Newborn Must-haves

Newborn Must-haves

I expected Alex to need every single product I read about online. I would say the first month is really simple: diapers, butt cream, and a good sleeping spot. Of course if you're not exclusively breast feeding you'll need bottles and all sorts of other fun stuff. I assumed Alex would be a large baby so only had size 1 diapers on hand (dumb), so having some NB diapers just in case is a good idea too. 

Every kid is different, but these were our most used products for the first month or so when they're in the Eat, Poop, Sleep routine. 

1. I mentioned having a good sleep spot.. the first few nights we tried a few different options (big boy crib, pack n play, and this Swing) The pack n play was in our room but we have two cats that were not on board with being shut out of our bedroom, & as a paranoid FTM I didn't want them clawing the baby to death while i slept. Since Alex refused to be swaddled since day 1 the big boy crib was not snug enough for him. The first few weeks were a mix of holding him while he slept and putting him in the swing, 4 months later we're still using the swing for the most part. We're trying to transition him to the crib now since he is way too heavy for the swing to even move anymore. hah!

2. I was so excited to dress my new little guy in all sorts of little outfits. He literally wore these white onesies with the built in mittens for weeks. He loved to claw his face and eyes & his little fingers were so tiny it was scary clipping his nails!  These aren't anything special but they do the trick, word of advice they shrink like crazy when washed. 

3. Alex didn't have many big fits, when we had tried everything to get him to stop crying and didn't know what else to do we tried some gripe water that I got from my shower & it worked every time! We only had to use it a few times but it's well worth having!

4. I've given up on Alex taking a pacifier. He did for a little bit in the beginning but I just can't seem to find one he will keep in his mouth! It's a good idea to buy lots of kinds, hopefully one of them will work!

5. I absolutely love this monitor. 

6. If you hate doing laundry, like me, then these are a must Changing Pad Liners. It's way easier tossing these in the laundry than taking the actual changing pad cover off every time shit gets a little messy.. literally. ha!

7. Alex had some diaper rash the first week or so. We tried desitin, and it was ok, but I prefer this a&d ointment. It's more of a gel than a cream, & cleared up the problem really fast. Alex hasn't had to use it since!

8. Speaking of ointments... the first few days of breast feeding can be rough. Even though I only had to use this for a week or so, it was well worth it! I had an off brand the hospital gave me that wasn't anywhere close to as good as the Lansinoh brand. A little goes a LONG way, so a small tube would be fine.