I have a lot of friends and family who are having babies this year. Some are first-timers, some are experienced parents. Babies mean baby showers and baby gifts, and that's gotten me thinking about which items were truly useful and which were...well...not.

So here's my list of favorite, useful things. You may not agree, but this is my blog, not yours, so feel free to post your own on your blog!

• Kiddopotamus Swaddle Me Infant Wrap. We probably had four of these. They're super-easy to use, are available in a variety of colors and in fleece and cotton and made swaddling quick and easy.
  
• Bouncy Seat. There are lots of options out there. We had the low-end version and it was so useful during those first few months. It's lightweight, easy to move one-handed and can go anywhere - in the bathroom while you shower, in the kitchen while you cook, in the living room while you fold laundry. Ours vibrated and Zach would zonk out in no time. The swing is useful, but the bouncy seat can't be beat because of how portable it is.
  
• Gowns. I thought gowns were less cute than the adorable sleepers, but during the first few weeks, gowns made life much easier (especially at night) because it was no problem to get in there for diaper changes. No snaps to snap incorrectly when you're sleep deprived and can't even think straight. Just slide it up, change the diaper, slide it down and poof! You're done! My experience is that the Carters brand has nicer fabrics than the Gerber ones or other brands.
  
• Infant Tylenol or Motrin. Get it in the house, along with some Pedialyte, before you actually need it. Trust me, you don't want to have to take a vomiting or diarrhea-ing baby to the store to get it!
  
• Steam Sterilizer. So quick and easy to sterilize bottles, pacifiers and toys.
• Carters Easy-Fit Jersey Crib Sheet. I liked the Carters sheets best - they were the softest and didn't shrink like some of the other brands (Circo, Koala Baby) after repeated washings.
• The Baby Book by William Sears et al. This is a good all-around book for the first 2 years of life. Written by a pediatrician and his RN wife who've had a passel of their own kids, it's easy to use. There were some sections, like co-sleeping and some other things that we weren't really into, but as our Baby Care Basics class instructor said "take what you want to use from it, and ignore what you don't." There's a good section on breastfeeding, common childhood illnesses, developmental milestones, bonding with your baby... I definitely recommend it.
• Pack N Play. This is another item where there are lots of options, from the scaled-down budget version to the lots-more-expensive deluxe version, but really, any option will work. We have a scaled-down one, and I've never regretted getting one without a million bells and whistles. Zach slept in his pack n play in our room for the first three months. We could get to him much more quickly and I felt better having him close at hand. Once he was larger and sleeping in his crib, we used the pack n play as a play area in the living room. It's always good to have a safe place to put them when you have to run to the bathroom! The pack n play has also been Zach's travel bed when we've been in hotels or staying with friends. It breaks down to a very reasonable size and can be easily checked on airlines.
• Travel System. Now, I use the term "travel system" loosely. What I really mean is a car seat that snaps into a base in your car and can also snap into a stroller. We actually bought our Graco car seat and stroller separately, but most of Graco's car seats will work with their strollers, so if you don't want to get the "travel system," you can get the pieces separately and they should work together if they're from the same manufacturer. It was great to be able to get Zach out of the car, but keep him in his car seat and pop him into his stroller or the grocery cart without having to wake him up, unhook him, take him out, etc. The best part was that Bryan bought a spare base for his truck and then I could drop Zach at daycare, leave the car seat and then Bryan could pick him up and snap the car seat into his base. Choose your own brand and model, but I do recommend going into the store and playing with them so you can decide which strollers drive, fold and lift best for your needs.
• Exergen Temporal Artery Thermometer. I just got this today, and I love it already. These days they don't want you to take temperatures rectally unless specifically told to do so. The ear thermometers tend to be inaccurate and armpit temperatures are hard for us, since Zach doesn't like having his arm held down. This takes a few seconds, involves sliding the thermometer across the forehead and is about as accurate as a rectal temperature when done correctly. Read the instructions folks, and follow them, or you're going to find it doesn't work well.

Finally, one last item that's definitely not an essential, but is something I absolutely love, and would have loved to have when I was a kid.

• Custom Funky Plate from EM Tanner Designs. I saw these on Jon & Kate Plus 8 and I thought it was the coolest thing. Even though Zach's not quite ready for them, he has two, one that says "Zach" and one that says "Zachary." The best part is, even if your child has an unusual name, it's not a problem since it's custom made. I remember trying to find "Gina" on pencils or mugs or whatever as a child and having a tough time. No problem now! EM Tanner also does custom t-shirts, lunchboxes, etc so you can really have some fun!