by Holly Miller Anderson
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New Parent’s Guide: Baby Gear and Essentials from Pregnancy through the First Three Months

As someone who has planned her own wedding and now delivered a healthy baby girl in her forties (it feels incredible to be able to say that), I feel like weddings and having a baby are two life experiences where, once you go through it, you’re basically an expert. There’s so much to learn about and try out for yourself that once you finally find yourself on the other side, it feels like a pretty big achievement you now have personal experience in.

So here’s my comprehensive list of product recommendations based on my experience and research over 9 months of pregnancy, childbirth & into the 4th trimester of delivering my baby. This is everything that I learned, tried and bought along the way that has been helpful for me and my newborn through the first three months of her life.

I hope this gives you some ideas and/or solutions of items to add your rotation during your own pregnancy journey and, when it comes time to prepare to cross the finish line, your hospital bag.

Why trust me: I’m a new mom learning & sharing what’s working for me and mine as I go. I’m not paid by any of the brands named here (except the one I currently work for: Under Armour. Even then, I’m a genuine brand fan). I’ve noted the brands where I receive a commission through affiliate links. I offer a realistic and balanced perspective giving my pros/cons of some products and/or services based on my own experiences with them.

Article Table of Contents

Pregnancy Essentials

Products, Books & Workouts for the new Mom

  • Pregnancy pillow
    • I slept with a pregnancy pillow that also doubled as two separate arm pillows that I used to prop up my newborn during breastfeeding given that this one is held together by Velcro.

Why I loved these books: First, I always love having physical books to reference and make notes in. These were the two main pregnancy books I purchased from Barns & Noble; not to mention the physical act of going to a bookstore to pick out books is cathartic and at one point it give me a chance to leaf through the physical books of baby names for ideas.

Also, I wanted evidence based research that I could refer to that wasn’t something I found online. The week by week, “what’s happening in your pregnancy” type of reference guide was informative and fun to read along the way. In particular, the Mayo Clinic book had a spreadsheet that showed the “order of operations” of what to do & when leading up to delivery – incredibly helpful for someone like me who is a planner. Everything from like, “by week 20, you should start looking at daycare,” etc. There is so much to know, so having a prioritized list to work from was very helpful for staying organized.

During my pregnancy, I also kept a small chalkboard in the kitchen where I tracked the weekly stages of growth and fetal development using a general guide from the Cleveland Clinic. It was a great way to help mark time while educating myself and my husband along the way of how the different parts of our baby were progressing each week.

The Baby Keepsake Book and Planner is an incredible resource and physical binder for new mom’s who like to be organized and sentimental along the way. A friend bought me the author’s planning binder for our wedding. It has a lot of helpful sections that progress from pre-baby planning to delivery and the first few years. I especially found the pages of newborn checklists helpful for nursery purchases and hospital bag packing. A section for the baby shower to note who sent what gifts and when a thank you note was sent out. There was a small zippered pouch in the back where I stored the ultrasound photos we received after each visit. It’s quite a thoughtful and thorough resource that makes a great keepsake gift for yourself or a mom-to be.

At-home fitness program: For fitness leading up to my final month of being pregnant, I was at Orange Theory twice a week. Eventually, though, I transitioned to more light bodyweight stretching (and sleeping) at home so I purchased an at-home program, Empower by Dottir, to do app-based home workouts whenever I had the energy and time to fit a session in. The build in timer in the app was helpful for starting/stopping your sessions without having to look at your phone screen the entire time.

Pro tip: Fast forward to the daycare stage and you’ll tank yourself for staying in some kind of shape; drop offs & pick ups include handling a 20 lb stroller, car seat, bag and cooler plus whatever your kiddo weighs. Body weight squats for the win!

Educate yourself about childbirth: One thing I would recommend new parents do is take a class together on childbirth (Lamaze was popular back in the day but has updated its materials). IMO, any form of education you can get from the hospital where you plan to give birth or from resources provided by your OBGYN that will help you understand the stages of pregnancy and labor so that you can advocate for yourself and your child will be empowering tools for you.

