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bizzylizzy

babies!!

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Hi everyone,

 

I need your help. I know I don't come on here very often and all I seem to do is ask you for your help!

 

I am posting this on here as I know that this is the most helpful forum on the planet!

 

I am 20 weeks pregnant and my baby is due next year.

 

I need your advise on what I REALLY need to buy without buying things that I don't actually need. For a start off do I need to buy everything out of the Johnsons range toiletry wise? Will I use baby lotion? Do I need baby oil?

 

Then, what do I need to buy toy/entertainment wise? Do I need toys and bouncy chairs and stuff?

 

Then clothes wise, what do I need? Am I best just to get a few necessaties and then when baby is here go and have a huge shopping spree? As we dont know what we are having are we best just to wait for certain things.

 

I am so confused, please help you lovely people!!!!!!!

 

Thanks in advance.

 

bizzylizzy

 

ps its our first baby!

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wow :D Congratulations :D:D

 

I dont have children, but ive got a brand new (5 week old) nephew, we havent bought Johnsons anything, shops own is just as good (and in many cases cheaper)

 

ask around, you will probably find that friends, family, work colleagues have stuff for new borns that you can have, I got a wardrobe and chest of drawers from a friend at work for neph, and I know that he has had cots and bouncy things and all sorts free from people

 

SIL also hunted though ebay, she got a rocker chair and a pushchair for a crazy cheap price, and i think the seller chucked in other stuff aswell 8)

 

hope this helps :D:D

 

cathy

x

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For the first few weeks my babies just lived in vests (with poppers underneath) and babygros, you would not believe how many times a day they might need clean clothes and those are cheap, easy to put on, and easy to wash & dry.

 

I never bought loads of products, I did however use millions of baby wipes. I don't think I ever used baby oil or lotion. Don't buy loads of one type of nappies, you'll find you chop and change in the first few weeks to find which one suits your baby best.

 

I've always had bouncy chairs, babies like to see what you are doing and it's helpful to just pop them in their chair for a few minutes when you need your hands free. I had a nice mat for them to lay on. Newborns don't do toys but after a while they tend to like brightly coloured noisy things :lol:

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Congratulations!! There are so many things that are not really needed. Top of my list for things not needed would be a baby bath. I used either baby wipes (used when out and about) or cotton pads with baby lotion for bottom wiping if I remember rightly and baby bath stuff but don't recall much else. I remember so many clothes hanging up that were never used as they grow out of them so quickly and as already mentioned they really live in baby grow type things for the initial weeks.

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I also think the bouncy seat was useful. A well used bit of baby kit. I think its worth buying some terry towelling nappies for cleaning up general baby mess and for putting over your shoulder when burping etc. I always had one tucked in the pram, you would never see one of my babies without a nappy close by for wiping things. They grow out of things very quickly so I learnt to buy just a limited number of items at a time. They did seem to enjoy those visual toys that connect to the cot and gently spin round. I used a parasol on the pram/buggy a lot even in winter.

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Muslin squares are invaluable for all sorts of accidents as well as the baby wipes!

I never used baby oil or talcum powder on mine when they were littlies. Those hooded bath towels are cute but useless. If you manage to get scratch mittens or socks on a baby then you have mastered something that I could never do even after baby no. 3 :lol:

The things that I would buy new are a mattress for the cot & car seat. You need to know that then c"Ooops, word censored!"at has never been damaged & it has to fit the car that you have, so it's safer to buy it new & get it fitted correctly.

I preferred a steam steriliser to cold water ones as they didn't have that horrid smell on bottles etc.

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How lovely. Congratulations :D You will probably be given a lot of clothes and as others have said babygros are wonderful when they a tiny. For some reason I was given a lot of baby talc (I am talking a long time ago - YS is 17) and still have some as I have never got round to using it :oops: I know some folks get changing stations but they are used for such a short length of time I think that money could be spent elsewhere. I changed mine on a padded mat on the floor. I had the wipes, cottonwood balls, cream and nappies stored in a changing box which kept everything tidy. I did use baby bath liquid (and a baby bath) and had to use baby oil for cradle cap (when they were a bit older though).

