"Bugs and Babies" Camping trip

 This summer a friend of mine at church expressed her desire to go camping and I was so excited! I've been trying to get Aaron to go with me since we've been married but he has been a little resistant. That man likes his showers and bug free bed... We pitched the idea to our small group at church and made a plan! The group consisted of 3 families with babies 1 and under, one family with a 3 and 7 year old, and a brave newlywed couple. We didn't get a whole lot of sleep... but it was still a lot of fun!

Here are the pictures from our first annual "Bugs and Babies" camping trip to Chippokes State Park in Surrey, VA.

Waiting patiently for dinner

setting up the tent

 

breakfast around the campfire

sunrise over the campsite

the babies eating breakfast

Bess making pancakes

love the pack and play

Kaylee in her wagon

Eli hopped on for a ride

making his move!

love this boy

being patient while we loaded the car

Family pic!

Salmon Foil Packets
Asparagus, lemon, salmon, butter, and dill. Yum!

The salmon cooking over a fire

The Traveling Pregnant Lady

The summer we found out we were pregnant was kind of crazy...

I'll start around Christmas time of 2011. My husband Aaron is a submariner in the Navy. While in Washington he was the Navigator on the USS Michigan. This job was slated to be done around May of 2012. His detailer at the time was not giving us very much information about what jobs were available after that time so were sort of in limbo. I was working as a horse trainer in a hunter/jumper program in Poulsbo. I knew there was a possibility of getting late orders or the chance of orders being changed last minute so I told my boss that we needed to find my replacement. This really was my dream job and I also knew it would take me some time to come to terms with the fact that I would have to turn over my beloved ponies and students to someone else. There was a chance that we would stay in Washington, but I couldnt risk the chance that we would have a last minute change. Aaron was deployed in February (Valentines Day to be exact...) So we were now limited to once a week or even once a month communication for the next few months. He was growing more and more impatient about the lack of orders and the difficulty of organizing any potential moves while deployed. Long story short, we were originally told we would be staying in Washington, only to be changed to a multiple move ending up in Virginia. The final decision wasn't given to Aaron until a few weeks before returning from deployment. This gave us only a few weeks to prepare to move across the country. Luckily I had found a great new trainer to take over my job and had already started the transition.

Knowing that this was now definitely a shore tour which means he wouldn't be deploying for a couple of years, we decided to start "trying". Ideally if he stays in the military we didnt want to have a pregnancy fall during a deployment. This two to three year shore time would be the best time to start a family. More and more I had been feeling like "mom" was what I was meant to be. Aaron and I wanted to be married at least a year before growing our family.

Just found out!

about 8 weeks, DC

The first part of our adventure was moving to Washington DC for a 5 week pre commanding officer school. We decided to drive out there so I could have a car during this time. Usually the families don't travel with the sailor for these types of things but we were lucky enough to be able to make it work. We are not interested in spending any more time apart than we have had to already. This trip took about a week. We were able to stop in Boise on the way there which is my hometown. I hadn't been back in a few years and was so glad to show Aaron around.

 The first inclination I had that I might be pregnant was the day we were driving into DC. I started to get a little queasy during the drive. I frequently get car sick so I thought it could just be that. I was already a few days late and had taken a couple pregnancy tests that week that were all negative. Aaron was trying to quell my excitement and made me wait three more days to take another one. The weekend we got into DC we had to find a place to live for that month. We found a place and moved our car full of belongings (and a very fed up dog) in. After unloading our stuff I finally broke down and took another pregnancy test. It was positive!! Aaron was unpacking in the other room and I ran in and showed him. He was kneeling on the floor and kissed my belly and said "look at you, bun in the oven." Several of my friends had dealt with miscarriage recently and I was initially very cautious and not wanting to get ahead of myself. We would be seeing both of our parents at the end of the 5 weeks and decided we wanted to tell them in person then. It was fun to have our own little secret for a while anyways. I made our first doctors appt out there which would be a couple weeks later. The following week the nausea hit ... For the majority of our stay in DC I threw up every morning. I was usually safe to leave the apartment around 1:00, but still wouldn't be feeling very good. On top of that, it rarely dropped below 90 degrees and the city smells awful!! Aaron had a path he would take me to the metro and back that avoided the smelliest parts.

