Best *Baby* Amazon Buys in 2021 – Southern Curls & Pearls

Last week I rounded up my best buys from Amazon in 2021 and had a lot of requests to do the same post for baby products! This was THE YEAR of baby products, y’all. I can’t even tell you how many of these purchases were made in the middle of the night while nursing, haha! Amazon just makes it too easy to click that “add to cart” button. 😛 For this post, I went through every single one of my Amazon purchases and picked out the items that we used the most!

Side note, this list does not include items we received via our registry. I wanted to focus on items that I paid for myself!

Of allll Kennedy’s clothes, these are the onesies that she has worn the most! Just seeing photos of them immediately brings me back to the newborn stage – I’m pretty sure she wore one every single day for the first three months of her life! They’re super soft, come in a bunch of colors, and are easy to snap on and off for quick diaper changes. They’re also easy to get over her head! And perhaps the most important part: they’re made of 100% organic cotton. Organic clothing is especially important during the newborn stage because a newborn’s skin is very sensitive and porous and absorbs a lot of what it comes in contact with, including harsh chemicals in clothing. This item would be great for any age.

One appliance that we use a lot when preparing Kennedy’s food is this Beaba Babycook Neo. It’s a steamer and blender all in one, and all of the cooking parts are either made of glass or stainless steel (so your baby’s food never touches plastic). I like to cut up veggies and then steam them in the steamer basket – it doesn’t take long at all and is super easy to clean up. If you want to make a purée, all you have to do is put the steamed veggies into the glass reservoir and then hit the “blend” button. The machine is a bit of an investment, but it saves a lot of time in the kitchen and that makes it worth it to me! Best for ages 6 months and up.

This wooden playpen has been a lifesaver for us! I was looking for a playpen that was not made out of plastic… this wooden one fits the bill and is aesthetically pleasing, too. (My friend Lizzie had it first and I loved hers!) It’s so nice to be able to set Kennedy in her playpen if I need to use the bathroom, do laundry or cut up veggies – anytime I can’t keep a close eye on her. When she’s in the playpen I know that she’s safe! I keep a lot of toys in there, too, so she has plenty of things to occupy her. Side note, we only started using this once Kennedy was crawling. If I don’t keep a close eye on her, she will crawl straight to the stairs, Winnie’s food bowl or the cat litter box! Lol. Best for ages 6 months and up – or when baby is crawling!

This breast milk organizer was really handy back when I was nursing Kennedy! This entire organizer goes into the freezer and helps keep your milk organized. You can first lay the bag of fresh breastmilk on top of the organizer so that it freezes flat. Once it’s frozen, you insert it into the top. Whenever you need milk for your baby, you pull from the bottom, ensuring that that the oldest breastmilk gets used first. Best for breastfeeding moms.

Alright, let me just list out the many reasons why we love this baby monitor holder! First, it can attach to all kinds of furniture (even window sills) to give you the perfect view of your baby. (We have it attached to Kennedy’s dresser and at the perfect overhead angle to view every inch of her crib). Secondly, you don’t have to drill or permanently attach it to anything, making it easy to take off, disassemble and pack if you’re headed on an overnight stay or vacation. We travel with this everywhere we go so that we can always have a good view of her crib! It also fits a wide variety of baby monitors. This item would be great for any age.

We have really loved these Comotomo bottles! We used them a few times when Kennedy was younger to give her breastmilk, and she had no problem switching between these and the breast. Now that she has transitioned to just formula, these are pretty much the only bottles she drinks from (she does have a few glass bottles that she likes, too). The Comotomo bottles have extra-wide nipples and a soft, silicone base that supposedly feels like skin to your baby. They’re made out of 100% food grade silicone, which is non-toxic, and can withstand high heat so they are safe for the dishwasher and bottle sterilizer. Best for ages 0-12 months.

Around the time Kennedy turned 6 months old, she started showing an interest in cups! Drinking from an open cup helps promote oral motor development, so we have always used an open cup rather than a sippy cup. This silicone baby cup was perfect for teaching her how to drink from an open cup. We put a little bit of water inside and let her explore and play with the cup (yes, it was a bit messy but that’s okay). Now she has gotten really good at drinking from it! This particular one is made of 100% food grade silicone and has two easy-grip handles that allows babies and toddlers to grasp the cup. It has a wide base that makes it very sturdy (although Kennedy has definitely knocked it over a time a two). It’s also easy to clean, you can throw it in the dishwasher or sterilizer! Best for ages 6 months and up.

