My New Baby Must Haves...

I can't believe baby Walt is already two months old. These past two months have just flown by... with the Thanksgiving and Christmas holidays and all the hustle & bustle that goes on during the holiday season, it feels like just yesterday he was born. But it also feels like he's always been a part of our family. He's brought so much joy to us and it's been so wonderful watching Parker become a big brother. 

I'm so excited to share all of my newborn favorites with my readers today! This is one of my favorite blog posts, because I love products that help us new mamas in any way during this wonderful yet transitional time, and want to share all of my favorites in hopes they'll help others too! Let me know if you have any questions about any of these products, I'd love to chat about any of them with you. (Robe & Bow Swaddle)

SLEEP
My most important priority, haha! For us, we have loved using the HALO bassinest. I love the convenience of having it at the same height as our bed so when Walt wakes up I can just scoop him out of it (the side retracts down), feed him, change him and put him back in there, all without getting out of bed. I also put the Dockatot in the HALO so that it feels more snug for Walt. I put him in a HALO sleep sack as well. 

When he wakes in the night for a feeding, I use this gummy bear light. When I was taking my Amma Mama new Mama class with Parker, they said that red is the only light color that doesn't impact your circadian rhythm, so we started using it for night feedings and I really liked it. I'm not a huge fan of how it looks, but I love the functionality. It lights the room just enough to see everything, but doesn't wake up you like a bright light does, and it has a 60 minute timer on it. So by the time Walt is up, I feed him, change him and put him back in the bassinet and then need to pop his pacifier in and go to sleep the light usually turns off automatically.  We also have blackout blinds by Hunter Douglas & a SUPER loud fan, I love this one. 

FEEDING
I feel so grateful that breastfeeding has gone so well for us this time around. Walt had a tongue tie that we addressed right away once we left the hospital and I am so so happy that it was discovered and taken care of quickly. Parker has a tongue tie that was missed and I think that was a big part of the reason we had so much trouble with breastfeeding. If you're having any trouble with nursing, I'd definitely look into this as a potential cause. Anyway, here are a few of my favorite things related to breastfeeding & pumping.  I would also recommend getting a milk catcher for the first few weeks while your body is regulating your supply. I "caught" SO much milk that helped me jump start a nice freezer stash without even pumping. I really only pumped to relieve discomfort when I was overly full or engorged. Below are my favorite things related to feeding.

MY FAVORITE....

• Pump: SpeCtra - I decided to try the SpeCtra this time around because I'd heard really good things about it, and I have 3 Medela pumps from my exclusive pumping days. I have tons of Medela pumping parts, so I bought these adapters that let me use the SpeCtra pump & hoses, but I can attach them to the Medela parts. 
• Nursing Pillow - this one is THE best because it fastens around you and doesn't move like the boppy one does.
• Thing for sore nipples - these nipple soft shells. They shield your nipples from anything rubbing against them when you're not feeding, and helps them recover a bit in between feedings. Mine were super sore and I wore these for 2-3 weeks after having Walt. They were a lifesaver. 
• Milk Catcher
• Pumping Bra
• Nursing Tank
• Nursing Top:
• Bottles

CLOTHING & ACCESSORIES
I love dressing Walt in super soft onesies with hand coverings. I will keep him in these for the most part for the first several months. I really love Kickee Pants (make sure to get the ones with zippers) & plain Gerber onesies. I don't like dealing with two piece outfits - they are always so cute, but functionality-wise they are a pain because the top always creeps up and needs to be pulled down.

I usually have him wrapped in swaddle blankets during the day, and love these because they are super soft but also act as a burp cloth for any spit ups. This knit blanket is my absolute favorite blanket, we got it when Parker was a baby. I usually put it on him when we are on the go in the stroller or car seat. We were also gifted a blanket that was personalized with Walt's name on it that is so darling!

I bought a trendy nook that I see a lot on Instagram, the Ryan & Rose Pat Pat, but Walt didn't like it. It almost seemed too heavy for him to suck on, too. It just kept falling out of his mouth. I do like their paci clip though and we use that. I also tried the Wubba Nub and Walt wasn't a fan. I ended up trying a traditional nook, like the Avent 0-6m one and he loves it, it has made our lives so much easier when he's fussing and tired. He takes his nook and just goes right to sleep, it's wonderful.  My advice would be to try a few different kinds. If your little one doesn't like one brand, try a couple of others before giving up. Having Walt take a nook has been such a blessing! At night if he wakes up I can pop in his nook and he'll go right back to sleep. It's amazing. 

I bought a new backpack diaper bag this time around that has room for both boys' things. I loved my Fawn look alike for one babe, but for two, this one is perfect and so stylish. 

​STROLLER & CAR SEAT
We reused the same infant car seat that we did for Parker, which was the Maxi Cosi Mico Max 30. It's nice and lightweight, but I wish I had had the opportunity to try the Nuna Pippa too because I hear great things about that one. 

My favorite single stroller is the Bugaboo - it's SO light weight and can be configured so many different ways, I just love it. I so wish they made a tandem double stroller, I'd buy it in a heartbeat. I actually just got Parker the wheeled comfort board so I can use the Bugaboo stroller vs. our double stroller when I want to. 

The double stroller we got is the City Select Lux and the second seat. I like it, but it's BIG and heavy and a little challenging to maneuver compared to the Bugaboo. Also a bit heavy to handle getting in and out of the car post c-section. The clips also took me a little getting used to. 

LOUNGERS & PLAY MATS
I love this bouncer because it's so portable & easy to move around the house, and Walt can just chill in it happy as a clam. Parker loved it too. We also love the Boppy Lounger pillow for the same reasons. Lastly, this is the activity gym that we use with Walt that P had too. I'm a big fan! We used this plush elephant playmat too. 

​And last but not least, personalized thank you notes for all of those sweet gifts you get. I chose ones that said from the nursery of Baby Walt with little baby feet and I just adore them!