18 Baby Products to Survive the First Months with a Newborn
Newborns… tiny little beings that seemingly wouldn’t need that much, yet somehow, they acquire all your time, attention, and energy.
Oh, the newborn stage… My favorite stage of them all. Maybe it’s all the love hormone (oxytocin) coursing through my veins, or maybe I’m just a weirdo. Still, both times I’ve experienced the newborn phase, regardless of the lack of sleep and mental and physical mayhem I go through with all the postpartum adjustments, hands down, it’s till my favorite!
Why? Because their needs are so simple!
Eat, sleep, poop, repeat!
I know there are sooo many products for babies nowadays, so my goal is that by sharing what worked for me it can give you an idea of what would and wouldn’t work for your lifestyle!
So without further ado, let’s do it to it!
Sleep
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Sleep 〰️
Bedside Bassinet
A bedside bassinet with one side that can drop down so you can take the baby in and out without having to get out of bed is a MUST! You can use it up until about 7 months. Once babies can pull themselves up to stand, it’s not safe anymore because they can fall out. But believe me, 7 months of not having to get in and out of bed in the middle of the night to grab the baby is glorious!
Swaddles
Swaddles are like a cocoon that keeps baby warm and feeling secure. It’s similar to how they felt in Mama’s belly, tight and cozy!
Also, newborns often twitch when they sleep! It’s called the Moro reflex. The jolt can wake them up and they don’t always fall back asleep easily…
Que the crying and the waking you up…
A wearable blanket that velcros in place so that it can’t slide up over baby’s face and risk suffocation is the best and safest choice. And it staying nice and tight helps baby sleep better and longer, in turn, letting YOU sleep better and longer! Mom win!
I love the Halo for nighttime sleep because it’s thicker for warmth and it can also zip up from the bottom so you can keep their top half warm during diaper changes in the middle of the night. The swaddle also holds longer because of the placement and quality of the velcro, which is what I want for longer nighttime sleep.
Side note- Halo also offers a fleece fabric option for extra warmth!
I love the SwaddleMe Original for naps because they’re thinner (my house isn’t as cold during the day), and you get three for the same price as one Halo. So you can disperse them throughout your home and you’ll always have one handy!
They are able to wiggle and kick their feet out of this one more easily than the Halo but that’s not too much of an issue with short 1 to 3 hour naps.
Safety tip with swaddling- baby’s hips and legs should be able to move freely within the swaddle. Strapping their legs down and straight is not good for their hip development!
Shhh Shhh Shhh
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Shhh Shhh Shhh 〰️
Portable Noise Machine
Next up on sleep products is a portable noise machine! They’re meant to do two things!
1. Mimic how noisy it was in mom’s belly and
2- Drown out noises so baby can sleep through anything!
Inside the uterus is pretty loud. From mom’s heart beating, blood whooshing, and tummy grumbling to the outside noises like people’s voices, music playing, cars honking, etc., baby has been listening to it all since 18 weeks old in mom’s belly!
If you haven’t picked up the gist yet, here it is… The best way to comfort a newborn is to mimic the space they lived in for the past 9 months- the uterus! A warm, tight, loud space.
It was also dark in there but now that you want their circadian rhythm to adjust appropriately (awake in the day, sleep at night) l recommend letting them have their daytime naps where there’s daylight coming in. This only matters for the first couple months as their circadian rhythm regulates.
Side tip- I know Amazon Prime, Amazon Music, YouTube, and Spotify all offer white noise options. So you can have it playing on the TV, Amazon Echo/Dot, or your cell phone anywhere, anytime. For my kids, I use Amazon Prime on the TV, overnight, listening to “9 Hour Rainstorm for Sleep Black Screen.” Love it! There are lots of options, including crashing ocean waves too!
Yum Yum!
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Yum Yum! 〰️
Now that we’ve covered sleep, let’s talk feedings!
Breastfeeding pillow
Learning how to breastfeed for the first time takes time and patience. Having a good breastfeeding pillow can make a world of a difference. It’s important to have something baby is comfortable on so you can focus more on the latch than their body rolling and squirming around.
Pros of the My Brestfriend Nursing Pillow
It supports the baby’s whole body in any breastfeeding hold and keeps them comfy through the whole feeding
Baby won’t slide down in between you and the pillow (compared to a boppy) because it clicks in place around your body.
