It's no surprise that babies and kids need lots of things to be safe, stay entertained, and clean! I've compiled a list that I consider must haves, or at the very least need to be considered when you are shopping for a new baby!
You may notice I did not add diapers, wipes, pacifiers, bottles, or breast pumps to this list. My reason being - every baby (and mom) are so different that those items needs to be decided on by mom and baby! I just found all of these items to be very helpful going through the baby phase and now to the toddler phase.
POSTPARTUM/BREASTFEEDING:
I will spare you the details of my postpartum and breastfeeding experience, let's just say it wasn't the most pleasant! I did as much as I could to get Grady all the breast milk I could!
Lactation Cookies: https://shopstyle.it/l/bHUMy - I can't speak on if these actually helped but they were very tasty!
Haakaa: https://shopstyle.it/l/bHUOe - I used this on the side I wasn't pumping or nursing on and it really does catch so much! You'd be surprised what you're wasting if you don't have one of these!
Nursing sleep bras: https://shopstyle.it/l/bHUMD - Keep in mind, I gave birth in 2020 in the middle of the pandemic so Grady and I didn't go a whole lot of places where I needed a real nursing bra! I just wore these all the time and I still wear them as bralettes! :P
FridaMom Peri Bottle: https://shopstyle.it/l/bHUZB - You need this. I won't give details, again, just take my word for it. :P
TRAVEL:
Diaper Bag: https://shopstyle.it/l/bHUNQ - This one we absolutely loved! Its Eddie Bauer, has cooler pockets, lots of room for all things baby needs, and its a backpack style - hands free!
Infant Car Seat/Stroller Combo: https://shopstyle.it/l/bHUNU - I will never not give this a great review. We used it until Grady was one year old. He was a tiny baby/toddler so we probably got more use out of it than the average person, but each set of grandparents got a base for the car seat and we didn't have to worry about moving a whole car seat whenever we needed to take Grady somewhere!
*Jogging Stroller: https://shopstyle.it/l/bHURB - I didn't get my jogging stroller until Grady was a little bigger but I'd highly recommend it for anyone interested in being active outside with a baby or toddler!
Toddler Car Seat: https://amzn.to/3H3gmCh
Toddler Car Seat: https://amzn.to/3aGqDIc - You may notice we have different ones of these, my mom got us Grady's car seats on Amazon Prime day last year and they had a limit so we got one of each!
Small Stroller: https://shopstyle.it/l/bHUQk - We were about to leave for vacation and we didn't have a small stroller for Grady that we could take to shop or to the beach so I found this on Facebook Marketplace. Its honestly such a great stroller. I'll even use it if we walk to the park or go for a short walk around the neighborhood.
BABY FEEDING:
*High Chair: https://shopstyle.it/l/bHUPA - If you're going to buy one thing off this list, buy this. It's a high chair that swivels, tilts, and straps to a chair. (No need for a big bulky, high chair!!) My mother in law got it for us for Christmas after Grady was born and we are still using it to this day.
Dishwasher basket: https://shopstyle.it/l/bHUMJ - Again, a major need for a purchase. I have used this little basket from day one for Grady and I still use it to this day. Put bottle nipples or sippy cup parts in it and throw it in the dishwasher.
Drying rack: https://shopstyle.it/l/bHUOv - My dishwasher wasn't the best at drying bottles and stuff so I'd put them on this drying rack after being washed to dry really well before putting them away (or using them again.)
OTHER BABY ITEMS:
Swing: https://shopstyle.it/l/bHUOc - Grady LOVED his swing as a newborn. I actually found this same one on Facebook Marketplace for $50 so definitely buy second hand if possible!
Sling/Carrier: https://shopstyle.it/l/bHUNN - You'll see the items at the end of this post that I didn't really use or like. The sling/wrap yourself type of wraps were not my thing. This one can be used for tiny babies up to toddlers. Big fan and affordable!
Bumbo Seat: https://shopstyle.it/l/bHUPu - I feel like everyone needs a Bumbo. We had one and we had one at each grandparents house. Again, Grady loved his Bumbo! You can even get ones with trays so you can use it for feeding but we had our great swivel high chair so we didn't use it for that!
