It’s been over 2 months with Cooper and we finally feel like we have our bearings when it comes to newborn life! We’ve been doing it long enough to know the products we can’t live without and what’s just a “nice to have” in our opinion.

The purpose of this post is to share the essentials that we feel like are crucial to those first few months of life with a newborn. I hope it helps mama’s-to-be figure out what to buy and have ready because I searched high and low for a post like this and just couldn’t find it all in one place.

Obviously every babe is different and yours might not like certain things or you feel like you need other things for your needs, but overall these things have been so helpful to us!

Newborn Essentials We Love

Nursing Essentials

Boppy: This is a nursing pillow and I couldn’t nurse without it! Those first few weeks you are both figuring out the whole nursing thing and having a pillow to support baby is so important.

Boppy Cover: We wanted something kind of neutral for the cover because we knew it would be out in our living space a lot. It was actually really hard to find one we liked because we were particular but we finally found this fleece “LOVE” cover we love from Pottery Barn Kids. It’s not a bad idea to get two covers so you have a backup while you’re washing it. Here’s another cute neutral one.

Haakaa: If you want to build a freezer stock of milk this is my favorite way to do it! I’m not a huge fan of pumpking so this is awesome. It suctions to one side while you nurse on the other so when you have a let down it catches the milk. I usually get like an ounce our so every time I nurse. If I do it every time I’d have like 10 extra ounces a day to freeze! It also helps with your milk supply because its all about supply and demand. The more milk comes out the more your body will make!

Drying Rack: You have to constantly wash the haakaa, bottles and pump parts if you’re using them so having a drying rack is helpful to keep things clean and organized.

Hand Pump: I love having this hand pump because you can use it wherever without need electricity. So if you’re on a long car ride you could pump right there then give your babe the bottle right away! I also use this in bed in the mornings if Cooper only feeds on one side and my other side is really full.

Bottles: There are so many out there it can be overwhelming but the bottles we use are the madela ones that came with our pump and Dr. Browns. We mostly use the madela ones to store pumped milk and the Dr. Brown’s to feed her. We also have Avent ones but haven’t tried them. It’s not a bad idea to have two kinds to see which your baby likes best!

Playtime Essentials

Tummy Time Toy: Our pediatrician recommended we start tummy time right away once her umbilical cord fell out so we love this cute toy that she can look at while she’s doing it. It will be useful for months!

Activity Center: We love this activity center because it has the piano and music. Even though it’s super bright and may not go with your decor, it’s super bright which catches a baby’s attention. She likes to stare at the lights and rainbow colors.

Bathtime Essentials

Tubby Todd Hair & Body Wash: We really love this all natural brand of soaps for babies. We use this soap every time we give Cooper a bath. They also have a really great bundle that includes the soap, lotion and and ointment.

Bath Tub: We plan on using the sink once she’s big enough and can sit up but until then we’re loving this newborn bath tub. It tells you the temperature of the water and it’s even a scale. We love to put Coop in it before her bath to see how much weight she is gaining.

Burts Bee’s Washcloths: We just love all things Burts Bees and these simple white washcloths are what we use to wash her body and hair.

Sleep Essentials

Dock-A-Tot: You have to get this, I promise you! If you’re hanging out in the living room you can set it on your coffee table or couch or you can put it on your counter or even on the floor while you shower. Your babe will love it and we use it every single day.

4Moms Bassinet: We put this big pac n play next to our bed and love it because it’s a bassinet and a changing station. When we change her in the middle of the night we just have to place her in the changing station. We keep a basket of diapers and wipes on the night stand too.

White Noise Machine: The white noise mimics the rushing of blood inside the womb and is super soothing to babies. We have this on all night while we’re sleeping.

Portable Noise Machine: Just like at night, we like to keep white noise on pretty much anytime she sleeps. So when she’s napping we keep this portable one with us that we can take wherever, even in her carseat.

Momaroo: So sometimes she likes this and sometimes she doesn’t. She enjoys it for a bit and gets kinda fussy but we’re thinking she will like it eventually. It plays white noise and moves around. Make sure to get the infant insert and know there’s a setting to lean back the momaroo to better hold a newborn.

Halo Swaddles: We have the cotton swaddle and the fleece swaddle. We use both depending on what she’s wearing to bed! If she has a fleece sleeper on we use the cotton one and if she has a cotton sleeper we use the fleece one:) That way she doesn’t get too hot or cold. We love the fleece one in the winter! They have zips and velcro and make it super easy to swaddle in the middle of the night.

Love to Dream Swaddle: As Cooper gets older she wants her arms out more and we found she sleeps better with this swaddle! She loves it.

Cute swaddles: We use these during the day for her naps. We’re hoping as she gets older it helps her differentiate daytime sleep vs nighttime sleep. So she knows to sleep longer when she’s in the halo! Here are a few of my favorite swaddles:

Pacifiers: We really like the BIBS pacifiers and Cooper likes them too!

Clothing Essentials:

Onesies: We put these on under Cooper’s clothes to add an extra layer, especially in the winter. She pretty much lived in onesies the first few weeks!

Headbands: I love this brand of headbands from Amazon. They’re super affordable, comfy, great colors and fit so many sizes!

Clothes: A few of my favorite places to buy Cooper’s clothes are Amazon, Spearmint, H&M, Kate Quinn, Childhoods, Cozys, Carters and Old Navy.

Health Essentials:

Humidifier: We use this at night sometimes and when she seems congested. You can put lavender essential oils in there to help promote peaceful rest too!

Nose Frida: This one is a little odd but you basically suck the snot/boogers out of their nose. Babies can’t blow their noses so this does the trick when they start to seem congested.

Frida Windi: We’ve used this several times to help Cooper with gas. It makes a lot of parent’s nervous so please read reviews and make the best decision for you, but we love it.

Travel Essentials:

Baby Wrap: I love this to use while we’re out and about but don’t want to keep Cooper in her stroller. It’s especially great when they’re young and you’re in public but you don’t want anyone to touch them:)

Diaper Bag: We love this diaper bag because it’s cute, neutral and easy to carry. It has pockets for everything and it’s affordable.

Stroller and Carseat: Definitely recommend getting a travel system that includes the carseat, the base and the stroller rather than each separately. It saves money! We love the look of this stroller and it’s lightweight. It’s kind of middle of the pack in terms of price.

Milk Snob Cover: You can use this to cover the carseat, cover yourself while nursing and so much more. Definitely get one!

Double Bottle Bag: It’s insulated and holds two large bottles so it’s great for traveling with milk. It has a clip so you can just clip it to your stroller or diaper bag.