Hellobee Boards

I'd say borrow any of the bigger stuff if possible (swing, bouncer, rock n play) to see if it works for you before investing in it. What works for which baby seems incredibly dependent on your baby! I'll say for me, these were my biggest essentials:

- Pack n play with bassinet and changing table attachment. LO sleeps in this every night and for every nap, still, at 12 weeks. I liked the idea of her sleeping in this better than the RnP because it is more crib-like so she shouldn't have so many transitional issues. And also because the RnP doesn't seem as safe to me (although I know tons of people here use and love it-- it just makes me nervous personally).

- Activity mat. LO lays under it and stares and coos at the hanging thingies every single day, multiple times per day. She loves it.

- Swaddle sacks and a&a swaddle blankets. We use both. Love them, totally essential.

- Baby bathtub. I hate ours and it annoys me every day (I have both a mesh bath seat and also a nemo tub). I wish I'd gotten a puj tub.

- changing pad liner. I thought these were kind of dumb when someone suggested them, but they're like $12 for 3 so I got them anyways. LIFESAVER. My LO thinks it is hilarious to wait for diaper change time to pee. So rather than having to take the changing pad cover off the changing pad every time she does this, we can just toss the liner in the wash and grab another. I also use this if I'm going to change her somewhere other than the changing table, like on the be or couch.

- tomee tippee bottles. My little hates the medela ones that come in the breastfeeding kit.

- video monitor. We have the samsung one. Love it.

Thats all I can think of now, but i'll update if I think of more

I found it really helpful to write down a list of everything you think you might need, and then cross out what doesn't apply. Babies R Us gives a written list to you with everything in creation on it! I also think now after the fact that I would have registered for stuff to use further down the road. When they are newborns, they don't' require a whole lot.

Essentials for us personally:
- Swing
- Pack n play
- The changing pad liners. Like@Mae: said, those things are amazing! If our LO has a blowout, I just slip it under him and let the mess get on there.
- A sling. We found out quickly that our little guy didn't like the carriers where his legs were spread out when we sat down. The sling was so easy to get up and down with him asleep.
- Bottle warmer
- NoseFrida and saline drops. Absolutely disgusting looking process, but a lifesaver. I credit it for no ear infections yet!
- A baby bath sling. We registered for one that folded up small because we knew he wouldn't be in it long and didn't want a bulky one to store.
- Aquaphor. Amazing stuff for any rash on baby.
- A hanging toy that attaches to the carseat. It has provided countless entertainment for the past few months. It's been fun to watch him go from batting it to being able to grab stuff to chew on
- A small folding umbrella stroller for travel
- A humidifier! Our house has poor insulation and it is essential for the baby. Just use distilled water to prevent any mold.
- Sleep sacks (cotton and fleece) and a few different swaddles.
- A breathable toy. I was paranoid about giving LO anything in his crib, but a friend got us a small breathable mesh monkey, and he's slept with it since day 1 and I didn't have to worry.
- Mesh bumpers. We didn't find bumpers necessary until 4 months old and then had to run out and buy these in a hurry because he kept rolling and sticking his leg through the crib. The mesh ones are great and no worries about suffocation.
- We used a microwave steamer. It was easy to store & keep clean, and we kept it on top of the microwave
- A non-slip bath mat to put under baby as he gets older and can sit up

Things we found unnecessary: A baby bath seat; the Bumpo

You are going to get so many different answers! Here is what I would say:

SLEEP:

- crib sheets (you don't really need bumpers or other bedding)
- Swaddle blankets (IMO you can't have too many of these. I use them for EVERYTHING).
- Swaddlers/Sleep sacks (to keep baby warm at night)
- Humidifier
- Crib and/or pack-n-play

BATH:

- Towels (we got one regular towel and one hooded one)
- Wash cloths (the baby ones are softer than most regular wash cloths)
- Baby wash/shampoo
- Bath pillow (less restrictive than the little bathtub things and can be used for a long time)

DIAPERING:

- Diapers (disposable or cloth)
- Diaper cream
- Changing pad (convert any surface to a changing table)
- Changing pad covers

TRANSPORTATION:

- Car seat (do your research. Definitely go new, never used.)
- Stroller
- Wrap/Carrier (I love the baby K'tan wrap)
- Car mirror (so you can keep an eye on baby while driving)
- Diaper bag

