Favorite Baby Registry Items

Ok, friends, this blog post has been in the works for quite some time, and I felt like today would be the perfect time to share!! Jane is getting older, and I don't want to forget all of the things that made life in the first year such a blessing for us! 

A few caveats before I dive-in though...

1. Baby items and registries can be overwhelming. I will just say upfront that we are usually pretty simple when it comes to things... We really try to budget well, save for what we need, and we honestly try not to have a lot of things that we know we won't need or use. When I was pregnant with Jane, I finally started trying to put together a little registry several months in... I would look at baby registry lists and truly get SO overwhelmed...there were just SO many things that everyone said you needed... I would lay in bed at night and try to work on it, but for many weeks pretty much made no progress. 

Then it dawned on me one day that the way we live the rest of our life is knowing a few of the things we need, finding the version/kind that works best of us, and budgeting and saving up for what we pray will last us a long time. And that's what I started doing with baby things. I let a lot of things slide off our "need" list and tried to stick with a few of the things that I felt like we would use/love/pass down/etc. 

2. I enjoy researching things. I think I get this from my dad, but I like to do a little research (Pierce would say, "A little?!" hahhaa) and try to find what I think would be worth investing in. I know not everyone is like this... I have so many friends that would rather just get the first thing/the easiest thing/the cheapest thing and move on...but I would say that I really do try to be a little more conscientious with my purchases, and I feel like I was the same way when trying to find things for a little baby. I just want to say that upfront, not at all because I feel like these are the best things, but just because these were the things that I felt would be worth the investment for our family.

3. I found some favorite resources and tried to stick to those when I had questions or was looking for something specific. A few of those I loved when I was in the throws were The Gentle Nursery - I loved that she found items without a ton of chemicals, etc that were more healthy for a little baby, Just Ingredients - I loved her baby items that she would talk about, and friends and family that I knew I could text or ask. I used these three for so many of our items!! I also loved Babylist for actually putting my registry together. And for things as Jane has gotten older, I love PurposeDrivenMotherhood - she used to be a teacher and had surprise twins and love the resources she gives from toddlerhood. 

So, without further-ado, here is a little list of our favorites - things that we bought, things that were given to us (which we still have so much gratitude for everyone who has helped us in this season!!!), things that made it on our registry and some that didn't, and some things that were others favorites that have now become ours too!! It's not a comprehensive list, but it's some of the items that made our first year so special!! 

Here's a little look at some of our Favorite Baby Registry items! I tried to break them into categories to make it a little more easy to navigate. :)

This was such a sweet space to put together!! Here are a few of our faves!!

A friend recommended this simple baby monitor, and it has been perfect. It doesn't have a ton of bells and whistles, but it has been just what we needed! 

I know so many that love their wipeable peanut changer, but we have been so glad we have this changer. I found this through the Gentle Nursery, and I'm sure we'll have it for many years to come! (Full disclaimer - this is our only changer cover 😂 I just wash it when we need, and we put a towel on it in the meantime. Probably could have invested in a second and third, but it was just what we had when we started, and we just never reordered more haha) 

This wipe dispenser has definitely been one of the simple necessities that I'm glad we've had!! We also love that we can get our favorite wipes via a subscription with Amazon - it's been a life saver for us in this crazy, busy season! 

All three making their appearance on her dresser. 

This Hatch sound machine was also recommended by SO many, and we have really loved it!! We turn on a few simple songs while we're getting ready for bed and then love the sound machine for night. We also turn on the birds in the morning if she wakes up, and it's a minute or two before we can grab her. 

We've loved it!!! 

Lamp dimmers were a recommendation from a friend, and let me tell you, they have changed our life hahaha we have them on the lamps in the nursery for sure, but we have also added them to our bedroom for late night reading, and I wouldn't be surprised if they ended up in more places in our house soon too! Hahaha

We found this canopy humidifier through Just Ingredients, and we have loved it!! It really helped in the winter when the air was so dry. They send us a new filter every so often, and I couldn't recommend it enough. We are looking at investing in one for our room too soon!

