Sensible list of things to buy for a new baby?

Alibali

Hi,

I was wondering if anyone had found a sensible list of what to buy for a new baby, one that gives quantities? I am four and a half months and am planning to start buying in the jan sales, however, I don't want to go overboard but being a new mum I have no idea how many baby grows etc a newborn is likely to go through?

Any advice would be much appreciated.

NickyBat

Bibs and babygows .....you can't have too many, and i found buying things in different sizes 0-3 and 3-6 months is a good idea. When the shops are doing BOGOFFS on nappies, wipes and Johnsons baby bath, stock up........................and congratulations

Barneysmom

Congratulations

I hope you don't mind me asking but do you have a rough idea yet of how big your bab will be, if you have a big bab there's no point having newborn sized clothes as they won't fit.
My son was 9lb 13 oz and I had to get 3 month old baby clothes.

Get some of those milk savers for when you are feeding, like these, but shop around for them.

http://direct.tesco.com/q/R.207-9314.aspx#csAlternateProducts

MandM90

Is it your first? We found we were given so much by other people that we didn't need much at all! Really try and make a small list and stick to it; as long as a baby is warm, fed and loved then all the paraphernalia is uneccesary.

If you see things in the sales for older ages then buying that too can be good as a PP said because time will fly but just make sure you're organised and know what you have, so you don't end up with unworn clothing (has happened to us at every stage!)

Off the top of my head:
6/7 vests
6/7 sleepsuits
A snowsuits
Couple of cardigans
Hat, mittens, booties
Changing mat
Nappies, wipes (though some people recommend just cotton wool and warm water at first and that works fine, too), Sudocrem
Bottles (don't bother with the small size, or with different teats. We bought the large ones and just filled them a little at first then when she needed a larger flow we used needles to poke more holes in the teats hehe)
Bottle brush, sterilizer (cheap microwave ones aren't too expensive, but some people just use a dishwasher or even sterilizing tablets in an old ice cream tub)
Bibs/muslin cloths
A baby bath/support (people did, and still do, just use the kitchen sink but baby baths are quite cheap anyway!)

Breast pads
Maternity pads

Then quite obviously a cot, pram and carseat. We got a cotbed for £30 from eBay - and a new mattress with gift cards from relatives - which lasted til she was three and a half and was so sturdy it was then passed onto someone else. A moses basket is nice to have but completely optional. DD was in hers about 6 months.

Depending on what your family is like I'd be tempted to hold out on some things to see what you get given; but DD was the first grandchild and her grandparents had a fair bit of disposable income so I suppose you'll have a better idea of the likelihood of this than me.

ETA - Are you going to BF or FF?

daska

MandM90 wrote: »

Bottle brush, sterilizer (cheap microwave ones aren't too expensive, but some people just use a dishwasher or even sterilizing tablets in an old ice cream tub)

should emphasise that dishwasher alone isn't sufficient for sterilising unless it does a suitably hot wash.

otherwise muslins and more muslins, they can be used as bibs, mopper uppers, burp rags, shades, additional warm coverings and even nappies (in extremis LOL)

victory

Nappies get them in the discount/voucher/sales prices can never have enough nappies.

clearingout

newborn size is a waste of time unless you have a small baby - and then your other half can run out to a 24 hour supermarket and get something if needs be so don't worry. A 7 pack of vests in each size will be sufficient and I would say at least 10 babygros in each size. I personally didn't bother dressing my younger 2 children very often under the 9 month mark - they just lived in babygros. After the 6 month mark, look for brighter coloured ones as they pale ones get stained with orange baby food very easily!

Muslins are useful for everything.

consider the size of your car against the pram you buy - the travel systems can be very bulky for a small car. You certainly can't fit a decent food shop in the boot and a travel system as well! If you are a car user rather than a walker everywhere/public transport user, I would certainly consider a buggy (maclaren do good quality ones from birth) and separate car seat if I could start over with it all!

if stocking up on nappies, buy from size 3 upwards or you will have loads left on your hands. They move through the first two sizes at a rate of knots! You don't need to buy the premium brands - the own brands work just as well (in my experience at least), as do the value ranges (although a bit plasticky). Seriously consider reusable nappies with your first one as you'll recoup the costs, particularly if you go on to have more - but don't buy bambino mios without first consulting with someone in person (bambino mio are very cheap for birth to potty nappies but take a bit of getting used to and can put off a first time user which is a shame as there are easier types out there to use in the first instance). the Nappy Lady, Babykind, Lollipop etc. all have people who will come and visit you in your own home to show you what's available.

