baby preparations, help!!

[Naomip88]

I'm due the end of january and starting to get prepared for the baby and I'm feeling a bit like a stupid baby novice!

So far we've got a co sleeping cot, sling and we're getting the pram and the car seat tomorrow but I'm getting a bit confused about buying clothes etc for the baby. I haven't been around babies very much (i'm the youngest in my family, I only have 1 niece who doesn't live close and I'm the first of my close friends to have a baby )and I find myself not knowing simple things like what they actually wear?! I have a couple of fleecy all in ones (the kind that look like teddy bear suits) and a couple of onesies, but I would love to have is a list what I actually should have before my little girl arrives bearing in mind she'll be here in the winter. And what will she wear (ie how many layers)?? Also how many nappies should we buy before the big day?? I did nct classes but they seem to focus so much on the birth and just whizz through the practicalities of being a parent.

I found I was bought lots of clothes for my November baby by friends/relatives so I didn't need to buy as much as I did and I would definitely suggest you wait till the sales hit, but practically you will probably have your little bundle in sleep suits most of the time.

The basic rule is 1 more layer than mum, but for me this was easiest to manage with blankets.

As a quick list id suggest having a few of the following:
Sleep suits
Vests with poppers between the legs
Cardigans
Socks/tights
Hat/gloves

I'm fairly sure you'll be given outfits for Christmas as well.

Re nappy changes....my little poop machine went anything from 5-10 times a day in the first few weeks, but I'm sure all babies are different with this.

Congratulations in advance and good luck. X

I'm due at the end of January too. It's my first so I've not got much of a clue but my sister has given me all her old baby stuff so I'm going with that.

For clothes, I've got quite a few babygrows which have long arms and legs. Then you can put a cardigan over that. I was told the baby should have one more layer than you. At night I've got baby grow-bags - one has sleeves but the other two are like dungarees with skirts (!).

Scratch mitts are apparently a must. Some of the long sleeve babygrows have turn over cuffs that you can use as scratch mitts.

I've got some swaddling blankets too.

For when she's a bit bigger I'll got for baby vests, tights and a dress.

I would say the absolute essentials clothes-wise are:

Sleep suits (aka babygrows) with poppers down front and between legs. You need quite a lot of these - maybe 8-10 - as she may do leaky poos.

Short sleeve vests with poppers between legs. Again 8-10. Unless it's very warm in your house you'll probably put her in a vest plus a sleep suit all the time for the first weeks if not months.

They are much the comfiest items for babies - don't get sucked into buying little fiddly outfits like dresses with buttons or jeans - not comfy for her and despite what some relatives might think she's not a doll and she doesn't care what she's wearing.

Check the minimum weight before you put your newborn in a sleeping bag (aka growbag). DS was 6lb10 which was too small so we used blankets until he put on weight.

You may find swaddling blankets useful (some of my friends swore by them) but we found DS hated being swaddled so never used ours. Maybe borrow one to see if she likes it.

A snowsuit (all in one coat) will be handy.

Next does up to One Month which is perfect for the early weeks. DS is a long baby and at 8 weeks is only just moving out of the one month and into 0-3m.

H&M also do up to 1 month and then 2-4months.

DS only wears vests and sleepsuits, day and night.

We use on rotation,

8 sleepsuits
8 vests
One fleecy all in one (for the car mainly)
Three hats
Two pairs of footed trousers with matching long sleeved vests

We had a tiny cardigan for when he was born but we dont tend to put one on him now.

Also to add about nappies, you'll probably do 8-10 nappy changes per day in the early days so stock up on those!

I found muslin cloths very useful to drape over your shoulder to protect your clothes from spit up after feeds, and of course plenty of bibs - you can never have too many of those.

The other useful thing I was given as a first time mum was a baby care kit put together by my aunt - it hadn't even occurred to me! It included top and tail bowl, baby nail clippers, digital thermometer, snot sucker thing, natural sponge and cotton pads. That was amongst the most useful thing I was given

www.kiddicare.com/webapp/wcs/stores/servlet/productdisplay0_10751_-1_149436_10001

This was brilliant. Don't bother with a baby bath.

Imo don't worry too much about clothes as the chances are you will be given more than they can ever wear anyway. I ended up taking some of my gifts back to be exchanged for 0-3 months or even 3-6 months as everyone bought me newborn outfits.

hagred's list is a good one. Buy 3-4 packs of nappies which will be loads just so you don't have to worry about it for a little while. By the time you start to run low, you might like the idea of walking to a shop to buy more, just for fresh air (if you live someone suitable for this anyway).

At the moment my DS is mostly dressed in a vest (long sleeved) + onesie/outfit+ a jumper in the day. At night he wears a soft onesie and a vest. Other than clothes buy a soft blanket for the pram/cot. In a little while you can buy sleeping bags for them to sleep in but my son was too small for these at first.

You will need tight fitting sheets for the mattress and make sure your bedding can't fall into the co sleeper (eg if you have a particularly big duvet etc).

Other than the pram, car seat, cot you've got most of the essential equipment covered but you will need a changing mat (consider a changing table to save your back too), cotton wool and after a few weeks I would recommend a baby gym/ playmat and/or chair so you have somewhere to put them down. My DS loves his vibrating chair so much I rate it as one of the best purchases we made. (We had a tiny love one - the toy bars fold back so v easy getting baby in and out and he looked so comfy in it).

Monitors- I bought a really expensive one and equally like a cheap one I use as a spare at my mum's house.

Buy muslins too- useful for everything. Baby sick, sunscreens in summer, swaddle cloths if your baby likes that, a mat to put them on when out and about.

Assuming you don't live somewhere really rural, I would recommend just getting a few essentials to tide you over for the first few weeks. I know you want to get organised pre baby but I found I made better decisions once the baby was here on what I really needed.

Eg I didn't use a baby bath for months as I felt safer ( and he enjoyed it more) in the (clean) kitchen sink.

Sorry for an epic post, I clearly have more opinions on this topic than I realised.

All good advice above so I won't repeat! But I would suggest when you stock up on nappies (if you're using disposables) to not buy all the same brand and model - it took half a dozen variants before we settled on the one that fitted best for DS's early months without irritating his skin.

other bits of kit:
maternity pads (loads - I had no idea you bled so much)
breast pads
Lansinoh (if you're breast feeding)
metanium for nappy rash
cotton wool pleats for all sort of uses
cake...

for peace of mind:
a bog standard room thermometer for near the bed
a digital ear thermometer

Dont overbuy Newborn sized nappies - 8wo is in size two already.

Thanks for the great advice. My sister in law and brother pretty much panic bought the whole of mothercare so I definitely just want the essentials for the first few weeks so this has given us great piece of mind! Getting excited now!

I actually found that all three of mine required prem sized nappies for the first month or so despite not bring preemies. Buy a couple different sizes to be on the safe side.

I second archangelgallic suggestion to get a sponge support rather than a baby bath. Much easier to wash baby on as no slipping, and easier to store when not in use

Shamelessly place-marking