Minimalist Newborn Essentials (0-3 mo.)

Minimalist Newborn Essentials for 0-3 Months.

Hi friends! Today I am sharing my minimalist newborn essentials. I am starting a new series sharing all of my favorite things for new moms and their newborn. Hopefully you don’t mind me sharing some more lifestyle – type content, but I’d rather post helpful information than just pretty pictures (although I’ll still be sharing those of course :)!

I was going to start with Maternity, but to be honest with you, the newborn phase is more fresh in my mind. Also, when I was pregnant, I can’t remember that I had many pregnancy – specific things that I really liked and needed, other than clothes. However, I do plan to do some thinking and I’ll probably do that one in the future!

First Things First

If you are expecting your first child, congratulations! Your baby will rock your world, in the best way possible. You will come out of birth a completely different person, ever changing from here on out. I believe your baby will help you to value life, humanity, the people around you and yourself in a whole new way. Babies are so special.

A Bit About Me

Just some general information so you understand where I’m coming from:

I have two children, a boy and a girl. My kids were pretty normal and didn’t have any issues, and were born full term. Both of my children were born via C-Section. I exclusively breastfed both of my kids and LOVED it! We didn’t really bedshare. I stayed home with them.

This is just my opinion and product recommendations for things that worked for us!

My Approach to Baby Items

I try to have as little as possible. Especially after my second, I felt more confident to drop a few of the things that are helpful to first time parents. However, I am always shocked at how much money you can spend, even if you buy secondhand or budget items. Babies truly just need all new things that adults simply do not!

I tried to keep my life as simple as I could and this list is pretty realistic. Let it also be known that this does not include breastfeeding or postpartum stuff – just baby stuff. Let’s dive in!

Sleeping

1. Bassinet

I used this one:

I really like it because it comes apart and stores in a bag (important for me) and it’s a nice size to fit next to my bed. Definitely get one bed height. I bought it secondhand for $50! It comes with a sheet.

When my son was born, I was going to forego the bassinet and use the crib straightaway since it was in our room. What I didn’t account for was birth recovery. You’ll want something right next to you so you don’t have to get up 🙂 I had a c-section with both babies and getting up and out of bed was the hardest thing I had to do.

2. Bassinet Sheet

If you just search on amazon to find ones that fit your bassinet. I would recommend having 2 if your baby doesn’t spit up a lot. If you find your baby does, you may want more.

3. Noise Machine There are a lot of fancy ones out there, I just wanted something simple I could turn on and walk away

****I will also note, I didn’t swaddle my second, but my first I did. I don’t think I will from here on out, but if you are curious, I used and liked the Embe Swaddle and the velcro Halo Sleep Sack Swaddle.

Eating

I breastfed both of my children, so I don’t have any good advice for formula feeding moms. Sorry! I will be doing another post on breastfeeding essentials and postpartum!

4. Boppy Breastfeeding Pillow – this is something I didn’t need with my second, But was very helpful with my first!

5. Nursing Cover – This is my best hack for the simple moms out there. I used a muslin swaddle blanket for so many things, including a nursing cover. They’re basically just a cute, thin, cotton blanket. I just tied two of the corners together and put it over my head. If you use them for all the things, I would recommend having 5 you really like. The 47″ x 47″ size was perfect.

6. Burp Cloths – I used a muslin swaddle for this too. I also bought some plain, prefold diapers that I really liked for this. My kids would have been fine with the swaddle blankets though!

Awake

7. Newborn Lounger – It’s pretty essential to have a nice place to put your baby down other than their crib/bassinet. With my son I didn’t have this, and I thought all the time about how I wish I had one. When I had my second baby, I bought a second hand Snuggle Me Organic. Unfortunately my daughter didn’t like being on her back and this pillow was no exception. It’s nice, though and I kept it for my next newborn!

8. Swing and or/ bouncer – I had something similar to this one (see below). This is just another place to put your baby down. My best advice is to buy these used because your newborn WILL like certain ones and you won’t know what it is until they try it!

I would have liked a swing too, but Pirates and Pixies (local used baby items store) didn’t have any when my daughter needed it! I do love that store, though 🙂

9. Blanket You really only need one or two of these, but you will probably receive 30 from friends and family who handmake them or buy them for you. If you have to buy one, I love this one from Mebie Baby. You can also use a Muslin Swaddle (or 2 if it’s really cold).

