Newborn essentials that I couldn’t have lived without
The newborn days already seem like a distant memory as we’ve come so far since then and are now loving parenting our very determined toddler. I wanted to take a look back today and gather up a few items to share with you about what items I couldn’t have lived without through those hazy newborn days.
Snuzpod
I had been eyeing up the Snuzpod* long before I even got pregnant and I knew that when it came to it I was going to get it without a question and I don’t regret it for a single second. They are a bit more expensive than others that are similar but we got so much use from it and it was everything I wanted. I was determined that I wanted to have my daughter close by and also I didn’t want to co-sleep when she was so tiny I loved the idea of her co-sleeping but in her own space. She took to the Snuzpod on her second night home and slept in it until just before turned 6 months. We permanently had the side down and it attached to our bed and it made those middle of the night feeds and wake ups in the early days so much easier. If I couldn’t have kept her in her Snuzpod forever I would have done but after keeping hold of it for a little while I sold it on to another family ready to welcome their little bundle of joy.
Milton Cold Water Steriliser
Before I had my daughter we had ordered a steam steriliser that I think we used for maybe a week before switching to cold water sterilisation. I very quickly realised that I didn’t love steam sterilisation at all, everything always felt like it had a bit of a film on it and never seemed clean. We switched to cold water sterilisation (or the old fashioned way) and found this worked so much better for us. Everything felt super clean and sterile unlike my previous experience with steam. The great thing about the Milton cold water steriliser* is how affordable it is, doesn’t use any electrics and the tablets or fluid lasts forever too. Definitely my favourite option for sterilisation.
Ergo 360
I had heard great things about Ergo carriers and I was lucky enough to pick up an Ergo 360 second hand (but never used) on eBay and it has been one of our best purchases (even better because we only paid a fraction of the price). We used it with the newborn insert within just 2 days of bringing her home and we still use it to this day, 14 months on. I’ve always loved carrying her on me and she has always loved it to. I foresee us using it in the back carry position for a long time yet too.
MAM bottles
When I couldn’t breastfeed the way I wanted we very quickly had to decide on some bottles for the little one, starting first with our Tommee Tippee Closer to Nature bottles (which did serve us well) and moving onto Mam. Mam are amazing bottles, they work brilliantly at stopping any air getting into the bottles which obviously really helps the baby with digestion and not getting too windy. I would recommend these every time and we used them right up until when my daughter weaned herself off the bottle just a couple of weeks ago.
Medela Breast Pump
In the early days the Medela Swing was the 5th member of our family* and I couldn’t have got through the breastfeeding days without it. I loved it and loathed it in equal measure, loving that it helped me breastfeed my daughter for as long as I did and loathed being attached to it. I can’t rate it enough and I definitely felt so sad when I packaged it up to send it to its new home, while equally being glad to see the back of it. Breastfeeding emotions are like nothing else, right?
Bouncer
The final thing I want to share with you today that I definitely couldn’t have lived without is our bouncer. I know people don’t always find the bouncer that their baby loves first time but we definitely lucked out as our daughter loved the bouncer we picked up for her from Mothercare. We used it so often right up until she was too heavy to use it anymore. Definitely a must have for those baby days, for a safe space to put the baby down while you’re making bottles or need both hands.
I hope this was helpful to any new mama’s out there, and if you have been through the baby/newborn days and want to add something that wasn’t on my list then please add your must-haves in the comments. Every baby is different and what works for one doesn’t necessarily work for another.
