Baby Must-Haves (that will make your life easier)
Hello there and welcome! I hope you will find this list with baby must-haves useful.
Long before giving birth, people with kids especially, will start asking you about your shopping list and when you are going to buy all the stuff that you need. Probably they are going to scare you by giving you this enormous list of essentials that they consider a must. From my personal experience I will tell you that most things that are considered “musts” are not really that necessary, the more you learn, the more you know.
We live in these times where a huge industry was developed based on raising kids. They are advertising every item like the most crucial thing without which you cannot raise your kid properly. There was a time when I believed them, and it’s hard not to, because when it comes to your child it’s understandable that you want to give them only the best. But now I find it amusing because if I went and bought everything that was advertised as essential I wouldn’t have space in my house.
Don’t get me wrong, I bought things that sounded very useful and important in theory, but it turned out to be a waste of money.
On the internet you will find many lists that contain dozens of things that seem to be important to have after you give birth. However, in this article I’m not going to write about the classical items, like diapers, cribs, and changing tables. I think that you will receive a detailed list with all of these items from friends and family. In this article I will be focusing on the items that I think are going to make your life with a baby easier.
I know that every baby is different and every family has a distinct approach in this regard. So, take this as a recommendation or a source of inspiration that you can revisit even after you had your baby. I would also like to point out that every item on this list is tested by me and my husband and it really improved our life, by giving us more freedom or time to tackle other things around the house.
Especially in the first 5 months we struggled a lot because David suffered from colics and reflux. Some of the things in this article made the situation a little better and helped our baby to sleep or to calm down during a crisis.
Let me know if you also want a general checklist with all the must-have items that you need to buy or think of before the baby comes. I would be happy to write about it, of course.
Just to let you know… This post (probably) contains affiliate links, including Amazon Associates links, and I may receive a small commission when you click on the links. This is at no extra cost to you and allows me to keep running this website. How cool is that?! I only recommend products I would use myself and all opinions expressed here are my own.
Table of Contents
Here is the list with the baby must-haves that will make life easier:
Baby monitor or camera
I think this is such an important item in any baby must-haves list.
As I mentioned in the beginning of this article, every baby and family is different. Some sleep better, take longer naps and develop very quickly the skill associated with sleeping through the night. Same parents choose to put the baby in their own room from day 1, others adopt the co-sleeping method.
No matter the case, I think that having a baby monitor or a camera that you can use and watch your baby during sleep or playtime it’s essential in having your small windows of freedom during your day.
We parents know that free time is so rare and I think that we all had those days where even going to the bathroom seemed an impossible task. By having a baby monitor you can take advantage of the time when your baby is sleeping and cook, bathe, do laundry or do something for yourself.
I don’t own a baby monitor, but I have a camera that is connected to my phone, so I can keep an eye on my baby while drinking my coffee in the morning, working in the house or cooking.
There are periods in the baby’s development when it is recommended that you put him to sleep between 7:00-8:00. Having a baby monitor will make your evenings ideal, because you can have that alone time that you craved during the day.
The camera that I’m using is: Tapo C200. What I find amazing about this device is that it is amazing to have when go on vacation, but want to watch over your house
So you are investing in a camera that you can use long term for multiple situations.
White noise device
Another important item on the list of baby must-haves. I didn’t know what white noise meant and how it related to babies. But I learned very fast that when you have a baby with colics or one that doesn’t sleep well, a way to help them calm down is to reproduce the sounds that they heard in the womb. These sounds are similar to the ones a hair dryer does for example.
In the beginning we used our hair dryer to calm our baby, but it got to a point when we had to use it for hours and hours, especially during the night. Kudos to the poor thing that it didn’t catch fire or something, because I heard stories from other moms that bought several hair dryers in the first year with the baby.
After a while my husband did some research and came upon this awesome device that included many variations of white noise sounds, ranging from fan, hair dryer, storm and other natural sounds, to lullabies.
Another cool thing about this device is that it also produces diffuse light and you can pick the favorite color. Babies don’t like waking up to complete darkness, so having a diffuse light is ideal. We are using this device every night. In the beginning we set it to the classic white noise, but now we are using the sound of storms, which me and my husband love to fall asleep too.
Apparently, now, we use it more for us, than for the baby :)). But before you laugh at us, you need to try it. I swear it is the most satisfying way to fall asleep.
Oh, I forgot to mention that the device is very small so it’s easy to carry with you while traveling.
I can’t find the exact model I have, but this is very similar. You can check it out, here.
Baby Nest
This is controversial t, because baby nests aren’t considered a safe sleeping environment.
Disclaimer: before you buy baby products of any kind, I advise you to learn about them first. You need to make sure that everything that you are choosing for your child is safe.
That being said, I agree, baby nests aren’t the safest when it comes to baby’s sleeping. However, I also consider that if you are using them with care and most importantly, with supervision, it can be a great thing.
A baby nest can be carried in any room or space, so you can have the baby close to you while doing your chores through the house. You can keep him close, interact with him while having some liberty and for other things.
Important note: do not let your baby unsupervised in the baby nest, even if it’s for a few minutes.
Check out these cute designs, here.
Dark opaque colored curtains
If you think that this item is strange or shouldn’t be on a list with baby must-haves, please hear me out.
I recommend this especially for parents that have babies that are having a hard time to fall or stay asleep. There is an entire conversation regarding baby routines before sleep and most of them talk about the importance of dimming the light or creating a darker sleeping environment.
