Newborn Recommendations

It's hard to believe that my little man is already 3 weeks old! Soon he will no longer be considered a newborn. Sad day for this mommy's heart! I've been asked several times about what products I would recommend for newborns, and here they are:

Aden and Anais Swaddle Blankets. These are a must have for all newborns. As a pediatric nurse, I consider myself a professional "swaddler". Oden sleeps so much better when he's swaddled and these blankets make it so easy to do. O also does better when his daddy swaddles him. Somehow, Nate always gets it just "right". You can get these blankets at Target or Gap. Love the Gap prints!







Soothies/Wubba Nubba. We tried every pacifier we could find before I decided to revert back to my pediatric roots and try a Soothie. These are the paci's we use in the hospital, and I have never had a baby turn one down. Of course, Oden loved it! So we invested in some Soothies and then I found the Wubba Nubba on Amazon. It's great for helping to keep the paci in. Love it!

California Baby Products. I love, love, love these products! They are all natural and smell so wonderful. My favorite products are the calming lavender/tea tree oil body wash and the calming diaper spray. I also have the sunscreen and bug spray, but we haven't used them yet. You can find these gems at Target!

Baby Swing. This has been a life saver for us. Baby O loves to be in his swing! We swaddle him up, strap him in and let him sleep away. Definitely would recommend it for a newborn. Baby swings can be expensive, check on Craigslist and consignment sales like Rhea Lana. That's where we got ours.

Boppy & My Breastfriend pillow. I love these pillows! They are great for propping your baby up and for feeding time. The boppy tends to "wander" away when feeding, so I prefer the breastfriend pillow during feeding time. It straps to you and has great back support!

Sound machine. We have this sound machine from Target by Homemedics. It is wonderful for putting your baby to sleep! It plays several sounds including rain, heartbeat, ocean and lullabies. You can place the sounds on a timer or let them run continuously. There is also a projection system with several different discs to put stuff on the wall! That's probably my favorite part, although little man can't see that far yet :)

Itzbeen timer. I managed to stumble on one of these at RheaLana and I immediately scooped it up for us. It is perfect for sleep deprived parents to keep track of all the important things your baby is doing! The timer has 4 separate timers, and can count time between events or you can set it to go off at certain times. It is backlit for nighttime feedings and has an optional flashlight at the top. It also has a Left/Right switch at the bottom for breast feeding moms. Extremely helpful when you can't remember which side to start on! You can get these at Babies R Us or download a similar app on your iphone/ipad.

Milk Band. Again, these bands are great for breast feeding moms. You can keep track of how long your baby is feeding and which side to start on. They look like the rubber bands that you wear for a "cause" and come in all kinds of awesome colors. They can be purchased at milkbands.com








The two books I would recommend for a newborn are :

Happiest Baby on the Block. Now, I haven't read this book all the way through. But I would swear by his soothing techniques! If nothing else, look up the 5 S's for soothing a crying baby. They work every. single. time.

BabyWise. There's a lot of controversy about placing your newborn on scheduled feedings, I know. However, this book was recommended to me by several moms and I am already in love with it. I have read, reread and reread this book so many times. I have pages and pages of notes and handouts from it. Baby O is on a consistent 3 hour schedule and sleeps beautifully (most of the time). He also is starting to transition himself off of nighttime feedings. If you want to help schedule your baby's feed/wake/sleep cycle, this is the book I would recommend to do it!