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Help with newborn os style

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Hi everyone,

I am 5 months pregnant and live in the caribbean which in itself is very nice but it also has it down points. Being pregnant for the first time at the age of 29 is exciting but frustrating as I can't get everything I wanted for the baby and me over here.

I am wondering if there are any os tips you can give me on having a newborn baby and providing for it.

We are using my husbands old cot (yes its been stored well!) we are sanding it down and repainting it with baby friendly paint. I am ordering in a new cot mattress from UK.

I am using re-useable nappies as disposable ones are £10 a pack!!!!

I can't get hold of a high chair so I am thinking of getting a family member to bring over a high chair that secures to the table as it will fit in their suitcase!

Will I need a pushchair? Can I do without to begin with? these are rip off prices over here, I may get one when I come back to uk to visit. I can get a sling/carrier to use instead?

Do I need a baby changing mat as I can't get one and was thinking of ordering one overseas?

Can I use a normal bucket with lid as a nappy bucket as again I can't get one here?

Sorry for all the questions, its hard being a first time mum to be with little advice! Don't even ask about the pain relief for childbirth as it simply doesnt exist! am trying very hard to get my head around that one!!!:eek:
Love a charity shop bargain

Comments

  • Caroline73_2
    Caroline73_2 Posts: 2,654 Forumite
    Cloth nappies are fab - use fleece fabric as liners and wet fleece fabric as baby wipes.

    Changing mat - use a towel, easy to wash.

    A nappy bucket is just a normal bucket with a lid anyway.

    I would use a sling at first, from six months old you can just use a normal stroller which are only about £30.

    Good luck with baby!!!
  • Penelope_Penguin
    Penelope_Penguin Posts: 17,242 Forumite
    Part of the Furniture 10,000 Posts Combo Breaker I've been Money Tipped!
    Congratulations on your pregnncy :beer:

    We have an Old Style thread - Having a baby Old Style ;) I'll add this thread later.

    Once the baby is born, you'll get more replies over on the Families Board. You may want to join the MSE Pregnancy club :D

    Penny. x
    :rudolf: Sheep, pigs, hens and bees on our Teesdale smallholding :rudolf:
  • Molly41
    Molly41 Posts: 4,919 Forumite
    Part of the Furniture 1,000 Posts Name Dropper Photogenic
    As regards pain relief... try hypnobirthing. Im a midwife and it really works!! There is a lot of very wise midwives int he caribbean who will help you cope. You will be fine.

    As regards baby paraphanalia...you dont need it really you dont. However I would try and get a buggy. I never used a highchair for my brood but did strap them into their buggy to feed them.

    Good luck
    I must not fear. Fear is the mind-killer.
    Fear is the little-death that brings total obliteration.
    I will face my fear. I will permit it to pass over and through me. When it has gone past I will turn the inner eye to see its path.
    When the fear has gone there will be nothing. Only I will remain.
  • Butterfly_Brain
    Butterfly_Brain Posts: 8,862 Forumite
    Part of the Furniture 1,000 Posts I've been Money Tipped! Post of the Month
    • Knit/crochet as much as you can - blankies etc I know it is hot where you are but am I right in thinking that the temperature can drop at night?
    • Shade is a must during the day - use an old umbrella, it is the same as a parasol. So is a good sun block.
    • When mine where tiny I often bathed them in a washing up bowl or even the sink.
    • I agree with the towel as a changing mat and an ordinary bucket for nappies.
    • Cut up old sheets and hem them to make cot sheets.
    • Milton fluid is the best thing for sterilising bottles, nappies and babies things
    Hope these ideas are of help and Good Luck with eveything x
    Blessed are the cracked for they are the ones that let in the light
    C.R.A.P R.O.L.L.Z. Member #35 Butterfly Brain + OH - Foraging Fixers
    Not Buying it 2015!
  • All baby needs is - somewhere to sleep, warm and safe (but not too warm!). Protection from the sun. Bonnets, make a canopy from a sheet, brollie, whatever you can find.
    Food - mummy is best but you don't need a fancy set of bottles if you choose not to - and you can sterilise just by boiling stuff, chemicals are easy (I used Milton) but not essential.
    Worry about bowls and cups and highchairs later - most babies can't sit up reliably until at least 6 months old, so no need to spend out on that now. The ones that secure to the table depend on the child having perfect balance, the table being perfect thickness, you never moving more than an inch away from the child, etc, etc. I had one, and one made of fabric that went over the back of the chair (both from an 'i know it all' MIL). They were frankly, rubbish.

