Buying for our baby (due oct)

mishkanorman

OP, have you signed up for every baby club going ? (I dont know if MSE has a list anywhere ? but they should !) you will get money off and tons of ideas from them,

A good catalogue for me was the babies r us one, start at the start and pick everything you would like - then go back and think about it honestly and cross off anything that would be a waste ! (if you get a good pushchair, do you need a carrier too ? do you NEED a nappy stacker or will they be in a cupboard anyway?)

We had a moses basket with the first 2 but wont use one this time round, instead Im going for a travel cot with a basinette attachment like this that way it can be moved from our bedroom/downstairs easily and the baby is out of the way of our 2 kids and cats. They out-grow a moses pretty quick where they can go on to use this as a playpen.

I think even if you breast feed its worth getting bottles, the Avent starter kit with steriliser is quite often on offer for £20 or less so its a good starter till you find your feet,

Primark and sainsburys are good for baby clothes, we used them for the plain bodysuits and vests - pointless buying expensive ones when baby leaves a curry stain up the back ! we got flannels rather than muslin cloths as they can be used for other things too, primark do a good value pack.

Mine loved their playmats and bouncers (the seats not the door ones) well worth their money when you need 5 minutes peace !

Janepig

Gillyx wrote: »

Baby bath - i love mine and use it almost every evening, My dad bought a washing up bowl for my LO to use and at 6 weeks he was too large for it (a boy on 25th centile so hardly large)

I had a washing up bowl instead of a bath for my second and I'd go for that every time. I had a proper baby bath for my first and that was a pain and heavy to carry. DD hated bathing in it. Washing up bowl was a breeze, easy to carry and bath DS (winter baby) in front of the fire and he enjoyed his baths from day one, which I'm convinced is because he was in a more enclosed space within the bowl. But each to their own.

OP, is there anyone you can ask to borrow a moses basket from (family, friend, colleague)? With DD we borrowed one from a colleague of DH's and just bought a new mattress to go in it. Bonus was that it went back after DD grew out of it so we didn't have to find space to store it.

Jx

msb5262

moneypuddle wrote: »

We're struggling to buy any more clothes until we find out the sex as everything is so girl/boy in design, so hopefully that's just a few weeks away.

Just a word of warning on the gender thing...I know someone who had a baby just before Christmas and had been told it was a girl. Nursery was pink, name picked out, endless little dresses and cardies bought, and guess what? It was a boy. Don't rely on what you are told!
HTH
MsB

Gillyx

Janepig wrote: »

I had a washing up bowl instead of a bath for my second and I'd go for that every time. I had a proper baby bath for my first and that was a pain and heavy to carry. DD hated bathing in it. Washing up bowl was a breeze, easy to carry and bath DS (winter baby) in front of the fire and he enjoyed his baths from day one, which I'm convinced is because he was in a more enclosed space within the bowl. But each to their own.

OP, is there anyone you can ask to borrow a moses basket from (family, friend, colleague)? With DD we borrowed one from a colleague of DH's and just bought a new mattress to go in it. Bonus was that it went back after DD grew out of it so we didn't have to find space to store it.

Jx

Its weird how all babies are so different. My boy has loved baths since day one bit he needs his whole body submerged, up to his neck :rotfl: Maybe if it was a big washing up bowl he would fit.

Icey77

Hi,

Our daughter is 3 weeks old now and the conclusion I've come to is that a lot of stuff is purely for the peace of mind of the parent rather than the benefit of the baby directly. Having said that being a happy mummy and daddy will help keep you calm and in turn not stress you out which will help not stressing baby out!

A random list of the things we ahve found reassuring and useful:

• Muslins - loads of them, easy to grab another off the pile instead of trying to find a clean corner of the one you have to hand
• Microwave sterilizer - 6 mins and its done, also doesn't take up loads of counter space in the kitchen
• Gro-bags - nice to know that she can't kick off her blanets and get cold in the night. We do use cellular blankets in the day time though
• Washable nappies - sooo happy I chose these, we're using Bum Genius 4 in the day and disposible at night. The amount of disposible nappies in the bin is incredible and more than a little disurbing!
• Dummies - we are formula feeding as my breastmilk simply didn't come in at all. Its proved a great soother and we'll keep an eye on her and take it away as and when we feel suitable.
• Ready to go milk - sometimes we are disorganised and haven't got the boiled water cooled enough to make up her milk, having a couple of the cartons in the cupboard ready to go is a life saver when she is screaming and wants feeding.
• Wipes - we stocked up on various brands and types. In using them we have found the ones we feel are best at cleaning up a poonami, easiest to get out of the pack one handed and are kindest to her bum and our hands.
• Vests and Sleepsuits - we chose to have lots, so that we didn't have to worry about washing and drying them in a hurry for re-wear. So far the most changes we have had in one day is 4 but that is sure to go up sooner or later.

I'm sure I will think of other things as soon as I post this but try to spend your cash wisely. The main thing is that if you think it is worth it then it is worth it regardless of what someone else thinks!!

Good luck, it's scary but amazing!!

dizziblonde

msb5262 wrote: »

Just a word of warning on the gender thing...I know someone who had a baby just before Christmas and had been told it was a girl. Nursery was pink, name picked out, endless little dresses and cardies bought, and guess what? It was a boy. Don't rely on what you are told!
HTH
MsB

Or you can have a little so-and-so like mine who decided to do a diva in the 20 week scan, shove a hand out to push the paparazzi camera away, and turn and give us a prime view of backside only! (Sonographer "thinks" it's a girl - we've bought a couple of girlie things - but only things we're not bothered if they don't get used). Think some hospitals are moving back towards not telling parents again as well - although round here a private gender scan is about £38 if you're desperate to know!

