Our baby boy was born September 30, 2025 at 3:07am weighing 5lbs. 6oz.  He is the most beautiful baby boy and we are so in love!

I can’t move on without saying a huge thank you to all of you!  I’ve had so many messages and acts of kindness towards David and I over the last year since we announced our news and I can’t tell you how touched I am at everyone’s thoughtfulness and kindness towards us.  It has truly touched us so deeply and we can’t say thank you enough to everyone who took time out of their busy lives to send us those sweet words or generous gifts.  We truly have the best village and people in our corner and it means more to us than we can express. 💛

Becoming a first-time mom has been the wildest, sweetest, most eye-opening adventure — and along the way, I’ve discovered a few baby items that have truly made life easier. I got so many recommendations while I was pregnant, but now that we’re a month in, I can confidently say these five are the real MVPs for me.

Here are my Top 8 Baby Must-Haves:

Momcozy Bottle Washer + Sanitizer

I’m the first to admit this is a luxury item, but when I tell you I run this thing at least twice a day, I’m not exaggerating.  You can also wash pump parts in here if you’re breastfeeding.  It saves me so much time, and I can’t tell you enough how glad I am that I splurged on this item.  (Hot Tip: I would wait for Amazon Prime day to order this.  It went on sale both times prime day came around (almost $100 off AND you can stack it with your registry discount).

 

 

Owlet Dream Sock

This is another item I’d consider a splurge, but my peace of mind is worth it.  Lots of people talk about the false alerts, but after the first few nights when we learned how to get the sock on securely, we haven’t had any false alerts and the peace of mind is so worth it to me!  I was able to grab mine on facebook marketplace for 1/3 of the price so definitely look there first!

 

 

Baby Monitor

I think this one goes without saying.  We went with a non wifi dual monitor which allows us to have two cameras in different rooms.  It’s an easy setup and does everything we need. It’s why I’m able to steal a few hours of work in the early mornings before our little guy wakes up and allows me to still keep an eye on him.

 

 

Baby Wrap

I never thought I’d be the baby-wearing type of mom, but boy was I wrong!  I love this thing and more importantly, so does baby boy!  This allows me to have him close when he wants comfort but still go about our daily house chores that need to be done throughout the day/week.

 

 

Hands Free Breast Pump

I tried several before this one that friends let me borrow and had zero luck with them.  This one was recommended by a mom group I’m in and it was on sale at the time.  I decided to give the portable breast pump thing one last effort and ordered it.  I love this one.  I’ve had such success with this and it’s the same output or more than my wall-powered Spectra.  Not being tied down to a plug-in pump multiple times a day has been such a mental health boost.

 

Stroller Fan

This one might seem insignificant, but for someone who goes for walks every day and is continuing to do that because it’s a non-negotiable for my mental health, this stroller fan to help keep baby cool with our Houston heat is a must!

 

 

Zipper Compression Swaddle

There’s so many different swaddles on the market, but this one was the best for my baby.  After the recommendation from a friend, we started using these and he started sleeping so much better at night and was so much easier to get to go back down in the middle of the night after feedings.  We only use this swaddle at nighttime to help associate it with bedtime for our little guy.

 

 

Sound Machine

We use this sound machine every. single. day.  It acts as a great night light when doing middle of the night feedings, but also helps our baby sleep during the day and drown out the day-to-day noises in a household so he can get good sleep and doesn’t wake up.

 

 

Other items I found useful in this baby journey can be viewed HERE.

I know this is a little different from my normal content, but I also know that I have a lot of first-time moms or soon-to-be first-time moms who follow me on here and I thought it might be helpful.  Obviously what works for me might not work for everyone, but hopefully this helps a few of y’all!