Do you have to wash all your new, newborn clothes before he / she arrives?

[Boobz]

A friend has said she is washing all her new baby clothes before the baby arrives. Did everyone else do this? Do you wash all the moses baskets sheets and cot sheets as well? I thought new from the packet would be clean enough but maybe not? What happens if you then want to take stuff back because it doesn't get worn / used - presumably the shop won't have it back after it's washed?

I ironed 40 muslin cloths just before dd was born. By 6 months she was lucky if I washed them!

Boobz My cousin lives in Australia and she says they don't sterilise bottles etc over there because the minute you take the lid off the steriliser and the air gets to bottles, they are no longer sterile.
It is recommended that we sterilise up until a year old. I think it's a good idea to ensure you are rid of any old milk. Milk can breed bugs and germs pretty quick.
Most sterilisers now are preety simple and pretty quick. We used the Avent steam microwave steriliser, bit of water in the bottom in the microwave for 4 minutes.

Boobz i am pretty strict on sterilising bottles/breast pump/anything which comes in contact with milk, as I am a bit worried about that being absolutely clean. However, I put spoons/bowls etc through the dishwasher and leave it at that, as I cannot believe anything survives the hot wash on that .

Course, once they start crawling, it's not worth sterilising anything as God only knows what they're picking up off the carpet and sticking in their mouths..... (at least in my house anyway)

Just spoke to DH and he's with me on the not sterilising thing (he did microbiology at Uni) and I think he's pretty releived I've come to this conclusion on my own and he hasn't had to convince me of it.

Am planning (fingers crossed) to breast feed so hopefully this will make it all a lot easier anyway.

you'd might as well wash it - you'll be doing lots more laundry than you could ever conceive of soon enough anyway!

i initially would boil up pump parts and dummies but started to just run them through the dishwasher at around 3 months.

I dishwashed and sterilised for first month, but I'm more relaxed now, mainly just sterilising the pump as it will then be in the fridge with milk residue for up to 48 hours.

I washed and ironed everything! I had nothing to do while on maternity leave

No no no!! While on maternity leave with a first baby, it is essential that you:

a) attend the cinema
b) read some books from start to finish without having to check back to remind yourself who the characters are
c)go shopping without having to factor in how you're going to get the buggy into town
d) have long hot uninterrupted baths on your own (OK, you can let your DP in if you really want, but not his bath toys )
e) lie-in
f) go out for meals and get to eat them while they are hot

DO NOT waste this precious time doing bloody laundry - there will be plenty of that after the baby is born

i didnt sterilise with dd but bf-ed and didnt use dummies and didnt wean until 6 months so tbh i dont think there was much i would have

i had a dishwasher with ds and that pretty much sterilises and it was all chucked in there anyway