I can’t believe Dillon is already one month old. In case you missed it, we welcomed Dillon on pie day, March 14th, and we are feeling so blessed to have him during these uncertain times. It’s been a crazy few weeks with everything going on with COVID-19 but we’ve been hunkered down anyways having a newborn so I feel like life wouldn’t have been that different with the exception of being able to have some visitors. It’s been sad not having friends and family meet Dillon but we are just so grateful for the blessing of having a newborn despite these difficult times.
After a few weeks of having Dillon, I wanted to put together a helpful blog post for mama’s to-be on what we found to be essential to have (besides the obvious diapers and wipes) and what we loved in particular and felt to be a huge help in what is a very tiring and disorganized time.
Changing Station
If you live in a two story home, preparing a changing station on your first floor with diapers and wipes is a must, especially if you’ve had a C-section to avoid going up and down the stairs. We don’t have a changing table downstairs so we just used our ottoman to change Dillon on a portable changing pad that we got from our baby shower. I also like to keep onesies, burp cloths, and diaper balm cream downstairs. Funny story, our first diaper change ever was on the ottoman and Dillon was crying so Bruno, our dog, had to come see what was going on and as soon as he came over and I removed Dillon’s diaper, Dillon peed everywhere including on Bruno!!! So having those extra onesies on hand is key. The changing pad we go off of Amazon was perfect cause we could easily wipe it down and can be used for when we are on-the-go: Munchkin Portable Diaper Changing Kit with Changing Pad.
This is the nursery changing pad we have which is great since all you have to do is wipe it down to clean: Keekaroo Peanut Changer.
Sleeping Essentials
Bassinet
I did a lot of research on bassinets and am so glad we landed on this one: California Dreaming Portable Co-Sleeping-Bedside Bassinet. It has all the features: an adjustment for colicky babies and for C-section mamas, a rocking feature, a co-sleeper option, and a compartment for diapers and wipes. Did I mention it is also portable? I highly recommend this bassinet for the price point. Dillon seems to love it too and always hugs up against one side for comfort.
Swaddlers
Matt and I were terrible at swaddling with a blanket and I felt uneasy leaving Dillon to sleep in a blanket that I knew was destined to come apart with how much Dillon wiggled around in his sleep. This Halo Sleepsack 100% Cotton Swaddle was so convenient and fool-proof when it came to swaddling at night.
Portable Sound Machine
Along with a regular sound machine for Dillon’s nursery, we loved having a portable noise machine for our bassinet that we could put right inside since it was so small. Here is the one we used: Munchkin Shhh Portable Baby Sleep Soother Sound Machine and Night Light Dillon loved the shushing sound.
Pacifiers
Pacifiers to sooth Dillon were really helpful at night. The hospital gave us some pacifiers to bring home but if you are looking to purchase some of your own, these were our favorite: Philips Avent Soothie Pacifier, Blue, 0-3 Months
Clothing
Hats
These hats were the only ones that fit Dillon perfectly and super soft. Original Cotton Newborn Beanies Striped Cute Baby Hat for Boys Girls Bear Ears Infant Beanie . Everything else was too big for his head.
Onesies
We loved these Gerber Baby Organic Cotton Long Sleeve Onesies Bodysuit with Mitten Cuff onesies since they had the mitten cuff so that Dillon wouldn’t scratch his face with his long nails.
Booties
Socks just didn’t stay on so we loved these booties instead: Goumi Baby Organic Cotton Striped Booties
Other Essentials
Nursing Pillow
Also sharing my favorite nursing pillow as well as other items that I love in my Amazon store: Baby and Nursing Essentials*
Other Favorites
Favorite Diapers: Pampers Pure
Favorites Wipes: Seventh Generation
Favorite App for tracking sleep and feeding: Baby Tracker – Newborn Log
If you are a mama-to-be or new mama, I hope you found this post to be helpful! I know there is so much information on what is needed the first few weeks so I thought I would share my essentials here 😀.
Xoxo
Marisa
*A small commission may be earned on items shopped through Amazon that help keep this blog up and running.
