Help! I'm Having a Baby and I Don't Know What I Need to Buy!

In My Humble Opinion
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:slight_smile: The Beansprout is due in May. :slight_smile:

As we move closer to the due date, we are trying to purchase the things we need to prepare for his/her arrival. Unfortunately, there is so much baby stuff out there that I am getting really confused. I don’t know what’s necessary to have, what’s really handy, what’s useless, and what’s just a luxury. I would like to keep our acquisitions to a minimum. We are on a tight budget, but can splurge on a few things if they’re really worthwhile. So here is my question:

What are the absolutely necessary things that we will need to take care of a baby?

Here is some (possibly) relevant information:

–This is our first child, and we plan to have a second.

–We don’t know if it’s a boy or a girl yet. We prefer gender-neutral stuff anyway.

–We plan to beg, borrow, steal, or buy used as much stuff as we can (making sure it meets safety standards, of course).

–We have a washing machine at home.

–We will be breastfeeding. Or rather, I will be breastfeeding.

–We travel and camp a lot, and hope to continue doing so ASAP.
So, dear Dopers, with your wealth of experience, can you help a poor confoozled mama-to-be??

2

Best baby gift I got was one of those wind-up swings - what a lifesaver it was!!!

I did most of my baby clothes shopping at consignment stores and Goodwill. She outgrew things so fast anyway, and if she spit up all over them, so what? One sister gave her a designer skirt - I could have gotten 3 or 4 outfits for what that cost - seemed silly for something that only fit a few months.

We bought a crib that could be converted into a youth bed, but that won’t work if you have another before the first outgrows the youth bed.

And congrats!!! Babies are so much fun before they learn to say no!!

:smiley:

3

I schedule pregnant women like you into courses like this at a hospital. Contact the local hospital.

We offer a 7 week course (3 hours/week) that covers labor and birth, early infant care, and breatfeeding. It costs $70 bucks. And there all kinds of related courses, time to ask questions to the teachers, and a small but internet-equipped library for citizen research.

If you’re near a medium size city (I’m in Madison, WI) there’ll be a place like this with loads of info.

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sorry i meant that to be a straight reply, not a quote. If the moderator cares to gix this…

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First of all, don’t worry about getting everything before the baby arrives. Newborns require very little in the way of actual stuff, especially if you are breastfeeding.

We bought:

A bassinet (It’s debatable whether this was actually needed, but a regular crib seemed too big for a newborn.)

A stroller with an attached carseat.

A baby bathtub with a padded bottom.

Several changes of bassinet sheets.

Waterproof pads in various sizes.

Disposable diapers (we didn’t have washer)–skip the newborn size unless the baby is likely to be on the small side.

Lots of onesies (those little baby t-shirts that snap between the legs.)

A few pairs of footie pjs for sleeping on cold nights.

A few receivng blankets.

My kids were both summer babies and we live in a warm area, so winter clothes weren’t really an issue.

Borrow clothes and then pass them on, if you can. They go through sizes very quickly when they are little. You could buy a few unisex things. I don’t worry about it much–our 2-year-old son regularly sleeps in pink flowered pjs. It’s dark, who’s going to know?

We never bought a crib–both kids slept in a travel crib until they were big enough for a regular bed. That way we could take their very own bed with us.

We also never bought a changing table. We just use a pad on top of a dresser.

You might want a pack or sling of some kind, but I think you should wait until the baby arrives and try them out first. I wasn’t happy with the first one we bought.

You don’t need much in the way of supplies for breastfeeding. I didn’t have very good luck with pumping, so I’ll leave any advice on that to others.

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is what don’t you need. The answer is a lot. Get yourself some clothes for the kid (don’t buy infant items as you will probably be given 100’s), some diapers (my wife and I used cloth and would recommend it), and a place for the kid to sleep. Buying additional stuff now will ensure that you have plenty of baby stuff you will never use. You can always get things as you need them.

Good luck and congrats,

cj

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Conga-rats! We had Baby Beagle™ in July…it’s a blessing.

with the caveat that there are very few “needs” for a child beyond clothing, food and diapers…below are ideas that we have found very useful.