Pregnancy Wardrobe & Postpartum/Breastfeeding

This one was hard because I already have a nice wardrobe of clothes that I fit into and didn’t want to buy a whole new pregnancy wardrobe, but obviously, my body changed during pregnancy and I had to make some adjustments and invest in a few new pieces. My tummy grew the most in the back half of my pregnancy, basically the third trimester.

Again, full disclosure, I work for Under Armour and receive an employee discount on our products. We don’t have a maternity line so a lot of the apparel items I bought were a size up from the size I normally wear or, by design, I chose something with a loose or oversized fit from one of our collections like Meridian or Unstoppable because the fabric is incredible.

What helped the most in terms of general daily wear during pregnancy was similar to a capsule collection – having a few key pieces that also worked as activewear were always in my rotation. Here’s a rundown of what I used most:

  • Leggings
    • I sized up and had 3 pairs of Under Armour Meridian leggings (in black, navy and peach colors). These are my absolute favorite because they’re flattering, functional, soft and have pockets on each side. While they’re not maternity leggings specifically, they’re durable and accommodating of the bump if you size up, even in the third trimester.
  • Crop/ boxy tops
    • I had two 2 boxy tops from Under Armour as my go-to for workout outfits. The oversized style is stylish and functional for postpartum stage if you’re breastfeeding.
  • Jumper/overalls
    • During pregnancy I recommend having a lightweight jumper like UA Rival women’s Jumper to wear as it’s very forgiving on the bump. During recovery, especially since it was summer, overalls were a great option: pockets.
  • Two types of shoes: easy slip ons and supportive walking shoes were a must.
    • I loved having a pair of our SlipSpeed shoes (Under Armour). Goes without saying, they’re helpful for literally slipping on to take baby out to her first pediatrician appointment (which was also the first time I’d left the house in a few days since leaving the hospital). Slip on shoes are just one less thing to think about.
    • I needed supportive and comfortable walking shoes during the third trimester so I loved wearing UA HB Racer anytime I was able to walk outside or on an inclined treadmill at the gym.
  • Two types of bras: ones for workouts and another set for breastfeeding.
    • The bras that doubled for workouts and breast-feeding: UA Infinity Mid 2.0 bras these actually have a feature where the front straps unhook allowing you to breastfeed if you wanted to. Otherwise, they’re also a great sports bra. Breastfeeding specific bras that were great were those from Kindered Bravely brand.
  • Sweatshirts & bottoms
    • UA Icon Fleece was a great cropped sweatshirt to pull on over sweatpants or leggings. In the summer, it wasn’t too hot like a full sweatshirt might have been.
    • A comfy pair of sweatpants is a must, I love these UA Icon Fleece sweatpants.
  • Water-resistant joggers
    • I had two pairs of UA Unstoppable joggers, one size up from my usual size, they were very comfortable for daily and activewear as the waistband fit below my belly for the first and second trimesters. They also turned out to be great pairs of water-resistant pants to wear while breastfeeding. Who knew 😉
  • Actual pregnancy pants/joggers
  • Pregnancy tops
    • Old Navy had a great online maternity section where I ordered a few long sleeve and tank tops, maternity jeans and pregnancy style bathing suits.
    • Macy’s ecommerce site has a maternity section where I ordered an oversized sweater that worked for around the house and dressing up with maternity jeans. I also brought it to the hospital to pull on over my hospital gown in the middle of the night when I got cold.
  • Breastfeeding shirts
    • There were some cute t-shirts and sweatshirts from Giftymama where the side panels zipped open for easy breastfeeding access. Pro: cute designs and yes, practical, easy access. Con: laundry – these take a bit more maintenance as they’re not tumble-dry low dryer safe; I hung them up to dry.

It was also helpful that the majority of my pregnancy lasted over the fall and winter months so I got to wear a lot of pants and sweaters. But then breastfeeding in the summertime was its own joy, lol!

I found a really nice oversized cashmere sweater on Quince.com. After delivering my daughter the weather was turning towards spring and summertime so I ordered a bunch of linen pieces from them as well to update my summer wardrobe during breastfeeding.

