Done Wright Home Improvement: Newborn Baby Essentials

19 favorite newborn baby essentials like baby gear, toys, health items, apps, and keepsakes to make the first few months easier and extra special.

Photo cred: Alisha Rudd Photography

I solemnly swear this is the last of the baby stuff you’ll hear about for a while. And from here on out, it’s back to our regularly scheduled programming of DIYs and decorating and all things prettify-the-house. (We’ll be busting out the Christmas decor soon, which I cannot even believe!)

But since I’ve been bringing y’all along on the baby journey for all of the maternity stuff and postpartum stuff and nursery stuff and playroom stuff, I figured maybe throwing in the newborn stuff that has been a major lifesaver for us lately would be a good idea for some of you on the same parenting path.

I’m rounding up a bunch of my favorites for baby gear, toys, health items, apps, and keepsakes to make the first few months easier and extra special. Because if there’s anything we mommies and daddies need, it’s extra help wherever we can get it.

(Some affiliate links are provided below.)

19 favorite newborn baby essentials like baby gear, toys, health items, apps, and keepsakes to make the first few months easier and extra special.

“As You Grow” Baby Book – This book is gorgeous and filled with beautiful illustrations and thoughtful ways to remember and document all of your baby’s milestones.
Hatch sound machine – White noise is magic for baby sleep! I love all of the different sound settings you can put on this sound machine along with different colors of ambient warm light to help baby drift off. It can be operated from your Smartphone too.
Monthly Letterboard – This is so cute for documenting monthly milestones!
My Brest Friend – A friend of mine introduced me to this (I used a Boppy pillow the first time around) and I’m totally sold on this thing. It makes nursing so much easier, and I love that it stays put with a strap and has a pocket for keeping necessities in easy reach.
Wrap carrier – There are so many health benefits to baby-wearing, but I love that I can wear my babe like a kangaroo and have both hands free to get things done. The baby bonding while you’re multitasking is amazing.
Diaper bag – This bag is so stinkin’ cute I’d carry it even without baby stuff in it! There are lots of helpful compartments and even insulated pockets for bottles and a matching diaper changer pad. And you can carry it like a purse or a backpack, depending on your comfort.
Happiest Baby on the Block Sleep Method – This sleep method was super informative for the best practices to help our littles ones fall asleep and stay asleep. It’s essentially centered around the 5 S’s – swaddle, side/stomach position (for soothing, not sleeping), shush sound (white noise), swing/sway (rock), suck (pacifier). Works like a charm.
Burt’s Bees Calming Baby Lotion – We’ve massaged this on right after a bath and before bed, and it instantly soothes our babes with relaxing lavender.
Muslin swaddle wraps – These swaddles are life! These along with white noise, a rocker, and a favorite pacifier mimic the womb to create the best combo for getting baby to sleep. The muslin fabric is extra breathable but makes a tight, secure swaddle.
Wonder Weeks App – If you have never heard of “Wonder Weeks” and you have a baby, get this app now! It is spot-on (or at least it was for us) in predicting sleep regressions, growth spurts, fussy weeks, and changes in mental development to help us cope and know how to accommodate for our little ones during the really rough patches.
WubbaNub – I can’t tell you how many times I had to pick up dropped pacifiers in the middle of the night. This little guy helps them to stay put in baby’s mouth and they’re so cute!
Blooming baby bather – We haven’t been using this for very long, but so far, we’re BIG fans! Giving little one a bath in the kitchen sink is a much simpler process with this cushion, and it’ll grow with her to help with sitting in the big bath tub.
Burt’s Bees crib sheets – These organic cotton sheets are so heavenly soft and easy to wash. And there are a bunch of cute prints.
NoseFrida – This sucker is awesome (literally… it’s a snot sucker). I almost gagged the first time I used it, but when you’re desperate to help your baby breathe more easily, you’re willing to try anything. I promise, it’s not as disgusting as it looks. No boogies-in-mouth situation, I swear.
Travel bottle warmer – My little ones are NOT happy when they have to endure a cold bottle. With Olivia, I had to exclusively pump when I went back to work teaching, so this warmer helped so much when we were out and didn’t have a quick, easy way to warm up her milk.
Gripe Water – We love this particular brand to help ease baby’s gassy, colicky tummy. (Never thought I’d talk about burps and farts on this blog, but here we are. Haha!)
Rock n Play – This thing was a God-send when Olivia was a baby and was the only way we got her to sleep through the night in the beginning. It’s excellent for babes with acid reflux, and now, you can get them with an automatic rocker attached.
Video monitor – I researched the heck out of video monitors, and this one was the most highly rated I found that also didn’t cost an arm and a leg.
Car seat / nursing / shopping cart cover – This cover is a 3-in-1 and comes in handy all the time for taking little one out and about. I love how soft it is too.