Becoming a first-time mom is an exhilarating journey filled with joy and excitement. However, amidst the anticipation of your little one’s arrival, creating a baby registry can be daunting. With countless options, it can be challenging to know what essentials you truly need. I’m excited to share this ultimate baby registry checklist!
Background – Preparing My Baby Registry
Being a first-time mom is exciting but is easily overshadowed by the stress surrounding putting together a baby registry. Now that I’m 7 months postpartum, I find it funny how much energy I put into curating the “perfect” registry. At the moment, it feels like it could make or break the life of your new baby. While I promise it’s not that serious, I know that doesn’t do much to ease the tension!
When I was pregnant, I searched high and low for registry baby items that new moms used and enjoyed (not just the advertisements from baby stores). I’m going to share with you all the things I learned along the way and the items that made a difference for me during the first 6 months postpartum. I’m only sharing items I used and enjoyed! For example, I bought a rocking chair and hate it, so you won’t see it included here.
We’d love to have a second baby in the future, and I plan on continuing to use all of these items!
Where to Set Up Your Baby Registry
There are several places for you to set up baby registries (again, overwhelming!). My advice:
Make Amazon Your Main Online Baby Registry Site
Trust me! If you want to maximize the registry gifts that you get, the Amazon baby registry is the easiest website for family members and friends to hop on and buy from your registry. Most people already have a card saved and it’s easy to buy something for you in just a few clicks. Amazon has a huge selection of great options for your baby’s needs, you receive a cute welcome box with samples (when $10 is spent on your registry), and you get a 15% completion discount that you can use to purchase items that you didn’t get gifted (or things you didn’t realize you needed later on).
I used Babylist because I thought it was a great idea to put items on my list from any website, but it doesn’t have the same easy buying process that Amazon does. While you do get a discount for the Babylist store, most of the items in the store are quite expensive compared to different brands, with a wide variety of price ranges you find on Amazon. I will say, my favorite part about Babylist is the weekly newsletter that showed you the size of your baby using toy comparisons. So cute!
Even if you don’t plan on purchasing from specific stores, some stores give you a completion discount and/or welcome bag just for creating a registry with them. I did this with Target, and I was able to use the discount to buy a few items I needed sooner than when Amazon would ship them out.
Nursery Essentials
I’ll be honest. I didn’t (still don’t) spend as much time in the nursery as I thought I would. I stressed so much about the aesthetics of the room when I only needed a few basics. It’s a good idea to stick to the basics and go from there. Your baby won’t remember the sage color paint on the wall!
It was important to me to have a dresser that was tall enough for both me and my husband to not have to bend over too much (5’5″ and 6’3″), wide enough to fit a changing station and had drawers to fit diapers and clothes. The DaVinci Jayden was perfect! It’s 32″ tall (perfect height for changing table), fits our Hatch Grow, and has six drawers.
To keep everything looking similar in the nursery, I stayed with the DaVinci brand and went with the DaVinci Union 4-in-1 crib. It was easy to put together and can be converted into a toddler bed.
My baby was born 7lb 7oz, and he dropped down to 6lb 13oz within the first 48 hours. While it’s normal for babies to lose 7-10% of their birth weight within the first few days, it is quite nerve-wracking for a new mama! I was SO happy to have the Hatch Grow changing pad and scale. I used it to weigh our baby during the first few weeks, and now I weigh him bi-weekly.
For me, it’s all about peace of mind. Is it necessary to measure your baby? Nope. Does it make you feel better? Sure does! The Hatch app has cool features for tracking feedings, diaper changes, and more. I only tracked for the first two weeks, but it was so easy!
Peace of mind goes a long way, especially as a first-time mom. When we got this Newton crib mattress, my husband and I stuck our faces in it and can confirm it’s breathable. We were honestly a little jealous that they don’t sell these in adult sizes. It fits perfectly in our crib, and we love that we can clean the whole thing when our little one has accidents (more than we’d like to count).
This MediAcous baby night light was the perfect addition to our nursery and bedroom. I’m pretty sure I had this on 24/7 for the first three months. It’s a great way to have just the right amount of light during late-night feedings without waking the baby.
You can adjust the light settings, and you can either charge it or keep it plugged in.
Feeding Must-Haves
I’ve been breastfeeding since he was born, but I do pump and use bottles from time to time. After 6 months, we started introducing solids too. These are my favorite things for breastfeeding, pumping, and feeding!
The Elvie Stride is the perfect hands-free breast pump. I’ve been using it since my son was born, and it continues to be great. While I breastfeed 90% of the time, I pump when I know we have someone coming over to babysit, or if I have an appointment and my husband will need to feed him while I’m gone. I’ve used it at home, pumping one side while feeding on the other. I’ve even used it in the car while traveling!
Check if your health insurance will cover the cost!
