Baby recommendations: 1-3 Months

So, I never thought I'd be the type of person to write a post like this, but then I discovered how much I actually really liked and appreciated recommendation posts when I was pregnant and figured I'd throw in my two cents. You don't even have to be pregnant to like posts like these - all of these would make great baby shower gifts as well!

I know there is a crap ton of gear and recommendations out there, and a lot you really don't actually NEED (though some things are nice to have) - but these truly are some of my favorite things from the first three months of having a baby. I hope it helps if you're either having a baby or trying to buy for someone having one!

Oh - and, as always, none of these links are sponsored because mama don't play like that.

Feeding

+ Boon Grass drying rack. I didn't originally intend to mostly bottle feed Imogen, but out of necessity, it happened. At first, I just had a towel laid out on the kitchen counter to air dry bottles, but it was an eye sore and didn't work that well. Enter the Boon drying rack. I know it's kind of quirky looking, but I like it, and it works well. It's dishwasher safe so I run it through every few days, and it holds a lot more than you'd think based on its size. Even if you aren't bottle feeding and just have pump parts, or other baby items you need to air dry occasionally, it's a nice item to have.

+ Dr. Browns Options bottles. Along the same bottle train, these are the bottles we have been using and I really like them. They're a little more of a pain to clean because of all the parts, but Imogen was an extremely gassy baby and these are the only bottles we tried (and we tried several) that seemed to really actually help her gas issues. It's possible she just happened to start growing out of that phase when we finally bought these, but we're still using them and I still really like them.

Bedtime

+ Little Unicorn muslin crib sheets. I know, I know everyone raves about Little Unicorn products and they're basically the new Aden and Anais, but it's for a good reason. Their stuff is bomb, that's why. Aside from their muslin swaddle blankets and their diaper bags, I absolutely love their crib sheets. We have this hedgehog one and it's probably my favorite crib sheet we own. It's soft, it washes really well, it fits the crib mattress perfectly, it doesn't cost fifty dollars, and it's darn cute. I want ten more of them.

+ Hatch Baby Rest sound machine/night light. I won't go into excruciatingly long detail about all the features this sound machine/night light has, but we love it. You can connect it to your phone via Bluetooth, you can program favorite light color/sound/volume combos, and the metal ring on top is the on/off "switch" (there are buttons on the bottom, too) so in the middle of the night when you're feeding your infant for the 15th time all you have to do is tap the top to turn it on instead of fumble with finding the on/off switch. It's not fugly like so many other sound machines are, and it even has an "OK to wake" feature for older kids. You can buy patterned covers for it, too, but I like it just plain white.

Bathtime

+ Puj Flyte baby bathtub. There are a TON of options for baby bathtubs out there, but I really wanted one that would fit in our kitchen sink to make bath time really easy. This Puj bathtub has been perfect - it's great quality, rinses clean and folds flat so we can keep it in a closet when we aren't using it. Imogen is in the 90th percentile for height (not sure where she got that) and at 4 months, she is just now starting to look pretty cramped in there. We'll probably be able to use it for another month or two, and then we'll have to graduate to something that fits in the actual bathtub.

+ Shower caddy tote. When I started accumulating baby bath items, I wasn't sure where I was going to store them all. We have really tiny bathrooms and very few closets and I needed something I could cart back and forth to the kitchen from Imogen's bedroom. This shower caddy has been the perfect size to hold her baby shampoo, lotion, hairbrush, Nose Frida, nail clippers, a few washcloths...basically everything needed for baby spa time.

+ Bamboo baby washcloths. Don't get me wrong, you do NOT need to buy special washcloths for bathing your baby. Regular washcloths work just fine. But these are some of the softest washcloths I've ever felt, and for sensitive baby skin, they're wonderful. They wash well and stay just as soft, and they aren't expensive.

+ Tom's of Maine baby lotion. There are tons of baby lotions out there you can choose from, but this has been my favorite by far. You can get fragrance free if you desire, but I really love the lightly scented one. It isn't terribly greasy, it hasn't caused any kind of a reaction on her skin, and it's extremely moisturizing. After I put it on Imogen, I rub the rest into my hands and elbows.