I know that there are babies that sleep in any condition, even on the floor (unicorns… ). But our baby wasn’t like that. Sleeping or napping was always a challenge. He often struggled to fall asleep during the day and even if he did, he would wake up in half an hour (max). After we installed dark opaque curtains in his room, we observed that his sleep had improved.
So, I encourage you to read about this and try this solution out if you have a light or difficult sleeper.
Baby wearing system
If I had to pick only one item from this list, the baby wearing system would be my number one choice. This made my life so much easier and my only regret is that I didn’t buy it sooner.
A baby wearing system is amazing to have because it will give you more freedom and flexibility to move around the house and do your daily chores, while caring for your baby.
Also, it is a great way for the baby to nap, especially if he is a difficult sleeper, like David. In the first months, I struggled a lot to put him to sleep during the day, but if I carried him in the system and moved on with my day, or went outside for a walk, he would eventually fall asleep without any fuss or crying.
A baby wearing system is also amazing for long walks. David had a lot of periods when he didn’t want to stay too much in the stroller. So every time I took him out, I also packed the wearing system and if he started to cry, I would carry him.
I really love this item. It’s amazing to have it during trips as well. It proved to be very useful during a trip that we did to the mountains. We went on long walks through the forest or on off road trails that weren’t suitable for strollers, and the baby wearing system came in handy. We were so happy to have David with us and enjoy our time together in nature.
Not to mention, if you have problems with your back, have pains, the wearing system is a better way to carry your baby because it is distributing the weight equally on your upper and lower body.
There are a lot of styles and models to choose from, but please be aware that the quality is important, because it needs to support your baby’s back and legs in the correct way. Otherwise it can cause damage to his development. Also, you need to pay attention and pick a system that is appropriate with the age of your baby.
Even if certain models say that it’s great from birth till 2 years old (for example), do a little research or ask your pediatrician for advice.
We have two systems, one that is proper to use until 6 months old and another that is recommended after 6 months old. You can do your research and find the one suitable for your needs.
You can check them out here.
Sleep sacks
Due to the moro reflex (which means the uncontrolled movement of the arms in small babies), that is a natural and normal thing experienced by babies, they can have an agitated sleep. Our baby often woke up during the night because of that.
What saved our nights during that difficult time was a sleep sack. We bought one that only immobilized the hands (in a safe and comfortable way) and the legs were left to move freely. After using the sack our baby started to sleep deeper and thus the quality of his resting time was improved.
Disclaimer: it’s contraindicated to swaddle the baby by mobilizing the feet. This action can affect the development of their tiny legs. To learn more, please discuss it with your doctor. And remember, the internet is not your doctor.
There are a lot of designs to choose from. I hope you find the right one from here.
Portable thermostat
If you are pregnant, planning to have a baby, or you already have your little one, you will eventually learn how important it is to have the ideal sleeping conditions in his room. Having a routine before sleep and setting a specific environment will make a huge improvement on your baby’s quality of sleep.
Regarding the environment, beside having dark colored curtains (very useful during day naps) and a white noise device, it is very important to have the ideal temperature and humidity in the room.
Maybe they told you in the hospital or you already know this, but I will point it out nevertheless. The ideal room temperature should be between 20 and 22 Celsius degrees (68 F-71,6 F), and the humidity should be maintained between 60 and 65%.
A thermostat will help you monitor these two parameters and adjust the conditions. A portable device will be handy when you travel, because you will need to set the perfect sleeping conditions no matter if you are at home or not.
There are a lot of fancy portable thermostats, but you don’t need to invest too much. You can check out this really cheap one, similar to the one I have, here.
Bottles, breast pump and milk storage bags
These items may feel like common sense. If you are using formula to feed your baby, of course you need to have bottles. But I put the bottles and breast pump together as a recommendation for moms that choose and can breastfeed.
If you are breastfeeding, I think that it’s clear that your schedule will depend on the feedings. Leaving the house may seem impossible in most cases. This is why having a breast pump and bottles can be helpful in giving you a sense of freedom.
You can collect the milk in special storage bags and keep them in the fridge or freezer and use them whenever needed. In this way you can go out and have coffee with a friend, get to a doctor’s appointment or go shopping without worrying about your baby’s meals.
Your partner can use the bottle to feed the baby. No matter how much you love your baby and adore spending time with him, every mom needs some time alone, to go out or sleep in the mornings.
You can buy an electric or hand pump, depending on your preference. I bought a hand pump because I knew that I would be using it occasionally and didn’t feel like I should invest more. I was very content with the product that I had.
Regarding the storage bags, what I find cool about them is that they have a special label where you can write down the date when you pump that quantity. Keep in mind that there are certain periods of time in which you can store the milk in the fridge or freezer. In the freezer you can keep it for up to 6 months for example. I’m not an expert in this matter so I advise you to do your own research.
If you are looking for breast pumps here are some great ones.
I hope you find this article useful and most importantly I hope that at least one of these products will make your life a little easier after having a baby. Of course you can buy many more things, like activity mats, rocking chairs for babies, but in this article I wanted to point out those that made the most impact in our lives.
As I already mentioned, let me know if you want to see a complete checklist with all the things that you should consider buying and I will write it.
I know that motherhood is hard and I know that sometimes everything can feel like a struggle, but you are not alone. Being a parent is one of the most difficult and beautiful things you will experience in this life.
On my blog you are going to find other articles where I’m sharing my experience as a mother and all the things that I learned along the way. I feel like especially when it comes to motherhood, sharing is caring. I invite you to read them and share your story with me. This community of parenthood needs more honesty and transparency.
You can check those article here: