What rubbish DO/DONT you need to buy for a new baby?

[MyselfandI123]

I'm 28 and 24 weeks pregnant with my first child and I'm looking at all the bits for sale that you can buy for your baby. Call me old fashioned but do you need all this rubbish??

Baby bath... What's wrong with the sink, your own bath?
Nappy disposal system....errr bin??
Changing table.... Floor, bed, table with a mat on? Etc etc

I have the basics: crib and bedding, clothes, muslins and cloths, steriliser, bottles, breast pump, play mat, few toys, bouncer seat, nappies, wipes, toiletries, pram. That's it really. Myself and my two siblings survived on nothing really as my parents were young and skint and and we all turned out ok.

Is there anything you brought and really regretted it or anything that was a life saver??

Thank you ????

We had a puj tub instead of a bath, which was brilliant. It means that you can bathe your dc in the sink nice and easily, and it folds flat after use. It was the best thing we bought!

Here's the crap I didn't need:
Top and tail basin
Baby bath
Jumperoo
Any other plastic, noisy toys
Isofix car seat base
Specialist breastfeeding clothes
Bottles
Steriliser
Breastpump
Monitor (our house is small)
Parenting books

Here's the crap I did:
Tippitoes fabric bath support
Baby gym
Moses basket
Pram
Travel cot
Change table, as a place to store nappies, wipes, muslins, creams etc.
Babybjorn carrier. People dislike them but the baby loves facing outwards after a few months.
Nice clothes that you can breastfeed in. I got sick of baggy t-shirts so bought dresses with buttons/ zips, and tighter, stretchy tops.
Bouncy chair for baby.
Low light lamp for night feeds.

Nappy bin was godsend for me but that's cause our outside bin is at the front of the house and our cats went through a phase of darting out as soon as I opened it (onto very busy road).
Millions of babygros were also a must - I second the comments made about outfits being a faff.
My pram (joolz day) has been amazing too.
We did use a baby bath but that's cause our bath is quite deep and was hard to bathe DS in there when he was very little - was only a tenner and DS now plays with it in the garden (has been a boat, a car, a paddling pool, a sand pit) and we also say him in it with some sodium bicarb when he had the pox all over his bum.

Jumperoo was a complete and utter waste of time. And bloody Sophie the giraffe.

We've got the ikea change table. It's the one that is a set of shelves with extra bit that can be removed once to big to change on. I love it. Still have some lower back probs and after stitches etc it has been rather uncomfortable sitting on sofa let alone floor at times.

Got a small pedal pin for nappies. With scented bags to keep smells down.

I bought a basin for bathing but DD is already to big for it. She is long!!

I also haven't purchased a changing bag. Been shoving stuff on handbag invested a whole £6 on a water resistant rucksack the other day. Figured better for back when using sling. Plus it's on smallish side = less chance of filling with crap. Or that's the plan anyway!

Isofix car seat base and gro bags also get a thumbs up from me. Try TKMAXX for gro bags, so much cheaper!

I didn't really use the baby bath, baby gym, play pen, bath seat.

Didn't have a changing table (just used a mat) and didn't have any nursery furniture bar the cot, which was free from a friend.

Tiny babies really don't need much at all.

I couldn't have managed with the bouncy chair though! DS napped in it for the first few months. I also got a lot of use out of the Moby sling.

My absolute must buys for new parents are a large Aden and anais muslin (1m square) and some sock ons.

Oh also didn't get any use at all out of the reusable nappies and reusable wipes!

We couldn't see the point of a changing table but we were given one second hand and I have to say I was extremely grateful for it in the weeks after my C section.
We were also given a baby bath second hand and used it until DD was about 12 weeks then she graduated to a bath support.
Agree Gro bags/cheapo version are fantastic and that outfits are unnecessary until they are a bit bigger. Only time DD wore a dress in the first 6 months was for a wedding.
Most of DD's toys are presents or from charity shop and she likes to play with the laundry basket more than anything, she is sitting in it at the moment!

