Due August 2009 - Does My Bump Look Big In This????

[kitkatqueen]

Hello everybody Here is the shiny new thread, hope you found it ok!!

Hi all,

Talking of discounts primas baby magazine has a coupon book with it and in it is a 10% off online mothercare (amongst other places). I think you have to spend over £100 but if you haven't bought your pram/carseat/cot yet then you could end up saving a bit. That particular voucher lasts until the end of july I think. It all helps....

Good afternoon - nearly the weekend, hurray! Went to John Lewis last night for a "nursery consultation", just to get an idea of what we need as we have no idea. Wow, there are so many things I had not even thought of. Thanks for all the discount info - I am sure it is going to come in really useful, will NOT be shopping at John Lewis it was so expensive...

Hi all,

Woohoo my IM came round yesterday and has got me in to see physio on Tuesday! Fingers crossed that it's useful. She's also referring me to Homestart to see if they can get a volunteer to come once a week so I'm not so bored/lonely stuck in the house.

Am wondering what John Lewis said were "essential". We got a pram, car seat, cot & mattress, moses basket & stand, clothes, nappies, bedding, changing mat and that was probably everything essential. (We used the moses basket downstairs then carried it up into the cot when we went to bed - dd then was kinda used to the cot when she outgrew the moses basket). Have to say we got our cot from John Lewis - v reasonable and free delivery.

We're off to Chester this weekend (staying Sat night in an Innkeepers Lodge £39 for all 3 of us including brekkie) and taking dd to the Zoo on Sunday - fingers crossed it doesn't rain . Have warned dh that if I'm achey he'll have to hire a wheelchair and push me round

quixotic, Would love to know what they said u need.

There are so many things that I bought 1st time round and never ever used, my list this time is pretty basic although there are a few basics I never had 1st time round and discovered by accident that I will not do without.

I'm lucky because I've lent so much stuff to people that suddenly I've got all my stuff coming back plus offers of all the things that everyone else bought as well.

I thought i'd better go through all the "boy" clothes boxes to see just what I had in what sizes and the only things I'm a bit short on are newborn and 0-3. Which means I can justifiably go and buy some myself so i'm feeling really happy! Amazingly although my ds only 17mnths I seem to have loads of nearly new clothes up to age 5-6 so won't be buying him anything for a while!

I wonder how hard it would be to put together the ultimate necessities list???

As opposed to the stuff that the shops want you to buy?

My most basic necessities would be:

cot
lay flat set of wheels
carseat
Ear thermometer
room thermometer ( if 1st baby )
bath thermometer ( if 1st baby)
nappies
wipes
star child shoes ( to keep socks on)
battery powered / wind up swing ( to save sanity)
changing mat (floor type)
sleeping bag / grobags
cellular blankets

Grows x10 vests x10, gorgeous hats blankets and knitwear.

Things I never used more than a couple of times / was a waste of money:

Baby Bath

Go on edit the list and see if we can get the diffinative list..

Just asked dp what he thought were the most basic necessities for a newborn and he said "erm sperm and egg"?

Somebody please shoot me He actually thinks he's funny!

I couldn't have done without my fancy changing table/bath combo (was a hand-me-down for DD and got one on freecycle this time) purely for height reasons. It's just the right height for me (I'm 5'9") for bathing and changing... doing that on the floor or even bending over a kitchen table... let alone kneeling next to the bath... would have been totally out of the question.

This is the one we got off freecycle... here...wouldn't buy one new I don't think!

I would have liked a change table with dd1 but didn't have room, ...

We had a change table and never used it. We also never used any thermometers.

We did use a baby bath (but only cos our house has a vent above the bath that makes it a bit cold sometimes so we bathed baby in the living room instead)

Hi - I do not have the list here at work with me, but from memory - everything you have said above, plus:
~ Baby Bath
~ Stand thingy to go in the baby bath
~ Steriliser
~ Bottle warmer
~ Night light
~ Baby monitor (the one she was trying to sell had video on it!)
~ Baby Grooming kit (from which she admitted all you need is the nail clippers, but they only sell them in a kit with hairbrush, toothbrush, mirror etc.)
~ Thermometers - for baby, room, bathwater
~ Breastpump and related bottles etc
~ hats, booties, scratchmits
~ baby sling
~ furry blanket thing for pram
~ play mat thing
~ rocker
She was a lovely lady and very helpful, it was a useful educational experience for us! I will definitely get what is on your lists at least though.

Have a great holiday crafty...

Yeah to be fair most stuff on there is needed.