This little guy went everywhere with us the first few weeks/months. Truly, everywhere. Hahaha We'll still use it on long road-trips nowadays, and recently, we've loved using this on nights that we've had a few storms knock out our power - it's battery operated and Jane can sleep through all the power going in and out. I even gifted this to a friend recently at a baby shower with this stroller fan for a little summer-walk bundle. ☺️

Sweet little baby Jane!!!

Oh, this Solly Wrap. I also give this at any shower I can because it may be my number ONE baby item. I just absolutely adore this little wrap and used it for SO long with Jane. I think I had her in this everyday for many, many months. It's simple to put on, so secure for Jane, and I loved having her close while she napped or I did things around the house/walked/shopped/etc. Just couldn't recommend enough!!!

This Ergobaby carrier is a close second!! There are a million baby carriers out there, but this one was recommended to us and gifted to us, and we LOVED it. When she started being a little too big for her Solly Wrap, she lived in this Ergobaby one for many months after. I have worn this thing in too many places to count, from football games to airports to walking around in Belize - it's been such a great investment!! 

My aunts bought this bouncer for us after it was recommended to us, and we loved it!! And Jane did too!!! I especially loved that it folded up, and I just hung it right inside our coat closet when we weren't using it!! 

A sweet family from my school bought this little playmat from Lovevery for us, and we loved this little mat! Jane played on it all the time, and it was one of the things I was saddest to pack up when she outgrew it!

This little SnuggleMe was so sweet to have when Jane was little. She took about a million naps in here, and we loved having it in our living room or study. 

This special little one is even in my very first Frame this Moment. ❤️

As for the car, we have loved our Uppababy Mesa carseat. My sweet school went in on one big gift, and they gifted us this carseat and a giftcard for some of the stroller that goes with it. That was SUCH a blessing, and we have loved this seat. We loved that it was clean too and the fabric was gentle on her little skin. 

Baby Jane two days old!! How was she so small in there?! 

And this little mirror has just been such a favorite in our car. 

This was one of the first pics we took looking back there...it feels like just yesterday...truly!!

I feel like all of this could be for Mom hahahaha but here are a few special ones!! 

For diaper bags, I know so many people love a backpack one, but while I was pregnant, I saw one of my dearest mom friends who has seven with this bag and immediately thought, "If that's the bag she recommends, I should get that one." Hahaha She ended up gifting it to me at my shower, and I have just loved it. We have traveled with it a million times, taken it too many places to count, and it has always held everything we could possibly have needed. 

I snapped this one of the first times I was getting everything ready to leave with Jane by myself for the first time! So sweet to look back on...and this bag has been through it all with us. Past those first few weeks, we honestly usually just stock it and leave it in the car, and I'll just throw a diaper, wipes and a snack in my purse if we're eating out or at a friend's house or somewhere simple. 

I just loved this nursing pillow. I used it daily for so long. It was such a blessing! 

And everyone has their favorite nursing cover, and I had a few, but I found I loved this one especially in the summer because it was so breathable and so easy to get on and off! 

Those were a few I put on my registry, but for nursing, I also bought and would recommend a Haakaa, Silverettes (I could not recommend these enough, especially for the first few days/weeks), cotton nursing rounds, and this heating massager and Sunflower lecithin to have on hand just incase!! 

Two book recommendations that were given to me and I just loved - if you are interested in a more natural birth at all, this book by Ina May is my biggest recommendation. She has so many good tips, wisdom and insight. And this nursing book - a great resource to have on hand!!! 

I think the sweetest thing "For Mom" is to gift a little basket full of healthy snacks, maybe a nice water cup or bottle, a book or a few treasures that make those first few weeks a little more sweet and cozy!! I do this for all of my friends now that have little ones - there's just something exhausting, but beautiful in those first moments of motherhood, and I love helping them set themselves up for success as much as possible!! 

