Mommy must haves!

[whatsername_]

As I'm beginning to start shopping around for baby items, I need some help.

What are some of y'all's holy grail baby items?

[spricket]

My top three favorite must haves when I had my daughter were:

Moby Wrap - my daughter didn't like to be put down, even for a second, until she was about 4 months old so having something to carry her around with me saved my sanity. If I set her down she would scream and scream so even just to go to the bathroom or do dishes the Moby helped a lot since I didn't have to put her down. Although a ring sling of some sort might have an easier learning curve. I'm going to try one with #2.

Swaddler - We used the Halo Sleep Sack but they didn't make one that fit my tiny baby so she moved around in it pretty easily. This time around we are going to try a woombie but unless you become a pro at swaddling babies with just a blanket a swaddler of some sort makes it much easier.

White Noise Machine - A lot of people don't like white noise machines because they think the baby will become dependent on it but my daughter hasn't. We live in the front of a the neighborhood so there are cars driving past all day and a lot like to play LOUD thumping music so the machine helps block that out as well as help my daughter sleep a night since without it the house is too quiet for her (She's used to the noises around the house during the day)

[ladybug]

^^^ Woombie!! My 10 month old won't sleep without being put in her "mega baby" Woombie, it's pathetic! Lol

[blackbetty]

Right away -
A wrap... I used a Moby but it gets really cold here and my daughter was born in November. My next baby I'm gonna look for a good woven wrap cause the Moby was kinda hot. I did save mine though and will prob use again.

A bouncy seat... I recommend spending extra on a cooler one with more features if you have the cash. Some may disagree but with my son I bought a fancy Aquarium Wonders bouncer (they don't make it anymore but maybe they make one similar) that had settings to make it automatic or baby controlled. It had lights and music and hanging toys and vibrations... He LOVED IT and used the crap out of it. Two of my nephews used it and my daughter used it too even though I had another simpler bouncer for her... It was a LIFESAVER. They'd play in it when I took a shower, id just bring it in the bathroom with me (have a clear shower door) and talk to them while I showered. When my kids were very small and not sleeping well, sometimes they would fall asleep in it and I'd pull it next to the couch and take a short nap. I could not live without a nice bouncer. Could. Not. I could live without the swing though. My daughter liked it okay but didn't love it, my son hated it.

Sleepers with zippers. Love them. When you're really tired, they're so easy to put back on quickly or in the dark. Some people like gowns but I wasn't a fan.

Waffle weave thermal blankets for swaddling - they're nice and stretchy... Love them and saved all of mine.

MAM pacifiers were the only ones my daughter would take. My son wouldn't take one at all. Both kids hated NUK pacifiers.

I think it's Baby Magic, but I love all the calming milk products with lavender scent. Lotion/hand cream/baby bath.

I hated the infant tubs, my personal fav is the big sponge things you put in the big tub and lay the baby on. My kids loved baths. I love them cause they don't take up much space - I would squeeze them out and clothespin them to a hanger and hang them over the tub to dry.

A bassinet - it doesn't need to be fancy or expensive, in fact I swear by this one and would buy it again for my next baby. I used one for each of my kids but sold them when they were outgrown. Can't find the exact one but it was similar to this one:
http://mobile.walmart.com/ip/Delta-Swee ... department

The wheels are the most important part. Just lay baby down then you can wheel the bassinet to where you need it. I would roll it into my room next to the bed. I used this for room sharing until my kids rolled over or outgrew it.

Prefold cloth diapers as burp cloths... I think burp cloths sold in stores are garbage... Spit up goes right through em. Buy a pkg of cloth diapers. Stores carry Gerber. Not my fav but they'll do. Some stores have Carter's/child of mine and they're awesome for burp cloths, not so awesome for actual diapering. My fav prefixes are Green Mountain Diapers and they're totally worth the cost (they aren't insane tho). I also recommend them if you cloth diAper.

