As many of you know, I am most definitely a breastfeeding mom. There really is nothing absolutely necessary for breastfeeding other than a baby and a pair of breasts, but if you’re like me, you’ll find that there are certain things that you need for breastfeeding. So below is my list of breastfeeding essentials.

1. Lanolin– You’ll want to have this on hand from the beginning, because you never know when dry/cracked/sore nipples will attack, so it’s a good idea to have lanolin around when it happens so that you can take care of them before it becomes a worse problem.
2. LilyPadz– I’m not a fan of disposable breast pads for two reasons… I have to buy them over and over again, and they make my nipples raw, causing me to have to use more and more lanolin.
3. Nursing Tanks– These are super comfy, and when worn under your clothes, make discreetly breastfeeding in public a breeze.
4. Water Bottle– Because you need a TON of water to stay hydrated when breastfeeding.
5. Healthy Snacks- Honestly, because you burn through so many calories when breastfeeding that you will eat like a ravenous beast! I love keeping granola bars handy. 🙂
6. Medela Pump In Style– Because even if you exclusively breastfeed in the beginning, it’s a good idea to pump for emergencies, to help build your supply, or to use with baby food once you start introducing solids.
7. Lansinoh Breast Milk Storage Bags– These bags are AWESOME for storing frozen breastmilk and they’re actually not that expensive either!
8. Breastfeeding friendly bottles- Jay in case of emergencies. Knock on wood, we haven’t used them yet, but these are the ones that we have.
9. Pacifier– A lot of people will tell you that you shouldn’t use a pacifier, but I’m here to tell you that you can use them, and they will save your nipples when baby just wants to suck for comfort, and not because he’s hungry. I introduced one to Baby Babb at two weeks old, once we had established a good routine with breastfeeding and had regained all of his weight that was initially lost.
10. A supportive partner- My husband is INVALUABLE! I can’t begin to tell you how great it is to have him supporting me through all of this, even on days where I’m soaked with breastmilk and holding a crying, hungry, too-tired baby who is for some reason refusing to latch on.

These are just my breastfeeding essentials, can you tell me if you feel like I’ve left something off or what your breastfeeding essentials are? Please leave me a comment below letting me know what you think! 🙂