FEEDING: (A lot of these are contingent on breastfeeding)

- Breast pump (if you are in the US check with your insurance. It should be covered)
- Extra set of flanges (for breast pump)
- Extra power adaptor (we keep one upstairs and one downstairs)
- Bottles
- Breast milk storage bags/bottles (we use both. Bottles for milk we are going to use soon, and bags to freeze milk for later)
- Breastfeeding pillow (if you can, try it out before registering/buying. If I had to do it over again I'd have gone with a different one than I got)
- A comfortable chair (you are going to be spending a LOT of time in that chair... keep that in mind when you are testing them out!)
- Bottle brush
- Bottle drying rack (we use the grass one and LOVE it)
- Breast pads (maybe don't register for these, but they are so good to have on hand)
- Nipple cream (I prefer the MotherLove brand)

OTHER GEAR:

- A bouncy chair that also vibrates. Invaluable.
- Baby swing (preferably one that plugs in so you aren't constantly going through batteries)
- A couple of different types of pacifiers (LO prefers soothies... especially the wubanub ones because she can hold them in place more easily)
- Baby monitor (I love our video monitor because I can see if she is awake or just making noises in her sleep)

OTHER NOTES:

- Talk to anyone you know who might have gear they'd be willing to part with. You can easily spend $$$ on things like bouncers and bumbos and swings and you won't know until your LO arrives what they are actually going to like!

- Do NOT put clothes on your registry. People like to pick out clothes and you'll get them regardless of whether you register for them. If you want to buy clothes on your own (because FUN!) I recommend going to a second hand shop. Most of the clothes are in great condition since babies grow out of them so fast, and you can walk out with an arm-load of stuff for the same cost as a single new outfit.

- I personally found that a nursing cover was a waste of money. hard to use and LO kicks it off all the time. I am learning how to discreetly breastfeed in public.

- I registered for (and received) the nosefrida snot-sucker. Wanted to love it, but it does not work well at all for me. We end up using the bulb one from the hospital instead. Maybe the nosefrida will work better when she gets older?

- We boiled everything to sterilize the first time. After which we just put things through the dishwasher. The research I have done says regular sterilization just isn't necessary. You can buy bags that you can use to sterilize bottles and things in, which I would do over any kind of specialty device.

The two things that both my boys have loved and kept them happy where I could leave them alone for a while were
1. Activity mat with the piano on the end - absolutely loved kicking that thing
2. Vibrating seat that rocks- I put them in it while I shower, get ready for work, etc.

I love the nose frida too.

@oliviaoblivia: I just looked at Lucie's List. OMG. That is the best web site ever. I just spent about 2 hours looking through her registry essentials list. Amazing! Thanks for recommending!

For your question on a bottle drying rack, get the Boon lawn drying rack! It holds everything and looks cute. I would skip the bottle warmer - you can just put it in a bowl of warm water, or your baby might not care about the temperature of the bottle.

For your question on swing vs bouncer vs rock and play vs pack and play: We had all of those. That's probably overkill but I can tell you we used them all!!
-The Rock n Play was a workhorse. She slept in it for her first 4 months of life and we used to bring it into the kitchen for her to hang out while we ate. Love that thing!
-The bouncy seat is pretty inexpensive and is also super useful to have somewhere to put your LO those first few months. We had it as the centerpiece on our living room table for months.
-Now that she's mobile, we use the Pack n Play as a place for her to hang out in the morning while I get ready. It's also our travel crib.
-We had the snugabunny swing which is the one of all of those that we could have done without, although we did use it. But I know some babies love swinging!

our must-haves for A are:

rock and play (she sleeps in this in our room)
momaroo swing
activity mat
boon bottle drying rack
bottle warmer
advent naturals bottles
wubbanubs! (A really really loves these)
side snap shirts for night time!
A+A swaddle blankets (good as swaddles and to cover stroller)
A+A burpy bibs (big and good as bib and burp cloth)
Motorola video monitor
Medela symphony pump and pumping bra (I EP so this is a must-have)
Honest Company nipple cream
boon baby tub (A is a preemie and this works great with how tiny she is)

we don't have a pack and play since our apt isn't so big but eventually will prob get the 4moms Breeze.

I got the checklist from Babies R Us, and based on my HelloBee research only registered for the things I thought we really needed.