I wanted to share some of my favorite items that have been super helpful as a new mommy! Lately- everything that I’ve been loving be it food, clothing, baby products, products for mama…must. be. simple. As a new mom, I have quickly learned the real meaning of a fast shower, meal/snack prepping, and finding creative ways to get things done in a more efficient way. I can only imagine how much more creative I will have to be when our little sweetheart starts moving (which judging by how alert and wiggly she is already, I would guess that might be sooner than later)!
Anyways, I have narrowed down my favorites into categories: baby products, mama products, and clothing pieces that have been LIFESAVERS for me over the past two months (HOW is our little girl already almost 2 months old?!?). Aside from these things, I have to give a big shout out to the one who’s been the greatest lifesaver- my husband. From changing diapers, rocking our little one to sleep, feeding her (fed her breastmilk for the first time out of a bottle when she was 6 weeks old…so adorable!), getting me ___________ fill in the blank of countless needs while I’ve been breastfeeding…he’s been there through it all. We’ve been blessed with his job allowing him to make his own schedule and work from home, so he truly has been there for C and I every step of the way so far. I love you Dakota!
Below are my favs. Take a peek, comment below if you have other great products you’re loving as a new mom OR help you be more efficient with your time, and let me know if you have any feedback on these items if you have them as well! Would love to hear.
Baby products:
This owl nightlight has been fantastic for our late night feedings. A lot of the products I found for our registry came from lucieslist.com, including Mr. Owl. I HIGHLY recommend taking a glance at this website if you’re a mom-to-be. It does the research for you when it comes to baby products and links you right to the spot that you can find the item. It was so helpful as we were building our registry. Anyways, as I was researching good nighttime habits for baby before C arrived, a common theme was to not overstimulate your baby much at night so that they start to understand the difference between daytime and nighttime, and it has really paid off doing this…or we’ve been blessed with a good-sleeping babe. Either way, I’ve been very pleased. She consistently sleeps from 9ish to about 3ish for a nighttime feeding, or will sleep straight-through until 6ish. This nightlight has a low LED light, so it is perfect for being able to navigate in the dark during those late feedings and diaper changes. It also goes off on its own after 20 minutes, so you don’t have to worry about messing with it after you’re finished with the feeding.
These sheets are AMAZING. QuickZip sheets have made it SO easy to change a sheet quickly when Collins has spit up in her bed. The top part of the sheet zips to the bottom portion of it, so when you need to change a sheet, all a mommy has to do is unzip the top part and zip on a clean sheet, while the bottom half stays on the mattress. I haven’t had to lift the mattress up once from the spot we put it in before C arrived. This product is hands down my favorite thing we received from our registry. I can change her sheets in one minute (literally) and when you have a tiny human crying or needing your love and attention, how much more efficient could it get?!
I received this quiet door latch from a friend at church. I had never heard of/thought of getting these until she gave it to me, and I LOVE it! Collins is so alert and I’ve noticed she gets more and more aware of the noises around her, so this has given us a quiet getaway when we are putting her down for naps or bedtime.
Products I am loving in her nursery are these chicken wire book shelves and pouf ottoman. C’s room is the smallest one in our home, so having a pouf instead of another large piece of furniture helped us utilize this space and still provides comfort of being able to put our feet up while we rock her. These chicken wire book shelves work great for our rustic chic look we were going for in her room and are within easy reach from the rocking chair making it easy to grab a book quick while still holding her.
A few more baby products I’m loving are her play mat and muslin halo sleep sacks. These sleep sacks have been amazing for transitioning her from being totally swaddled after she was first born to now (almost 2 months old) having one arm out. These sleep sacks keep her safe and keeps her from startling herself awake when she has a squirmy moment. She has loved being able to have one arm out, but still has trouble with both, so we will keep just one for now. 🙂 I love these Muslin sleep sacks, because they are SO soft and also light-weight…perfect for a summer baby!
This Milksnob cover it AWESOME! I won it in a giveaway on Instagram (when does that ever happen?!) and love it. It is stylish and serves as both a carrier cover and nursing cover. Speaking of carriers, I am loving this baby K’tan right now. We also have the Lillebaby carrier, but she is too little for it still, so the K’tan has been awesome for baby wearing right now. The Lillebaby is also more heavy-duty, so it will be great for hikes and running errands when she gets a little bigger. I tried the Boba out, but it was just too long and confusing for me to figure out (aka I’m not that patient enough to figure it out!). The nice thing about the Baby K’tan is that there is very little you need to do to prepare for baby to get worn. That is what I love most about it, and a friend from church lent it to me to try and I am SO THANKFUL she let me borrow it. It has worked great when C wants to be snuggled and I want to get a few things done around the house. Win-win! 🙂 All you mama-to-be’s ASK your friends to borrow their stuff before you purchase something yourself. It is so nice to try something out for free for a few days and decide if you want to get it or try something else. It saves you the hassle of purchasing/returning/exchanging. Borrowing from friends is also helpful because they can show you how to use it properly.
Mommy Products:
When it comes to clothing, anything that comfy and easily accessible for breastfeeding has been wonderful. Here are a few of my go-to’s lately that I’ve been loving. This gray tank is from Target and it serves as both a workout top or you could pair it with jeans and a sweater in the fall. This t-shirt dress is also from Target (can you tell I love that place) and is so comfortable and also easily accessible for breastfeeding due to its stretchiness. This black and white Polo activewear top is another great combo of stylish and comfort, and again, easily accessible for the breastfeeding mama. I love how I can dress it up or down. The black and gray infinity scarf may look like your ordinary scarf, but it also serves as a nursing cover too! My mother-in-law got it for me, and I love how easy it is to use. It’s a little hot for it right now still, but I have a feeling it will come in handy quite a bit this fall! And last but not least, I have to give a shoutout to my Steve Madden sandals, just because they’re cute and I’ve been loving them lately! 🙂
I LOVE my Skiphop Diaper Backpack. I’m much more of a backpack gal over a tote bag, so this has been great for us. We stuck with black so that Dakota and I could wear it if we’re out and about. The nice thing about this backpack is that it came with these nice smaller organizing compartments and a sleek black changing pad. I like backpacks way better because they’re easy on the shoulders.
A few last products I’m loving for mama recovery is my doTERRA diffuser I received from my MIL, EO’s (especially Frankincense for skincare), Aloe Vera for my c-section scars and stretch marks, and Modern Roots hydrating body butter. I didn’t have any stretch marks while I was pregnant and was told that often times women get stretch marks AFTER having baby when the skin is shrinking back down. THEY WERE RIGHT! But, I can’t believe how great my marks are clearing up with the help of these three magical things. I’m excited to see how much more it improves. If it doesn’t, I’m okay with my labor of love scars too. 🙂
These are some things I’m loving as a new mom. If you’re reading this and have other great products you’re loving as a new mama, write a comment below! I’d love to hear, and talking with other moms is one of the best ways to learn I’ve found!
-C
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