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AIBU?

Share your dilemmas and get honest opinions from other Mumsnetters.

Original poster

Contents of hospital bag

35 replies

bedbuyer · 19/03/2011 05:39

I was recently admitted to hospital as an emergency and DP was in charge of bringing me a bag of stuff to tide me over for my (possible) 6 week stay. This is what he brought:

3 prs pants
2 jumpers
1 pr trousers
1 dressing gown
15 books
no toothbrush
no toothpaste
no hairbrush
1 old hotel bubble bath that kids have played with so now full of water not bubble bath
1 bar used soap - circa 1995
no deoderant

AIBU to think DP has different priorities to moi!

OP posts:
PicaK · 19/03/2011 07:21

LOL - and I opened this thread thinking it would be a boring post about what to pack.

I think your husband sounds reassuringly normal in his ineptitude.

Mine failed to be able to locate any clean underwear - even tho I've been getting it out of the same drawer for ten years.

You've got to luv em!

MrsGubbins · 19/03/2011 07:35

15 books eh? were they carefully considered titles or just any old crap off the shelf/from next to the loo?

kreecherlivesupstairs · 19/03/2011 07:40

DH brought me the most hideous dress to bring DD home from hospital in, he completely forgot anything for her and she ended up leaving in one of the hospital gowns.

Punkatheart · 19/03/2011 07:40

You would have had dirty pants but you would be awfully well-read.

The bubble bath made me laugh.

They are just not made the same as us, are they?

My OH is picking up new chickens today and I asked if where the box was I asked him to get ready, bearing in mind they are ENORMOUS chickens. Oh, he said. Water? Oh. Food. Oh. Straw in the bottom. Oh.

He runs a huge department and is responsible for a lot of people but he reeks of incompetence when it comes to everyday stuff.

Women rule!

babybythesea · 19/03/2011 08:03

My uncle displayed a similar ineptitude. Baby arrived 5 weeks early and being who they are, my aunt and uncle had purchased nothing (and I mean nothing) as they had 'plenty of time'. So at an hour or so old, my cousin has nothing to wear, no nappies etc. Uncle is dispatched to shops to get some things for the baby - hospital will lend but only for a short space of time. (Bear in mind it's a Friday morning so not exactly a difficult time to shop, speak to staff etc etc). Uncle returns to hopsital 4 hours later, bearing (drum roll) a bunch of flowers. And nothing else. Apparently, he had located a mothercare, been in, didn't know what to get, didn't think to ask, wandered round in a hopeless manner for a bit and then left, buying the flowers on the way back to the hospital in the hope that it might help. My cousin finally got some clothes to wear when Grandma got involved!

Bogeyface · 19/03/2011 08:07

When I was discharged after having dd2, I had had a gush in my going home trousers so DH went to fetch me some more.

You can't not love a man who brings in, to his wife who gave birth hours before and was a size 14 when she got PG, a pair of white size ten jeans Confused

I had been hoarding them for about 10 years in the vain hope that one day the diet would work and I would be able to wear them again. His reasoning? "They looked like they'd fit you, you havent put that much weight on". Heaven knows how he found them, he must have had to go through all my regular clothes to find them stuffed at the back!

Either blinded by love, or just plain blind :o:o

kreecherlivesupstairs · 19/03/2011 08:09

DDs arrival wasn't a suprise. She came mid May and we'd know when exactly she would be delivered (CS).
DH dropped me off at the hospital the day before surgery and, in order to be there when DD was delivered, he had to be back the following day at 07.00. He left home allowing hour and a half for a 30 minute journey and forgot to turn off for the hospital.
He was almost at the border to Dubai before he realised.

Bogeyface · 19/03/2011 08:12

:o Kreecher! He isnt a morning person then?!

WTF did he think he was going?!

kreecherlivesupstairs · 19/03/2011 08:25

Bogey, I think he was just super excited at actually seeing what we'd made.
He knew he wouldn't be allowed in the theatre because I was having a general anaesthetic, but he was ordered to be ready to hold her all day.
Silly sod. He was so besotted that I drove myself back from hospital a week later so that he could look at her.

Bogeyface · 19/03/2011 08:34

THat is lovely :)

I get the feeling DH is going to be like that about this one, he is besotted already and I have 9 weeks to go!

I wondered whether he was on auto pilot to work or something because after we moved house when I was about 15, my dad was out early. When he cam home he scared the new owners shitless as he tried to get into his old house at 7am :o

CBear6 · 19/03/2011 08:59

When I was 24 weeks pregnant with DS they took me into hospital for observation after a particularly heavy bleed. DH was sent home to bring me in a bag. He came back three hours later with a pair of pink pyjama pants, no pyjama top, no underwear whatsoever, his toothbrush rather than mine, no toothpaste, no hairbrush, a hand towel, no other toiletries, a book I'd finished three days before, and my make-up bag with no make-up in it.

They're lovely but they're a bit rubbish aren't they?

Original poster
bedbuyer · 19/03/2011 10:57

Books were carefully considered - hand picked selection of novels, short stories, penguin shorts for when feeling too ill to read.

