Best Baby Items | Atlanta motherhood | Moderately High Maintenance

Baby Items I Actually Used In The First Month

When I was preparing for Rhett's arrival, I read tons of lists about what to include on my registry and what to buy for the nursery. While I am still adjusting to Mom life, what I realized is babies really don't need a lot! So don't stress and don't feel like you have to have every item for every contingency. At the end of the day, Amazon Prime still delivers and target still has drive up for the inevitable items that you will need to pick up. During the first month of motherhood, I purposed to make a list of all of the best baby items I actually used every day so I could share it with you.

(If you don't want to read and just want to buy, here is a link to the baby stuff amazon shop and the postpartum/ nursing amazon shop *Not everything is available on Amazon*)

Best Baby Items I Actually Used in the First Month

Baby Gear

1. Car Seat

The actual first thing we needed for him when leaving the hospital. We chose the Uppababy Mesa because it had excellent safety ratings and worked seamlessly with our stroller. I highly recommend getting an extra-base or two so you don't constantly have to swap them out if you are driving a different car.

2. Stroller

We ultimately opted for the Uppababy Vista V2 because it was easy to use and we loved the design. If we decide to have a second child it easily transitions to a two-child stroller without us having to buy an entirely new system. We love that the Vista came with the bassinet and that we have used that on top of the bassinet stand the first month as a safe sleep space for him.

3. Bassinet Stand

We purchased the Uppababy Bassinet Stand to use with the bassinet that came with our stroller. We loved that you can transition the stand to a laundry hamper after it is no longer needed as a bassinet stand.

4. Extra Uppababy Bassinet Sheets

You can buy extra sheets that fit perfectly on the bassinet mattress and zip them on. Don't hesitate, buy at least one or two extra sets because accidents happen and usually at 2am.

5. DockaTot

Rhett loves his DockaTot and we love that we can move it all over the house for a place for us to set him to lounge.

6. Extra DockaTot Cover

Again, when in doubt buy the extra cover. We have changed out the cover on his DockaTot no less than 8 times in the last month.

7. Bottles

Rhett is primarily breastfed, but he will have at least one bottle of pumped breast milk a day. We have this set but rotate between the two small bottles. This set comes with slow flow nipples which are best for babies 0-3 months old and it comes with medium flow nipples which work for babies 3+ months old.

8. Diapers

We tried all of the different bougie types of diapers, but at the end of the day the ones that worked best for us were the Pampers Pure diapers. If you use any kind of Pampers download the pampers app and put in codes for cash back deposited into your PayPal.

9. Wipes

While we liked the Pampers diapers, we preferred the Honest Co. wipes because they are thicker.

10. Burp Cloths

Buy more of these burp cloths than you think you will need. We probably have at least thirty of them and there are still days where I contemplate buying more. Love this particular kind because they are made of organic material.

11. Owlet

We have the Owlet Monitor Duo Smart Sock 3 + Cam. Hopefully this statement doesn’t come back to bite me, but Baby Rhett is thankfully a really good sleeper. Having theOwlet sock and camera is what helps me sleep well at night because I am not worried about Rhett! We love having peace of mind knowing we will be notified if his heart rate or oxygen levels are outside the preset criteria. I cannot imagine life with a newborn without our Owlet and I cannot recommend it more

12. Tubby Todd All Over Ointment

Rhett started getting baby acne when he was around three weeks old. The Tubby Todd products were the only thing that worked to clear it up. We put the All Over Ointment on his face twice a day and the baby acne was gone within 4 days! We also love their hair & body wash and everyday lotion. Tubby Todd has developed an entire line of gentle body care basics for families with sensitive skin. Great for anyone, age newborn to ninety!

13. Newborn Sensitive Laundry Detergent

Who knew you needed newborn laundry detergent, but it is specially formulated for their little skin. Buy the two-pack, you'll be doing more baby laundry than you ever thought possible.

14. Diaper Bag

I highly recommend this diaper bag because it has a ton of pockets and a cooling pocket for bottles. After a month of use, I would 100% choose this exact diaper bag again.

15. Swaddles

John calls these the baby burritos. I love this specific kind because they are easy to use and they wrap Rhett up all nice and snug for sleep!

Breastfeeding Supplies

1. Boppy Pillow

The boppy pillow makes nursing so much easier. I use it every time I feed Rhett and John loves it as an armrest when he gives him a bottle.

2. Nipple Shield

Rhett initially had trouble with his latch and the lactation consultant gave us a nipple shield in the hospital. It helped him latch immediately and saved a lot of wear and tear on the girls. Ultimately I attribute a lot of our breastfeeding success to the use of a nipple shield because it gave us both time to adjust and made it a lot less painful!

3. Quick Clean Breast Milk Removal Soap

This may be self-explanatory but this was an item that I picked up at target after 3 days of breastmilk flying around my house all willy nilly. Seriously, the stuff was everywhere and this quick clean break milk removal soap works like a charm to get milk off of bottles, pump parts, and fabric.

4. Microwave Sanitizing Bags for Pump Parts, Bottles, etc.

Boiling water in a pot to sanitize baby stuff got old really quickly and I really did not want to buy another kitchen appliance to sanitize everything. Each one of these bags can be used 20 times so these bags are a much more cost/time effective and a space saving solution!

5. Breast Milk Storage Bags

Are you noticing a theme here? Everyone tells you what to buy for your hospital bag but nobody talks about what you need in the breastfeeding department after the birth! Breast milk storage bags were another item I ordered about two days after we got home from the hospital because I didn't know I needed them!

6. Nipple Balm

I love this nipple butter because it is organic and really helps to soothe sore nipples. It is safe for the baby which means you don't have to wash it off before feeding!

7. A Good Breast Pump

I used Aeroflow to get a free breast pump through my insurance. Aeroflow made the process so easy because they handled getting all of the documentation through my doctor's office and the insurance process, all I had to do with give them the name of my doctor and choose the pump I wanted. I went with the Spectra S2. While I was pregnant they even handled getting my insurance to cover compression socks and a belly support band. I highly recommend using Aeroflow because they have all of the major pump brands and make life so much easier.

I also purchased the wearable Willow Pump so that I could walk around and do other things while I pump. It took me a while to get the hang of the Willow, but now the more I use it the more I like it. I tried the single-use bags and I much prefer to use the reusable containers.

8. Lactation Bars

I eat the Boobie* Milk to the Max bars every morning. I love that they are vegan and gluten-soy-dairy-free! The oatmeal chocolate chip flavor is my favorite so far, but I haven't tried all of the different flavors yet.

I let the Boobie* Team know I was sharing these with y'all and they were nice enough to give y'all a discount code! MADELEINE20 gets you 20% off!