Super comfy back support cushion
Nice armrest for your free arm where you can hold a book, your phone, or set a plate of food down to grub
The cover is included and is washable
There’s a cheaper version that’s not deluxe, the only difference being the foam and fabric quality. I used the non-deluxe version, which is what I fell in love with in the first place. Now knowing how great it is, I wish I had invested in the deluxe one since we do still hope to have more kids.
The fabric of the non-deluxe is not as soft and cozy as the deluxe. However, if you prefer to pay less for the same function, it's still so much better than any other breastfeeding pillow I’ve tried or seen.
Bottles
Pros of the Tommee Tippee
Easy to clean
Similar to the shape of a breast and nipple, lessening the risk of nipple confusion
My babies learn to hold them early due to the easy grip shape of the 5 oz bottles. This brand also offers 9 oz and 11 oz sizes.
As baby gets older can buy packs of just nipples for faster flow options without needing to buy new bottles.
Pacifiers
Some babies find comfort in constant suckling. Both my kids were “some babies”! For my sanity and rest, I offered them pacifiers to get said comfort so that my nipples weren’t their only options. Because one, ouch! And two, that would be exhausting!
Trial and error. I really thought a baby would just like any kind of paci if it’s the only kind offered. This was the case for my daughter but not my son. My son wouldn’t keep any paci in his mouth until I offered the 4th different kind. Whichever one you offer your baby, give them a day to trial it to see if they get used to it with some practice before trying a different kind. My daughter liked the Avent pacifiers while my son liked the Nuk.
There’s a lot of controversy with pacifiers. The ones I’ve heard are that it can cause nipple confusion or it’s terrible for teeth development. As a postpartum nurse, I recommend to my patients not to offer a pacifier until the breastfeeding latch has been well established and the baby consistently latches correctly at every feed. For my baby, that was around day 3.
The concern with nipple confusion is that a pacifier can cause the bad habit of having a narrow latch because they suckle a pacifier with a small, tight-lipped mouth opening as opposed to a big, wide-open mouth for a deeper latch (around the areolas) when breastfeeding. Bad habits can be hard to break. Resulting in broken, painful, damaged nipples. No fun! So make sure your baby locks down breastfeeding first!
Regarding terrible teeth development, for good measure, I start weaning the pacifier use/accessibility around 5 months and stop it entirely by 6 months of age. I understand it may be difficult for some; however, I can only speak from experience that both my kids responded well to weaning off over a month's time. By 6 months old, they stopped liking it and spit it out.
Disclaimer… If you choose not to wean off early, just keep in mind that the longer they have it, the stronger their attachment to it becomes and the harder it will be to take away. And an older child can have the willpower to put up a good fight for a long while. Hence, the risk of impacting teeth development if it’s always there while their teeth start sprouting out.
Hygiene
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Hygiene 〰️
Diapers
My trusted brands are Pampers, Rascal & Friends (Walmart), Honest, & Kirkland(Costco). The only other brand I’ve tried but don’t like is Huggies- not as good of absorption.
Diaper Rash Cream
Vaseline or Aquaphor are my favorite options to start with for a newborn. They have minimal ingredients and work great as a barrier to prevent and treat diaper rashes in the beginning stage. The original Desitin is the next brand I trust most (NOT the extra strength Desitin- which didn’t work at all for diaper rashes.)
Safety tip, Baby Powder, commonly used back then, is not safe to use. The tiny powder particles can be inhaled into the baby’s lungs. I’ve also heard it’s been linked to ovarian cancer when used in the diaper area. I never fact-checked that since the lung thing was convincing enough for me, but if you need another reason to avoid it, can look that up!
Wipes
Pampers, Water Wipes (great for rash-prone tushies), & Kirkland. Don’t like Huggies wipes either- they are very thin and rip easily while wiping.
Diaper Pale
The Munchkin diaper pale. A very necessary expense. You’ll go through so many diapers in one week. Need to seal the smell so your home won’t smell like poop! And a large size is important so you don’t have to take it to the outside trash bin daily.
Hair & Body Wash
Babo shampoo and wash is all-natural, EWG-approved, and boy does it do wonders for my kids’ sensitive, eczema-prone skin! I’m pretty confident that this, combined with my trusted baby moisturizer brands, is how my kids stopped getting eczema flare-ups.
