This post may contain affiliate links. When you shop by clicking on one of my links, my family receives a small commission at no additional cost to you. We are so grateful for your support!

Dolly Jean is now THREE months old (and some change). She’s no longer considered a newborn, which is so bittersweet to think about. She has learned how to munch on her hands, grab toys, kick her feet all over the place, smile and giggle (which I swear she’s been doing since day one), chit-chat, roll from her belly to her back and sleep through the night! Dolly Jean is the sweetest baby  — we really couldn’t have been luckier.

Every month I share what a typical day in the life looks like for us on my Instagram stories, but I figured I would share our 3-month schedule in this post as well. We follow an eat-wake-sleep cycle throughout the day, and I’ve learned that if she gets all her naps in, even for just 20-30 minutes, her “witching hour” in the evenings is 100x better.

DAILY SCHEDULE

6:30 AM – wake up & eat
7:30 AM – play/tummy time
8:00 AM – nap #1
9:00 AM – eat
10:00 AM – mommy & me class or run errands
11:00 AM – nap #2
12:00 PM – eat
12:30 PM – play/tummy time while mom works
1:30 PM – go on a walk/nap #3
3:00 PM – eat
3:30 PM – hang out in swing while mom cleans/works
4:30 PM – nap #4
5:30 PM – eat
6:00 PM – bath
6:30 PM – “witching hour,” usually no nap here
8:00 PM – eat (bottle) & down for the night

I also thought I would share some things that we used daily in the newborn phase. I wouldn’t say all of these are “absolutely necessary,” but we definitely got our use out of them. So if you’re a soon-to-be mama, make sure to add these to your registry!

NEWBORN MUST-HAVES

• Car Seat & Stroller – we have the Doona, and I cannot say enough great things about it! If you haven’t checked it out yet, do so now. It’s an infant car seat that expands into a stroller in less than 3 seconds with the push of a button. Seriously, this has been efficient, convenient, and nothing short of amazing (especially for traveling).
• Diapers & Wipes, obviously. 😉 We use Costco’s Kirkland brand, but I also love the Honest diapers and Water Wipes!
• Pack N Play – We have this one and use it as a bassinet in our room. Both the changing pad and mattress covers zip off for easy washing.
• Boppy Pillow – this makes those middle-of-the-night feedings a whole lot easier.
• Muslin Blankets – we have a TON of these and use them for everything! Swaddling, burp cloths, keeping her warm in her car seat, laying them on the floor, bed, etc.
• Halo Sleep Sack – this is my favorite sleep sack! We got one as a gift, and the first time I used it I immediately bought one more so we had an extra.
• Owlet Smart Sock Monitor – this gave me a peace of mind, knowing that I would be notified (on my phone AND the base station) if Dolly Jean’s oxygen or heart rate were not at their right levels.
• Rock N Play – I know these are recalled, but I seriously love ours. You can easily pick it up and move it wherever you need to. Ours comes with me all over the house – in the closet to fold laundry, the kitchen to make dinner, etc.
• Bottles – even if you plan to breastfeed, you never know if you’ll have issues related to your milk supply, your baby’s latch, needing to supplement, or for any reason you might just want to offer a bottle instead, and it’s relieving to have back-up.

MINBIE BOTTLES

We had to supplement some formula for the first month of Dolly Jean’s life, so she was introduced to a bottle almost immediately. Luckily, it never caused any problems with our breastfeeding journey, but we did learn a few things about bottles. They can have different paced flows, and the bottles we were using tended to be a faster flow than what she was getting from me. She would spit up almost every time she drank from the bottle, but that quickly ended once we solved this flow issue.

Minbie sent me a few of their bottles to try, and WOW. I never would have thought I’d rave about baby bottles, but here I am. These bottles were created with the goal to closely resemble breastfeeding. They offer a slower flow of milk, helping with digestion and control of feedings. The teat is SO soft, smooth, thin, and the shape is made to make the transition between bottle and breastfeeding easy and comfortable, while avoiding any latch issues.

We still give Dolly Jean a bottle every night, and those feedings have gone so much smoother since we figured out which Minbie bottle and teat works best for her. AND they fit perfectly on a spectra pump, so I don’t have to wash any extra parts. 😊

Mamas – tell me! What baby items did you use the most? Did you have any “must-have” items that you ended up not using at all? Let me know in the comments!

----- LET'S KEEP IN TOUCH -----
Subscribe to my newsletter HERE.