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What *dont* I need to buy?

159 replies

BlueBee · 22/04/2015 20:23

Hello. We are expecting our first in August, loads of people have suggested what we need to get etc but what did you buy that you now realise was a waste of time? What don't I really need?

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whizzyrocket · 24/04/2015 14:49

Shoes- are actually bad for their developing feet. You can get waterproof booties if you need something practical (jojo or muddy puddles)
Changing table- very soon you're baby will be wriggly. Safer to have a mat on the floor that you can tuck under the cot when not in use.
Baby how to guides- all they will do is teach you to obsess over whether you are doing something wrong. Be consistent and follow your instincts and you won't go far wrong.

I agree you don't need the tiddly little baby towels but you can get useful bigger ones with hoods. Ikea, Soak and Sleep, and SkipHop all do toddler bath towels that would work perfectly for babies. My three year old still uses his ikea one, and it isn't thin or scratchy.

whizzyrocket · 24/04/2015 14:52

Lots of shiny baby toys are also very unnecessary. Babies are happy to play with all sorts of things and don't need the plastic tat that lasts a few months and eats batteries.

Apathyisthenewblah · 24/04/2015 14:56

Agree with PPs I'd skip the travel system and get extended rear facing seat and lie flat buggy.
You don't want to get loads of clothes as you don't know how big baby will be. I had a teeny tiny one and needed to send DP out for newborn stuff as 0-3 months were huge on her.
Top and tail bowl was only used by my mum! To wash DD not for my mum to wash in...

Apathyisthenewblah · 24/04/2015 14:58

God and baby books which made me a jabbering weeping wreck for not having a routine and reclaiming your life! You don't lose your life, it just looks quite different for a while Grin

Catsize · 24/04/2015 15:11

We didn't use our cot, super expensive mattress and associated bedding.
Ended up co-sleeping with both children. Cots come into use after a few months for some, so you could always decide then.

Misty414 · 24/04/2015 16:13

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Message withdrawn at poster's request.

MagelanicClouds · 24/04/2015 16:20

Cot bumpers - total waste of time, DS1 didn't like them and kept threatening to get tangled up in them. Didn't bother with them for DS2. A friend asked to have them and despite me pointing out their obvious crap-ness she took them anyway. Not sure why I hung onto them as long as I did!

Play pen - Didn't have one for ds1 as our house was tiddly, but have got one for ds2 as new house has big lounge with stairs in it so for safety I bought the "baby cage" as I call it. Ds2 hates it and acts like it's the end of the flipping world when I have to put him in it (he's too big to bring into the toilet with me now). Mostly I use it to keep things out of ds2's way.

Avent breast pump - a plastic piece of torture equipment designed to convince me that I wasn't producing enough milk. And yet ds2 was ebf with out ill effect! I ceremonially dumped the thing in the bin when ds2 was four months old as he'd gone to sleep in the evening and I was feeling rather full up. It got the sum total of ONE OUNCE of milk out of me, left my breast feeling beaten up and I still felt uncomfortably full.

Wow... someone upthread came up with a practical use for a top and tail bowl! Never could see the point in them. Just wipe the face first and then the bum??

Polyethyl · 24/04/2015 16:27

Pram.
I used a sling, the rest of my NCT group got prams. I was endlessly having to wait for them to negotiate cluttered or narrow pavements, doorways, steps, thresholds, kerbstones etc...

Amummyatlast · 24/04/2015 17:05

It really does depend. Some of the 'don't buys' on here I couldn't have done without, e.g. Baby bath, pram, room thermometer.

girliefriend · 24/04/2015 18:09

If I had another baby I wouldn't get an expensive pram, a would get a decent lie flat stroller (one with handles that you can hand the shopping on Wink ) and a sling.

The baby bath we used tons but then I didn't have one of those things you can lie the baby on in an actual bath.

Nappy bin waste of money.