The hardest part was deciding to keep the news from a few of our friends out there and our families. It was getting hard to explain so much sickness. One time I had to race back from the metro and climb into bed with a migrane while Aaron entertained our friends and their two kids in the living room. Another one of my good college friends wanted to take Aaron and I sailing with her and her boyfriend. It sounded like a lot of fun, and Aaron tried to talk me out of it. I probably should have listened. That story only gets told to my closest of friends....

I was afraid my parents were going to start suspecting something when it was becoming apparent that I rarely left the apartment. I had hoped to use this free time to explore the city, but just didnt feel up to it most of the time. My poor dog was a good sport, I eventually committed to taking her to a dog park most days to get her out of the house. By the end of our time there I was able to get out and to a couple of museums. Poor DC got a bad rap in my book, I'm afraid I will forever have

The next step was driving back to Washington to pack up our house. This trip we swung through Minnesota to visit Aarons parents, and then made it back in time for my annual family reunion. We gave our parents this picture and t shirt to tell them the news.

This is the first grandchild on both sides and they were all ecstatic.

After a month in Poulsbo to pack up the house and get it ready for renters, we headed back to the East coast. This was now our third cross country trip in three months and I was about over it. This time we needed to get both cars over and had to drive separately. My ever shrinking bladder was making this a much longer trip. Aaron was used to doing 1100 miles in a day when he would move by himself, we were lucky to get 500... The morning sickness had started to die down and I only had a couple of "pull the car over I'm going to hurl" moments. I discovered that Starbucks croissants were the safest breakfast choice.

Our first peak at baby C!

Poulsbo, WA

Bainbridge Island, WA

My main concern at the beginning of the pregnancy was that Eli was due three months after moving to a new state. I have so many amazing friends in Washington that were in the same stage as us and I was very nervous about leaving all that behind. This would be my first move to a new state that wasn't for a job or school.

God definitely answered that prayer. The first church we went to in Suffolk got us plugged in to a young adult small group right away. The first time we walked in the leader said "well you're in the right place, our group just had 8 babies in the last 8 months!" I was so relieved to have some new friends in the
                                        same life stage as us.

Suffolk, VA

Suffolk, VA

Unfortunately we only had a month in Suffolk to find a house and move in before Aaron needed to be in New York. Luckily I was able to go with him (and not stranded in a new town by myself, thank you Navy). He had a 5 week design school in Schenectady with most of the crew. I was actually looking forward to spending the fall in New England and was hoping to find a barn to volunteer at while there. I had stopped riding at 20 weeks but sent emails to local barns offering to teach for free to keep myself busy. The only response I got was a barn about 30 minutes from the hotel we were staying at. The lesson program was in a bit of a transition and once the head trainer figured out I could teach, they put me to work. Mostly I was helping out with a group of riders with handicaps (which is one of my favorite groups to teach.) I was glad to stay active and out of the hotel room.

We wanted to be surprised about the gender :)

Schenectady, NY
22 weeks

We were able to do day trips around the area which was great. Saratoga Springs is a super cute town with lots to see. We also drove up to Montreal for the day which we decided was our babymoon. I still daydream about meandering around old town Montreal, leisurely eating crepes and antipasto platters.

babymoon in Montreal
24 weeks

Mystic, CT
27 weeks

After the five weeks we took a week to drive back to Virginia by way of Connecticut and Long Island. Aaron has good friends in Mystic and I have family in Stoneybrook, Long Island. Luckily this coincided with Thanksgiving and we celebrated with a pig roast at my aunt and uncles house.

About a month after we got back to Virginia I flew out for my baby showers. My Aunt was hosting one for my Montana family in Billings and I was having another for my Washington friends and family on Bainbridge Island. I didnt get a bridal shower so Aaron was very supportive of my decision to fly around.

