Preparing for a new baby can be daunting. Preparing for successive children is difficult, too, because I had forgotten in just a few years what products or items I needed on hand. Some things you find at the baby stores look great, but are never or rarely used. Just to help some mamas out here are my must haves for bringing baby home from the hospital:
I never knew about this stuff until our NICU stay. Our son’s skin got so dry and his skin wasn’t able to use any other types of product. Amazing stuff. It is a little thicker than what Vaseline is, but spreads well. I typically use this on myself (hands, feet) but it works well when the baby inevitably scratches himself. Heals the scratch marks quickly, too.
Do your babies have sensitive skin? Maybe they get those little bumps on their faces after a few weeks home? Maybe they get cradle cap? These products are amazing and work!
These are a life saver. You can swaddle your little one with these. They can be a burp rag. Use them as a stroller blanket. Can even use them as a nursing cover.
These things are a life saver. Helps keep baby asleep. Our oldest used them until he was 8 months old or so. Our daughter used them until she outgrew them.
Medela Pump in Style Advance & the matching bags to pump into
This pump can be free through your insurance, so check their first. Medela pump in style advance has a letdown feature that works well and then has a suction adjustment. It also comes with two different size flanges. The replacement parts should also be covered under insurance. You may just have to pay out of pocket first then turn in a claim. 
I struggle with getting my milk in quickly. My babies usually are jaundice so they need more than colostrum to get them going. Fenugreek and the Mother’s Milk tea, along with some oatmeal really seems to help. I’ll have some recipes to share later for snacks that can help bring in the supply as well. When to start these? I start them as soon as I’m allowed to eat/drink after the baby is born. Fenugreek 2 pills 3x a day. They make you start to smell like maple syrup, but works! The teas: they tend to have an acquired taste, but not terrible!
MY FAVORITE WRAP EVER. I’m a large gal and the popular Moby brand does not stretch and fit well with baby attached. I couldn’t believe how short that thing was. The Boba wrap is like poly-jersey material. Like your softest t-shirt but sturdy. You can wash it as often as you like with no shrinkage. There are tons of help videos on the site on how to finagle the fit and make sure it is perfect. You always want to be able to kiss the top of your baby’s head. If you can’t the fit isn’t right and it isn’t safe.
Baby wearing has a lot of benefits other than the obvious. The baby stays calm, sleeps well, and frees your hands for the other children you’re taking out and about. Some lucky women can even nurse their babies in this wrap, too.
Specifically, I use BumGenius pocket diapers. The blow-outs are minimal if at all. The leaks, if you have a proper fit, don’t happen. They are daddy friendly. The wash routine isn’t scary. Simple actually: Rinse cycle on cold. Wash cycle on hot with Tide original powder. Rinse cycle on cold. Then you can dry inserts in the dryer. Hang the outter part (pocket) to dry. There are many to choose from, many different types of accessories, etc. I will have future posts on what works and what doesn’t from Newborn to One Size. Kelly’s closet, link above, has a 30-day money back guarantee, too, along with trial packs to figure out what you like and what you don’t. There is a support group on Facebook as well to help troubleshoot anything you could think of with cloth diapers.
Having a boy? You’ll want vaseline in a tube if you choose circumcision. The less you have to touch, the better. Squirt on a ton, place the gauze, move on.
Babies are snotty. In the beginning there may be lots of amniotic fluid that needs to come out, then the snot, then the boogers, then germs from other people that cause colds. This snot sucker does not harbor mold like the bulb syringes do and actually works!
Having our first baby born at 33 weeks 3 days and living his first 13 days in the NICU I had no idea babies had wicked nails until our daughter was born. You can’t really trim them. They have to be filed. Then when they grow and are stronger it’s so hard to trim them because they are like cutting wax and you aren’t sure if the waxy feeling is the nail or the baby’s finger. I love Frida brand products and this is one I am going to try with the newest addition.
Babies cry. But sometimes that cry is preventable. Is baby gassy? Have a bloated tummy? You can’t overdose gas drops either, so it’s a great tool to use if you can’t figure out why your baby is crying :).
Because we cloth diaper we can’t use the traditional diaper creams at the store. Zinc Oxide sticks to the diapers and does not wash off. Too much build up of zinc oxide on the diapers causes repelling and makes the diapers not work any longer. We love CJ’s BuTTer. This is fabulous. It is multipurpose and definitely takes away even the worst diaper rash.
Should have placed this up with the Nose Frida, because the two go hand in hand. If baby is super congested with thick mucus, you place a bit of spray up there (I like the spray better than drops) and then start to suck the snot out. This saline spray breaks up that thick congestion. If your baby’s nose is dry or you’ve sucked it a lot and start seeing a little bit of blood. Just shoot a tad bit of the spray up there and it takes care of it all.
What would you add?
Is there something you wish you hadn’t bought?
Leave a comment below to help other mamas!
