Things you’ll actually use for your baby

Updated 09/2023

As you know by now, I have been crazy lucky enough to bring three beautiful babies home. What you don’t know, is that I’ve also worked in the childcare industry for over 10 years.  After all of this I have some very strong opinions on the things you have to have when you bring home your new bundle of joy! Keep reading to find out what you need for baby.

*Affiliate links are included in this post. I may make a small commission on items you click on through no extra cost to you! Thank you for supporting my family.

*Please always check recall lists before using a product with your child.

Best Selling Baby Items on Amazon

There are a few bare necessity items that you just have to have:

A car seat

This one should be a no-brainer since you can’t leave the hospital without one. I prefer the carrier type that clicks in and out of a stroller.  Its nice to have that new little baby in a protective shell when you have to take them out and about. There are so many options out there that I’m not going to recommend a particular model. I will say to plan to buy the newborn carrier and then a separate infant/toddler seat for later. 2/3 of my chunky monkey babies outgrew the infant seat by 5 months old! I also highly recommend getting the car seat installed by a professional. If it is your first time installing a seat you will be surprised at how tightly it can and needs to be put into the car. If you need suggestions for where to get the seat installed and/or inspected check out https://www.nada.org.

Diapers,Wipes, Diapers, Wipes and oh yeah…Diapers & Wipes

You’re going to need a lot of those… more than you think. Newborns like to poop and pee on a fresh diaper before you even get it all the way on, so one diaper change could use two or three diapers! Also, don’t invest in a lot of Newborn sized diapers, as mentioned above I make some lovely chubby babies and one of them came home wearing size 1’s!

My vote is always for non-scented, sensitive wipes. You will never have too many of them. They are for diaper changes, hand wiping, face wiping…you are going to use wipes for the next several years. I actually handed them out to my big kids today to de-stick-ify themselves after a cupcake!

I also suggest you have any breast feeding or formula feeding supplies (more on that in a minute), onesies and diaper cream at home.

The best thing you can do is set up a baby registry. For my last pregnancy, I used the Amazon baby registry. Since I’m already a Prime member, I qualified for a box of baby freebies! Check it out here: https://amazon.com/baby-reg/homepage .

What you’re going to want (but don’t necessarily need) for Baby

A Baby Carrier

I missed out on this the first two times around but the third time…I’ve made the most of baby wearing! I think a baby carrier is especially necessary for second (third, fourth) babies. You will be busy with your older kids and might need two hands to deal with a toddler tantrum while also comforting the new baby. I wear M to a lot of outings with our older kids. I also wore him places when I didn’t want a lot of hands touching him when he was tiny.

My favorite, most loved baby item I have owned was my Baby K’Tan.

The Baby K’Tan is soft cotton (I think it comes in other materials as well), machine washable and you can put it in the dryer! It is easy to throw in your diaper bag and easy for a beginner to learn to use. It should fit very snug to you. Before M arrived, I practiced with a doll. I found the YouTube videos available easier to learn with then the written instructions.

Now that he is older (and heavier)I wear him in a baby sling or a structured carrier like this:

Some kind of baby seat

Whether you buy a $20 baby bouncer or a $400 high-tech baby swing, you will want somewhere to put the baby down! I personally like having both options. One that is smaller and mobile (to bring into the kitchen or bathroom…you do get to shower once in a while!) and something that rocks or swings.

Check out Amazon’s current baby deals by clicking the link below:

Amazon’s Baby Deals and Discounts

A Stroller

Once again, there are so many options to choose from that I won’t give you a specific recommendation. Here is a list of features I suggest:

• Cup holder for baby & parents
• Check the height of the push bar, make sure it is compatible with your own height.
• Brakes- this feature comes in handy more often than you think!
• Folds up with one hand
• 5-point harness (not just a lap belt)
• A good storage basket underneath. This is especially important if you live in a cooler area and will need to store winter coats during a trip to a mall or museum.
• Washable seat cover
• I also recommend getting both a smaller umbrella stroller as well as a more sturdy regular stroller.

Breastfeeding supplies (if needed)

Should you choose to breastfeed there are some items that will make the experience that much easier. I am also going to include items for pumping in this list.

• Breastfeeding pillow- these are also great for tummy time and supporting new sitters.
• Nipple cream- bring it to the hospital and use it after every nursing/pumping session! No affiliation to Earth Mama Angel Baby but I highly recommend this brand for nipple cream and post-partum care items.

