We are excited to welcome Baby Boy to our family with a Koala Bear Nursery Theme.
As an eco-conscious and debt-free family, we are being very intentional about purchases and baby/mama essentials.
Here are some of our favorite products thus far (updated July 2023):
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Things I Recommend during Pregnancy:
Read Happiest Baby by Dr. Harvey Karp MD and prepare Snoo bassinet with 5 S’s. Learn about wake windows and how much babies sleep in the beginning weeks.
Read The Womanly Art of Breastfeeding and prepare antenatal colostrum collection 3-4 weeks before due date to help with breastfeeding – watch the highlight by Instagram BeMyBreastFriend for advice – use the LaVie heated massagers to help with this + Hakaa silicone collection set – prepare to take collection set in freezer bag to hospital with you to use. I had 10 vials and used ~6 of them during first 3 days in the hospital along with breastfeeding
Read The Montessori Baby and Montessori Method – be intentional with implementing this method from day one
Read The Wonder Weeks to learn about baby milestones and leaps
Consider taking a course on baby sleeping and routines – I liked Taking Cara Babies course for sleeping and daily routines for Week 0-12 weeks (First Five Bundle or blog posts)
Consider taking a course on how to talk to your baby – I liked Raising Little Talkers course by a speech therapist on how to talk to baby and toddler
Consider Elimination Communication for baby – I liked the Go Diaper Free book (easy read), potty and resources
Consider Starting Solids course and resources for how to start solid food around 5-6 months of age – I like their app, detailed blog posts as well as their courses
Learn about Maternity Leave Laws – here is a helpful guide for California moms
Get Certified in Baby/Toddler CPR
Organize all the baby items you have received (new and used items), remove tags, learn how to use items
Prepare financially and prep for 529 Savings Account and/or Custodial Brokerage account for baby (UGMA example)
Prepare family and friends with your expectations about what will happen after the baby is born (aka saying no to visitors after giving birth and encouraging everyone to support mom during this transition – not ask to hold the baby) – here is a great article on this
Book Newborn Photoshoot session – we used Sweet Me Photography for this and they came to our home 7-14 days after birth
Go on date nights and strengthen partner/spouse relationship
Prepare and freeze meals ahead of time. Ask for gift cards for food delivery to use after baby is born. Realize that you’ll be hungry breastfeeding and easy and convenient meals are a must while sleep deprived.
Start Pelvic Floor Physical Therapy during pregnancy and post partum – The Vagina Wisperer has some great resources
Join your Local Buy Nothing Group to find baby items and donate ones you don’t use
After Birth – Prioritize taking care of yourself with a daily shower, brushing your teeth, putting on tinted moisturizer/makeup and changing into daytime clothing
Diapers & Wipes
Dyper Bamboo Diapers, Wipes, Changing Pad – see full review here and video
Baby Furniture
Snoo Happiest Baby – a must for the first 5-6 months + the Sleepea 5-second Baby Swaddle was our go-to swaddle outside the Snoo during the first 6 months (then we switched to Kyte sleep sacks in the crib)
Crib – Babyletto Hudson because it is Greenguard Gold certified, petite friendly and minimalist design – we considered a Montessori floor bed but had already designed the bedroom without it
Glider – DaVinci Olive Glider because it is Greenguard Gold certified, petite friendly, small footprint for the small nursery room and comes in a few neutral colors
Bookcase – DaVinci Autumn Bookcase because it is made of real-wood, non-toxic paint and will fit well with our Montessori theme
Gates – Qdos Baby Gates for top of stair – we love these because they secure into the wall, show a locking mechanism (green/red), do not have a bar that you could trip on while walking through the gate, can be taken off and the installation bars left on if you need to move furniture or in-between kids ages, widen to fit our stair space
Sprout Kids for wooden Montessori inspired items – Use code DRJESSICA10 for discount – We own the infant book shelf, small book display, table and chairs, pickler and toddler tower for in the kitchen
Gathre for play mats – We own the arc play system, block play system, tumbling mats and micro mats in various designs. The play systems and tumbling mats are a MUST in our house from 5 months of age + they look great with our living room decor
Baby Travel Essentials
Diaper Bag – Mina Baie Kinney because of it it’s versatile design (can be used outside a diaper bag as a backpack), wipeable material and lots of pockets
Pump Bag – Freshly Picked Pump Bag because of it’s large design to fit a breast pump and lots of extras. Take 25% off with code fpxdrjessica
Stroller – Uppababy Cruz – I highly recommend buying the stroller used because Uppababy will service it in Santa Monica and this item can be much more economical used. I got our strollers for 5-20% of the original retail prices from Craigslist and Facebook Marketplace.
The Cruz will be our daily go-to stroller for one child. We keep one stroller in the car trunk and one stroller set up in our garage for walks.
The Minu will be our travel stroller we keep in the car for running errands or going to family’s houses. It will also be our travel stroller on airplanes.
We added on the Uppababy Cozy (so we don’t need to put baby in a jacket to go on nightly walks or when it’s chillier outside) and the Uppababy Infant Snugset so baby could use the seat starting around 8 weeks old. We purchased these new.