I would say though you don't need a stand and a baby bath - usually if you're using a baby bath you just hold the baby, the stand is more useful if you want to bath them in a normal bath.

We didn't use a night light or baby monitors (but our house is small enough that we could here dd if she cried and the stairs light lets enough light in for us to check on her without needing a night light too).

We always tested bath water with our elbow (as advised by mw) and you can tell if baby is too hot/cold in a room by feeling down their back.

I found I cut her if I used nail clipper so I used baby nail scissors (depends what you feel comfy with as to what works best)

quixotic, if you have the nail clippers you don't need the scratch mits and the bloomin things ping off quicker than socks!

Oh yes, I never found a pair of scratch mitts small enough for dd. Wouldn't stay on at all. Matalan do some sleepsuits where you can turn the end of the sleeve over to cover hands though that are quite useful.

Oh baby brush!!!! I can't wait to feel the downy hair on my baby's head. Bugger... tearing up! At work! Must go home, been here since 0730 as am a lunatic.

keeping on with the list

scratch mits - useless, hat - useless (as was summer when DS was born), chime thing for above the cot - useless for me for sleeptime but great for occupying baby when needing to do other things in the room

i too only used the baby bath a few times, but it was 'borrowed' so was useful for a bit as the big bath somehow felt daunting. I did use one of those baby pod things for the big bath though and that was fab.

moses basket was grown out of within 2 months so if you can borrow one (but add your own mattress) all the better

got away not using a changing table by just using an ordinary chest of drawers (and the drawers were fab for putting all the bits and pieces needed there)

I found a comfy chair in the nursery useful for feedsthough, and still am using it with DS every night to read stories. I just got a cheap one from ikea and it has been fab

nightlights were useless as where room thermometers as if you have a baby monitor most already have both.

other thing I would add to the list are black out blinds, especially for a summer baby. DH put them up wrong in the nursrey though so they let too much light in. However given baby will in our room for a while we do need something temporarily so i will be attempting to customise some fabric to just attach to the window with velcro when needed.

other things I would add are - steriliser (or solution), breast pump etc, Muslins (lots!!), play mat/gym (ebay is great for those) and baby rocker/chair/swing

sorry now realised that was a bit long!!!

A little update from me, had growth scan on Thurs and still reasonably big (although noone told me how big! which was really annoying) so have been sent for a GTT too, so will be interesting to see how that is. I'd be interested if any of you are having growth scans and what the measurements were for comparison , as given they haven;t told me anything it wasn;t very useful.

Hi cairns good list! I did a bodge job on our curtains last time using an old and slightly scary dark coloured duvet cover. I didn't splash out on velcro tho I just hand tacked it to the back of the curtains acros the top and it was enough to do the job!

Deffo agree with a comfy chair in babies room for when they move in there - I am v lucky as I have a v comfy sofa bed is ds' room and unlucky because its had a lot of use!

Hello - thanks for the lists! Reminds me should get organised soon. One thing that has been v. useful was the autofade light in JL which we bought in 2004 and ds now uses as a night light. It was brill when doing night feeds as you can have it just bright enough to see to pick baby up and get into position but much less bright than a bedside light. And it switches on/off with the touch of a finger, easy when you're half asleep...

Ooooh ? so interesting, some people find different things work for them (it?s like pram or nappy choice!)

My basic baby needs are:
moses basket, then cot with sheets, cellular blankets
pram
car seat
nappies, nappy bucket, cotton wool with water and/or wipes
clothes - babygrows, vests, hats, scratch mits and cardigans
baby bath (saves water, can move into warmer room in the house)
change table and mat (had c-section and could never have got to the floor!)
breast pads (as I breast feed)

Useful last time:
breast pump (had to go back to work so had to express, will probably express a bit so DH can do a bottle feed every now and then)
floor play mat
bouncer
baby swing

Will get this time:
bath thermometer (save scalded elbows!)

Things I never used (or only used a few times def. waste of money):
ear thermometer
room thermometer
baby shoes
sleeping bag / grobags (especially in summer, a sheet was all that was needed)
night light (just used landing light when DS needed it)
baby monitor
baby grooming kit
special blanket for pram (mainly just used a cellular blanket!)
black out blinds ? haven?t used them as a friend?s son will not sleep in any room that it not completely pitch black because she used them from the start, where as my son will sleep anywhere even if it?s a light summer evening

hi everyone, had a quick catch up, think i'm kind of in same place as you all. not quite as chirpy as usual as tiredness and bit of back pain is setting in.