Hospital Bag Items

I did a lot of lurking online about what to pack to the hospital for delivery. The actual duffle bag I took was the Under Armour No Weigh duffel/backpack for my overnight bag. I used a tote bag for my daughter’s items like the onesie for going home in, extra baby wipes, a soft blanket etc. Having a larger tote-style bag with her small items allowed for extra room to add in the items we were able to take home from the hospital. Pro tip: pack along another small duffle inside one of your bags for the miscellaneous and postpartum recovery items you’ll be able to take home too.

Here’s an overview of what mom & baby want to pack:

  1. A cooler of non perishable snacks!
    • You may or may not be allowed to eat once admitted to the hospital. But, as a pregnant woman with the chance to have a protein-filled snack, I personally am going in prepared with food. Plus, having snacks helps support your husband/birthing partner too.
  2. A crossbody bag
    • One similar to this one Under Armour Crossbody is a great way to keep smaller items together and, as it turned out, within easy reach on my hospital bed. I wanted things within easy reach like my phone, Chapstick, wallet, tissues, etc. that weren’t taking up space on the rolling side table (keep that room for important food deliveries!). Plus it could be easily clipped to the side of the hospital bed. When we/I was able to get up and go for a walk in the halls, the crossbody bag took the place of purse. So functional.
  3. Core shoe recommendations
    • I always overpack on shoes but, this isn’t a long stay and you’re mostly recovering with your feed up so this is the core of what you’ll need: You’ll want a pair of shower shoes. I also kept them by my bedside to slip into and basically, waddle, over to the bathroom in. You’ll also want some kind of easy slip on tennis shoe (Slip Speed Mega has great traction and cushion) for walking around the hospital (pre labor or recovery) also pairs well with a track-suit outfit coming to and leaving the hospital. I also found some cheap, fuzzy slippers at Target. They were cozy and nice to have on hand when I didn’t have socks on.
  4. A forgiving wardrobe
    • Again, try not to get too carried away with outfits. I mostly wore the hospital gown during recovery. But, when leaving the room for the first time, these Under Armour Rival Fleece style shorts in sweatpants fabric turned out to be very helpful as an option. Turns out wearing disposable underwear and a giant pad is not flattering and these were the most forgiving shorts ever when you’re basically in an adult diaper. My going home outfit was a matching set tracksuit from our line Meridian loungewear. Easy peasy.
  5. Battery powered candles
    • It always makes a room more cozy and is nice to have as a nightlight while in the hospital. Brand: Luminara
  6. An extra long, metal straw + insulated water cup.
    • It’s not easy sipping water when you’re lying down or half way reclined. The straw was so helpful. I like RTIC brand cups because they keep drinking water cold for hours, even overnight.
  7. Portable battery operated fan
    • Useful during delivery and if you get one with a clip it can attach to the stroller.
  8. Toiletry kit
    • I packed a bit of makeup, not gonna lie. But mostly it was nice to have comfort items like moisturizing cream from IT Cosmetics night cream. Ideally, get all of the cosmetic, shampoo, mouth wash and deodorant items you like in travel size so you’re not taking full size bottles of anything.
  9. Colostrum catching tube
    • Another mom friend showed this to me as a way to be able to save and dispense the first few days / stages of breast milk coming in (called Colostrum). The 50 pack is a bit aggressive. I’ll probably donate the rest or give it to another expecting mom.
  10. White noise machine
    • I have a physical one at home and while on the go, I use an app on my phone called Thunderspace. They have two free options that play rain on a rooftop or in the rainforest, but you should pay for unlocking the full catalogue. it’s so peaceful to listen to and you can set a timer for the app to turn off the sound after 30 minutes an hour.
  11. Postpartum items for you

Tips on items to pack for baby: This one’s fairly easy to figure out on your own but there were two items I wasn’t expecting to add to her tote bag: a nail file/trimmer specifically for babies; surprise, you can’t just bring a file that an adult uses because their tiny hands and nails are so delicate. The other item to pack is a pair of baby mittens. Apart from being adorable, having a pair on hand to put on helps baby not to scratch up their face and keeps it nice for all those pictures and video you’re going to be taking.

Baby products you’ll actually need in the first 3 months

Otherwise known as the items I panic bought from Amazon Prime once my baby arrived. Mostly because I didn’t know what I’d need or how much until baby arrived. A lot of these items you can find by searching for them on BabyList if that’s where you host your registry or on Amazon or retailers like Target.

