what and how much baby stuff?? help needed pleased!

[fizzypigs]

Hi

I (think / hope!) i am on top of getting the big stuff organised for my baby who is due to be born in august - have sorted the pram, cot, moses basket etc. Things on my list I still need to get are clothes and bedding. Can anyone help me figure out what i need to get?

In terms of clothes - I am confused about sizes - how do you know whether to buy new baby sizes or 0-3mths? I am also confused as to how much i should buy and of what?

In terms of bedding - I have no idea. I am hoping my baby will sleep in a moses basket to start with so figure i need sheets for this. How many should i get? Also how many blankets will i need? And can the same blankets used for sleeping be used for prams too?

Sorry if this all sounds very dim!!

Thanks!

I'm no help but waiting for replies as I would like to know this too! Just wanted to post because if you're dim then I am too, haha!

I was just thinking the same thing.
My baby is due in just over 4 weeks and im getting a bit nervous that i havent got enough clothes and what size to get more of!! Will be watching and learning

Hiya,

With my dd I bought the "I love my bear" moses basket and matching bedding from babies r us. When my health visitor came in to see the baby she told me that the best thing would have been just to buy cellular blankets. She was really nice but basically said the bedding I'd bought wasn't much good / a waste of money. With this baby I have just bought a few packs of moses basket fitted sheets and the cellular blankets. Tesco and asda do this bedding, also babies r us usually do deals like buy 1 get 1 half price on the essential bedding. Oh another tip my health visitor told me was to put a muslin underneath my babies head as she slept in her basket, that way if she was sick I didn't have to keep stripping the bed.

As for clothes I'm not much help as my little one was tiny and in newborn for months so this time I'm just buying loads of vests / sleepsuits in newborn and 0-3 months. I found that I got loads of outfits as gifts from other people and last time I ended up with way too many clothes.

I too am eagerly awaiting responses here. My baby is due in August also, and I have been playing a guessing game with the amount of certain things...

Some insight would be much appreciated

thanks mumtosophie for that helpful advice and thanks nat, wolfcub & apricot for making me feel less dim!

Congratulations all of you and let me tell you none of this is dim it is something that every first time parent has to deal with! :)

I bought loads of things for my DS in 2006 and looking back most of it was a complete waste of time/money if I had my time again these would be my main things.

Clothing - 6 babygro's, 6 vests, 2 cardigan's, 1 hat and 2 pairs scratch mitts.

You can never be sure of clothing sizes as babies come in all different weights/shapes/lengths. My DS was 7 days overdue and still had to wear early baby clothing . Babygro's are amazing for the first few weeks/months so just buy a pack of say 6 0-3 month suits and if they fit then use them, if not baby won't care they are too big for a few hours so send DP/MIL etc out for some cheapy Asda white ones (which are so cheap and gorgeous on) in a smaller size and the same with vests. 6 should be plenty and you will get loads of clothing from other people!

Bedding - 2 sheets, Baby sleeping bag, small fleece blanket, cellular blanket.

At first my DS loved sleeping in his moses basket swaddled in a small cellular blanket with the little quilt on top of him loosely, but some babies may not like being swaddled in which case baby sleeping bags are fantastic aslong as baby is over 7lbs because they can't kick them off. My son was also pukey so we ended up having to use pillow cases as emergency basket sheets and a folded muslin tucked around the top of the matress so that we could just change that instead of the sheet all the time.

You can use the same blankets at home/out and about but a footmuff or sheepskin is much better for prams as they can't kick them off.

Hope that helps. :)

Oops cross posted with mumtosophie :o

It' amazing the amount of stuff you 'need' for a baby that you never actually find a use for and there are so many gimmicky things out there that can be replaced with cheaper alternatives that work just as well or better!

thanks willybumballs (typing that made me giggle!) v helpful advice!!

DC3 was born 3 weeks ago and due to a very full house only has the bare minimum...

She sleeps in a moses basket - I wrap her (under her arms) in one cellular blanket and put one sheet over her to keep her 'tucked' in. Altogether I have 3 moses basket sheets, 3 cellular blankets and one sheet (all were given to us and is more than you need!). I have extra non cellular blankets that have been bought for us and often use these in the pram or over her in the car seat if she isn't wearing a coat.

I think we have around 3 new-baby babygros and the same number of vests, and around 5 in age 0-3. My baby was 7lbs 12ozs and although the 0-3 clothes are still a bit big, she's fine in them! I would ensure you have a few of each thing and then you can always buy what you really need when LO arrives.

No probs Fizzy it's a blardy minefield trying to kit them out at first but trust me in a years time you will find a pile of items that you really, really needed yet they are still unopened :o

And my name made me giggle to as it came from DS who is almost 5, turned to me when he was in the bath and announced he was going to wash his willybumballs ... the joys of allowing them to play with the 8 year old next door... :o

Just buy enough for the first week or so. That way you will have something to start with and can get the size right later. Also,if this is first baby you will hopefully get loads of gifts and not have to buy too much clothes for the first few months yourselves!

