must haves for the new baby!!

CJsays wrote: Just to help you all out, below is a wee list of essential items we have found for our wee bub, which may help you out with buying: 1. Merino gogo sleeping bag - so handy to feed baby then put straight to bed not needing to worry about prewarming the sheets in winter. also no need to worry about lots of plankets for bassinette or cot as just use a sheet over. 2. BFing chair - gotta have a comfy rocking chair with low arm rests, is so awesome. even if you doing formula, burping and rocking baby afterwards it is a must have. 3. An easy to use baby bath - eithe rone with change table or one that is quite portable. we have a jolly jumper bath, but are buying a tummy tub cuz they look easier to move around as we bath on our dining table so we dont break our backs (not so heavy n dont use so much water). 4. A baby play mat with dangly toys and a bouncinette - very essential when baby gets to about 8 weeks. gives you some breathing space to do some stuff you need to do! 5. I know other mums would recommend a front carrier pack, for those babies that just want to be stuck to mum in the beginning! We have one but didn't use much - but was handy to have 2 hands free when baby was in a clingy day. I hope this helps some of you, i know we were not sure on essentials in the beginning apart from clothes and the usual!

Don't mean to criticize but I don't think any of these items would be categorised as essentials. I know different people think different things but these are all items you can easily live without and have only come about recently as they try to make money of pregnant women as often we are easily market.

1. We didn't use a sleeping bag until about 4 months when DS started sticking his legs outside of the cot, and a gogo bag is definately not an essential, you can get merino sleeping bags <100 off trademe, or from baby stores.
2. We don't have a bf chair and I actually prefer the couch and know a lot of other mothers that agree. A tri pillow has been fantastic for me.
3.Baby bath, don't have and don't need. We use the shower, or sink and had a small bowl/bucket when he was first born. A proper baby bath is heavy to carry when full and quite expenisve for the use you get out of it overtime.
4. Playgym/boucinette, although we have these we definately would be fine without them.

Isnt it so funny at what different people need?
I agree with the bath, we bathed DD in the baby bath (sitting up once she was able to sit) till a couple of months ago, way easier than the big bath! Loved having one of those ramp things that go in it to lay baby on, very handy!
And we also LOVE our Manduca!! We havnt used our pram for about 10 months?? The Moby was great for the first 5ish months and the Manduca is just awesome now, and will last for a long time to come!
We didnt use the playmat or bouncer much at all, Ive sold ours and wont get one for number 2.
The BFing chair never got used either, DD has always been a fast feeder so only being up for 10 mins at a time during the night, I never made it out of bed!
The GoGo bag has only been used since we moved her out of the bassinet (at about 6months old), its good, but not 'necessary' IMO.
Oohh and I agree with C&J, old school flat nappies are awesome!! We have about 15 and they would be one of the most used items we have!
I think its totally individual what you find amazing and what you dont, with number 2 we are going to stick wit the basics and go from there if we need to...

freckle wrote: I also think those special wrap things are a bit of a waste of money when you can wrap baby in a normal blanket or sheet...

baahaa only if you don't have a houdini baby like mine that kept escaping. The only one she couldn't escape from was the one with a zip.

caliandjack wrote: freckle wrote: I also think those special wrap things are a bit of a waste of money when you can wrap baby in a normal blanket or sheet... baahaa only if you don't have a houdini baby like mine that kept escaping. The only one she couldn't escape from was the one with a zip.

haha! what one's have zips?? I haven't seen them... I just have blankets with a bit of stretch and wrap her pretty tight, then a blanket over the top...

Yea, Jacob got out of a plain blanket like no-ones business; and that was with people like the staff at the Parents Centre wrapping him, they must have lots of practice. Miracle blankets did it for us, I had three!

There are only a few actual essentials... everything else just makes life easier. But boy, they sure CAN make life easier! I never cease to appreciate those extra things that I don't really need but that I use daily.

Our manduca would be one - so easy for wearing round the house. Jacob's just getting to an age where he can play by himself for a while awake time, but before that he'd get scratchy and need to be held... or popped in the manduca and I could keep working. (Also good for taking a load of washing to the laundromat in the pram... no longer any room for the baby there, so I wear him )

A jolly jumper was a good buy for us... meant I didn't have to use precious baby-asleep time in the shower, I could pop him in the bathroom doorway and have a shower while chatting to him.

We bought a couple of second-hand armchairs (we really needed a new lounge suite anyway, ours was actually falling apart) - I've got one in his room and one in the lounge, and I love them.

Our montain buggy was another great buy - I was thinking it was so extravagant to buy it when I could get a cheaper one, but those wheels make walking so nice and easy, I use it every day so it's had great use-per-dollar (I must be weird, everyone else seems to get a manduca and say they never use their stroller again... I still use mine heaps but use the manduca a lot too, how does that work?)

Hehehe bibs, I dont use any! DD isnt/wasnt a dribbler, and when it comes to food, well BLW she gets food everywhere anyway, so we have 3 'food tops' (tops that have been stained by food already) and she wears those when she eats, then gets changed afterwards!

I had so many bibs it was ridiculous LOL A lot of plastic backed ones too - the girls were drool monsters and also spilled a lot, so the usual bibs were pointless - they just got wet through and defeated the prupose of wearing one - cos I still ended up needing to change clothes all the time anyway!! I still have a heap of bibs now and use them.

Nic - they do? well DD wore them up until about two and a half - they were size 2 1/2 and quite big on her then...

Hopes wrote: For a while I thought I'd never use them. Now, they're all nearly falling to pieces, he's never without one. I have never met a baby who dribbles so much - if he doesn't wear a bib, I have to change his top at least every hour.

DS is the same, very very dribbly baby, I haven't seen another baby who dribbles as much as he does.
I now tend to tell people get more bibs than you think you will need.

Every time I put DD into an AIO for bed I keep wishing they'd make them in adult sizes she look so comfy.

The Mum2mum dream swaddle is made with a 2 way zip, was fantastic for my summer newborn baby as I was able to wrap her arms and unzip the bottom to let her feet out so she didn't overheat.

I like onesie singlets especially under dresses I don't like her back getting cold either and for me peace of mind that she's got something warm against her skin.

I love the Mum2Mum bibs for their size however am getting some with an elastic neck that pull on like a jumper as food always gets down her neck.