  1. Formula
    • Again, it sounds obvious but we actually did not have any on hand when we brought her home and my milk had not yet come in. I recommend getting something just in case you cannot breastfeed. Good brands we heard of from current parents were Bobbie and & Enfamil. For your diaper bag, I recommend getting formula in a travel size, liquid format so that you don’t also have to mix it with water. It just saves a step.
  2. Vitamin D drops
    • Since newborns cannot be out in the sun for very long or wear sunscreen, this was recommended by her pediatrician.
  3. Tools to clear baby’s nose
  4. Diaper caddies for master bathroom & changing table
  5. Breastfeeding accessories
    • You could fill a book with the amount of products for breastfeeding alone. Some of the ones that worked well for me were: Lanolin nipple cream, disposable nipple pads (trust me, mama’s, wear these in your Kindered Bravely bra overnight to stay dry), Medela hydrogel pads (so helpful for applying to your nipples in between feedings, the Lanolin cream accomplishes the same healing but in ointment form).
    • Nursing pillow: the lactation consultant recommended the Breast Friend brand. I don’t love that the fabric is listed as air dry only, so I place another cloth over the top of it to try to keep it protected from rogue spit ups in between washing. But the design is very helpful (way more so than using a regular pillow) for supporting your back during breastfeeding. Speaking of which, this is your reminder to put a heating pad on your nursing chair, you’re welcome.
    • Nursing bra: I went with the bamboo hands free pumping & nursing bra from Kindered Bravely since I ended up getting a breast pump from Spectra that had flanges which were held in place by the fabric slats of the bra. And, you basically also sleep in the bra overnight for extra support. I found that style to be the most comfortable, breathable for me and the girls.
    • A manual breast pump was recommended to have on hand. It didn’t work for me but the Haakaa pump worked better to catch/collect milk while breastfeeding on the other side. It’s amazing how focused you get on your little one and then all of a sudden you feel wet on your other side and you have no idea why: milk letdown.
    • Pro tip: Again, order yourself a bunch of these nursing pads. Initially I had no idea what these were and would wake up to small puddles on my mattress. Not fun. So, the idea is you wear them inside the nursing bra overnight (or anytime you venture out) to catch any milk expressed from a letdown. Yay for experiences we have to live through for more womanly wisdom!
  6. Breast pump
    • This took some research. Eventually, I went with the Spectra S1. Initially I bought wearable pumps by Momcozy because I’d been reading about how it wasn’t great to be attached to a device with a power cord (and then I remembered I work on a laptop for a living). The lactation consultant at the hospital recommended a wall pump style since the suction was greater which would remove the most milk efficiently and not lead to clogged ducts (I sound like an HVAC). I’m all for preventative maintenance. The recommend brands in this style were Spectra and Medela. I bought a second set of replacement parts on Amazon once I found my appropriate flange size. I basically carry the portable pump around the house while pumping or do something stationary.
  7. Burp clothes
    • You’ll need a lot. We loved these cotton ones by Comfy Cubs.
  8. Baby wipes
    • (Obvious but) Kirkland brand baby wipes from Costco (I should buy stock in this brand). I put one packet at every changing station, diaper bag, car and around the house. Great for dogs and babies.

Breastfeeding is just a whole journey in and of itself. It’s very trial and error with you and your new little partner (your baby). I wish someone had shared this information sooner or talked about it more loudly: each woman who chooses to breastfeed must find her appropriate flange size (it’s based on your nipple size). And just what in the world is a flange you ask? I certainly didn’t know. Here’s a great resource guide from BabyList that also has a handy print out to measure yourself at home: Breast Pump Flange Fit Guide: How to Find the Right Size

Pro tip: you’ll want to wear the nursing/pumping bra with pad inserts and then apply the lanolin nipple cream (overnight). I ruined a few shirts when the ointment came in contact with the fabric.