Earth Mama Baby Angel Amazon Store

• A breast pump- mechanical as well as a hand pump! You never know when you will be desperate to pump and a hand pump will be your best friend.
• Formula- until baby arrives you can’t be sure nursing will work like you want it to. I had to exclusively pump and supplement with formula. It was so nice to already have a few samples of formula at the house when we were running low on stored breast milk late at night.
• Milk storage bags
• Sterilizing bags for the microwave to quickly clean pump parts.
• Hands-free pumping bra and nursing tank tops.
• Extra flanges for your pump.
• Breastfeeding cover or light blanket. These blankets are my absolute favorites and worth every penny! They are great for swaddling, a cover for nursing, a shade for over the car seat or a nice light blanket for spring/summer.

Swaddles/Sleep Sacks

Multi-Use Waterproof Pads

These are awesome! Here are just some of the uses for these smaller waterproof pads:

• On the changing table- As previously mentioned, baby will pee on everything, including your changing pad cover. If you use one of these pads on top of your cover it will be that much easier to clean up a mess.
• For the crib- Placing one of these between your mattress cover and sheet will lessen the amount of times you have to wash the entire mattress pad cover due to leaky diapers and spit-up. You will thank yourself at 3AM when you just need to change a sheet and not the entire cover. (Make sure the sheet is still pulled tightly and you have made the bed safely).
• Tummy time- Do you have a spitty baby? Place them over one of these during tummy time to save your carpet from stains or to save the baby’s head from a hard floor.
• POTTY TRAINING- Believe it or not this little babe will one day be potty training! These are great for when your toddler is in underwear but you don’t quite trust them yet. Protect your couch, your in-law’s new chair cushions and best of all the car seat. I like to line our car seat with one of these so if there is a potty emergency or accident I don’t have to worry about a wet seat for the ride home !

Stain Remover/Carpet Cleaner

In a similar vein to my last item, you’re going to need to invest in some stain remover and carpet cleaner. I’ve always had good luck with Shout and they even have a scent free version now! As far as carpet cleaner, we’ve found that the pet stain formula is great for human stains too.

Dirty Diaper Storage

Whether you decide to use cloth or disposable diapers, you’re going to need somewhere to put the dirty ones! We’ve always used disposable diapers and have tried a few different diaper pails over the years. Here is my take:

Diaper Dekor–

Why we bought it: This was our first diaper pail from 10 years ago. We registered for it because it had great reviews and the bags were supposed to be easy to change.
What we thought: We didn’t like that you can only buy that particular brand of refill bag, which wasn’t readily available where we did our weekly shopping (This was before Prime…) It also did not contain the smell after a few months. So we traded it in for…

Arm & Hammer Munchkin Step Diaper Pail–

Why we bought it: It was cheap (cheaper than they are now)! We bought it because it was the best value at Target that day and the refills were priced right and easy to find.
What we thought: We actually really liked this one! I believe they discontinued our model a few years ago. The link I have here is the most like what we owned in 2010/2011. We got rid of this when we had two potty trained kids (miracles happen people) and no new baby in sight.

Playtex Diaper Genie-

Why we bought it: When baby #3 was coming along we needed a new diaper pail! This one seemed like the best bang for our buck, had easy and decently priced refills and it came in gray (obviously this was the most important feature).
What we think: This review is in the present tense because we are still using it. (Update: M is potty trained now!! Woohoo!!!!!) It served it purpose. The refills are very easy to find wherever we went and easy to change once you get the hang of it. It controls the smell so long as the lid is closed…but you kind of need to open it to put a new diaper in, so hold your breath!

Diaper Pail Takeaway: They all smell bad after a while! I say go for cheap and easy and take five minutes once a month to clean the inside to control the scent. I use Mrs. Meyer’s all purpose cleaner, a homemade baking soda mixture or sometimes a bleach cleaner and spray down the inside where the diapers are stored.

Mrs Meyers store on Amazon

Bonus Item: Buy some of these scented bags for the diaper bag! It’s nice to have these for soiled clothes or if you have to leave a dirty diaper at someone else’s house.

The end?

When I began writing this list (truth be told it was back in 2018!…) I had a goal of about 10 items to show you. Once I began writing it, I realized I have a lot of opinions about what you will want before bringing baby home! I left out a lot of items that make your life easier (diaper bag!!!) so maybe I will make a ‘part 2’ soon. For now, I’m sure this is enough information to digest 😉

Comment below! What did I leave out? Do you disagree with any of my choices?

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