What do I need/don't need for new baby?

jellyhead

just formula milk but i have a friend who breastfeeds exclusively and her boy is even bigger, weighing 21 lbs at only 18 weeks old, roob weighed 22 lbs at 25 weeks old, weighed just a day after he started on food, the health visitor was amazed that he'd waited so long for solids :rotfl: i bought an inflatable swimming seat for him to use this week but he's too heavy, i'll give it a try though . i also need to check the weight limits on things like his door bouncer (it was a gift, you can probably get by without one) and last night my husband said the baby carrier sling thing that's for babies up to 18 months is a bit small, and only lasts up to 12kg. he's not actually too heavy for his car seat, it has a 13kg limit but he's a tall boy and looks too long for it. the lady at mothercare said you need to check the head doesn't reach the top.

these large children cost more - the staff at the playbarn don't believe he's under 6 months so they charge us for entry and i imagine that by the time he's walking the theme parks etc. won't believe he's under 4 and will charge him entry lol!

jellyhead

awww, happy half-birthday to t-j, donna-j i looked at roo 2 weeks ago and could hardly believe my little baby was half a year old (mind you everyone else looks at him and can't believe he's under one lol!)

the mistakes i made were partly because the builders who thought they'd be finished before the birth didn't actually finish the extension until christmas week, so we've had no room for anything, the changing stuff, roo's clothes, everything has been filling up the living room since he was born. i didn't have anywhere to store a highchair. i was intending to go to the NCT nearly new sale but roo had a bug and my husband had to work away so i couldn't get there (strange how nobody wants to babysit a vomiting baby lol!). i missed the one when i was pregnant because i was in hospital on a drip (tummy bugs again).

the borrowed moses basket fit into my bedroom but there was no way i could get a cotbed in there, we just about squeezed a cot in.

i made a mistake with the pram - we were using a borrowed one but it was huge and we needed a smaller one to go away for a few days, also my tall husband wanted one with a higher handle height. the smaller prams were a bit limited as we needed it from birth (the cheaper ones tend to be from 3 months). we had a look around and a mothercare assistant recommended the maclaren techno as one that usually lasts right up to nursery/school age but we just couldn't afford it at the time so we bought a half price city pram from kiddicare. it was great, really small on trains, easy to carry around tube stations etc. but it's too small for him, he looks squashed, and i hate the bumper bar, if i don't get him strapped in quick enough he bucks his way out and gets stuck under the bar :rotfl:

i've bought clothes for 6m+ ahead but i didn't realise how fast he'd grow. it settles down after the 12month size with each clothing size covering 6m or 12m so it should be easier to buy in advance now :-)

Spendless

jellyhead wrote:

these large children cost more - the staff at the playbarn don't believe he's under 6 months so they charge us for entry and i imagine that by the time he's walking the theme parks etc. won't believe he's under 4 and will charge him entry lol!

That's bad jellyhead. I'd be tempted to take in a photocopy of his birth certificate or passport.
Re cots vs cot-beds I've had both and there are advantages and disadvantages to either. As to which works out cheapest I'd say it depends on whether you're looking at a 2 year time span or a 5 year one. With a cot (which is cheaper and so is the bedding) I was buying a single bed and bedding within 2 years. With a cot-bed she is still in at age 3 but within the next couple of years I will still have to buy a bed and bedding. So over a 2 year span the cot then single bed cost the most. Over a 5 year span the cot-bed and then single bed will cost more due to the cot-bed and the bedding to fit being more expensive than a cot.

Karnam

my regular costs are as follows

- new sleepsuits and bodysuits (no one seems to give these as gifts, its always proper tshirts and so on as gifts!) and i need to replace them every 6-8 weeks as my little girl grows quickly. one pack of each is normally enough though.
- nappies. i use disposable and am coupon crazy about huggies. maybe an ecomony pack every week/2 weeks?
- wetwipes and cotton wool. maybe one pack of wetwipes a week and a pleat a pack of cotton wool pads every fortnight.
- little things, like teethers, new towels, swimming lessons, about £5 a week.

those are my 'regular' costs, but you'll end up buying one or two big things every month on average, ie. new carseat, new cot/mattress/more bedding :rolleyes: , high chairs, big lots of weaning things like trays and spoons, books on parenting etc. etc.

jellyhead

i'm currently using disposables and although huggies send me coupons i use the coupons in asda off my normal shopping, and buy my huggies in bulk from boots whenever they have a promotion on. when somebody posts a boots online code on here for say, 1000 points if you spend £50 i will buy £50 worth of huggies, or whatever amount to get the best deals, 3 for 2 or 2 large packs for £16 etc. and it's also free delivery on a large spend.

i looked around for cot sheets recently but couldn't find cheap ones anywhere, not even on ebay. i found them in dunelm, 2 fitted cotton sheets for £5 - bargain!

spendless do you think a cotbed mattress lasts until the child outgrows the cotbed? young spud had a cotbed and the mattress was a bit rubbish, it got flat and had to be replaced. it was a cheap one though.

Spendless

jellyhead wrote:

spendless do you think a cotbed mattress lasts until the child outgrows the cotbed? young spud had a cotbed and the mattress was a bit rubbish, it got flat and had to be replaced. it was a cheap one though.

My mattress is the original and DD is coming up 3, but she is little and light. Only just in 2-3 clothes. Mine didn't come with a mattress I had to buy one seperately and went for a mid-range priced one

hollydays

My daughter is having first baby mid may,what basics,ie tioletries and bedding will she need.i am taking her shopping in a couple of weeks.She allready has clothes and equipment-lots given to her-any ideas,she has no idea,i am a bit out of practice.Am looking for ideas for things that will make her life as easy as possible(yeah,i know,dont have kids)ie easy iron or convenient products,can help her out starting off.

Karnam

there's a list on the back of the mothercare catalogue (it says you need to pay £1 for it, but ive picked up loads in the shop without anyone batting an eyelid) which as a big list of baby things you might need

be warned though, its a bit extensive and you dont actually need most of it!

ScrumpyJackRussell

re bedding, a lot of my friends now use baby sleeping bags, or grow bags as they call them for their babies instead of bedding. Seem quite a good idea, no kicked off blankets etc. If you search for the on ebay you will find quite a few.

Broken_hearted

Mothercare want you to buy a lot more than you need. Babies in reality neeed very little.A proper baby bag is a must though, my sister uses a rucksack and I'm sick of finding that the juice has leaked over the nappies and I'm stuck with a smelly baby. Might be a bit late since she has all the stuff but a buggy that folds one handed.
Tesco and Boots do free new mothers packs so that may help start her off.