I love the Philips Avent glass bottles! My son didn’t have any issues with nipple confusion, and I like that the baby bottles are glass. They are easy to clean and fit in all my bag pockets. Pro tip: there is a notch on the top of the nipple that aligns with a notch on the white screw top. Lining these up helps with airflow to decrease air bubbles.
Now THIS! The Haakaa silicone breast pump is underrated. In the early months, I used this daily. While baby fed on one side, I would suction this to the other side and could easily get 2-4oz of breast milk just from letdown! I’d put it in a bottle for my husband to use at night so that I could get a few hours of sleep before 11 pm feeding. Teamwork makes the dream work!
The Parent’s Choice nursing pads are by far my favorite. I’ve tried a few breast pads from bigger brands, but they just didn’t cut it when it comes to sticking onto a bra and soaking up letdown. The packages are easy to open, and I stick a handful in all my bags.
I know, I know. “But the Boppy is amazing!” I will happily contend that My Brest Friend is by far the superior nursing pillow. The adjustable strap can be adjusted once and then it fits all the time! My baby constantly falls asleep on it after feeding, and it’s super comfortable for me to support him on it.
In addition to breastfeeding, I use the breast friend while working at my computer and sit my baby on it with a toy while I type around him.
The ezpz bundle is perfect for when you’re starting solids. We do baby-lead weaning, giving him strips of soft, cooked foods. With the bowl and utensils, he can work on his motor skills, picking/scooping up the food and feeding himself.
I laughed about how many burp cloths we got at our baby shower. “There’s no way we are going to use all of these.”
I can confirm, we use them all! While our baby doesn’t spit up very often, he drools like crazy! These are great for spit-up, drool, and more.
Diapering & Bathing Products
As someone who had never cleaned a diaper or a baby, it was QUITE the experience. Once you start, it gets easier, and you find a groove that works for you. I am particularly good at changing diapers in the car now. Never thought that would be something to brag about.
This 3-tier Utility Rolling Cart still has a home next to my side of the bed. I use it to store diapers, wipes, nursing pads, midnight snacks, and anything else I need. The mobility is great because I stayed in bed for a few days before transitioning to the living room. I could easily take this with me.
The Ubbi Diaper Pail has certainly done its job in containing the smell of dirty diapers. We don’t buy special bags; our normal trash bags fit perfectly. Beware of overfilling: it will take a bit of arm strength to pull the bag out if you overfill because the bag suctions to the pail.
We use everylife diapers and wipes, and our baby has never had a diaper rash (and that’s why I won’t link any diaper cream, never used them). We love that they are fragrance-, dye-, lotion-, latex-, paraben-, phthalate-, and chlorine-free!
Their mission is hard to not love: “to create clean, premium baby products that protect and celebrate every miraculous life.”
This Angelcare bath support is easy to use. The baby fits well in the cradle, and the holes allow for water to come through. We placed this in our bathtub. Now that our baby is sitting up, we just flipped this over and added a little cushion for his back.
We use this b&h baby thermometer in the bathtub to check the water temperature. We just throw it in the tub while filling it up and the ducky will beep at us if the water temperature is too hot.
Baby Gear & Health Items
I use these baby items on a daily. Some are expensive, but I think they were worth the investment!
The Nuna PIPA urbn with TAVO travel system was a big purchase, and one I was nervous about. We are not disappointed! The infant car seat is so easy to clip into any car with anchors, and the stroller can be collapsed with one hand.
When we were traveling, we got into an Uber that had seat covers where we couldn’t reach the anchors. It took us a minute to look at the user guide (which has a pocket on the car seat) and we had it secured with the seatbelt.
This Momcozy stroller organizer is a must-have for holding everything you need when you’re out and about. I keep a garage opener in the front pocket for when I go on walks around my neighborhood, and it holds my coffee cup when we’re walking around the farmer’s market.
This Fisher-Price baby chair was a perfect addition to our baby gear once he started controlling his neck and wanting to sit up. I put it on my large island while baking and cooking dinner. He stays entertained while I’m getting things done.
I said I would never. I really did.
The Frida Baby NoseFrida is a game changer. You wish badly that your baby could blow their nose. This provided instant relief when our baby has congestion, and it is a weight off your shoulders when you can hear them breathing clearly again.
One of the hardest things about being a first time mom is not being able to fix something for your crying baby right away. It only gets worse with teething!
These Camilia liquid doses have been so helpful in giving my baby relief from teething. Since hitting the 7-month mark, he has been a not-so-happy camper, and this has been the only thing to help.
There are so many prenatal supplements on the market, but Bloom by Birthright is my favorite. It’s easy to stomach during all stages of pregnancy and is made with whole food ingredients to provide essential targeted nutrition. Use code ALANA15 for 15% off!
Summary
Ultimately, you need to find what works for you and your family! Focus on finding ways to make your life easier and more comfortable as you navigate your debut into motherhood. You will always hear a lot of opinions, but ultimately, the decisions are yours! I hope this list of baby registry essentials helps you on your journey.
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