Kamea is ADORABLE! Thanks for posting about all this stuff! I was just looking into cloth wipes and you just convinced me! I was looking at a couple different brands but I like that these ones are organic! Your hair also looks fabulous! Brown looks so great on you!

thanks Angee

Awesome list!

I just added all of your suggestions to my registry! He he! I love salt lamps, I just saw them for super cheap at Marshalls! Go to person?..hmm.. I wonder who mine is..lol! Love you! XO

Thanks for posting this. I am looking into cloth diapers it is such a wiser choice. You are very pretty by the way. You look fantastic after just having a baby. Raw does awesome things to the body.

I agree with your must haves. Oh – and once you get Kamea out of the house more regularly I'm sure you'll add *sling* to your list of must-haves! I loved the New Native, Maya Wrap and then the organic Ergo. I used it for 2 years. ps. We love Pixel Organic too. Our son had the organic “Lions, Tigers & Kittens, Oh My” crib bedding. But he ended up sleeping with us all the time.

Great video! I love all the ideas, and I am excited to hear about the solution you use for the warm cloth wipes. Kamea is soooo cute!

Oh goodness, the topic of slings.. I have so many – lol. That's a
whole other blog post. I have a hell of a time with that Moby! Arghhh!

Lol Lauren! That's great! Salt lamps for cheap at Marshall's? Cool!!!

I already knew about the cloth prefold diapers for burp cloths by searching online..such a great idea, huh? I'm glad I watched this video.. I've been wondering why the heck you would need a foot stool for breastfeeding LOL and now I know. And now I want a salt lamp.. if not for baby reasons, just because it looks so cool Thanks for this video!

I love the salt lamps! We have two. They provide such a warm, romantic
atmosphere without using candles.

Thanks, Teresa, You sure know how to make a tired mommy feel good.

Thank you Kristen for taking time in your very busy day to share so personally your tips on Green, Organic, Loving parenting!

I couldn't find any ecofriendly rockers that I liked either. But i did find this baby balance/rocker thing by baby bjorn made of all organic material. What do you think about his instead of a rocker? http://www.amazon.com/BABYBJ%C3%96RN-Babysitter…

That looks nice. I like the organic. Right now, Kamea has a couple of
organic cloth diapers laid out between her and the rocker.

The one you linked to… awfully close to the ground and I have a big
dog. I'd hate for him to have an accident with her by trying to jump
over her or something. And secondly, it would require bending over far
to grab her all the time, right(?), with it being low to the ground?

I still like it though I'm going to go back to the link and see if I can get a better idea of how low it is to the ground.

Thanks for sharing your life with Kamea! What a cutie!

I love salt lamps too. They are great if you have allergies. I love that yours has a dimmer. I need to look into that.

I forgot to add that you hair looks amazing! I keep getting horror stories about the hair loss after giving birth and you are proving that to be a myth!

I wonder if there are any issues with the crotch piece like there are with the baby bjorn carrier (many chiropractors are against them because of spine alignment and such). Also, apparently, their 2009 model of this (not the organic one, but the basic one) was recalled. Although I don't know why. 2010 is supposed to be fine though.

I'm going to email a chiropractor friend of mine and get her feedback on it.

Thanks, Lauren. I haven't had any hair loss. We're at 2 months
now… fingers crossed!

I didn't know that about allergies. Interesting!

Fun! I loved seeing inside your house, and seeing all the stuff that a baby needs! Yikes!

You should not have mentioned that we needed a go-to person – now we will all be choosing you for that role!

Lol! I am so grateful for my friend helping me that I'm committed to
paying it forward.

Oh and our place is a wreck, but I decided not to worry about it. I
figure that y'all know so much about me already, why stop there.

AHAH! That is why I like them so much. I've stopped using candles and I've wanted a replacement… I must find one of these

Thank you a million times over…. so so useful to know! Hugs xxx

Thank you for sharing these must haves! There is so much baby stuff out there is can be so overwhelming. Your tips are greatly appreciated.

Cool! Glad I was able to help

Love the salt lamp idea. We use the a night light, but it's too dark for diaper changing at night. Fortunately, our little one doesn't need a diaper change too often at night (these days). Definitely need the foot stool. I use mine so I could put her on my lap upright while sitting on the sofa. I use a stationary bouncy and swing… but, I really like your rocker swing. I never got to use my birth ball, but I sit and bounce on it with our baby to calm her down. Works wonders. One of the other items I found I “needed” was a water sprayer. We used bum cream, but it didn't seem to work well. So, we resorted to spraying her bum with water. No red bum problems. If only there was a way to wash her bum at the sink… I never found anything. Mobiles! She loves looking at them and smiles when she hears the musical mobile. The only other thing I 'needed' was a way to angle her mattress so she doesn't spit up so much.

Good ideas! I like the ball idea.

Great info. I have watched it a few times now and I MUST get a salt lamp. They are beautiful
Sorry if I missed this somewhere on your blog but I was wondering what brand of laundry detergent do you use for your baby and yourself? Thanks

Great question! I'm using Country Save (recommended by the experts at
the cloth diaper store I go to). Available on amazon. I always use it
for the diapers and wipes. Usually for her clothes too. Sometimes I
use Bronner's baby soap for our clothes if I don't use Country Save.

