After having three babies, my “baby must haves” have certainly changed from baby #1 to baby #3.

When we first start out, we have all these things that we think we must have, but when it comes down to it; a lot of things are a waste (in my personal opinion!)

I asked some of my readers what their must-haves were and this is what they shared:

“A

‘carrier’ carseat

– if they fall asleep in the car, you can get them in the house without waking them up.”

Most ‘carrier’ car seats these days come with the base that you keep in the car so you just pull the ‘carrier’ part out without disturbing baby.

“

Baby sling, burp rags, extra onesies

, hand mits and a bassinet

; a good nipple ointment

if breastfeeding.”

I agree with a baby sling/carrier. Especially if this is child 2 or more. It is nice to have a baby carrier to free up your hands to do other things.

Burp rags have always been a must, but you don’t have to (and shouldn’t) buy fancy burp rags.

I am not a fan of hand mitts and my opinion is that they are a waste of money. You can use a pair of socks too.

A


bassinet, a co-sleeper next to the bed, or a crib


next to the bed are all great. It is so much easier to have baby next to you in the middle of the night when they wake for feedings than stumbling down a hall or up and down stairs.

A good nipple ointment for breastfeeding is definitely another that I agree with. Just be cautious of what ingredients are in this ointment. (There are more natural options so just be aware.)

“Butt paste, gas drops, co-sleeper, Hylands homeopathic cold medicine,

amber teething necklace

.”

I cloth diapered baby #3 so butt paste was a no-no. Even when we moved to disposable diapers, we opted for essential oils rather than a butt paste or powder.

Gas drops… we prefer


Gripe water


. I did not fully realize that what I ate could affect how the baby feels and it took a couple weeks to realize that baby #2 did not like anything tomato based. That meant any time I ate sloppy joes, lasagna, spaghetti, etc.; baby rebelled. Bad. Gripe water worked wonders.

Hyland’s homeopathic cold medicince I cannot say that I have used or would use. I am a little crunchy so I opt for essential oils (which we use for all 5 of us now days.)

I swear by Amber teething necklaces and recommend them for all children! We never used one with #1 or #2, but we did with #3 and we could notice a huge difference! In fact, she cut her first two teeth without our knowledge!

“Sleep sacks.”

Absolutely! In fact, this is my go-to baby shower gift.

“Diapers and blankets.”

Some of

my

other baby must have items include…

If you are active, the


carrier car seat and stroller combos


are great! In my opinion, it is a must unless you intend on carrying baby in a carrier when you go out in public.

If you are nursing, a


Boppy pillow


is a fabulous purchase that you won’t regret.

If you are nursing and will need to go back to work or leave baby with someone else for any reason;


a good breast pump


is a must. Find a place that rents them so you can try them before you purchase (which you do not need to purchase if you don’t want to.)

Onesies

.

Easy to put on, change diapers, etc.

Bottles


, regardless if you are nursing or formula feeding (unless you are nursing and never intend on leaving baby with someone else.) As a working mom, I remember having to pump so the sitter and hubby could feed baby while I was away. But even as a formula feeder, finding a good bottle is important.

With baby #3, one of my goals was to find a bottle that would decrease the whole bottle, water, formula, shake time and make life a little easier. Especially if just running out real quick. (It never failed that the second we got in the car, baby wanted a bottle.)

I had found a few where you could put the formula in a little compartment, fill the bottle with water, and then when you need to actually make the bottle; you would twist the formula section to release it into the bottle and then just shake.

They. Were. Awful.

They didn’t work. They made a mess. Formula got stuck in places that it shouldn’t. It just wasn’t pretty.

I was recently introduced to
.

is a container, bottle, and mixer with an anti-coli nipple and protective cover. In theory, each bottle contains 7 pieces. Sounds like a lot, but it’s actually kind of cool.

The container comes with a lid (that is 2 pieces.) In the container, you can put your measured out formula. (You can also add snacks to a container and then you can screw them together and have your formula and a snack altogether.)

Then of course, there is the bottle, nipple, the lid that you have to put the nipple into, the protective cover, and the mixer (that’s the other 5 pieces.) The mixer looks like a plastic strainer inside the bottle (that is removable) to help shake up and break up the formula.

I have always hated clumps of formula in the bottle and then it gets stuck in the nipple and ugh! The mixer helps break up those clumps.

My favorite things is that I can measure out my formula in the container, put the lid on, place the container

into

the bottle, put the mixer in, the lid/nipple on, and the protective cover on. Toss it all in the bag with a bottle of water and away I go!

Here, check it out:

Things that I purchased that were never used…

• A
  
  changing table
  
  . We never used it. We always used the bed, the floor, the ottoman, the couch, etc.
• A
  
  diaper genie
  
  . Never had one. They seem like a waste of money too me.
• 
  Any type of warmer
  
  – bottle warmer, wipe warmer, etc. We would leave water out on the counter so it was room temperature and really, babies don’t mind their wipes being cool (at least none of mine did.)
• A
  
  bouncy chair
  
  . #1 rarely sat in it, #2 hated it, and #3 never used it.

Optional Items…

Baby swing.

#1 used one; #2 lived in one; #3 hated it. It’s really preference. It isn’t something I would purchase new unless you know for certain that your baby will like it and use it. And if you do get a baby swing – save yourself the trouble and get one of the ones that plug into an outlet rather than using a million batteries that never last long enough!

A rock and play sleeper.

It was a must have for #3. It was the only place she would nap alone (because yes, she sleeps with us. Even at 3, we bed share.)

What would your list of “must-haves” include?