Clueless FTM - Newborn clothes

[MrsB2019x]

Hi everyone,

We are due our first baby in August - we found out she is a girl last week so I have been starting to buy bits and pieces.

She currently has 7 sleepsuits in 0-1 month - will those be okay from the start or will we have to get some newborn size clothes as well?

I’m 5ft7, DH is 6ft4 and rugby player build so can’t see us having a small baby!

Thank you ☺️

Both mine lived in babygros until they were about 6 months old, with a cardi for daytime.

I’m due July. My friend had a 9lb baby and said it was in newborn clothes for about a week and a half. I’ve bought 7 bodysuits and 5 sleepsuits in newborn so far and think I’ll just buy more if needed when baby is born. Gonna pack a few newborn and up to 1 month outfits in hospital bag.

@MrsB2019x

You will know later on when you get your growth scan to get an idea of how big she is.
We are your heights with DH but looks like our girl is smaller than average so i bought some newborn size too. But again these are just estimates...

@Knittedfairies Absolutely, she’s wearing nothing but sleepsuits/babygros until at least 3 months! Can’t be doing with the faff of tiny outfits.

@aug2ftm That’s why I’m kinda on the fence, I don’t want to buy loads of newborn stuff and she’s only in it for a week but don’t want things to swamp her either!

That’s a good point @SunnySideUp2020, growth scan is in 3 weeks so will revisit it then. Thanks!

I would buy a small number of newborn items and then mainly 0-3months. My 9lber went straight into 0-3 months but if you have an average size baby they will grow into 0-3 months eventually so they won’t be wasted.

You can get some first size or up to one month which could be good? Also, with next day delivery etc available I would wait until the baby is here before buying too much. If it’s a heatwave in August you won’t need loads either.

I'm 5'7" and DP is 6'1" and DD is perfectly healthy on the 9th percentile so you never know! She was in newborn size for a good while and we never bothered with 0-1. What I wish I had done is buy some baby gros without feet - she's longer than she is tubby so they would have lasted a lot longer (and John Lewis do the most realistic sized socks for newborns if you do go that route)

August is a long time away. You will know nearer the time whether your baby is looking big or not . Also we could be having a heatwave so you can't predict now what you will need. Plus you will have the summer sales to pick up nice reduced baby bits.

I'd wait until you have some growth scans. My BF is a big rugby player etc but due to complications our baby was born tiny and on the 2nd centile.

I would say don't buy too much - you can get stuff delivered pretty quickly and most supermarkets have them if you need same day. Also as we got closer to due date various friends offered us their barely worn newborn clothes. I'm now in the lucky position that I have loads and only paid for one pack of sleepsuits myself. Also different shops sizes come up differently so I think there's always going to be a bit of playing by ear.

Thank you all, interesting to hear different perspectives!

I'd say get some newborn bundles from your local Freebies websites, Facebook pages, groups and charity shops when they open. That way, you have some back up at least and if they fit you have the option of buying new bits if you want.

People give away brand new and barely worn newborn sizes a lot. So have a look around to see if you can get them for free first

Growth scans aren’t always accurate though. I was told I was having a huge baby and she was smaller than average.

My first was born in July and was 8.12, my second in October and was 9.6! I'm only 5.4 and my partner 5.10 so no idea where our radioactive babies came from Haha!
I would say for an August baby, get some vests as if it's hot she will probably just be in a nappy or a vest at home. I had my first in little summer dresses as it was so hot! Obviously covered when outside but yeah just the lightest things. Both mine where in newborn for about 3-4 weeks even though they were big. :) my advice would be to not get too much newborn stuff, sleep suits vests and hats is all you really need. My second had reflux and we went through it a lot! I got mine second hand so I had extras which I was thankful for.

0-1 month clothes are “newborn” size - it just depends on the brand as to what they call it. Some call it “First size”. The next size up is 0-3 months. If you think your baby will be bigger then worth getting some of those.

My husband is 6’4” and in saying that our baby was small so she’s just growing out of newborn stuff now at 9 weeks old.
If you have a handful of each for when she’s born then you can stock up on what you need once she’s here.

Congratulations!

I didn't get any growth scans but bump measured big throughout (not an accurate way of forecasting)
I only bought up to 1 month size and they swamped my 7lb baby. Needed to send DH out for newborn bits immediately. I had a CS so wasn't up for wandering round the shops.

May be worth buying a few nearer the time and leaving the tags on so you can exchange if you don't use them.

Sleepsuits with integrated scratch mitts.

Kimono bodysuits (h&m or frugi) in case you have a baby that doesn't liked things being pulled over their head.

Tuppence and crumble starwrap. Easy for layering, safe in car seats, and good for easy skin to skin time around the house (DD was in a nappy and star wrap around the house a lot during the early days).

Zip sleepsuits are great if you can get hold of them, especially when you start taking your baby swimming (again look at frugi).

Avoid (bin) anything with buttons!!!

Dresses are pointless and annoying until toddling, they just get rucked up underneath them when they are tiny and catch on knees when crawling, resulting in comedy wipe outs!!

Even my 8lb10oz due date DD was in newborn size for a month. Have a look at the weight guide on the 0-1 month size you've bought, it could just be they are selling that as newborn size.

Some shops do sell both newborn / first size and up to one month

Dc2 8lb1 was in newborn for such a short time i only bought upto 1 month stuff for babies after that, they were all over 8lb6 and fine in upto one month which is usually up to 10lbish

We definitely needed newborn size as well as 0-1 / 0-3. Even that was quite loose at the beginning and DD wasn't smaller than average or anything.

I'd also get many more than 7, as there's a lot of spitting up, poosplosions etc and you don't want to have to worry about constant laundry in that first week or two especially. I'd get plenty of vests and sleepsuits (and muslins!)

Size wise, you can always send DH to the 24 hour supermarket if you have a suprise small or large baby. So don't stress about it.

@Kimye4eva

I would buy a small number of newborn items and then mainly 0-3months. My 9lber went straight into 0-3 months but if you have an average size baby they will grow into 0-3 months eventually so they won’t be wasted.

@Kimye4eva how did you find 0-3 fitted your newborn 9lber? I'm trying to work out roughly when I can expect baby to be in 0-3 and whether it'll swamp them to start with, only fit for a brief period of time then start to look a neat fit? Baby sizes confuse me 😂

The growth scans aren’t always accurate - we were told DS was 8lb the day before he was born, and he turned out to be 6lb.

But it doesn’t much matter if newborns are in one size too big - yes, two or three sizes too big would look silly, but DS wore newborn clothes despite being technically “tiny baby” for a couple of weeks and they were fine.

Newborns also grow insanely quickly, so if you are in a size too big, they will fit within a couple of weeks. I’d be more concerned with avoiding getting clothes which are too small.