What you REALLY Need when you are Expecting a Baby, according to me, The Bourne Explorer. A mother.

The majority of my Besties are presently baby bumping and I have been asked a number of times and (recently by my badass pal, Jess Davidoff, who is due in September), what Moms to be actually need. I have told my other friends who were expecting, “Fuck the Baby Books and Blogs, they are all bullshit”. All you need is your tit and a carrier. 😉

Granted that is a slight exaggeration. But not by much…

I was sent baby spreadsheets of list of gadgets, special clothing, spaceship rockers that take up half your apartment living room, and crap for the beach that are just dust collectors.  I instantly had a case of terrets. And, frankly the excess just adds anxiety that soon to be moms definitely don’t need.

Below is a Simple and Non Stressful List; And I believe is all that you need to have, when you leave the hospital:

1) A sling wrap for when your baby is super small.  www.boba.com

2) Ergo 360 carrier, I would leave for the whole day and transport Sunny from the carrier, to the stroller, to my arms all day. www.ergo.com

3) Uppababy Vista stroller, Mesa Infant Car seat, we used the car seat as the stroller attachment while Sunny was small. Uppababy is great for city streets, plus the large under carriage is necessary for all your apparatus. I would go food shopping, pack an umbrella, store her diaper bag, and shop, for things throughout the day. www.uppababy.com

4) Breastfeeding Pillow https://www.boppy.com

5) Dr. Brown Bottles, We tried every brand and this was our favorite www.drbrownsbaby.com

6) I did part breast feeding, part formula, but I would only use Hole or Hipp formula from Germany. They don’t sell in stores or on Amazon. Organic Munckin sells the product and they have amazing customer service. (Tell them The Bourne Explorer sent you for an extra discount).

7) Baby seat bouncer

8) An array of blankets and burp clothes for wrapping, swaddling, and light protection www.adenandanais.com were my favorite. Organic cotton and super cute patterns!

9) Bath Towels with hoodies (these are the cutest photos when you wrap them in a towel with a cow hood after a bath)

10) Diapers, rash ointment, dekor diaper pale and liners, diaper bag: It seems like everyone swears by their diaper bag. I searched for a while for something I liked rocking and that was practical. I ended up buying a gray and orange sling bag from Amazon. But, later started using a Marc Jacobs backpack my friend Drew got me for my birthday. A backpack with lots of pockets is the best choice, as it allows you to be arm free and balanced.  Plus, some days you can just take the backpack and the carrier with no stroller.

11) Baby Moniter. We registered for a pricy monitor my friend raved about. It was hard to use and was not our favorite. But regardless, find a monitor that is easy to use and has both sound and camera features.

12) Bassinet and Crib: We ordered the bassinet from Uppababy but Sunny never fancied it. However, other parents keep their babies in it for months. We were fortunate that my father-in-law built us a hand made cherry crib but many people I know bought cribs from Restoration Hardware and BuyBuy BABY.

13) Activity Mats or Gym Mats are a necessity! I call it a second nanny. They stimulate the baby with the music melodies, and aid in multi-senory exploration. Your nugget will learn to turn and do tummy time on it. And, gym mats do not take up a lot of room.