Jane loved and used this little bath tub for so long!!

Our very favorite baby towel. 

I found Earth Mama and really love their items - especially this orange baby wash. 

Jane is just starting to need this brush hahahaha but I love this brand!

Jane was also late to the party in needing this little guy, but we love this sweet toothbrush! 

We bought this highchair when Jane was six months old after a million hours of research hahaha but we have LOVED it. It is the simplest baby item to put together that we have and it came with a little travel bag and we pack it up every time we can! This little guy has gone to Kentucky about 30 times and even to friend's houses and our family vacation in Florida too - it's just so simple and easy to clean. I love that it's light and portable and we have a little spot we keep it after we clean every night that's out of the way. I couldn't recommend it enough. 

And this little guy. A daily use item at our house. 

A day in the life in our kitchen! 

As for toys and books, I feel like there are truly a million options, so I am just going to put our three very favorite that we used pretty much every day when she was little and still use daily a year later. 

I've mentioned this one before, but this little popper is still played with daily. I had these in my classroom for morning tubs and one ended up at our house, and it quickly became Jane's favorite. 

A sweet family friend's little girl gave Jane another while we were at their house one night, and that meant one was never very far. 

A few months old reaching for all the colors!! 

The second is this little Beginner's Bible. 

We are using an old one that my siblings and I grew up with, but this little Bible has been such a sweet part of our nighttime routine, even when Jane was little. 

I pray the Bible is always one of her very favorite books. 

And lastly, this book was a gift from a teacher friend, and it was the first book Jane really started to play with and love. 

She still goes to the last page and kisses the baby and looks in the mirror all the time hahaha so sweet!! 

And lastly, my personal favorite baby category 🥰 I just have three sweet companies to point you to (and a pair of baby pajamas that we love too.)

First, the pajamas. I found this pair of pajamas on a sweet simple blog and loved that they were all cotton and so affordable. I ordered a pair for Jane when she was little, and we have since ordered a few more pairs as she's grown. Just incase you're looking for a simple pair - we've loved them!! 

The first sweet company to share is an Australian one named "Bundl."

When Jane was little and slept in her bassinet, we absolutely loved this little wool wrap that functioned a little like a sleeping bag for her. It had velcro so it was secure since she wasn't moving much, but we truly loved it. 

I also splurged and ordered two of their blankets too. This sweet white one was the one we wrapped her in when she was born, and she still uses it today. It's amazing quality and my favorite little baby item. 

The second is Caden Lane - I loved their little knotted gowns, baby swaddles and bows. Jane just a few hours old!!

You just can't get sweeter than little baby blankets and outfits. We had a boy blanket and gown picked out too because we didn't know boy or girl until she was born. 

A favorite for sure. 

And finally, maybe just my MOST favorite baby item of all-time - our beloved bassinet. I ordered this from the sweetest lady in Ukraine off of Etsy. I placed the order a month before all of the turmoil that started in their country, and sweet Yulia finished and shipped this bassinet in the midst of everything, and it arrived just days before Jane was born. We were blown away with the craftsmanship and how elegant, simple and perfect this little piece was. She's amazing, and I've listed her Etsy shop, Wroomiroom. She has amazing little doll cradles listed currently, and when I reached out to her, she said to find her on Instagram (@wroomiroom), and she would be more than happy to sell and ship baby cradles too. I love supporting her shop any time I can!! 

We love this little bassinet, and we pray it gets many more uses as the years go on!!

And there you have it...just a few of our favorite baby registry items. I'll update this page if anything more comes to mind, but in the meantime, what did I miss?! What did you love?! What would be great to know about? I'd love to hear!! And would love to answer any questions too if you have them about any and all baby things, registries, motherhood, and more. It always makes my day to hear from you!!

I hope this was a fun little post to read! It's making me miss all of those baby snuggles for sure!! Thanks for following along!! 
I'll plan to see you back here tomorrow!!
Blessings, 
Tabitha