Diapering

+ Earth Mama Angel Baby Bottom Balm. Every baby needs a good diaper cream, right? I really like this one. It's cloth diaper safe if you're going that route, it has a really nice herbal smell, and it's all natural. We've not only used it on Imogen's booty, but on her cheeks when she gets a little bit of a breakout, on the inner creases of her elbows when they get a little bit red (from sweat? I have no idea) and underneath her chin/between her neck rolls when she got a tiny bit of a rash in there. It clears all of the above up within a day or two.

+ Munchkin waterproof changing pad liners. I know some people scoff at using a changing pad and sheet for diapering, but I really like using both. Our changing pad sits on top of the dresser, and I honestly like keeping it covered with a sheet just so it's not so ugly to look at. These waterproof changing pad liners make it so I rarely have to change the actual sheet. I will let you know that they need to be washed in COLD water and air dried, otherwise the plastic backing WILL melt. I found that out the hard way, but thankfully they're cheap to replace.

+ Be Bundles snap flip lids. Our favorite wipes are Water Wipes. Unfortunately, the packages don't come with an actual lid, they come with one of those sticky sheet things that after a few times opening and closing the wipes package, lose their stickiness and you end up with dried out wipes. These plastic flip lids have been awesome for getting rid of that problem. They're not too hard to "install" and they seal nice and tight so your wipes don't dry out. I don't know if other brands of wipes have the same type of sticky sheet instead of a lid, but for those that do, I highly recommend getting some of these snap lids.

Things to Wear

+ Zutano fleece booties. These aren't the cheapest baby "shoes" on the market, but I would recommend them a thousand times over if you live somewhere cold. Here in Alaska, I really needed something I could put on Imogen's feet that she couldn't kick off, and so far these are the only things that actually stay on. We have the gray with the pink lining and Isaiah calls them her "elephant shoes." Word to the wise - the sizing is a little different. "3 months" means 0-3 months, not 3-6 months. Imogen is 4 months and I'm going to have to size up very shortly because I bought her the 3 month size a month ago thinking that meant 3-6 months and they'd fit at least until Christmas. Nope.

+ Carter's folded cuff socks. I have a crap ton of socks for Imogen. These are by far my favorite, because they're some of the only ones that (again) she can't kick off. I can un-cuff them and pull them up almost all the way to her knees, which helps them stay on. And, they're stretchy enough that they will likely still fit her when she starts learning to walk, and the little grippy things on the bottom will be nice in a house that is 95% laminate wood flooring.

Playtime

+ IKEA Leka cat rattles. These rattles were perfect when Imogen was first starting to show interest in toys but wasn't very coordinated and had a hard time actually grabbing them. They're small and soft and easy for an infant to grip, and she also loved sticking the tail/feet in her mouth to chew on them. The rattle isn't loud, either (bonus).

+ Skip Hop Activity Mirror. Imogen hated tummy time for the first few months. Like, literally HATED it. She would do well for about thirty seconds and then she would just smash her face into the ground and cry. We tried everything - laying on the ground in front of her, putting small toys in front of her to distract her, propping her up on a pillow or rolled up blanket...nothing worked. Finally, out of sheer desperation (and paranoia that my baby would be the only one in kindergarten unable to hold her head up) I ordered this mirror, knowing that she loved looking at herself in the bathroom mirror, and it worked. She still didn't last a very long time, but being able to look at herself was enough of a distraction to at least get several minutes of tummy time out of her instead of several seconds. Of course, the mirror is an unbreakable one so it's not super clear and everything looks really distorted, but it's not like she was trying to do her makeup in it.

Other Gear

+ Fisher Price Rock and Play. If there's one thing you splurge on, I would highly recommend this. I had more than one person tell me I needed one when I was pregnant, and did I ever. Imogen loved the cradle-like feeling vs. laying flat on her back, and she even slept in it next to our bed for the first three months of her life. I still use it, too - she lays in it and plays with toys in the doorway of the bathroom every day while I shower. We didn't spring for the auto-rocking version, but if you don't mind the cost, there's that option as well.