As I enter the third trimester of our third pregnancy, I’ve gotten the urge to clean out the clutter and focus on the must-haves. It’s almost impossible to not be a minimalist with your third child. I have bins and bins of girl clothes from my daughter and bins and bins of boy clothes from my son. Each of the bins are filled with organized treasures from baby blankets, to bibs, toys, bonnets, shoes, and of course clothes. I try my best to separate the outgrown children’s clothes by age range, but recently as I’ve started to re-open these boxes in preparation for my son, I’m realizing how many cheap and worn-out clothes I really should have donated. Moving forward, I’m going to try to keep the heirloom, monogram pieces to share with family cousins, but I really don’t think anyone is going to want my daughter’s Old Navy 2021 Fourth of July t-shirt in a 2T.
Below is a list of things I’m keeping or buying more of, and I hope you find it useful as you plan for your little bundle of joy!
Pregnancy Must-Haves
Maternity Pajamas
Some mommas-to-be will swear by their husband’s oversized t-shirts, but I prefer to have a true maternity pajama. Most are nursing-friendly, and I’ve worn them for all three pregnancies and post-partum, which is 5-ish years of my life, so I think it’s worth the investment!
Also, maternity PJs are a GREAT gift for a mom-to-be. It’s not a fun thing to buy for yourself, but it’s appreciated!
Maternity PJ Splurge: Lake Pajama
Maternity PJ Save: Kindred Bravley
Maternity Undergarments
For the third time around, I’ve had a lot more round ligament pain than my previous pregnancies. I highly recommend the Motif Pregnancy Back Brace, as it is only $40 and it is a game changer! (I have tried several brands, and this one is the most adjustable and offers the most support.) It truly takes a load off your back, and makes it easier to stand for long periods of time, or even just go on a walk in the neighborhood.
Compression Socks – These will make your legs feel so much better! I wear them under my work clothes because I sit at a desk all day.
Another hot take- maternity underwear does make you feel more comfortable! With that crazy enlarged bra size and a growing belly stretching out all your undies, these are my favorite undies (Auden maternity undies from Target) and my favorite bras (Motherhood Maternity soft nursing bras) to wear during pregnancy and post-partum. I literally have been surviving on Motherhood Maternity soft nursing bras for going on 5 years now… they are V-neck, so they fit under most necklines. They’re padded and easy for nursing.
Lastly, I highly reccomend doing a clothing subscription rental from Rent the Runway or Nuuly. I’ve tried both, and I’m really enjoying Nuuly right now. Especially if you work in an office, this is the best place to get maternity clothes that fit well and are seasonably appropriate. It’s also a great resource for baby shower dresses and special occasions. I even make sure to get at least one casual outfit to wear to the park with my kids- overall shorts with a cute tee have been my go-to! With Nuuly, you get 6 items a month and it has helped me save so much money and time on finding clothes that fit.
Maternity Workout Clothes
I am also a huge fan of maternity workout clothes. I spend a lot of time in atheleisure and though some prengant ladies love an oversized t shirt and just stretch out their old shorts, I like to invest in a few quality pieces and some cheap finds, to have some go-to things to throw on for weekends, laying around the house, etc.
I love Beyond Yoga Maternity. I have a pair of their leggings that I’ve worn for every pregnancy. I have a short skort I like too. I also like their maternity t shirts, but size up in the shirts. All of their clothing is SO SOFT.
For my cheap athleisure finds, I like Old Navy black gym shorts, and I’ve found a few tops and shorts from Amazon as well, to fill in the gaps. You’ll find as a pregnant woman getting dressed takes so much longer because things start to be so uncomfortable, it’s hard to put outfits together!
Cheap finds
- Favorite Amazon Maternity Gym Shorts
- Favorite Amazon Maternity Workout Top (I wish I’d gotten this in more colors) Size up.
Post-partum necessities
Pads for first few weeks– You can also take these from the hospital! I used the hospital jumbo pads for the first week, with the hospital-issued mesh panties. Then I just used Always Flexfoam Pads for the subsequent weeks. These Always Flexfoam Pads are made in a ton of different sizes- I started with size 5 and then decreased over the next three weeks to a size 2.
Always Pure Cotton FlexFoam Pads– These 100% Cotton version of the Always Flexfoam pads have been the best! The cotton isn’t irritating, and the flexfoam stays dry.
You don’t need adult diapers– I bought adult diapers, but only used them at night, and I thought that the mesh underwear with a large hospital pad was sufficient. Adult diapers also weren’t cost efficient, since you have to change your pad every three hours. I also found that the elastic wasn’t comfortable on my belly, which was the main reason I’m not recommending them.