Bath Tub
This is the tub I have! It has held up great over the past 2+ years for both my kids to use. You get the best bang for your buck as it grows with your baby from newborn all the way until they can safely sit in an open tub completely independently.
Baby Acne
This stuff is magical! My son’s acne (around one month-old) got so bad I took him to the Pediatrician's office, thinking it was an infection! They told me it was just acne and eczema- to keep it clean and that he’ll grow out of it.
Well… my Mama eyes could not stand seeing it all over my poor baby’s face. Plus, the not knowing when it would go away?! No, thank you!
So I did some research and found this cream that had amazing reviews on being effective for treating baby acne! I saw MAJOR improvement in just THREE days! And by ONE week the acne was almost completely gone!
I can’t promise it will work this well for everyone but that’s my testimony!
Moisturizers
First, I want to point out that a newborn should have as few products on them as possible. Their skin is brand spankin’ new and is in perfect condition already. You don’t want to clog their little pores or cause any unnecessary rashes on their delicate skin.
I start moisturizing my babies around three months. My kids, like many, have sensitive, dry, and eczema-prone skin. It’s extra bad in the dry Arizona climate!
The brands I trust and use interchangeably are Eucerin, Aquaphor, & Aveeno.
Relax Mama
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Relax Mama 〰️
Cuddling my newborn all day, every day is my jam, but once in a while, it’s nice to have a safe place baby can hang out while I get things done around the house, eat, get ready, or just lounge on the couch hands-free.
Swing/Bouncer
Pros about this type of swing/bouncer are
Swings multiple directions, forwards backward OR side to side
Bounces, vibrates, and plays music
The seat can be pulled off and used as a bouncer, so it’s portable around the house
A place for baby to be set down that keeps the baby’s back elevated after a feeding to minimize/avoid reflux
I have the older version of this swing. This version has upgraded in aesthetics and comfortability but has all the same awesome features that I love! A place where baby can be happy other than Mama’s arms while you get a moment of rest is a major win and worth every penny!
Baby Lounger
A safe place to lay baby down without having to worry about them rolling off a surface. It’s also portable enough to be carried around the house, and it can easily be brought when going to family and friends’ houses.
Never leave baby in this unsupervised. Not even for short naps. It is not a firm surface and poses a risk of suffocation. Only use this if you are staying right next to it, always having eyes on baby, making sure they are breathing and safe within it.
The only con to this is that it’s not really for long-term use. Once baby can roll (around 3-4 months) it’s not safe anymore unless placed on the ground. Since I got one as a hand-me-down, I was able to enjoy using it, even for a short while. So if you can borrow this or find it for cheaper than retail price, then I’d say it’s worth it!
Babywearing
My favorite carrier for the newborn stage is a wrap. The one linked above is a hybrid between a wrap and a sling because it adjusts using rings, which is how slings function, but it wears like a wrap.
Wrap Carrier
Soft, stretchy fabric that wraps baby onto your body
Comfortable enough for skin-to-skin bonding
Comfortable enough for long stretches of babywearing
Gives you full-range movement for both arms and hands
The Momcozy wrap that’s linked above is my favorite because I find it’s the quickest and easiest to put on (compared to the Boba & Moby), and the one size it comes in grows with the baby (compared to the K’tan). The Moby and Boba also had too much fabric for my liking. I knew how to put them on, but it was too much work! They were especially difficult to use when out of the house because all the extra fabric would have to touch the ground if starting from scratch to put it on.
Pack it up
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Pack it up 〰️
Baby Bag
I have a different diaper bag. There are things I don’t like with the one I have now that makes me want to upgrade to this one linked below!
What I look for in a baby bag
Large capacity
Big, wide-opening
Easy access
I would avoid the flap-over to snap-closed kind. Looks cute but is just another thing blocking your way if you are trying to access the bag quickly with one hand while holding your baby in the other!
A drink holder on both sides of the bag
Lots of compartments inside and outside of the bag
I love having wipes accessible on the side of the backpack for quick access
Stroller hooks
Waterproof, easy-to-clean material
The hanging pacifier container bag is super handy. Always keep an extra clean pacifier in it!
The suitcase straps and accessible USB charging port is a huge bonus!
