YoMommy Yogurt

I love Stonyfield Farm organic yogurt so I was excited to learn that they had developed a line of yogurt tailored toward pregnant and nursing moms. Introduced in January, YoMommy has added folic acid, DHA and vitamin D. A line-up of essential nutrients for growing babies.

As a member of Bzzz Agent, I received a coupon for a free sample of YoMommy. It took a few weeks for it to be available in a store near me, but now that it is I buy it every week. It comes in single-serving 4-packs with flavors like blueberry, raspberry, peach and strawberry. As a nursing mom I was eating yogurt anyway for the calcium but now I am glad to have an option with added nutrients that are beneficial for my growing daughter.

Busy Baby Nursing Cover

If you are like me and are not going to be comfortable exposing your boobs in public, then you will need to purchase some type of nursing cover. There are a number of different styles available but I really like the simple cover from Busy Baby. Unlike some of the other covers, the Busy Baby Wrap does not have loud prints that draw attention to you. Instead it is understated and almost fashionable. It is available in 6 different colors so you can coordinate with your outfits or you can just buy one in natural and that will work with everything. I do recommend having two so that if one gets dirty you won't have to do laundry right away.

MilkBands

Here's a product that I really wish I had known about during the first couple of months. During that time breastfeeding is your full-time job, sometimes feeding your child every hour. The frequency of the feedings coupled with sleep deprivation, makes it hard to remember when you fed last and from what side.

I can't tell you how many times I told my husband we should invent something that reminded a mom what breast she should be feeding from next. I would often lift up my shirt and ask him which breast looked fuller in order to determine which side to feed from next. The inventor of MilkBands was faced with the same problem and came up with a product to solve it.

MilkBands provide a mother with the information she need about her child's feeding all on one wrist. By simply turning the band inside out a mother identifies which breast to feed from next. MilkBands also has a tracking device on the side that a mother can use to identify when the baby last ate or when she should be eating next.

Medela Quick Clean Wipes

Now that I am back at work I have even less time for my own interests, such as writing this blog. Consequently my posts may be even shorter.

One product that has become essential for me is the Medela Quick Clean Wipes. Pumping at work is stressful. Not only do you have to find the time to do it, but in my case I am stuck pumping in the ladies room. I find it awkward and embarrassing.

The Medela wipes allow me to make a quick exit once I am done. No water or soap needed. You just wipe everything up and then pack it away for the next session. They are pricey but I find them to be well worth it.

Serving Tray

If you are breastfeeding you will most likely be spending a large amount of time on the couch. Once you have your Boppy and your baby on your lap it is hard to get up and move around so you will want to have everything you may need within reach. I keep a tray on the couch all day and it holds the TV remotes, my phones, a book, tissues, magazines and a bottle of water. My daughter also seems to time her meals at the same time I am eating mine so my husband often serves me my dinner on this tray. If you are planning on breastfeeding I recommend that you buy a tray to use during the first few months.

Nursing Gliders

It seems like in every episode of the Baby Story on TLC, the parents have one of those huge gliding nursing chairs in their nursery. I feel that those chairs are over hyped and it is one baby gear item that you can definitely live without.

In the first few days at home I was convinced that our lack of a "nursing chair" was why my daughter was having trouble latching on. My husband and I came very close to going to Babies R' Us and buying one but I am very glad we didn't. After one week of nursing problems my daughter became a pro. I no longer needed 5 pillows to prop her up or a foot stool for positioning. I can now walk around and nurse her or nurse her lying down in bed. If we had bought one of those ugly chairs it would be collecting dust in the nursery as who wants to be sequestered to the nursery every time their child needs to eat? Nursing on the couch in the living room is a much better option.

Medela Pump In Style Advanced

If you are planning on breast feeding, then this is one product you must have. I don't know what I would have done in the first week after birth if I hadn't already purchased the Medela Pump In Style Advanced. Both my husband and I agree this was the best $300 we ever spent.

My daughter spent her first week after birth in the hospital being treated for jaundice. The treatment involved her being kept under special lights for most of the day in order to improve her condition. The more we kept her under the lights, the faster we could get her home. This didn't give my daughter and I much time to bond and consequently she had latch-on problems. Fortunately I had purchased the Medela pump and was able to avoid having to feed her formula while in the hospital.

I continued to use the pump for another week after being released from the hospital. It was very easy to use and each session only took 10-15 minutes. My daughter is now breastfeeding but I will be using the pump again when I return to work and I am very happy to know that I won't be spending hours at work pumping. My pumping breaks will end up being shorter than my coworkers' cigarette breaks.

If you are planning on breast feeding I encourage you to purchase the Medela Pump In Style Advanced before you give birth. Yes it is pricey but if you end up in a similar situation it will be invaluable. Early in my pregnancy when I told my husband I had to purchase a pump he scoffed at the price tag. But after our ordeal he said he would pay triple the price if he had to do it over again. If for some reason you don't end up needing it, then you can always leave it unopened and return it.

Baby Gear Pros: fast, non-nondescript carrying case, comes with a cooler to store milk for a few hours.

Baby Gear Cons: expensive