack Swaddles (used these until close to 6 months!)
• Sleep Sack (using these up to 18 months as a “blanket”)
• Merlin Sleep Suit (helped us with sleep training between 6-9 months)
• Pacifiers (we used these ones, some choose not to use pacifiers at all)
• Noise Machine (helps soothe baby and block out any noise from TV, music etc.)
• Rock “N Play or Bouncer (we used the bouncer a lot on the kitchen table so she could observe us as we cooked/ate etc.)

Play

• Playmat (great for newborns to crawling)
• Sofie the Giraffe (my daughters favorite baby toy)
• Bumbo (helps baby learn to sit)
• Swing or MamaRoo (nice to have versus need)
• JumperRoo (babies love this and parents love having a place to let baby safely play!)

Travel

• Car Seat + Bases + Stroller in-one  (there are so many options out there, I wish I had invested more up front with this one)
• Wearable Carrier (also a lot of options out there, I found this one great and more sturdy for walks and hikes, but used a Sling for indoor cuddling and walking around the house)
• Car Seat cover (great for sun or wind protection, and very versatile!) 
• Umbrella stroller (a must have for quick trips to the mall or to travel with as baby gets older).

Eat

• High Chair (I wasn’t picky, so this is the brand we went with. Others may have different thoughts).
• Bottles (our daughter took well to a bottle and these worked for us)
• Bottle Cleaner
• Bottle Drying Rack
• Drying Flower for Bottle Nipples
• Bottle Sterilizer (great to use once a week for any built-up)
• Spoons
• Sippy Cups (again, lots of options out there, so I recommend getting a variety of different types)
• Food Storage
• Bibs
• Snack Cup

Breastfeeding

• Boppy
• Nursing Bras – there are so many options out there and everyone is a bit different. I truthfully never found a “perfect one,” so have listed a few options out there that worked okkk.
  • Everyday Bra
    • Pump attachment
  • Multi-purpose Bra – could use for low-impack workouts, sleeping, and has a hands-free pump option
  • Sleep Bra
• Leak Pads
• Nipple Cream
• Haaka (great for catching any leaking milk while you’re breastfeeding – every bit counts, right 🙂
• Milk Storage Bags
• Hand Pump (nice to have if you have an oversupply. I would often pump some off between feedings or just before to relieve pressure)

Bath

• Bathtub
• Sink Bath Flower (great to easy travel or a quick bath in the kitchen)
• Bathtub Mat (for use once baby is able to sit up in the tub without the infant tub)
• Burt’s Bees Baby Shampoo & Body Wash
• Baby Lotion

Diapers

• Diaper Pail (nice to have, but oh man do they smell!)
• Wipes
• Diaper Cream
• G-Diapers (for those interested in pseudo-cloth diapering I’ve heard great things about G-diapers.  I always thought I would cloth diaper to reduce environmental impact, and I plan to give it a shot with my 2nd baby.  It just didn’t happen with the first – I was a little over my head at first!)

Clothes

• Sleepers without buttons!! (you will curse whoever buys you clothes with buttons when you’re changing a diaper at 2 am – apologies to whatever friend I bought clothes with buttons for before I had kids!!)
• Onesies with hand covers (because the hand mits don’t stay on…)
• Hand me downs, if available (we luckily had a whole bunch of hand-me-downs from my in-laws so that helped us save a ton – these babies go through so many clothes and outgrown them in no time)

 

Again, these were top items on my baby registry list, and I can tell you all of these got good use!

If it’s your first baby, invest up front, you’ll certainly use again if you have more kids.  Furthermore, if you plan to have a couple of baby showers, you’ll certainly get your fair share of cute clothes, toys, shoes, book etc., which is why you’re not seeing them on this list.  Some of it just comes as you enter the journey of Motherhood!

 

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