When I was pregnant, I remember thinking about all of the things I needed to get done before my son arrived. One of the MAJOR things I had a tough time with was finding what I wanted to put on my baby registry. THERE IS SO MUCH OUT THERE FOR BABIES!! Most of which you don’t really need right away. So I wanted to compile a list of the top 10 baby items that new moms should put on their baby registries. Now, these are were necessities for me, and they may change based on what you need, but I know how well they worked for us and I have to pass it along.

 

1. Nose Frida

This thing was a life saver. No kidding. We used those bulb things they gave us in the hospital and also one that came with our first aid kit for babies, and while they worked…sorta…the Nose Frida was just awesome. Now, my son hates it, but IT WORKS. It sounds gross because you actually suck the snot out of his nose with this tube thingy, but it gets the congestion OUT. And it helps my son sleep so much better. I shoot some saline spray up there and then use the snot sucker and he had zero congestion. It’s amazing and I really recommend it. That’s why it’s NUMBER ONE on my list.

2. Boppy pillow

This was great when I was nursing. My arms got so sore from holding my son to nurse, so propping him up on the boppy and wrapping that around my waist gave me extra support and helped with being less sore. It was also great to prop him up on when I was pumping so I could keep him amused and laughing and playing while I had to pump.

3. Burp cloths 

Seriously…BUY. THEM. ALL. I had what the doctors called a “happy spitter.” No reflux, but he just spit up a lot. He ended up growing out of it, thank goodness, but we went through a couple of burp cloths a day. I used swaddle blankets as burp cloths, I was given burp cloths specific for that use, but even old t-shirts I used sometimes if that’s all I had within arms reach.

4. Diaper pail 

I remember asking my mom if this was even necessary. After smelling what came out of my child, I was so glad I got one. I couldn’t imagine putting poopy diapers in my regular trash. I am SO GLAD I got a Diaper Genie. I LOVE it. It locks out the smell and it’s super easy to change the bags in and out.

5. Portable changing pad

I got a portable changing pad to put in my diaper bag, but when he was little I didn’t always want to walk up and down the stairs in our townhouse to change his diaper. I kept this portable changing pad out on our main floor. I also can’t tell you how many times I changed him on the floor too (still do haha!). Get one of these and use it around your house if you don’t feel like going back and forth to the nursery each time (and keep diapers on every level of your house!), and these are perfect when you have to change your baby in public. Restrooms are gross enough, so having this changing pad that you can lay out on a countertop or a restroom changing table is perfect.

6. Extra strength butt paste

I was lucky. My son rarely got bad diaper rash, but when he did, only the good stuff knocked it out. I LOVED Boudreaux’s Butt Paste (the maximum strength). It was honestly the only thing that worked.

7. Pacifier clip

These were a godsend. I hated him always dropping his pacifier and then trying to find a wipe to clean his pacifier off, blah blah blah. Like repeat this a thousand times a day and it got old. Then we discovered the PACIFIER CLIP. Just clip one end to his shirt, other end hooks onto his pacifier, and if he pops the pacifier out of his mouth it never drops to the floor. YAY! Highly recommend it. I found mine at Target!

8. Zipper sleeper onesies

Sleeper onesies are great to keep your kiddos warm at night, but using ones with a zipper on them was perfect for middle of the night diaper changes. I don’t have to change his diaper at night anymore since he sleeps through the night and doesn’t leak out of his diaper, but when he was an infant and sometimes had poopy diapers at night (or the always, “WHY IS HE CRYING? Is he hungry? Needs a diaper change? I don’t know! DO THEM ALL JUST IN CASE!), zipper onesies were so much easier to handle when you’re sleep deprived. I love cute button down onesies, but fumbling with them when you have a fussy baby in the middle of the night was NOT easy. In comes the zipper and it makes your life so much easier, so stock up mamas!

9. Sound machine

Sound carried in our townhouse, and it carries in our new home too. Having a sound machine helped my son sleep so much better at night. We just stick it on the white noise setting and it has been amazing.

10. Bouncer/Exer-Saucer

I guess both of these can go in the same category as KEEPING YOUR CHILD OCCUPIED AND IN ONE SPOT WHILE YOU’RE TRYING TO DO THINGS. I would throw my son in his bouncer while I showered. I would throw my son in his exer-saucer while I was making dinner or pumping or whatever else I needed to do. They kept him occupied and playing while I needed to get things done. It helped that he enjoyed them. I know not all babies like them, but once he was able to sit up on his own he really liked the exer-saucer. Until then, I don’t recommend putting your kiddo in one. Wait until they can sit up on their own and support themselves.

**BONUS #11: I asked for extra pump parts and bottles for my pump as well. I am so glad I got them as a gift. I didn’t think I would ever need to pump, but when we had issues with breastfeeding I switched to exclusively pumping for my son, and let me tell you…having those extra bottles and parts for my pump was SO WORTH IT. Less time in the kitchen constantly washing parts, and you always had bottles and parts to use. I kept extra parts in my diaper bag too just in case I forgot them when I was out and about and I needed to pump (and that happened way more often than I’d like to admit ha!).

 

What else would you add on this list? Feel free to pass this along to all your new mommy friends or use it as a reference for creating your own baby registry!!

❤ C.P.