Billings, MT
28 weeks

Poulsbo, WA with my horse Izzy

Bainbridge Island
 the last time I saw my grandfather

The most significant part of this trip was that a week after being in Seattle with my grandparents, my grandfather passed away. He had been having issues with his heart and was just weeks away from a brand new procedure that had just been approved. He passed away at night. My brother was there and his last words to him were "good night champ." I am so thankful I was there the week before. The four years I got to spend in Washington were worth it solely for the extra time I got to spend with my grandparents. I was heartbroken that Eli didn't get to meet great grandpa Roger, but am thankful that he is no longer suffering. My grandfather was an incredible man and I hope to get a post done on his amazing life.

Suffolk, VA
32 weeks

Sequim, WA where Aaron proposed
33 weeks

Bainbridge Island, WA
Seattle in the Background
Photo by Dave Raley

By the time I got home I was 6 months pregnant and ready to be in one place for a while. Its hard to nest when you're moving every other month! Our Christmas was really low key, the first and only with just us at home. Aaron had a couple weeks off and we reveled in the last time it was going to be just the two of us with that much time off together. I had a pretty "easy" pregnancy. I was able to be active and had no complications. I was not one of those women who loved being pregnant though. Most of the time I was very uncomfortable. Aaron was a good sport and did all he could to allieviate that. We had decided on a natural birth through the Bradley Method and Aaron took charge of the preperations. (More on our birth story here.) He made me a chart to mark off my daily responsibilities (squats, red rasberry leaf tea, pelvic tilts etc.) Aaron is an engineer and even had a power point presentation on all the Bradley recommendations... I was so thankful that he was not deployed for the pregnancy and birth and could be so involved.

Suffolk, VA
36 Weeks

Suffolk, VA
38 Weeks

A few weeks postpartum 

All in all, Baby Coudray had been in 26 states before he was born. Since then we have scaled back, only three states so far. I feel like this was an accurate introduction into his life as a military child. We are hoping to be able to retire from the Navy in the next 10 years so he has a chance to live a stable life as well. We see value in both and pray that he is better off for it.

Our Breastfeeding Journey

Hi there and thanks so much for taking the time to read my thoughts! My main goal for this blog is to be transparent (thanks Alex :) and to encourage other first time moms. I had so much anxiety going into this stage in life and knowing that other women out there were going through the same struggles (and victories) was so helpful.

{As I'm writing this I'm getting lots of encouragement from my "what do I do when my kid doesn't like to nap" post on Facebook. Sometimes we just need to hear that what we are going through is normal and we are not failing miserably.}

Like I had said in a previous post, I had a feeling that breastfeeding was going to be a struggle for us the first time we tried to get him to latch. Part of me didn't expect to have problems before hand as my pregnancy and labor were all textbook and "easy". Like so many others have said, I thought the principle of breastfeeding was simple: baby meet boob, done! I had read lots of information about latching and position but it's one of those things that you just have to do to fully figure out.

The lactation consultant at the hospital was nice... and apparently her advice must work for some moms otherwise I don't think she would still have a job, but it didn't work for me. She had one hand on the back of Eli's neck and the other hand with a firm grasp on my boob and mashed them together. He was NOT interested in opening his mouth very wide and when he did latch on he didn't suck very well. She seemed a little confused about what to do next which is when I should have promptly called an outside lactation consultant. During our hospital stay we had just about every nurse on duty handling my milk makers to get him on. It took at least 10 minutes to latch and he fell asleep almost every time. Aaron was so great and helped any way he could. The Lactation consultant's parting words were to feed him as much and as long as he wanted.

At our first pediatrition appointment his weight was down 7%. I knew that was normal but the doctor was concerned. He was already an 8 pound baby so I wasn't terribly worried. He said that if it dropped any more we were going to need to supplement. We were not interested in doing that so I stepped up the nursing as much as I could. I was exhausted. The first week home was very difficult. He was still struggling to latch but was starting to nurse longer. 40 minutes a side longer... It wasnt until he was 8 weeks old that he would pull off by himself. I couldn't really tell at the beginning when he was sucking and swallowing or just sucking. We had a second doctors appointment and he was back to his birth weight after a week. I felt better knowing that he was getting enough to eat, even if I was struggling.

