Now that Mason is 8 months old, I feel confident enough to share some of the top baby registry must haves–things we used countless times and all the stuff we loved.
If you’ve read some of my other posts, you might remember that I put some things on my baby registry that I never touched (Click here for more on that mistake). My goal is to help you avoid the same mistakes and get the baby registry must haves that you really need!
This is definitely not a list of every baby item that you need on your registry. I skipped some of the absolute basic baby registry must haves (i.e. bottles, stroller, car seat, etc.) to create a list of the items that we, as first time parents, did not expect to need and love so much.
Here is my little list of lifesavers, in no particular order!
- Baby K’tan Baby Wrap Carrier. I’ve tried a few different baby wraps, but the Baby K’tan is on my list of baby registry must haves because it is my absolute favorite (and my son’s too!). I still use it now, but I used it ALL. THE. TIME. from months 0-4. Sometimes that would be the only way to get him to nap. Any time he cried in those first few months, we put him in the Baby K’tan and he settled. It is one of the best baby registry must haves on this list!!
- Hushh Portable White Noise Machine. This little machine can clip onto baby’s carseat and calm them down with some different white noise options when you’re on the go. It’s the best portable white noise machine because it is rechargeable and comes with a charging cord instead of being battery operated. While it’s supposed to be for the carseat, we sometimes clipped it onto the Baby K’tan and walked around the house when we wanted to get Mason to take a nap. Definitely a must have!
- Boppy Newborn Lounger. We used this newborn lounger constantly when Mase was tiny. We could put it anywhere and he would just chill there with us. I love that he looked super cozy in it too! We also had a Dock-a-Tot, but I would say we got more use out of the newborn lounger, honestly!
- Copper Pearl Burp Cloths. I had no idea how important high-quality burp cloths would be for us. Mason had reflux, so he was CONSTANTLY spitting up all over his burp cloths. We did a lot of laundry just for the burp cloths in the early days. I loved the Copper Pearl ones because they are thick and they are long. A lot of other burp cloths were not big enough or thick enough–the spit up would be leaking right through them (yummm!). We ended up buying more Copper Pearl burp cloths because they were by far the best.
- Parker Baby Baby Bandanas. The importance of these baby bandanas goes along with the importance of good quality burp cloths. My little reflux baby was ruining every outfit we put him in. We were changing him 5 times a day before we got the Parker Baby bandanas. These were a lifesaver for our sanity. After we started using them, we would only have to change his bandana instead of his whole outfit whenever he spit up.
- Tommee Tippee Ultra Light Pacifiers. These pacifiers are great and they are by far Mason’s favorite. He would not take a pacifier at first and he was very particular about which ones he liked. I haven’t heard of a baby yet who hasn’t loved these Tommee Tippee Ultra Light Pacifiers. I had to put them on my list of baby registry must haves!
- Sleepsack Swaddle. Whenever I attempted to swaddle my baby with a regular swaddle blanket, it was unsuccessful. I was glad we had velcro swaddles and Sleepsack Swaddles on our baby registry so I never really made much use of my regular swaddle blankets. We loved using the Sleepsack Swaddle until Mason grew out of swaddling, and he slept super well with it from the beginning.
- Electric Nail File. This is absolutely essential! We didn’t have it on our baby registry at first, but I wish we had it from the start. Instead of having anxiety about the nail clippers, we were able to trim Mason’s nails easily and without worry. He didn’t mind having his nails trimmed at all. Before he started moving around too much, I would use the electric nail file to trim his nails while he was breastfeeding.
- Fisher-Price Kick n’ Play Piano Gym. There is a reason this is an Amazon best seller, people! I was hesitant to buy it because of the bright colors clashing with my neutral living room decor, but I gave in after seeing all the great reviews. Mason loved it from the start! He still plays with the piano part, which disconnects from the whole play gym for when baby grows. That’s why this toy made my list of the 5 best Amazon toys that will last from 0-12 months!
