MSE help needed for first baby

galvanizersbaby

Nicki wrote: »

Must have been feeding them treacle in their bottles then! Most adults can manage to clean fresh poo off themselves with just loo roll after all, so if the nappy is being changed quickly, can't see why warm water and a flannel wipe wouldn't work easily. If they've been sitting in it for a while though (as can happen sometimes) then I agree perhaps a spot of soap might also be needed, but that would only be now and again hopefully not every change.

Nope :rolleyes:

galvanizersbaby

OrkneyStar wrote: »

I hate treacle.
My DS's poos were normal, according to our Doctor (who has seen lots of poo and has 2 kids of his own!).
I think we should stop on the 'my poos were better than your poos debate' lol!
I get your point on cleaning poo but some babies just do yuckier poos than others I think!
Also wipes are a lot easier on the go!

:rotfl::rotfl::T

karen1907

Hi all, 2 weeks to go now and thought I would update you all on what I have got:

Cot - free from SIL
Cot bedding - free from SIL
cot mattress - £43.00 using boots voucher I was given
maternity clothes - majority free from friend, only bought bump bands, cardy and one top - probably spent £30.
Moses basket - free from SIL
Moses basket sheets - borrowed from friend
Moses basket stand - 1 free from SIL, 1 borrowed so can keep one stand in lounge and one in bedroom (if required)
Unisex clothing - newborn, 0-3, -6, 6-9, 9-12 - free from SIL (had some bits knitted for me) I have only bought 3 babygros from tecos
Boy clothing if required - borrowed from friend
Girl Clothing if required - free from SIL
Shawl - gift from god mother
Breast pads - got some free from friend who had her baby in June, got box from Tesco too
Maternity pads - got some free from friend who had her baby in June, got box from Tesco too
Nappies - got nappies and wraps for size 0 and 1, muslins, reusable wipes, waterproof sheets (for nappy change and if waters break) nappy bin, nappy bag, lavender oil, etc. for £350 less £30 back from council so £320.00
Toys - assorted free from SIL
Travel system - £100 second hand from friend. Car seat included but from a trusted person. Includes matching changing bag with travel change mat.
Changing bag - free with boots parenting club after b uying one pack of pampers new born nappies (which I'll take to hospital)
Folding changing stand - £39 from IKEA - planning to leave it out whilst baby is small in the nursery, then when nursery is in use it can be folded and put out the way.
Steriliser - borrowed from friend
Bottles - 2 free from link on MSE pregnancy thread (can't remember where now) 4 borrowed from friend with size 1 and 2 teats.
Manual breast pump -borrowed from friend.
2 front buttoned nighties - £10 from Primark
3 front poppered tops - £12 from Primark
Baby bath - borrowed from friend

I think this is all no doubt I have forgotten something.

I think I have been lucky that my brother and SIL have decided not to have any more children (although they did have to split their stuff 3 ways as my sister is also pregnant (almost 3 months behind me so hopefully clothes I can pass on to her as jr outgrows them- but she is also getting stuff from her SIL) and my SIL's sister is due in December and knows she is having a boy (luckily for me she doesn't want some things second hand so I gain because of that )

got-it-spend-it

I thought I would resurrect this thread that Karen started last year as I'm sure it would be useful to some.

Having had my first baby back in November last year there are some items that I have found invaluable, and some not so much so I thought I would share, in the hope that others may avoid the expensive unnecessaries. The must haves aren't all cheap, but are good value in my opinion.

