baby stuff, what you need and what you don't need, top tips for first timers!

[rogersmellyonthetelly]

I really could have done with this when I was pregnant with my first, I read the mothercare/mamas and papas guide and bought loads of stuff I didn't need or that wasn't quite right for my lifestyle! How about some of us bdtd mums share our top ten tips for getting the right kit for you?
My top ten tips would be:

1. when buying a pushchair, make sure the damn thing actually fits in your car!
2. get an in car base for you car seat if at all possible. Doing up the seat belt every time when you are terminally sleep deprived gets really annoying really quickly
3. breast feeding support cushions are only generally useful if you have small pert breasts or your boobs are situated on your shoulders. Otherwise a normal bed pillow is perfectly adequate and much cheaper!
4. Steam sterilisers don't kill thrush. Any old icecream tub with a lid and some Miltons tablets will kill thrush and is a much cheaper option
5. lochia (post birth bleeding) will be heavier than you imagine. Normal thin sanitary towels will not cut the mustard for the first couple of days. The inch thick nappy style maternity towels are a much better option and will provide some much needed padding for your abused undercarriage.
6. learn how to put your pushchair up and down in the comfort of your sitting room well before the baby arrives. The first time you have to do it for real you will probably be almost asleep (or wish you were) It will also be raining and your new baby will be screaming. Add to this the onlookers in the car park and it's a very stressful moment!
7. buy lots of sleepsuits and vests in newborn size. Babies ooze at both ends almost constantly. Buy cheap and lots, most will be hopelessly shit/vomit stained by the time they are outgrown.
8. your babies first poo will be like tar. Water and cotton wool balls do work eventually, but it will be messy!
9. simple rules of bf - if it's coming out the bottom end it's going in the top. If your baby is gaining weight and doing lots of wet and dirty nappies, this is all you need to know. Frequency and length of feeds is not a good indicator!
10. accept any help offered. Sod the housework. Make sandwiches and buy a couple of those travel cups with lids, it's the only way you will get a hot drink for weeks.

My main advice would be to really, really not buy very much at all!

Just cover the basics: clothes, nappies, food, muslins/cloths. And don't buy much of those because you really have no idea how big your baby will be and how quickly they might grow out of everything.

You will get LOADS more presents and pass-ons than you ever imagined.

I've found that since baby has been born we have had to buy loads of things we never considered (off the top of my head - a Snoozeshade, a new baby carrier, Sock-Ons by the dozen, a new pushchair, a different playmat, and that's nowhere near a definitive list) because as your baby grows you will soon get a sense of their personality and their needs. So if you start with the basics, you have more flexibility to buy things that will actually help or suit your baby. Nowadays you can buy anything and everything you need within 24 hours.

Oh, also - I got told we'd need loads of cotton wool. We didn't. We now have a house full of cotton wool...

Hahaha nelly... I also have a whole bloody drawerful of cotton wool that I have never used!!!

Id also like to add a blackout blind to the list.

And a kindle for yourself as its quite easy to read a kindle and feed at the same
Time :)

I am looking a kindle but thought with baby on the way id never use it when he arrived. But this is a bit more reassuring. Maybe have to treat myself lol

No you need a kindle, you will be feeding/cuddling almost 24
Hours a day at first, and day time tv is mind numbing!

A kindle, or even an Ipad and then you can go on the internet and feed at the same time!

Cabbage for sore nipples??

My sister swore by water and olive oil for bath time

Moses basket = waste of money.
DS grew out of it in three weeks and DD wouldn't sleep in it.

You can never have too many muslins.

A decent waterproof (for mum!) is a must.

I mostly use cloth nappies, but when I use disposables, I have never had a problem with the v cheap Sainsbury's basics ones.

If you want bright coloured, baby clothes that aren't "pink and frilly or blue with cars on", then Next, H&M and John Lewis are good on the high street.

You'll use up all that cotton wool when your DC get Chicken Pox!

Blackout blind and tumble dryer, plain white cotton babywear for early days so the poo accidents can be hot washed away!

Muslins can be used for everything from a wiping baby faces, makeshift bibs, cover ups, protect your clothes from posset and great as a sunshade over the pram if caught short!

Agree with Lara Huggies leak...big time.

If your DH / DP takes a sandwich to work every morning, get his to make 1 for you and pop it in the fridge. So you don't have to think about making lunch.

If you have space, have a changing station downstairs to save you going up the stairs. esp if you have a cs. Doesn't need to be fancy just a safe flat surface.

If you're having a winter baby, get a slow cooker.

Learn to sleep on the sofa!!!

Ah, is that what the cotton wool is for, bikerunski?!

Definitely second the decent waterproof. Sod how it looks, buy a good hiking style waterproof and some really comfy boots/trainers. Some babies sleep really well in their pram so you may be walking for England! An iPod, MP3 player or radio on your phone is great too, you can go for huge long walks without getting bored then.

Awk why does huggies have to leak, I've got loads of them :( seems that there the only brand who actually give stuff away. Lol pampers give nothing away. I shall struggle through until all gone..

Have a 9 week old DS, and I bought tons of stuff I didn't need... Only bother with lansinoh breast pads, they're more expensive but all other ones I tried were rubbish.
Buy a travel system that you can clip the car seat to, now that DS is a bit bigger I don't bother taking the carrycot bit out as well if we're just nipping out in the car, as it clips to the frame.
DS was a big boy and was out of his new born clothes in 2 weeks! Also you will get given loads of pretty little outfits, so just buy the basics.
Don't buy breast pump in advance... I find hand expressing a million times quicker and much less faff!
Don't buy too many nappies in advance as they grow out of them really quickly but do buy baby wipes wherever you see them on offer! also all nappies are different, we've found pampers to be the most reliable, and they are always on offer somewhere...!
You need an iPad. I have a kindle, have only used it twice since DS was born. 2 reasons, concentration is shot to pieces, I used to read 2 books a week, now the only things I read are the magazines at the drs...! Also the kindle isn't backlit. The iPad is, so you can breast feed in the dark, so DH isnt disturbed and I can arse about on the Internet to my hearts content!

You can download a kindle reader app onto your laptop and have the best of both worlds!