Today I’m sharing my top 11 items that you ACTUALLY need: my advice to all the first time moms out there!

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Happy Wednesday, friends! I’m so excited for today’s post: it’s for all you first-time moms out there who are exactly where I was a year ago, and wondering what in the heck you actually needed on your baby shower registry!

There are so so so many baby products out there, and it was an incredibly time-consuming pursuit to try to research everything to figure out which items we definitely needed and what we did not. And for some things, there is nothing like actually having a baby to know what you need for baby 🙂 So today I wanted to share with y’all my top 11 items that I would highly highly recommend to any first time mom!

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1. Comfortable post-partum wear.

This is a must – you just had a baby, and you won’t be your regular size again yet! This takes time, and you want to make sure that you feel comfortable and good about yourself while you’re trying to do what is best while taking care of baby in those first few weeks. There is nothing like not fitting into your skinny jeans the day after you leave the hospital to erode your self-confidence, so leave those in the drawer, and say hello to either the Zella Live-In maternity leggings or regular leggings!

2. The Baby Brezza Formula Pro.

This was a game-changer. If you plan to use formula or supplement your breast milk with formula, you need the Baby Brezza Formula Pro! Powder formula is much more affordable than premixed, but it can be a pain to make and easy to mess up the ratios. The Formula Pro takes all the guesswork out of it by mixing your powder and water according to the brand that you are using. It can even warm the formula before serving, which Sophie loves!

3. Burp cloth bibs.

These burp cloth bibs from aden + anais are a must-have! They are the typical burp cloth material, but feature snaps so that you can easily snap them around baby’s neck. We use these for feedings (and also those “extra-drooly” days 😀 ). I love these larger cape style ones because even if she turns her head, she still can’t mess up her outfit!

4. Grass drying mat + tree 😀

Yes, the dreaded grass drying mat. I steadfastly refused to purchase this initially or to put it on our baby registry, and then when we were a couple weeks post-partum and realizing we were washing bottles every five minutes, we decided to throw in the towel and grab one for easy drying. Turns out: this is an essential! It allows for easier bottle drying and the little “trees” help to dry lids much more quickly!

5. Halo sleepsack swaddles.

These were a game-changer for sleeping! There are a lot of sleepsack and swaddle options out there, but we absolutely love how easy and effective the Halo sleepsack swaddles are. They come in a couple different fabric options for winter and for summer, and keep her from busting out of her swaddle in the middle of the night with that crazy startle reflex!

6. Amazon Echo + Womb Sounds.

A bedtime routine is so important, and using the Womb Sounds app that can be downloaded as a skill with Amazon Echo was perfect for Sophie. There are a number of other white noise apps available as well, if your little one prefers something else, but the womb sounds mimics the sound of being inside the womb and can really help them to rest well!

7. Snoo smart bassinet.

I won’t sugar-coat it: this bassinet is expensive. Is it worth it? Every penny. I plan to do a full review of the Snoo smart bassinet in the future, but right now I will say that this definitely helped Sophie to learn the skills she needed to be able to fall asleep on her own. It incorporates swaddling, shushing (with white noise) and swaying back and forth, which are all helpful for helping little one to sleep. There is also a weaning mode which we are currently using to help her transition out of the bassinet and into her crib; but I will say that she has already spent a week on vacation last month sleeping in a regular old travel crib without her Snoo, and she slept great! I believe having the Snoo early on really helped her to be able to master the skill of sleeping.

8. Graco baby swing.

This is perfect for napping and also just hanging out with the family! It allows Sophie to relax with us in the family room when she just wants a break, and she loves the star mobile that hangs from it. It also contains a vibrating mechanism and white noise mechanism, which are both perfect for lulling baby to sleep!

9. Boppy newborn lounger.

We did not register for this, but we are so grateful that our friends who’d already had a baby before us knew we would need it and gifted it to us anyways! The Boppy lounger chair is perfect for the couch, the bed, the floor: anywhere you want to hang out and lounge with baby. She loves hanging out in it when she doesn’t quite want to lay down, but she also doesn’t want to be fully sitting up in her chair.

10. Portable soother sound machine.

This is a MUST have, friends. I picked this portable soother machine up early on because it has a vibrating mechanism and is also able to be attached to her carseat with the use of the velcro straps. It is perfect for car rides because it helps her to be soothed to sleep by the vibration and also the white noise!

11. A Lovevery subscription.

Last, but certainly not least, we purchased a Lovevery subscription box, and could not be happier with this choice! This takes the guess work out of “what toys are developmentally appropriate for my child right now?” and allows you to relax and spend time with baby, instead of spending a bunch of time researching what you should be doing with baby! It includes a booklet in each box that helps give you ideas for other things to be doing with baby at that time period in addition to the toys in the box, which I love!