makins of a jenkins

h&m organic kimono onesie // great prices for organic cotton and sizes that fit & dont have to go over her head (their stuff shrinks a TON)

zutano cozy bootie // only sock/booties that actually stay on.

as you know, you get helllllllla stuff for a baby.

so much.

and then you quickly find out what stuff is essential, what stuff you need (hi, Amazon) and stuff you could live with out. here’s our favorite things in the 6 weeks of parenthood. 

• These organic cotton breast pads // i registered for these bamboo washable ones but they have fuzzy little fibers and they totally stick to your nipple and #ouch so dont love them. i was given this kind at my shower by a friend who loved them and they are my favorite. it is annoying having to always wash them and make sure i have some on hand (i ordered a few new packs) but i tried using the reusable ones and it felt like sandpaper on my nipples so, nope. these are super soft, not huuuuge like some brands and dont stick to your nipples.
• High-waisted compression underwear // I knew i was gonna want something like this and i ordered a handful trying to find the right ones. these dont look that high up in the pics online but they go above your belly button. i absolutely love them. a perfect amount of compression and they are full butt – which you need for the pads you gotta wear (didnt always know that!) and a thong – as i found out – isnt quite as comfortable riiight after you give birth. i also got the thong version but i tried them out once and it was too soon to be wearing a thong. so those will be for the future. // Sizing help: I got a medium originally. wayyyyy too small. I got an XL and it fits great. I’m not an XL ever, but the sizing was way off so i’ll help you avoid mailing a medium back….I’m a size 6 and XL was great.

• My BrestFriend // this is probably my #1 best thing – and i had no idea just how many hours i would spend with this thing attached to me. it keeps her straight across at an even level and has a great firmness thats better than the normal breastfeeding pillows. there’s a pocket attached which is so nice to keep nipple cream in or a water bottle and it wraps around your back so its a great back support for all the time you spend hunched over (read: i need a shoulder massage). i just ALSO found out there is also a travel one – as i was thinking how much it was gonna suck to not have it as we will be traveling soon – its plastic and you blow it up and has a slip on cover. if you’re breastfeeding, you abbbsolutely need this, dont get the other ones!
• MamaRoo  // i didnt know if we’d use this, so i was hesitant about buying it but we use it so much. she loves taking naps in it. we got the infant insert which she still needs, and its great bc it has about 6 different movement settings and has different sounds (white noise, etc), hooks up to BlueTooth – read: you can turn it off without getting up or change the settings while you’re in bed. We move it between the living room and the bedroom – and use it everyday. i’ve heard that it conks out and breaks – so far, so good…but hopefully if that happens we’ll still be within the warranty.

the pink above is the SwaddleMe not the Woombie

• a Woombie! // Swaddling is so important for keeping them tucked in and sleeping – and after a week and a half of swaddling her in the night after she eats and then kinda waking her up, not to mention annoying to swaddle multiple times a night or all in the day, i realized #duh we need to use the woombie! my sister told me about these – kind of like a pre-sleep-sack. A swaddle that just zips up. 1) they can break out of it if you have a houdini. 2) And its so great because nothing is worse than having to un-swaddle and re-swaddle to check if her diaper is wet. with the woombie, you can just unzip the bottom and check, and change real quick if you need to. There’s also a smaller version called SwaddleMe, that i liked when she was super new. They are a bit thinner and smaller – great for a true newborn or small baby. she is 9lbs and still fits but i think would work well for a 7-8lb new baby. The newborn size of the Woombie is a thicker, more stretchy material and is a bit bigger than the SwaddleMe, has more leg room and a snap on the neck.
• Earth Mama Angel Baby Nipple Cream // i love this stuff, i also ordered the Motherlove Nipple cream recommended on IG to me, but i still like the Earth Mama one better. Its not as solid which i like because its easy to scoop out and i just like the feeling of it better. I also used the New Mama Bottom spray the weeks after birth and loved it. Really fresh and cool and felt great!
• 3-piece Post Partum Belly Band // We all have heard about the waist trainer trend, and it made me think about doing it after birth. My sister was so into it and got me the one attached. I totally thought it would not feel great to strap on myself but it was ammazing and i lived in this (and still do) immediately when i got home. it felt so good to be supported and held together. my stomach and insides are all gush, so it really was a nice structure to have as well as the support for all the breastfeeding and hunching going on. this thing is $20 and soooo money well spent. i know there are more expensive ones out there – belly bandit – but i think this one was just as good and am super happy with it. you have the Relaxin hormone in your body for i believe 5-6 months after birth, so being supported can help your joints go back. which im hoping happens because my hips definitely are wider i found out as i put on my old jeans! (which totally isnt bad because i was totally straight up and down before with NO hips. but still, i appreciate this and will use this in future pregnancies.
• Water Wipes // We have Seventh Generation, Honest wipes and Water wipes…which i’d never heard about before but i bought them for her newborn days because, there’s nothing in it but water…..after weeks of using them and then trying the other wipes, CJ and i both were like….those others are shit! and ordered way more Water Wipes. we will totally stick with these kinds. the other wipes are 1) way more rough on her perfect little bum – WAY more rough. and 2) WAY less wet. like basically try. how are these considered wipes? the water wipes are so moist and so soft. its like the silk of wipes. takes way less to wipe than the others. these SO need to catch on.
• Huggies Little Snugglers // Ok so i bought 22004543 Honest diapers in all sizes (call you say over-prepared) before she was born and we WILL use them but they used Huggies at the hospital, and 1) they are the only ones that fit her, the newborn Honest ones are still too big. and 2) they have the yellow stripe that turns blue when she pees. sorry but thats a lifesaver. her pee is tiny, so its hard to know unless the diaper is super full if she peed and dad is like a diaper vigilant to the stripe is my one way of saying no! she’s not wet, she’s fine when he’s always wanting to change her diaper. (also we will go thru 33020 more diapers bc he doesnt think its ok to be wet at allllll….we’ll get over that hopefully). 3) these are soooooo soft.
• Medela Nursing Bra // I also ordered a bunch of nursing bras ahead of time and most of them were from Zulily, which you cant return so there were some hit or miss. I do like the brand Cake sold at Nordstrom but i only ordered a nursing tank in that brand and havent worn that yet and been more in the bras than tanks. I love this Medela bra. Its comfortable and doesnt have a ton of extra fabric which i feel like a lot of bra have. 
• Pacifier & Nipple Shield Case // was this a thing before? Once we started leaving the house, i needed a clean nipple shield handy and used a ziploc at first. these little guys are handy and pretty hard to open actually, which is good bc they dont just pop open in teh bag (kind of annoying tho, they take some might!). Boring but needed, love these little cases. They fit two soothies inside.

I’m sure there will be way more along the way as we grow and go thru new stages. Do you have things you *cant* live without? I would love to hear!

ALSO! I made my baby an Instagram! yep, I’m proudly *that* person. // @PortlandJenkins // I mean, i have 140830 photos and video of her and I love sharing on my own IG, but I want to share way more, and little dumb things that i would never put on my own, because…you know…trying to stay semi professional there and those folks didnt sign up for a baby feed….so, Viola! now she has her own and i can be unashamed about posting heaps and heaps of stuff on there bc if you’re there…you signed up for that! woo.