Are any of these must haves?

[Flyingchimps]

Hi all,

We have started getting ourselves ready for baby’s arrival and have made most of our significant purchases. We’ve tried to steer clear of gizmos but want to gauge opinion as to wether we have missed the boat on some of them:
*sleepyhead (I don’t really understand what this is for!)
*Next to me (we have a Moses basket and baby box so unsure why we would need this)
*perfect prep/breast pump- I intend to breastfeed so we figured we would just see if that works out first then purchase one or other of these
*ewan/my hummy mummy- again I don’t really understand why we would need one
*video monitor- we figured baby will be in our room to begin with then we can pick up a sound monitor when it goes into its own room.

Would anyone suggest we have really missed the point and should have purchased some of these items. We keep seeing them everywhere! Just looking for opinions I guess!

My DS is only 16 days old so speaking from very current experience...!

Sleepyhead is a godsend- DS has slept well in it since we brought him home from hospital for around 3 hours at a time, whereas he will only catnap in the Moses basket downstairs. I'm caveating this though by saying he's a big baby so may just sleep well anyway.

Snuzpod / next to me: not needed, but just check that your Moses basket will fit the Sleepyhead if you decide to get one. Most don't, so we bought a zip'n'go crib which converts into a travel cot / playpen for when he's older rather than an expensive crib.

Breastpump: I'll go against the curve here and say it's worth getting one from the start, but try renting it. DS wouldn't latch and I ended up with blood blisters on both nipples by day 3. The pump let me give them time to heal whilst still ensuring my son could have breast milk. If you decide to buy, I bought the lansinoh double pump which is a third of the price of a Medela and worked really well.

Ewan: don't need one, we found an 8 hour white noise video on YouTube which we leave playing overnight (thank god for unlimited data plans though!). Ewan is also a popular gift to give.

Video: we have one which is already useful as I put DS in his crib in our bedroom from 6pm so he makes the day/night association early. We check on him regularly, but the video is additional reassurance and means we can still have some time as a couple in the evening!

Other things we've found amazingly useful from the start are a changing table (I know lots of people say you can change them on the floor but bending and lifting post CS was impossible) and more muslins than you can imagine. Don't buy more than one baby towel or blanket as EVERYONE will give you these as gifts.

Moses basket was outgrown at about 6 weeks so we used a Next2Me until 7 months when she was getting herself out. She still seemed too small for a proper cot.

We have a perfect prep and I loved it, so easy.

Our daughter settled nicely with the music on Ewan but as others have said, any white noise is quite handy and can be played through phones or tablets.

We were given a video monitor from a friend and it was very useful as our daughter pulled herself up from 7 months and was a shit sleeper so we could keep an eye. If you have a sound monitor though it wouldn't really matter.

I liked the idea of a next to me but we didn't have room next to our bed for one so that was out.
We had a moses basket that was a foot away from the bed in the only space it could go. But dd outgrew it at 5 weeks and had to go in her own room then.

I loved, and have only recently given up, our video monitor (dd is 3!). It gives a lot of peace of mind just being able to flick the screen on and see that all is fine when you hear strange noises (most noises seem strange with a baby 😂).

Just to add the main reason I continued to use it so long is habit. Being able to hear if she woke for a wee while we're downstairs in the evening was useful occasionally too.

Never had any of the other things on your list.

Congratulations OP on managing to avoid the hype buying of pregnancy. Over 21 years of parenting I’ve seen all the “new essential products” come and go and really none are essential. I love the next2me type of cosleeper cribs as I feel it supports being closer to your baby in a practical way. In saying that, I just took the side off of a standard mothercare cot and secured it to my bed...and that worked for four babies.
If you’ve got a baby box (Scotland?) you will already have a wrap to carry your baby in, so maybe see if you can have someone model that for you as it is really simple to use once you get the hang of it but it’s tricky at first and can be a bit faffy.

My DD bought a perfect prep for my DGD1 and will use it again for DGD2 due any day now. I was amazed how brilliant it was and how much easier than when I was bringing up my DC.

She used a moses basket for DGD1 who never slept well in it and outgrew it very quickly as she was a long baby. They moved her into her cot at a fairly young age because of this but their room is not big enough for a cot to go next to their bed so baby went in her own room. This time she has gone for a next2me.

Both DD and us grandparents use video monitors which are invaluable and again something we never had when bringing up kids. Helps you establish if they are crying and actually awake or just crying in their sleep which our DGD1 does from time to time.

Not sure about Ewan but one thing which helped our DGD1 was white noise. We put apps on our phones and we had a travel cot with a white noise mobile.

I think having brought up my kids 30 years ago and seen what my DD now has available, some of them I would definitely have. Depends on your circumstances and baby though.

Sleepyhead: IMO no. Have a look at the Lullabye Trust guidelines on sleep positioners.

Next to me: We’ll definitely be getting a co-sleeping crib/cot. Haven’t decided which one yet. I am lazy and the idea of being able to roll over onto my side and pop a boob out without having to get up is the dream.

Perfect prep: If you’re planning to breastfeed, I wouldn’t bother. They also don’t make up formula to current NHS guidelines and there have been hygiene issues so I’m not a fan.

Breast pump: I personally don’t plan to introduce a bottle until baby is a couple of months old unless we have issues. I figure if we do, I’ll buy/hire a pump at the time.