Game changing items for your registry

These products & brands below were the ones we received as recommendations from our friends who are now parents themselves, most of them are in their late 30’s to early 40’s. Some had been FTMs (first time moms) and some were on their 2nd or 3rd child. All told, we’re fortunate to have a diverse group of friends to ask questions of. A great reason to stay open to building your support
“tribe” along the way because it will look different throughout your journey.

Ok get ready to add to cart:

  1. Bottle washer & sterilizer – trust me, your adult lower back is going to thank me you for not standing over the sink in the wee morning hours washing and drying endless amounts of bottles.
    • KleanPal Pro Baby Bottle Washer and Sterilizer by Momcozy
  2. Food processor – this is going to be so helpful once she’s on solids after 6 months old.
    • One Step Food Maker Deluxe by Baby Brezza
  3. Low flow bottles
    • Anti-colic Options+ Narrow Baby Bottle by Dr Brown
  4. Baby monitoring during sleep & naps
    • Dream Sock by Owlet. The pro: peace of mind overnight when baby is sleeping in her bassinet. The con: if you have notifications enabled (which you basically need to because that’s the point) the alert for sock misalignment literally went off one night multiple times and we could not get it to sit right on her foot so I literally woke up every 20 minutes to disable the alert on my smartphone.
  5. Sleep training
  6. Put these Heavy Duty Dog and Puppy Pee Pads on top of your baby’s changing pad. You’re welcome.
  7. A digital photo frame
    • I love the ones by Aura Frames. My parents have one and I also bought one for our home and my in-laws so that we can each easily share photos of our addition to our own and eachother’s Aura frames via the app instead of texting photos or posting them online.
  8. Nursing shawl
    • This one by Quince is really pretty and lightweight for visitors or when you’re out in public during summertime. I also bought a few of their linen shirts, shorts and pants as comfy, breathable & easy wash and wear outfits during summer.
  9. Alcohol breast milk test strips
  10. Tiny, decorative side table
    • Ideal for a quick place to put down your phone and/or hold your coffee. I always know where my phone is when it’s on this tiny table.
  11. His & hers luxury bathrobes
    • This was our Christmas gift to ourselves as new parents for nighttime feedings. I splurged on these robes by Brooklinen on Amazon.
  12. Baby carrier
    • I decided to purchase a baby carrier once she was delivered because I had no idea how much she would actually weigh. The wrap style ones looked so beautiful and easy to put on but boy was I wrong. I ended up promptly returning it after I, my husband AND mother in law could not figure it out. It took three of us in the kitchen reading the manual, intertwining ourselves around each other to figure it out- and it still wasn’t right. It was literally embarrassing and just too much work. I returned it and bought one where the carrier was pre-created. This one by Ergobaby.

The 4th Trimester

There’s a lot going on in this stage; it’s right after you’ve given birth. Mom is recovering and healing, your baby is completely new to the world now that they’re outside of you, you and your partner are instant first time parents.

It doesn’t feel like it in the moment but babies first three months are a rapid transition from newborn to infant. We’ve been watching the photos in our Aura frame and marveling at how quickly she has grown. One of the initial challenges we worked through was sizing. I had a basic idea of how big our baby would be from our ultrasounds but we didn’t actually know until she was born. That’s a big reason why I didn’t stock up on clothes or diapers.

She weighed a healthy 8 lbs which meant we were in the range of newborn size clothing. The hard part was that there seemed to be no consistency in the size charts from various brands so we guessed a lot. In the first month, she fit into newborn onesies. By month 2-3, she was considered an infant and her size quickly went from 0-3 months to 3-6M. For perspective, she’s now 3 months old, weighs about 14 lbs and fits into some 6 month old clothing. It’s crazy.

At this point I think the hack is to have basic measurements of your baby (chest to crotch, chest to the tip of their toes) and know their current weight to be able to use those measurements against the brands you like and buy from to find their size.

Preparing for daycare: OMG how are we already preparing for BTS wasn’t she just a newborn? The fact is, as a working mom and first time mom, I planned to return to work and that coincided with when my baby reached about three months of age. So it was yet another new stage of researching and gathering things like extra clothes, bottles and binkies to take along to daycare.

