Will is almost 2 months into daycare (I can’t believe it!) and before he started daycare I was panicked about everything that I’d need to get prepped and ready for daycare. Each daycare has different rules and items that are required or not allowed so I tried to keep this as general as possible, but these are my must haves for getting organized for daycare!
Note: This post contains affiliate links.
One | A Good Backpack + Lunchbox
Will got a Pottery Barn Kids backpack and lunchbox for Christmas and it’s been perfect for daycare. It’s not too big but also not too small – so many “kids” backpacks are tiny. [We have the size small] This one fits his bottles for the day along with changes of clothes or whatever else I need to send it. It also allows you to clip the lunchbox onto the backpack so you don’t have to carry both in – they’re attached!
We also use this SkipHop bottle cooler to carry in his bottles (fits in the backpack!). Will takes his bottles room temp so I just send in the powder container and fill the bottles with water using my Baby Brezza. We use the Comotomo Bottles or the Boon Nursh Bottles. Will takes 7-8 oz at each feed 4 times a day (2 times at daycare).
Two | Labels for Everything!
I bought all sorts of labels before Will started daycare and put them on everything. Our daycare only has 12 kids max so we really don’t need everything labeled, but I just wanted to make it easier. We really like the Mabel’s Labels bottle labels for all his food and the Inchbug Monogram Labels for everything else. We also use the Inchbug Orbit Labels for his bottles so I don’t have to stick anything on them.
Three | Extra Clothes and Sheets
Our daycare has you provide a crib sheet for them to use so I needed to make sure we had extra sheets and also lots of extra clothes. Will has a blowout often at daycare and also drools a lot. I bought a lot of Burts Bees rompers to send to daycare because a. they’re not super expensive b. they’re amazon primeable and c. they fit him really well. On that same note, we only use Burts Bees sheets (at home and daycare) because of the same exact reason above – we get the solid white ones and for $14 they’re so perfect.
Four | Booties
We aren’t big sock people around here – we live most of our life barefoot, but at daycare I wanted to find booties he could wear during the day. We opted for the Zutano booties and the Burts Bees booties for Will. They still come over – especially when Will wants them off, but they’re better than nothing!
Five | Containers for Solids
Our daycare doesn’t provide any food so we provide everything. Finding containers that worked well, fit in the lunchbox easily and are easy to clean were crucial. I really love these glass containers for puffs, purees, and finger foods. I also like the Nuk bowls for bread, pancakes, and waffles. I also use the Ryan and Rose Cutie Tensil for feeding.
Those are my biggest must haves! I linked everything below and in my Amazon store as well!
