Note: This blog post has some shop finds and links listed below. These are all my personal opinion and I am no way paid to write this.

All products have been shopped by me for my personal use .

If you have been reading my blog you would have known that we are slowly embracing minimalism and we also have a new baby at home.

We are not super-minimalist yet we haven’t fallen prey to the baby consumer market.

I can only tell how we approached living minimalistic with a newborn. If you are a new mom or plan to have more children, then this is for you 🙂

Backstory:

When Lil D was born 3 years back, we had everything that was listed on the baby section in the stores. We were a double income family then and we went overboard with our shopping list 🙂 We also lived in a bigger house, which means that we naturally/subconsciously accumulated things.

When we moved to another smaller space, we realized how much we had spent on things that Lil D did not even bother to get his hands on.

This time around, we decided that we would buy only the bare essentials and that we would shop only after the baby comes home except for some hospital baby needs.

If you didn’t know already, amazon has a baby wishlist which you can link with your partner and you can keep adding things to it. You can then later decide which one you would really need.

1.Food:

We breast feed the baby like we did for little D and it is as minimal it could get.

If you intend to formula feed or supplement with formula, I would suggest you buy just two bottles to see which bottle is liked best by your newborn. And be careful to choose newborn nipple in the feeding bottles.

2.Sleep:

We did not buy a separate crib or bouncer for little guy. We disassembled our bed and used them as floor beds so that we didn’t have to worry about roll over and falls 🙂

3.Clothing:

We shopped for a couple of unisex onesies before the baby came in. We also shopped for more onesies and footed sleepers from surplus Facebook stores like Myfaktory.If you didnt know, my friends Jen and Grace have their newborn Tucker boxes which has all clothing essentials needed for in one box.If you are a first time mom, then this box might come in handy.

We also got some preloved hands downs from his cousins.

Not to forget, that dressing up newborns are not easy. So keep it simple.

4.Diapers:

We did start with some basic flats called Kaupina from the cloth diaper shop and some diaper covers. Of course, that brings to loads of laundry. We do run the washing machine once in a day. I would say that you can start with 15 flats if you would do disposable diaper nights. We have a small open dustbin kinds to put back the wet diapers.

5.Burp cloth:

We got some napkins gifted by some relatives. You can go the old way of doing it, buying muslin cloths and sew them as per you need them.

6.Blankets:

We had a swaddle cloth which we had shopped for D while husband was in US. Those worked well for cold nights and newborn days. But few months later, we shifted to a muslin blanket from Totscarters for the summer. The blanket also serves as our nursing cover when we are out. Also as a summer hat like thing when we are outdoors 🙂

7.Bath:

We had his big brothers baby bather which we used for him. If my memory serves right, we used them till Lil D turned one year. Post that he stands while he showers 🙂

What I love about this is, it has a neck support and that you don’t have to worry about the baby’s delicate neck. Also when you are done using it, you can fold them and put it back on the shelves for the next baby use. Such a space saver.

8.Movement:

We do not have a stroller or pram. Instead we own a beauty Waterlily Ring sling from Soul.

They are recommended for a newborn. We did have a steep learning curve, but once I cracked the ring sling wearing techniques it has been my go to carrier. We intend to buy a car seat in the few days.

9.Toys:

Peanut had few rattles, his handmade montessori interlocking discs and his wooden playgym.Read here.

10.Diaper Bag:

We did not buy an exclusive diaper bag. We put in all our baby things into this shoulder bag. It has more storage space to put in a day’s thing needed for a newborn plus his big brother. Also it is more convenient to carry. There have been instances where i have walked with baby in the front on sling, backpack behind and a preschooler holding my hands and walking besides me.

If there is one thing that we haven’t gone minimal , it is books. We do have a huge stash of books and I do not regret it one bit.

Then finally there are other small essentials like a baby mat for floor, nail clippers, wet wipes, laundry detergents and thermometer.

We value your comments, so write in what you think was your best buy for your newborn or what you wish you hadn’t spent your money on.

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