Since she went to an infant care location, we did a combination of washer-friendly name labels (stickers) and markers for clothes as well as bottles. I also got a small RTIC cooler to transport (my liquid gold) breastmilk. You have a lot to do and researching stickers can be overwhelming. I went with Name Bubbles (note: I receive a commission and appreciate it should you chose to purchase from them) and ordered a packet of their customizable Infant Labels which made things easy. The infant pack comes with 66 labels in different shapes and sizes so you can easily add them to everything from binkies to bottles. They have cute, pre-set designs and you can adjust the font type to make the name of your child easy to read no matter the label size. As far as I’ve observed, the labels have survived several bottle washings and are still in great condition.

Some packets come with the mark up pencil.

Baby’s first library: We’re lucky in that the daycare we selected has a lot of interactive toys and play mats to engage her during the day. At home though, I wanted to build a tiny library to begin reading to her even before she really knows what words are. If you’re like that too, one thing you can do once your child is born, is to sign them up for Dolly Parton’s Imagination Library. Your child can receive a free book shipped to your home each month. For free. That’s incredible! How could you not take advantage of building your babies library? Head to her organization’s website to check and see if the program is available in your local area.

Helpful apps: I wish I’d heard about the Huckleberry app earlier. I downloaded it as ours turned 3 months old and have found the free version thus far to be very helpful for tracking daily things like diaper changes, bottle vs. breast feedings, nap times etc. There is a paid version with more features.

For our baby registry, I set up one on BabyList and Amazon. The BabyList app was handy for quickly updating our registry, sending the link to those asking, and ordering items along the way. It was also helpful to be able to stay organized by creating categories of products, move existing ones on the list around and setting some of the items on our registry to private so that only I could see it.

Pro/con of a baby registry on BabyList:

Pro: BabyList offered a browser extension which meant that I could add any product to our baby registry when I was looking at product pages on my laptop on any other ecommerce website.

Con: In most cases, refunds were in the form of store credit. I had to proactively reach out to them directly to request a refund back to a friend’s credit card as opposed to store credit that they typically give when returning registry products.

Amazon is so widely used today, it was also helpful to set up a smaller registry on that platform for items that weren’t available on BabyList.

Working mom: I always knew I would be going back to work because I happen to be the primary breadwinner in our home but there’s also a part of me, Holly, that likes working and wants to continue to grow in my career as a new mom. As hard as it is to be away from my daughter while she’s at daycare, for me right now, working full time is both a choice and a necessity.

What I wasn’t prepared for was how to navigate all of it. And I mean all of it; the emotional, mental and physical aspects. I forget now how it happened but while I was pregnant I got reconnected with an old mentor of mine, Barbara Palmer, who is a mentor to women transitioning in their career. I’m lucky enough to have crossed paths with her early in my career but everyone should have someone like this in their life. Palmer offers her services in leadership development coaching and offered to coach me through this time in my life and, let me tell you, it has been the greatest gift to receive her wisdom and perspective as actionable advice for my new life as a mother.

As an example, this week I’m navigating our daughter starting at daycare and my return to work. My coach offered a framework of how to approach daycare as a three day prep based on my return to work day. I would use the first day as a dry run, focusing on my daughter’s needs. Day 2 was again a dry run of the full schedule. Day 3 is the refinement; what’s working, what needs to be adjusted etc. If I hadn’t had that framework to use I don’t think I’d be half as organized or ready to get back to work. Her guidance helped me figure out how and where to start successfully getting our day started together, incorporate daycare drop off and pick up and my transition into work mode so that I can be the best version of myself wherever I am in my day.

Now, as a new mom, coming back to my job is like day 1 of being a new employee because I’m now also a mom. I have a new perspective and new demands on my time that I have to account for in relation to who I am as a working professional. I’ve always wanted to be able to have and do both and now I see how intentional I have to be about time in order to give each the attention it needs. Her guidance was a gift to me but my advice is if you can make the investment, do it. Getting advice from another woman who is a leader and mom herself is invaluable especially during this type of transition in your own career.

Random misconceptions

Or at least what turned out to be true for us.