  1. see previous thread started by aenea.

  2. check the list at BabyCenter (also here)

  3. We like the Dr Sears series of books…they have nice ones on pregnancy, birth and breastfeeding.

  4. LOVE LOVE LOVE the Baby Bjorn. Yes it is pricey…but if you’re interested in baby carriers, the design makes a HUGE difference, and this thing is engineered well. Also like the maya wrap.

  5. A lot of the items you’ll hear suggestions for are really child dependent. For example…we got a real nice Graco swing as a gift…have not used it since the 2nd week.

  6. Get educated about breastfeeding. Find a support network (either online…or LaLeche league…lactation consultant…it’s a learned art)

  7. My opinion (others may differ) is to NOT buy a ton of diapers at first (don’t know if you’re doing cloth or disposable). Assuming you’re doing disposable…you’re not sure how long your kidlet will remain in newborn (or even if he/she will be too big for newborns)…so unless you have a friend/neighbor to dump them off on, I would buy one or 2 diaper packages…and then send partner off to round up more.

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Thanks for your replies so far!

To explain why I would like know what I will probably need ASAP: Many of our family/friends have requested that we register at a store like Babies R Us. (I didn’t even know you could do that!) So, at some point in the near future we will be registering for the things that we would like. Therefore we are trying to figure out what we should register for.

(And before we get into a debate as to whether it’s tacky to register or not–the people who want to use the registry will ask us if we are registered, and we will tell them. Some people like to buy from a registry. People that don’t want to use the registry won’t even know about it.)

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Beagledave’s post snuck in there. Thanks for the helpful links.

My mother, knowing me as she does, took me aside over Thanksgiving and said: “I know you’re probably thinking about using cloth diapers. Just forget it. Use disposables. Trust me.” She knows me too well! :stuck_out_tongue: And she’s never steered me wrong. So we will be using disposables.

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[QUOTE]
*Originally posted by Green Bean *
**Thanks for your replies so far!

To explain why I would like know what I will probably need ASAP: Many of our family/friends have requested that we register at a store like Babies R Us.

We registered at BRU (actually Toys-R-Us, we don’t have a BRU close) …they have a web site (babiesrus.com or toysrus.com) where you can register online…it’s fairly easy…you can also do the registration at the store (with the scanner) …and then update online as needed.

We have friends and family scattered around the country…thats why we went with them. Target stores also has a registry (I think Baby Lullaby?) depending on where you live.

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If you plan on breastfeeding I’d recomend a breast pump. That way you can get out sometimes and Daddy can feed the little one. Even if your using disposible diapers get a few cloth ones, they good to burb the baby on. Congradulations !

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but I HAVE worked in day care with infants. Two things I’d recommend:

a.) Baby Bjorn: it’s the best of those strap-your-kid-to-your-body things. But it’s the best. You can either have the kid facing your chest, if it’s cranky and just wants to sleep, or facing out to see the world.

b.) Diaper Genie. If you decide to go with dispoables, you won’t regret this. Just remember to empty it daily.

Take the kid out into the world often. The reason babies get sick is because they are sheltered from everything, and build up no immunity.

When the kid gets REALLY cranky, and nothing will make it happy, make a bowl of pudding and stick the kid and the pudding in the tub. Let them smear it in their hair, face, paint the tub with it. When done, just hose kid and tub down. Make them happy.

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I suggest the Avent Breast Pump if you are gonna be breastfeeding and staying home. You might want to go with one of the Medela Pumps if you are going to work after baby, but they are VERY pricy, the Avent was everything I needed to be able to go to a movie and if your gonna be traveling it will be enough to just have a bottle ready while your in the car.

There are a couple of books on breastfeeding that would be good to read beforehand, one is “So That’s What Their For” by Janet Tamaro and “The Womanly Art Of Breastfeeding” By the Le Leche League.

As far as stuff your gonna need may I suggest a VERY comfy chair. :smiley:

Congrats!

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We had a diaper Genie and I never used the thing because it was upstairs in the nursery and I was always downstairs with the baby. Besides, you have to keep buying little refill bags. But, then, I have a SIL who uses her religiously.