Oh but I did splash out on a SkipHop change bag and used it a lot. Lots of pockets and easy access, but only for buggies with two separate handles, otherwise you can't clip it on properly.

It made me smile the other day when a lady wrote a panicky post about needing a replacement part for her perfect prep machine at the weekend! I know they are meant to be useful but you can make up a bottle without them.

We have always changed our DDs on the floor. Changing mat slides under sofa. Nappies and wipes are kept in a basket with handle that is easy to move round the room.

I think nappy bins are useful if you are changing in a place where the bin doesn't get emptied frequently. Even in scented bags nappies do stink.

Agree with Tripp Trapp. Lots of people swear by the ikea one but the Tripp trapp lasts so much longer and fits neatly under table without those bloody legs sticking out.

For a changing bag we use a normal bag with a skip hop folding changing mat. That has been one of our top buys as you can just sling it under the buggy if you don't need to take everything.

Now as for bath seats - it's pricier than most but the angel care seat was great. It is made of soft flexible rubber and really supportive. DD kept sliding out of the rigid ones. Used this until she was nearly 8 months.

Oh and the jumperoo took up a lot of space and DS only used it for a few weeks until he could sit up.

I bought it on eBay and then sold it again, so in all it only cost me about £30.

Changing bag - I just got a large handbag and used that. Changing bags for some reason seem to be far more bulky than necessary.

The jumperoo was great for my two - DS1 used to bounce himself to sleep in it! But if you do plan on getting one, buy second hand. I got our from gumtree for less than half retail price and sold it on again. It's really not worth the full rrp.

Bouncy chairs were great for putting them in while I had a shower/made dinner. Just brought them into the room with me so they watched what I was doing. Flashy all singing all dancing models really not necessary. I got a very basic one which was more than adequate.

It's good to have things that might be used over a longer period of time. I.e. We had baby Bjorn bouncer chair which is expensive but can be used until they're over 1, ergo carrier was a nightmare at first but still useful now. I find it much quicker to change a nappy with reusable wipes. Dirty nappies just hang out in bags by the front door until I put them out. We have quite a few soft toys that weren't and still haven't been used much. The baby bath was donated, but our normal bath is deep so don't fancy bending over we don't bath the newborn v often. We haven't bothered decorating the nursery, just put up some stickers and used our existing surplus furniture rather than expensiive nursery furniture.

Many of the things I never bought for my babies included:

crib and bedding
muslins
bibs
steriliser
bottles
breast pump
dummies
play mat
pram
changing table
changing mat

I found Muslins much better than bibs.

twinkle I didn't need either.

The way you write your list sounds so smug sorry. Like you are a know it all. And you haven't got a baby yet. Just because you don't find something useful it doesn't mean it's pointless.

Baby bath? Yes it keeps me from filling in the big bath. DD1 is still using one at 4 yo.

Changing table? I have a bad back so I can't do nappies on the floor easily.

And your basics lists is filled with useless rubbish IMHO: crib, muslins, cloths, steriliser, bottles, breast pump, toiletries. All waste of space and money. Sorry. My two all survived without any of these and are just fine. How smug it sounds

Is it smug though?
Women having babies is a marketer's dream. The "necessary product" list is
huge.
Many women feel if they don't have everything then they are somehow letting their baby down.
Caring well for a baby is not about how much money you can throw around- a baby's needs are very simple.
THose Mums on a budget may feel very reassured to hear that babies can be well cared for without a huge expensive list of stuff.
I think it's refreshing to hear how little some of us actually need, and while I agree that we are all different- although it could be argued that you could change a nappy on an ordinary table.

When I hear talk of comparing merits of expensive nappy disposable systems I just glaze over.

We also don't have a changing table, which is certainly useful during the first three months but after that you have to be really careful baby does not wriggle off, you are definitely safer on a plastic mattress on the floor.

We have a baby bath and I found it useful in the beginning, but you can do without one.