dd had a horrible abscess on her bum, strep infection, so we had couple of trips to a&e and then a week of really nasty antibiotics, making her poo all day and at least 2x in night...aghhh! and to cap it all dd started having tantrums all day long and dh still not home yet and ds1 not at all helpful.. so been feeling a bit poor poor me! and had a few tearful days.

suddenly noticed this baby is really going for it, kicking and wriggling so it's flicked the switch in my brain that i need to start making lists and getting prepared.

i really recommend:
-the tummy tub it's excellent
-john lewis babygros have little turn over sleeves like scratch mittens
-and we used a spare table as a baby changing/ bathing station
-amby nest used at least 9 months
-miracle swaddle blanket thing
-lansinoh for sore nipples, have it ready
-baby bjorn- we did shifts
-playmat and bouncer
-for c-sections, nct sell the massive net knickers that you get in hospital, essential first week or 2

i feel lik a gatecrasher on this thread...i got a dd who is 9 months..n im due 10 august...

did reali knw i was pregnant 3 months gne excited..but reali exhausted...

Hi mama2leah !
Lansinoh - yes have it ready, miracle stuff, plus a breast pump for relieving potentially sore boobs when the milk comes in and they go huge and rock solid and lo can't keep up!! I used it to express just a little bit last time as was bf but made it so much more comfy!

Oh definatley breast pump to express a bit when boobs are like oranges at the begining! My milk came in so much so fast last time that I ended up with chomped nipples! Thanks for reminding me taleof2, off to go and find it now...

Welcome mama2leah!

Can I have a moan? I'm in SOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO much pain . I had physio yesterday for my hip and she did warn me it could be worse and it is VERY much more sore. It honestly feels like I've fractured a bone in my pelvis, ouch ouch. Am so scared about the prospect of another 3 months of this. DH had to help me up from the floor yesterday after I'd changed DD's nappy.

OK moan over, feel better now

I hope everyone else is OK. How's Nathan doing MichaelaS? xxx

Quick moneysaving tip - I didn't spot this before, but if anyone was thinking about heading near Asda today, they have the Tommee Tippee 'Closer To Nature' breast pump in their baby offer for £5. (usually £10)

Thanks to everyone above for their essentials list - we were able to get a list together for yesterdays NCT sale - in the end we got a Moses Basket (a Mamas and Papas one as well, but we need to get a mattress, hopefully they sell them seperately? Or are the mattress sizes universal, generally?) and tons of very cheap good quality clothes too!

Also - got some funny looks from people as we're NCT members, and they were in the non-members queue - so if you haven't signed up, and were going to, and there's a sale, do it beforehand - you get about 10 minutes before everyone else comes in! (which was just madness, people swarmed...! We could hardly move - not helped by the fact we had a huge great big basket and stand!)

Mamatoleah Welcome!!

Will go back to find "the list"

Thoughtforms,

Well done on the sale! I bought a mamas and papas rocking crib for my ds last time to use downstairs. I bought the mattress separatley from the mamas and papas shop and honestly was amazed at how cheap it was. I would expect a mattress for a moses basket to cost about the same. Can't remember what I actually paid but remember being v shocked at the cheapness iykwim

Heinz, Oh I so hope u are feeling better!! I am a bit stressed and as dp came home at the weekend with a 1000 exup, so that he can go to and from work quicker and come home more often... I don't want him to do that!! Not if it means backroads at those speeds. Can't do anything to change his mind. Have tried. Even told him the pink screen looked gay and he's still going to ride it. I know i'm going through the paranoid hormonal pregnancy bit but...

Am going to dig out my bright yellow waterproof suit, but i'm just not happy about it really I know i'm going to stress like mad.

Ok Everbody I had to go back to page 7 to find the list so please check u r on there - I don't want to find I lost someone