For making the bed - I recommend you buy a waterproof mattress pad. Put a regular or waterproof mattress pad on the crib mattress then a sheet. Then put a waterproof mattress pad over the sheet and put a clean sheet over that. This way, if you have diaper leakage action overnight, you can pull off the top layer and throw it in the wash and you don't have to mess with remaking the bed in the middle of the night.

A boppy... I literally could not live without one, especially breast feeding.

If you breast feed -
I liked the playtex bottles for bottle feeding because they're so easy to clean.

Lanolin and coconut oil for sore nipples.

Manual breast pump - I liked my electric a lot but I always seemed to get more faster with my manual. I think I might go entirely manual for my next breast pump. I don't know if you'd wanna go that route but I loved my manual pump (my electric had parts to use to make a hand pump separate from the electric part so I can't make a recommendation on what manual - my pump was a Medela)

Mother's milk tea... It's so nasty but it really helped me with lactation.

When baby is older:
I believe they're made by munchkin but they're little plastic/mesh feeders. A lot of vloggers use them. With my son I used them when we were starting to introduce solids. I would put steamed or raw fruits or veggies in them and it helped him learn to chew without choking. It also kept him busy. I'd pop him in the high chair with it and wheel him into the kitchen and talk to him while he did that and I cooked dinner. With my daughter I started a little earlier with frozen fruits and veggies. She didn't really get anything out of it except the taste but it was awesome for her teething - she started at 6 wks.

An exersaucer. Both Of my kids loved it. My son liked to jump in his and my daughter liked to spin in hers.

Products I wish I hadn't wasted my money on -

Bumbo... We just didn't use it much. My daughter was very skinny but I don't recommend it for chunky thigh babies.

Pocket cloth diapers...don't breathe well, my daughter had a reaction to the "waterproof" stuff, leak issues... We used natural fiber diapers instead and never had a problem.

Rockin Green detergent - better results with Tide,
Dreft - switched to tide and had no issues... Waste of time. Do a double rinse with your regular detergent if you're worried. It will make your life easier.

Insane amounts of clothes. Seriously don't. You will buy tons of stuff and your kid will outgrow them before they even wear it and it's so sad!

Changing table. Straight up wasted my money. Never used it. Thankfully it was a dresser also so I used it as a whole but I found it easier to use a changing pad with a receiving blanket over it to keep it clean and change wherever. Couch, floor, bed, wherever I happened to be.
I kept a pretty basket with a days worth of diapers upstairs with me.

I'll prob think of more. Sorry for the long post but when I baby shopped, it helped me more to hear the details through reviews and other people than to just blindly compare things.

[whatsername_]

Thanks y'all!
Defintely helping.

We have a car seat, baby tub, tummy time mat, breastfeeding pillow, a few bottles, and wipe warmer that were all very graciously given to us.

I would have never taken a car seat, but it was from family, who's son outgrew the infant seat before he could even really use it. No wrecks, and expires in 3 years or so.

I REALLY want to cloth diaper, but I don't even know where to start.
We bought a box of diapers, and a box of wipes so far.
I'm just so afraid of getting something that could upset the baby's skin. So we went for the sensitive skin wipes, but even then.

There are SO many brands, and types and styles of everything.
Its stressful.

[hjl226]

I agree about the bouncer. My son had one that he was able to kick the rattles and make it light up and sing he loved it!!

[spricket]

I cloth diaper my daughter, started at 3 months and it's been almost a year now. We're planning on starting baby #2 with cloth from the very beginning.
I'm not an expert but I can probably help! What do you want to know?

[whatsername_]

There are so many brands. Which should I avoid?

[briannaspeaks]

Essentials that I loved:

Bouncer- my daughter hated her swing so we just used a plain bouncer

Breast flow bottles- from what I know they are the most similar to breast feeding. They need compression to get the milk out just like breast feeding. After using those bottles my daughter wouldn't take any other.

Califonia baby products- my daughter has very sensitive skin and would break out with everything. Aveeno, Burt's bees, etc. but California baby didn't hurt her.

