5 of My Friends Are About to Be New Moms – Here Are the 10 Things They Actually Need

I cannot emphasize enough how genius it is to have a diaper subscription. You are running on fumes and don’t need to worry about one more thing, so why not have it sent to your house. The Healthy Baby makes shopping for diapers easy as you won’t have to worry about if you have enough diapers with a timely subscription. Plus, these are the only EWG Verified Diapers on the market.

If you plan on breastfeeding, the haakaa made everything much easier for me. It suction cups to the other breast to catch milk while the baby drinks from the opposite breast. Breastfeeding can make you feel like a barnyard animal and this certainly gets a good laugh when you see your poor nipple squished to oblivion but it does not hurt and it collects SO much milk for bottles, freezing, whatever your heart desires. If pumping is a challenge, this will be a happy alternative.

Breastfeeding was very difficult for me so I was so lucky to learn that the Baby Brezza exists. It is a Keurig for baby formula, filling up bottles with the right amount and temperature. You will surely hear this from every new parent but just simply pushing a button at 2am is the only thing I want to do at the hour, if I must. If your bedroom isn’t close to your kitchen, let me introduce you to the smaller, more portable Baby Brezza which is also perfect for vacations, car rides, and grandma’s house.

The joy of having a baby had an abrupt stop when, in the hospital, my husband and I realized we could not swaddle as well as the nurses and doctors and therefore would be destined for nights and early mornings full of misery. But someone much smarter than I invented easy to use swaddles. So, no longer would I be screaming profanities around my two-day old. A quick swaddle meant both of us were back in bed as fast as humanly possible.

The “best bottle” conversation is never ending and I do believe it is specific to each family and each baby. My first daughter drank from Comotomo with no problem! Second daughter refused and we had to go back to the drawing board. A lactation consultant recommended Even Flo and we are now huge fans. I had never heard of it before so I’m adding it to this list in case you too had never heard of it. According to this lactation consultant, she likes it because the nipple resembles, well, an accurate nipple. They are easy to clean and affordable. We bought slow, medium, and fast flows and changed it out when the baby was ready.

There are many elixirs that people swear by but when your six month old has a diaper rash that results in discomfort and tears, you can’t go wrong with good ‘ol Desitin. Will your fingers smell like diaper cream even after you’ve washed your hands multiple times? Sure. But it’s worth it.

Aquaphor is also, for us, a “fixes everything” lotion. Rashes, bumps, weird skin texture that occurs after they’ve rolled around in grass. My daughter's pediatrician gave me advice I’ve never forgotten so here it is: lather Aquaphor on the skin “as thick as icing” to help cure said issue. Bonus must-have if you hate using your fingers/hands for the nitty gritty, this applicator is perfect for a mess free time.

I slept with my very own sound machine before my daughters were a twinkle in my eye. When you have guests over, a noisy neighbor, or kids who share the same room, sound machines are imperative. For newborns the sound mimics the womb and helps them sleep better and we all know we’d throw money at anything that helps our babies sleep…

Look, I don’t love the price but if you wear it every day for a year then it makes sense. If you have more than one child, it more than pays for itself. Not only does the Artipoppe look good but it’s comfortable. Although, frankly, the only thing that was important to me is that I could put it on (and off) by myself whereas other carriers would require me to YouTube instructions every…single…time. So, yes in a world where we are paying lots of money for baby things, this has helped me tremendously day-to-day. I have seen some on Poshmark and similar sites to help lessen the financial blow.

I’m only being a little factitious but to be honest, I’m telling all my friends to get help whenever they can. Be it, through care.com or inviting your mother-in-law to stay with you for a couple days, it is imperative to not only have an extra set of hands but maybe a fresher mind who can of course, help around with kids and the house but who maybe also can tell you sleep deprivation, hormone imbalance, and feeling overwhelmed isn’t permanent. Have a friend, another mom, a neighbor, literally anyone you trust help you in whatever way that benefits you (and your partner) in the way you need it to.