Good tip about the muslin under the head, mumtosophie, I was worried about how many moses basket sheets we'd go through but that should make it easier.

I have been given some newborn stuff, about 6 vests and a few sleepsuits, so I'm just going to wash this and use it for the first few days. Then I'll send DH out for pink/blue stuff .

Mizza is right, you'll get loads of gifts too so don't go stocking up on clothes yet!

I keep looking at bedding and thinking how cute it will look in the nursery, but realistically we probably won't even use the nursery for the first 4-5 months or so!

I would suggest buying clothes in 6months plus. Loads of people buy the tiny cute stuff and then you suddenly run out!

I agree with the above I have a pack of white vests and a pack of white sleep suits in 0-3 months. 1 velour white n silver newborn cute sleep suit for coming home in. I'll buy more when dragon is here and I know how big/long he/she is. Friends and my aunt have started knitting cardies I've suggested a selection of 0-3 and 3-6. I also agree you will be given outfits as presents s buy only 1 or 2 that you love and leave it at that. I had far too many clothes for my DD 11 years ago. So have learnt from that.

Pillow cases fit perfectly for moses basket sheets. Don't buy to much of anything. You will be given so much stuff you will be overwhelmed. If you do go to full term the size of you and your partner may be a hint as to the size of your baby, I'm 5"6 and DP is 6"5 with size 13 feet, all of the 0-3 month socks were to small at birth! Not all babies are pukeing pooing machines, mine wasn't so I didn't go though as much stuff as most. Most super markets sell perfectly good baby clothes and you can at short notice go and buy what you need in the right size. After having a dig around to find my maternity clothes I found loads of baby clothes still in there packets from last time.

I definately agree with the clothes thing. You will get given loads. Im half hoping for another boy just so I can make good use of DS clothes which are immaculate

I would recommend a crib over a moses basket. Many babies I know outgrow them at 3/4 mths and parents have to put baby in own room in cot whilst a crib can last til around 6mths. Also as sides are open I think it helps the transistion to a cot as babies found the openess odd after an enclosed moses basket.

Also agree with pillow cases and eyeing up supermarket clothese in case you do end up with less clothes than expected.

If it helps, my sons were 8lb 13oz and 8pm 10oz and both were in newborn for a few weeks, as 0-3 were too big, and they were both overdue, so it might be worth your while getting a couple of babygros in case. It doesn't matter a great deal, but it's nice to have a couple of things that fit!

Sorry if this confuses you further!

we didnt do cellular blankets and wont with this one either.
he had 2 swaddling blankets and a lovely soft blanket to go over the top.
Later at about 7 or so months he went into gro bags.

4 sheets for all the different mattresses we have.

hope that helps

thanks everyone for your great tips! x

I agree with everyone else - you really don't need much at all. I had a ton of clothes in 0-3 months (people without children) and 3-6 months (people who had children and know how much 0-3 months stuff you get given :)), I had a real drought of clothing at 6-9 months and 9-12 months, then at a year I was given some lovely stuff as birthday presents. My babies were both in new baby stuff at first, even though they were both around 8lb, but grew out of that size in 4 weeks (complete porkers the pair of them!). I was still happy to have some new baby clothes though (vests and babygros) because it was lovely to look at them in things that didn't drown them, and as there were so few clothes, we have kept most of them to look at and get misty eyed now that they are bigger.

You will need a car seat, something to transport the baby (buggy from birth or pram/travel system) and something for the baby to sleep in (hopefully!- surprising how many accidental co-sleepers there are), but other than that I would hold off on buying stuff. Unless you are in the Highlands and Islands of Scotland, you can always send off a family member to the shops for extra sheets/clothes/whatever.

I haven't read others' advice but here's mine anyway:

2 sheets and 2 cellular blankets for moses basket (2 of each so you have one while one is in the wash), and maybe a sleeping bag.
I'd personally have a different type of blanket for the pushchair. Partly so you don't have to faff moving it in and out of the moses basket, car and pram. Partly because I think cellular blankets are great for sleeping as they're breathable but not necessary in the pram as you're always watching your LO. If you get a different one then it can be a lovely one which goes with your pram.
I found swaddling blankets good in the winter but my DD got hot very easily and they're useless for her now it's warmer. You can always swaddle with a normal blanket if you think it'll help the baby sleep. I do use sleeping bags though. I find they're better for her as she doesn't get as hot but I don't need to worry about her kicking off the sheets, which she's done since the day she was born!

In terms of clothes, my DD was born at 6lb 14oz but dropped to 6lb. She needed small baby clothes for a couple of weeks, then newborn for another 3-4 weeks. I found that everyone thought everyone else would buy small clothes so I ended up with tons of 3-6 months clothes and hardly anything smaller. I was gad I'd bought 3 babygros in small baby as newborn were huge on her. I also had about 5-6 newborn babygros. I had a pack of 7 newborn vests which were fine for her from birth.
It's a good idea to know how big you/your partner/siblings were to get a vague idea of how big the baby might be. Then maybe buy just a pack of babygros and a pack of vests in the first 2 sizes to tide you over.

Good luck with everything!