What are 'Essentials' for a newborn baby?

LilMissEmmylou

hold a baby shower i loved mine and it means u get the bulk of ur gifts before baby is here and people ask what u want rather than just giving u clothes. Think the girl up there posted a pretty good list.

also u would b best getting a thermometer and baby grooming/safety kit, boots do one

congrats on the babies to all btw and reuseable nappies r genious - if ur thinking of using them feel free to pm me if you want any advice

Jet

hoopie wrote: »

i too am expecting and plan to breastfeed, but i will also get bottles, as with my last baby, i was told they also need to drink boiled water for thirst. steriliser will be needed too, in this case.

Personally I dont believe this at all. Once solids are introduced - yes you need to also offer water or juice but until then baby should get all the nutrients and liquid he/she needs from breast milk. Its a one stop shop! :rotfl:

By the time they get to eating solids, things don't need to be sterilised, so a sterliser and bottles aren't necessary.

LilMissEmmylou

all items used to feed a baby need to be sterilised until 1 year... so any cups or bottles used to offer water need to be sterilised, as well as bowls and spoons etc. Hoopie, even with breast feeding you might find bottles handy if you want to leave expressed milk for others to feed the baba while your out.

In fact while i think of it, is that on your lists... a breast pump?

alwaysonthego_2

Jet wrote: »

Personally I dont believe this at all. Once solids are introduced - yes you need to also offer water or juice but until then baby should get all the nutrients and liquid he/she needs from breast milk. Its a one stop shop! :rotfl:

By the time they get to eating solids, things don't need to be sterilised, so a sterliser and bottles aren't necessary.

this is what my bf advisor told me that the first part of breast milk is the thirst quenching part and the other is the highly nutrious part. I never gave my dd's boiled water to drink just breast milk

Rikki

I bought a large washing up bowl for my first baby bath. So much easier to fill and carry. Babies don't need that much room when their tiny.

Sagaris

alwaysonthego wrote: »

this is what my bf advisor told me that the first part of breast milk is the thirst quenching part and the other is the highly nutrious part. I never gave my dd's boiled water to drink just breast milk

Yep - that's what I heard from a midwife last week - and no I'm not in the family way! I was at a new parents event and that was what they were told - didn't give either of mine other drinks until they were 6 months old.
Make sure that whatever car seat you get fits your car - go to Mothercare or other stores that will fit the seat for you. Or contact the Road Safety department at your local council for help. Don't get one of those carry cot type car seats, they are not as safe as the normal Group 0+ car seat you get with most travel systems.
And although Silver Cross is a good make - I believe their car seat is only a Group 0 so will not last as long as most of the other newborn car seats on the market - babies are safer the longer you can leave them rearward facing in the car.

milkfloatquack

Change mat
moses basket and/or Cot
nappies and wipes/cotton wool
towels
muslin squares (useful for mopping up little spillages/leakages)
car seat
clothes - baby gros, vest, trousers, cardigan/jumper, coat, hats, bibs, socks (don't bother with T shirts until they are a bit older, they can be a right struggle to get on and off).
The nursery/nursery furniture is the easiest one to miss out completely, as long as your baby has somewhere to sleep and somewhere to store clothes/toys it doesn't matter about decor/matching pine furniture that costs a bomb.

Re:breastfeeding (sometimes it can be a lot harder than you imagine, I would do some reading about it now, so then if you do have problems with it, you know a bit more what to expect, if you leave it till after the birth, you will be too busy/stressed to read around much).

milkfloatquack

for you: breast pads, sanitary towels, cheap comfy knickers (sorry if TMI but you will have a LOT of bleeding after the birth, once the placenta has come away).

Jet

LilMissEmmylou wrote: »

all items used to feed a baby need to be sterilised until 1 year... so any cups or bottles used to offer water need to be sterilised, as well as bowls and spoons etc.

Only bottles and associated equipment needs to be sterlised. See here on the nhs direct website http://www.nhsdirect.nhs.uk/articles/article.aspx?articleId=641&sectionId=31102.

My son was breast fed and I never sterilised anything - just made sure his feeding cups, bowls etc. were thoroughly cleaned with hot water.

milkfloatquack

play gym can be useful for them to have a rest/look at the toys whilst you are doing something else.