Thank you, I am more than happy to reconsider. I don’t want extra stuff.
I do want more socks, though. Those are cute and cheap and fun to buy so I’ll have fun doing that.
This made me smile. The idea of a tiny baby just hanging out in the crib, thinking about…stuff. I bet you’re a really good mom.
TBF a lot of babies old enough to grasp and pull refuse to keep a hat on their heads. These are the ones that should have the canopy on the stroller pulled over them, really.
Reading this thread made me realize just how much stuff I don’t have for the baby >_<. I think I’ll go shopping Monday, pick up some onesies and socks at least.
About the only sleep I got when Junior was small was when he was in his swing - I say yes to that. The other stuff I had but never used - I think it really depends on what your little one likes.
Oh, and go buy more bibs. I think it’s impossible to have too many.
Never got much use out of the swing, but my boy loved his bounce chair – the one from Fisher-Price with the removable toy bar. And bibs were good, the plastic ones with a pocket even better, once spoon-feeding got under way (for my son – nothing could keep my daughter clean when she ate, except the dog (no, not her face, but she cackled with glee when she discovered he’d lick food from her hands)). Neither one was a huge drooler.
Second on cloth diapers as burp cloths. Second on trying things out to see what works for you; for instance, swaddling worked great on the boy, but the girl just wouldn’t have it.
Just a hint for parents who are using onesies: You can take them off in the other direction, too, at least if they’re the kind with the overlapping shoulder flaps or snaps on the shoulder. Very handy for when there has been a diaper containment failure. It’s a lot easier to get poop off their little legs than out of their hair…
A midwife told us before our older son was born that there are only three things you need for a baby: diapers, clothes, and a carseat. And in an emergency, you can use what you have for the first two.
The baby swing was worth its weight in gold! In gold! At today’s prices!
We put our kid in an old fashioned baby walker (I don’t know if they are approved of any more for safety reasons, but it was 25 years ago.) Baby enjoyed being mobile, except she’d wheel around in the kitchen and open up cupboards and the refrigerator and take stuff out. I didn’t mind the old pots and pans, but I had to rig up ways with duct tape to keep the refrigerator door shut.
I think I just hate having anything that doesn’t unsnap. Wait- cancel that, because I hate snaps, too. I love zippers, especially at two in the morning. Snaps are hard to do with sleepless brain death.
I didn’t get enough sleep last night. Sorry.
And I understand about not knowing what’s going to work for you, because a lot of it is experiential- you won’t know what you’ll come to depend on until you actually have your baby. I felt blindsided by all the stuff, and the only thing I knew wasn’t useful and was a frill was a wipe-warmer.
I’m so grateful for everyone’s responses in this thread. Especially for helping me feel like it’s okay that I don’t know what I need or what to expect. I’m 37 weeks and everyone keeps saying “Oh, you must be so impatient for her to come out!” then they look at me like I grew another head when I assure them that I’m content with her staying where she is for at least 3 more weeks. I feel pretty good and I know exactly how to care for my little fetus. I’m not scared to have a real baby, but it’s something I can wait for.
Oh, and for what it’s worth … if you received any cute baby outfits that came with a matching bib, and maybe you are thinking huh, that bib is very cute and maybe is supposed to be more of a fashion accessory … well, I used all my bibs, even the cute ones, they went right into the regular bib pile. I figured what ELSE was I going to use them for?
I also swear by nightgowns, particularly for the first 3 months or so. No snaps or zippers to contend with for night nappy changes - I have a few Mokopuna merino gowns with elasticated hems which just slide up and down, super easy, plus I love merino on little kids, great for regulating temperature. I’m sure you could find similar ones in the US.
I also have some Merino Kids duvet weight sleeping bags which is all we needed for winter here (I saw you only had cotton ones, which will get cold if you have a pee leak). Their cocooi wrap is the best thing for swaddling too.
God, yes, Merino Kids sleeping bags. We’re still using them (they have a toddler size) and I swear by them. Widget never gets sweaty in them the way she did in the ones with synthetic filling. I lent one to a friend who’d been using the cotton/synthetic ones, and she’s turned totally evangelical about them.
Trying to think of things I use all the time, and I’ve finally remembered the nappy wallet (diaper wallet for you Americans).