    If you look at most mums out there, do they carry their babies in slings or £450 worth of buggy travel system? My Ghanian neighbour taught me how to make a safe sling for DD1 when I mentioned I had backache from the £45 Mothercare sling itself. That way I could use any fabric I took a fancy to!. Perhaps one of the lovely midwives (judging by the ones I met through work over here) would be able to give you some advice on tying one - as well as for things you actually need for babe.

    Again, when you start thinking about highchairs at 6 months, then look for a cheap and light stroller buggy. You may end up feeding babe in stroller - thus bumping off two birdies with one pebble, as it were.

    Most the fancy stuff we get lured into wanting is purely designed to separate us from as much cash as possible. A washing up bowl is fine for a bath. Normal flannels are as good as flannels with fluffy wuffy bunnies on. Ordinary cotton wool is perfect for nappy changes.

    I am assuming you don't live near enough to the US to take advantage of their prices...

    As regarding birthing, trust your midwives. If you move around, sway, get on all fours, sing, moan, rock, whatever - you will probably find it easier than laying on your back, partially sedated, confused and disorientated whilst trying to get your baby out uphill. Assuming you have no preexisting injuries, try dancing (fun with baby swaying around inside), seeing how flexible your hips and your back are (gently). You can try it sitting down, too. Wiggle your butt, think sexy swaying like with Donna Summer's Love to love you baby/Beyonce's Naughty Girl, rather than aggressive thrusting like Madonna in pretty much anything she's ever done. This is great exercise, fun, baby gets to hear music and maybe mummy sing, and the movements really do help in labour.

    Congratulations - I can't tell you how wonderful, scary, amazing, joyous, different, lifechanging and earthshatteringly amazing this will be for you. Everyone's different - some find it fantastic immediately, for some people it takes a little while. All I can say is that I wish you the best and so does everyone else on here!
    I could dream to wide extremes, I could do or die: I could yawn and be withdrawn and watch the world go by.
    colinw wrote: »
    Yup you are officially Rock n Roll :D
  • honey
    honey Posts: 703 Forumite
    Part of the Furniture 500 Posts Combo Breaker
    Congratulations on your pregnancy glitterycloud, it's such an exciting time.

    We've got a babasling which I used right from the start and I'm still using now (DD2 has just turned 1) it is fantastic. I have used it so much more than our buggy. I'm sure you could make do with a sling until you're able to buy a buggy at a reasonable price.

    We're using reuseables too and we use an ordinary bucket with a lid for our nappy bucket, I actually think it's better as it holds more than a nappy bucket would. I'd also agree with the towel as a changing mat.

    I haven't used a table top high chair so I can't advise there but like Jojo said, your baby won't use one until about 6 months so you've quite a while to get sorted.

    As for pain relief, what can I say :eek: ..... I was lucky enough to just need gas & air with our 3 - do you have that there? Think positive and trust in your midwife, it is an amazing experience.

    honey x
  • nettles77
    nettles77 Posts: 518 Forumite
    I've never used a changing mat, i alsways just changed babies on my knee.

    I never had any pain relief either as never had time.

    Congratulations. Hope all goes well.
  • nettles77
    nettles77 Posts: 518 Forumite
    o and if you can stand when delievering baby as really makes all the difference.
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