New Baby "Must Haves" (breastfeeding, infant, weight, teething)

[jerseygirlonthemove]

Soon-to-be "newbies" to the area, we are also expecting our first child in March. While this is an extraordinarily exciting time in our lives, it's also rather stressful.

While not specific to this topic, I've seen some posts from soon-to-be parents and thought starting a string where pro-mom's and dad's would be willing to provide recommendations of "must-have" items to stock the house with would be useful. From cribs and strollers to bottles and play toy recommendations are welcome.

What have you found to be of high quality, reasonably priced and a must-have item for you and/or your baby?

[DontH8Me]

Fisher Price Ocean Wonders Aquarium Swing - I have nothing but great things to say about this item. It really helped us out for as long as our daughter still fit in the swing, and I have since donated it to my brother who just had his first baby and they love it too.

Bumbo chair - this is so versatile, I don't know what parents did before this was invented. My daughter still likes to sit in it even though she doesn't need to anymore.

Arm's Reach Full Size Co-sleeper - we used this as her bed for the entire first year of her life, and it really stood the test of time. It is in the same condition now as when we purchased it, which cannot be said for some of the pack-n-plays we had. You can use the sheets that go with the co-sleeper to line the pack-n-plays as well - they are exactly the same size.

For the first 6 months - I bought a child's electric table disco ball thingy for a few bucks that turned and displayed different colored lights on the wall and this was indispensible in the afternoon/evening hours when she would get fussy and tired from the day's stimuli. She would watch as the colors displayed on the ceiling and wall (we didn't put the light directly in front of her).

Britax Marathon Car Seat - I wish I had known about this chair before I bought our first infant car seat which was only good until she was about 9 months old. This seat works from birth to several years old, so you don't have to keep upgrading. Safety rating and parent product rating is all excellent on this.

One thing I would recommend is to read what other parents write in their reviews of baby items online (you can read reviews on Amazon or Target for instance) because this will save you a lot of time and money. We wouldn't have bothered to register for the baby food warmer we got if we had read the reviews beforehand - I actually went online to figure out what we were doing wrong and it turns out almost every review we read had the same complaints as we did about this. Obviously you are going to want to make sure that an appliance that heats stuff that is going into your baby's mouth works properly!!

[MrsSteel]

JerseyGirlOnTheMove, if you're already in the Triangle area, I suggest you check out groups like Triangle Mommies. Even people who do not have children yet (pregnant or still in the planning stages) are welcome to join. They can probably offer all sorts of advice.

[Inthesierras]

A freind bought the coolest snack/teether thing for her baby. Her daughter is about 8 months old and teething big time. Its mesh and plastic, and looks like a giant ring pop. You fill the mesh with diced fruit and freeze it. The baby can gnaw on it to soothe their teeth, but also benefit from the fruit. Those weren't around a few years ago when my kids were smaller. Also, safety first (I think), makes magnet locks for your cabinet doors. Love those!

Invest in a good carseat/stroller combo. It makes life so much easier. Avoid the Graco & Cosco brands and some of the cheaper strollers. They have had alot of recalls over the past 8 years. Be sure to send in the registration cards for everything! You wouldn't believe how many baby items are recalled every year. If the registration cards are sent in, they will notify you by mail.

Congrats, its very exciting when expecting your first!

[karen_s]

Baby Must-Haves for me:
1. Boppy or My Brest Friend pillow for easier nursing positioning. Lansinoh/PureLan for your breasts.
2. Arm's Reach Cosleeper - have baby right next to you without having him/her actually in your bed.
3. Good carrier - for #3 it was a Hotsling, then an Ergo as she got older. Baby Bjorn style carriers hurt my back!
4. Clothing in larger sizes. People love to buy those newborn sizes, but they simply don't last.
5. Medela Harmony or Avent Isis manual breastpump to relieve engorgement.
6. For new parents "The Baby Book" by Dr. William Sears. I recommend all of Dr. Sears' books highly. They are about trusting your parental instinct and attachment-style parenting.
7. Medical supplies - I have an otoscope, rectal thermometer, tympanic thermometer, Hyland's teething tablets, etc. I check ears with the otoscope - many times my children were just tugging at their ears and had no signs of infection whatsoever.
8. Graco SafeSeat - baby "bucket" seat with the highest weight limit currently available. Otherwise your "big" baby could outgrow the infant seat at 3-1/2 mos like my #2 son did.
9. I avoid those hideously huge baby strollers and get something like a Maclaren Quest when my children are older and can sit. Unmatched quality and will last until your child is 50 lb or so.
10. If you want to install a carseat and leave it in the car, I wholeheartedly recommend the Britax convertible seats. Unmatched quality and ease of use. I've been using carseats for the better part of the last 13 yrs, so I've tried lots of things. My now 5-1/2 y/o 57 lb second son still rides in 5-point harness in a Britax Regent and has lots of room to grow in that seat.