For the majority of my trips out of the house I’m just going to the supermarket, or out for an hour or so running errands. Nappy (diaper) bag? Am I going to be gone a month? No thanks. I’ll take the nappy wallet in my regular handbag. It holds a couple of disposable nappies, a changing sheet, and a small pack of wipes. What else could my (ok, breastfed - you might need a couple of extra things if you’re formula feeding) baby possibly need that couldn’t wait an hour?
Mine is from this site, but I suspect the internet will give you more options and variations than you dream are possible if you fire up Google.
Singlets… do you guys call them that? The often-white undergarment that goes over baby’s torso… vest? undershirt? Whatever. Anyway, the ones that button under the crotch are awesome because they don’t ride up (sold here as singletsuits).
In singlets and singletsuits I bought only every second size. A 3-6 month singlet is baggy on a newborn but not excessively so, and not for long. Ditto a 9-12 month singlet on a 6 month old. The kids got a lot more wear out of them and I didn’t have to replace them as often.
When my husband and I were discharged from the hospital with our 2.5 day old daughter - we were pretty much feeling like: wait - what are you doing? You can’t send us home with a baby! We don’t know what we’re doing!!! This feeling lasted a few days - but gradually you calm down and gain some confidence that you will not immediately injure or destroy your baby.
They are actually pretty tough little buggers - and I gotta say the CUTEST part (IMHO) is after feeding, you sit the little tyke up on your knee, support her (or his) neck (they are just soo floppy when this young), and give a few back slaps to get a burp out. At least for us - the expression on her face was pretty funny - what the hell is happening to me???
Random recommendation I would make: make sure you have 2-3 waterproof crib liners (the bed pad or whatever) and plenty of sheets. Make the crib with the crib liner, a sheet, another crib liner and another sheet. This is especially helpful when you have a baby prone to blowouts, creative pee trajectories or spitting up. When the first layer gets soiled, simply rip off the dirty sheet and crib liner and the crib is already made. This is especially useful in the middle of the night.
And a third for don’t worry about the onesies. My daughter is the sweatiest kid on the planet; she used to sweat every time she ate, regardless of season. I can’t tell you how many times I got a talking to from some random well-meaning stranger about my questionable habit of dressing my daughter only in onesies and socks as long as it was above 72. The poor girl would sweat through her clothes and scream bloody murder if I didn’t! Maybe they should’ve talked to her instead. She would also shriek like a scalded cat if I dared put a hat on her.
I’m not as far along as you, but this, absolutely. This baby is very much wanted (it took three miscarriages and three and a half years of trying to get to this point), and there have still been moments when I feel like “what have I gotten myself into?” I’m not necessarily scared to have a real baby either, but I have so little real-baby experience, and I know there are so many people who will have strong opinions on what we’re doing with the little bugger - sometimes I want to barricade the door, and hubby and baby and I can muddle through on our own.
Do it! Seriously, once baby arrives you learn pretty quickly their little personalities and likes and dislikes, and you realise that no-one - your parents, his parents, people with a dozen kids, and definitely not the authors of the multitude of baby books - understands this particular baby they way you do, so you should feel free to ignore any and all advice they wish to give you.
I have adopted a policy of wilful ignorance by flatly refusing to read any baby books and my baby is thriving. She’s happy, calm and contented most of the time, and so am I, as I am not driving myself demented trying to make her confirm to what the books say she “should” be doing. The doctor we saw for her 6 week check assumed she must be at least my third, as she didn’t normally see first-time mothers as “confident and relaxed” as I am.
This advice, like all the rest, should be happily ignored of course! You and your baby will figure out what suits you both best.
I do agree with the recommendation for a nappy wallet though. Mine is from Melobaby, and it’s brilliant, as it also contains, thanks to the cunning use of magnets, a soft, fleecy changing mat, and a small sealable purse that for wipes - plus room for 3 or nappies, a small tub of nappy rash cream, a travel size hand sanitizer, my cash card, travel pass, keys, and a lip balm, all in a bag no bigger than a small clutch. It’s one of the best baby purchases I made.
I guess a nappy wallet is a diaper bag? 
Cute.
Nope, a lot smaller and more convenient: http://www.amazon.co.uk/gp/aw/d/B0028GEVG8?is=300&in=1