Couldn't have done without

Mei Tai Sling (aprox £40)- if I had to choose between this and my £300+ travel system it would be this. So much easier for shopping and bubs falls asleep in it almost straight away. I wish I had just bought this and a stroller rather than bothering with a pricey travel system.
Medela Mini Electric Breast Pump (aprox £50)- not cheap but means I can express milk for my OH to feed bubs if I'm out or just in need of a break. I'd recommend buying one decent pump if you intend to express as I know others have spent a small fortune trying out lots of cheaper ones.
Sleeping Bags (from £8ish)- I bought ours from Primark and they keep LO really snug. No worries about blankets getting kicked off or tangled up. I recommend ones that zip all round the edge as they make night-time changes much less disruptive. All our non-zippy ones are now redundant!
Bouncy Chair (£15, Asda)- so useful to have somewhere safe to put LO and he seems to love it! Also really useful to rock him to sleep for naps (and on desperate occasions at night).
Muslins (various £s)- Just useful for everything- from mopping up sick, dribble and milk to laying on the floor for impromptu changes, or for LO to lie on when out and about. Also useful to use as a 'topsheet' in moses basket as it saves changing the whole sheet for sick incidents. We have about 25 which is about right if you're lazy like us and don't do washing everyday.
Breast Pads- very useful, but try and get them on offer as they get quite expensive.

Not so useful
Blankets- I bought about ten blankets before LO was born and I think we have used two of them. I don't know what I thought we would use them all for, but I probably could have saved myself about £50 if I had only bought the two fleecey ones that we actually use.
Moses Basket-LO used it for about six weeks before we moved him to the big cot. Worth having for that time if you can borrow one from a friend but not worth buying new, IMO.
Baby Toiletries- so far all we have used is a little bit of sudocreme and some baby wash. We have boxes of baby shampoo, lotion, bubble bath etc (which may get used eventually but probably not for quite a while)
Cotton Wool- we kept up using it for about a week then switched to wipes for convenience. We have about three unused packs left....
Newborn Clothes- we used them for about a fortnight. Lots went unworn, so I recommend limiting the number you buy (hard as it is as they are so cute). Ten vests and ten sleepsuits plus a few socks and hats would have been plenty. Next time I would buy 'outer clothes' like a pram suit and coat in 0-3 so they last longer as it doesn't really matter if they are too big.
Bath Support- stopped using it after a couple of weeks and now just use a normal non-slip bath mat in the bottom of the baby bath.
Breastfeeding Nighties-expensive and unnecessary. I find a BFing vest holds breast pads in place and can be worn with norml PJ bottoms.

Obviously all just my opinion, but hopefully of use to someone. I'd love to hear other people's too!

Nicki

Horses for courses I think!

Despite being quite a big baby at birth, DS lost a lot of weight subsequently, so he was in newborn size clothes for the first 8 weeks, and his moses basket for 12 weeks, so these were both good buys for me. He still uses his bath support now at 20 weeks. Agree on the blankets though. We only bought 2 but were given another 6 as presents! As we also use the sleeping bags, we have a large pile of unused/barely used blankets.

Muslins have been a godsend for my sicky baby, and the flannels have worked admirably for nappy changes even without soap. I wash them with the reusable nappies then pop them straight into a tubberware container from the washing machine. This keeps them damp enough to use without needing to add anything. The reusable nappies have been far easier than I thought they would be to use (having used disposables for my first two) and I'd recommend them to anyone.

Can't really think of anything we haven't used tbh.

Glamazon

I have to agree with the Mei Tai sling!

I have the Joey and it is so handy and takes up a tiny amount of space compared to the pram or pushchair.

Also, blankets. I bought about 6 but only use one for the carseat.
Sleeping bags all the way in this house especially as every morning Jack's at the top of the cot!

csh_2

I couldn't live without my pram :eek: :eek::eek:

Baby in it everyday out and about

The one thing that kept me going all through horrible pregnancy was the thought of pushing the baby in his pram :A

Baby sleeping bags are great, have redundant blanket mountain in the airing cupboard

My baby also in NB clothes for a good 5/6 wks which was strange as he was 8lbs8ozs at birth, I'm sure hes just got heavy bones as hes always been a wee dinky thing :rotfl:

snugglepet20

One thing I would say is that a big fancy travel system is a total waste of money. They look great but anyone who buys one will inevitably end up shelling out on a buggy within a few months. They don't fit into car boots, on buses or trains and barely scrape through the aisles in shops or fit on narrow pavements.
Go for a lie-flat lightweight buggy from birth and a car seat that adjusts from birth to 3 years to save money as the little car seats only last 6 months or so and once your baby starts to gain weight they are too heavy to be carrying about anyway.