Simple Onesies- when the baby's young you'll go through them a lot. Spit up, blow outs, drool, milk dripping.

If you use disposable diapers I liked pampers swaddlers and swaddlers sensitive. Also the disposables wipes i used were pampers sensitive.
If you want to go a little cheap i used target brand diapers and loved them and my daughter had no problems. Also walmarts "parents choice" sensitive wipes are just about the same as pampers sensitive wipes.

If you want to use cloth I recommend all-in-ones. I loved bum genius and soft bums.

Gripe water- my daughter always had hiccups. She had them at least twice a day while in utero and then up to 6 times a day once she was born. It also helps with gas, teething, and some other things. I used mommys bliss.

[spricket]

There are so many brands. Which should I avoid?

I really haven't had trouble with any brands. You just need to watch out for the "china cheapies" which are normally no-name brands you can buy really cheap through ebay or a diaper co-op. They quality tends to be subpar. Some cheaper brands, like Alva and Kawaii, aren't bad. Kawaii makes up most of my stash and run about $12-14 each. I actually LOVE Kawaii's Good Night Heavy Wetter's for a bedtime diaper.

What I did is I bought a little bit of everything. My stash consists of Kawaii, Fuzzibunz, Rumparooz, Blueberry/Swaddlebees, BumGenius and Grovia. You really don't know what you will like or what will work for you until you try it. What works for one person doesn't always work for another. For instance, I heard so much about how amazing Grovia All In Ones (AIO) are so I bought three and ended up hating them!

My favorite, hands down, are Rumparooz. I love the quality and they have this little inside leg gusset that helps hold poo in better than most other diapers.

I love to buy from Kelly's Closet (www.kellyscloset.com) for brand new or if you want to buy used you can use Diaper Swapper forums (www.diaperswapper.com/forum). Don't be scared of buying used diapers since you can get nearly brand new ones for a fraction of the price. Plus, Diaper Swappers is really great helping out newbies.

[briannaspeaks]

For people who want to cloth diaper here's a rough draft on different types diapers.

http://theartofsimple.net/4-cloth-diape ... s-defined/

And I agree with the poster above. Buy used and buy a variety. You never know which one you'll like.

[spricket]

Also another good resource is Kayla from Obbsandlala on youtube. Nobody I knew cloth diapered and my family thought I was nuts so her videos really helped me figure out where to start. They're 3 years old but I don't think any of it is outdated
https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=P ... 574C00E83D

And I just realized my link to diaper swappers is wrong. The right one is http://www.diaperswappers.com/forum/

[thegooseiscooked]

Hmm...now bear in mind that my babies were born a long time ago so my advice could be outdated but I'm gonna share anyway.

A really good quality, big pram. I had an emmaljunga, not sure if they even make them anymore. That thing was the bomb and clocked up thousands of kilometres. Lasted me through two spitting up babies and still looked brand new when I handed it over to my brother in law for his daughter. It's still going. It was huge and strong, you could push your way through a crowd and never fear that anyone was going to get near your baby. Some days, babies just cry and cry and cry for no apparent reason and it was always easier to manage and soothe baby when going for a nice long walk.

A baby carrier. Sometimes baby will just want to be held for hours and you are going to need your arms. I had a Baby Bjorn. It was great.

I didn't use wipes. If you are concerned about sensitive skin, skip wipes altogether. They're expensive and full of perfume and chemicals. I cut a few cheap towels up into squares, hemmed them and used them with warm water (then washed and reused them) but there are also plenty of videos on YouTube on how to make a natural baby cleaner that are suitable for the nappy area. I just had a small pack of wipes in the nappy bag for when we were out and about and for sticky hands or faces.

Oh, and just one tip that I will give you. Don't use baby powder on baby's privates. There is a common misconception that it keeps baby dry and helps avoid nappy rash - well maybe it does but it can also lead to some pretty nasty UTIs, particularly in baby girls. You don't need baby powder at all, it may smell nice but there's nothing good for baby in it at all. If you absolutely must use it, make sure baby's nappy is already on first. Trust me, I speak from experience.