It may be worth having a look in the shops for items that you might need and noting them down incase you decide you really want them after the birth but do not feel able to go out shopping, then someone else could get them for you. As far a toys go - a mobile is a good idea. I also found a bouncy seat very useful.

Also, and I know some folks may disagree, I would buy a dummy as even if you do not plan to use it eventually you may find if you have a baby who likes to suck a lot for comfort it will give you a little respite. With ES the hospital produced a most horrid looking dummy to give to him as he would not settle no matter what we did :shock: (none of mine used a dummy past a month old). I would also get a changing bag incorporating a thin mat to take out and about with you. My experience is from many years ago but I hope it may help. Take care :D

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Congratulations! How lovely :D My two are 19 and 21 now but I remember the changing mat was invaluable, vests and babygro were what they lived in for those early months, definitely no dummy :wink: I didn't use baby wipes for changing them, I used cotton wool balls dipped in warm water and plenty of zinc and castor oil cream on their little bots afterwards (neither of them ever had nappy rash), scented nappy bags are not needed; fruit and veg bags from the supermarket do just as well :wink: and a baby bath is useful when they're very young...you could always use it as a dustbath for the chooks when it's no longer needed! :lol:

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Congratulations, how exciting :D .

 

From (distant!) memory, I found muslin cloths invaluable along with the washable pads you put inside your bra if you're breastfeeding. Feeding bras with zips you can open with one hand are useful too!

 

I did use a baby bath once they were too big for the sink :lol: . I put it inside the proper bath - it was a lot quicker and easier to fill up.

 

Steam sterilizer was useful too.

 

Remember that they grow so fast that a pram probably won't be required for that long - I had one that converted into a pushchair which was useful for a lot longer than the pram.

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I just wrote an enormous long post and it disappeared! How annoying!!!!

 

Anyway, Congratulations, brilliant news - I am due any day now! (I'm also a community midwife and have learned a hell of a lot from my clients about what I do and don't need)

 

There is a whole load of stuff you don't need, so well done for checking - you can save a fortune.

 

-recycle or borrow where you can. Our pram came from Gumtree (still with the seller as bad luck to have in the house before baby is born)and our (cloth) nappies, early babyclothes etc. have all come from friends. We bought some reusable baby wipes (ours are called 'Cheeky Wipes') as since we're doing the nappies anyway it makes sense.

 

-Don't buy ANY Johnson's products - many babies have nasty skin reactions to all the artificial stuff in them and they are heavily perfumed. Remember babies should only be bathed in plain water for the first month anyway as otherwise the natural skin barrier is destroyed. Pure olive oil is good for dry skin and rather than sudocrem (which you should only use if they HAVE nappy rash), go for something natural like Magic Fairy (beeswax based with tea tree among other things).

 

We bought our crib new - one that attatches to our bed to make feeding easier and reduce the need to get up in the night. We found however that by getting it from Germany (where it's made) we saved a lot of money. It is called a BabyBay and cost just under 250 euros as opposed to £260 here!

 

Good books - the Rough Guide to Pregnancy and Birth (Kaz Cooke) and The Food Of Love (Kate Evans). Am currently reading Baby Led Weaning (Gill Rapley and Tracey Murkett) which I am finding excellent. the website Thinkbaby is good and there is a BLW group on Facebook.

 

As people have already said, you don't need a baby bath. It's bad for your back and the baby gets cold. Get a new washing up bowl from the pound shop and/or use the sink, or get in the bath with your baby (very popular with dads and a great confidence booster for them plus a short break for you while they have 'Daddy Time').

 

I also recommend going to the NCT website and finding out when and where the Nearly New Sales are - you can save a lot of money. Be warned it's like a rugby scrum - some of the women literally have their elbows out to get the bargains! It's worth joining as a member but only do the classes if you really want to (we found others that were better value).

