Like most experienced moms (i.e. moms who survived toddlerhood), I feel like an expert on the baby stuff, (though mastering the actual raising-an-adolescent thing still elude me). So, for fun, I thought I’d write a post that might be helpful to all those new moms and dads out there! I get to meet so many soon-to-become parents in my business, it reminds me of what an exhilarating yet overwhelming time having your first baby can be. I’m hoping this list of handy things OUR family found essential might come in handy for all you soon-to-be parents or parents with newborns!
6 baby items you never knew you needed!
1. A pack-n-play
Here’s why: They can be your baby’s first bassinet/bedside sleeper. They are a portable travel crib. They make a great safe place for baby to play when you’re cleaning/working around the house. They now are super simple and easy to set up. And lastly, for all of these perks they’re relatively inexpensive. That is to say, if you just go for a basic pack-n-play in the $60-80 range (not the Cadillac version that’s double that!)
Little mobiles and such are cute, but just get the kind with the adjustable bottom- meaning you can raise the sleeping surface up high during those first few exhausting weeks so you can easily reach baby over the edge of your bed. After using it bedside, and throwing in the car for a road trip or hotel stay or two, you’ll see why they were such a handy invention!
Here’s a nice one at Target. (And no I’m not an affiliate or anything… But I totally would be! Ya listening Target??) 😉😆
2. Piddle pads
When we first registered for baby shower gifts, I wondered if people actually buy a half a dozen or more of those cute, soft changing pad covers for the changing table pad. (For those that actually use a changing table like we did!) I mean, even I know that a waterproof, sanitizable surface (a.k.a. an unpleasant plastic/vinyl mat) is the most hygenically appropriate surface to change a baby, I didn’t really want it in my own little angel’s beautiful nursery. (After all, she’d be the only baby using it!) However, our little angel never failed to pee ALL over her lovely changing mat cover nearly every time I removed her diaper. And I didn’t want to have to buy (or wash and fold!) half a dozen covers.
Solution? I bought some of those cotton flannel waterproof sheet savers from Babies-R-Us and cut them into quarters- the perfect size to lay on top of the changing pad cover to soak up any surprises! When peed on, they were FAR easier to swap out with a clean one and gave me FAR less laundry to wash than those bulky (and pricier) changing pad covers. They were also small enough to stash in the diaper bag to give yourself a clean place to lay baby when changing diapers on the run!
You’re welcome. 😉 Amazon has something similar to what I used!
3. Swaddlers
Although many parents might say you don’t need anything other than a blanket to swaddle a baby (and technically they’d be right), those swaddle wraps are a wonderful thing for the sleep-deprived deliriously tired parent trying to swaddle a baby back to sleep in the middle of the night. We swaddled our baby with a flannel receiving blanket or whatever we had, but when baby kept wriggling the blankets loose, we realized these wraps would keep our baby burrito snug and wrapped all night long! It doesn’t matter how sloppily you swaddle baby in their blanket, one of these wrapped and velcroed around them keeps them snug and happy without ever coming unraveled. Target has several versions.
4. A cradle swing
As legend in my family goes, I was an incredibly fussy baby. (Or was the word my mom used “horrible”?) I mean, there is a reason that I’m the “baby” in the family- my parents say they didn’t want to have another after I came.
My mom says that the ONLY thing that would soothe me during one of my terrible crying jags was a swing. It was one of those swings with a crank on the side that you had to keep cranking over and over again. I think she said they went through 2 or 3 swings in my first year!
Anyway, the electric versions now are pretty great- they’re not only adorable and cozy (and far quieter!), you can choose to have baby swing front-to-back, or side-to-side, like a cradle. Our munchkins definitely preferred the latter. They were SOOOOO content in their swings- falling asleep in them nearly every time. As they grew, we replaced the swing with their crib when it was actually nap time, but during those first several weeks that are so exhausting, the swing was a lifesaver.
5. A DOULA
Though person, not a product, a Doula is the one essential you never knew you needed for BEFORE baby is born! For those of you who don’t know, a doula is a person who supports you before, during and after labor. To me, a doula is a lot like a labor COACH. They don’t deliver your baby (your midwife or doctor does that) but they support YOU- physically, mentally, and emotionally- during the entire process of bringing your baby earthside, and some also provide POSTPARTUM support!
Now, don’t make the mistake of thinking doulas are an unnecessary luxury that only hipster moms use.
They are, in fact, AMAZING.
We had a less-than-stellar first birth experience at an Army Medical Center, so We REALLY wanted to hire a doula for our second baby. And MAN am I glad we did. Long story short: My second labor was MUCH shorter than my first (five hours from start-to-baby) and the Army hospital where I was to deliver (again) was SO busy with laboring moms that I had to labor in the hallway for nearly 2 hours, and then couldn’t get the epidural I so desperately wanted because the anesthesiologist was literally backlogged!
Thank GOODNESS our doula Doris Ann was there with us. I mean, I wasn’t completely alone- my husband was there after all. But with all due respect to that wonderful man, he’s pretty much useless in the delivery room! Doris Ann helped keep me calm and comfortable (as much as was possible anyway). She massaged my back, helped me walk when I needed to, breathe and mediatate when I needed to, and conveyed my wishes to the doctors whenever my husband was too nervous to do so himself. I ended up making it through labor without any pain medication or epidural whatsoever– something I just don’t think I could have achieved without her unwavering support and encouragement. I will forever be grateful to her for having such a wonderful birthing experience!
To learn more about what doulas can do for moms (and dads) visit here!
And of course:
6. Professional newborn portraits!
You might think I’m mentioning this one for obvious reasons. 😆 But actually, I’m speaking from my own experience as a mother, not as a newborn photographer. When our first child was born, newborn portraits- or at least professional photographers specializing in that way- wasn’t much of a thing yet. At least, I never saw newborn photography (other than that from Anne Geddes) frequently enough to realize it was actually an option. So, of course, I took tons of photos- some good, many crummy- with our point-and-shoot camera. But I honestly can’t think of one photo of her when she was brand new that truly captures what she was like in a really beautiful way. And I really wish we had that. Because there’s no way to go back and do it over.
When our son was born, we asked our family photographer that we’d hired a year or two prior to make his portraits. And I can’t begin tell you how special those photos are now! Because they were so beautifully lit and composed that they absolutely highlighted his sweet face that no other photo I ever took could have. Thankfully, years later I can say that I now CAN create those type of beautiful portraits! I am incredibly humbled to know that I can give so many parents what I’d wished we could’ve had for our daughter!
The few weeks that they’re brand new in this world go by so fast, you won’t even realize it. Professional photos may be an investment, but I know not ONE family that has ever regretted such an important and precious investment. But I know many who regretted NOT making it.
Wondering if newborn photography is worth it? See some of our testimonials here!
Anyway, that is MY list of things you never knew you needed for baby! Agree? Disagree? I’d love to know what y’all think! Feel free to comment with YOUR favorite baby things below. Parents- especially new parents- need all the help they can get!