This portable fan is so good, I even ordered one for myself! It has three adjustable, octopus-style legs that can pretty much adapt to any surface. Over the past year, I’ve attached it to strollers, car seats, restaurant tables, and more. My dear husband even wrapped it around his LEG in order to aim it at Kennedy one time at the pool this summer – I still laugh when thinking about that! This is an especially helpful item during the summer when it’s hot out and you want to make sure baby stays cool. It also gives off a nice white-noise machine sound, which is calming for babies. This item would be great for any age.

We have used this baby nail kit dozens and dozens of times over the past year. It’s an electric file and EXTREMELY gentle, so it trims her nails but it doesn’t hurt her skin (I tested it out on myself to make sure). The first time we used it, she was only a couple days old – and she slept right through her first nail trimming! I had no idea that babies’ nails grew so fast, but we have to use this every week or else Kennedy’s nails get so long that she can scratch herself. This item would be great for any age.

I originally ordered these storage cups because I needed something to store my milk in throughout the day and I loved that they’re glass instead of plastic! They worked great for storing breastmilk, and I was able to continue using them once Kennedy started eating solids. They’re the perfect size for storing purees and steamed veggies in both the fridge and freezer. Whenever I make food for her ahead of time, I put individual portions in each of these glass jars and then they’re easy to pop in the microwave and serve her for meals. They come in a pack of twelve and are microwave, dishwasher and freezer safe. I also really like that they are stackable, so they don’t take up much room in our refrigerator or in our cabinets. This item would be great for any age.

This is a small but MIGHTY item that we used so many times throughout the past year. These dirty diaper bags are particularly handy when you’re out and about and have to change a dirty diaper. You place dirty diapers in these lightly scented bags and they will mask the smell until you can throw it away in a trashcan (and keep the contents of the diaper from ending up in your purse). I also used these at the pool to put Kennedy’s wet swimsuit in until we got home. I also love how they come in a super cute pink dispenser pouch that easily attaches to a diaper bag! This item would be great for any age.

My friend Megan recommended these gas relief drops and I will be forever grateful to her!! If you’re expecting, I would go ahead and order these just to have them on hand. When Kennedy was a newborn she had some issues with gas (which our pediatrician said is really common for babies since their digestive systems are so immature), but there were some nights that I will never forget because she cried ALL night long. These gas relief drops work within 15 minutes and were an absolute game-changer for us at nighttime (when Kennedy was at her gassiest, lol). She went from crying through the night to sleeping through the night because of these drops. You can give up to 12 doses throughout the day, but we never had to give her that much (usually only once per day). We mainly used these when she was a newborn, but we’ve used them a few times since she got older, too. Best for ages 0 to 6 months.

This travel high chair might just be one of the best inventions known to mankind. Kidding, but only kind of. Whenever we leave the house to go anywhere, we bring this chair along! You can easily attach this small, lightweight high chair to any table, whether you’re at a friend’s house or a restaurant. I tend to think public high chairs at restaurants are filled with germs (and even the tabletop if they don’t clean properly), so it’s really nice to know that she can sit in her own high chair wherever we go. I also ordered this plastic tray that attaches to the high chair. We wash it in between uses so that it’s always clean whenever we go out, and I can always be assured that she’s eating on a clean surface. I even packed this in my suitcase when we traveled to Vermont earlier this year! Everywhere we take it, random people come up to us and ask where we got it. It also comes apart and goes into the washing machine just fine (we lay ours out flat to dry). Best for ages 6 months and up, or whenever baby is sitting up unassisted.

I also wanted to mention this product because I absolutely couldn’t have survived the summertime with a newborn without this beach dome! We used it over and over again at the beach and in our backyard. It provides lots of shade and is a safe place to set your baby down when you’re outside. Kennedy loved being inside of it on the beach – the sides are made out of mesh so she could feel the ocean breeze, but it still kept the sand out. She took a lot of naps in this dome as a newborn! It’s also really easy to set up and lightweight enough for me to carry. Best for ages 0 to 6 months, or before baby is crawling!

If you have any must-have baby items that you purchased from Amazon, let us all know in the comments! xo