So…advice. With a grain of salt, of course!
Different things worked with my kids. Like pacifiers, if you
are going to do that, I swore by soothies (the ones that hospitals give) for
Maya but then Orion took to gerber nuks better. I use them because both of my
girls are finger/thumb suckers and also for the soothing factor.
With Maya, I swore by those baby
mittens because I didn’t want her scratching her eyes out but then I realized
how much their hands are their friends at the beginning (that is how it is in
the womb as well) that I got over the fear and just had Ken (yes, Ken because I
could not do it) trim their nails often.
If you are
going to try to nurse, I originally used a boppy until I borrowed my friend’s
brest friend. Can you say NIGHT AND DAY? I was having so many back problems
with the boppy because it didn’t give the best support that a brest friend
does. I still use the boppy though because it is a great pillow and safe place
to have your kiddo while on the couch or floor. As far as breast pumps go,
manual ones suck! I perused the internet looking for the best deal and got my
Medela Pump-in-style advance.
AMAZING!!! I leak milk so the best nursing pads that I found (I tried
the organic cloth ones and other disposable ones) and the Lansinoh ones worked
best for me. Also Lansinoh's nipple cream is a must!
Ok, so this time, I haven’t done it yet because I am still
researching but we are going to change to cloth diapers just because they save
so much money in the end. But if you are going to do disposable, I tried them
all (from huggies-WalMart-Target-Luvs-Pampers-etc) and the Pampers swaddlers
were the best for the new baby. I kept with pampers with Maya and they were
great. The worst is WalMart brand. Those damn diapers don’t know how to even
stay together when not on a baby. And speaking of WalMart they have the worst
baby wipes IMO as well. I use the target unscented brand and I love them. I
used all the others as well. I was even given a large box of the Huggies
sensitive thick wipes and I HATED them. Most are not that durable.
I, with both girls, have lost my milk supply at about 5
months so I have had to supplement with formula. I use the target brand that is
equivalent to Enfamil Lipil with Orion. Gerber sensitive is the only one for
the “prone to spit up tummies” that does not have corn syrup as the first
ingredient. If you end up using formula, make sure you read the labels because
of lot of that junk has corn syrup as the first ingredient (which is sad to
know that we are feeding our babies junk at the beginning.) Luckily (I don’t
know how you feel about this) I have a friend that is giving me mama’s milk to
feed Orion. Just grateful for that because breastfeeding for at least 6 months
helps with the baby’s immune system now and later on in life. I use glass and
plastic bottles by Medela. I hit up some consignment sales and hit the jackpot
with those bottles (if you like doing that) because I LOVE those bottles (both
of the girls used them).
Something that has been used A LOT is our bebe pod (bumbo-esque)
seat. That helps so much with getting your baby to sit up and steady their
head. You can take that jammie to restaurants or just have your baby take part
at dinner time. As far as real food
goes, I have made my own because it is cheaper and I know what is going into
the food. I use my magic bullet to blend up peas and butternut squash. I buy
the birds eye steam in bag veggies and usually buy my squash at the farmers
market and roast it. The only thing I had trouble making was meat-incorporated
meals. I could never get the meat smooth enough. There is a movement of moms
that are feeding their kids morsels of food at the beginning so that the kid
can get the chewing factor down quicker and develop that muscle (because
supposedly their gag reflex is fairly advanced already). You might want to try
that but I am not brave enough to do that yet. I just don’t want to do the baby
Heimlich yet. Something that I am
using this time to feed Orion is the squirt spoon. That thing is awesome for
travel and just to use at home.
The bibs I use and like so much better are by bumkins. If
your little one can handle that material then I would highly suggest that.
Another item that I have used this go around and SWEAR BY is
the Fisher Price Rock and Play sleeper. That thing is amazing! It is like a
bassinet with a slight incline so the baby is not always laying flat and is
buckled in for safety. Orion sleeps in that thing ALL THE TIME and my mom
friends that own this also swear by it.
One thing for baby wears that is awesome is baby leg
warmers. So these things are stinking cute and also help protect her little
knees when she starts to crawl on the floor. Also, what helped Maya with
walking a bit better and also were a great durable shoe for her to wear all the
time were skidders (you can find them at target). They look funky but I love
funky and functional!
When both my girls were small and they were needing to go to
sleep and were fighting it, I LOVED these things called swaddlers. It swaddled
them up nice and warm and then calmed them down. Also with sleeping, I use
sleep sacks because I paranoid that they will suffocate at the beginning with
blankets.
With burp cloths, we just use the ugly prefold burp
cloth/cloth diaper things because they are the most absorbant and there is no
fear of ruining something pretty.
On the market, commercially that is, the most natural baby
soap is California baby. Burt’s Bee’s wax is ok (that is what we use because it
is cheaper) but your best bet is the California baby soaps
Something that is pretty stellar is my moby wrap. You can
get that thing to hold your baby so close or help them to be “independent”
later on when they don’t want to be so close. Also, a baby hawk is something
you can wear that will not make you sweat like a cow and is also pretty much on
point.
Something that works for Orion because she is so keen on
tactile feedback is a taggie. That did not work for Maya but dear lord, Orion
loves that thing. She also loves holding one of those small plastic basketballs
when she is just chilling in her rock and play sleeper.
We have a sound machine that helped both the girls get to
sleep. Has a bunch of different soothing sounds that work so well!
Something that I received at a baby shower and ended up hating
was the diaper genie. It ended up smelling when the poops got more mature and
it was a pain in the ass to change all the time. If you are able to throw poop diapers in an outside
receptacle then I suggest you doing that and throwing the pee ones in the
regular trash.
Also, something that has worked out great for both girls
while in their car seat is strap covers. With Maya, I kept rubbing her neck too
often with it so I invested in those things. Pretty awesome.
So for the most part, we have our pack-play with the
bassinet in our room. I am not a co-sleeper mom but I do want to be close to my
little little baby. That was a great option for us at the beginning and also
maybe for you being in a small NY apartment. So the sheets for those and maybe wet pads for those would
be a great investment.
Socks don’t stay on little baby feet and you will ALWAYS
need an extra pair of clothes for those accidents (like a blow-out). I try to
keep my diaper bag simple too because you are already lugging around a lot with
just a baby in tow. I bought a fancy diaper bag this time hoping to use that as
a purse and diaper bag but that did not work out for me. Sucks. I honestly just
use the Enfamil shoulder strap back that the hospital gave me and put a change
of clothes, enough diapers, target travel wipes, a changing pad (that is
plastic not cloth-that was a disaster), pacifier, bottle/formula, taggie, and
fugly burp rags.
