Baby’s Health and Safety Products.
Here’s the final shopping list for you first-time parents. I know, it’s pretty overwhelming isn’t it?! Try having three kids, but then again…there would be alot of hand-me downs. And you know how I love that and dual-purpose products. (Baby products 101 & Baby Products-for the home and car).
If you have a shopping list of your own…feel free to send it in to us. Thanks!
Baby’s Health and Safety Products:
- Baby Bjorn…we have been using one that’s five years old and it still works until my back couldn’t afford to carry my little porker any more. There are alot of different brands in the market place. Again, it’s really a matter of personal taste and feel. I’d recommend buying this after the baby is born so that you can test it out with her/him. And observe how your baby sits on the clasps, is it metal or plastic (you’ll know what I mean when you test it out at the store).
- Baby monitor…I did buy one for our second baby to use for outside…but the reception was really bad eventhough the product claimed that it was the best so needless to say, I returned it and didn’t use one after that. For first-time parents, I’d invest in a monitor with the infared camera. My sister received one as a gift for her first born and it was really useful, until it broke.
- Thermometer…the most accurate temperature reading, according to our pediatrician, is through the rectal (but we opted not to do that *yuck and ow*). We have two different kinds, the inexpensive digital one where you put under the armpit or under the tongue and the Infared Thermometer by Exergen (around $35) where you scan it on the forehead. The digital one works fine until you have a sick squirmy cranky child who didn’t want his/her temperature taken. The Infared one was used on me in the hospital, so I figured if it’s good for the hospital…it’s certainly fine for us. So we got one, it’s much easier and faster to use. But you have to get two to three reading to get an accurate one.
- Bottle warmer…I never had one, I heated up the water in the microwave and heated the bottle with it, it’s just as fast.
- Baby clothes…this can get very expensive. There are lots of nieces and nephews in our house so we have alot of hand-me downs. I’d recommend not to go too crazy on baby clothes, they grow out of it so fast. With Sophia, she’s in a one piece pajamas every day. I like clothes with the feet (in the winter) because it’s not only warm it prevents her from taking off her socks. And I love things with zipper and you’ll know why in this entry (Parenting quick tips and ideas.). Onesies are good to have as well to wear underneath an outfit to keep warm.
- BeddieBye Wearable Blanket by Kiddopotamus…since it’s a safety hazzard to put blankets on babies in the crib, I’ve used this on Sophia and it kept her warm during the night. It’s not cummbersome at all for babies who just learned how to roll over.
- Diaper bag…this is all about personal taste. If you don’t want to buy one, the hospital will give you one after giving birth. I hope all hospitals do anyway. We got three but I never liked the look of it so I bought a bag big enough to hold the essentials, diapers, wipes, snacks, etc…when we go out and still looking hip and fashionable at the same time ;-).
- Munchkin lines…they carry all sorts of products, i.e. formula powder container (for travelling), bottle brush, etc…Personally, I really like this brand because they carry quality products.
- Laundry detergent…we have been using Dreft. It works fine for us so far.
- Bibs…a must have. There’s a disposable bib calls Bibsters from Pampers. It might be convenient but I think that’s a waste of money. A cloth bib works just as good, just do the wash and save your money.
- Hands-Free gates by The First Years…we only needed one for our oldest son’s room when he was a toddler. And when he outgrew it, we passed it down to our pre-schooler’s room. I like this brand because it didn’t require any nails, or screws to be in placed. It’s spring-loaded and still very sturdy. As for the stairs and such, I’m constantly watching my kids with eyes behind my head *wink* so we didn’t need any for the stairs. So it’s up to you and the set up of your house.
- Baby proofing accessories…there are two things that we have around the house for baby proofing, the door knob locks and the electrical outlet caps. There are plenty of products in the market place to baby proofing your house, I’ll leave it up to you to see what’s beneficial for your own home. Just don’t go overboard with it.
- Baby towels and receiving blankets…I do like the towels with the hood for baby. But I wish it was a bit bigger for more coverage for my little porker. As for the receiving blankets, we didn’t need to buy any because we received alot as gifts and hand-me-down.
Products not worth buying:
- Superyard XT…it’s an “interlocking panels” that you can buy to make an enclosed space any where around the house or yard. We bought one to “rally” the kids in one spot while I cook or do housework but it’s not very sturdy. So guess where it is now…yup, the basement! So, not worth the money to invest in!
