Top tips/secrets needed for new parents

Sarahsaver

My dd loved to sleep in the kitchen when all the appliances were on - washer, drier, dishwasher and the radio.
If you like music a regular beat is best - she loved the Prodigy but hated Portishead (too many breakbeats - woke her up!)
You will be more tired than you can ever imagine but learn to love the early mornings/late nights. You may miss it one day!
The first child is the one with which you will be most paranoid, nervous, scared, checking temperature and so on. This is so you are more chilled out next time round! As someone said to me the first one is teaching YOU how to look after a baby.
Despite all the (silly overpriced ) outfits for babies, there is absolutely nothing wrong in your baby spending all day in a babygrow:) If you are given white baby clothes dye them more practical shades (I had purple and orange for mine) as they then do not show stains so well.
For recovering after the birth mens pyjamas are comfy, and mens pants are better for holding the maternity towels, more spacious.
Lavender oil and tea tree in the bath to aid healing.
Sleep on a towel as your boobs will leak everywhere.
Persevere with breastfeeding as it is free! and saves a lot of hassle, but do not get down if you feel hassled by people. Try not to worry about what others think, and go with your feelings.
Baby backpacks are great and raised a lot of smiles among little old ladies around here;)

patchwork_cat

Hi
Here is a rhyme for your book, it always makes me feel a bit sad rather like that (silentnight?) advert.

Babies Don't Keep

Cleaning and scrubbing
can wait till tomorrow...
for babies grow up
we've learned to our sorrow...
So quiet down cobwebs-
dust go to sleep...
I'm rocking my baby
and babies don't keep!!

My kids aren't babies anymore, but accept any offer of help.

Put a radio on in your babies room when they go to sleep the noise helped mine and it meant we didn't have to creep around.

This is not pc, but swaddling your newborn in a lightweight cotton sheet works.

Second mussies ( as we call them) put them under the head of a pukey baby and change the muslin square not the sheet when baby pukes.

Don't forget if bottle feeding that a baby may be thirsty- seems silly, but it is true.

A bedtime routine may help to settle a baby, bath, massage maybe even story.

I don't think that the room temperature milk was meant as made up in the bottle, but those little cartons that you buy.

AnnieH

Lansinoh nipple cream really helped me while I was breastfeeding - it stopped my nips getting too sore. It's expensive, but I only needed to buy one tube:)

looneyleo

I think for any newbie parent...the first thing to learn to do is CHILL! Chill about the whole thing if you can and try not to worry. It will go wrong at some point...but you will find the right way eventually...

You will need to become an absolute expert at thinking of gift idea lists for your family! The first birthday/christmas, you spend a fortune on buying all the stuff you want to buy leaving nothing for the rest of the family and you end up having a house full of duplicates/stuff you don't want! Set yourself a strict budget for birthdays/christmas, you buy the main toy and then allocate the rest of babies wish list around the family (they'll be relieved too that they know what to buy - in most cases anyway!)

Go to car boots/charity shops for toys/clothes. You'll be amazed at what you can get (brand new a lot of the time) and things never last that long with babies anyway, they're always moving onto the next thing before you know it!

Start to look into where local play groups are even at this young age. Sure Start/Children Centres/libraries are fantastic and welcome babies from birth and often run lots of great courses for new mums (FOR FREE). The're great to help you get to meet other new mums and better to start young and get the baby used to it rather than walking in to a playgroup with a terrified toddler who promptly throws itself on the floor in a tantrum - and you never return as you can't face it again!!!!

Take baby swimming. (get advice from HV). It is a really lovely experience cuddling on to baby in the water for the first time.

The best thing I did was ---- getting a cleaner!!!! My one and only extravagence in this MSE world!!! She makes all the difference to me as I can spend what little time I do have completely with my children rather than having to worry that the house is a mess/ironing needs doing etc and getting mad with the kids because I just can't get the housework done while the're messing about etc etc etc. I look at it as my "night out" money, just spent a little differently...i don't go out, I have the cleaner instead!

