Clutter-Free Baby Registry

Oh, the memories! I remember when we found out that we were pregnant with our princess. I had butterflies in my stomach and couldn’t contain my excitement. My childhood dream of becoming a mommy would soon be my reality. It was time for me to prepare for a little human that would change my entire world as I knew it.

One of the things I looked forward to was setting up my baby registry. It was my first child and that meant registering for everything under the sun.

“Boy, was I newbie!”

On the day of our baby shower, we were blessed with tons of gifts. Some of which we didn’t even register for 👀🤷🏾‍♀️

Boy do I hate those chairs but hey at least it was pretty 🤷🏾‍♀️

“As expected, we were gifted three baby bathtubs when we registered for only one. 🤦🏾‍♀️”

Not too long into our new life as parents, we realized that there were tons of gifts that we never used once. Some of which we recently (7 years later), donated with tags still attached.

Diaper Cake! A baby registry classic.

So, when we found out that we were pregnant again, I was determined to only register for what we needed and would actually use. Was it easy? Nope!

“Do you know how much cute stuff they came out with since our last baby?”

But, I had to discipline myself to stick to what we needed. Why? We don’t have any space to store unnecessary items and I refused to try to make space either.

Cutting down that registry list and sticking to the basics worked. At our son’s baby shower, we received less gifts than we did at his sister’s shower, BUT we were gifted what we needed. That was a major win.

“You really don’t need two humidifiers!”

Listen y’all! As tempting as it is to fill your registry with all that fluff, you’ll eventually get annoyed when you have to find room to store it all or when you realize that you actually didn’t need most of the items you received.

“So Rach, what should I register for?”

Girllll, let me hook you up. 😜

Bonjour Rachel’s Must-Haves Registry List

• • Onesies, Onesies and ONESIES! – You can NEVER have too many onesies. Them babies run through them like… I don’t know what but they run out quick. So don’t be afraid to register for multiple sets. Just keep in mind that you’ll need to store them so don’t overdo it.

• • Diapers! – Listen and Listen real good. Don’t you ever turn down diapers! Trust me, you’ll thank me in the long run. Register for every size available and accept them bad boys with a smile. My only tip is to register for one or two packs of newborns but no more than that. These babies grow out of the newborn size real quick. Some skip it altogether. Hello, 10-pound Babies 👶🏾! What brand should you choose? It’s totally up to you. We’re big fans of Pampers Swaddlers. They’ve worked best for our little munchkins and we, for the most part, have remained loyal to the brand. Although, we did at one point use the CVS brand of diapers and found it to also be just as good (Thanks to a tip from a good friend of ours!)

• • Footsies – LESS FLEECE MORE POLYESTER OR COTTON. Footsies are amazing options for getting babies dressed in a jiffy. No need to look for a matching outfit. Just dress them in an adorable footsie and that solves it all. No need for socks or anything else. I absolutely love them. So, why less fleece? Because for both of my babies had a weird reaction to fleece. For one, it keeps heat which would be great, but if you combine that with a full-body jacket, they’re ready to bake. I would mostly recommend getting footies made out of breathable material.

• • One Diaper Bag is ENOUGH! – Okay, I know this is a personal preference, but I must say that you really only need one. I know some mommies want one for church, one for going out, one for daycare, etc. LISTEN! I don’t have time to be shuffling things between bags just to look cute.

“Ain’t nobody got time for that! At least I don’t!”

• • Formula Dispenser – I love, LOVE, LOVE this thing. They come round or stackable. Whichever one you register for, they are inexpensive and oh-so-worth it. Gone are the days of carrying around the whole powdered formula container. Pack enough for the entire day in the formula dispenser and keep it moving.

• • Dr. Browns, Dr. Browns REPEAT AFTER ME, Dr. Browns. With my prince, I tried to venture out and try a few of the new brands out there and it was an EPIC FAIL! They leaked! The suction frustrated my poor child and ohhh the gas! I was over it! I immediately went on Amazon and ordered my Dr. Browns. We immediately saw the difference. Whether you order it with the green insert or blue, they are a lifesaver.

• • Receiving Blankets GALORE! These little gems are inexpensive and sooo necessary. They are great as covers, blankets for excited visitors, breastfeeding covers, etc. They are just great for just about EVERYTHING.

• • Tommee Tippee Closer to Nature Portable Travel Baby Bottle Warmer – This little gem is amazing if you are an on-the-go mommy. We spend more than just a few hours at church and I can’t tell you how awesome this thing is. We boil water in the morning, pour the water into the thermos, and pack it for the road. When it is feeding time, we pour half the cold water and half of the boiled water. Then, we add the baby formula, and BOOM! Ready to feed. We scored this gem on Amazon and I highly recommend it.

• • A lightweight stroller/car seat combo – Listen, whether you drive or not, a lightweight stroller is a Godsend. I remember toting a heavy-as-hell stroller when my daughter was a baby. I nearly broke my back trying to tote that thing around. This time around, we opted for a lightweight, easy-to-maneuver, ergonomic option that is easy on my back and comfy for my prince. In regards to the car seat being a part of the package, why not? We were saving more getting it as a combo than purchasing it separately anyway.

• • Bathtub – obviously you will need to bathe your little munchkin. Having a portable bathtub that you can set up anywhere will prove useful.

    Side note: For some reason, you always get more than one of these at a baby shower 🤦🏾‍♀️🤷🏾‍♀️

• • BIBS! – You’ll need a gazillion of these. Spit-ups, drooling, teething, etc. You’ll run through these like crazy. So register for as many as you can.

• • Humidifier – You’ll need this! Babies with small nostrils can sometimes have a hard time breathing when they are congested. This seems to be prevalent at night. A humidifier helps to ease their struggle which translates to a peacefully sleeping baby (for the most part).

These are just some of the must-haves that I had on my list. Of course, there are tons of other important things that are not on this list like a Baby Monitor. For a more comprehensive list, I would recommend The Bump’s Baby Registry Checklist. It served as a useful guide when I set up my registry.

Prepping for your new bundle is a fun experience but sometimes it can feel overwhelming. My tip for expecting mamas out there is to take it one day at a time and enjoy the ride. This is just the beginning of a lifelong journey. Make it a fun one!

“How about you, mommies? What were some must-haves on your registry? SHARE AND COMMENT BELOW!”