Mommy Favorites...and more

SO- When I was getting ready to have Lucy, I wanted to make sure I had everything.. la la la.. Sometimes I think I am in denial about it.. but I am a total planner, list maker, etc... So for all you new mommy's to be.. here are my favorite things.... It's pretty detailed, but it's also for myself so I can remember what having a newborn is like when i have my next baby!

In my diaper bag:

• Huggies 'Natural Fit' Diapers
• Costco/Kirkland Wipes (They are the cheapest... for my diaper bag I just open up a package and stick some in my little 'to go' package that came with my bag, and stick the rest in a zip lock.)
• Some sort of butt cream.-- I got both Desitin and the Bordeaux Butt Paste- they seem the same to me, but Lucy has never gotten that bad of a rash.
• My Nursing Wrap/Cover-- I got mine at Babys R'us.. But there are some super cute little shops that make them.. If you are nursing you need one!! One that just goes around your neck and has a little wire so you can peek down and see your little one!
• Nursing Pads- Acutally for the first few months I just wore them all the time- My favorite are the Lansinoh brand. {sidenote: Nursing is much harder than it seems. The first few weeks WILL SUCK. if you can make it past that. it's well worth it. =)}
• Burp Clothes- I had wonderful grandma's and aunts of Lucy's make me a ton.
• An eXtra outfit and onesie. Always. and If I will be gone past like 7 or 8pm- I usually take her pj's. =)
• Travel size baby lotion/baby wash
• An extra Binky-- my favorite are the Gerber NUK. (some say not to give your babies a binky at the hospital. I totally disagree... get them used to the binky ASAP, because it is the greatest thing ever! It's seriously just a plug that you stick in when they cry and it shuts them up and calms them down
• . haha...)
• GAS DROPS. I get the Mylicon... So they are expensive. But the greatest things ever. If Lucy is crying and she has been fed and changed, and won't take her binky.. then the gas drops come out. If that is a failure. The TUB.
• Snacks. I am always hungry... and other nursing moms tell me they get starving. And water bottle.
• Camera.

At home/etc...:

• Bobby Pillow- I must be retarted, but I have a hard time nursing without Lucy on some sort of pillow. This is the best thing ever.
• iPOD touch. This has saved my life. in the middle of the night while I am nursing I play on facebook, Blog, etc... in order to keep me awake while nursing! Otherwise I fall asleep, and one feeding will turn into a 3 hour process. And Im afraid that if I fall asleep I'll suffocate my child.
• JOHNSON's baby lotion. Other people like others.. but let's be really honest. I buy the lotion because of how it smells. Nothing else smells that good!
• Onesies. Can't ever have enough. I think the Gerber ones are the cheapest. Thats what Lulu wears.
• ZIP UP PAJAMAS. So some mothers told me that gowns were the only way to go... But after much trial and experiment, Im not a fan of the gowns, or the button up pajamas, but the ZIP UP are fantastic. The cover their little feeties, and its just a zip down and back up after changing them in the middle of the night instead of trying to figure out all those dang snaps.
• one of those soft brushes. I brush Lucy's hair into a fohawk. It's great.
• Infant seat/Bouncer
• BUMBO chair
• a play mat.. with toys hanging over head

Favorite stores:

• BABY GAP. enough said. Cutest store ever.
• Katelyn & Co.- a store in the mall where I get a lot of Lucy's bows.
• Target.
• Smiths- thats where they usually have diapers the cheapest I have noticed.

Other advice.

Some of the best advice I have received was this: Don't let your baby sleep in the room with you after they are a few weeks old... They then get used to your smell, etc.. and then wont' sleep without you there! Lucy slept in her little pack n'play next to our bed for the first few weeks, and I occasionally put her in her crib, but after a few weeks, I put the pack n'play away and now she goes in her crib just fine. I REALLY didn't want her to get used to sleeping in our room. Also- I just always hear stories of how another baby got rolled on by their parents and they suffocated... So we try really hard not to let Lucy sleep in our bed, but I know a lot of people do it just fine. She does come in after Tyler leaves for work and sleeps in his spot for a couple hours.

Oh- and make lots of noise while they sleep. Tyler has this issue and thinks its so annoying that he has to be quiet while babies are sleeping, so we made an effort to make noise while Lucy sleeps, and now she sleeps through anything. It's wonderful.

I almost forgot! my most favorite thing. If you are planning on walking a lot or going jogging at all with your baby.. a worth while investment would be the BOB Revolution jogging stroller! It's the best thing ever. a must have. I would die without it. It seriously pushes like 100x better than any other stroller I have tried.

Last thing... I'm not a big routine person.. but we do try to have a little bedtime routine so she knows when it's time for bed. Nothing big or set in stone, it's really for us just nursing, tub, prayers, song, and when she is a little older a story, then bed! In any order, and we used just do it whenever, but over the last couple months, she really is ready for bed by 8 or 9.

This is only my first baby, and she is only 3 months old.. but this has what has worked for me! Im sure other mothers have much better advice, but for me just being laid back and not getting stressed out has been the best! Good Luck Mommys!