My Favorite (Baby) Things

I have so many funny baby stories/adventures to share, but before I get caught up on the last few months, I thought I'd share some of my favorite baby items, thus far.

When I first registered, I put EVERYTHING on it. I gathered lists from a number of my friends with recommendations of "must have baby items". I then decided that I needed all of it. First lesson was realizing that there were only so many people that were going to be buying us gifts, so I should really only put the items on my registry that either: 1. I couldn't/didn't want to buy myself 2. fun things other would rather buy for us or 3. expensive items that multiple people could go in on together. People who are having multiple showers or a very large shower and/or a large family may want to put more items on their registry so there's more to choose from. I ended up taking things off of my registry, fearing that we wouldn't get the things that we really needed. In the end, we got almost everything we needed or ended up purchasing them with gift cards that people had given us. It all, obviously, worked out.

Everyone has different circumstances, so each mom will have different reasons for their must haves. Some people have bigger/smaller houses and live in different weather climates. I think it's still fun to gather lists from friends to see that kinds of things they recommend.

Here's are may must haves based on the last 4 months....

Car seat:
We went with Chicco Key Fit 30 - did you know it's pronounced "key-ko"? I didn't! We really like it. A few people I know used the same brand and really liked it. It also had really high safely ratings. We got it from AlbeeBaby.com. I highly recommend this website. The car seat was much cheaper here than it was at Babies R Us (BRU) and had free shipping.

Pack 'N Play:
I knew I wanted a pack n play, not only for travelling, but also because I figured that this is where he would sleep for the first few weeks/months. We picked the style that had a "newborn napper". I thought it seemed like a cozy place to sleep. He did end up sleeping here before moving to his crib, however, it seemed to be quite an adjustment going from the cozy cocoon feel to flat on his back in the big 'ol crib. He's since adjusted, but he wasn't thrilled at first. I still highly recommend the pack n play.
Stroller:
I love love love our Snap 'N Go stroller. It's absolutely the best invention ever. It's makes taking the baby anywhere a breeze. For those who don't know, the infant car seat fits right into the frame of the stroller. It's super lightweight and easy to push. One of my top three baby items, for sure! I also have the Maclaren Techno XT. I got it on a discounted website for almost 50% off. It's kind of big, so we'll be using it more once he's able to sit up on his own. It'll be great for outings and travelling.

Swing:
We went big on the swing and chose the Fisher-Price lamb cradle swing. I'd been told by numerous people to get a swing that goes both back and forth and side to side, which really proved to be a good thing. At first Brody only wanted to go front to back and now he prefers side to side. We use this to get a nice fat nap out of Brody during the day. Bad habit, I know, I know. It's a sleep machine for sure! It also has different reclining positions and a lap bar with toys.

Bouncy Seat:
I never thought we'd get as much use out of a bouncy seat as we do. We went with the Fisher Price Bouncer. We have two - one at my mom's and one at our house. Brody actually spent a lot of time sleeping in his bouncy chair when he was a newborn, so this thing was a lifesaver. Now, he loves to play with the toys while Joe and I have dinner or while I'm getting ready in the morning. It's an affordable baby item that I highly recommend.

Bottles, binkies, etc:
We first started out using Playtex Drop In Bottles and used them for about 2.5 months before switching to Avent bottles. I liked the Playtex bottles, and had used them before when I was a nanny, but I got tired of dealing with the liners. I originally wanted them based on the fact that the liners were disposable and it cut down on the time it took to wash bottles. But, really I don't mind washing bottles. I do them once a day and it takes all of like 5 minutes. Plus, you still had to wash the playtex bottles. The avent bottles are wider and shorter. For some reason I really preferred this over the taller, skinny bottles. Call me crazy. I've also been using the Avent pacifiers. We were using the NUK brand, but then I tried the Avent ones and he seemed to not spit them out as much.

Play mat
Brody loves his Mobile Gym play mat. My mom got it for him right before Christmas. Even at 6 weeks, he was totally into the lights and toys. Now he grabs on to the toys and "talks" to the animals. It's another top 3 must have for us.

Baby Carriers:
We have both the Bjorn and the Ergo Carrier (borrowed). People swear on the ergo carrier over the Bjorn, but I think they kind of have different functions. I like the Bjorn better for littler babies, where the ergo works better for bigger/older babies. I also think that Joe would much prefer to use the Bjorn over the ergo. I have used each of them one time, but hope to get much more use out of both of them.

Other items that I love...
Children's Place PJ's- Stretchies- we put these under his sleeping bag
Carter's Sleeping Bag- I tried everything...swaddling lasted all of a months. The woombie never took and the sleep sack made his arms cold. The carters fleece sleeping bags are my favorite!
Carter's Onesies (long and short sleeved) Kohls has the best deals on Carters' stuff
Trumpette socks- we only have one pair so far, but they stay on so well, and they're SUPER cute!
Pampers Swaddlers Diapers
Pampers Sensitive Wipes- B got one diaper rash early one when we tried to switch from these wipes. It went away as soon as we went back.
Carter's Hooded Towels Are you noticing a theme? I loves Carters! These towels are much thicker than most hooded baby towels. I think they'll last longer and be perfect for the pool/beach as well.
Onesie Stickers- I think these stickers are the cutest idea for recording your baby's growth through pictures. I get so excited to take B's picture every month.

I'm sure I'm missing something. There are so many great baby things out there. It's so funny to think about what you think must have and then don't end up using....and then the things you didn't think you'd want/need are your favorite items.

Another thing that I highly recommend is joining Amazon Mom. You can become a member and even do the subscribe and save membership where you have diapers, wipes or anything else delivered regularly for up to 35% off (15 off for joining amazon mom and 15% off for doing the subscribe and save). It's so easy and convenient. Diapers and wipes right to my door? Yes, please!

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What's that? You want to see a picture of Brody? Ok, here he is from the other day. He's sporting his airplane overalls from his Auntie Nancy :)