When I was raising my girls there were several items I just had to have. Whether they were a necessity or a luxury, I became accustomed to using these items and I couldn’t live without them! Today, I’m sharing my baby product must haves, as well as rules to live by to keep your babies safe.
When it comes to safety there are several obvious things; corner guards, outlet covers, gates, and knob locks.
But one thing that many first time parents over look is a bath tub spout cover. These are rubberized covers to go over the spout on the bathtub to protect your baby. This way if they bump their head you won’t have to worry about them injuring themselves.
Another safety item is a Pack ‘n Play. It is essentially a portable crib. This way when the kids spend the night at Grandma’s they have a safe place to sleep. Often times people end up letting infants sleep in the same bed as them when they’re away due to lack of resources. However this is extremely dangerous and can lead to serious injury or even death. Rest easy while you’re away knowing that your child is safely tucked in the Pack ‘n Play.
There were also several things I couldn’t live without when it came to feeding.
One of the most important feeding items was a really good electric breast pump. My youngest daughter could only be breastfed for the first few years of her life. So this was a necessity. Back in the 90s I rented mine for $25 a month. I actually had two, one that I kept at home and one that I kept at the office. That way I didn’t have to worry about bringing it with me. These days, most insurance companies will supply you with a breast pump due to the Affordable Care Act.
Another important feeding item was a nursing or feeding pillow. These are essential to help prevent back pain when nursing. You’re able to prop the baby up on the pillow so they sit at breast height, therefore you don’t need to lean forward. Using a feeding pillow can also help prevent your arms from falling asleep which is common with breastfeeding.
There were also some other luxury items I just couldn’t live without.
In order to get back to my healthy lifestyle, it was important that I had a jogging stroller. I go for a lot of runs and I needed a stroller that was sturdy enough for that. Having something I could use to take the girls with me when I went running was essential to getting back in to shape!
Next for me – an electric swing. Do yourself a favor and splurge on the electric one. A crank one you need to turn, and if you get side tracked and forget to crank it baby is going to wake up. They quickly rock your infant to sleep while you’re doing the dishes or folding laundry.
One of my must-have tips for baby safety is attention, attention, attention! Have your eye on your child at all times. You could turn your back for two seconds and they may already be in mischief. Be mindful of hot things, such as coffee sitting on the edge of the table or any kind of hot water.
Now don’t get me wrong, a lot has changed since I had my girls in the 90’s. But one thing I know for sure is these items are essential to the safety of your baby, as well as for your sanity. I hope you’ve found this helpful when trying to figure out what to add to your registry!
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