So ours turns 9 months old in a couple of weeks. Did lots of research too. Basically we have a few things that he never really used or liked, but we actually got and still get a lot of use out of most things we bought. A lot of the stuff I see mentioned is great, but remember every baby is so different. What works for us might not work for you. A friend of ours had theirs two weeks after us and is the complete opposite of ours. Loves everything ours hates. It's funny...
Sleep is most often one of the biggest problems I think. Breastfeeding newborns SHOULD be up every two hours feeding. Now some people will tell you that you shouldn't wake a sleeping baby. I disagree, that newborn needs nourishment and must be up feeding. My wife is a pediatric nurse, so this all happened. Some people let their kid sleep hours without feeding them. It's not just about proper weight gain, but proper brain development. With formula, you can get by a bit longer because it takes longer to digest, but if breastfeeding, feed the baby. The two hour intervals will be rough for everyone. We used a bassinet next to the bed. Simple design and cheap, with wheels, adjustable height, etc. We also had to angle ours because he had slight reflux issues early on.
This quickly transitioned into "baby not sleeping unless being held." I love him, but this phase was an absolute nightmare. For a couple of months we basically got no sleep. If you put him in the bassinet, he would either instantly start screaming or would wake in about 10-15 mins and scream. If we held him, he would sleep sound for hours. As a full time student and my wife getting ready to head back to work, we just decided to do what we needed to do to get some sleep. I held him for a few hours surrounded by a boppy pillow and other pillows sitting up, maybe I dozed off a little but not really. Then we switched and she would feed him, then take him for the rest of the night. Zombies, the two of us...
Then, we decided enough was enough around 6 months of age. Spoke to the pediatrician and they recommended just putting him in his crib and let him go. We did tons of research on the sleep thing, and again there is so much bullshit out there on the internet. We felt comfortable letting him cry in increasing intervals. In a few nights, he was sleeping on his own and without any tears. We all started getting much more sleep at that point, but it needs to be the right time for you and your family.
The tricky part with mine is that he's a mover, and is constantly waving his arms and playing. He absolutely hated being swaddled. Everyone told us "oh just swaddle him and he'll sleep." No, he did not. We found this:
http://www.magicsleepsuit.com/ and bought it. Supposedly, it keeps them from doing large movements that could startle them awake, but allows some freedom to be able to move their hands and legs. He uses a pacifier, so sometimes it falls out. If he can't reach it, he will cry. With this he reaches for it and puts it back on his own and goes back to sleep. It's breathable and doesn't make him too hot even though it looks like a winter coat.
Now at 8 months, he is sleeping through the night. I put him down at 10:30 last night (we were out with him) and he slept until 10:00 this morning. Woke up a couple of times and started gabbing to himself, but then fell back to sleep.
Oh, and if you are doing the breastfeeding thing, don't take it personally if the baby wants nothing to do with you for a while. For the first few months maybe, my little guy would pretty much cry anytime someone else would hold him besides his mom. The bond that baby forms with mom by breastfeeding is unbelievable, and it was sometimes discouraging that he wouldn't let me hold him very much. But now, he practically jumps out of her arms to have me grab him, and it's awesome. Now with strangers, that's a whole separate issue...