What baby care essentials to stock up?

clearingout

I would say have one of everything in the baby section at the supermarket in the house for when baby arrives - nappies, wipes, dummy, sudocrem, baby bath, shampoo, infacol etc. That way, you're not wanting for anything at 3am when baby is screaming and you're not sure what to try - you can try everything!

You don't need a baby bath. You don't need a special changing table (floor works fine and you can't fall off it!). You don't need tons of clothes but vests in every size, babygros in every size and then work upwards if you know what sex you're having in terms of pjs, socks, basic t-shirts, jeans etc. However, sizes do vary and if you have a big baby you might be in size 3-6 within a couple of weeks or still in 0-3 at 6 months so buying too much can be a waste - keep receipts as things can go back.

I have found the cheapest way to do things is to buy in sales ahead of time. So I already have winter coats from the January sales this year for next year for all 3 of my children, for example. This relies on them being very average in terms of size, although it has happened that I've put the right size on and it doesn't fit so don't take tags off as things can go on ebay if necessary! It is nice to have new clothes but if your child is going to nursery, picking up second hand items at charity shops, car boots and ebay is very helpful - you couldn't care less if the designer item they're wearing cost you 50p at a car boot and it gets black paint all over it that won't come out but if you paid £20 for it, you'll be very annoyed!

shy-but-need-help

If you're going the cloth nappy route you can also buy reusable/washable breastpads - it varies person to person if you'll need to constantly wear breastpads but I'm one of the people who does as tended to leak from the other side whilst feeding and in the first few weeks would leak at the sound of any baby crying (extended BF'er too, if I'd have gone with disposable breastpads I'd have spent a fortune)

kathie1101

First of all congratulations :T
Sorry I haven't had chance to read through all the replies (hate not doing that normally) so sorry if these have already been suggested. When I had my youngest my midwife mentioned about washable nappies and booked me an appointment with a lady from a local company to come and talk to me. She arranged for a trial pack of loads of different brands to be sent to me after I had LO, so I could see what would work best for me and LO before actually shelling out any hard cash. I only had to pay a £50 deposit (by cheque that wasn't cashed) and that was returned to me when I returned the nappies. If I remember correctly the name of the company was The Real Nappy Company, I am sure they do trials throughout the country. I have also heard that some councils do grants if you buy washable nappies.

I believe you can also get washable wipes as well, which if you are going to use washable nappies they could all be washed together. Sometimes it is handy to have disposable wipes, especially when out & about and these are usually on offer at 1 supermarket or another. If you didn't want to stockpile on a certain brand, you could maybe put a bit of money away to buy some after LO is born. My preference has always been huggies as they are so much thicker. The normal price of these is about £2.70 but I buy them when offer at less than £1 a pack.

If you're going to use cotton wool you will get through loads so might be worth seeing if you can buy it in bulk somewhere. Alternatively I'm not sure if it is cheaper to buy it in the makeup isles? Sounds daft, but it wouldn't surprise me.

Things like shampoo etc it's worth having a couple of bottles in just to see you through, but you will eventually have to start buying things like that in with your normal budget anyway, so once LO is here just buy what you need when they are on offer. Sudacream - even if your LO doesn't suffer with nappy rash it is worth keeping a pot as it is useful for all sorts of rashes and burns (not just for babies either) - the tiny trial pots that you get are great for handbags.

Calpol you will get on prescription easily enough when LO is born, every time LO has an injection just ask for some and that way you should be able to build a bit of a stock pile (says she who always forgot!) but if you need to buy any, there is no need to buy Calpol, just buy the supermarket/chemist own brand it is exactly the same but usually a lot cheaper, unless Calpol is on offer. Same for most medicines.

nikki_angel

OP - where abouts are you? I have tonnes of cotton wool in roll form if it is of any use to you.

Kira000

nikki_angel wrote: »

OP - where abouts are you? I have tonnes of cotton wool in roll form if it is of any use to you.

That is really kind of you to offer Nikki:D. I am in SW London.

K x

nikki_angel

Ah bit far from me. Are you ever in Essex?

ZsaZsa

Congratulations! Stockpile the things that you will need, toiletries, washing powder, tinned food etc. Also, nearer the time fill your freezer with quick healthy meals, bread, milk etc. My babies were born end of Nov, and Dec, and we were very lucky to be given tons of outfits as xmas presents, so I only needed a few vests and sleepsuits. Also, if you are given outfits in early sizes, you might want to take a few back and exchange for 3-6 or 6-9 month sizes. I had a ton of 0-3month that my son outgrew before he'd had a chance to wear them and it was such a waste. Most of the big stores will happily swap the sizes for you

Make-it-3

I'm with Pigpen there, I think you waste a lot of money stockpiling stuff - as you don't really know what you are going to need. As an example I was about the same stage as you this time last year and I bought lots of things during one of Sainsbury's baby events. I still practically all of it sitting in my cupboards untouched.

I only bought one pack of eco sposies for the hospital as I was determined to go into cloth asap. I bought an IKEA fleece blanket for £1 and cut it up to make nappy liners/washable wipes and they have serviced me so well I still have packets of unused free wipes from the Bounty packs etc hanging around. Btw I use terry squares, with wraps and nappy nippas - think my total outlay on nappies is probably in the region of £60. You need a wetbag for storing dirty nappies away from home.

I've also seen lots of people giving away newborn nappies on freecycle because they made the mistake of stocking up and then having too many of the wrong size.

What you find out is that most of the baby toiletries are too harsh for newborns. Cotton wool or a soft flannel and cool, boiled water are all you need. For dry skin we were recommended olive oil as its pure and not full of chemicals like baby oil. Haven't used any sudocrem, baby's bum is peachy clear (and you want to avoid this with cloth nappies anyway as it destroys their absorbency).

I also have stacks of breast pads in my cupboards because I never leaked. Buy any medications, Calpol etc as you need it - you can always find a 24 hour chemist and again my LO has never had to have any of these.

What is good are muslins (101 uses) and basic white vests and sleepsuits - so save your money for these as family/friends tend to buy cute outfits which actual are a real pain to get a small baby into. Try M&S or Next who do an 'up to one month' size which is a lot more practical and long lasting for an average size baby.

jcr16

i agree with alot of what others are saying, things like lots of vests and sleepsuits are fab.

but stockpiling toileties not so much.

for instance when my dd was born i picked up 2 bottles of johnsons shampoo ( it was on bogof) i washed my dd hair prob twice a week and it still took 3 years to use the bottle as you needed so little. ands by time she was 18m, i had another baby. so it is very good value :rotfl:

mummystar

Hi
A really random one I thought of this afternoon - get a travel mug of some description. I've just discovered the joys of having warm coffee or tea in a travel mug in between games with my 3 y.o. rather than boiling the kettle, forgetting it's done or making a cuppa and it going cold because she's needed to go to the loo...Wish I'd thought of using it during long BF sessions when she was new born!
Also (and apols if TMI), my sister in law suggested stocking up on maternity pads for after the birth as can go through far more than you think and normal pads aren't really suitable...
HTH