Carseat – Nuna Pipa Lite LX will be our go-to car seat to begin with because we will have 2 flights of stairs in our home. Being petite, a lightweight car seat is a must for a new mama.
We also own the Uppababy Mesa car seat and this will be used in the grandparents car as an extra option when they come to help with baby and in emergencies if their car needs to be used.
Camera – Nanit Camera and Eufy Life Camera. The Nanit Camera will be our primary camera in the nursery and while at home. The Eufy Life camera will be our secondary camera with ease of use when we do not want to view the camera on our iPhones or when family is helping us watch baby (my mom prefers Eufy over Nanit so she doesn’t need to use a phone app). We use the Nanit breathing bands in the crib and we use an old iPhone as our camera monitor while watching the Nanit (because it eats up a lot of battery when on your primary iPhone).
Blanket – Little Unicorn baby blanket quilt in green and Little Unicorn Outdoor Blanket (excellent for using in the yard or going to the park or beach). The Shoreline Stripe is the perfect print for our teal green/blue color theme. My sister also owns the Midnight Poppy and we love that print as well. We plan to use the 5×5 foot blanket everyday outside and the 5×10 foot blanket when extra space is needed (kept in car for easy transport and access on-the-go).
Stokke Steps High Chair – don’t need the tray or the baby cushion – the cushion got SO dirty within a week so skip it for a towel instead. We pull the high chair directly up to our dining table and eat together as a family so need to waste money on the tray. The only problem I have with this high chair is there are little nooks that food gets stuck in + the fabric straps (I think all high chairs have these instead of wipeable nylon material) and it’s not the easiest to clean
Random Items I’ve Found Helpful with Baby
Carrier – Baby Bjorn Mini as a newborn and then Artipoppe later (I could have used this from birth but didn’t own it right away) – I love the denim colors for both
Upseat – This is a great seat for hip development and use from 4+ months to help get ready for the high chair and eating at the table as a family (preferred over the Bumbo because how hips are aligned)
Changing Pad – Keekaroo – absolute MUST! I bought two of these pre-owned excellent condition
We Are Amma Wrap – perfect for breastfeeding or a cover for lots of other uses
Lovevery Toy Box – We purchased most of our Lovevery toys pre-owned but their subscription boxes are great as gifts too. We like the educational cards that tell you how to use the toys.
Wabi Sanitizer – I love using this for toys and pacifier clips (can also be used for bottles) – I bought ours new in box pre-owned for a fraction of the price
Diaper Cream Applicator – less mess on your hands during changes
Stroller Fan – for baby and mom (I liked to use this in the back seat of the car for more air flow while riding next to the car seat)
Yogasleep White Noise Machine – we have this in each car and in the bassinet for easy use for naps. We use the Hatch noise machine at night
Tap Lights – Perfect for easy diaper changes at night without turning on overhead lights. I like to set it to the red color – red is supposed to be better so it does not interfere with melatonin and sleep vs. yellow/white color lights
Soma Bras – Enbliss Racerback Bralette and Enbliss Bralette – wireless is a must and I just removed the bra pads and used them with cotton breast pads for leaking milk. I liked this better than nursing bras and sized up to medium and larges for breastfeeding purposes
Magic Burp method for burping baby – see example video
Favorite Baby Lotions – Roe Wellness – we use this daily after our bedtime bath routine
Baby Tracker app to track all the baby feeds, diaper changes, milestones, stories
The Wonder Weeks app to know about leaps and skills
Peanut App to find fellow new moms to connect with
People to follow on Instagram for advice/inspiration:
- Pathways.org
- BeMyBreastFriend
- GenerationMindful
- InfantInsights – love the movement exercises
- ThePTParent
- Pickneys_at_play
- Montessori.Mothering
- Dailey_Montessori
Favorite Baby Clothes
Less is more. Most of our clothing is secondhand or borrowed. I found two brands I did like a lot for ease of use (double zippered, eco-conscious, soft, not over the head) as well. I used one size up to put baby into slightly big onesies during nighttime for easier diaper changes or used the Kyte Baby Bundlers the first 8 weeks for only 2 snaps to tackle at night diaper changes.
Kyte Baby is super soft – zippered footies
Goumi Kids footies are also super soft and thicker material for fall/winter temperatures
Things to Skip
Baby Bottles – Wait to see what your baby likes before stocking up. We tested a couple (we preferred glass ones) – they sell test boxes from Babylist – but didn’t end up using them since baby breastfeeds and then transitioned to cup/straw practice at 6 months old
Dock a Tot – safety problems with these if you plan to use with a sleeping baby
Sippy cups – skip these and go straight for a straw or open cup
Containers where baby sits or stands in them like the Skip Hop Activity Center or Jumparoo which can be inappropriate for muscle/bone development and cause safety concerns
See Products on my Amazon Storefront Here
Jessica Louie, PharmD, APh, BCCCP is the CEO of Clarify, Simplify, Align and Host of The Burnout Doctor Podcast. Dr. Louie uses her signature Burnout Doctor Method to coach burned out pharmacists & professionals to simplify because work-life balance is a LIE. Align work into your life & break free from people pleasing, perfectionism and thrive in life on YOUR TERMS.