My “Perfect” Baby Registry

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Man oh man. Or should I say baby oh baby! I swear as soon as I got pregnant the anxiety set in on trying to get all the right things for me and my new baby. There’s so much pressure (thanks internet) to get the newest & best products or you will fail and you’re the worst parent.

I joke but I’m only slightly kidding here. It’s very much a real feeling. You don’t want to make a mistake. Well, let me be the first to tell you, you will make a mistake and I promise it’ll be ok!

When it comes to baby stuff- we definitely made mistakes, and then made mistakes again (and again and again…) before we finally figured it out. My son went through 4 different types of swaddles until we found the ones that he actually liked! And of course, if there is a baby number 2 they probably will like a different one. Part of this is because nothing is one size fits all babies! Seriously. Just because your friend, your mom, your aunt or the entire internet seems to think that they have the miracle product, that doesn’t mean it’s necessarily going to work for you or your baby.

My example here is the Owlet baby monitor. Every corner of the internet and in store highlight this product as the best baby monitor. It’s the “safest on the market”. OMG! The marketing here! If you don’t buy this monitor you’re baby is not safe! Geeeeez. For me… it would be extremely anxiety producing! I knew that if I had the ability to check my baby’s pulse at all times, I wouldn’t sleep (which would’ve been verrrry bad). So I opted for a monitor that had the option for a breathing monitor (spoiler alert: I only used that once!). Bottom line, don’t always listen to the internet (she says as she writes an article on the internet on the items she recommends). But seriously, this list I’ve curated is solely my opinion and what worked for me and my baby.

So, when it came time to make our registry, we went with our gut and hoped for the best. There were things on our registry that we loved and things we hated and quickly replaced it with something else (or nothing at all). I’ve compiled a list of all the things that I would recommend to anyone looking to put together the perfect list. Or should I say, my perfect list.

Things I actually used (and loved!):

• Pack n Play– An absolute essential if you travel to visit family or stay Air BnBs (hotels often have them on hand). I highly recommend getting one that has the optional lifted base so you can use it more easily with newborns.
• Baby gates– Once your kiddo starts moving- all bets are off. We used these to section off rooms and of course for the stairs.
• Diaper bag– Here to tell you, you don’t need anything fancy or expensive. Just sturdy. You’ll be using this everywhere you go so you need it to hold up. I opted for a backpack style but that’s 100% personal preference.
• Changing station pad– Keep this in the back of your car stocked with diapers and wipes. Even if you have the diaper bag. You’ll inevitably forget your diaper bag and have a blow out on the same day. You’re welcome.
• Bassinet attachment for stroller– This is definitely a luxury purchase, not a need. But boy did it come in handy! This is the best for taking walks around the neighborhood with your newborn. You can plop the baby right in and get out of the house. I believe the Uppa Vista comes with it but don’t quote me on that!

• Stroller fan– If you live in a warm area this is clutch. There’s alot about stroller heat safety out there (read here!) and this fixes a lot of the problems. Pro tip: get two; one for you, one for babe.
• Hatch sound machine– Love love love this! Can be controlled via bluetooth or on the machine and there are a ton of differnet options for sound and light (ps like the true california boy he is, kiddo likes the wave sound).
• Travel sound machine– A must. In the car, in the store, on the airplane… you’ll use this everywhere if your kid likes the sound machine.
• Nanit baby monitor– We have absolutely loved the Nanit monitor. It has a bunch of awesome features including temperature & humidity monitors, movement updates and, for a little extra money, breathing monitoring (we did this for one or two nights and then stopped because it was anxiety producing).
  I do also want to mention that we use Waze cameras when we travel. They don’t have all the fancy insights but they allow you to keep an eye on your baby and that’s really all you need. If you’re not in a financial place for a fancy monitor, don’t worry mama. You’ll still be able to get exactly what you need out of something lower priced!
• Shopping cart/ high chair cover– We love to go out to eat and bring my son everywhere and this came in clutch for not only keeping my son germ-less (not going to say germ free lol) AND it helped for clean up in restaurants when food inevitably dropped.
• Halo bassinet– This bassinet is taller and swiveled. Nothing too fancy but did the job.
• Newborn bath, washcloths, & bath essentials kit– A must. The soft washcloths are necessary for that sweet baby skin.
• Dekor diaper pail– Don’t try others. I promise you this one is best. You use your foot to open it not your hands- because, duh, you’re holding a dirty diaper. It also has a double close mechanism so no stink it getting out.
• Keekaroo Peanut Changer– This is on my top 5 recommendations. It’s soft rubber that you can wipe down after a particularly messy diaper change. People will often have the soft fabric ones but just think about having to strip that down and wash the fabric all the time. Why give yourself more laundry?

• Doona travel carseat & stroller– If your family travels or your extended family is farther away this comes in clutch. This is a stroller/ carseat combo that makes flying and traveling extremely easy. Check out this video to see how awesome it is. Definitely a lux purchase but it made it so easy for us to visit my family by plane!
• Splat Mat– We LOVED these when my son started eating solids and then for going to restaurants. Kids will throw food on the floor. This makes for easy clean up and bonus you can pick food up off the mat in a restaurant and it’s still clean. Win. I’m also keeping these for when we start doing arts and crafts etc. Protect the floor from paint and glitter!
• Play arches– These are fantastic for babies to do tummy time. I don’t think you need a super expensive one, but I do recommend one with a mirror!

