I can’t believe this little girl has been part of our lives for more than six months already. Being a parent has been the most terrifying and exhausting adventure, but every gummy little smile makes it so, so worth it.  She’s 16lbs, 12oz of pure joy.  We are so immeasurably blessed to have such a happy little girl, who (usually) sleeps through the night, is taking to solid food like a champ (the gal loves her carbs), and is starting to cruise around on the floor (let the baby proofing begin!).

I feel like we’ve learned so much in the last six months.  It’s so true what they say – you’re never totally prepared to become a parent.  But, in an attempt to help out those new and soon-to-be moms, let’s run down the six things that have been completely worth the investment these first six months.

1  //  Our Graco Pack N Play Suite

A colleague asked me what my one favorite baby item was and this is definitely it.  Our nursery is up the stairs and across the house so we needed something that we could use in our room the first few months, and we didn’t want to invest in a bassinet she would quickly outgrow.  This pack n play is perfect.  She sleeps with the bassinet insert, and we also leave the changing pad on top to use for diaper changes.  The included bouncer snaps off and is pretty much the only reason I got to shower those first few months.  Even when she was fussy, I’d put her in there and turn on the vibration and she would be asleep soon.

2  //  The Owlet Monitor

I know there’s a lot of debate in mom’s groups over whether the Owlet gives you more peace of mind or makes you more paranoid.  For us, it’s been a worthwhile investment.  We had a few alarms the first week we were home, but only “yellow” alarms from the sock not being secure.  Once we figured out the best way to put it on, we haven’t had an issue.  I love being able to glance over when she’s really quiet and see the faint green light pulse slightly, assuring me she’s okay.  We also send it to our parents’ when they watch her.  I like that I can sync it to their WiFi and monitor her at night from my phone, even when I’m not there.

3  //  Halo sleep sacks

We were issued one in the hospital and immediately ordered a few more for home.  I love this version that you can use to swaddle arms in or arms out.  We realized quickly that while E loved her swaddle, she hated her arms being tied down.  We transitioned her to these larger sleep sacks without the Velcro once she was comfortably sleeping through the night.

4  //  Her “kick piano”

Okay, so obviously that’s not really what it’s called. It is her favorite toy, though.  An amazing family at our gym gifted us this Fisher Price piano gym.  It’s been Evie’s favorite toy since she was a few weeks old and can be modified to grow with her, from a piano she can kick to one she can play sitting up.

5  //  A portable white noise machine

This wasn’t really a major investment.  In fact, it’s a HUGE steal for the value it’s delivered.  My friend told me about this (and gifted us this one) and it’s been the best.  We can easily transition it from her pack n play downstairs to her crib upstairs and send it along with her to the grandparents for consistency in her bedtime routine.

6  //  The easiest baby car seat EVER

Everyone we spoke with recommended the Chicco Keyfit 30, from the employee working the car seat section in BuyBuyBaby to other mom friends to our veterinarian (we have two bulldogs and spend a lot of time at the vet haha).  We have two bases which makes it easy to switch the carrier between our cars.  Install is incredibly easy and simple, so we even swap the base into my in-laws car to drive up the road for weekly family dinner instead of taking our car.  We use an adapter to pop the carrier into our Uppababy stroller, too, and it will work as a car seat until she’s 1.

The things you might be surprised not to find on this list?  Our stroller, the baby monitor, a Dock-a-Tot or bassinet, and most of the items in her room.  We’ve found that most of those items could either (a) be replaced by less expensive versions or (b) skipped entirely.  But more on that in another post… 

SHOP OUR MUST-HAVES