I know everyone says it, but it is truly wild how quickly time passes. We have now officially hit the two-month mark with our little babe. The amount of development changes that have happened in these last 4 weeks is pretty phenomenal. My most used newborn baby essentials have changed as well.
The first month can be summarized as naps (for both of us!), feedings & diaper changes, while the second month has brought us big, toothless smiles, lots of coos and far more awake & interactive time.
I received great responses to my 14 Most Used Newborn Essentials in the First Month post (now updated to 15 because I forgot one of my most favourite items!) so I thought I would do the same and recap my most used items in the second month.
Like I had anticipated, we used many of the things we received as gifts or purchased ourselves but did not touch in the first month. In the second month, a lot of these newborn baby essentials have come in handy.
Here I outline what I found to be newborn baby essentials in the second month and why.
I should make note, I am using these newborn essentials in the second month in addition to my favourite essentials from the first month, not replacing them.
Check out the post on My 14 Most Used Newborn Essentials in the First Month, in addition to this post, for the full list of newborn baby essentials for the first 2 months.
My Most Used Newborn Baby Essentials in the Second Month
1. Baby Bjorn Carrier
I am absolutely loving being able to carry my little munchkin around on my chest – also known as baby wearing.
This Baby Bjorn carrier has been really great for 3 specific reasons:
- My husband loves it! This is his most favourite baby item we own. To be able to carry her so close to him is such a great feeling. He takes her for walks in it all the time. It is entirely adjustable so it fits both of us very well.
- I love using it for walks as well when I don’t want to take the stroller out.
- I also love it for the middle of the night when I am trying to get her back to sleep and it’s taking a bit longer!
The Baby Bjorn Carrier is very sturdy and really, really easy to get the baby in and out of safely.
2. Konny
The Konny Baby Carrier Original is another form of baby carrier that I have been using pretty religiously. This one I use more so for in the house.
This is like your traditional baby wearing wrap, but without the need to wrap before you put it on.
It is made from a light yet durable and soft cotton. You essentially put it on like a T-shirt and then slide the baby in.
I use this one inside the house. It is a lot less bulky than the Baby Bjorn therefore she fits much closer to me and I know she really likes that.
It is great for daytime baby wearing, when she doesn’t like to be put down and wants to be held and for daytime naps.
Check out my full and honest (and non-gifted) review of the Konny Baby Carrier.
3. Breast Pump
While I owned this from the beginning, I did not need to use this in the first month which is why it didn’t make an appearance on my first list.
I really wanted to ensure breastfeeding was established before I pumped. But, honestly, the reason was more so that I couldn’t find any spare time to pump it seemed, as feeding was happening so frequently in the first month.
My husband was also super eager to be able to feed her a bottle, so in the second month we started that process. I will say – that was a bit of a fight. She did not like the bottle at first, but after about 5-7 days of consistently trying, she finally took it – and happily.
After reading loads of reviews and doing lots of different research, I landed on the Medela Freestyle Flex.
Pretty much every single one of my mom friends has it and every review said that it was worth it.
Why I like it:
- I like the ability to pump both sides at the same time
- It is powerful – I find this to be very important
- It can be charged by USB, making it great for travel
- There is a Medela app you can pair the pump with via Bluetooth to keep track of your sessions, plus lots of helpful articles and how-tos
3. Haaka
The Haaka is a silicone, suction pump that catches excess milk on the side you are not feeding on.
The reviews on the Haaka are really, really good and now I see why.
As I got more comfortable in the second month, I began using the Haaka for middle of the night and morning feeds. I would sometimes get 3 – 4 ounces on one side.
I would recommend getting the lid as well. Because the Haaka is made from silicone, it is not terribly sturdy. The worst thing would be to accidentally knock it over and lose all that precious gold!
4. Babyzen Stroller
The Babyzen Yoyo+ is a must-have for the city Mom – especially if you don’t have a car and want to get around places easily. It is small and compact, folds up easily and can take you from newborn to toddler with the correct attachments.
It is also a great stroller if you plan to do any travel as it is approved to fit in the overhead compartment on a plane.
I am using the Babyzen Yoyo+ with the newborn kit and the compatible BeSafe Car Seat.
We do not have a car, so I was very particular when ensuring we were finding the safest car seat for Ubering around, as well as ensuring the car seat would pair with a stroller.
I will say, I found the Babyzen very challenging to assemble and collapse right away but once I gave it a few tries and watched a lot of YouTube videos, I mastered it. Although tiny and compact, it is still rather heavy but manageable.
5. Books
It is crazy how quickly babies develop. Big development changes happen by the week and sometimes even the day.
As we settle into more of a routine throughout our days & evenings, as well as more awake time in our second month, books have been a go-to.
We are choosing a variety of books – heritage storybooks that have been around for ages (and are giving me flashbacks to my own childhood!), as well as really specific high-contrast, color-blocked books for eye development.
It has been proven that high contrast books (specifically in black, white and red) are great for a baby’s eye development, so we are focusing on ensuring we are reading her those books and showing her the pictures.
6. Play gym
In addition to the books being colourful, we have been putting our little miss in a bright coloured play mat/gym since essentially her first week.
She could not have cared less about the colours or the hanging toys in those first 5-6 weeks, but all of sudden in the last couple of weeks it is like she discovered what she was surrounded by – and loves it!
She loves looking at the bright colours and reaching out to touch the toys.
7. Colourful toys
Not only do we have her on a bright play mat, we are also usings lots of fun, bright, colourful toys for her that also make small sounds – like bells or crinkling.
These are great for tummy time to get her attention and encourage her to keep her head up or turn it the other way.
She also loves these hand and foot toys. As she is discovering her hands in month two (not so much feet yet) so loves the noise this makes on her wrist when she moves her arms.
The second month has brought so many cute and exciting development changes. It has also brought much more confidence as parents so we are doing a lot more than we did in the first month with her both in and out of the house.
I am still using all my favourites from the first month but have found these additional 7 above to be my go-to this month.
We are also folding and storing onesies every weekend it feels now as she is growing out of them quickly – no, slow down!!
What have been your go-to essentials in the first couple of months? Let me know here in case I am missing some crucial items.