Babies come with A LOT of stuff. Some items are hardly touched before they outgrow them, others see daily use, and then there are the earth-shattering finds that can literally change your life as a parent. I’ve gone through quite a few baby products over my six year motherhood “career” and I’ve had a lot of let-downs (like the mama-roo I NEEDED my baby to love) and then there were the few gems that I ended up eating, sleeping, and breathing by. Read on for the five items no mama should have to go without because they are just THAT good!

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The Love To Dream Swaddle

I don’t know about you but I never got the hang of the baby origami required by a normal swaddle. As soon as I thought I got it nice and tight my little mini-Houdinis would wiggle their lil arms right out of my previously “secure” packaging job. With my oldest I experimented with the HALO SleepSack Swaddle.  It worked better than a traditional swaddle due to my lackluster baby wrapping skills (especially at 2 am), but I always worried about my lil’ one wiggling til the fabric was over his face.

With my youngest I bought this swaddle on a whim, and have been blown away by the results! He sleeps for hours (even at nap time), midnight diaper changes are no-fuss due to the two way zipper., and it makes him look like an adorable peapod. When your baby starts rolling over the brand also offers the Love To Dream Swaddle- 50/50, a transitional swaddle that lets you unzip one arm so they can slowly acclimate to the freedom of swaddle-free sleep.

Playtex Baby Nurser Bottle with Drop-Ins Disposable Liners

I have used these bottles with both my babies and, although I have tried a few others, I can’t imagine ever switching. These bottles have disposable liners so they don’t require sterilization between feeds, which is a HUGE time saver. Every time I use one I just have to sterilize the nipple and at most do a quick rinse of the bottle if random drippage occurred (my baby is kind of a messy eater).

With family living nearby and a 5 year old brother who always seems to have somewhere to be, portability is a huge concern for me. With these, leaving the house is as easy as throwing a few extra nipples and liners in a bag, bring along ONE bottle, and formula. I seriously cannot say how much I love these enough, so if you are all about making YOUR life easier, I highly recommend giving these a go.

Medela Quick Clean Micro-steam Bags

There are so many sanitizing products out there, from sanitizing wipes to sprays to old fashioned boiling water. I’ve done them all. In my experience the sprays and wipes either leave a residue or never seem to get the product clean enough where I feel safe using it. Boiling water is a pain since it always seems to take FOREVER and it never fails that my son wakes up just as the water is boiling (hint: babies and boiling water don’t mix). Enter the product that revolutionized motherhood for me: Medela Quick Clean Micro-steam Bags.

These could not be easier to use. All you have to do is do a quick wash and rinse of your bottles/ nipples/ breast pump parts (just don’t try it with breast pump tubing), put them in the bag, add the correct amount of water, then microwave. The steam sterilizes every nook and cranny so you KNOW the parts are safe to use. When combined with the bottles I mentioned before, you just have to throw the nipples in there and that’s it! See how easy this motherhood thing can be?

 Owlet Smart Sock 2 Baby Monitor

If one baby product has changed my life it would be this one. First let me be clear, The American Academy of Pediatrics does not endorse the use of Cardiorespiratory monitors to reduce the risk of SIDS, which makes it especially important not to go against any SIDS guidelines even when using the Owlet. That being said, the owlet has given me a peace of mind I only wish I would have had with my first child. From the first night after he was born, I was always terrified he would aspirate in his sleep or some crazy thing would happen and I wouldn’t hear him needing me, which led to a lot of missed sleep.

With my youngest the Owlet has helped me rest assured he is okay while I rest. I have also used the app before hopping in the shower or starting a DIY project to see how deep asleep he really is ( they have an upgraded app available that makes this super easy but by this point I know his normal “sleep” and “stirring” heart rates like the back pf my hand). The app is easy to use and while we have had 4 connection issues leading to false alarms (and near heart attacks), I really don’t think over the course of 6 months that is a bad record, and it has let me know that the Owlet actually does it’s job!

Calmoseptine

I don’t know if I ever thought I’d say I LOVE a diaper cream, but I LOVE this diaper cream. 

With my first I found Boudreaux maximum strength and I thought that was good as diaper creams got but then I found this gem thanks to some samples from my pediatrician. Now I can’t imagine ever going back to any other products! 

I would love to hear of any other baby products that have changed your lives! I’m ALWAYS looking for new functional products to make my life easier (because as we all know being a mama is hard enough).