After 10 days my nipples were cracked, bleeding, and SORE! Lanolin didn't help much. I tried airing them out, ice packs before and after (engorgement on top of that was not fun) and ibuprofen. I was dreading nursing each time. We use the Baby Connect app to keep track of things and looking at one of the charts showed that I was nursing 8 + hours a day. Thats a full time job! Finally we decided to call a different lactation consultant. I was very skeptical and honestly thought there was nothing more I could learn or do differently. I think she could tell how frazzled I was and spent some time talking to us to get me to relax. She inspected his mouth and weighed him. She thought his tongue was "thick" and he wasn't moving it around very well. She gave us an exercise to do with him before nursing. We were supposed to put our finger in the corner of his mouth, the center, and then the other corner to get him to stretch it. Then she took away my breastfeeding pillow. She said that the pillows tend to put the baby too high. She used smaller pillows to support my arms. The first thing she told me to do was to relax! I was super tense and hunched over him because I was anticipating the excruciating pain that was coming. She then worked on getting me to bring him up to me and almost latching himself. He still wasn't opening his mouth very wide though. She decided to get a nipple shield to help with that. The shield helped him latch quicker and with less pain. After 10 minutes he started to fall asleep so she took him off and weighed him again. He had taken in 2 ounces in 10 minutes! She told me to use the shield for a while to help my nipples heal and then work on weaning him. His latch problems had a little to do with his lower lip not staying out and she thought he may not be sticking his tongue out enough.

With the nipple shield we were slowly improving and I was no longer in horrible pain. I knew I should be trying to wean him off of it but really didn't want to go back to where we had started. After a couple of weeks I tried to get him on without it. He would either not want to latch at all, or would latch and then come off after five minutes and cry. I was really starting to worry that we were never going to be nursing on our own without pain. Aaron was very supportive and told me not to worry about it. Eli was getting fed and that was the number one priority. After a month I decided to go back to the lactation consultant. She weighed him again before and after and he was still getting 2-3 ounces in five minutes. She was very happy with his latch too. The only change she made was to have him lower and to have his head not so close to my elbow. She had me just get him close and then have him latch himself. I was really excited and thought we were home free.

A few days later I was getting really sore again. I was so so discouraged. Aaron told me not to be stubborn and to use the shield again. Luckily after about a week we were able to be off the shield completely. FINALLY. Eli was about 9 weeks at this point. I also noticed that he had started to stick his tongue out on his own so I think the stretches helped.

I felt such accomplishment to have pushed through and succeeded. I was so committed to making this work and that was a huge part of getting through it.

I had one scare about a month later when I thought it was all coming back. Out of no where my right breast was very sore. I used the shield for a day and then discovered there was a white spot on it... I googled "white spot on nipple" (thank you kellymom.com) and found that it was called a milk blister. I also had a sore red spot on my breast and was very engorged on that side, so probably had a blocked duct as well. The website said that it could take weeks to heal. The morning that it was the worst I tried a tip online that said to pump with heat. Thank goodness with a heating pad and good long pump session it felt much better. The milk blister was still sore but not nearly as bad as it was. I was able to go without the shield for the rest of the week and the blister is now gone.

All that's left now is thrush and mastitis and I will have had it all!

My hope for this post is to encourage those struggling with breastfeeding to push through! For those that are pregnant: most don't have it quite this bad so don't be discouraged. There are lots of resources out there and you will find those that are able to breastfeed are very willing to help others succeed as well.

Meghan Hill Photography

Favorite Baby Items Months 0-3 and Registry Tips

Here is a list of our favorite baby items. I was SO overwhelmed when registering. This is generally from 0-3 months old and the basics of registering.

Big Ticket Items

Maxi Cosi car seat in the Bugaboo

Car Seat-
Maxi Cosi Mico. It's a little more expensive than the Graco's but I'm so glad we got it. Our philosophy was to splurge on the things we were going to use daily and long term. The Maxi Cosi is lighter than most and super easy to use. And it looks way better. We got the adapter to use with our stroller. There are LOTS of infant seat options. The Graco's are great affordable options as well. Don't get caught up in the weight allowance though. You will NOT be carrying your baby around in the infant seat when they are 35 pounds. We transitioned to the convertible seat when Eli was about 20 lbs, which happened to be around 7 months old. Many babies don't reach that weight until they are closer to a year old.