  1. Instagram is lying to you; the nursery does not need to be fully completed before the baby’s arrival. Ideally, your newborn sleeps in a room with the parents in their own bassinet the for the first 6 months at least. So don’t stress if your nursery isn’t completed. You don’t even need to use your nesting time to get this room completed, there will be time.
  2. Baby wasn’t particular about pacifiers; we didn’t need to order a mixed box of them to see which one she would prefer. I went with these for the first 3 months and upgraded from there.
  3. Similarly with diapers she hasn’t seemed to be particular about them. The Pampers brand worked great and we restocked at Costco. While we did ask friends & family to contribute to a diaper fund, we didn’t need a subscription service for diaper delivery as we’ve been able to stay on top of picking up diapers whenever we’re out.
  4. Didn’t need a special diaper genie trash can. We repurposed a large, existing one from the kitchen and it works fine. Funny enough, baby poop doesn’t really smell bad for the first 6 months while breastfeeding. Their early “poops” are not yet solid and more like liquid ranging in color from yellow to brown.
  5. You do not microwave breast milk. In fact doing so kills off the good antibodies. Our baby, at least, will drink refrigerated breast milk or you can warm the milk up in a water bath – swirling the bottle around in a bucket of warmer water.
  6. Not all binkies/pacifiers are the same or can be used for extended periods of time. There are ones designed for newborns and another type designed for infants age 3 months and older.

A few thoughts on your “big ticket item” purchases

The way I looked at it was that the baby budget was going towards three big ticket products that we’d need and use within the first three months. These were:

  1. A stroller + infant car seat (a way to transport baby)
  2. Crib (somewhere for baby to sleep safely once they’re able to be in a nursery)
  3. Bassinet (an infant-specific safe sleeping space)

For the stroller, what worked best for us is what’s known as a travel system. BabyList had a lot of good article resources to help parents decide on which brand and type to get. I also referenced Reddit threads using the brand name to get other consumer perspectives. We’re not in a major metro anymore so there weren’t many retail locations where we could go to physically test things out (our local Target had a few models on the retail floor).

It seemed like there was an inordinate amount of research for buying a baby stroller these days probably because there’s so many options and prices range between a few hundred dollars to over a thousand. I felt like every time I saw a mother out in the shops I wanted to run over and ask what brand her stroller was. I eventually figured out what I was looking for in terms of a car seat plus stroller was called a travel system.

I also wanted to be able to have a bassinet feature to go for walks with her as a newborn (because, imagine that, their necks aren’t strong enough to support their head until about 6 months). I ended up going with the Modes Element LX Travel System by Graco. and bought an additional car seat base for our second car. I also found this purchase through BabyList. Surprisingly, the bassinet attachment to the stroller base has worked out well as a place to set her down in during the day instead of laying her flat on her back a pack-and play; newborns really like to feel like they’re still being held when set down because that’s closer to their natural state and what they’re used to.

In trying to be budget conscientious, I considered a convertible crib since it’s the type of furniture that grows with your child. The bassinet we have used in the beginning is a rental Under Armour provides as a benefit to new parents through Snoo. I’ll need to purchase another one once the rental period expires. Wish us luck, she’s actually really liked snoozing and sleeping through the night in the Snoo.

Besides my husband and me, I’d like to thank…

Lastly, I want to thank “the first baby”, Rizzo, for preparing me for our actual baby. He’s now four years old and I’m so excited for her to grow up with him in our household. Yes, he steals things from time to time. But that’s when I know he hasn’t also gotten enough of the attention he needs.

Me: Where did her binky go?
Riz: IDK, mom, keep looking tho. I’m sure it’ll turn up…
Promoted to big brother.

Final sign off: First, there is SO much to learn about when bringing a baby into the world; no one has all the answers. Trust in your own intuition and always do what works for you and your baby. You can get information overload looking up the best way to do X but know that at the end of the day you are doing your best and your baby just needs you, your love and food.

Secondly, I want you to know I see you, older moms of 40+. It’s hard to stay positive and optimistic during pregnancy but don’t let the possibility of a bad outcome rob you of the time you have to hope and dream about your baby. You’re doing everything in your power to have the best outcome. Some things are out of your hands. But keep the faith. Talk to your unborn baby; you’re in it together and know that you are not alone.

If you found any of this helpful, I’d love it if you shared this article on social media and linked back to it. Thanks!