5 Must-Haves for Your Baby Registry (from an experienced mom)

I am pregnant with my 6th baby and if I could only share my TOP 5 baby items to help you build your baby registry this would be would them!

These are tried and true baby items that have held up over time and have been such helpful tools.

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A Different Way to See a Baby Registry

Marketing is so savvy and contributes to moms feeling like they have to a million things to be a “good” mom or a “trendy” mom or a “minimalist conscious” mom.

Insert whatever term here and marketing is working overtime to deceive us into thinking that things give us worth or value as mothers.

What helps me the most with shopping for baby items is to see them as tools.

Tools to get the job done and tools that will help make my life a little bit better or a little easier. Think about it, for doing any kind of project the right tool makes a difference.

Baby Carrier

Nothing can contribute to depression more than feeling like you are constantly trapped under a baby.

I know that sounds terrible, because some days I could sit forever under a precious sleeping baby.

But then there is food that needs to be cooked, laundry to be done, and just basic upkeep for our bodies, homes, and for our families.

Being able to keep baby close to you while you bust a move will help you feel so much better and more sane as a human.

Plus, when you go into a store or into church, keeping baby close to you will help keep your stress levels down and keep your hands free to shop and care for other children.

I cannot stress how KEY it is to get yourself at least one baby carrier, but even a couple more to try out for different situations or to see which one feels best on your back.

Moms are always rehoming their carriers because their babies are outgrowing them.

So maybe you add some to your baby registry and then if you don’t get them consider keeping an eye out on Facebook marketplace or taking a look on Mercari to get a deal (save $10 on Mercari with this link 🙌).

Absolute Favorite Baby Carrier:

Ergo Baby Carrier:

I have used the ergo baby carrier since the beginning of my mama journey 11 years ago! I eventually had to get another one, because it was getting so tattered haha!

Best Baby Carrier for Newborns up to 20lbs

The Solly Baby Wrap can seem intimidating, but I promise after watching a youtube tutorial you will be putting it on in one minute or less! The Solly keeps baby close without it feeling hard on your back.

Prettiest Carrier:

I think the newer Wildbird Aerial Carriers are lovely! They remind me of the function of the ergo baby carrier, they just took the style up a notch.

Jogging Stroller

My Love Letter to Bob Strollers (but seriously it’s been that helpful to me!)

Bob Strollers

No other mama tool has helped me more with my sanity than having the freedom to get out and walk on sidewalks and trails without feeling every little bump.

Getting outside is an amazing break for a mom. A chance to regulate from the stress of tending to babies and keeping a home. A chance to take a phone call from a friend and get some depression fighting exercise.

Surely there are some other great jogging strollers. Yet, after owning a Single Bob Stroller and now the irreplaceable Double Bob Stroller I can say for sure how they hold up over time.

I am going to have to replace my Double Bob after 9 years of use, just because I store it in my open carport and the buckles have dry rotted out. But the function of the actual stroller is still great.

The tires are bike tires so over the years 2x I have had to replace the tubes inside the tires, BUT how great to have bike tires vs plastic small wheels that are rickety over every bump.

One Con on the Bob Stroller, but not a dealbreaker for me:

The Con of the Bob Strollers are that they are a bit heavy duty and can take up a lot of space in a trunk.

So I would probably choose something different if I where in a city environment up and down stairs OR always having to get stroller in and out of a car as the only way I could walk.

But then again I take my double Bob stroller to the zoo, the park, the greenway, and especially to places where a kid might need a nap like Dollywood.

I do have a great love for the Bob Strollers and recommend getting accessories for it to hold your water/keys + an attachment for your specific car seat too can help you use it from the very beginning of having a newborn.

Portable Crib with Pad

Portable Cribs are not high on the glamour, but are massively practical for the long run. You will need to be able to take the baby on the go to travel.

And even if baby co-sleeps it is still handy to have a place to lay baby down while you bust a move-that is safe.

I love this mattress pad that folds up in a little carrying case, because portable crib sleeping surface is rougher than a pull out couch haha. And you can just get a little mini crib sheet to go on top of the fold up mattress pad too.

And if you plan to co-sleep instead of investing in a crib, you could just use a portable crib as a safe place to lay baby down for naps etc.

This will keep pets and toddlers away from sleeping baby and help baby not roll off the bed when they get mobile.

Prettiest Portable Crib:

If your portable crib will be out all the time in your bedroom, I think this is a really nice option!

Simplest and Least Expensive Portable Crib:

I have this simple portable crib. It is no fuss and really light! It just has a learning curve to get it to fold up haha, but it isn’t rocket science.

KEY accessories for Portable Crib-Mattress Pad and Mini Crib Sheet

This mattress pad makes the portable crib comfortable enough for a 3 year old to sleep in the crib on trips or every day. I have been using this travel fold up mattress pad for my portable crib for YEARS! And I love Mushie sheets!

Clean Diapers and Wipes

Nothing is closer to baby than the diapers that are on their skin. And there is so much greenwashing out there preying on mamas who are trying to be healthy conscious, but there can also be a lot of stress to not bust the budget on something that we just throw away.

Here are two good safe options for diapering!

Everylife Diapers:

My favorite diaper and wipe option is a fairly new company called Everylife that also happens to be pro-life.

You would actually be shocked how much diaper companies give to pro-abortion organizations. Can we just talk about how that is insane and ironic on so many levels?

Everylife Diapers makes no fuss clean diapers AND wipes + is set up on a subscription service that is fairly priced.

I feel like these diapers hold up just fine (I promise there are no perfect diapers that won’t occassionally have a blow-out, so no need wasting your time looking for the magic bullet-poop just happens!)

One other thing I love about Everylife is that they just text you when your diapers are getting ready to ship and you can with a simple text switch out size, delay delivery, or cancel all with one text. No need to log into your email (who has time for that when you are changing diapers right?)

Use LANA10 for 10% off your whole Everylife Order.

Cloth Diapers:

I have used cloth diapers off and on and did clothe 1/2 the time with my first. Here is what I will say, it is not that bad. Really it isn’t, but here are some keys for success:

A top load washer helps so much-nice to be able to let them soak in a safe place.
Get more diapers than you think you will need (these are the ones I recommend).
Use this to strip your diapers from time to time
They are really a breeze when you are just breastfeeding and not when the baby isn’t eating table food.

Car Seat

I have had so many car seats over the years and none of them have been terrible, but here are some things to think about:

Different Kinds of Car Seats:

Infant Car Seat

You can get an infant car seat which clicks out of the base so you can carry the seat in with you if baby is asleep.

This is so handy for going into a restaurant or church. The con of this is that the baby will outgrow it within a year more than likely.

Graco SnugRide Lite

This is a great inexpensive infant car seat to get the job done car seat that will grow with your baby until they are 30 lbs. And with this Bob Stroller Attachment you can click the car seat into the stroller.

Convertible Car Seat

Convertible car seats are not meant to come and in of your vehicle and can be used for newborns with right inserts.

Britax Poplar

The Britax Poplar car seat is a great choice in tight places, so you don’t have to go buy a whole other car just because space is limited.

Maxi-Cosi

Maxi-cosi car seats seem to have the most padded for a more comfortable ride for the baby and toddler.

Most Overlooked Need for Baby:

Help prepping for birth and even for breastfeeding!

Here is a free class you can go take to help you transform your WHOLE birth experience!

What I Am Not Buying for Baby #5 -Video

Here is a video I did just before I had my 5th baby, I share some items you can definitely just skip when it comes to building your baby registry.

Actual Newborn Essentials vs Marketing Hype Video

In this video I have my top 10 essentials for you really need for a newborn!