18 Baby Products That Have Made Mom Life Easier
SHOP: Sweater / Booties / Activity Center / Faux Fiddle Leaf Tree
We’re about 8 months into this parenting thing and it’s been quite the journey. Most of the time you’re just figuring things out as you go, faking it until you make it and doing A LOT of Googling. I thought I’d share what I’ve found most helpful for any new or soon-to-be parents starting those registries. These are all things I’ve purchased, used and love (in no particular order). If any of you seasoned vets out there have additional things to add, please share in the comments for all of us newbs! We can use all the help we can get.
Activity Center
This is a great ‘keep-baby-busy-so-I-can-get-some-things-done’ toy! It keeps them entertained and contained so you know they’re safe if you have to run to another room or throw in that load of laundry that’s been patiently waiting for days. We went with the Fisher-Price 2-in-1 Sit-to-Stand Activity Center - Safari which also easily converts to a toddler play table once they’re too big to sit in the middle.
Infant Carseat & Stroller Combo
We went with the Chicco Bravo Travel System in Indigo. This makes it so easy to take baby places. Ours came with a carseat base for the car that makes taking the carseat in and out a breeze (no struggling with seatbelts every time). The carseat snaps right into the stroller, with baby facing you, so you don’t have to take baby out of the carseat once you get somewhere (a blessing when they’re sleeping). We don’t take the stroller everywhere because it’s pretty bulky, but definitely anywhere that involves a decent amount of walking because that carseat gets heavy real quick.
Zip Onesies
Don’t get me wrong, we still own a ton of button onesies. But zippers are just next level convenient. Especially for middle-of-the-night diaper changes. Bonus if they zip down from the top (instead of zipping up from the bottom) so you don’t have to unzip the entire thing for a diaper change. Some of my favorite zip onesies were from Old Navy, Burt’s Bees Baby and Carters.
SHOP: Pink Fox Zip Onesie
Night Light
You don’t want to have to turn on a bright light every time the baby wakes up during the night. Get a night light that is just bright enough to see what you’re doing (or turn the hallway light on instead of the room light) and hopefully that will help them get back to sleep quicker instead of thinking it’s daytime or playtime. We just use a few super cheap, simple, plugin night lights that we placed in the nursery and other key areas (stairways, hallways, etc) so we can get around at night without turning on too many lights.
Glow-in-the-Dark Pacifiers
Glow-in-the-dark pacifiers are easier and quicker to find in the middle of the night instead of panicking trying to figure out where the pacifier fell out of the crib and (gasp!) having to turn on the light. The MAM Glow In the Dark Pacifiers worked great for us!
Bandana Bibs
Cute and practical. Alayna had a long streak of spitting up quite often, so wearing a bib was essential unless we wanted to change her outfit every 5 seconds. These bandana bibs from Amazon were a lifesaver and also so cute!
Silicone Bibs
Once you get to the baby food stage these things are AMAZING. No fabric, so no laundry. Just rinse off or wipe down and you’re done. They also have a pouch to catch the mess (spoiler alert: there’s always a mess). We got our silicone bibs from Amazon.
Baby Brezza
Ok, the Baby Brezza is not a necessity and is expensive but it’s SO convenient. It’s basically the equivalent of a Keurig for baby formula. It was a lifesaver during the colic phase when we were walking zombies waking up multiple times in the night holding a crying baby in one hand and trying to make a bottle in the other. Just press a button and the Baby Brezza mixes and pours the bottle for you at just the right size and temperature.
Changing Pad Protectors
If you’re like me and wanted to have a cute changing pad cover and were worried about it getting ruined, these changing pad protectors from Amazon are amazing. Instead of changing the whole changing pad cover every time something small happens, these lay on top of the changing pad cover and when they get dirty I just toss them in the laundry and throw a new protector on.
Hand Sanitizer
We bought two huge bottles of hand sanitizer, one for the living room and one for the nursery on the changing table. It’s also great to have in plain sight for visitors when your baby is super new so they remember to clean their hands. We’re not as religious about using it anymore, but still good to always have on hand and so much quicker than washing your hands when time is of the essence.
Jolly Jumper
We bought our Jolly Jumper a month or so ago and Alayna absolutely loves this thing. She jumps in it almost every night before bed. There is hardly any assembly and it hangs from the door trim. Another great baby distraction and an activity to tire them out a little bit.
Behind-the-Door Storage
Organization is not my strong-suit, but these over-the-door organizers from Amazon have come in so handy for extra storage space. I use it for bibs, burp cloths, towels and wash cloths but they can store just about anything! A great use of otherwise ‘dead’ space and two can fit on a door.
Diaper Genie
The Diaper Genie is literally like magic. It holds a ton of diapers so you don’t have to empty it all the time and it does a really good job of containing the smells. An absolute must-have for any nursery changing area!
White Noise Machine
If you don’t want to worry about any and every sound you make while the baby is sleeping, a white noise machine is a must! Ours is built into our baby camera. But there are some great, affordable options on Amazon, like the one below.
Sleep Sacks
Since blankets aren’t allowed in the crib, this is an absolute essential and the easiest way to get a nice tight swaddle (especially in the middle of the night). A tight swaddle hopefully equals a calm, warm, sleepy baby (mimicking the womb). The fleece sleep sacks are great for winter to keep baby warm while they sleep. I recommend having at least two so that there’s always a clean one waiting in the wings. We’re still using these every night (arms out now)!
Angelcare Baby Bath Support
Alayna loves taking baths and this bath seat has been great. It sits right in the tub, is sturdy and doesn’t slip around. Because it’s all plastic, it stays clean and is easy to clean. We’ve used this since Alayna was born and it’s still going strong!
Baby Clothing Size Dividers
These size dividers are so helpful to organize baby clothes. Especially in the beginning when you start accruing clothing of all different sizes. They help you find what fits faster and they help you to know what you have (and what they need to wear before they grow out of it)!