Hope this helps!

[blackbetty]

I cloth diapered from about 4 mos on. My daughter still wears a diaper at night (she's 3) but it is very rarely wet anymore but I technically am still cloth diapering her.

Cloth diapering, it depends how much work you wanna do. If you wanna do very little, all in ones will work. They don't need a cover and don't need stuffed but some have a pocket to add more absorbency if you need it. Pros: super similar to disposable diapers. Cons: take longer to dry.

Pockets - don't need a cover, has a waterproof shell and a liner with a pocket to add the amount of absorbency you need. Inserts come in a lot of materials. I found hemp and bamboo to be the most absorbent but microfiber holds a lot of volume. It's all a matter of preference. Pros: very similar to disposables. Cons: you have to stuff them after you wash them. I recommend pulling out the inserts as you put them into the pail instead of having to do all of them when you put them in the wash that way you spend less time handling pee soaked diapers. It's usually not a mess.

Fitteds - my personal fav but I think I'm the minority. They do need a cover and they go on just like a disposable. Pros: you don't need to have as many covers as you do diapers. Cons: they aren't waterproof (though I didn't use covers when we were at home. Just changed frequently)

Prefolds are probably your cheapest option but it's also at the cost of more work. I personally loved my Prefolds and I can't say enough good things about Green Mountain Diapers. I used their unbleached Cloth-eez. They also have bleached or organic. They also make a fitted version called workhorses. They ate definitely worth the price difference for your typical walmart Prefolds - I find Gerber worthless as an actual diaper. Bonus: Prefolds are awesome because you can get a custom fit. This is especially helpful when they're really small and the legs are too big on elasticized leg diapers. Also newborn Prefolds make GREAT pocket inserts or birth cloths when they're outgrown. I tie dyed all my Prefolds, super cute. I preferred pins but some people love snappis for closures.

Covers - there are tons. Flips are supposed to be really good. Fleece works and wool is awesome but more expensive and more work... Again, it's a preference thing just like all of this. I recommend you try different things and figure out what you like and build your stash from there.

[blackbetty]

Another great place for new and used cloth is Spot's Corner. You'll find it if you google.

[whatsername_]

You guys are awesome!

I got my trial package of Honest Diapers, and honestly... Meh. I keep finding myself going back to cloth diapering.
I'm going to be working a ton, so I don't know if I should do it or not. I REALLY want to, but I won't know if I'll have the time that it takes.
It's bumming me out.

It's obviously more time consuming than disposables, but it can be done, right? I'm not crazy?

[blackbetty]

I didn't think it was much more time consuming than disposables especially considering if you go by the instructions on disposable packaging that you're supposed to dump the poop before you throw away (which no one does but you are supposed to). For me it was 2 extra loads of laundry a week and I loved folding my diaper laundry cause it was so cute.

[blackbetty]

Also many daycares will do cloth especially if you have a drs note (easy to get) and then they are doing the cloth during the day and you just have to wash it.

If you breast feed exclusively, you don't have to dump the poop out of newborn diapers because it's water soluble.

Also if you want to do cloth and want less hassle, you can buy disposable liners that go in the diaper so you throw away or flush the liner and just wash the #1 out.

There are so many different things, if you wanna do it, do it! If you wanna, you will find a way.

[whatsername_]

That's awesome. I didn't know about the disposable liners!

That website you told me about is awesome too.

A lady on my swip swap Facebook group was selling 30 diapers and 30 liners for 20 bucks and I missed out.
So bummed.

[Chevbowlyn]

My must-haves are:

BOOBIES!!!
Swaddling blanket, bassinet unless you want to bed-share for easier access to BOOBIES!!, woven wrap, cloth diapers(bumGenius and AppleCheeks are my favorite), and a good car seat that will last rf the longest.