I've saved a lot of money by not buying baby wipes - they're full of nasty stuff I wouldn't want on my own skin, let alone on baby's bottom. We've only ever used cotton wool and water and DS has never had a nappy rash.

Baby bath will be useful for me. Putting a couple of inches of water in a big bath is just time consuming and expensive (we are on a water meter) and a waste of water. Putting a couple of inches in a baby bath is a much better option (I have children already so know I will use the baby bath).

Different people find different things useful or rubbish and a waste of money. I wouldn't use a sling so for me that would be a waste but somebody else would swear by a sling and wouldn't need a pram.

I want to breast feed but have bottles and a steriliser just in case I can't for whatever reason. Also means I can express with the pump and my DH can feed.
Clothes and bedding is all second hand although half of it still has tags on as my mother works in a charity shop and the stuff that comes in is crazy!! So not spent a penny on much which is really helpful.
I have a changing mat on the chest of draws atm and I don't have any back problems so won't be getting a table as it will take up more room which I don't really have.
Grow bags and thermometer added to the list and I will get a sling when baby is here.
Thank you for your help MNeters you have been very helpful!

Sorry I wasn't meant to sound snobby or stuck up and no I haven't had the baby yet. I am god mother to 3, auntie and a midwife in training so not as completely stupid and stuck up as you make me sound. This was for advice on what real mothers think and use not what companies say you should buy. I made a list so people could see what I had and make suggestions. Thank you for your input

We used our baby bath loads - good support and only used a bit of water. We also loved our sangenic nappy bin - I am not traipsing all the way outside every time I have to change a nappy, and ours never smelt. If you think it's unhygienic to have nappies kicking around you'd have a fit at our nappy bin after we moved to cloth nappies...

We also use our changing table loads - saves bending and also acts as storage for nappies.

We hardly use our pram - DD hated it and was slung everywhere, DS sometimes uses it but I tend to sling him too. Never bothered with changing bag.

To be honest you have no idea what you will find useful until your baby is here. We didn't buy stuff but relied on next day delivery if we thought we needed something

I have 3 dc and never used/lived without the following:

Baby bath
Top and tail bowl (found it far easier to bath them daily)
Sling
Bottle warmer
Nappy wrapper thingey
Water wipes
Baby monitor
Changing bags (hate the designs, I just use a longchamp zip up bag now)

However I would highly recommend -

Gro egg
Bath support (so much easier than a baby bath)
Muslins x 1000!
Bottles that you can sterilise in the microwave without a steriliser.

HeadDreamer, I couldn't disagree more. My house is covered in muslin cloths at the minute - there's no way I could manage breastfeeding without them! Especially as poor DD gets a face full of milk even if I do grab one in time. OP, buy many muslins. You can never have enough IMO.

We got given a nappy disposal system and tbh I did think "this is ridiculous, why would anyone need this", but it's actually really useful! We'd never have bought one and obviously you can manage without, but I'm glad we have it now. We're hopefully switching to cloth nappies soon though so won't need it then.

We did also buy a bath - this one: www.amazon.co.uk/gp/aw/d/B0037ZTT2A/ref=mp_s_a_1_1?qid=1435478561&sr=8-1&pi=AC_SX200_QL40&keywords=mini+baby+bath&dpPl=1&dpID=31hTM-IeMmL&ref=plSrch - but only because our bathroom sink is tiny and kitchen one is at a weird angle so couldn't use either of those.

Other than that, sounds like you've got it covered OP. Good luck!

I find the concept of changing table in bedroom or living room gross. It's a nappy full of piss and shit! I have always kept a changing mat in bathroom behind door and change all nappies in bathroom

I don't think baby bouncers or jumpers or swings are very good for baby. Studies show they increased flat heads in babies, have higher infant death risk as baby not flat if napping in bouncer, and reduce development of general things as baby can't stretch/ roll/ move arms and legs as freely as just on the floor.