What do I need for 6 month old baby?

[Karaokemamma]

Hi

My husband and I are adopting. After several dissapointments, we have finally been matched with a 5 mth old baby (lovely surprise). The social worker has asked us to get the room ready and do some reading. I am a little scared because we got a room ready for a 3 yr old last year and that fell through, but SW is convinced this will go smoothly and pretty much you do have do what they ask.

Can anyone recommend and baby books, also a list of what we may need (we thought of the big things - cot, pram, travel system, sling etc...but not sure about the little things)

It's been a 12 year journey for us to parent hood and we can't wait!

Thank-you

Oh, congratulations!!

I would advise you to do the big things like a cot, buggy, high chair before you bring your baby home, but leave the other things until you have had a couple of conversations with their FC. Eg you could buy loads of bottles nut get the wrong ones. You could buy lots of bibs but find that they come home with plenty.

Babies that age don't really need a huge amount, so you can afford to wait and see what you really need. We had a nursery list at John Lewis for all the small things that add up eg a travel booster seat, spare change mat, and sent details out with our announcement cards after a couple of weeks.

Good luck!

You'll need tons of love. And you sound like you have that covered.

I wouldn't get too much - some where safe & comfy for them to sleep and a car seat?

What brilliant news! Non essentials but fun stuff would be a playmat / playgym as they will love lying there batting things and chewing... Toys that have a scrunchy texture (hard to explain, that crisp packet feel, perhaps in a soft book?)... Lots of little socks as they get pulled off all the time... Dribble bibs... Footed onsies... Sophie the Giraffe (squeak!) and a bouncy chair!

Sorry for the crap grammar - on my phone

Wait! More!

Thermometer for parental paranoia (seriously used ours every day in the beginning)
Bath towel with little hood
If you are using a dummy a clip to attach dummy to clothes / stroller etc
Calpol for baby fevers and tummy aches
White noise app for phone for overtired baby sleep aid

Think that's it...

Lamaze toys are nice for that age, lots of textures, and Dd really loved the 'baby touch' books at 6mo.

You're coming up to weaning so maybe a book on that? You'll need plastic bowls, plastic spoons/forks? Perhaps a Bumbo (although we hardly used ours). Lots of people love Annabel Karmel books about feeding although there's a hug range.

Maybe find a nearby toy library and borrow some toys to see what Jr likes-it's far cheaper then buying them (although I'm sure you'll be gifted with tonnes of toys!). If you want to make something special for your new arrival, treasure chests are good way to involve friends and family in preparing for the baby (you can ask them to turn out their cupboards and loan you old egg whisks, wooden spoons...anything that will amuse baby). Google baby heuristic play if this is a new concept.

Huge congratulations, it's such a wonderful ride xx

... and congratulations!

No good advice but Congratulations!!!

Congratulations! I have a 6th month old and he is so exciting at the moment with a new skill every day. My DS is just into a high chair (got cheap ikea one), loves his baby gym and Lamaze robot. We go to our sure-start centre quite a bit, maybe pick up a timetable before they arrive. He is quite a big baby and has nearly grown out of his bouncy chair so if you get one don't spend too much.

Get the Ikea Antilop high chair - best thing ever. As others have said, a cot, car seat etc are the obvious things - maybe a travel cot to use as a playpen (so when baby starts crawling you can pop him/her in to answer the door/use the loo/answer the phone). Also maybe a bouncy chair or swing so baby has somewhere safe to sit during the day - depends how active the baby is, DD happily sat in hers for ages as she was never very wriggly or physically active (she is now...) but some babies might not like it by that age I guess.

DD's favourite ever toy (which she has used daily and continues to use now she's 2.3) is the Vtech horrid plastic baby walker with the noisy activity centre on the front - can't go wrong with one of those!

Congratulations

Congrats

My ds is 6.2 months so here is a list of what i use daily

• High chair
• lightweight buggy
• baby walker (or jumperoo)
• bowls, spoons, sippy cup, bottles
• 4 bibs a day plus 2 for feeds alone
• toys - many rattles and some stacking toys
• cot and monitor
• teething gel (some days calpol)
• bath seat

Get a good nappy bag you will be carrying spare outfits, a few toys, tubs of food, bottles, nappys plus all your own stuff you will need it i started with a small one was rubbish i have one with diff pockets for diff things much easier.

Lot of baby wipes once they start eating you will go through so many i can use a pack in 2 or 3 days between a dirty face and pooy bum.

And buggy wise get something light small-ish and easy to maneuver I have a beautiful silver cross buggy which lasted 10 weeks of not being able to get it over the door step or on the bus and struggling to push it up the hill befor i gave up in favour of a lightweight mamas and papas buggy. My silver cross looks lovely in the living room though :)

Congratulations!