Newborn Travel Gear
Carseat/Stroller – Doona or Uppababy carseat with the stroller.
Pro of the Doona is convenience. This is a carseat with wheels that pop out into a full stroller when you get it out of the car. Con is that you will have to buy a new stroller when they outgrow the Doona within the first year.
Pro of the Uppa baby carseat is that it clips into the stroller frame really easily and that stroller has a big kid seat that you can use until the kid is 5 years old and beyond. It also converts into a double stroller which is a must-have for twins, and really convenient that all you have to do is purchase an additional stroller seat and attachments for it to convert to a 2-seater.
Now that I’ve been around the block a time or two, I can also say great things about the Nuna car seat and stroller system, and it also seems like a Bob jogger stroller is the way to go for two bigger kids getting to ride side-by-side. I am also considering upgrading to the Wonderfold Wagon once our new baby can sit up so we can easily fit 3 kiddos in one device for outdoor festivals, etc.
Baby Carrier – I like this Ergobaby one!
Newborn Nursery Must-haves
- Crib
- Crib mattress (Do not stress about this. There are 1 million brands out there. It truly doesn’t matter.)
- Crib sheets (X4)
- Crib mattress protector
- Dresser
- Glider/Rocking chair (I’ve seen some nurseries have 2 – one for mom and one for dad, so the other parent doesn’t have to sit on the floor if they’re in there together) I love the pottery barn selection.
- Side table for rocking chair for your water, phone, etc.
- Changing table (on top of dresser)
- Changing table cover (x4)
- Diaper pail
- One pack of NB size diapers (We like Pampers Pure)
- Two packs of size 1 diapers (We like Pampers Pure)
- 5+ packs of wipes
- Dirty clothes hamper
- Baby Monitor
- Sound Machine – We have the hatch, but I’m sure there are others!
- Closet organizers (This sounds odd, but it’s very helpful in organizing what clothes are for what age and season.)
- Baby hangers
- Bouncy Seat
- Baby play gym
- Pack-in-play – Do not stress about this. There are lots of luxury brands out there. Kids don’t care. These are usually for when you go stay at your grandparents house or stay at an air-bnb. No one sees this and the standard ones from Walmart work great. Do not spend more than $100 on this… trust me there are so many areas to splurge this is not one of them.
- Bassinet – It can be helpful to have a bassinet in mom and dad’s room at first, and then we moved it to the living room so we had a place for baby to nap during the day or hang out with a toy here and there. We love our pottery barn wicker bassinet, and sometimes you can find these on Facebook marketplace!
Sleep
- An absolute must is the Mom’s on Call book! It has the best guidelines for sleep training, and establishing a good feeding, sleeping, and playing routine overall! Both of our babies were sleeping through the night in 8 weeks! Moms on Call also has an app that updates based on her age, so that you can know how feedings and naps change as she gets older.
- 5-10 pajama footies in each size (NB, 0-3, 3-6 to start). Our favorite footies are Kyte and Little Sleepies because the cotton ones from cheaper places just shrink and the zipper quality isn’t the best in the night for quick changes. The bamboo-style fabric is much easier to get on and off.
- Swaddleme swaddles (For newborn swaddling. Come in a pack of 2 or 3)
- Kyte Swaddle (These convert from a newborn swaddle to a sleep sack when they start to roll)
- Kyte Sleep Sacks (Worth the splurge) I have at least 3 in each size. Don’t sweat the different weights. The 1 tog is fine for most climates.
Feeding Baby
- High chair
- Bibs and burb cloths
- Nursing pillow- My Breast Friend
- Bottles – We are a huge fan of Phillips Avent bottles! Purchase about 8 of the 4oz bottles and then 12 of the 9oz bottles. Daycares require plastic bottles, so don’t waste your $$ on glass! These only have two parts- top and bottom. They are super easy to throw in the dish washer. They also sell different “flow” nipples as the baby gets older and can handle a faster flow of milk. This cuts down on feeding times tremendously as they get a few months older! They sell these bottle nipples at Target and Amazon.
- Bottle warmer- We love the Phillips Avent rapid bottle warmer for our home. It also auto-shuts off so the bottle never gets too hot.
- Portable bottle warmer– This Baby’s Brew is a must-have if you are on-the-go! We loved being able to heat a bottle at a restaurant, in the car, etc. so it was ready to go whenever we got to where we were going.
Additional Reading
For other helpful articles that dive into a bit more detail:
Tine Murray 