Congratulations!! I am going to assume that if you are reading this than you are well on your way to figuring out all things baby registry! Before you continue to read, please take a moment and take a deep breath. Next, smile and have a moment of immense gratitude for that precious, miracle growing inside of you or your partner! Pregnancy is such a beautiful journey full of so many emotions and preparing your hearts for the arrival of your sweet bundle of joy is something seriously special. I wanted to put this helpful guide together sharing your baby registry must-haves with the hope to provide a little clarity for you as you work to build your baby registry.
As a big lover of lists, I wanted this to be extremely helpful and the furthest thing from overwhelming. I remember creating our registry for our baby boy and the feeling of overwhelm alone only begins to describe the feelings. Therefore this baby registry must-haves is simply a list of the top 15 things to include on your baby registry! Think of these as the essentials. The things you definitely want to take time to research and decide what works best for your family and add them to your baby registry!
Before we dive in to the 15 things to include on your baby registry I want to give you a little tip that worked really well for us. First things first, we created our main baby registry at Babylist. Babylist is incredible as it allows you to create a baby registry that is inclusive to any store that is connected on the Internet. This allows you to truly build the registry that you want regardless of retail store. Babylist is extremely organized AND they have an app that makes everything so easy to use!
We also created a separate registry at Target. We only added about ten to fifteen things through our Target registry. Specifically, we registered for things we knew we would be buying after baby was born. Things such as diapers, wipes, the Owlet. bath necessities. The reason we did this was Target gives you specific discount codes that you can use on registry items, so we wanted to be sure we could utilize that. Check out information here on setting up both your Babylist and Target baby registry.
One more quick little tip for you. There were several items that my husband and I planned on buying ourselves, but we still registered for them as a way to keep track of the baby items we wanted. When we would make the purchase we then would mark the item as bought. This allowed us to be able to stay very organized with the essentials we needed for baby!
Definitely be sure to include several swaddles and sleep blankets on your registry! Babylist has a special “Swaddle Box” which includes a few different options. This is a smart idea because you won’t really know which swaddle works best for you and baby until baby is here and you are making it through the late nights and early mornings. Our absolute favorite swaddles were the Halo Sleep Swaddle. They are SO easy to use and provide excellent comfort and stability for little one.
Additionally, I would be sure to register for a few sleep blankets. Once your baby transitions out of the swaddle you are going to want a few sleep blankets to help little one feel snug and comfy at night! Our favorites are the sleep blankets from Kyte Baby and Goumi Kids.
Another baby registry essential is a sound machine. However, do yourself a favor and register for two. Plan on having one that permanently stays in the nursery, for that we use the Hatch. You can control it from your phone through an app which is amazing, especially when you want to adjust the settings without going into baby’s room.
In addition, a portable sound machine is essential when taking baby on the go. This one attaches to the car seat, diaper bag, or pack n play. We always use this one anytime we travel and it works great. Plus, it packs small!
If you asked me what our most used item was for the first six months of baby’s life I would tell you it was the Baby Bjorn Bouncer. This thing is incredible and definitely a baby registry must-have. We used this SO much from having this bouncer on the floor in both my husband and I’s offices, to the bathroom when I would be getting ready, or the kitchen while we were prepping or eating dinner. Plus, its ergonomic design is a must have for all things comfort and practicality. We also registered for the toy for the bouncer as a sweet addition. Seriously could not rave anymore about this baby bouncer – please – put this on your baby registry for sure!
Most baby registries include a play gym or something similar. However, do yourself a favor and get the only play gym baby will ever need – the Lovevery Play Gym. This is amazing. First and foremost, I love everything about Lovevery, from the play gym to the subscription play boxes. My son and I always have the most fun playing with all things Lovevery!
In addition, this play gym is versatile, packed with so many different sensory toys to stimulate learning and development. And its design fits perfectly into any type of room.
Of course you want to be sure you register for a car seat. For us, we registered for the car seat and then ended up buying it ourselves off of our registry. It was important for us to be sure we had our car seat in on time, due to shipping delays at the time. As well as correct installation of the car seat before baby’s arrival. (Which he ended up being over a week late, so there’s that!)
We have loved every second of our Nuna Pipa car seat. We actually have two – one for my car and my husband’s car. Since my son is in daycare this made the most sense for us, as some mornings and afternoons who was dropping off and picking up baby was different and we wanted to avoid getting into a situation where we realized we were without a carseat.
We have both the Nuna Pipa Lite and the Nuna Pipa. The Nuna Pipa Lite is known for being one of the lightest car seats on the market, which is definitely an added benefit. However, I liked the Nuna Pipa more as it was easier to adjust the car seat straps and easier for me to personally handle. Regardless of the differences, the Nuna Pipa car seat has been a dream, and of course, once I read on the safety features, I was sold on this being the correct car seat for us!
