To be overwhelmed with the choice/advice?

[firsttimer2025]

Posting here for traffic and NC but need help.

Expecting our first baby and we are certainly surprised that they're coming along. After getting over the initial shock we are of course overjoyed.

Looking into what we need/can get for baby items and furniture we are overwhelmed... both by choice and price.

Can you tell me what we actually need for baby? Do we need a travel system? Changing table with draws? Nappy bin? Three kinds of high chair?! What kind of Moses basket?

Please help!!

Congratulations! You need much less than you think and you can get almost everything second hand or even free. Remember you are a huge marketing opportunity at the moment so avoid the pressure!

For a newborn: bassinet or next to me, pram (we didn't bother with a travel system), sling, car seat, vests and sleepsuits and changing mat (you don't even need a table). I'm sure I have forgotten something so others will add.

Highchair you don't need until they are six months.

A good rule of thumb I once read was “what would your granny have had?” and keep that as your baseline. Pram, cot, something to sterilise with. A car seat is obviously needed if you have a car or take regular taxis. Nappy bins, changing tables, fancy gadgets are just upsells: nappies can have poo shaken out into the toilet and then go into the main bin, a floor changing mat is fine unless you have a bad back and can’t bend etc.

I wouldn’t bother with a Moses basket unless you plan to be moving baby between room when sleeping. I spent a small fortune on a bougie one for a friend - her boy was born at 10lbs, kept up the growing pace, and had outgrown it by the time he was six weeks old!

A travel system just means the ability to put the car seat on the pram frame. Babies aren’t supposed to be in carseats for too long when tiny and when they’re bigger lifting them + the seat becomes too heavy. But most people end up buying one anyway as most infant car seats can go on most pram frames and you get the adapters included in a bundle.

Changing tables save your back, especially after a c-section delivery but you can stick a changing mat on top of any chest of drawers.

A nappy bin I think you’ll want if you live in a flat but otherwise not. Newborn nappies don’t really smell, you can bag them and stick them in the main bin but once they’re weaning they can be awful and if you have easy access to the outside bin you’ll probably choose to put them out straight away!

Never heard of anyone having more than 1 highchair and you don’t need that until you’re weaning anyway.

We had a moses basket that they slept in in the living room during the day then took it upstairs at bedtime. It’s not the only newborn sleep solution though! Just remember they should be with you for all sleeps so you’ll want something for downstairs and something for your room. But the pram bassinet and the cot would work fine if you want to limit the amount of stuff you’re buying.

Agree with others but I think there is a difference between “what do you need” and “what makes life easier”.

My daughter is 9 months old now, and really all we would have absolutely NEEDED was:

• Pram
• Car seat
• Bottles (if not breastfeeding)
• Nappies
• Clothes/bibs
• Cot for nursery & wardrobe for clothes

But there were other things we got that absolutely made life easier & had no regrets like:

• Steriliser for bottles (you don’t need one and can do it yourself but takes a lot longer and more effort)
• Moses basket for downstairs
• Next to Me crib upstairs
• Baby bouncer seat
• Prep machine (if formula feeding)
• Changing mat x2 (one upstairs one downstairs)
• Nappy caddy x2 (one upstairs one downstairs)

& there are other things, but it’s about budget and also what you will use and most importantly what can make a tough time just a little bit easier.

Specifically regarding changing table with drawers- we got one, still have never yet changed her on there BUT it’s a set of drawers so does get used

Buggy/pram/travel system really depends on your lifestyle and whether you’ll be driving, walking, going on buses, walking off road etc. that’s a good starting point

When deciding what you need, do also factor in where you live. We have a giant Asda which is open 24/7 5 minutes away and sells every baby item you could want. So I always knew that, if I did urgently need something, DH or I could race there. This is very different to where I grew up where the nearest supermarket is 25 mins away and only open from 6am - 10pm.
So many shops offer next day delivery too that, again, a problem can be resolved quite quickly.
Every baby is different. Things that were essential for DC1 were pointless for DC2. A number of friends with slightly older children have us this they "swore by" as they had been essential for their DC. It was complete pot luck with my DC loved it or hated it.

Get a pram safe for over night sleeping so that can be used for daytime naps.

Get a Next To Me / crib / bassinet for your bedroom which they can sleep in for 6 months. No need for a cot until after 6 months.

Carseat

Bottles that can be sterilised in the microwave (e.g. mam bottles) will save you buying a steriliser.

Vests, sleepsuits with zips, bibs and burp cloths, cardigans, 1 snowsuit, 1 coat. No need for any fancy outfits, they won't be worn.

1 safe place to put them down during the day (e.g. bouncer, playmat, playpen)

I would've been lost without our changing table, we use it for storage too! Some people don't bother with one.

i wouldn’t waste my money on changing station . Use changing mat you can pop it on the bed or floor as they get older ..

we hardly used baby bath but can be useful again for a very short while so don’t spend a lot .

i used loads of muslins and bibs .

i had a steamer steriliser but a cold water with tablets works just as well but takes longer .. I had a bit of anxiety over microwaves and baby stuff but that’s just my opinion .

i would also add nappies if you are using disposable don’t stock too many.. They grow rapidly - shop brands are just as effective as branded especially for newborns - they tend to poo more than fill them with wee. As they grow it becomes more about how they fit body shape .

absolutely no need for a nappy bun . Nappy bags are fine

congratulations

Breathe! There's very little you absolutely need! Food, something for baby to wear, something for baby to sleep in, something to transport baby in.

What you need will be determined by your lifestyle -- for example, we lived in central London and didn't have a car, so didn't buy a car seat, and the fact that we were continually getting on and off public transport with a pushchair and lived up a flight of steps meant we needed the lightest possible one that could be used from newborn.

I'd intended to breastfeed, but that didn't work, so when I came home from hospital with DS, DH ran out and bought bottles, steriliser etc. We'd bought a well-regarded sling before he was born, too, but I had a CS and the scar got infected, so it was too painful to sling for a while, and in fact I used it less than I planned.

We had a sidelong cot, because DS would be sleeping in our room, and a Moses basket.

He didn't have a separate room, so no separate furniture other than a cot. We just changed him on our bed. Only bought a high chair when he was older, a TrippTrapp which he used until he was big enough to use a normal chair.

What I'm saying is that there's no 'standard' list of absolute needs. And there's very little that can't be bought on the fly after the baby arrives.

Basic changing table as it saves your back leaning over on the floor- hadnt for my first two and couldn’t believe the difference!! cot, changing bag with pouches for bottles, Moses basket, pram, car seat. Tons of muslins and Velcro bibs. Best of luck op and enjoy the craziness and loveliness x