Newborn Essentials Every Parent Really Needs

There are dozens (millions?) of lists for newborn essentials for when you bring that baby home. But, here are our suggestions for a realistic list of newborn essentials including our favorite product brands too.

Bringing home a newborn is so exciting… and terrifying. I mean, they just let you take this human with you? Seems wild, but I’ll take it.

Now that we are on baby #2, we don’t consider ourselves experts, but we do have some practice knowing what is worth it and what’s not totally necessary to have (for mom, dad, and the babe!) during those first few weeks with your little peanut.

I should also specify that our list goes along with our life which includes a baby boy, formula feeding and having a four year old at home. Your checklist might need to include a few other things if you are breastfeeding (good list here!), have more kiddos or this is your first one!

Also, I’d like to point out that this is in NO WAY sponsored by Target, but it’s our go-to store for all things baby so about 90% of the items here are from there.

Let’s talk clothing. Repeat after me, SNAPS ON BABY CLOTHES ARE THE WORST. You do not want to snap up jammies at 2am after you’ve changed the diaper of a hangry newborn. I did this last night because all our zippered jammies were in the laundry, it was the worst.

While I love looking at the trendy clothes on Instagram babies, I cannot bring myself to spend $30 on an outfit that they will wear for a few weeks and either pee, poop, or throw up on.

There are our favorite brands and links to some of the clothes we have for Finn and some we had for Olivia when she was a baby.

• Onesies. I particularly love the Cat & Jack Baby brand at Target. I won’t lie to you, I usually buy these on clearance at the end of the season and stock up for bigger sizes. But, their regular prices are also super reasonable and the quality is great.
• Jammies. I should say footie jammies to be precise… and zipper ones only! I really like the Cloud Island ones at Target because they are pretty breathable and hold up well when washed. It’s a nice layer when you are swaddling them too.

Anddd that’s all the clothing you need for a newborn. If you are heading outside, you’ll need socks and hats too but we never really use those at home.

I do want to share some ideas for clothing for mom, dad, and siblings though too! You gotta be clothed too, although you might be covered in liquids of unknown origin for a while.

• Matching Outfits. I am a VERY big fan of matching clothing and I will not apologize for it. I have this set of “love you more/most” t-shirts from Jam Threads and can’t wait to do a little family photoshoot with them. My sister bought this matching outfit for Joel and Finn and it’s so cute, especially if you like to play video games.
• Cozy Jammies. I also love cute matching jammies for myself. I have a set from Costco that were like $15 but I am obsessed with this $21 set from Target. I have it in black but want it in every color. I wore these at the hospital (see above) to make me feel a little more human. New mom hack for you, fancy jammies and a shower will make you feel like a new woman.

I can’t figure out a “theme” for this section except for “you need these newborn items.” Now, every baby is different but these items were essentials for both of our kiddos as little babies.

• Binky/Pacifier. We are team binky in this house and have used two brands exclusively. The MAM brand is great for when they are a little bigger. We buy them at Target, this three pack is just $10. We also have been using the Itzy Ritzy brand (see above) for Finn and he loves them. You can snag them here at Target.
• Boppy & Baby Lounger. I love love love our boppy. We have this one, but I know people also love the newborn lounger. My sister gifted us her snuggle me baby lounger which is great for safe little naps on the couch or bed while we are binging Kim’s Convenience on Netflix.
• Receiving Blankets. We use these for everything – as burp clothes, to lay down while changing him, cozying him up in his boppy, etc. Instead of buying separate pieces of fabric for all of the above – just stock up on receiving blankets (like these ones) and then buy like 2-3 more than you think.
• Bath Stuff. When our babes are newborns, we only give them a bath every few days. Okay, maybe as a toddler too (oops). When bath time comes, you’ll need a few things to keep them safe and cozy! We have this baby bath, these baby towels, and this body wash. That’s it! We use a little brush from the hospital for his sweet little hair.

Whether you try to leave the house after 2 days or 2 weeks or 2 months, you’ll need some travel essentials for your little one. These are the items that we’ve bought and used for both our kiddos.

• Baby Carrier. So we tried bought like 4 baby carriers in the first week of Finn being home. We wanted one that would work for home and while we were out at the park or a store and the Baby Bjorn Mini and LOVE it. I can hold him while also playing hide and seek with Olivia or while walking around Franklin Park Conservatory.
• Baby Jogger Stroller. We have now had two Baby Jogger strollers and I’m obsessed with them. We’ve used the City Mini GT1 for four years and it’s wonderful. Now, we have the City Select LUX and it has a HUGE storage area. We buy our pricier items on Albee Baby because they have “last season” colors for a fraction of the price if you purchase at a traditional baby store.
• Carseat. This is a given, obviously. I will say to not stress SO much because all carseats go through vigorous testing to ensure they are safe. We used a Chicco carseat with Olivia and currently have a Maxi-Cosi with Finn. Both are great, but I love the sleekness of the Maxi-Cosi! You will need to buy an adapter to fit into your stroller, though.

Now, most importantly – baby (and everyone else) has to eat! I mentioned above that we are on the formula journey so that’s what we cover in our list. If you are breastfeeding (awesome!), here is another good checklist for you. But, here are all your newborn essentials for feeding that sweet little pumpkin.

• Bottles. Of course! With Olivia, we used the Munchkin Latch bottles but we couldn’t find them at Target this time around. We are alternating between Phillips Avent Anti-Colic and Dr. Brown’s bottles. He seems to be fine with both and we have about 8 bottles total, which all get used in a day!
• Bottle Warmer. We have found that the best bottle warmers are the most simple ones. I know there are super fancy ones and ones that measure formula. But, we wanted something mobile that we could easily bring upstairs for those late night feedings and something not super pricey. Ours is $24.99 and 5% off at Target when you use a RedCard.
• Formula. We started him with a bunch of free samples of Similac that we got and then made the switch to the Target brand “gentle” formula. It’s the one in the purple container! This is what we used for Olivia. We watch for sales and then stock up – like when they do the “spend $100, get a $20 gift card” or when it’s on sale in the Target Circle app.
• Diaper/Wipes. I put this one under the food category because it seems fitting. We (no surprise) use the Target brand wipes and diapers! They work great and are a super affordable price. Also, if you are gifted a diaper brand you don’t want to use – you can exchange at Target without a receipt for the brand that you’d like.

There you have it friends, a super realistic and simple list of newborn essentials. You’ll need more items as your peanut grows, but the newborn stage is full of bottles, diapers, and snuggles. You don’t need a ton of fancy items to keep them happy and safe.