With baby baths - I've got one (didn't buy, it's borrowed), but I'll probably just use it within the normal bath to restrict movement/the terror factor - definitely not lugging it around the house.

Same with the moses basket - I probably wouldn't have bought one - but it's something we've borrowed from a relative (who used it twice and when it fell off where it was balanced - gave it up as a lost cause) - so we've just bought the proper stand for it.

With prams and stuff - if you're anywhere near - it's really worth taking a trip to Kiddicare's showroom - just found that the staff there were really helpful in demonstrating how to put up and down their prams (cos they're a blooming mystery until you get it figured out) and having that many there to push around really did help a lot - some of them are much heavier and hard to manouver when you actually have a proper play around with them.

I've HAD to buy bits and pieces at a time because of how my income is - meant I was very organised comparatively early (I'm 34 weeks now - but I've been sorted since about 25 weeks) - which has worked out well enough for us, particularly since I got struck with incredibly bad and early onset SPD and I'm now essentially housebound unless someone's home to play chauffeur - we waited till after the 20 week scan to buy the big bits, but had clothing and starts of stockpiles of things like baby wipes squirrelled away from 12 weeks onwards.

Parenting clubs - the supermarkets all do them and will send you vouchers (I'm lousy for not using 'em though), Boots do extra advantage points on baby-related spends (and my advantage points tend to pay for Christmas presents when times get tough - so I ain't knocking that) plus the freebie changing bag voucher when you buy a pack of Pampers is handy in that it's smaller than lots of changing bags, black and innocuous - so the sort of thing that I can give to my husband for him to use without whining that it's huge and flowery (meant I could buy a "proper" bag that *I* really wanted without having to consider his taste - hah!), Pampers I think I must have signed up to at some point sent me a pack of 10 newborn nappies the other day ("for your hospital bag"... the day AFTER I'd packed the hospital bag - cracking timing there!), the others - much of a muchness... would recommend setting up a separate email address for these things as it can get pretty spamtacular - I also waited till after 20 weeks as I feared signing up to stuff and the worst happening and then being bombarded with tonnes of "your baby this week" emails (but I've got a rotten history of losses that coloured a lot of what I did).

janninew

Agree with other posters, don't go mad buying stuff! People are so generous when babies are born! I've had bags and bags of stuff given to me by people who I hardly know!

Only buy the bare essentials as far as clothing goes! You could buy lots of newborn stuff and end up with a 10lb baby and needing to use the next size up.

I have a baby bath even though I was advised against it, I have used it every day since my baby came home from the hospital. Our bathroom is quite chilly and I prefer to bath my Daughter in the front room which is much warmer.

I have a moses basket and have used it lots (also have a rocking stand for it!) I had a prem baby and she is still tiny so we will be getting plenty of use from it. You don't need to spend a fortune on them, think mine was around £40.00 from Boots and does the job fine.

Get plenty of blankets and bottom covers for your basket/cot whatever you end up getting! I seem to change my Daughters daily as she suffers from very bad reflux and is sick after every feed.

I get through more bids than I could count on both hands in a day, yet never use the muslim squares that I bought! I've also found having a sicky baby that the little newborn bibs are no good and I've now invested in full size ones that go over her head like a t-shirt and cover her whole body!

Babies really are all different, you will end up buying things you don't use/need, but that's part and parcel of having a baby!

Good luck.

Icey77

Knew it, as soon as I posted I thought of something else!

Not just buying for baby but also consider buying for mummy - things to have lots of when in the hospital or newly home.

I had to stay in the hospital for a week after my daughter was born and had to give my DH a list of things each morning to bring in with him for visiting hours. Hopefully you won't be in for long but being newly home its unlikely that you'll want to go out if you can help it.

• Maternity pads - You will need LOADS! I was going through a pack of 10 large ones each day. Its important to change the pads regularly so don't scrimp on them. I'm still using them at night and the slim line ones in the day and still find myself running low and having to grab some in Boots or Tesco.
• Pants - clean pants to wear under PJs or nighties in the hospital and when you get home. Large ones - not fashionable but comfortable, also have lots so that you don't have to worry about running out when they are in the wash. A clean pair of pants feels nice when its a bit messy down there.

Yet again, I shall probably think of other things once I press post but will try to add.

Tina20

Don't buy lots of clothes, as you get given loads.

(if you are having a girl) I made the mistake of buying newborn dresses, but they puke and poo so much dresses just aren't practical.

Try second hand baby clothes bundles, people will sell bundles of lots of vest and sleepsuits etc for very cheap. Ebay and stuff are great.

Lots of muslins and cloths you can keep to hand for dribble and sick

Hats and bibs were pointless for us, we have lots and lots of hats and bibs people bought but bibs are only really good for dribbling during teething and feeding. Not so much in the early days.

start bulk buying cheap nappies, we've done this and never had to rush out to the nearest shop for nappies. If you start buying BOGOF's and half prices now you'll have plenty to tide you over for ages.

Buy more than one changing mat so you can whip one out without going upstairs/downstairs.

I bought too many maternity pads, cheap night time sanitary towels work just as good.

Mrs_Imp

Moses basket - we were lent one, which was great as we only used it for about 6 weeks
Baby bath - only bought because it was on special offer, we used it for a few months, now he has a shower (prefers it to having baths)
Clothes - we were given so many, both new and second-hand that we hardly had to buy any. I wouldn't buy too many clothes until your baby has arrived, then you'll know what size to buy and how many you've been given.
We hardly bought anything until we actually needed it, apart from nappies lol Even then don't get too many in case you don't get on with that brand.
You can easily waste a lot of money on tat and useless things that they try to sell you. eg we got a free room thermometer and we've looked at it maybe once. He's a hot little thing so cold has never been a problem.