Anywho, what I think any new mom REALLY needs:

  1. Bottles. Even if you breastfeed, you’ll undoubtedly be leaving little Sprout with a sitter on occasion. Buy a few types to begin with because baby will have a definite preference on nipples.

  2. Burping cloths. You’ll use these all the time. Buy them by the dozen. I still use them for dust cloths now that the Pundits are young ladies now.

  3. Crib. I had a bassinet, but my daughters slept with me until they were old enough to sleep in their cribs. They have beautiful crib sheet sets now, but gawd are they expensive. Remember, fluffy may look cozy, but pediatricians recommend a flat surface for babies to sleep on. Bumper pads, too, make me nervous with SIDS.

  4. Monitor. This is a must for new moms; optional for experienced moms who don’t need a constant flow of audible evidence to convince them that baby is still alive. :slight_smile: This is a great thing to register for. Get the plug-in variety lest you’ll go broke buying batteries.

  5. Clothes. You’ll get a lot of these for gifts, so don’t go nuts. Be sure to register for 3,6,9 and 12 month clothes.

  6. Diapers. 'nuff said.

  7. Desitin or diaper rash medicine. Breast fed babies’ bowel movements are very runny, so have some on hand.

  8. Thermometer. If baby is running a fever, doctor ALWAYS asks for temperature. I still prefer the glass ones, though the Pediatric Assn has asked that they be discontinued because of the risk of breakage. Whatever. The ear ones just aren’t as accurate, IMO.

  9. Car seat. Most states won’t let you leave the hospital without one. Ask for hand-me-downs on these. Most parents of older kids have one or two in their garage somewhere. I know I do.

  10. Pumpkin seat - unless you have a car seat that detaches and can be used as a temporary lounge chair. These are great for naps, for sitting up slightly to play with those mobiles, or even for eating.

  11. Blankets - get a few of different thicknesses and you’ll be set.

  12. Nuks - if you want to go there. Some parents find them to be lifesavers. Others think they are horrible.

15

:eek:

Hit enter without the most important thing!!

  1. Hi Opal!

Oh, and congratulations on being a new mom. Green Bean!!!

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(Australian sizing) Don’t buy anything in size 000. They grow out of it in about two weeks. If you buy size 0, and it looks a bit big at first, he/she will have grown into it at 6 months, tops. Much better value.

For the cooler months, a one-piece garment, with push studs, that encloses feet and has the extra bits on the sleeves so they fold over and enclose the fingers like mittens are v. useful. 6 of those will be all you need over winter if not getting the bub dressed up for visits.

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More congrats.

Have you got a rocking chair? I used mine a lot when my son was little. Motion helps calm down most colicky kids.

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It’s not a necessity, but a camcorder and film for the camera will make you happy (and sad, but in a nice way) in a few years.

(Now for my pre-prepared speech to all parents-to-be…)

You might think of finding a spot where you can take the sprout to each year and take his/her picture. Make it a special spot, and make an outing of it. I’ve done it now for 11 years, and it’s pretty cool to see how the Ryskid has grown in comparison to a certain large boulder where the Minnehaha Creek meets the Mississippi River.

Oh, yeah…I second (third, whatever) the rocking chair.

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A friend of mine who’s a new mom has a cool pillow that she really likes. It’s sort of a horse-shoe shape, and you place it on your lap (around your waist) while holding the baby and/or nursing. Maybe someone else knows the name?

DarbyV mentioned specific breast pumps. I imagine there are lots of different types? I don’t know which ones my friend tried, but I do know that she bought a less expensive one, but was dissatisfied and upgraded to a pricier model.

There’s a huge baby boom going on among my friends right now (three new moms since September and one expecting besides you, Green Bean). So I may be able to scout out more info…

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Things you cannot live without:

A battery-operated swing. Not hand-cranked. Trust me.
A Diaper Champ (not a Genie)
As many diapers as you can afford to buy ahead of time
Receiving blankets
Bibs
Wipes, wipes, wipes
A good thermometer that tells their temp very quickly
Humdifier
Stroller that has plenty of room for a purse and baby bag
Xanex, valium, and/or Jack Daniels (kidding)

Have fun! Congrats!