It seems like there are a million "Newborn Essentials" lists, but here are some handy things that you may not have heard of. A few mamas have asked me for advice on what their baby basics were the most helpful beyond the obvious items.
- Changing Pad Liners. A changing pad is of course a basic need as well as a changing pad cover to ensure that you have a soft comfortable space to lay your baby for diaper changes. A changing table is a nice convenience, as well. (We got a simple changing table for our living room for newborn days and then moved the changing pad to the top of a dresser in the nursery after a while.) The most amazing thing that a friend recommended to me was a changing pad liner! I don't know if this is an issue for other mamas, but my theory is that because my son didn't have much body-fat his teeny-tiny buns weren't big enough to hold his poo in his diaper because it almost never stayed there. He blew out of almost every diaper. We had several changing pad covers, but that wasn't particularly helpful. When you have a poopy newborn in one arm and have to attempt to wrestle a dirty changing pad cover with the other, it can be extremely frustrating. Plus changing pad covers aren't usually waterproof, so you will still have to wipe down the changing pad. The large changing pad covers also make for a lot of extra laundry. Changing pad liners are small so they are easily stored nearby, don't take up much space in the laundry, are waterproof to prevent soiling anything else, and best of all, they are easily placed and removed with one hand!
- Onsies. Yes you see these often, but in case you don't know why they are important, allow me to extend upon the poop explosion strategies that I developed. A onesie helps by adding another layer of defense beyond the diaper, to catch the overflow of baby poop. Black is a nice option because it's neutral and doesn't stain. Have you ever noticed the unique envelope folds at the shoulders of onsies? That's because they enable you to take the onsie off by pulling it DOWN off of your baby instead of dragging poopy material up over your sweet angel's head. See the folds in action here! Since I had a fall baby with little body-fat and we live in an extremely cold environment, I preferred the long-sleeved onesies for an extra layer of warmth. (For some reason in the long-sleeved version black was much more expensive than white, so I went with white.)
- Extra Carseat Base. After much research we decided on the Britax Infant Carseat. Something that I had never heard of before was that you can have one carseat with more than one base. It's great to keep a base in your vehicle, your husband's vehicle, and with anyone else who plans to have your child in their vehicle. It's nice to not have to futz with the seatbelt and worry that everything is in the proper order every time you load up your most precious cargo. I would leave my son's carseat at daycare and then whether my husband or I picked him up, we could just pop the carseat in the base and go!
- Carseat to Jogger Adapter. I have to admit I splurged a bit on the baby jogger since it's unlikely that I'll ever take up jogging, but I didn't want to have any limitations should the occasion arise! I also got a very simple carseat adapter so that I could pop my Britax Infant Carseat on to my jogger without disturbing a sleeping infant. The adapter is small and doesn't need to be stored if it isn't in use. Since I live in an extreme environment, being able to leave my sleeping infant snuggled in his warm carseat instead of transferring in the blistering cold to the jogger while standing on icy footing was a must for me.
- Portable Changing Station. Its empowering to have a clean place to change your baby at any given moment and it's nice to know that all of the supplies are consolidated so that you're not at the mercy of your scattered new mom brain to remember to have wet wipes handy. It's important to get out of the house on occasion and this made me much more comfortable doing so!
- WubbaNub. It's surprising how far a pacifier can make it, and so quickly! Sucking is very soothing for a newborn and the WubbaNub is a great way to sooth your infant and not risk a seemingly endless game of hide-and-seek. Personally I was nervous about using a pacifier, but object permanence (understanding that an object still exists even if you can't see it) doesn't start to develop until around 4 months, so you're safe to soothe your newborn without risking an addiction.
- Kangaroo Care Attire. I didn't have this for my first, but would love to have it for a future baby! With my first I did a lot of skin-to-skin by wrapping him in a soft Boba and that worked pretty well except when my floor wasn't as clean as I'd like and the material would be sweeping up crumbs as I tied it on. This shirt seems to remedy that issue! Again, since we live in a cold climate, we snuggled with a super soft cozy Ugg robe around us as well.
- Tall Newborn Socks. I don’t know what the deal is with newborns and socks, but they do NOT stay on. These were the only socks that would stay put. Yes they aren’t super cute like some other options, but the thought of having to match unique socks sounds maddening, so I’m okay with it. One thing I really like is when the socks have the size written on the bottom in a grippy material- the grippyness isn’t necessary for newborn socks, but it’s nice to know sizes aren’t being confused.
- Aquaphor. It is magical and can be used for many things. Aquaphor is great for diaper rashes, dry skin, cuts etc. Living in a cold and extremely dry climate it has been a lifesaver and we use it very frequently. Here's a small one for your diaper bag ;-)
- Baby Got Colic. This whitenoise is available for free on YouTube and it works wonders! The accompanying video is rather creepy, but it’s the best white noise I ever found. An added bonus is that I could play it anytime and anywhere on my phone, so it didn’t require me to cary extra equipment to use. It.
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