 

DON'T get a second hand car seat. I think it's actually illegal to sell them for newborns, but i'm not sure. We have been lent one for the early stages but we know its history and are sure it has never been in an accident or dropped. We are planning to get a Maxi Cosi Opal at some point though, as it covers from birth to four years and come highly recommended from another friend. Check now that the passenger airbag in your car can be turned off. It's perfectly safe to have your baby in the front seat and you do NOT need to shell out for Isofix - I finally got clarification yesterday that it is NO safer than having the seat secured with the seatbelt.

 

Don't spend a fortune on a pushchair either as it's not necessary. I will be using a sling most of the time, and we have bought a vintage coachbuilt pram for walking and doing the shopping. We'll get some cheap buggy probably once babe can sit up. I know far too many people with pushchairs they don't use.

 

Hope this helps a bit - oh, last thing, if you need any work done on the house do it NOW as you'll run out of time and energy (we are starting to panic a little now as we're still decorating the house!)

 

Lots of Love Vicky x

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Congratulations!

 

As you see everyone has had a different way of doing things, you may end up more confused than you started :lol:

 

I've used a pushchair for all of them - daily! We've had travel systems with all of them, so if they fall asleep in the car you can transfer them straight to the pushchair without waking them up. I tried a sling with my first, but I was always but scared I'd trip over and land on the baby. It's easier to put milk and other shopping in the bottom of the pushchair too. Make sure the pushchair you choose fits in the boot of your car.

 

Bouncy chair definitely. We had a fab one that was on rockers & you could lay it flat with various positions between flat & fully sat up. Our youngest actually spent a fair few nights asleep in it.

 

We did use a moses basket for all of them which we had next to our bed. With our eldest we followed the rules and had him in our room for first six months. With our youngest he was transferred to his cot in his room pretty early on. I guess it depends on the size of your room and what you can fit in.

 

We've used Tesco or Asda own brand everything - wipes, baby bath, shampoo. Tesco nappies are just as good as pampers and a lot cheaper.

 

Vests and sleepsuits are a must. We were given loads of clothes as gifts especially with our first.

 

Good luck :D

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Congratulations! Lots of good ideas here, can I recommend baby gros that have mittens built in? They sort of flap/fold over the hands or you can fold them back out of the way if you want to.

 

We were lucky in that my family bought us a cot and the inlaws bought a pushchair, these were the most expensive things we bought.

 

And if you have any tendency to OCD don't buy vests/babygros/anything with days of the week on them or you will drive yourself crackers :lol:

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I agree with alot of this but also if you are planning on breast feeding there will be no need for sterilizers or bottles..

 

Also join huggies \pampers\ tescos\ babies r us and boots baby clubs - you get loads of vouchers and free baby stuff - we even got a nice changing bag...

 

Also socks make really good scratch mitts as they stay on better....babies have really sharp nails from birth so an emery board is useful as scissors look so big compared to those cute tiny fingers....

 

So exciting...Congratulations

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Congratulations!

 

Ours is now 6months old, and to add to the others our musts would be:

Bouncy Chair, Play mat, nappies (not loads, as others said you may chop and change), wipes, cotton wool, muslins, monitor, nappy bags, changing mats (onr for house, and one travel one), vests, babygrows, warm all in one suit to take her out (it will be cold), pram that can go flat and a car seat. Either crip or moses basket for to sleep in your room plus bedding (lots of thinner layers). For you, breast pads and nipple cream if you are planning on breast feeding.

 

And even if you are planning on breast feeding, I would still get a couple of bottles and a steriliser and a carton of milk or two. Nearly everyone I know has had a day at some point where there milk has run out, and baby is still hungry. Our moment happened at 11pm, and OH had to run to the 24hr supermarket to get everything, while LO screamed and screamed and screamed... If you have them, you don't have to use them at the start if you have plenty of milk, but they will come in handy at some point!

