Our Essentials List for Newborn Babies in those special first few weeks!
An essentials list for newborn babies with products to help sleep, bathing, comfort and more. All the things we recommend for those first few weeks in your newborn bubble!
Shopping for a baby can be stressful. How do you know what you need to buy when you’ve never done this before and haven’t even met this little person yet?
I found newborn essential videos and blogs super helpful before our son was born (as well as talking to my friend who had given birth just two months before me…very handy!). Of course everyone is different and we all go about things in our own way, but sometimes it’s just handy to hear what other people find useful so you can see if it might fit with your journey too.
So here are some of our top rated baby products for the newborn stage. Items we used every single day and couldn’t have done it without! I’ll be writing up one of these posts for breastfeeding too because that’s it’s own wonderful journey with a few things that can certainly help along the way.
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SLEEP ESSENTIALS FOR NEWBORNS
- Sleepsuits – I had all these grand ideas of the outfits I wanted to dress our baby in when he was born. But in reality he lived in sleepsuits for quite a while because you’re changing SO MANY nappies! It’s just easier! Get them with zips on in a few different sizes and don’t panic if you don’t have enough of a certain size when they’re born. You can get next day deliveries if needed and it will all work out. We loved sleepsuits from baby mori, and Jojo maman but I also found a fair few on vinted.
- Ewan the Sheep – We’ve used Ewan from the day little man was born (I actually would play him to my bump when I was pregnant too!). Ewan the Sheep plays soothing sounds to your baby under the glow of a red light to mimic the sounds and lights baby would hear in the womb. The deluxe version even has a cry sensor so it turns on automatically when it hears your baby cry to help soothe them. It’s got heartbeat sounds, womb sounds, shushing, rain noises and a lullaby and honestly it works like magic. We love Ewan!!! (Make sure you grab some reusable batteries too as you’ll use a lot)
- Red Lamp/Light – this is a really simple one but very effective. Basically, red light is opposite to blue light on the spectrum. So while blue light can keep you awake, red light can keep you drowsy! We use a red light during any night feeds and as a little night light for our baby which seems to work a treat. You can either use a coloured lightbulb in your regular lamp or a standalone lamp like this one.
- Ergobaby Swaddle – it’s totally up to you if you want to swaddle your baby or not. We tried it and little man LOVED it so we bought this Ergobaby swaddle pouch that made things 10 x easier. No faffing about learning how to wrap, just pop them in, it velcros around and bam – baby burrito! Our baby loved it and it’s meant to be escape proof too…he never got out anyway so maybe it’s true! I think it just helps them feel more secure as they’re cramped up like they would have been in the womb. Swaddle and Ewan the sheep = instant soothing for us!
- Humidifier – this might be a niche one but we found having a humidifier in the bedroom really helped little man breathe better and therefore sleep better at night. Newborns can get quite congested so this helps with that and seemed to work almost instantly for us. Something to keep in mind if you run into the same issues, especially if you have a c-section baby.
- Moses Basket – and finally for sleep, we had a beautiful Moses basket from Claire de Lune and we used it SO MUCH during the newborn stage. I think little man felt too swamped by the enormity of his next to me cot at first so sleeping in this Moses basket felt more of a comfort to him. Also very handy as you can carry it and move it around the house as needed – we used it in the bathroom when I would shower and also the living room while watching telly too. These moses baskets are so beautifully made we’ll be using it now he’s grown out of it as a book and toy storage in his room. If you’re umming and ahhing over whether to get one, we highly recommend ours and we certainly got a lot of use out of it.
HEALTH ESSENTIALS FOR NEWBORNS
- Schnuggle Bath and Stand – a gamechanger for those early baths to help save your back – especially if you’ve had a c section. No bending over, comfortable and safe for baby as they can’t slip down – just perfect. We’re so glad we bought this and until we moved him to the big boy bath we used it for months! We sold it on when we were done and made nearly all our money back because they hold their value. Brilliant product. (Obviously this is also great if you don’t actually have a bath in your house!)
- Hand Sanitiser – baby safe hand sanitiser is a must and you’ll find you use it so much. We tried some from Milton and also the Pura one – both great. Have a little bottle in each room, you’ll be surprised how much you reach for it.
- Nappy Caddy and Changing Mat in your most used rooms – you’ll change a LOT of nappies! It’s just the newborn way of life. So having a changing mat and caddy in your most used rooms saves a lot of trips upstairs. I love these anti roll mats from mamma shack as they’re very good but also stylish! And these are the caddies we have that I stock with nappies, wipes, muslins, hand sanitiser, nappy cream, nappy bags and all his little health bits like his nail file etc
- Snot Sucker – this one seems gross but I promise it’s not and honestly it is ESSENTIAL. Again, newborns get congested so helping them clear that will make yours and their lives easier. Pop this on their nostril and suck out any snot (there’s a filter so you don’t get any in your mouth I promise) and watch their little faces light up with relief. Bless them. Make sure you get the saline solution too as it works 1000x better with that first. We still use this now, it’s fab.
JUST FOR FUN!
- Black and White Cards for play – Let’s face it, newborns don’t really do a lot! But black and white cards are a great way to interact with them in the early days. We have the Lovevery Looker play kit which is designed for babies from 0-3 months. It comes with loads of beautiful black and white cards you can use by hand or stand up in front of them during tummy time. We’ve actually had all the lovevery play kits so far and they’ve all been brilliant. We also have their playgym. We use it all every day and the quality is beautiful – we’re still using all of the toys from previous boxes as our son just seems to reach for them over any of his other toys. Of course you can buy black and white cards like this on their own from Amazon too if you don’t want the full kit or other toys!
LOOKING AFTER YOU…
And last but not least in our essentials list for newborn babies, we need to look after you too! This is a big time and a huge transition and it’s important to look after yourself so you can heal.
Make sure you have water bottles in your most used rooms to stay hydrated (especially important if breastfeeding) and plenty of snacks too. Oat bars are fab for night feeds to give you a little boost (these are AMAZING!) and of course the biscuit tin always get a hammering during this newborn phase!
Quick, easy to heat or cook meals are also important. Whether you batch cook before baby gets here or ask a friend or family member to bring round a big cottage pie for you to reheat. The last thing you want to be doing is cooking complicated stuff. We ate so many ready meal lasagnas from Aldi it was hilarious. But you know what, every time we walk past them in the shop we have wonderful memories.
You can’t pour from an empty cup – you are important too.
And that’s about it in our essentials list for newborn babies! I of course have loads of baby item recommendations (I share a lot as I go along over on my instagram) but these are just my top used products for those early weeks. Hopefully this will help you figure out what you need to prepare for and buy before the big day. But honestly, try not to worry too much, next day delivery is very much a thing and you’ll figure it all out as you go.
Enjoy those baby snuggles and I wish you the best of luck and love with this new chapter!