- Infant pop up tent for the beach…eventhough this has a mesh opening, it was still very hot in the sun and it’s another item you have to carry to the beach. I don’t recommend it at all. You can use the same umbrella that you’re using to cover your baby from the sun.
- Bottle drying rack…I’ve been using an empty tupperware container for milk bottles and sippy cups and it works just as good. Dual-purpose, remember?
- Musical crib mobile…I don’t know how many of these things we had, and they are all in the toy landfill (that’s our basement) right now. I didn’t want my babies to get used to sleeping with music on and then waking up when the music was off.
- Crib comforter set…here’s another product that’s also landed in the toy landfill. Since it’s a safety hazzard for babies to sleep with blankets, I don’t even know why they sell this for the cribs. And the bumper that comes with it, didn’t serve any purpose for our babies. The only thing that’s in Sophia’s crib right now is the crib sheet. And don’t even bother with buying a baby pillow, why? Babies can’t use it any way.
- Nail clipper set…I’ve been using the regular size nail clipper for all of my kids, and it works just as good. Dual-purpose folks!!
- Crib tent…this was the biggest mistake that I’ve bought for my toddler because he climbed out of his crib (that’s a sign to transition him/her into a real bed). He screamed and cried at first and then he got used to it, and couldn’t sleep unless we zipped up the tent. So it took a while for him to get used to sleeping on the bed without the tent. The only good thing about this product is that the mesh also covers the railing totally so little limbs won’t get stuck between the crib rails (which happened to our second son, and he screamed on the top of his lungs…no baby monitor required there).
- Baby toys…there are so many toys for babies and kids out there. Don’t be tempted to buy everything for your little ones. We’ve been through “mountain” of toys for the kids and they either have been donated or landed in the toy landfill (the basement). But the tupperware, the cooking utensils or the pots and pans make really good toys, dual-purpose.
There are several stores that sell baby products, my recommendation is shop around for a good deal. We find that Walmart has the best prices but might not have as much merchandise as Babies ‘r Us. Check out Target as well, they have some unique and eclectic products for your bundle of joy.
I wish you a quick and easy birth! Enjoy your new bundle of joy…it’s going to be one exciting and unforgetable ride!! 
Here’s the final shopping list for you first-time parents. I know, it’s pretty overwhelming isn’t it?! Try having three kids, but then again…there would be alot of hand-me downs. And you know how I love that and dual-purpose products. (Baby products 101 & Baby Products-for the home and car).
If you have a shopping list of your own…feel free to send it in to us. Thanks!
Baby’s Health and Safety Products:
- Baby Bjorn…we have been using one that’s five years old and it still works until my back couldn’t afford to carry my little porker any more. There are alot of different brands in the market place. Again, it’s really a matter of personal taste and feel. I’d recommend buying this after the baby is born so that you can test it out with her/him. And observe how your baby sits on the clasps, is it metal or plastic (you’ll know what I mean when you test it out at the store).
- Baby monitor…I did buy one for our second baby to use for outside…but the reception was really bad eventhough the product claimed that it was the best so needless to say, I returned it and didn’t use one after that. For first-time parents, I’d invest in a monitor with the infared camera. My sister received one as a gift for her first born and it was really useful, until it broke.
- Thermometer…the most accurate temperature reading, according to our pediatrician, is through the rectal (but we opted not to do that *yuck and ow*). We have two different kinds, the inexpensive digital one where you put under the armpit or under the tongue and the Infared Thermometer by Exergen (around $35) where you scan it on the forehead. The digital one works fine until you have a sick squirmy cranky child who didn’t want his/her temperature taken. The Infared one was used on me in the hospital, so I figured if it’s good for the hospital…it’s certainly fine for us. So we got one, it’s much easier and faster to use. But you have to get two to three reading to get an accurate one.
- Bottle warmer…I never had one, I heated up the water in the microwave and heated the bottle with it, it’s just as fast.
- Baby clothes…this can get very expensive. There are lots of nieces and nephews in our house so we have alot of hand-me downs. I’d recommend not to go too crazy on baby clothes, they grow out of it so fast. With Sophia, she’s in a one piece pajamas every day. I like clothes with the feet (in the winter) because it’s not only warm it prevents her from taking off her socks. And I love things with zipper and you’ll know why in this entry (Parenting quick tips and ideas.). Onesies are good to have as well to wear underneath an outfit to keep warm.
- BeddieBye Wearable Blanket by Kiddopotamus…since it’s a safety hazzard to put blankets on babies in the crib, I’ve used this on Sophia and it kept her warm during the night. It’s not cummbersome at all for babies who just learned how to roll over.