Stroller-
Bugaboo Cameleon- Aaron was in charge of picking the stroller and got really excited about this one. Again it's more expensive but I'm SO glad we got it. We use it so much and makes life much easier. It folds up simply, is easy to maneuver (with one hand even) and is great quality. We have had lots of comments from people with the Graco's etc that like how simple it looks. I've also noticed that the less expensive strollers look really used after a year. We bought ours used (for $300 which is less than half of one new) and I'm confident we will be able to use it years down the road with the next kiddo. It comes with a toddler seat and a bassinet. They are also supposed to be good for jogging too. I wont even go into all the cool features, but you can check out their website for more information. Again, LOTS of options out there. Britax has a great line and Graco makes many that are compatible with their infant seats. The stroller will get a lot of use though so definitely get the best quality you can afford.

Pottery barn crib. Crib skirt from Etsy.

Crib-
Pottery Barn Sleigh Crib- Again, we decided this was something that would be used quite a bit and by hopefully more than one child so we were ok with spending more. We also found a great quality used one for half the price of a new one on Craigslist. I love how it looks and it will convert to a kid and full sized bed. There are many middle of the line cribs that are transitional as well.

Diaper Bag
Petunia Pickle Bottom Boxy Backpck- Love, Love, Love my bag. I dont carry a purse when I have it and don't miss is at all. Many of my friends had them and raved about them. It is great quality, super cute, and functional. There is a fold out changing pad that I have used multiple times. There are clips that attach to the stroller as well. The backpack portion sold me on it as we plan to travel a little bit and I liked the idea of having a backpack while carrying a baby through the airport. Since then they have come out with a "City Carryall" that has the changing pad feature but not the backpack that I kinda like the look of more. The only downside is that it is a little bulky for every day use and easy to over pack. I may be asking for their diaper clutch for Christmas.... This is a great item to ask for as a gift.

Pack and Play-
Bright Starts Ingenuity- I had such a hard time picking this one out. Most people I know have the Graco one with the changing table and newborn napper. I decided we mostly needed one as a crib and changing table. I'm really happy with what we picked. Its more simple but has everything we need. My only wish would be for a washable changing cover for the changing table. I'm a little concerned about it getting stained with too much use.

Glider-
Little Castle Glider- I really like this rocker. It's stylish and looks great in our living room. We debated between getting this one or the reclining glider. We have a recliner already so got the basic one. The ottoman is on its way (both were a gift from my parents). It's also very comfortable. I liked the idea of getting this style chair instead of the traditional rocking chair so it could be used in our living room down the road.

Swing-
Fisher Price Snugabunny - Some babies like swings and some don't, so don't hesitate to buy used if you don't get it off the registry. We used ours only occasionally but I know others who couldn't live without it. Most newborn items are only used for a few months so used stuff will be pretty nice still.


Things we use daily: (0-3 Months old)

Diaper pail-
Arm and Hammer Diaper Pail: At the beginning, baby poo doesn't smell all that bad and we got away with a plastic bag hanging on the changing table that I would throw out when I had the chance during the day. Eventually we needed the pail though. So far I have been very happy with the smell containing factor of this one. Other complaints have been about the need to buy their brand of bag replacements. This doesn't really bother me.

Hanging out in the rock and play

Aden and Anais Swaddle Blankets- I use these every single day for many different uses. Burp cloth, blanket, swaddler, etc.

Burp Cloth- My mom got a bunch of random ones at a consignment sale. You needs LOTS. I have them stashed all over the house.

Rock and Play Sleeper - Eli sleeps in this every night still. When he was little and would get fussy I could just reach over and rock him back to sleep. He seems very cozy and knows that it's time to sleep when he's in it.

