Newborn Baby Must Haves
By: The Jackson Bunch
Tags: Stroller, Baby, Newborn, Baby Essentials, Car Seat

Being one of the first of my friends to have a baby I was left with doing a lot of research to get the best products but also the most practical ones. Especially when your baby is first born.

When a baby is born, they don’t need much besides the obvious of wipes, diapers and sleepers. However, there were some game changers for us.

UPPAbaby Vista V2

This was a BIG splurge item for us but it was worth every penny. We debated if we wanted to go ahead and spend this much on a stroller contraption, but it was the best decision we have made (okay maybe one of the best, having Taytum is up there). We figured this would be a stroller that would last us through all our kids. You can even fit three babes on it! Yes, THREE! It comes with the basinet and a toddler seat which you can purchase an infant insert. The basinet is what she slept in for the first 2.5 months and also works great for going on walks. It is easy to take in and out of the car, and it even serves as a shopping cart when we are out and about. Not to mention, it drives fantastic, very good shock absorption.

UPPAbaby Mesa Car Seat

Again, this was a higher price tag item, but it is an item we use every day. It fits right on our stroller without having to purchase an additional adapter. It is very light if you want to run into a store quick and just carry your babe as well.

Keekaroo Peanut Changer

This was a lifesaver since Taytum had a few, okay maybe a lot, of accidents in her first few days in the outside world. Instead of having the traditional changing pad, this was very easy to clean and not having to throw a cover in the wash was essential. Yes, it is more pricey, however I think it is worth it, especially if you have to buy extra covers for the pad. We also paired this with the Baby Moov Head Rest which I will talk about below.

Babymoov Lovenest Newborn Head Support Pillow

This headrest helps her head from not only slipping and her moving all around, but it also prevents a flat head. This is very important in your baby’s first few months of life. The best thing about this though, you can throw it in the wash. Taytum tends to drool or spit up when we change her, so it makes this item last longer being able to toss it in the washer.

Baby Bjorn Bouncer Balance

Now, every baby is different and different “bigger” items can change baby to baby, but this is what Taytum enjoyed the most. The back of it forms to her body which is one of the reasons we think this is her favorite. While it is annoying to have to push it to make it go (unlike the MamaRoo), it is easy to multitask while pushing with your foot. We tried out the MamaRoo as well, she just isn’t really a fan of it. We are hopeful that down the road she may like it better. Yes, it is pricey, but I would recommend it.

ErgoPouch Sleepers

These PJs are not only super comfortable, but they are reasonable and realistic. There are a few things we like to look for in a sleeper for our babe. First that it’s comfortable, but also that it has the flip over hands, especially in her early days. Babies tend to scratch their face and nails seem to grow extremely fast, so having the flip overs is a game changer. Our babe didn’t like wearing mittens, she kept ripping them off, so this was extremely helpful.

Baby Shusher

This is one of those things you can live without, but it just makes your life easier. It is what it is called… it shushes. Instead of having to make the noise yourself, this thing does the job for you. And trust me, during those 4am wake ups, it makes putting the baby down a lot easier.

Angelcare Baby Bath Tub/Bloomin’ Bath Tub

Let’s chat about bathing your little babe. It sounds like SO much fun, the second you get home from the hospital we couldn’t wait until we were able to bathe her. There are many ways to bathe your babe. We tried the sink and tried the bathtub. We found as a little baby the easiest was getting in the tub with her. Put on that swimsuit and pop in the tub for a little splish and splash with your babe. We use the Angel Care tub. However, as she gets older, we are going to try out the Bloomin’ Bath. We tried this when she was first born, however it was difficult to use when she couldn’t hold her head up too well. The key to happy babe in the bath is having a washcloth on their belly so they don’t get cold.

NoseFrida

We use this almost every day. Does Taytum like this item, NO, and ask my husband, I dread the time when it comes to having to use this. This is why I make him do the dirty work on this. It works magic on getting those yucky boogers out of your babes’ nose.

Electric Nail Filer

I thought you can just bite your babies nails off, but apparently this is a big no no. We had a filer but it was very difficult to use. In comes the electric nail filer. This has worked very well on Taytum and she actually doesn’t mind it. We use this about once a week, if not more. Babies nails grow so fast, who would have known.

One general thing I will say, and I cannot say it enough, but every baby is different. I was told to not buy many newborn diapers or sleepers. Taytum wore newborn sleepers for 1.5 months, and diapers for about the same. We ended up buying more sleepers once she was born, so I would for sure say wait and see how big your baby is before buying tons of newborn items. Also, for the most part in that first month the baby will be in sleepers.

Pro Tip: if you register at Bed Bath and Beyond/Buy Buy Baby, you can return any items on your registry up to a full year. You don’t even need the box it came in. For example, we had a product that I thought we would use, we only used it once or twice in the first 3 months, so we returned it and got all of our money back. You can even purchase items yourself and then before checkout make sure to just tell the cashier your registry number.