Ewan/Myhummy: Planning a see how it goes approach. Babies survived for thousands of years without them.

Video monitor: Like you don’t think we’ll need one. My inherent laziness means that this baby will be in our room for at least a year!

@Didntcomeheretofuckspiders the sleepyhead is not a sleep positioner, common misconception.

Its own guidance recommends it is not used for unsupervised sleeping however.

Sleepyhead is one of those things where there seems to be a theoretical risk, but it’s made as safe as possible and for a lot of parents it’s the only way to get any sleep. Personally I decided that the baby was safer overall using a sleepyhead and allowing me to sleep so that I didn’t fall asleep while holding him on the sofa or anything which would have been more dangerous.

harriet Wrong choice of words, same advice:
www.madeformums.com/baby/are-baby-sleeping-pods-and-nests-safe/43734.html

I agree with BlueTablecloth, with those items I'd wait until baby is here and then see what you need.

We bought a Moses basket and rocking crib before DD was born, neither of which she'd sleep in - so then bought a Sleepyhead and Next to Me crib. It really will depend on your baby, I know babies who will be put down anywhere, but others that hated Moses baskets or would only sleep being held!

I breastfed but if I'd moved onto formula I might have bought a Perfect Prep. They're easy enough to get hold of so I wouldn't bother before especially if intending to BF.

I'd always assumed we'd just use a sound monitor. But we got a video monitor at 7 months once DD was in her own room. As TopsyLoulou said it is useful to see if noises actually mean baby needs settling or not. Our DD randomly cries out in her sleep and even gets up for a few mins before dropping back off, so for us it's handy to see what's happening! With a sound monitor I think I'd be tempted to go in sooner.

@Didntcomeheretofuckspiders have you actually read the link you posted? It says exactly what I said.

I'm sure it's been mentioned above but re: perfect prep; all you need to do is put the scoops of formula in with half the amount of recently boiled water and top up with cooled boiled water....I suppose it's a bit more faff but not as much as making fresh each time plus I've heard so many horror stories about the gunk that can build up in those machines.....I guess it also makes a difference if you're ff from day 1 as you'll have lots of bottles to make. Personally don't see the point in buying one AT ALL if you're planning to breastfeed.

Didn’t have any of those apart from the breast pump.

No Moses basket either. DD had her pram or bouncy chair downstairs and she had a hammock or me to sleep on upstairs. She was never left alone to sleep so didn’t need a sound monitor.

you need to do is put the scoops of formula in with half the amount of recently boiled water and top up with cooled boiled water....

That isn’t safe. The powder needs more than half of the water to be properly sterilised. It’s the equivalent of putting half the hot water in a bath.

Personally I love my Perfect Prep and I don't personally know anyone that ff and a) didn't love it b) has any problems. I tell all my pregnant friends who are planning to bottle feed to get one. I found that when trying to cool bottles with cold water the water kept getting into the bottle.

And I've found my video monitor invaluable. Sometimes if I go in to DS, he takes it that it's time to get up and start chatting/messing about. So I use the video monitor to see if I need to go in or if there's any issue he will resolve himself (like a dropped dummy/muslin).

But neither of those are things you need before the baby is born. You can get them if you feel they would be useful once the baby is here.

Titty - worked for us but maybe I put more than half the hot water; I can't remember exact amounts but I know I experimented til I got three right temp. Also I breastfed all of my children and only gave a bit of formula when they were older hence the comment about maybe it's worth it if you ff from the start.

What about all the instances of black mould and gunge appearing in the tubes etc?

Oh and what exactly is wrong with putting half the hot water in a bath?!

What about all the instances of black mould and gunge appearing in the tubes etc?

Absolutely. I exclusively expressed and was careful about cleaning and sterilising the pumping equipment and tubes.

The black mould and dirt build up is only if you use cheap knock-off filters rather than the proper Tommee Tippee ones. I had no issues with mine for the ten months I used it.

@unihorn not true mine had a disgusting build up after a couple of months and I was extremely careful with it. I had read the horror stories so was over cautious with cleaning and ONLY used the real filters. I’ve had to return mine after the crap I found in it. I was so upset. But it was nothing I did or didn’t do. I followed instructions to the letter

@TittyGoLightly

I was just explaining what the machine does. If that way wasn’t safe, how come the prep machine only puts around an oz of boiling water, we put powder, then it fills with cold water!? Surely that would mean the prep isn’t safe either. For a 6ozbottlr it barely puts over an ounce of boiling to mix powder with

Then no, I wouldn’t consider it as safe as it should be.

Convenience generally comes at a cost. I’d rather it wasn’t babies that would pay it.

I agree. For the short while we used it, I couldn’t understand how the hot (not boiling water) was enough, when it barely coated the powder, and it took a vigorous amount of shaking to do that.

Isadora we haven't bought a Next2Me or anything, I am tempted to put the cot next to the bed (I'm not due until september). Did you fit them together at all?

The next to me makes a brillaint bedside table while waiting for baby - it went up following an arguement about room layout at 37 weeks and has been up for 3.5 weeks now.

Breast pump and video monitor can easily bought on Amazon Prime in emergency. Baby will be pretty much with you contstantly for first 3-6 months so monitor won’t be needed.

I am planning to BF have no formula in the house but we do have a 24 hr tesco nearby and will send OH if needed.