Cloud B Sleep Sheep- We dont use this as much any more but it really helped him fall asleep when he was younger. We got the travel one which was easy to attach to his car seat or swing.

Pacifier- Soothies. At the beginning we really debated whether or not we would use a pacifier. I have heard horror stories about weaning from them. Our plan was to wait 4 weeks to introduce a pacifier or bottle so it would't interfere with breastfeeding. When he was feeding for so long at a time I decided that the pacifier would help his need to suck and spare my sore nipples. It has also helped when he gets fussy while away from the house. We try not to give it to him every time he falls asleep and so far he doesn't seem too dependent on it. Our lactation consultant said to only use this kind because it is most like a nipple and helps with nipple confusion.

Motorola Video Moniter- Aaron was in charge of this purchase and loves his gadgets so we got a pretty nice one. Eli's room is upstairs and we are downstairs so when he sleeps in his crib at night I feel good having the video moniter. This one also swivels and has a two way microphone. Another feature I didn't think I would like as much before we got it was the temperature gauge. We are much more obsessed with his temperature than I ever thought we would be.

Newborn to toddler rocker

Fisher Price Rocker- I could not decide on which bouncy seat to get and am so glad we got this one. This one actually rocks instead of bounces but also vibrates. Eli loves this seat. He will sit in it for 30 minutes at a time while we eat dinner, cook, etc and we can also rock him to sleep in it.

Play Gym

Baby Einstein Play Gym- Eli also loves this. There are lots of attachments you can move around and he talks to the whale all the time. There is also a light up sound maker.

Puj bath tub- We bath him every other day and really like this tub. I got the travel version "Flyte" on sale at Target. He just outgrew it though so we are using the basic blue baby tub which is just fine. It's nice and soft and easy to fit in the bathroom sink.

Baby Connect App- At the beginning I used this to track everything- diaper changes, feeding, sleep. Now I use it to track nursing which is nice to keep track of sides and amount of time. Every once in a while I forget when the last feeding was so it's nice to be able to check. This also has places to keep track of milestones, doctor appts, weight, mood etc.

 Ergo with Newborn Insert

Moby wrap and Ergo-

Sleeping in the Moby

I dont use these daily, but several times a week. The Moby was good for the newborn stage around the house and at the grocery store. I use the Ergo more now that he is bigger. There are some interesting articles about the benefits of facing in carriers vs facing out ones.






Clothes-

Don't buy clothes. You will anyways, but I warned you. Newborns need to be changed a lot and you will find that it's easiest to just throw a shirt on and swaddle them most of the time.

White onesies- 2 packs should be enough, you will be doing laundry every other day anyways,

Side snap t shirts- Eli slept in these most of the time under the sleep sack. They are much easier to put on than onesies. I really like the Gerber brand ones.

Footed onesies- The zip ones are best. We would dress him in these when we left the house. His feet are too big for his size now...

Socks- Gap socks are the best. All others fall off. They can also be used as mittens. DONT buy baby mittens/

Halo Sleep Sack Swaddlers- We got a bunch of the Swaddle Me's before he was born but they were using these at the hospital and we loved them. They are super easy to use and keep them warm in the winter. They also allow more freedom to move their feet which was very important to Eli. Get two so you have one when the other is in the wash.

Places to shop for baby clothes-
Target: good selection, not as many cute boy clothes as girls. Good basics here.
Khols- all the same clothes as Target but cheaper.
Baby Gap- Really cute and well made clothes. Shop the sales.
H&M- Hit or miss but really affordable.
Keep in mind that they outgrow things really quick, there are definitely things Eli didn't wear or only wore once.


Diapering-

Newborn diapers- Pampers Swaddlers. These fit well and I was surprised that we were able to use them until he was one month old. We used at least 10 a day.
Other sizes- we are still using Pampers but am going to try other brands. We have blow outs but he is also a major pooper... Next we used Huggies Little Movers and when the pooping got under control (after solids) we have been using Target brand.
Wipes- HUGGIES- we started with Pampers but found they were too wet. I tried Huggies and they were SO much better! They actually "scrub" the tooshie which is needed. You will go through LOTS of wipes at the beginning.