I've got a 5 months old. I'd say they've just about grown out of bouncy chair as they're on the verge of sitting up so they're dangerous

I'd look on eBay and get a Jumperoo and/or a sit in the middle play station like the leap frog Learn and groove DJ station or the graco one is v good.

Second the Lamaze toys they are great.

And the Vtech walker it's got a detachable front that baby can play with on the floor now. It'll last ages.

Don't bother with a travel system they're really expensive and great with newborns but a 6 months old can go in most pushchairs so you won't need a pram. Just get a car seat and a pushchair that has a reclining back.

Cot

Look into weaning info so you have an idea about it.

Calpol
Sudacreme
A good thermometer (the braun ear one is good)

Enjoy your new baby, fingers crossed it all goes well for you.

Wow, thrilling news! I would get a playnest instead of a bouncy chair at this stage. my lo's favourite toy is a full packet of wipes. She likes to play the bongo on them.
All you need is love, food and nappies to start off with.

I can highly recommend the Babyjogger City Mini pushchair - there are tons of pushchair reviews on here anyway. The Bugaboo Bee is also nice, and you can get lovely replacement hoods and nests to use with it (e.g. from Snunkie) so it looks pretty .

Oh lovely news how exciting.
Another vote for the ikea antilop highchair. Been through 3 chairs and def the best.

I love my insect net for over the buggy/pram in this weather as dd asleep outside a lot.
And a mirror for the back of the car so you can see them in the rear facing car seat. Otherwise you have to keep stopping to see what they are up to when they cough etc!!
Teething powders like nelsons or ashtons saved me many a night.

I hope you enjoy your journey with your lo

Lamaze robot is a hit with my 5.5 month old too. Also, guess how much I love you is a lovely book, we read it to ds at bedtime. Dribble bibs, muslins if he/ she is a sicky baby. Tbh for a 6 month old I would just get an umbrella fold buggy. Congratulations, too

A friend of mine is a SW who helps assess children for adoption. She gives all her adopters a copy of "What Every Parent Needs to Know" by Margo Sunderland. She gave me a copy when I had DS too.

Please come back and update when your baba arrives. They are so gorgeous at 6 months

Congratulations OP! So pleased for you.

One other suggestion - not a 'need', but you may find it helpful in this situation - is a baby sling. This might be good for helping you to bond with your new DC in a slightly less full-on way than through cuddles etc in the early stages (I say this because my DS is not a cuddly boy and I wouldn't have much contact with him if not for the sling!) In a similar way, a sling might be good for helping him/her to relax and bond with you quickly, in a more relaxed setting.

Let us know when the baby arrives, and good luck!

Massive congratulations! I have a 5 month, 1 week old, so I guess our babies will be of similar age.

The things we really use at the moment are:

• cot (with DD sleeping in a sleep suit as she tends to try and pull the covers over her head!)
• monitor. We have an AngelCare one with a sensor that goes under the mattress and will beep if the baby doesn't breathe for 20 seconds. It's fab for putting your mind at rest if you're a wee bit on the paranoid side like me
• a blanket to put on the floor. My DD has outgrown her play gym as she's rolling now and the bits that curve over it just get in the way. A blanket with some toys placed near by is lots better at this stage for us
• car seat
• buggy
• we use a sling but some babies hate them, so would be worth finding out if your baby likes them or not
• worth reading up on spoon feeding / baby led weaning and deciding what you want to go for. If doing spoon feeding or mixing the two, worth getting some of those silicone muffin cases to make purée batches and then freeze, then popping them out as needed
• high chair. Get one without fiddly cracks in it - food can get lodged and is difficult to clean

If you want any support, feel free to come and give us a shout on our ante natal thread (March 2012, Brewed to perfection). Friendly group of women, all going through similar stuff and it's often nice to bounce ideas off people at the same stage!

Once again, huge congrats. What lovely news!

Congratulations, what lovely news. My DD loves her stacking cups, space blanket from the camping section in poundland, lamaze sir prance-a-lot. In fact, any lamaze toys, they're fab! We got a walker but never use it, she just likes to roll around on the floor

Oh this made me cry! (am watching Olympics and a tad over emotional) Huge congratulations, what a lucky baby.

I would secnod lots of good advice here - plus some nice books to cuddle up and talk with That's Not My Puppy/Fairy/Whatever, Peekaboo Moo, Dear Zoo and Very Hungry Caterpillar are popular with my DTs. And the Black and White shapes/mobile/books good for younger babies but am guessing they might not have had much book time yet...

Plastic play mirror. Stacking blocks. Jellycat ball that makes a boing noise - all cheap but hours of value.

Baby books for you I would vote Mumsnet Babies unless you think you've read all the advice in the info sections of the site, No Cry Sleep Solution, Your Babycare Bible for month by month stuff plus general health and welfare.