 

Optional Extras:

We did have a baby bath and used it. If you can get a 2nd hand one or a really good offer then go for it. We never used a sling, as wanted baby to get used to sleeping in her crib/cot early on. We did get a baby bjorn harness thogh and has been really useful for walks where the push chair cannot go! If breast feeding, a manual pump for expressing I found to be better than the electric ones - but everyone is different!

 

 

And don't forget, you will be given loads of things nearer the time, and after the birth so don't go too mad buying clothes etc. And people will offer you all sorts of things 2nd hand - my advice is to accept everything people have to offer! You can always pass it on if you don't want it! (the exception being car seat and mattresses of course!).

 

Hope you are able to enjoy your pregnancy, and good luck with all the planning!

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I have had 4 children and my youngest is 4 1/2.

 

In my experience some babies love bouncy chairs and some refuse to go in them so I wouldn't spend too much on one just incase.

 

I never used any soap etc on my bablies skin and still don't even though the 4 1/2 year old has long hair it is still only washed in water (children's hair doesn't get greasy) and apart from biro most pen etc will wash off with just water. We used terry wipes instead of reuseable wipes but we used cloth nappies too so there was no additonal washing. Mind you if you use disposables you'll probably find there'll be loads of leaks so will be washing pooey clothes anyway.

 

I would recommend a sling such as a Mei Tai.They look diffcult to use but are really easy after being shown how to. If you decide you'dlike to see some "in the flesh" I can reommend either www.slingmeet.co.uk or www.naturalmamas.co.uk . There will be plenty of mams willing to meet up and show you your options. I didn't use a pushchair at all for baby 4.

 

I prefered the vests that tie closed at the front because you don't need to pull anything over the babies head. Most bablies don't like it and for new parents it isn't nice to do either. I think Mothercare sell them amongst others. I wouldn't buy too much before bubs is born because people love to buy baby clothes and until you know the baby's size you wnat know what will fit in a given season. Even with DD4 I got caught out ans he had new clothes that she was born too big for.

 

Sorry I could go on for hours but I won't. Good luck and congratulations though.

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Congratulations!!

 

The best advice is to read what everyone has put and then totally disregard it and do what feels right! :wink::lol:

 

Only joking as there has been plenty of good advice given, though you'll see that what suits one doesn't suit another.

 

I agree totally with vests and babygros/sleepsuits. Babies are so comfy in then, far more than little outfits that look cute but are sometimes rather uncomfortable and make changing the baby hard work. Muslin squares are great and very useful.

 

Both my Bogwoppits hated bouncy chairs! They did love lying on an activity mat though.

 

Both mine are big suckers (in the nicest possible way! :roll: ) so I have used dummies. Again, totally down to personal preference, you'll find that people have really strong views about dummies and tend to thrust their opinions on you!

 

Lansinoh nipple cream if you are planning on breastfeeding....an absolute life saver!

 

I used a baby bath as our kitchen and bathroom sinks aren't very good for baby bathing. Our baby bath sat on the top of the bath so there was less bending over required which was great as OH had a really bad back when first Bogwoppit arrived.

 

Oooh, really exciting!! :dance:

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Oh how exciting and wonderful :dance::dance::dance:

Just wanted to say congratulations and how sensible your been. Lots of practical advice given too, i cant really add much more to all that.

Err mine loved bouncy chairs too. My first two didnt have a dummy, i never bought one but my third, she was born with a blister on her little hand where she had been sucking and it was blatently obvious within a couple days that she needed that comfort so we bought her one and she was like a different baby, all calm and lovely, so just see how it goes.

Oh one good tip, lots of babygrows, but when they get a little tight on their tootsies, just cut the feet off and use socks, you can get another couple months wear out of them that way!

 

And, accept ALL help offered! Forget the house work and enjoy your baby!

 

Good Luck :D

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