*A tip for registering for diapers. Ask for just a few boxes of each size, you have no idea what size they will be or have fast they grow. Newborn and size 1 will be especially fast. Sizes 3 and 4 you can get quite a few. Tape the receipt on the outside of the box though just in case you have to return them.

Nursing-

Nipple shield
   LIFESAVER. There is a very good chance that without the recommendation of a nipple shield that I would not have been able to keep breastfeeding. This helped him to latch without horrible pain and helped my nipples heal. It took us almost two months to be able to nurse without it but it was so worth it. The only thing is the best one we had was given to us by the lactation consultant who ships them in from Germany... Apparently they are the best and the most similar to an actual nipple. *** Just did a google search and found them here. No ordering information, but it's a start. They really were much better than the drug store ones. I may just send out my German friend to find them and ship a bunch to me. This also came in handy when I had a blocked duct recently.

Breastfeeding pillow

Tummy time on the My Breast Friend

My Breast Friend- I registered for this one because I had a few friends that liked that it was flat on the top versus the Boppy which is softer. The Boppy is nice because you can prop baby up on it. I have liked the MBF for tummy time though. He HATES tummy time and will tolerate it when propped on his elbows on this on the bed. (I think he likes to be able to see things.) I would reccommend borrowing one from someone, I am not using it for breastfeeding anymore (3 months after).

Nursing tanks and Cami's- LOVE LOVE LOVE these. I wear these exclusively around the house and for bed as well as out and about. I'm not super endowed so can get away with not wearing a bra under them most of the time. They work like a nursing bra and keep your belly covered while nursing in public. Motherhood Maternity has buy 3 get 1 free sales all the time, buy at least 4.

Nursing Bra- My favorite one do far has been a Bravado. Its soft and fits well. I also have a Le Leche League sports bra that is ok. Not the most comfortable but it supports well. I'm still looking for a good sleep bra. I underestimated the importance of a nursing bra. I still leak quite a bit and get engorged at night so have to wear a bra 24/7. Invest in a good one! Before baby I was not convinced that I would ever have big boobs... So I have a couple too small nursing bras that I can't wear now. They will get bigger!

Nursing pads- For some reason before having Eli I stocked up on disposable nursing pads and have only used them a couple of times. I didn't realize just how much I was going to leak and how often I would need to change them. I ended up getting several boxes of reusable ones. Get enough for a different pair every day for a week. Keep an extra pair by your bed at night for when they start sleeping longer and your body hasn't gotten the message...

Lanolin- I know people that swear by this, I honestly didn't notice a difference when I used it except for when showering.

Lansinoh Ice packs- these were GREAT for engorgement. It was really the only way I got relief.  You can also heat them up for pumping to help pump faster. Pumping helps but you want to be careful because you dont want to initiate more supply than you need.

Medela nipple soothers- good immediate relief from pain, but I didn't notice much difference with the scabs.

Medela Double Electric Breast pump- Even though I stay at home I am so glad I got this. I have used it for engorgement and when we need to give Eli a bottle. We have been able to have a couple date nights and I try and ride a couple times a week. It has been worth it alone for engorgement. I have had a blocked duct too and it was the only thing that got it out.

Bebe Au Lait Nursing cover: This was useful in the beginning when family was in town visiting right away and I wanted to cover up for my inlaws and brothers sake. I wasn't comfortable nursing away from home for a while but have used this at the park and at MOPS a few times. One thing I did not think about ahead of time was the pattern on it. I loved the grey and white damask one, until I was nursing next to someone with a plain blue one... This is not a time I want to be drawing extra attention to myself and wish I would have gotten a more plain cover. Oh well! A friend has this infinity scarf cover which I love and think is a great idea. The ribbing on the other cover is good for a first when you need to be able to see baby to get him latched. Otherwise it can be a little hot and too much fabric.

Whew! I'll do another update after the next 3 month stage.

Other things to register for: (more detail in following favorite item posts.)

High chair
Baby spoons: Munchkin brand
Bibs
Drying rack
Bottle warmer
Toys to grow into: Activity table, walker etc