Hey friends! 

A bit belated, more like what *was* in my hospital bag, haha! This was supposed to be published on the very day I had Nash! But, having a baby was kinda at the top of the priority list, so this post had to wait till later! 😉 I’m going to share what I had in my hospital bag that was so helpful to have with us at the hospital. I am an anxious person by nature, so having my hospital bag packed and ready to go helped me to feel more prepared and calm. I have seen so many posts about hospital bags, each one is so personal to the mother and her priorities. Some say they love having their makeup bag with them at the hospital so that they can have a little part of their routine away from home and look freshened up for photos with their new babe. Some say they wouldn’t go without their iPad or laptop so that they can watch movies or shows while they nurse, or that they want to bring a book to keep them occupied. Me personally? I am plenty occupied between baby and trying to sleep as much as possible. So I prioritized comfort and simplicity in regards to what I packed! Here were some of the staples of my bag:

• Cozy nursing nightgowns and robes: 

This is probably a given, but I wanted pieces that were going to be easy to sleep and nurse in while also comfortable to walk around the recovery floor in! While I didn’t want to do my makeup or hair during my hospital stay, I didn’t want to feel like a bum either! These cute nightgowns and robe can make you feel a little more put together and cute versus the uncomfortable and stiff hospital gowns, which was a no-brainer in my book! 

• Cozy nursing tanks, joggers and slippers:

I found these ultra soft and stretchy nursing/maternity tanks on Amazon and I LOVE them! Paired with some comfy sweats or joggers like these (and look at how great the prices are!) and you have a comfy and functional outfit to leave the hospital in or change into if you prefer that over a nightgown! And you can’t go wrong with a pair of slippers for when you need to get up and around. These adorable slippers are well-rated and well-priced!

• Travel-size toiletries and a towel from home:

 Anyone that has been to the hospital before knows that their towels are the WORST. Slightly bigger than a hand towel and rough is not what you want after you just delivered a baby. So I packed a big soft towel from home, which made that post-birth shower SO much better! Also, for preparations sake, I just went to the store and grabbed travel sized toiletries for myself and my husband so that they took up minimal space in my bag. And I didn’t have to worry about packing my shampoo/conditioner/deodorant/toothbrush and paste, etc. while I was going into labor, which was a huge plus.

• Cheap phone chargers: 

Along the same lines, you don’t want to be rushing around grabbing your charging cords while you’re starting to labor and your mind is already racing! Ordering inexpensive ones off amazon or stopping by your local Five Below to grab some cheap ones to have packed and ready to go is SO worth it. This five-pack of chargers on Amazon are a great deal and have some nice long chargers to reach you in that hospital bed!

• Amazon Echo or Hatch Baby Rest: 

We love sleeping with white noise, so bringing something like these to the hospital really helped us to get a slightly better nights rest and feel more like we were at home. We brought our Hatch Baby Rest and slept with the TV white noise setting, which was so nice! My sister brought her Echo to the hospital when they had my niece recently and listened to “thunder sounds” on it every night. Both she and her husband said it was so peaceful and helped all three of them sleep well for the nights they were there. This 1st generation Echo is a great deal right now on Amazon, and here is the link to the Hatch Rest (great to have on hand for baby when you get home anyway!)

• Adult Diapers:

You laugh now, but you’ll thank me later when you don’t have to wear the ginormous pads, haha! In all seriousness though, with Jackson’s birth my skin actually had a terrible reaction to the mesh undies they have you wear, so I just went ahead and purchased these non-bulky adult diapers that other women rave about for postpartum, and they have been a life-saver!

• Big brother gifts for Jackson: 

Since this was our second baby, we were anticipating Jackson would have some anxiousness about a new little brother. We got him some big brother gifts that were  “from Nash”. Jackson loved it and overall I think it helped him to warm up to Nash a little quicker, although we are still working on it now that we are home ;). 

These were my most important staples to have with me as we welcomed Nash just a week ago! I don’t typically pack too much for baby just because the hospital has *almost* everything we need, but having these few things really made the difference. ️ What were some must-haves for your hospital bag? 

Katelyn