Owlet Combo Monitor: https://shopstyle.it/l/bHUPv - OHHHHH the controversy...Yes, this item was taken off the market in the US (NOT recalled, as some might tell you.) It was taken off the market because it wasn't FDA approved and the FDA wanted their money so they made the company take it off the market, redo it, its packaging, and app and roll it back out. I'd recommend it to any mom and family. Grady never slept without his probably from birth to eight months. Obviously, your gut instinct and keeping an eye on your kid should be top priority but this gave me major peace of mind. The sock tells you their heart rate and oxygen (and alerts you if they're out of range) and the camera sends you a notification if there's movement in the room or sounds!
Velcro Swaddles: https://shopstyle.it/l/bHUP7 - There's probably *thousands* of different types of swaddles out there but our friends bought us some velcro ones as a gift and they are soooo much easier with a fussy baby than the do it yourself kind. I've heard good things about the arms up swaddle as well!
BABY HYGIENE/MEDICINE:
Diaper Genie: https://shopstyle.it/l/bHURa - Some will tell you this is a waste of money but I sure loved it. Pretty self explanatory. Buy one, or don't. :)
Bath: https://shopstyle.it/l/bHURb - A bath is SO handy to have when your little is too big for the kitchen sink or too small for the full size bath tub!
Medicine Dispenser: https://shopstyle.it/l/bHUT2 - I could write a whole other blog post about our gassy little baby named Grady in his early days of life. Homie never pooped...more on that another time. We used a lot of gripe water. This made it super simple to give him the gripe water (and later Tylenol/Ibuprofen when we had his ear issue.) Cheers for you if your kid takes medicine well, ours did not.
Gaspasser: https://shopstyle.it/l/bHUUl - Just click the link, read the info, you'll see why we had these. Yes, they're nasty. Yes, they're worth it. Yes, they help. I promise you won't regret buying them.
PLAYTIME:
Floor tiles: https://shopstyle.it/l/bHUPs - We were gifted these at our baby shower and we have hard floors in our house everywhere except the bedrooms, so we used these u=in our living room just for a little extra padding! It's only six tiles so it's not big and bulky or too much for a small space!
Walker: https://shopstyle.it/l/bHURi - Uncle Spencer bought Grady a John Deer version of this walker. Grady started using it when he was able to "bounce" and even likes to climb in it now!
Marshmallow Couch: https://shopstyle.it/l/bHUPz - Alright DISCLAIMER: Don't pay a lot of money for these. I paid EIGHTY DOLLARS for one for Grady for Christmas and to be honest, they are not worth much more than $50. So I've linked one on sale, its $80 normally, don't buy that one if its not on sale. Find one on Amazon a little cheaper or get them a bean bag, it'll be like the same thing. LOL
Kitchen: https://shopstyle.it/l/bHUXX - My kids actually have a play kitchen that Taylor played with in 1995! Play kitchen have come a long ways, I've linked Walmart's page...my kids love their super simple one, but if you want all the bells and whistles go for it!
Linking all my kids favorite kitchen foods below, I got them the Melissa and Doug kind and they love them!
Ice Cream Set: https://shopstyle.it/l/bHULe
Taco Set: https://shopstyle.it/l/bHULh
BBQ Set: https://shopstyle.it/l/bHUJJ
Cake Set: https://shopstyle.it/l/bHULj (Charlie got these from our good friend Erin and it matches the food I later bought for them perfectly...same brand so obviously haha!)
Browse the other food sets here: https://shopstyle.it/l/bHUJO
Blocks: https://shopstyle.it/l/bHULL - What kid doesn't love blocks?! My kids love to play together with these, we have two sets of them (one pink, one blue!)
TODDLER FEEDING:
Cup: https://shopstyle.it/l/bHULT - LEAK PROOF. STRAW. Need I say more!?
Dining Set: https://shopstyle.it/l/bHUWb - Get you a pack of these dining sets and call it good.
*can be used for baby/toddler
Some things we had but we didn't use enough to warrant telling you to buy them:
- Wipe Warmer
- Jumper
- Baby ring wrap/Baby K'tan/Moby wrap