I was grateful for all the clothes we got, although agree new born outfits are a bit hit and miss.

soverylucky · 24/04/2015 18:15

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captainfarrell · 24/04/2015 18:19

Special nappy bin??!! Baby bath(use yours or clean sink,) changing table(use lap or bed or sofa), too many clothes(they are more comfortable in baby grows for months-no scratchy seams)Shoes(pointless!) top and tail bowl??(use a bowl!)

captainfarrell · 24/04/2015 18:20

oh mattress for pram- use a pillow!

carrierpenguin · 24/04/2015 18:27

I'd say think about your situation re prams and car seats. I bought an expensive pram as walk everywhere, it's been wonderful and had years of use, now will use for dc2. However I dont drive, so had a cheap car seat that was barely used.

YBR · 24/04/2015 18:50

Just coming back on washable nappies. Do give them due consideration, especially if your baby does poo-splosions. OTOH there is no need to get them before the birth - use disposables for several weeks anyway.

bluechameleon · 24/04/2015 19:48

Baby bjorn - really expensive and really uncomfortable once baby is bigger. Go to your local sling library and try out some other options then buy second hand - you could get something like a stretchy wrap for a newborn then a soft-structured carrier for when they're bigger and spend less than on a new baby bjorn.

sallysimpson · 24/04/2015 21:30

I bought a cheap baby bath with dc1 and have re used for dc2, it would be one of my top buy items!So much easier and quicker to fill than the bath and was easier to hold them in it than bending over the bath. Used to use it in the bathroom though. Both mine had a quick bath most nights to try and get them in an evening routine- worked for them! I used it until about 6 months when they had a bath seat. Dc2 now plays with his bath toys outside in it when its not warm enough for paddling pool but nice enough to be out!

xBlueberry88x · 25/04/2015 11:18

Loved reading all these definiately writing all these down!

PinkParsnips · 25/04/2015 11:25

Baby bath

Lots of cute outfits for newborn - they will live in baby grows - also don't buy any clothes in 3-6 in advance as that's what everyone seems to buy as gifts!

Any babygrows that button up down the back - who designs these things!?

Burping cloths, just use a muslin

Booties - never used theae

StarlightMcKenzee · 25/04/2015 11:43

Don't get sterilising stuff, and don't get a bath.

Babies don't need baths. Just a wipe over now and then is enough. If they enjoy a dip they can come into yours for a bit.

Don't get a moses basket but if you do, don't get a stand.

Don't get a travel system. It is very bad for your baby's back to be in a car seat for more than a couple of hours now and then, say for a long car journey.

Don't get a breast pump until you decide you want to pump milk, which shouldn't really be until after 6 weeks anyway.

Don't get a baby monitor because your baby should always be in the same room as you for the first 6 months.

Don't get many clothes that aren't baby-grows. You'll be changing numerous times a day and want easy stuff to change.

soverylucky · 25/04/2015 12:57

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StarlightMcKenzee · 25/04/2015 13:17

Babies sleep anywhere though. They are lying on their mat and then all of a sudden, nap. You take the baby in the car/pram, - nap. You cuddle them, - nap. You feed them, nearly always - nappy.

Sofa, floor, pram, car, drawer, corner of soft play, bed. Wherever you are.

5YearsTime · 25/04/2015 13:38

Some babies sleep anywhere... Only some... Mines doesn't. She'll sleep in our arms, in her crib if she's fallen asleep in our arms first and in her sling. None of this dozing off on floor/bed/chair.

annatha · 25/04/2015 14:18

Not so much advice on what not to buy, but some sound advice that I was given- don't warm bottles. My dd took ebm straight from the fridge and at room temp with no problem, saved a lot of stress when out and about. Now we're ff she will drink the bottle warm, room temp and one icy cold when dh put it in ice to cool down. We use readymade bottles when out so we don't have to worry about killing bacteria in the powder.

Of course some babies may be fussier than mine, but if you try them with it cold first then only warm if they flat out refuse it.

mrsmugoo · 25/04/2015 14:30

Baby bath - just use the big bath
Breastfeeding pillow - don't see the point
Moses basket - waste of time, mine hated it. Next time round I'll co-sleep from birth then transition to cot
Pram shoes
Hooded cardigans and babygros
Baby shampoo / wash (just use water!)
Nappy bin
Changing table - just use changing mat on the floor
Carrycot - mine hated it. Just used car seat for about 3 months then buggy seat with infant insert reclined flat. Was never in car seat continually for that long without needing a feed anyway.