I am not a big fan of gadgets like wipe warmers, vibrating chairs, swings, Bumbos, etc. My children hated all of those things and they were a huge waste of money for us. Of course all children are different, but most babies would be perfectly content with you (and your breasts to eat), sleeping in your bed next to you, and wearing the same 2 outfits all the time. You don't have to buys lots of gizmos to keep babies happy, JMO

[GypsySoul22]

You can never have enough diapers or blankets.

If anyone wants to know what you want, tell them clothes for the baby over 0-3 months.
Babies outgrow those small things so quickly! Try to get more for when your baby at 6-9 months or so on...

We didn't have a lot of extra fancy fiddly stuff like bottle warmers or whatever. Some stuff is just hype.

I found the umbrella stroller we got (when our son was older) the best buy (it was indestructible and only cost $20.)

I also liked the book What to Expect (at each month) so you could see if your baby is hitting those milestones.

Congrats on the baby to be.

[summers19]

many crib sheets, as these will be frequently urinated on
I liked infant t-shirts a lot, especially when my boys were newborns. As a new mom, changing the baby's diaper was a lot easier when it wasn't covered with a onesie or pants. Much of the time when we'd just hang out at the house my babies were in diapers and those little white t-shirts.

[jerseygirlonthemove]

Thank you for your feedback. This is exactly what I was looking to accomplish.

Keep it coming!

[cynwldkat]

Swing, swing and did I mention you need to get a swing? The best darn invention out there. It allows a new mother time to actually go to the restroom, maybe apply some make-up or eat an entire meal. A MUST!!

[ADVentive]

We bought the carseat/stroller combo - they call it a "travel system" - and it was a huge waste of money. We've used the stroller less than 10 times, and that was just when she was so new that I didn't know better. Now I always use a baby carrier and it is SOO much easier than a stroller. For one thing, the stroller is huge and it's just a PITA to lug it around. The other thing is that half the time the baby doesn't want to be in the stroller, she wants to be held anyway, so you end up trying to carry the baby and push the empty stroller at the same time. I used ring sling carriers when my baby was very little, and now we use mei tai carriers. I agree with the poster who said that Baby Bjorn style carriers are uncomfortable, though that is what is usually available in stores. To get a better style carrier, go online.

The boppy also came very highly recommended, and I guess it was okay. It was good for the first few months I guess to get the baby in a good position for nursing, but it ended up being easier for me to just prop my arm on a pillow instead.

If you are going back to work, the Medela Pump-in-style breast pump is very popular. Personally, I liked the Ameda Purely Yours, which is just as good and less expensive. Otherwise, I liked the Medela Harmony for a hand pump at home.

I used the pack n' play as a bassinet co-sleeper and that worked fine for me, but I wanted the Arm's Reach co-sleeper! Eventually I just gave in though and now she sleeps in the bed next to me anyway.

My baby is a 5 percentile girl, so she actually just moved out of her baby bucket carseat last week at 16 months! It lasted us a long time, but other people say their kid grew out of it by 6 months, so it depends on your kid. We replaced it with a Britax Marathon, which is a great seat! It goes up to 65 pounds, so it should last until she's 10 at this rate!

Though my daughter didn't sleep in her crib, I did put her in there to keep her safe while I would take a shower. The best crib toy was the Tiny Love mobile. That thing fascinated her! I don't know that it would be a great mobile for falling asleep, but it was great for entertainment!

I would also suggest Dr. Sears books. Follow your baby not the clock (or the calendar) as to what he/she needs.

Join a mommy support group of some kind. I joined La Leche League for breastfeeding help, and that's been a great group for me, not just for breastfeeding support but also just as a group of moms I can talk to. I also joined the babywearing group to learn about baby carriers, and a spiritual parenting group at my church. I suggest joining the kind of group where you bring your baby though, as opposed to a "morning out/night out" type of group. (I prefer the focus to be on caring for your baby as opposed to getting away from your baby.)