Gillyx

I've not had my baby yet, he's due in 7 weeks :eek: but we've stocked up on -

Vests & Babygrows (Mostly 0-3m) We have a few newborn but not many. I would say you can pick these up pretty cheaply from most of the supermarkets, or even when Mothercare have a sale on (the one they have at the moment is pretty fab and had loads of packs of vests/baby grows in various sizes for half price) Mitts, Hats, Socks etc you can again pick them up cheaply in the Supermarkets. I'd say between 7-10 but if you think you'l wash more or less then buy what you think.

Things we haven't scrimped on - Breast Pump ( I want to breast feed, but also want my OH to have the opportunity to feel useful too, so we bought the best pump we could afford) Our travel system, again we spent a lot of time going around different shops looking at all different varieties to find one we liked (I walk most places so wanted a sturdy system that baby would feel secure in, plus a good carrycot for baby to sleep in if out visiting)

We got our steriliser for half price and it had everything with it, steriliser, 8 bottles (4 of one size, 4 of another) teats, tongs, milk storage pots etc) I would agree with Daska, that a dishwasher alone isn't really suitable for sterilising bottles, so even if a small microwavable steriliser is what you can afford, go for that, rather than none.

Other than that, maybe sling/bouncer chair or something where baby can go during the day if you need something done where you need both hands

A variety of bed/moses/crib sheets too, incase of sickness etc so you're not rushing to get them washed and dried, although your baby will be a spring/summer baby so will find it easier to dry things. I was in Tesco the other night (was a large store though) and they had loads of sheets for moses baskets/cots and cotbeds, really reasonable too and 3for2, so a lot cheaper than Mothercare/M&P's etc. Heard Matalan also do good quality cheapish bedding

dizziblonde

I've been told the 6-7 babygro figure as well... I've bought a mix of newborn and 0-3 - some shops' 0-3 come up really small anyway so lately I've sat and sorted stuff into newborn/small 0-3 0-3 and working on stocking up on some 3-6 month stuff when I see it cheap. Only buying a couple of outfit type clothes for special occasions (I know we'll ahve at least one wedding to go to - bride and groom know the baby's on the cards and have agreed to us bringing a somewhat unexpected plus one), and I know I'll get a mountain of cardigans from the knitting dervish grandmas anyway!
Tescos are running 3 for 2 on bedding, Matalan like someone mentioned had a lot of stuff in and didn't seem too pricey when I had a quick look - but I've heard lots of comments about using pillowcases instead of the pricey moses basket sheets.
Moses basket I was never going to buy (couldn't justify the expense versus the time used for it) - but they're the sort of things people tend to hand down or loan for the few months you need it fairly often.
I got a fairly good steriliser/feeding starter set in Babies R Us a few weeks ago - had a load of bottles in it, teats in the varying flows, breast pump and insulated carry bag, storage pots, bottle brush and stuff all in one box... and of course if you join the various parenting clubs you can get things like the Boots free changing bag (it's not awesome but it's black and innocuous so hubby won't object to being seen carrying it as a spare) and vouchers that you can shop around and use on stuff. Boots you also get bonus points on baby-related purchases - which will no doubt end up going towards next year's Xmas presents for people!
I've been warned not to stockpile nappies too frantically since different brands suit different babies and you won't know till it's here and play trial and error on that - at the moment I'm mainly stocking up on things like cotton wool, wipes and the like chucking some in with the shopping each week - but I'm not due till May.

Our local 24 hour supermarket's dreadful for not having stuff in in newborn size which is the main reason I have stocked up on at least a few bits in that size - plus if I sent hubby out on a shopping run he'd come back with a pair of socks and a bag of jam doughuts instead!

I do have a strange surplus of hats with ears on... I can't resist them! Poor bairn will probably be naked, sleeping in a cardboard box but with a wardrobe full of hats with cute ears on!

Gillyx

For anyone who wants moses baskets sheets, £3.50 from Tesco, and 3 for 2, so probably cheaper than pillowcases, think there may have been 2 in the pack too. Only white/cream though.

We went for a crib, as it's slightly bigger than a moses basket, but not a huge cotbed that looks massive for a teeny newborn. Apparently they sleep better in smaller spaces, as it's most like the womb, not sure how true that is though? As this is my first but easy enough to heat up a moses basket/crib so they don't feel the cold when they get put in.

MandM90

daska wrote: »

should emphasise that dishwasher alone isn't sufficient for sterilising unless it does a suitably hot wash.

otherwise muslins and more muslins, they can be used as bibs, mopper uppers, burp rags, shades, additional warm coverings and even nappies (in extremis LOL)

I suppose it's better to be safe than sorry, but my MW said that dishwashing is enough and that's what she did for all of her three children! We gave up on sterilising as opposed to the dishwasher as soon as DD starting crawling around sticking things in her mouth, drinking bath water etc.