Things We're Loving

Over the months, one of my favorite things to read was blogs by new mothers (or experienced moms) about the gear that they found to be most useful and the stuff that was best left on the shelves of Babies R Us. I figure it's my turn to contribute to the collective knowledge. We are only 5ish weeks into this thing called parenthood but I'll tell you what I've learned so far.

The Boppy and my favorite cover

We use this thing all the freaking time! From feeding, to cuddling, to propping little bit up to sleep or look around we use this multiple times per day and it's the only thing that has kept our arms from falling off. And I love, love, love the Pottery Barn Kids cover. It's super soft and feels so good!

Dr. Brown's Bottles

We tried Avent bottles first and found them to be a challenge to use without getting a lot of air. We've found these to be easier to use even though they have a couple of extra pieces to wash. I will say that bottles are really an individual baby thing though. Just because Lily liked  these doesn't necessarily mean that all babies will prefer them. So although I wish we'd had a bottle of two on hand when Lily came home from the hospital, I'm glad we didn't stock up on a bunch and then end up not liking them.

Bekaboo Wrap

I don't know what I'd do without this! We chose to get a convertible carseat instead of on infant seat so this is the way I carry Little Bit around. She loves it and pretty much falls right to sleep as soon as I put her in it. We've made multiple trips out with it and I can even eat with her in it.


My Vera Bradley diaper bag

This was my birthday present from September and I'm so glad I got it even though it was a splurge. You definitely don't need an expensive diaper bag but I've really enjoyed carrying this one. It's pretty but it's also very light weight so it's not too heavy even when full. A light weight bag is a huge deal as I've learned.

Puppy Pads

Yep, you heard me right. We use these things every.single.day! They make anything into a changing table. One morning I was even changing her on our bed and she peed before I got the new diaper on her. It soaked the puppy pad but didn't get a drop on our bed! Woohoo! We have one over an ottoman in our living room and one over the nice changing pad cover in her room. It's much easier to just throw one away if there's a spill than it is to wash sheets or the changing pad cover. I even keep a couple in the diaper bag that way I can change her where ever I am without jeopardizing someone's couch cushions. This is one item that I recommend every new parents have on hand!

Our Upstairs Bottle Station

I was really looking forward to the ease and convenience of breastfeeding especially for night feedings, but when that didn't work out for us I knew that convenience was going to be the name of the game. So, one of the first things we did was create a bottle station in our upstairs guest bathroom. I have to say that this is one of the best things we've done. I bought a small bottle of dish washing soap to keep up there and the only thing that sink is used for is washing bottles so I feel very confident that it's clean. We also keep a jug of filtered water and the formula right there next to the bottle warmer so that everything we need to wash and make bottles is in one place. It really has made the whole bottle/formula thing easier to deal with.

Well, I think that's it for this installment of Things We're Loving. I'm sure it'll change with every new stage and I'll try to update as we find new things that help make our lives with a new addition easier and more enjoyable.