What kit do I need for my new baby?

onlyroz

Try charity shops - I got an excellent crib from the local shop for only a tenner.

aless02

To be honest, this topic has been discussed 1000 times - you will probably get the best tips just from searching old threads! Also, pop into the Pregnancy Thread, they can help too.

Gefjun

Car boot sales - lots of barely used stuff for lots less than in the shops. Plus don't buy tons of stuff in the first few months as lots of people will want to pass things onto you or buy things for the baby.

We're expecting our first child in April as well and so far have gone to a car boot sale and got a travel cot for £5 (RRP £40), changing mat £1 (RRP about £10) and a papoose (rucksack baby carrier) for £15 (RRP about £90). Plus there were tons of toys, books and clothes there for pennies which were hardly used. These are the only things we've bought though!

Someone's already mentioned Kiddicare - we've found this to be a pretty good site with good prices if you're looking for anything brand new. My mum's offered to buy our buggie and we've found the one we'd like on this site for about £180 - some of them go up to £600 +!!!:eek:

We're trying to go for multi functional stuff as well, so the buggy we've got our eye on goes from a pram, to a parent facing seat for a younger baby, then onto a forward facing seat when the child gets older so it should be good for our child through until they're about 2.5 years old. Plus we're going to try reusable nappies as the overall cost is much less than disposables - £400 vs £1800 to keep your child in nappies until they're about 2.5 years old! Plus some councils give grants if you buy resusables and some do accept a receipt from a private seller, so you can buy them second hand as well, plus you can hire them from companies to try different brands before you settle on the one that's best for your baby :T

Also use common sense when judging what you need. We've seen many lists of 'essentials' and have cut them down by 75% to what we think we need. We're not bothering with things like a 'top and tail' bowl (for washing babies face and bum) as I don't see why a separate jug of water for the face can't be used, plus it can be used in the kitchen afterwards.

Look out for baby events in places like Asda as well.

GobbledyGook

Have a look at http://www.nurseryvalue.com/ . They have a reworked section where they sell prams and various other items that are "seconds".

I got the Petite Star buggy I wanted for £67 and the reason it was reworked/seconds was that there was a 3mm scratch on the frame under the seat cover! Oh and 1 of the PS labels hadn't been put on in the factory.

When it's delivered you have 7 days to return if you aren't happy with it. I also got a baby walker for very cheap as well.

It's a great site when money's a wee bit tight. Also Car Bootys, local charity shop and family & friends.

starjumper

Morning all,

OH and I are expecting our first baby in the next 3 weeks, we've followed the advice of the hospital and the books and bought 6 sets of everything (why 6 I wonder?).

I've spent the last few days washing and ironing everything ready for the little munchkin to slip into on his/her arrival but OH rasied an interesting point as we were putting them away last night...

"What does the baby wear, when and in what combination?"

I had no idea. I can guess the ones with the long sleeves and long legs with integrated feet labelled "sleepsuits" are for wearing in bed, but is it just a nappy underneath? We're baffled.

Can anyone shed any light on this, we've Googled it and not found any joy (we've not really been round babies much so this is probably why we're struggling with this). What should the baby wear, when and in what combination?

We've got -
The sleepsuits mentioned above
Long sleeved body suits
Short sleeved body suits
Cap sleeved body suits
Vest style body suits
A selection of other stuff which I know how to use (booties, cardigans etc)

Thanks everyone, I'm aware I'm coming across as an idiot!

neneromanova

for the first couple of weeks my DD's lived mainly in vest bodysuits and then their long sleeved sleeping suits which looked like PJ's. If we went out anywhere special like to grandparents then I got them dressed in nice clothing, but most of the time they just puked and did big enough poos for their nappys to leak on their suits *rolls eyes*.

But It's up to you really, you coulod get LO dressed during the day and just use the bodysuits at night for bed time.

beebuzz168

So glad you asked this question as I'm a so-to-be first time Mummy as well and this has been something that I genuinely don't have a clue about... I guess I'm worried that I'll leave them in their "pyjamas" all the time and other people will think I'm a bad parent!

Advice on how the different items should layer as well would be useful... we are going to be a living in a fairly chilly house and I am concerned about keeping the baby warm enough.

rsdiscos

Babies find it hard to regulate their own temperature. When mine were little their usually wore an extra layer than us so at this time of year I would wear a top and cardigan. They would wear vest or capped sleeved body suit,then top and then jumper or cardigan. Remember babies feet and hands can feel cold but their core temperature is fine. Its best to check their temperature by feeling down their back.
Hope this helps. Melissa

3onitsway

I think the general rule is the baby should wear the same layers as you plus one.

For bed when she was new (feb) she'd have a shortsleeved body/vest, long sleeved sleepsuit and cardi with a couple of thin blankets for her to kick off in the night.

Then during the day, the same but clean! Unless we were going out somewhere, then I'd dress her. Little leggings, top & cardi, again over a bodysuit are much more practical than dresses/jeans etc for tiny babies.

ellay864

2 key things I learnt:
1. Don't overdress them...yes they need to be warm but being too hot is not good. They usually should wear just one layer more than we would. Indoors in the daytime I'd use a vest/short sleeve body suit under the 'main clothes' and maybe a cardi on top. As rdiscos says dont use hands and feet as a guide...my ex MIL was forever cradling mine to warm them up as they hated having anything on their feet - they would just manage to lose any socks and be happy barefoot even though their little feet felt like blocks of ice to me!
2. In the first few weeks, especially if you're just at home on your own, it's fine to use the long sleepsuits. They're cheaper, pretty indestructible and there's really no point dressing up a little being who's going to spend half the time asleep or puking over it But obviously if you have friends over you'll want to show them off a bit...and it wins brownie points if you take them to the rellies in the outfit they bought them
You're right to think of layers - it'll be comfier for LO if you can just add or take off a cardi as the temperature dictates. I wouldnt worry too much about your house being a little chilly - just avoid having them anywhere draughty so don't place a cot right under a window if the seals aren't particularly good
You'll get to know how your baby responds - some want to be feel wrapped and snuggly warm...mine didn't and boy did they make it known!!