Good luck to the newbie parents and hope it all goes well

Becles

nej wrote: »

Further down the line - buy shoes from Ebay. I've just decided to start doing this after the last pair of £25 Clarkes shoes have now been outgrown within 2 months or so.

Sorry - had to comment.

You should never put a child in second hand shoes.

Childrens feet bones are very soft and easily damaged. Many children have quirky walking habits - such as walking on their tip toes or the sides of their feet, and the shoe moulds to the foot. Sometimes the damage to the shoe is not obvious.

If you put your child in second hand shoes, you can cause damage to their feet which will last them a lifetime.

If Clarks and other brand name fitted shoes are too expensive, learn how to fit shoes yourself, and buy from cheaper shops like Asda.

Back on topic:

A couple of bundles of cheap cotton tea towels are handy if you have a sicky baby. Put them over your shoulder while burping the baby to protect your clothes, and slip one under baby's head while sleeping, to save changing the whole bed.

I keep the nappy stuff upstairs and think of the calories I'm working off my legs everytime she needs changing

Ignore all the "essential" stuff that Mothercare etc try to convince you that you need. As long as baby has some where comfy to sleep, something warm to wear, is fed regular and given plenty of love, they don't need anything else. Baby can only see short distances, so they don't care that the nappy holder matches the lampshade that matches the changing mat etc.

Join Freecycle and ask around friends and family. It's amazing what you can pick up off people for free

When baby starts feeding, home made food is better for baby and much cheaper than cans and jars. If you already eat home made meals, just puree up whatever you are having, and baby learns to like your tastes and you won't end up with a fussy eater. Got 2 boys who eat almost everything, so it does work!

Make sure baby learns the meaning of the word "no" from an early age

clutterbunny

if breast feeding, drink fenell tea. It passes through you into the milk and helps avoil wind. Better than buying loads of gripe water.

If not breast feeding, always have a bottle of gripe water as not many places are open at 4am and baby (mine anyway) generally gets wind then.:rolleyes:
CB

rio

Put baby in sleeping bags as soon as they weigh enough, have a look at the Grobag website, you'll also find quite a few second hand on ebay. Sleeping bags are brilliant in the winter as baby can't kick their covers off and therefore doesn't wake up from the cold. Also they help to make it harder for older children to climb out of the cot. Grobags come with room thermometers that tell you exactly how many layers of clothes the baby needs for the temperature of their room.

Also always mention to fellow parents with older children when you are looking for a particular item, you'll be amazed how many of the things you need are at the back of a friend's cupboard.

Buy a good sized clothes airer so that you can open clothes out and dry them easier. I used to put mine by the patio windows so that clothes dried when the sun was shining, but if there was a sudden shower I didn't need to rush out and get them in.

And try a slow cooker, the great thing about this is you can get a meal ready whilst baby is having a nap and then it can quite safely cook all day. Always means that you have a good meal ready at nightime, so hopefully you won't eat so much junk food and waste your money on takeaway pizza.

Finally remember that every baby is different and what worked for one family won't necessarily work for yours, every day is special - enjoy it.

hollydays

Trust your instincts

ailuro2

They make lots of noise, even when they are not crying.

They sometimes fart a lot- especially likely when they are in your arms in the queue at the chemist and it sounds like a whopper of an adult fart:rotfl:

Green cabbage leave stuck around the boobies before putting the bra back on works wonder for tired and sore nipples.

See the thread about pregnancy secrets- that turned into a great,very funny,and at times,very graphic thread.:eek:

Psykicpup

You DONT need a 'top&tail' bowl - two yogurt pot sized containers (or yogurt pots) hold plenty for any sized baby bum or face!
If anyone comes round & offers to help - let them - label your kitchen so visitors can make themselves & you coffee!
We were in a bedsit when DD was small & the rule then was - if you wake her (in evenings) YOU get her back to sleep! certainly quieted some of our 'louder' friends lol