Out & About

10. Car Seat – Pick your favorite. But pick a lightweight one if you can. We used a travel system from Evenflo. I thought it was everything I wanted it to be but to be honest, it was a little clunky – but I think they’ve ironed out the problems by now though 🙂

10.5 Car Seat Mirror – this is a non negotiable. Get it! Everyone will be happier 🙂

11. Stroller – This is my double stroller. It’s pretty great and I can fit it between aisles in stores which is great. It’s lightweight, folds up, I can put my car seat on it and my son can ride or sit on the back. That was really important because he doesn’t want to sit most of the time, so a normal double stroller would have been useless. I’m pretty sure the stroller doesn’t come with the back seat, BTW – just a bench.

*** I forgot to add a carrier here. I love the Solly Baby carrier – a soft wrap – and the ErgoBaby 360 – a structured carrier. I bought both of mine used! My son was great in the solly as a newborn but my daughter had some neck issues and preferred to face out so the Ergobaby was great for her. I would just buy the solly and wait to get the Ergo if you find you really need it.

Health & Changing

12. Diaper Cream – the BEST ever is Cj’s Best Boobie Butter (Nipple Balm). If it’s a bad rash, put that on, and cover it with a barrier cream, Hello Bello is my recommendation. This is also a great healing balm. I definitely recommend getting this before baby is born.

13. Nosefrida – It’s really not so bad. But I hope you never have to use it because babies don’t like their nose being messed with. But if your baby can’t breathe through their nose, you’ll be SO happy you have it.

14 Diapers – self explanatory 🙂

15. Wipes – self explanatory 🙂 I use fragrance free wipes, whatever is cheap! Cloth wipes are also a great option if you have the mental and physical energy to add to your routine.

Nursery

When my son was born, he didn’t have a nursery. So in a way, this is optional, but you’ll probably need most of this stuff regardless. We just put it all in our room!

16. Crib – My kids grew FAST. We used a crib relatively soon. About 3 weeks old. Our sons was in our room. With my daughter it was about 4 months. It was in her room but our rooms are super close to each other.

16.5 Crib Mattress – get a waterproof one it’s so much easier that way 🙂

17. Rocker / Glider – Love this one. My husband is tall and he uses it. I’m short and I love it.

18. Hamper- we just used a little $2 laundry basket from Walmart.

19. changing pad – We didn’t need one of these. I change almost all diapers on the floor. When they’re really little I changed them on my bed too. I used a muslin swaddle as a liner/changing pad. Can you believe that??

20. Black Out Curtains – Don’t forget these 🙂 I recommend getting the ones with the white back so you’re not like us. We currently have one window with yellow curtains peeking through, and one with purple. It’s not a great look 😉

21. Dresser – We got a discounted one Rush Market. If you’re local, they are a great place to get Nursery Furniture! With my son, we used a 13″ 6 – Cube Unit, it worked pretty good but a real dresser stores clothing better in my opinion 🙂

Clothing

My best advice for baby clothing is to just buy clothes when you actually need them. Don’t buy stuff just because it’s on sale. I’ve learned this lesson too many times – lots of new clothes my baby can’t wear because seasons changed, styles changed, and their little body has specific shapes and needs I didn’t account for.

22. Sleepers – get zip up sleepers. That’s all your baby needs to wear really!

23. Onesies – If it’s really hot when they’re newborns, these are nice to hang out in too.

24. Bows & Hats – these are fun. I love these bows. I had a cute hat for my son that I loved too 🙂 He was born in the fall so I used them more with him I felt like.

25. Slippers – These are great!

Bath Time

26. A bath tub – I didn’t like any baby bathtub I used. I just put a towel on the bathtub floor and put a minimal amount (like less than 1 inch) of water in the bath. Other times I just held them in my own bath but usually my bath water was too warm. Sink baths with the Lotus Bath are pretty cool though!

27. Baby Washcloths – unnecessary if you already own and use washcloths. But if you don’t, I like these. I recommend not getting them in white so you don’t have to wait until you wash the whites to clean them. (If you separate your laundry like that)

28. – Baby Soap – If they need soap, I love Shea Moisture. If they aren’t really dirty, just use water. Seriously 🙂

28. Oil – I used avocado oil or coconut oil from my kitchen to moisturize my kids after their bath.

Newborn Photos

29. Newborn Photos – Okay seriously, how can I not put this on the list! You will never regret getting these done. 🙂 See my newborn photography tips!

*Takes breath* Okay! I think that’s it! These are my minimalist newborn essentials. You really need less than you think! And I used Muslin Swaddles for so many things haha.

What are some things that you loved for your babies?? Everyone is so different, I always find it interesting to know! Leave a comment to let me know. Also, share this with a friend who is expecting!