No one ever said parenthood is easy. In fact, no one will dare to because being a parent is one of the hardest jobs in the world. But it’s also the most rewarding and joyous, which makes all the hard days much easier to deal with. Parenthood may be your most difficult challenge yet; so, here are five must-haves that can make it a little easier.
Baby Essentials #1: An All-in-One Cover
There’s no telling when or where your baby will cry out for food when they’re hungry, so you have to be prepared to stop for some breast milk. Of course, even though there’s nothing wrong with breastfeeding in public, you or your partner might find it uncomfortable to be exposed like that in the open. That’s why you need to have a multi-use nursing seat cover on hand at all times.
Besides nursing, the cover can be used as a lining for the shopping cart or highchair if you want to put your baby down but don’t know if the surface is clean. You can also use it to cover your baby’s stroller or car seat when you’re directly under the sun as a way to protect your child’s skin and eyes.
Baby Essentials #2: A Few Plastic Bibs
When your baby’s old enough to eat and digest real food, you have to be prepared to clean up after their mess because it’s bound to get messy. You’ll find food everywhere — on your baby’s clothes, on your clothes, and the floors, walls, or ceilings. While there’s no way to protect all those at the same time, you can prioritize your baby’s clothes since they’re the ones closest to the scene of the crime.
To address this, you can place a plastic bib on your baby before handing them their food. This way, anything that flies out of their utensils or drops from their mouth will slip from their plastic bib instead of staining their clothes. Plus, this will be much easier to clean. So, do yourself a favor and have one at home, in your travel bag, or even in the car for good measure.
Baby Essentials #3: Wet Wipes (Lots of It!)
Babies can get messy, and it’s part of the job of being a parent. That’s why you should always come prepared with a pack or two of wet wipes. You can never have enough of it because wet wipes are the only thing standing between you and sticky hands, crumbly cars, stained clothes, or whatnot.
Additionally, wet wipes are useful for more than just cleaning after your baby when they’re eating. You can also use wet wipes when you’re changing your baby’s diaper, especially when you can’t access running water all the time and toilet paper is too dry to clean your baby’s butt.
Baby Essentials #4: Easy-to-wear Clothing
Baby clothes are supposed to be cute and easy to wear because it’s just better that way. Save the complicated clothing for when they’re old enough to no longer need diaper changes, but until that day comes, easy-to-wear clothes should be your baby’s best friends. And they could be yours too.
This is because there’s nothing harder than dressing a fussy baby after a challenging diaper changing session. Imagine that you’re stuck because your baby’s leg comes out of the pants just as you’re inserting the other one, then you’ll be in the same cycle for who knows how long. If you’re not as patient as you’re hoping to be, do yourself a favor and get easy-to-wear clothes for your baby.
Baby Essentials #5: Diaper Changing Pads
Finally, you’re going to need a steady supply of diaper changing pads if you want to survive parenthood. Of course, you can have washable changing pads too, but that can be difficult to use when traveling because you won’t be able to throw them out. So, it’s better to have some disposable ones as well.
Diaper changing pads are a must because they ensure that your baby’s butt touches a clean surface and keep the surrounding surfaces poo or pee-free. The last thing you’ll want is your baby’s poo or pee all over your car seat, so don’t leave anything to chance. Make sure that you always have a diaper changing pad in your baby bag.
Being a parent is hard work, but it can also be very fulfilling and rewarding. It might make you want to pull your hair out sometimes but seeing your baby smile or laugh will be enough to keep you going. So, don’t give up on parenthood just yet because you’re still in charge of raising a kind and beautiful child.