- Changing Pad Liners. After spending so much time picking out the cutest stuff, including changing pad covers, for Mason’s room, I really wanted to keep everything in the best shape possible. We brought him home and he started peeing or having blowouts on the nice changing pad covers we had! I got a bunch of cheap, washable changing pad liners on Amazon and it was the perfect solution to keep the changing pad covers clean and preserved. Highly recommend!
- A great rocker/glider chair. I knew we would be in the rocking chair a lot, but even I underestimated how important a comfortable and sturdy rocking chair/glider would be. We still use it every single nap time and bedtime with Mason at almost 9 months old. I can’t make a great recommendation for this yet, because the one we got from Pottery Barn Baby is already falling apart (it was super comfy while it lasted, but it did not last long, sadly!). I’ll update this post when we find a better one to replace ours with.
- Hatch Sound Machine. This is one of those things you’ll be using for the long haul. We lovveeee the Hatch sound machine. We received this from two people by mistake, but we ended up keeping both and we use one of them in our room each night because it is so super soothing. I love that it syncs with your phone so you can change the settings from another room.
- Boppy Nursing Pillow (or 2). Although it’s a nursing pillow, you’ll need this if you are going to bottle-feed too. We had two Boppys so that we could have one in the living room and one in our bedroom for nights. That worked out so we didn’t have to remember to bring it back and forth. It’s also great to have one to bring to the hospital when you give birth, also!
- Footed Pajamas WITH ZIPPERS. No buttons, guys. Avoid the buttons at all costs. In the first 3 months or so, Mason wore a lot of pajamas, even during the day sometimes. It was a lot easier to just pick a new pair of pajamas for him to wear than to dress him in a full outfit along with socks (plus the socks WILL NOT stay on!). We loved the softness and cuteness of the Burt’s Bees Baby footed pajamas, so that’s what I linked to. Be warned: they do run large, so size down. Mase was an average sized baby but was in their Newborn size from about 0-3 months.
- Baby Swing. We ended up with a hand-me-down Mamaroo, and I’m glad we didn’t invest in one ourselves. Mason was not a fan. He was more of a classic swing guy. I’d recommend going for the regular swing option. You’ll need a place for baby to chill while you go to the bathroom or take a quick shower!
- Baby Brezza Sterilizer and Dryer. I did not put this item on my registry, but I ended up purchasing it myself a little while after Mason was born. It was very helpful with sterilizing breast pump parts, as well as bottles and pacis. The reason it wasn’t on my registry from the start is that I thought I would just use steam bags to sterilize. However, that became trickier and more time consuming than I thought, and I ended up not sterilizing as often as I should have. When I got the sterilizer and dryer, it was so much easier and more convenient to throw the stuff in and press a button. I also love that it dries the stuff, so I didn’t have to wait for it to air dry on my Boon drying rack. It’s pricey, but to me it was super helpful and important!
- Haakaa (if you plan to breastfeed). I am SO GLAD I put the Haakaa on my baby registry. After my milk supply came in, I would put the Haakaa on one side while I breastfed on the other side. I could get up to 2 ounces when I did this, which really helped me start a freezer stash! It’s definitely one of the most important baby registry must haves for moms who plan to breastfeed. You might want to grab 2 because one always ends up being dirty as soon as you need it.
- Boon Lawn Drying Rack. This bottle drying rack is still in use at our house today. It’s the larger size, which we like since we can fit a lot of bottles, along with pump parts on there to dry. The little tree in the picture is sold separately though, so if you want to get that part it is a separate accessory.
- Fisher-Price Bouncer. Mason loved his bouncer for like at least the first 4 months. After that he started to dislike being confined to it. But in the beginning, the bouncer was awesome to put him in for a little while, just to free up my hands and allow me to actually get something done!
- Sophie the Giraffe. This is still Mason’s favorite toy! I did not have Sophie on my baby registry, but my cousin got her for us anyway since her two girls LOVED it so much. We joke that Sophie the Giraffe is Mason’s best friend. He loves to eat her.
Add these baby registry must haves to your registry ASAP!
These items would also be GREAT Christmas gifts or Baby Welcome gifts. You can tell the new mama that they come highly recommended! 🙂
What baby registry must haves did I miss?? Let me know in the comments!