Hi chica!! Thank you for the great list of Must Haves Soooo, when are we going to hear your cool Birth Story??!! I am dying to know how it all happened! Don't leave out a single detail!! xo
Emelia
Florida
(Due at the end of October – yikes!)

Lol! It's coming soon. Promise

How cute was it that anytime you took a pause your husband would zoom in on Kamea?! He must be head over heals in love with his little girl.

Kristen, you are amazingly awesome, you are seriously my hero!!!

Awwww thanks!!!

My little one is 5 months and I'm at the peak of my hair loss- watch out- they can get wrapped tight around baby's fingers! I vacuum most days and just can't believe all the hair I'm shedding. I agree with the prefold diapers- I use them for everything. I have the same wipe warmer too- probably my favorite item so far. My biggest advice, however, is this: as long as you have someone close by- a spouse or family member, don't worry about stocking up on everything before baby comes. There will be chances to get things postpartum, or like Kristen mentions online shopping is really helpful. I never used my nursing pillow and am glad I didn't buy a new one. Just wait on some things. You'll find what you need as you go.

Hi Kristen, wasn’t sure where to leave this comment/question… I know you’re going the co-sleeping route, but was wondering what advise you would give on crib/bassinet mattresses? As a vegan, a 100% natural latex core mattress with wool and organic cotton would be out of the question for you, but curious if you have any recommendations in general? I’ve read good things about Naturepedic products (if it weren’t for the darn waterproof polyethylene). I’m 5 months pregnant and kinda lost on this

Hi Kristen, I wasn’t sure where to post this question/comment… I was wondering if you have any advice on crib/bassinet mattresses and changer pads? I know you're vegan so a 100% natural latex core with wool and organic cotton would be out of the question for you, but was curious if you have any recommendations in general? I've heard good things about Naturepedic products (but there's the darn waterproof polyethylene). I am 5 months pregnant and kinda lost on the matter

There are no organic and vegan options?

There aren't organic and vegan options?

Ahhh, the mattress saga… which also extends to cradle/bassinet pads, and changing pads. Nothing out there is without some compromise. From the research I've done, there seems to be 2 viable options. One option would be appropriate for vegans, one not (I'm not vegan, so I'm trying to make a choice between the 2).

First is a 100% natural dunlop latex core (resists dust mites and mold naturally) with organic wool (naturally fire retardant without use of chemicals) and covered in organic cotton. The latex core is orthopedic in the way traditional foam is, WITHOUT the use of petroleum based polyeurethane foam (highly flammable and the reason for fire retardants). Many pros to the latex/wool/cotton mattress, but there is the drawback of latex being potentially allergenic, although in this natural and covered form, it's unlikely… most latex allergies are to talalay latex which is processed with many chemicals and used in things like balloons and powdered latex gloves. The other drawback is the fact that the mattress does not have a water resistant surface (like traditional vinyl covered crib mattresses), so you'd need to use wool puddle pads or some other mattress protector (without PVC, pthalates, polyeurethane, etc) all the time, and hope accidents don't leak through!

The second option is the Naturepedic brand innerspring mattress which has the benefit of being non allergenic and using organic cotton, but they also use closed-cell polyethelene in the core of the mattress and as an outer waterproof/stainproof coating. This is a type of plastic, but supposedly food grade and the least toxic of plastics out there. They also have added “flamebreaker” technology to the mattress to make it fire retardant, which is baking soda and a hydrated silica bonded to cellulose fiber. Their website has more info.

I'd be curious to get your thoughts on this, as well as from anyone else who has gone through a mattress search and come out on the other end with sage advice to offer others! And maybe there is another viable option I'm not aware of? Thanks in advance

And a big congrats on the beautiful babe!

Good info. Thank you for sharing. I'll try to look into it more, too.

I got my crib mattress and king sized mattress from these guys and they will even make it custom with whatever you want in it: http://obasan.ca/ .
The King sized one is exactly the same as what my baby has and it sleeps like a dream, so I am sure my baby is comfortable too.

So, I know this post is older but it kind of relates to what I'd like to say now. My son just turned 11 months old and diapering now is horrible! I kind of wish I could just skip the diaper all together and do the E.C.! Whenever I try to change his diaper, he just rolls over and starts crawling away…even if he is on his changing table! Ahh! It is horrible and makes me never want to change his diaper. Also, he never will go to sleep! I'm going crazy!
Okay, I'm regaining composure. I'm just telling you here in case you are still thinking of trying out E.C. in the future.

Eek! That's not cool! lol! We are still going to try it, yes… I

think when she's sitting and maybe when her poop is more solid. I'm

thinking that will help!

I had my son's crib right next to our bed and knowing we would end up bed-sharing I didn't want to go all out on a pricey organic crib mattress so I bought a mattress wrap for his bed. It is so affordable(about $35) and it put my mind at ease.

Do you remember where you bought it?