Another baby registry must-have is an infant lounger. We were very happy with the Snuggle Me Organic. It was comfy and cozy and the perfect place to lounge, especially during the newborn stage. I would lay this in the middle of my bed while folding laundry, or on the couch while spending time downstairs. Please don’t leave baby unattended while in the lounger, but it is definitely a nice baby accessory to have. Plus, the Snuggle Me Lounger comes in several colors. I also highly recommend purchasing extra covers for the lounger off of Amazon to save you a little bit of money!
One of our most used items throughout the first year of our baby boy’s life were baby carriers. I don’t know how I would have been able to get things done around the house without them. We actually had quite a few different brands and styles, to which I will have a full review and favorite baby carriers ranked on the blog so soon, please stay tuned. Until then, my absolute favorites were the Solly Baby Wrap and the Ergobaby Omni Dream Carrier. Both of these are easy to put on and baby in and are very comfortable.
An item you did not even know you needed, but you absolutely should include on your baby registry is a portable bottle warmer. Specifically, the Baby’s Brew portable bottle warmer. This thing is incredible. You charge it in advance (and can bring the portable charger with you) and it allows you to warm up milk on the go. Hello convenience. You can register for / purchase additional adapters as well to be sure the bottle warmer is compatible with baby’s bottle preference. This has been a true life saver for us within the first year of our baby boy’s life. Use code GRACEFULANDFREE15 to save 15% on your purchase!
What I love so much about the Babylist Bottle Box is that it is essentially a variety pack for bottles that allows you to try different brands to see what baby likes the best. It is a good idea to try out a few bottles once baby is introduced to the bottle to decide which works best before buying more!
This was the one item that we kept ordering MORE of once baby got here. I swear it seemed like I was placing another order off of Amazon every single week for another package of Burt’s Bees Baby burp cloths. I love the Burt’s Bees Baby brand, the burp cloths are organic and incredibly soft. Plus, they come in cute designs. Be sure to add several of these to your registry!
This is something you don’t think you need, until you have it and realize that it is the best thing ever. Please, register for a House of Noa play mat. They are beautiful, non-toxic, and the best thing to use in lieu of a rug for your nursery or play space. We have one in our nursery, and I just recently purchased another one for our playroom. Seriously could not love the House of Noa play mats more!
Another baby registry essential is a pack n play. We have taken a few trips within the first year of baby’s life and this has been clutch! Funny story, we actually have two because on our third family trip with baby, we packed the pack n play. However, silly me forgot to bring the mattress. So sure enough we were the family in Target at 9:30 pm at night buying the cheapest pack n play we could find. The pack n play we registered for is the 4 Moms Breeze Plus Playard which is great for the newborn stage. We kept this set up in our family room and used this as a changing station for the downstairs as well as a nap location when he was really little!
It’s a great idea to also add a stroller to your baby registry. We added our everyday stroller, the UPPAbaby Vista V2, which is every bit worth the hype! We also registered for the BOB jogging stroller. We love to run, therefore we knew we would probably buy a jogging stroller at some point around the 6 months age. I am so glad we decided to put this on the registry though, because my husband’s co-workers went in together and gifted this to us for our baby gift. It is one of our most used gifts and I am so glad that we decided to register for it anyways!
One more baby registry essential to be sure to register for is this stroller organizer. Trust me you are going to want to get this to be able to attach to your stroller to carry all the things whether you are out and about or going on a walk through the neighborhood. This stroller organizer has plenty of room to carry your iced coffee, water, phone & more!
Finally, the final item to be sure to add to your baby registry is a high chair. I know you will most likely not be using this until baby’s closer to 6 months, however when it is time for baby to transition to solid foods, you will be happy you already have a high chair. This is one less thing you have to worry about during that time. For me, adjusting to incorporating solids felt overwhelming. So, it was very nice to not have to also worry about purchasing a high chair! We have been very happy with our Stokke Clikk high chair. Plus, love how the simple design looks in our kitchen.
There you have it, your baby registry must-haves, the 15 things to be sure to include on your baby registry! I truly hope this guide was helpful to you. If you have any questions about anything please don’t hesitate to reach out over on Instagram! Wishing you all the love and excitement as you prepare to bring sweet baby into the world. It truly is one of the sweetest of times!
I'm an online encourager, mindset mentor, podcast host and teacher. Encouragement is my love language. I empower women to break free of self-doubt and unhealthy expectations and cultivate a more intentional life where every day is their best day.
MEET YOUR ONLINE ENCOURAGER, TEACHER, COACH, FINDER OF JOY, & BIG DREAMER
Our to-do lists seem to only grow bigger, especially during the back to school season. However, busy doesn't have to mean stressed. The chaos doesn't have to create overwhelm. Your free guide to planning all things back to school. A weekly planning guide for busy moms so you can actually thrive!