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From my favorite app to my favorite nursing tops and everything in between, I'm here to share all of my favorites so far with Raelynn. I hope that by sharing these with you, you'll find some new favorites, too! If you have other favorites to share, please leave them in the comments!
Baby Specific Favorites
First, thanks to my sister-in-law, I am hooked on the Huckleberry app. Full transparency, I do not have the premium subscription, but the free version is phenomenal. In one app you are able to keep track of your little one's sleep, nursing/feeding times, diapers, growth and more. For yourself, if you are a nursing mom who also pumps, you are able to track when you pump including how long and how much you pumped! I find this incredibly helpful since Raelynn is in daycare while I am at work.
I am loving the Avent Natural Response bottles/nipples. With these bottles milk only comes out when your baby is actively feeding, rather than having a constant free flow. These work great for Raelynn and are easy to wash which is always a bonus! The only thing we had to figure out was which nipple to use, as the one they came with wasn't working well for Raelynn. I highly recommend using their chart to determine which flow is best for your baby. Raelynn is a pretty steady nurser/drinker and uses a Flow 4 nipple. I do believe we will keep her on this as long as possible, as she still is able to nurse perfectly when at home.
As for diapers, we really like the Rascal and Friends brand from Wal-Mart. They are affordable, fit Raelynn well and absorb well. Rascal and Friends diapers provide leak protection for up to 12 hours, are latex free, and have a stretchy high back waistband to help prevent blowouts. These diapers start with size one and go up to a size five. In doing some research, they also have a line of training pants that we will likely try when the time comes!
Breastfeeding & Pumping Favorites
This time around, I'm grateful that breastfeeding is going smoother, as is pumping, than it did with Riley. That was a struggle to say the least. With Raelynn, I have made the choice to exclusively breastfeed and pump while I am at work. I've come to have quite a few favorites that are helping this journey run smoothly thus far.
I've come to really love these nursing tops made by Smallshow. They make it easy to both feed your little one and also to be able to pump with either a wearable or traditional
pump smoothly. They are soft and extremely comfortable. They run true to size and there are a variety of 3-packs available on Amazon in many colors and patterns. I'd love to share my favorite nursing bras, but as of now they are out of stock with no re-stock in sight. The brand is Ollie Gray and they are sold on Amazon if you want to check periodically to see if they are back! I'll do the same and update if they come back because they truly are the best combination of a nursing and pumping bra that I've ever used.
As far as pumping goes, I'm a rather big fan of the Spectra S2 (pink) pump for at home and the Paruu X2 hands free pump while at work. I have not had any issues with the Paruu leaking as some reviews will state, but I also don't move around a whole lot, I use it for the convenience factor when at work. I use an 8 can RTIC cooler for a pumping bag, but do feel a 15 can would work slightly better as far as holding the Paruu motors. These Nuliie breastmilk storage bags are phenomenal, we've never had leaks and they seal great!
Favorite Carriers
