2019 Baby Gear Favorites (so far!)

I. Love. Baby. Gear.

Here's why: There's a LOT to not know about parenting, so finding something that can make the all-the-time tasks a bit easier, cuter, or tidier gives a great sense of "I've got this" to something that we mostly do not got. It's ok, though! Babies are very forgiving, and gear is here to help.

We've gotten a few new things with Will, but most of our everyday use items are holdovers from Beck. We had to get a double stroller and a new car seat because our old one expired, but a lot of our favorites haven't changed all that much!

At four months, these are our favorite things!

• Uppababy Mesa. We had a hand me down Graco car seat for Beck and liked it fine, but we gave it to someone else and it's expired now. I got the Mesa to go with our stroller, and we love it. It seems really cushy and comfy but the fabric is almost like a scuba suit so dog hair doesn't stick to it - not important for everyone, I realize.
• Uppababy Vista. For our walks! This thing is big, no doubt about it, but I love the variety of combos that the kiddos can sit in. Right now we have Beck on top and Will in his car seat on the bottom, but soon we'll swap out for another seat and let him roll in style. For now we use the car seat because it's handier when we go places.
• Dockatot. I wrote all about this already, but Will sleeps in this for every nap and every night, no exceptions. I'll wean him out of it in a few months, but he seems to genuinely calm down when we put him in it and falls asleep on his own with very little drama, so I'm sticking with it! One thing that I don't love is that the cover has to air dry and takes awhile to do so, so having two covers would have been nice. At this point, though, I just use drying time as a way for him to practice sleeping without it!
• Avent bottles. We use these when Will drinks pumped milk, and the ENTIRE reason we do so is because I got four in various freebie bags when I was pregnant with Beck. She took them fine, he does too. I use level 0 preemie nipples to be sure he doesn't drink too fast and spit up everything he eats, which is his preferred method. We also have NEVER heated milk for either of them because, as Jay says about house hunting, you can't miss something you never had. Sorry, longsuffering children of mine.
• 4moms baby bath. Another holdover from Beck, we use this in our kitchen sink now and will transfer it to the tub when Will can sit up a little better slash at all. It has a temperature gauge which is super useful because Jay assumes that all living creatures enjoy scalding hot baths and the loud beep tells us this isn't a great idea for a tiny new person. I'm fine. It's apparently not made anymore, though, but I do recommend a bath with a water thermometer!
• Nuk pacifiers. The only brand either of my kids would use when they were teeny, a recommendation from our pediatrician. We have two or three in rotation at all times and make a vague effort to throw them in the dishwasher...sometimes.
• Baby Bjorn bouncer. Ours is TEN years old, has been used by now four children, and it's probably our most can't-live-without piece of gear. We travel with it, Will loves it, and usually it stays on our kitchen floor so he can hang out with me while I cook or clean.
• I don't have favorite clothes because we have so many brands that we use that are hand me downs, but we love things from Target, Hanna Andersson (only ever on sale), and Primary!
• 4moms Mamaroo. This was something I bought used this time for Will, and while I wouldn't call it a miracle, he's just now at the age where he does like sitting in it and staring at the toys above his face. So a win there!
• Baby Einstein Play Mat. Beck and Will both love/d this! It went to another home for a few years and now we have it back. It's held up really well through now three kids, and has enough attachments to keep things interesting.

So what did I miss here? What are cool new things that I definitely do not need to trash up my house with? I have tons of other baby gear guides from when Beck was little and pregnancy - find them here!

this isn't a sponsored post, just things we love. definitely some affiliate links so if you purchase through them I'll get credit! so please do that.