He also had trouble with pants and TBH I don't blame him - have resolved to use £20 M&S voucher that have had in drawer for ages to completely revise whole underwear collection.

OP posts:
LiegeAndLief · 19/03/2011 11:17

I was on an antenatal ward for 4 weeks when pg with ds. Watching the other ladies' kids come in to visit with their dads was the best entertainment of the day. They all looked like they'd been dressed in the most garish, tacky, badly-fitting clothes that had ever been stuffed at the back of a drawer, with their hair sticking up in clumps. The mums were always horrified and couldn't understand where the clothes had come from (or why the 4 year old was clearly dressed in the 2 year old's clothes).

Fortunately I was only in for 4 days with dc2 and my mum had come to stay, otherwise I'm sure ds would have suffered the same fate.

belledechocchipcookie · 19/03/2011 11:24

Ds was in hospital when he was small. The ex brought me a strapless bra Hmm 1 pair of knickers, no socks, 1 pair of jeans, no jumpers, nothing to wash with, no brush, no toothpaste and oh, 7 t-shirts Hmm

ReindeerBollocks · 19/03/2011 11:31

This sounds so much like DH you have my sympathy.

DH didn't pack my bag - he started to, my mum walked in (she was visiting) laughed at the contents then repacked it for me.

Get your mum to pack a 'real' bag.

He sounds like he has the right intentions though - he sounds somewhat misguided clueless but sweet.

Hope you get out soon btw.

Bogeyface · 19/03/2011 11:36

It does make me wonder what men pack for themselves when they are not suitably supervised!

One assumes that they will go on holiday with one pair of trousers, one pair of shorts, no clean underwear and a weeks worth of Tshirts.

Oh,.....hang on.....

skydance · 19/03/2011 11:41

I was in with DS2, asked DH to bring me a clean bra, he did bring one.

But he hung it on the handle bar of DDs buggy on the way in from the car park, DS2's male nurse saw it and tried not to smirk too much Blush

He also didn't bring me anything to wash with.

stoatie · 19/03/2011 13:18

When DS was unexpectedly in hospital I stayed overnight - I asked OH to bring me some stuff in, no toothbrush or hair brush, so when DS was discharged I looked a complete mess - little sleep and hair that had not been brushed - unfortunately I work in the hospital which has a long corridor to get to the exit - I lost track of how many colleagues saw me looking extremely rough

bentneckwine1 · 19/03/2011 14:55

When my mus was in hospital for a mastectomy operation one of my dad's old friends visited with a............litre bottle of vodka!

My mum was paranoid the nurses would find it in among her belongings and think she was a raging alcoholic!! I had to smuggle it out in the dirty washing.

Only a man!

SooooCynical · 19/03/2011 15:10

My Mum told me that when she was in hospital having just given birth to me she asked my Dad to bring her her yellow jumper and her pair of blue trousers from the wardrobe for going home.

He returned with her gardening clothes (which were kept in the pantry and were filthy and stained from gardening). Apparently all he could say was 'but you said a yellow top and blue trousers' (which I suppose strictly speaking they were!!) She was inconsolable at having to bring her PFB home wearing filthy gardening clothes!

lady007pink · 19/03/2011 15:32

Loving this thread!

Babybythesea, post of the week!

Ryoko · 19/03/2011 15:44

I had an emergency C-Section, I was in bed for 3 days with pipes all over the place so underwear/clothing changes etc was impossible, they provided Maternity Towels so having them in the bag was pointless, the way I was feeling I couldn't care less about my hair etc.

Everything in my bag which I had packed from looking at stuff on the internet was useless, and DF had to buy more clothing for the boy because he kept puking up green stuff all over what he was wearing several times a day.

In hindsight I should have taken, 15+ sleepsuits, a whole bag of nappies a dummy and for me a very large bottle of vodka, massive bag of sweets and an MP3 player.

Cyclebump · 19/03/2011 15:51

See this is why I packed my hospital bag so early! I'm also planning to put any extras that I might need if I'm kept in in a clearly marked bag in the cot Smile

When I was born my dad turned up with my older sister (aged 6) in a dress that was on inside out and backwards. Bless.

anewyear · 19/03/2011 16:00

I too packed my own bag a good 8wks before both DCs were due, sorry but I would never have left it for hubbie to do,
Just as well as ds2 arrived 5weeks early, all he had to do was pick up the bag.. He was chuffed..

ThreeBubbasAndManyBumps · 19/03/2011 16:11

After birth of DS, (our 3rd DC), I had been hoping on a quick stay in hospital so my hospital bag was lacking in sufficient number of PJ/trackie bums and maternity pads. Needless to say I ran out of clean ones very quickly (TMI alert) and had bled through pretty much all clothing I could wear on my bottom half. I asked DH to urgently bring me some new PJ bottoms and more maternity pads (I had them at home, so he didn't even have to buy them). He brought in a couple of pre-pregnancy PJ tops (lovely, pretty, skimpy ones) but said he didn't get around to finding the maternity pads Hmm Hmm

(this is the same man who bought me a "Congratulations, It's A Boy!" balloon on the birth of our DD!!! Hmm

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