#1 Best Baby Tracker: Keep Track of Your Baby’s Feedings, Diapers, and Naps the Easy Way!
Disclosure: This post may contain affiliate links, which means I may receive a small commission if you click a link and purchase something. Please check out my disclosure policy for more details. All opinions are my own!
As a new mom, you have so much that you’re trying to remember – wouldn’t it be perfect if there was a baby tracker? What if I told you there was? And that it was FREE and could be at your fingertips at all times? Well get ready, here’s my absolute favorite baby tracker!
Whether you breast feed or formula feed, one of the most important things to do in the first few days as a mom is keeping track of your baby’s feedings!
You need to be sure that your little one is eating often enough and gaining weight. Newborns are very sleepy, hey they just went through a lot coming into the world, and often need to be woken up for feedings.
People would always ask, so how much does he eat? How often does he eat? When does he nap? Uhm… a boob full? And…whenever he wants?
I know. Terrible answers. So then I was feeling bad for not knowing these things about my baby!
To be honest, I couldn’t tell you when O took naps or specifically when he ate – he just did these things when he felt like it and I was busy soaking up ALL the momma time I could with him and simply didn’t keep track of specific times.
Thankfully, I found an app that I loved.
I almost always had my phone with me and it was so easy to track. Now, I did use this app right when I had O to keep track of feedings, but I didn’t start using ALL the features until I started to actually realize how nice it would be to develop a real schedule.
So the app that will save you from having to use all other apps? MyMedela Breastfeeding Companion. Bonus? It’s completely free and is great even if you choose not to breast feed!
Here’s why I love it
I started using this app the day I gave birth. It was easy, simple to use, and had everything I would need all in one app.
My absolute favorite part had to do with breastfeeding.
I could start nursing O, open the app and press a button to start tracking the feeding.
I never had to watch the clock and I never had to worry about forgetting which side I nursed on last. It was all automatically saved for me. This was huge for me!
As a new mom, I had other things I wanted to think about, and didn’t want to panic if I forgot to write down the time or knowing which side had more milk.
Now, if you’re not into apps, there are many other options to help you keep track of things.
Some moms will have a hair tie on their wrist that they switch sides depending on their last feed.
Other people use a pin on their shirt or bra.
There are also tons of cute charts out there that help you keep track of which breast you left off on, the time, and how long your baby nursed.
There’s even this book, Baby’s Eat, Sleep & Poop Journal, if you love pen and paper.
However, I’m going to be totally honest with you.
You’re a mom now.
You’re not always going to be next to that cute whiteboard or want to carry a piece of paper with you everywhere.
On the other hand, I’m guessing your phone is going with you almost everywhere.
Oh, and the app is 100% free. It doesn’t matter if you don’t use ANY Medela products – it’s still free.
So here’s what’s all included in the app:
- Track your feedings, whether you breastfeed, exclusively pump, formula feed, or a combination!
- If you breastfeed, you can also track what breast you left off on.
- You can add notes. How did the feeding go? Anything you want to remember for later?
- There’s also an option to use a stopwatch for breastfeeding, pumping, or tracking sleep.
- This even works in the background of your phone, so no need to keep the app open constantly!
- I love that I don’t have to watch the time.
- If you have a Sonata Breast Pump you can automatically connect to the app to track your data
- Track your baby’s diapers (wet diapers, stools, or a combo)
- Track your baby’s sleep habits
- Track your baby’s height and weight
- Charts to quickly compare days
- Overview of all the data each day
- Option to switch between babies if you have multiples
- Daily tips and articles
- Alerts if your baby hasn’t had enough diapers or feedings that day
Why you should track feedings
It’s extremely important to track your baby’s feedings right away.
Your new baby is exhausted. Coming into the world is no easy task for him/her! That’s why mom’s need to wake their baby every 3 hours to eat, unless otherwise directed by your doctor.
A new baby almost always loses a little weight right after birth, but it’s important to try to prevent the weight from dropping too much, and help your little one return to their birth weight quickly.
Eventually, your little one may let you know when he/she is hungry and you can rely more often on breastfeeding on demand. Breastfeeding on demand is simply feeding your baby whenever he/she is showing signs that they are hungry.
Why you should track diapers
Tracking wet and poopy diapers is also important – not just to see who’s changed more!
Your baby’s diapers will tell you a lot about your baby’s health.
Is your baby eating enough? Is their digestive system working properly?
Your doctor will likely ask you to track diapers every day for the first 10-14 days of your baby’s life. Then you’ll start to learn your baby’s typical pattern and be able to tell what’s normal and what’s not without having to track so precisely.
Why you should track naps – even though I didn’t right away!
Why didn’t I track naps and sleeping right away?
Because I was busy cuddling and enjoying by baby!
So if you don’t do it either, I don’t blame you for a second. This one is certainly not a necessity, but it can be helpful to start planning a routine for you and your baby.
It can be nice to know the best times for going out shopping and when you want to be at home with your little one.
Make Your Life Easier
However you choose to track your new baby’s eating habits or dirty diapers, just make sure your plan works for you.
If you’re a paper and pen kind of girl, make sure you grab a cute printable online (there are tons of free ones!), if you want to use the hair try trick – do it!
If you’re thinking an app, My Medela Breastfeeding Companion is my absolute favorite – and like I mentioned it’s great even if you don’t breastfeed – and FREE! Be sure to check it out!
Nice article its very helpfull thanks for sharing
What’s up, yup this article is really pleasant and I have learned lot of things from it
I’m so glad!