Choosing all the stuff

[GemmeFatale]

I’m only seven weeks pregnant with our IVF baby but I’m already overwhelmed by the stuff. How do I go about picking car seats/pranks/slings/etc/etc/etc?

*prams. I promise not to buy the baby a prank.

I booked an appointment at John Lewis baby department. You get a dedicated slot and someone takes you round and explains all the different options. They then make a list for you of everything you liked which you can access online and share with family etc if you want (kind of like a wedding list). There’s no pressure to buy anything then and there at all! We took the list away and found most of our choices second hand or cheaper online but the JL service was great for sorting out all the confusion!

I didn’t think of John Lewis. There’s a massive one near me. I may venture into town over the weekend (god help me)

Hi,

We do have a review part of the site - we have had a look at all the stuff on the market and outline which one we'd recommend and why

www.mumsnet.com/reviews

We also have a couple of video reviews for bouncers and monitors.

Hope it helps!

Prams - think about your lifestyle. It was important to me to get a travel system where the car seat snaps onto the base so I can wheel baby in and out of Tesco without swapping from car seat to pram. I didn't need offroad, robust tyres as we live in a town centre and it needed to fit our car boot.

Slings etc. I would try YouTube for explanations and recommendations.

You'll need something for the baby to sleep in your room to start with so we ended up with a bedside crib and a proper wooden Ikea cot that will change into a toddler bed.

I second the john lewis appointment, ours at Kingston was excellent. They do get booked up in advance though and I'd really recommend booking a specific appointment as the nursery dept is always very busy at the weekends and you will struggle to speak to an advisor. We went when I was around 22 weeks (I didn't feel confident enough going before 20w scan)