Clairedaz EDD ??? (((GIRL!)))
Clare1234 EDD ????
Flibertywidget EDD ??? (dd 21mnths)
Skydancer EDD 27th July
2HotCrossBunsAnd1InTheOven EDD 28th July (DS 3.7 DS 1.9) (((GIRL!))))
pussface EDD 29th July (DSS 14, DD 6mo)
Uki EDD 29th July (DS3,DS1) ((((GIRL))))
Nandos EDD 30th July (((BOY!)))
Hope88 EDD 1st Aug (First and it's a BOY!)
BumpVLump EDD 1st Aug (first) (((GIRL!)))
Cheekymonkey EDD 1st Aug (DS)
traceybath EDD 1st Aug (DS4, DS14m) (((GIRL!)))
lalaRachel EDD 1st Aug (first) (((SURPRISE!)))
Specialoffer EDD 2nd Aug (DS16m)
nellyup EDD 2nd aug (DD3, DS4)
trixymalixy EDD 2nd Aug (DS 2) (((SURPRISE!)))
sheenaisapunkrocker EDD 2nd Aug
faerieprincess EDD 3rd Aug (DS20m)
gemdangracie EDD 3rd Aug (DD2)
itsamiracle EDD 3rd Aug (DS2)
babylanguagelearner EDD 3rd Aug (DS 12m)
Rachel1963 EDD 3rd Aug (DS 3.1) (((SURPRISE!)))
Oonaghbhuna EDD 3rd August (DD1 3.6,DD2,2) ((((BOY!))))
Mellin EDD 3rd August (DD 2.4)
LeninGrad EDD 4th Aug (DS 2.9) (((SURPRISE!)))
Cairns EDD 4th Aug (DS 18m) (((SURPRISE!)))
moosecat1 EDD 4th Aug
Zorra EDD 4th Aug
TaleofTwoCities EDD 6th Aug (DS4,DD2.1) (((BOY!)))
nuttygirl EDD 6th Aug (((SURPRISE!)))
noodle12 EDD 6th Aug (DD 2.5)
PPorgy EDD 6th Aug
Scummymummy EDD 6th Aug
fairylights EDD 7th Aug (DS2) (((SURPRISE!)))
Mayl EDD 7th Aug (DD DS)
lifesaboxochoccies EDD 7th Aug (ds 2.10)
Haribosmummy EDD 7th Aug
cakesandchocolate EDD 8th Aug
MammaDani EDD 8th Aug
Hunnybunnyaug09 EDD 8th Aug (first)
BabyBump2B EDD 9th Aug ((((GIRL))))
sweetiewrapper EDD 10th Aug
mama2leah EDD 10th Aug ( DD 9 Mnths)
LittleFairySmile EDD 11th Aug (DS age 2) (((SURPRISE!)))
Lyra75 EDD 11th Aug (DS 16 months)
monkeyfeathers EDD 11th August (DS 8)
mamamila EDD 12th Aug ((GIRL))(DD 1.9. DS 16.9)
hencath EDD 12th Aug (first)
fairygirl3 EDD 12th Aug (DS, DS, DD)a
Hawkmoth EDD 12th Aug (DD3) (((BOY!)))
hippyme EDD 12th Aug
Kanuck EDD 12th Aug
Rozebud EDD 12th Aug
longtalljosie EDD 12th Aug ((GIRL!))
Fruitymum EDD 13th Aug DD1 3yrs old
Cazinski EDD 13th Aug
suwoodolf EDD 13th Aug (DD 7, DS 2)
Heinzsight EDD 13th Aug (DS1 12, DS2 9, DD 15 months) (((((((SURPRISE)))))))
Boogiewoo EDD 13th Aug
babycat EDD 14th Aug (DD)
Picante EDD 15th Aug (DD 2.7)
thecollection EDD 15th Aug (((Girl!)))
loopylou25 EDD 15th Aug (DD1 5 DD2 1)
thatsnotmypirate EDD 16th Aug (DS 19 months)
chocolatine EDD 17th Aug
InspectorGadget EDD 17th Aug
duchesse Edd 17th Aug (but I think 9th) DS 15, DD 13, DD 11
KitKatqueen EDD 18th Aug (3 DC) (((((BOY!!))))
Valz EDD 18th Aug
ThePippy EDD 19th Aug
WeAreStardust EDD 19th Aug
Beetlesbugsandbutterflies EDD 19TH Aug(DS3)
Beccylt EDD 20th Aug (1 DC)
motherof2boys EDD 20th Aug (ds1 6 ds2 5 )
MichaelaS EDD 20 Aug
chrysanthemum EDD 20th Aug
quixotic EDD 20th Aug
May67 EDD 20th Aug (DD 3)
Cwtchy EDD 21st Aug (DD 15 mos)
thoughtforms EDD 22nd Aug (probably a girl!!)
Sushipaws EDD 22nd Aug (DD 21mo)
YanknCock EDD 25th Aug (((BOY!)))
rightbobbydazzler EDD 25th Aug DS3 DS6mths
VJay EDD 26th Aug (DS 6)
becksydee EDD 26th Aug
fustilarian EDD 27th Aug (DD 14mnths)
lea1980 EDD 27th aug (DS 19 months)(((GIRL)))
olivo EDD 27th Aug (DD 2.6)
readyfornumber2and3 EDD 27th Aug (DS) ((BOY & GIRL))
ameNbump EDD 31st Aug

hiya
thanx for the welcome..and thanx for adding me to the list kitkat...