Please tell me your minimal MUST haves for a new baby

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I'm due a baby in October, and have a 4yo. We're going to be in a tiny flat so super minimalism is key!

Dd1 had health needs so the baby stage was weird and filled with equipment etc. This time round it's likely to be more 'normal'.

Please tell me the things that made your life easier / more fun in the baby stage.

Stuff I've already got:

• cheeky wipes, BumGenius nappies, a pail, and some wet bags.
• a pram (no car so necessary for shopping etc when the sling won't do)
• a sling
• a Bumbo
• THE Ikea high chair

• few big Muslin that can be used as : bed sheets, baby wrap, wiping spills and puke, nursing cover..... etc. Saves you the need for other items and you can use it as kitchen towel once baby grows.

• good quality baby socks that can double up as mittens. Get baby grows that have built in mittens as well as Pram suits with that feature.

• no need for cot as baby can sleep on mattress on the floor. If you must, then get a cot that converts into a toddler bed and you can remove one side and stick it against your bed for a “next to me” crib type of effect.

• an iPad/phone holder, app as a baby monitor where you can activate it using 3G and it costs 4 pounds. You use your phone to monitor and the iPad to record or other way round.

• no need for a Moses basket. If you must have something to take baby around, get a baby box from baby university. It’s a sleeping place for baby around the house.. and turns into a toy box later. Otherwise just use the car seat for around the house and put baby in the cot.

• no need for a baby bath. Seriously just take him into the shower with you. You both need it. Or wash in the sink.

• get a baby dangling toy thing that attaches to prams, car seats and cots. It saves the need for a baby gym and a cot mobile. As you can create your own.

Tuppence and crumble star wrap in appropriate seasonal material. The fleece ones are particularly good in spring and autumn as they're kinda shower resistant (like fleece liners in Nappies). And they take up no space compared to pram suits. And they're ideal for slinging.
If your Nappies are BTP then you may need some newborn ones- muslins and wraps are cheap, slim, and dry fast. If you have a Nappy Library nearby they may have a kit to loan until baby fits the BTPs.
Sticker books for the older one.

A baby bath of some description, preferably one that leaves you handsfree to stop 4 year old ‘helping’ too much. I had the anglecare bath seat and it was fab.

I would suggest you defintely need a cot mattress and a cot; don’t faff about with a Moses.

Defintely invest in a good baby carrier; the ergo baby 360° is good or the new baby Bjorn “one”.

Baby bath; a Shnuggle. It’s compact and props baby meaning it helps you keep baby’s head above water - you’d think that was academic but not easy when baby is slippy with water. When I had taking post natal anxiety that bath honestly dialled down my fear of harming DD by allowing her to even get her chin wet.

Last but not least; get a couple of big cellular blankets.

I'm currently using a big plastic bucket that's usually our laundry basket as a baby bath. Folded towel in the bottom for friction. And it sits in the main bath so I can bathe both of them together but my 3yo can have bubbles but baby doesn't.

Lots of muslins
A backpack as a changing bag
If you are breastfeeding you may need a pump but I’ve fed 2 children now and never bother expressing.
Washable breastpads and a comfy nursing bra

I second the star wrap. Teamed with hand knitted cardigans and blankets you can layer up to desired warmth. I had stupidly bought a big puffy snowsuit and stupid coats that were a hassle to get tiny arms into so we're never used. Shop bought cardis all seemed to have a lining that also made them hard to get on, whereas hand knitted are stretchy and my son lived in them all winter.

He also just wore vests and baby grows until he was about 3 or 4 months. Tiny outfits were ebayed off as worn once or not at all.

I did find a bouncy chair handy. Had one upstairs and one downstairs to use when showering/cooking. I think a baby gym is a good thing as it encourages kicking and reaching to develop strength. You can make your own toys to dangle from it.

Muslins are a good suggestion too. We still use ours at 20 months for wiping hands and faces and are constantly through the wash. As a tiny baby he really liked to chew on them.

You probably have a houseful of toys and books so I wouldn't bother with any more. You can print your own pages of high contrast black and white patterns instead of buying those early baby books.

I bought a foldable baby bath when my son outgrew the sink but would probably try one of those bath seat things next time as it was still a pain to store

Absolute minimum... I think my son could have survived no problem with a grobag, fresh nappies, a cardboard box to sleep in, a car seat, something to carry him around and a handful of clothes.

I, on the other hand, needed:
-a changing table
-a wardrobe for his clothes

• a nursing chair
• a baby samsonite travel set
• a cot that could be attached to the side of the bed
• a nappy wrapper.
• a dryer
• an all terrain light stroller with 16 positions and parasol.
• a steriliser
• self sterilising bottles
• a sequence of cheap to expensive baby carriers (he hated them all with absolute passion)
• lots of plastic cutlery and plates he always refused to use.
• plastic glasses that mimicked ours (see point above)
• a nursing hoodie (honestly)
• a travel cot
• a Moses basket
• a musical mat with interactive buttons that played Mozart music as you touched them (I really thought his mental development was going to hindered without it)
• furniture protectors, electric socket covers, cabinet locks
• and thousands of other unnecessary things.

I didn’t realised how right my health visitor was on saying “babies” need so little to be okay until I had to send tons of nearly new stuff to the charity shop.

Second the Schnuggle bath
A bouncer
And you definitely need a cot and mattress

You’ve covered almost everything I came on here to say!
My essentials were
-sling
-cloth nappies & wipes
-muslins
-one of those baby bouncer seats, just a really basic one not one that rocks or sings or anything. Think it was £15 in argos, lifesaver when I needed to shower and no one could hold the baby. Then you move up to the bumbo once they’ve grown out of the bouncer.

I breastfed and co-slept (following safe co-sleeping guidelines) so didn’t need bottles/cot/etc

Amazon prime membership.

Honestly what one person loves another may hate because they have different babies. Apart from a cot I would just wait and see what your lovely baby is like!

For the record though I third the Shnuggle. Best 20 quid we spent.

Thank you all, this is really helpful. Sounds like the Schnuggle (sp?) is a winner; I'm going to look it up!

6 months in with my second and have been fine without a baby bath for either. Sling, pram, muslins, flannels, backpack changing bag, teething toys, something to roll around on, an inflatable baby nest and a highchair cushion are the things that stand out as having been really useful (breastfed and co slept as well).

Vests and sleepsuits. Lots and lots of vests and sleepsuits. If it's too warm (it's been 30C in October before now) they can be in just a vest, if it's cold you can add a sleepsuit, and apart from special occasions, that's all they need to wear for a good stretch and kick when they are tiny.
Clothes for special occasions will probably be given as gifts, don't stress, you'll be surprised what you get given.
I also had an amazing playmat which was great for my son when he was tiny.
I used a changing mat and then an oil cloth tablecloth on my bed as a changing station. I laid my son cross ways, so that if he rolled he would only go sideways along the bed and not off, and the oil cloth covered a great area for when he squirted mid change (I learned to make a ridge in the material at the bottom). I had all the changing stuff on the nightstand.

Congratulations and good luck.

If you're bottle feeding - a perfect prep machine.

Saved my life for night feeds.