Note: So many of these items can be purchased used, either on craigslist.org or from parent group sites, like Berkeley Parents Network (www.parents.berkeley.edu) in the Bay Area, or from friends. It seems so wasteful to buy everything new, when there are so many slightly used items out there. You will realize how much this is true once you see how many times some of the items are used.
The following list includes some of the items which I found most helpful, especially within the first five months following the birth of your baby.
Clothing and Related Items:
Kiddopatumus Swaddler: really helpful in the first few weeks/months depending on your baby. This is an easy way to swaddle. They have Velcro strips to keep the flaps secure around the baby. They come in microfleece or cotton, so you have some choices as far as weight, depending on the time of the year when the baby is born. Get 3-5 of these, since they wear them often there are often times accidents, so it is nice to have a few changes handy. http://www.kiddopotamus.com/p_swad.php
Onesies: onesies are invaluable during the first few months. The baby basically wears sleepers, the swaddlers, and onesies. Get a bunch, maybe 10-15, so you don’t have to wash them constantly.
Sleepers: For nighttime I would buy sleepers that have a zipper. The last thing you want to do in the middle of the night is snap the 20 snaps on a sleeper. Make sure that the zipper has a fabric tab at the top which covers the zipper and prevents it from scratching the babies neck. Surprisingly, I have seen some which don’t have this…one in particular was from The Gap, so just look for that. Many of the sleepers seem to be snapped closed, which is fine as well, just takes more time and babies are wiggly and not usually happy when they are up at night. For the rest of the time and for when they are a few months old, the snaps are fine any time during the day or night.
Bathing/Cleaning:
Hooded Towel: These are really nice for bathtime. They can just be wrapped up in them and have their head covered until you can dry them and change them.
Baby Washcloths: We received about 12 of these and we use them all of the time. They are nice and soft. We use them as part of a “warm towel” routine at bedtime, they work great for bathtime and for “sponge baths” as well. Carter’s makes some nice ones and Mervyn’s has their Sprockets line which was good too.
Birdseye Weave Diapers: We do not use these for diapers, but they are great for all purpose cloths. I have one in the car, and in each room where we spend time with Alex. They are handy and cheap, as well as easy to clean, just throw them in with the rest of the whites and you are good to go. We probably have about 30 of them, all ready to go in the linen closet, so I just change them out as necessary.
Shout: I cannot tell you how much Shout gel I have used in the past months. Get a bunch of it and just have it handy in the bathroom, because you will be putting it on many items. It works very well to get all of the stains out.
Arbonne Baby Care: We received a whole set of Arbonne Baby Care (http://www.arbonne.com/), from my friend who is a pediatrician. The Hair and Body Wash and the Baby Oil are botanically based, work well, and smell nice.
Receiving Blankets:
I personally liked the thicker two ply cotton interlock type receiving blankets, like Carter’s has, rather than the flannel receiving blankets. The thicker ones are great for putting on the sofa or on the bed when the little one is there, so that you can prevent having to clean up messes. I also bring them in the diaper bag so that you can use them at playgroups when you put the baby on the floor.
Health/Wellness:
Baby’s Bliss Gripe Water: They sell this at Long’s. It is a natural remedy for tummy troubles. It has fennel and ginger in it to help ease gas and settle the stomach. We used this quite a bit for Alex. Sometimes I think it was just a distraction, but in any case, it worked. I prefer to give this, rather than giving Mylicon all of the time. It is about $12.00 for a 4 oz bottle, which lasts for at least a month if you are using it often.
Mylicon: We did use the Mylicon drops, which did seem to work for gas. They have a version which is white and does not contain any dyes.
Diaper Rash Cream: A friend gave us some Arbonne Herbal Diaper Rash Cream and it works great. I use it primarily at night when the diaper will be on for a longer period of time.
Toys:
Plastic rings for attaching toys: These are really handy for attaching toys to car seats, toy bars in playpens, on playmats etc.
Tiny Love Gymini: This is a great little mat with playbars over it, where the baby can lie down and play. They love to bat at toys hanging from the bars. There are many versions of this type of mat. We had the one which is red, black and white with a circus theme. Great for tummy time too.
Lullaby Gloworm: We received more than one gloworm as gifts for Alex when he was born. These are made by Playskool and although it looks a little strange, he loved the lullabies that it played, especially when he was fussy in the evening.
Lamaze has a great line of toys. We have the Clutch Cube, which has a great variety of textures, bright contrasting colors, rings and bells. Alex likes this, as well as the Firefly, which has similar textures, a squeaker, plenty of things for the baby to teethe on, and lots of great color.
Manhattan Toys has Mr. Whoozit, which has been a favorite, for Alex. Again, lots of contrasting colors, squeakers, mirror and things to chew on.
Carrier/Carseats/Strollers:
We had a sling at the very beginning. It was a New Native and I liked it. http://www.newnativebaby.com/ It didn't last much more than two months though, so just be aware of that. After that point, Alex was bigger and he also was more alert, so he wanted to see things, rather than just be stuck in the sling. I have had friends who liked their Moby wraps as well. http://www.mobywrap.com/ These are just a bit more cumbersome to put on, so it depends on your personal preference. Some stores, like Rockridge Kids or The Tulip Grove in Montclair Village, have samples of various carriers, which you can try on and even put the baby in, before buying.
The Baby Bjorn is the carrier which I have used the most so far. We have the version with the lumbar support--The Baby Bjorn Active Carrier, which I would highly recommend. They also have some new versions made with mesh, which would be great for summertime or hot climates. I use the Bjorn almost exclusively, when I take Alex out. I do not use a stroller for errands or outings at all, just because I find it easier to carry him, even at 17 pounds.
We did a lot of research on carseats and found that the Graco SnugRide was very highly rated in terms of safety. There are a variety of options as far as fabrics for this carseat. We chose one which was called "Metropolitan" because I liked the silver and black fabric. It was sporty looking and a nylon-type fabric. It was my experience that this was a bad choice, because Alex got so hot in it. I have heard from many mothers since, that babies do get hot in these infant car seats, quite typically. It just seems to be one of those things, I guess. The versions with the cotton covers might stay cooler.
If you want an easy, light stroller option to pair with the infant carseat, I would recommend getting a Baby Trend Snap n' Go stroller. This is basically a frame that the infant car seat snaps into. It is so light and easy to fold. You can keep it in the car trunk and then you always have an option, because you always will have the infant car seat with you. We got one second-hand and used it during the first month or so, when he was really little.
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