Newborn pics + 5 favs (baby edition)

I'm so glad that in the haywire that ensued after Stephen Gabriel's birth we somehow made time for newborn pictures. It's such a fleeting time and I feel like I missed some of it with the afterbirth, move, and orientation so I'm glad we have these photos to capture some of the indescribable sweetness that comes with the newborn phase (the sleepless nights are worth it). Little Stephen has gone from 6 pounds, 3 ounces when we brought him home from the hospital (down from his original birthweight of 6 pounds, 11 ounces) to his current two month weight of (drumroll) 12 pounds, 2 ounces! So all those late night feedings are doing something :) I can't get over his growth chart (proud docta momma) which shows a steady incline from the 9th percentile, to the 27th, to the 54th. And if you make it through these gazillion pictures (it was so hard to choose just a few!), I shared my five favorites for the newborn phase at the end of this post. Also, if you are wondering about my sweater (drapey but not sloppy = a postpartum lifesaver) it's this one.

All photos by Vafa-Coffman

So after my vast experience of two months (ha), I can now share my 'wisdom' on my five favorite things for the newborn period. The truth is, they really don't need much and there are definitely things that we got that were totally unnecessary (although that doesn't include the notorious wipe warmer, which I still love contrary to popular belief). These five essentials though I would 100% buy or register for over (and over) again.

1. Aden By aden + anais Muslin Swaddle Blanket 4 Pack, Safari Friends: There's nothing I can say that truly sums up how wonderful these are. Yes they're pricey, but the gazillions of moms who love these can't be wrong. They are perfect swaddlers (those silly flannel receiving blankets never cut it for our little houdini), burp cloths, breastfeeding covers, sun protectors/insect repellers when draped over a car seat, etc. etc. They also come in the very cutest patterns and get softer with washes.

2. Summer Infant SwaddleMe Adjustable Infant Wrap, 2-Pack, Woodland Friends: My sister-in-law recommended these and my mom gave them to me as a Christmas gift after we found out we were pregnant. Somehow I forgot about them in the craziness after he was born and just starting using them a few weeks ago... and they are gold. I first was using the Halo sleep sacks at night but they were waaay too hot, then I was using the muslin swaddle blankets but the extra steps to swaddle started driving me crazy when the little man went through a wake-up-every-hour phase at night. These swaddle sacks are perfectly lightweight for summer, so soft, and super easy to use.

3. Boppy Pillow with Slipcover, Lots O Dots: This kind of goes without saying since almost everyone loves the Boppy. We used this from Stephen Gabriel's very first days of life and we love it both for breastfeeding and for holding the little guy. My mom birthed eight kids without a Boppy and after she saw me using it proclaimed that she had no idea how she did it.

4. Fisher-Price Deluxe Newborn Vibrating Rock n' Play Sleeper, My Little Snugabunny: those of you who read this post know about my love/hate relationship with the Rock n' Play. I question whether it meets safe sleep standards (although absolutely no judgement on anyone who uses this as a sleeper - we did for almost a month and I have tons of friends who do so I'm probably just being paranoid) and little Stephen also had some sleep problems that I don't think were helped by this. All this being said, this sleeper is gold still for daytime naps, occasional playtime (or to put him in while I'm showering, etc.), and I think helpful for his mild reflux. It also folds up which is really nice for the traveling we've done.

5. Graco Duo 2-in-1 Swing and Bouncer - Sweet Pea from the Sprout 'n Grow Collection: I saved the best for last. This was actually something that I didn't register for, but one of the residents in my class loaned me hers after insisting that it was an essential. Stephen Gabriel loves.it. I so wish that we had registered for this in place of our bouncer, which he hates, not to mention that this doubles as a bouncer in case he ever has a conversion. After we discovered this awesome swing, Stephen and I could actually sit down and eat dinner together again. He occasionally naps in it too.

Those are my five, although I'm sure that some of these are baby specific and there are probably other items that more experienced moms swear by for the newborn phase. Linking up with Heather for Five Favs.