- Diaper bag…this is all about personal taste. If you don’t want to buy one, the hospital will give you one after giving birth. I hope all hospitals do anyway. We got three but I never liked the look of it so I bought a bag big enough to hold the essentials, diapers, wipes, snacks, etc…when we go out and still looking hip and fashionable at the same time ;-).
- Munchkin lines…they carry all sorts of products, i.e. formula powder container (for travelling), bottle brush, etc…Personally, I really like this brand because they carry quality products.
- Laundry detergent…we have been using Dreft. It works fine for us so far.
- Bibs…a must have. There’s a disposable bib calls Bibsters from Pampers. It might be convenient but I think that’s a waste of money. A cloth bib works just as good, just do the wash and save your money.
- Hands-Free gates by The First Years…we only needed one for our oldest son’s room when he was a toddler. And when he outgrew it, we passed it down to our pre-schooler’s room. I like this brand because it didn’t require any nails, or screws to be in placed. It’s spring-loaded and still very sturdy. As for the stairs and such, I’m constantly watching my kids with eyes behind my head *wink* so we didn’t need any for the stairs. So it’s up to you and the set up of your house.
- Baby proofing accessories…there are two things that we have around the house for baby proofing, the door knob locks and the electrical outlet caps. There are plenty of products in the market place to baby proofing your house, I’ll leave it up to you to see what’s beneficial for your own home. Just don’t go overboard with it.
- Baby towels and receiving blankets…I do like the towels with the hood for baby. But I wish it was a bit bigger for more coverage for my little porker. As for the receiving blankets, we didn’t need to buy any because we received alot as gifts and hand-me-down.
Products not worth buying:
- Superyard XT…it’s an “interlocking panels” that you can buy to make an enclosed space any where around the house or yard. We bought one to “rally” the kids in one spot while I cook or do housework but it’s not very sturdy. So guess where it is now…yup, the basement! So, not worth the money to invest in!
- Infant pop up tent for the beach…eventhough this has a mesh opening, it was still very hot in the sun and it’s another item you have to carry to the beach. I don’t recommend it at all. You can use the same umbrella that you’re using to cover your baby from the sun.
- Bottle drying rack…I’ve been using an empty tupperware container for milk bottles and sippy cups and it works just as good. Dual-purpose, remember?
- Musical crib mobile…I don’t know how many of these things we had, and they are all in the toy landfill (that’s our basement) right now. I didn’t want my babies to get used to sleeping with music on and then waking up when the music was off.
- Crib comforter set…here’s another product that’s also landed in the toy landfill. Since it’s a safety hazzard for babies to sleep with blankets, I don’t even know why they sell this for the cribs. And the bumper that comes with it, didn’t serve any purpose for our babies. The only thing that’s in Sophia’s crib right now is the crib sheet. And don’t even bother with buying a baby pillow, why? Babies can’t use it any way.
- Nail clipper set…I’ve been using the regular size nail clipper for all of my kids, and it works just as good. Dual-purpose folks!!
- Crib tent…this was the biggest mistake that I’ve bought for my toddler because he climbed out of his crib (that’s a sign to transition him/her into a real bed). He screamed and cried at first and then he got used to it, and couldn’t sleep unless we zipped up the tent. So it took a while for him to get used to sleeping on the bed without the tent. The only good thing about this product is that the mesh also covers the railing totally so little limbs won’t get stuck between the crib rails (which happened to our second son, and he screamed on the top of his lungs…no baby monitor required there).
- Baby toys…there are so many toys for babies and kids out there. Don’t be tempted to buy everything for your little ones. We’ve been through “mountain” of toys for the kids and they either have been donated or landed in the toy landfill (the basement). But the tupperware, the cooking utensils or the pots and pans make really good toys, dual-purpose.
There are several stores that sell baby products, my recommendation is shop around for a good deal. We find that Walmart has the best prices but might not have as much merchandise as Babies ‘r Us. Check out Target as well, they have some unique and eclectic products for your bundle of joy.
I wish you a quick and easy birth! Enjoy your new bundle of joy…it’s going to be one exciting and unforgetable ride!!
It’s a GREAT list !!! Wish that I could have a list like that when I was pregnant my first one . I second your opinion on the baby products ! Thanks a bunch for sharing all the tips .
For the bottle warmer , I bought the Avent one for my daughter 3 years ago . I had no regret at all. If you plan to use Avent bottles , i highly recommend getting an Avent bottle warmer.
thanks for the insight i felt it really helpful