Hi guys! I have a minute while baby is napping, and I wanted to write a quick post about the things you absolutely NEED to have on your baby registry, as well as a few things you don’t! This is my fifth baby, so I’ve definitely got experience as to what a new baby needs. Baby Huck is just 8 weeks old now, so I am still in the newborn stage with him.
There are so many helpful things on the market that weren’t around even three or four years ago!
Okay, first off – one thing you need to do is create a free Baby Registry on Amazon. I did that for all my babies. You can even set it to private if you don’t want anyone reading it or finding it – but I found it SO helpful to have to organize the things I needed for baby.
Also, if family or friends asks you what you need, you can send them there easily – everyone buys off Amazon, so they will thank you – and you will be happy they didn’t send you an ugly onesie! Ha!
Here is the link to set up your free Baby Registry. Make sure to do it now so you don’t forget and wait until after the baby is born!
Now, as far as what to add to the registry, I’m going to discuss a few of my must-have items.
The more kids you have, the LESS you end up needing. Crazy, right?! Here are some of the things I got for Baby Huck that have been saving my life these past two months.
Baby Carrier:
Lillebaby Baby Carrier – This is my go-to baby carrier this time around. I have owned pretty much ALL the carriers (I got my first Ergo in 2005!) – so yeah, I have tried them all and this is the best. It’s so soft and comfortable, and you can use it from birth! The best part is that it has lumbar support, so it won’t hurt your back like some of the other options on the market.
Me yesterday, out for a walk using my Lillebaby:
Clothes:
Okay, clothes are really a personal choice – but one thing I love for my newborns is having shirts/onesies that snap up the sides. Once I found side-snap clothes for the newborn age, I never went back to over-the head again!
Carter’s Simple Joys has a ton that are really soft and affordable. I bought both the long-sleeve and short-sleeve ones. I get so nervous putting the onesie over the baby’s head – so these are great!
Diapers/Wipes:
Again, this is a totally personal choice on what you want to do. I cloth diapered my first two babies – but once the third one came along, it was just too much for me to manage with the laundry set-up we have. I was exhausted and decided enough was enough. 🙂
Anyhoo – I have tried ALL the diaper brands, and my favorites are the regular Pampers Swaddlers and Bambo Nature Diapers, which are an amazing eco-friendly diaper.
I know Pampers has their “Pure Protection” line – which I tried, but honestly, it was not worth the money to me because it is so much more expensive, and a lot of it (in my opinion) is just a nicer outside of the diaper. I also don’t like the Pampers Baby Dry because those gave my daughter a bad rash.
So, I use the Pampers Newborn Swaddlers (love them!) and I also use the Pampers Sensitive Swaddlers (when they are available).
Now, one thing you MUST do before you order diapers is sign up for Amazon Family – which is totally free for Prime Members. Here is a 30 day FREE trial if you are not yet a Prime Member.
You MUST do that because you get 20% off diapers and wipes – and all kinds of other discounts that you can’t get otherwise. Just that 20% off is so huge, and has saved me hundreds, if not thousands of dollars, over the years.
Phew! Lecture over! 🙂
Wipes:
You want to stockpile the wipes ahead of time, because they go so fast! I used to use the Lansinoh baby wipes, but I am pretty sure they went out of business because I can’t find them anymore. For the last two babies, I’ve used the Amazon Fragrance Free wipes, which are awesome. My babies never have a diaper rash – and I think it may have something to do with these wipes.
You might have to be an Amazon Family member to get them (not sure if they are available to buy without Prime yet) – so if you don’t have the Amazon Family free membership, then totally get that.
Burp Cloths:
So, I’m not going to get fancy here. There are tons of fancy burp cloths you can get on Etsy, etc. but I honestly prefer to use plain old “pre-fold” cloth diapers for my burp cloths.
This time, I bought two packs of these, and I LOVE them! They are super soft and affordable.
Lounger:
This is a new product that wasn’t around the last time I had a baby. I’ve always loved my Boppy (I’ve had the same one since 2006 – ha!) – so I was excited to buy the Boppy Lounger.
This one (which is the one I bought) is gender neutral, which is great if you’re thinking about keeping it for more babies on down the line:
Car Seat:
Ugh one is hard because it is such a big ticket item! I can’t believe how much car seats cost now (for good reason), and how many there are to choose between.
My favorite infant car seats currently on the market are the Chicco Keyfit 30 and the Graco Click Connect 35.
I am using the Graco Click Connect 35 for this baby – and really like it. It’s also more affordable than the Chicco, so that’s nice. I used to have the Chicco Keyfit 30 for my last baby and also loved it, but my husband sold it for $20 at a garage sale because we thought we were done having kids. Whoops!
Stroller:
This is another big ticket item that should go on your Baby Registry. You can get super fancy and go all the way up to a $1000 stroller (or more!) – but I like to keep it simple. I like the lightweight frame strollers that you snap your carseat into. The Chicco Keyfit Caddy Stroller is one example. It’s under $100, so it’s pretty affordable, and works with the Chicco Keyfit carseats.
For older babies and toddlers, I like the Maclaren strollers because they are so lightweight and sturdy. I’ve had the same two Maclaren strollers (a single Quest and a Twin Triumph) since 2008, so that says something about their durability and quality!
For a jogging stroller, you can’t go wrong with a Bob Revolution Jogging Stroller – or even the Bob Double Stroller. I had one of those but I ended up selling it because it was so big and bulky to load into my trunk, and it was really heavy. As you can see from the above recommendations, I love lightweight and easy-to-maneuver strollers.
High Chair:
This is kinda weird, but I don’t like the regular high chairs at all because they get so messy and gross, and they’re big and bulky. It took until my fourth child for me to figure out what I really like.
I had a brain-storm when we were out at a restaurant, and we just pulled the baby up to the table in their restaurant high chair. I thought, “Why can’t we have that at home?”
So, I went and found one. We now have this at home, and I love it.
Of course, you can’t use it before your baby can sit up un-assisted (around 6 months). But I never feed solids before 6 months anyway, so it’s really a perfect solution for us.
Well, there you have it! Those are a few of my must-have baby items. As you can see, you don’t need a ton of items for a new baby. I like to add items to the Baby Registry as I go, just to keep track of things. Sometimes I’ll find better deals elsewhere or even buy big-ticket items on Craigslist (like strollers).
As always, be well, and enjoy your new baby! Congrats!!! 🙂
Xoxo,
Erika
What are your go-to items for newborns? Anything you’re putting on your Baby Registry that I forgot?
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