• Boon Patch drying rack– It’s a favorite for a reason. We loved this one for bottles, pump parts and anything else we hand washed.
• Play mat– This is just a soft squishy mat that we still use today. It just makes the floor a little softer and comfy for when kiddo inevitably falls on his face LOL.
• Zoo membership– A little unorthodox I know but hear me out. That first year can feel very lonely in motherhood. It’s hard to find reasons to leave the house. Having a zoo membership gave me something to do that was outdoors and gave me a little walk.

Things I would skip:

• Nanit monitor sleep sacks– As I mentioned before #anxiety.
• Clothes– Everyone is going to buy you these and they’re going to want to pick out what they find cute. No need to register. You’ll also find things that you want as you shop later in baby’s life. Let yourself find them and they grow!
• Lots of any one thing– specifically sleep sacks/ bottles/ pacifiers- As I said, you are not going to know what kind of sleep sacks, bottles, pacifiers etc. your baby will like until they’re here. Get a few different ones and keep the tags on until you know what your kiddo will like.
• Bottle warmer– Honestly, my kid was fine with cold milk. If he wasn’t maybe we would’ve used this more. I guess I was glad to have it but it just didn’t get a ton of use. (Also running the milk under some warm water does the same thing… 😬)
• Bottle sanitizer– I boiled everything when I first got them and then kept them clean and sanitized when needed. Boiling water works just as well as the sanitizer.
• Books– Same as clothes. You’ll get a ton 😉.

Things I’m 50/50 on:

• Baby earmuffs for hearing protection– If your kid will wear them and you go to loud places, kudos. My kiddo wouldn’t wear them at all, so, that sucked. What we did when we went to a Laker game was cover his ears when we could but took breaks outside in the stores etc. Not a doctor but I counted that good enough since we didn’t (and don’t) take him to loud places on a regular basis.
• Boba wrap– We used this for about 1 week but I had a newborn in the summer and it was SO HOT. I did keep it for round 2 and maybe it’ll be used more.

• Ergo baby– Same as above. My son didn’t love being in the carrier but I have heard that second baby gets worn a lot more so we’ve kept our around.
• Humidifier– I’m sure in different climates this is more used. We haven’t used it a ton so I don’t think it was needed.
• Mobiles– Looks cute in the room but as soon as kiddo was sleeping in his own crib we moved it. It now hangs from the ceiling in his room and is a cute decor piece but not exactly the function intended.
• Food steamer & processor– I was gifted this and quite honestly it was AWESOME. Would I buy it for myself? No. Did I love having it? Yep. P.s. If you decide to make your own baby food (which I did and highly recommend because it’s literally so easy and cheap) you gotta get these so you can batch make it!

Things I didn’t buy that I would next time:

• Uppa stroller– I originally registered for this stroller (after a lot of testing and guilt about liking the most expensive stroller) but then I got a stroller generously passed down to me by a friend and… I don’t know if I love it. It’s the city select jogger so it’s very similar and it’s doing its job but there are definitely things I don’t love. If we do have a second child we’re going to talk about getting an Uppa and regifting/ donating the one we have to a new mama in need.
• Dockatot or similar- This is bonkers expensive. Like why… but I can see the merit. I wish that I had one of these in the beginning to place him down on the couch or table in a soft, safe space. This is something that I might look for second hand or borrow one from a friend. Once again, it’s a big dollar sign to swallow for something you’ll only use for a few weeks.

Other recommendations:

• Do your research. You’ll notice I don’t recommend a car seat. That’s not because I didn’t love mine (Chicco Keyfit 35), it’s because the saftey requirements and size of your car matter. Check out this website for great recommendations.
• Don’t buy a ton of any one item. Try one bottle or pacifier or swaddle type and see if the baby likes it before buying a few of them. If you get these items as a gift, don’t take the tags off until you’re sure! I promise you, you really don’t know what your baby will like until you experiment! We bought the bottle sampler from Babylist and I couldn’t recommend that enough. We went through 3 of those until we found the one we need. They also have a pacifier, swaddle, sippy cup, and diaper & wipe version of these try- it boxes!
• Don’t take off tags until you’re sure! Sort of goes with what I said above, but, there will likely be things you buy that you think you’ll use and… well you might not. If you got the item as a gift, double check Target and Buy Buy Baby to see if you can return there without a receipt (99% of the time you can for a gift card that you will use!).
• Don’t be afraid to get used items. I also want to very much recommend hand me downs, secondhand items and going to consignment stores! There’s SOOOOOOOOO much baby crap out there that there’s items that are almost brand new. I just recently went to the Rhea Lana consignment sale and I wish I had done that as a brand new mom. Now, I get that some stuff you want new (for us it was the crib & carseat, nonnegotiable) but I just want to press that you shouldn’t be afraid to go secondhand.

Last thoughts…

Listen Mama. The internet, mom groups, your friends and family… everyone means well but let me tell you, it’s overwhelming. Like a lot. Take a deep breath and go with your gut. You have to know that no matter what items you purchase, your baby needs love more than any product. You got this Mama!