If you're reading this blog then I'm sure it's no surprise to you that the baby market is flooded with every gizmo and gadget you could possibly think of for your precious little cherub. As a new parent, choosing between the must-have and the nice-to-have can be tough, especially when every retailer will happily tell you how much you need it.
As a Mum of three kids under four years old, I'm certainly no expert in every single product available but I'll happily share with you the products I got the most out of. My husband would argue that I AM an expert in shopping and this we can agree on. Let's get started.
Top 6 MOST USED baby products
As a first time Mum, my absolute go-to, recommend-to-every-mama-I-know product would be Lansinoah Lanolin Nipple Cream.
About four days after I had my first son, I thought that breastfeeding had truly beaten me and I was about to give up due to the extreme pain. I don't know if it was luck or divine intervention, but a very special and caring girlfriend of mine happened to pop in to say 'hi' and immediately knew the answer to my struggles. My boobs and I were forever grateful and I hope you will be too!
This book was our go-to for encouraging good sleeping behaviour and routines for all three of our kids. Three and a half years later and we're still putting it to practice with three really good sleepers. This one came recommended by three separate friends of ours and because of this we felt like we had to give it a go. Very easy to read. Tizzie Hall can be a little abrupt in the way she writes but if you can look past that you're onto a winner! She covers so many topics other than sleeping and settling also. Things like:
Weeing process
Starting solids
What kind of foods to try
Common health concerns
Special situations
Having a newborn will radically change the dynamics in your household. It's a time in your life where life is at its best and it can also be very challenging. Sleep deprivation on top of it all is a thing of nightmares (pun intended). This little book gave me the confidence I needed to understand my little person's needs while also encouraging a routine that was of benefit to BOTH of us.
These are oldies but goodies. Now let me start off by saying that I used disposable nappies for all three of my kids. Props to any parent willing to give reusable nappies a go but that was not for me.
Towel nappies have so many more uses than just as reusable nappies. Kids ... there is a lot of gross stuff coming out of them regularly. These towels are the perfect size to throw over your shoulder and protect you from any unwanted spews. Pop them on your change table and you won't have to change your cover every couple of hours. I also would place one under my baby's head in her cot. If she does spit up while she sleeps, the thin towel absorbs most of the fluid so she's not lying in her own mess. Although they come in various colours, I would recommend getting white ones. A lot easier to clean with the mess they cop.
If you choose to breastfeed, this one is a real time saver. Basically, while you're feeding or pumping, this product is a hands free container that suctions onto your opposite breast and catches any excess milk that would normal leak during a letdown. Having a stock of frozen breast milk is one thing I relied on to keep my sanity, knowing that I wasn't the ONLY person that could feed my baby, if need be. Allowing for date nights and attending weddings. I never truly realised the physical and mental freedom having extra breast milk on hand would give me until after a few occasions away from baby. Such a positive thing and one I'd recommend if you can!
Now call me an overbearing, paranoid, worrying Mama but having a monitor with a camera saved me many many trips into my baby's nursery to just check up on them.
Especially on those nights, where they were just not settling. It was comforting to see their precious little faces on camera and know that everything was okay.
I honestly believe that if it wasn't for having an easily accessible camera, I would have been in there every 2 minutes and creating a rod for my own back by answering to every little sniffle.
I know they talk about new mums constantly worrying about their babies but that sh*t is real. It's taken me a good part of the last three years of being a mum to adapt to this new norm of concern for my kids. I'm thankful that my partner helps to keep it in check for me.
This one might seem a bit obvious but I didn't purchase this product until our third baby.
We've always had a rocker and play mat to place our first two down on when we weren't holding them, but having this upright bouncer has been so handy to have. Allowing our baby girl to comfortably look around the room and watch her siblings. It also has a enough soft bounce for her to lean back and have a little snooze. Sometimes its the most simple products that are the best and I would really recommend this lightweight one!