Mom must haves: Baby Shower Edition

I love getting presents for baby showers. It is fun to pick out something for a newborn baby. I love getting adorable outfits or picking something off the person's registry. But when I think of myself, I remember being very overwhelmed with what to put on my registry, and what I should get to prepare for a baby. When you are completely new to motherhood, it is overwhelming. When I was pregnant with Grant, I had no idea how many things babies need. What makes it more overwhelming is there are just so many baby things out there that claim to be must haves.

At my baby shower, one of the things I really appreciated was receiving from Matt's aunt, a collection of her favorite baby items. Her mom must haves. They weren't things necessary on my registry, or outfits that my kids will eventually out grow, but items that are good to have in your back pocket when things go awry. Motherhood throws all kinds of curve-balls. Boogers, spit-up, messy faces, upset tummies, fussiness. The list could go on. Motherhood is definitely an adventure. So it's good to have some items to be able to handle those adventures and the unexpected surprises that may come about.

My friend Ashley is expecting in May and is having a baby shower. Instead on getting my normal cute outfit, or picking something from the registry, I thought I would do something different. I want to share my must have mom favorites. The things that I have discovered along the way of this motherhood adventure, that makes life a little easier.  So this blog entry is dedicated to you Ashley. I have come up with some must have items and put together a cute basket of items. Makes for a great shower present! And a toolkit for a new mother! So here are must have favorites for a new mom:

1) Baby in Sight Mirror:
This is something I actually didn't have at first. And I didn't see the point of it. But once I had Grant and started driving him places, I started getting anxiety when driving. I hated not being able to see him. The mirror is not so much for the baby, but more for your sanity and ease. It is nice to be able to see your baby's cute little face through your rear view mirror. With a mirror, you can make sure the baby is ok, and see if he or she is sleeping. This mirror is great and such a must have for every car you have.

2) Rinse and Roll Bib:
I actually stumbled upon one of these at Target when Grant was about 8 months old. It is truely brilliant. Unlike cloth bib that stain and are literally impossible to keep clean., the rinse and roll bib is super easy to clean. What is also nice about it, is it catches all the food. Instead of finding random surprises of food somewhere on your baby, you'll find all the food in this little pocket thing. This bib is wonderful! I still use it for Holly. I love it!

3) Baby Orajel Tooth brush and training toothpaste. (with no fluoride):
A lot of people do not realize that tooth and gum care starts very early in a baby's life. When you feed a newborn, (bottle or breast) you should actually take a small wet paper towel or wash cloth to wipe their gums. Especially when you start them on solids. Once they have their first tooth come in, you should start brushing their one tooth along with gently brush their gums. The AAP actually suggests taking you baby to the dentist as soon as their first tooth comes in. This is to check to make sure everything is coming in ok, and to get the baby use to going to the dentist. The earlier the better!

4) Bottle Brush:
 I got this brush as a present at my shower, and I absolutely love this particular brush. This is great for any more who is going to use bottles for formula or breastmilk. Plus if you are going to be a pumping, this is great to clean your pump parts with a little soap and water before sterilizing them. This particular brush has a little bristle built in the bottom of the brush. This bristle can get into small spaces to clean, and clean the bottle nipples as well. I loved using the small bristle part to clean the part of my pump attachments, where milk gets stuck, but there is no way to clean it with just a regular brush. This particular bottle brush is a life saver! And it has a suction cup to stick on the sink or counter.

5)Crunch and play book:
One thing I have discovered is babies love things that crunch and make a bunch of noise. This particular crunch and play book, was one of Grant's favorites, early on. He loved to play with it. It is a great little toy to give while in the car or laying on the floor. Just a great toy to explore.

6) Boogie Wipes:
This is one of my ultimate favorites, and I use them ALL the time. Especially during the cold and flu season when there are a lot of runny noses. What is nice about boogy wipes, is it has saline in them, and it makes it not as harsh as a tissue to wipe the nose. Plus it makes it a lot easier for those nasty boogies to come out! Both of my kids fights less when I use boogie wipes. It isn't as rough on their nose, and more bearable. These things are great!

7) A safety bath ducky:
This duck is an indicator to tell you when your bath water is too hot and not safe to put your little one it. This may seem like common sense, to be able to tell how hot water gets. But the thing is, you don't realize how hot water gets. It may seem hot enough for you, but it may actually be too hot for the baby. What I love about this ducky, it is will turn white and say "Hot" if you have the water too hot for the baby. This is just a great way to double check, to make sure the temperature is safe for the baby.

8) Little Remedies Saline Solution and Nose Sucker:
This is a product I swear by. One thing you will discover when you have a baby, is that there really isn't much you can do if they have a cold. Your pediatrician will say, "Use saline drops and a Nose Sucker (well they would you a fancier name then nose sucker, that is my name for it.) Keep baby elevated and use a humidifier." This makes you feel completely frustrated and helpless that you really can't do much for your newborn/baby when they are all stuffed up and can't breath. This particular brand of drops, I love, because you can use it as a spray or as drops. Plus the nose sucker is great because the tube piece is clean and you can actually see if snot is coming out of it. And the tube fits better in small nostrils then the standard blue hospital aspirator. I love this stuff! This is another product I buy quite a bit of.

9) Forgot to label nine, I just realized! But nine is behind 8, and it is Butt Paste:
This stuff is some of the best diaper rash cream. This helps get rid of terrible diaper rash quickly. And the name of it makes me giggle. Love this stuff!

Last but not least all of these great items are in a cute bin. That is my # 10. I find bin/ storage crates as a wonderful way to store baby items. I use them to put diapers in, to but baby shoes in, and to put baby items that I need to keep out of reach from Grant and Holly. Bins are a great way to organize your life as a new mother. And plus  there are a lot of styles you can choose from. I am in love with this particular bin that I got at Target.

So this is my must have mom kit. I actually have more must haves! It is hard to limit it to just 10 items. My list could go on. Really what you will discover as a new mom, is you'll find what works for you. Some items will work great and others not so much. And every baby is different. Some things that worked with my first kid didn't work with my second. So I hope this basket is helpful to you Ashley as a new mom. :) Enjoy motherhood it is great!