9 Must Have Things to Put on Your Registry | Strouse House Baby & Strouse House Rambles

*DISCLAIMER*

These are just tips that helped me personally - either ones I read while I spent hours googling, ones people shared with me or ones I came up with myself. I am by NO MEANS an expert or even know what I am doing. I just wanted to compile a list so that (A) I could refer back to it should we have another baby and (B) maybe it would be helpful for someone else!

Also, some of these tips I figured out on my own and some of these I learned from other people, blogs and conversations. I tried to thank the people that gave us this advice!

These are plenty of things that you should have on your registry. These are the things we didn’t have on our registry and wish we had! We ended up having to get them all after Stella arrived and people recommended them to us.

Nursing Pads

This may only be a problem for me, but leaky ta-tas aren’t fun. Nursing Pads help prevent that. I tried to just cut up period pads and use them, but they were way uncomfortable.

Lanolin & Nursing Butter

The first three weeks of breastfeeding were brutal for me! While Stella was a champ, the sensitivity and soreness I endured was rough. There were many days filled with tears every time she needed to eat! I had originally bought nipple butter which was OK, but was much better later on after I got used to breastfeeding. Lanolin was a lifesaver until then.

Desitin

Brad and I were clueless about diaper rash. We noticed the first week we got home, Stella’s bum was a little chapped so we went and got some Destin. That stuff cleared it right up!

Sheet Savers

Lifesavers is what they should be called. We used these as a changing pad in our bedroom so in the middle of the night, we didn’t have to go all the way to HER NURSERY to change her diaper. We also used them on TOP of her changing pad cover so we didn’t ruin it. We also had some under her sheet in her bassinet in case she had a big blow out and there is one on her crib mattress under the sheet for whenever she starts sleeping in there. I’ve also used on to put under her when we nurse lying on our side because milk goes everywhere!

Plain Burp Clothes (10+) AKA Cloth Diapers

My good friend Ashleigh gave me this advice. There are super cute burp clothes you can register for, but between spit up, diaper blow outs and an assortment of other things that you may need to wipe up, the plain burp cloths were so helpful and I didn’t care what ended up on them. I end up going through 1-2 a day and having a huge stack of them ready to go was so helpful.

The Swaddleme Pod

This thing is a version of the Swaddleme blankets. It’s literally a little pod you put your baby in. The reason I liked this was because the first few weeks, Stella was a bit too small for the Swaddleme blankets and the Halo Sleep Sack. I was worried those would ride up and the fabric would cover her face when she was sleeping. This pod was snug and didn’t have extra fabric. It is awesome!

Bottle Warmer

I thought this was an extravagant thing that we didn’t really need. Boy, were we wrong. Waiting for the sink water to heat up and then running it to fill a bowl to then put a bottle in the water to heat up...yea, it was way too much work. Especially when Stella was SCREAMING. We picked one up on our first outing out of the house and it’s been so worth it! We didn’t use it for the first few weeks because we exclusively breastfed. Now that I am running errands on my own and Brad stays with Stella, it’s been so helpful!

Wipe Warmer

This was another extravagant item we thought was unnecessary. Again, we were wrong. Stella freaks out if she gets cold, even just a little bit. Our wipe warmer (which we picked up for $5 at a consignment sale) has been such a big help!

Rock N Play

I didn’t know the difference between this and a bouncer seat. The answer is it’s more reclined and babies love it! Stella is still too tiny for her bouncer seat, but she sits in her Rock N Play (that we got off a Facebook Yardsale group for $15) contently for a while! It’s been a big help so I don’t have to hold her!

Pacifier Wipes

Someone gave us these and I thought we would never use them. WRONG. I use them everyday since DEXTER likes to steal Stella's pacifiers! Also, they came in handy when we were on a road trip recently and I had to pump in the car! I used them to clean my pump parts until I could wash them!

*BONUS*

Definitely not a must have, but I love love LOVED having:

• my own hospital gown! I got a ton of compliments and felt a little less “hospital-esque.”

• My own non-skid socks! So much cuter than the ones they give you.

What other items do you recommend putting on your registry?