My hospital-bag list - any comments/recommendations?

[MrsVenn]

^^ or just use socks, this is what we did

Get a handheld hoover for when they're weaning, it's absolutely brilliant.

Otherwise, in the early days we loved our TT bottle warmer (Still use it), muzzies, cellular blankets and the only book I have is The Essential First Year by Penelope Leach which is very good and non preachy.

Found Bepanthen better than Sudocream but Sudocream is great for overexposure from Sun in the Summer.

Colief was the only thing that worked for Molly's colic.

BrushBaby teething baby toothbrush was/is fantastic for early teethers (teething rings etc are too big for 3 month olds).

Washing up bowl instead of a bath and Method Baby baby wash which comes with a cup to rinse - brilliant if you have a newborn with a lot of hair that needs washing. I kept the bottle and just refill it, even now.

Also for BF, Lansinoh, a life saver!! I still use it for dried cracked heels, sore hands etc.

I love our 'Shade a Babe' cover for our pushchairs too.

Now we can't live without our handheld hoover, muzzies still, Waitrose nappy sacks (much bigger than any others), Milton antibacterial wipes.

Ohhh and take a small jug or cup in to hospital with you... even if you don't have stitches you'll still feel sore when you wee..fill it with warm water and pour over as you go. It helps so much! Tea tree oil in the bath is also a great natural antibac soother as an alternative to lavendar oil.

 

[MrsEngland]

Maternity pads - I recommend boots own brand. They do a thick version but also thin ones with wings and they are super comfy.

Changing mat - if you live in a house with stairs then get 2 - I got fed up of taking ours up and down every day and having to go back up or down when I forgot it lol. You can get them cheap enough!

Nappy bin - buy the angel care one, it's brilliant! You can get it from argos for about £7.99. We bought one for upstairs and just used the kitched bin downstairs but the dirty nappies made it stink that much we bought one for downstairs too - you can't smell anything!

Baby towels - I didn't actually buy any but we were given a few as gifts and I find them good because they have a little hood to keep LO's head warm

Room thermometer - I recommend the phillips avent digital one that looks like a blue flower - you can use it as a room thermometer but also put it in the bath to check the water temperature. Very handy and saves having 2 different ones.

Bath - we use a bath seat for Fran and she loves it - she can kick and splash her feet and it leaves you both hands free to wash/play with LO. We got ours from mothercare for about £15, it's just a plain white one and we put a towel on it for extra grip and comfort.

Toilet Paper - I really recommend using Andrex aloe vera as it is very soft and soothing - especially if you have stitches because it doesn't catch and pull them like normal paper.

I second all that =))

 

[bigbetty]

Oh and while the asda baby event is on get yourself one of the johnsons boxes - a complete bargain at £10. It contains all the toiletries you need to get started and the box is brilliant to keep downstairs for storing all your nappies, wipes etc for changing LO during the day

 

[louisiana]

i have to say i did get a bottle warmer but only because when it came to night feeds i didnt feel safe pouring boiling water into jug esp as brodie needed cuddling most nights-he went mental if i lay him down when he was hungry.

 

[bigbetty]

We have a bottle warmer for night-time heating too and it has worked well up to now. But the more liquid in the bottles the longer it takes to heat and it's starting to take so long now that Fran gets quite upset because when she wakes for her feed she wants it there and then so I think I'm going to have to start going downstairs and heating them in the microwave like I do during the day as it only takes a minute rather than 5 or 6!!!

 

[Bingo]

Oh I love a good list (which yours is). I had a list too before my LO was born.

Some things I found useful:

I would recommend a baby bath on a stand - great for the first few months and saves back ache from having to bend over your bath. Also a change table which again saves your back. I found a baby swing (Fisher Price My Little Lamb Cradle n Swing) was a good investment. I only got all of these things 3 months after my baby was born because we emigrated so didn't want to buy twice. I wish I had have had them all when she was born.

I like you thought I would use our ‘adult’ towels but got baby ones anyway which I still use to this day and LO is 7 months. I think they are worth getting but if you do get some, get larger ones which will still work as your LO grows. I used Mothercare ones when she was first born but my mother bought her some, not sure where from, which are much larger and better with the little hood.

Don’t bother with a nappy bin for disposables, just pop them into a nappy bag and into your normal bin.

My baby didn’t like being swaddled so the swaddling blankets I bought weren’t used.

Start using the lansinoh on your nipples now and use it after every single bath or shower. I did throughout pregnancy and have never had cracked nipples and I’m sure it’s because I used it before birth and after every single feed and shower after the birth.

Fitted bottom sheets for your moses basket and/or cot are great.

Bath thermometer, tens machine, breast feeding cover if you plan on breast feeding and think you might be self conscious, socks and soft toilet paper to take to the hospital.

I bought bottles and some cartons of ready to use formula even though I planned on breast feeding.

 

[Maid Marian]

Thanks ladies

What are 'muzzies' and 'cellular blankets' though ...?

Oh I love a good list (which yours is).

Thank you hun!

 

[snowy-willow]

Thanks ladies

What are 'muzzies' and 'cellular blankets' though ...?

Oh I love a good list (which yours is). I had a list too before my LO was born.

Thank you hun!

muzzies are another name for muslins

cellular blankets are the blankets with little holes in. they remind me of the white socks lots of little girls wear that go up to the knee!!

https://www.olivers-baby-care.co.uk/media/catalog/product/cache/1/image/5e06319eda06f020e43594a9c230972d/l/o/lollipop-lane-celular-blank.jpg

Personally I have never used the cellular blankets we got - always used the fleece ones in the pushchair and sleepbags at night

 

[Sweetie]

Just wanted to add a quick point. Moby wraps are fantastic for newborns up to about 15lbs, beyond that you can keep wearing baby but I really (for safety) recommend getting a woven wrap (or you can start with a woven too, same principle as a stretchy/ moby)

 

[Maid Marian]

Just wanted to tell you all that I'm getting a baby bath. I found one on Freecycle for free, so I'm picking it up tomorrow, since I have no idea of we'll be one of the people who love them, or one who doesn't find a use for them - but either way it won't have cost us anything!

Just wanted to add a quick point. Moby wraps are fantastic for newborns up to about 15lbs, beyond that you can keep wearing baby but I really (for safety) recommend getting a woven wrap (or you can start with a woven too, same principle as a stretchy/ moby)

Thank you I'm planning on getting a mei tai when he gets a bit bigger.

 

[discoclare]

Your list looks good! I just thought I would mention a couple of things as you said you plan on using cloth nappies after one month (because lots of the suggestions you have been given are for sposies not cloth):

Nappy bin - I would recommend this. It doesn't need to be a specifically labelled "nappy bin" any bin with a well fitting lid will do. About 15 - 20 litres is a good size. You can use large wet bags (would need to be very large) instead but most people use a bin. A sposie bin such as angel care is not suitable. You can choose to line your bin with a mesh bag if you want, then when you wash you just chuck the whole mesh bag containing your nappies in the washing machine. If you do this you need 2 mesh bags (a spare to re-line bucket with when the other's in the wash). You might also want some essential oils / tea tree oil to put a couple of drops in the bin to keep your bin smelling nice.

Wet Bag - you can use a plastic bag but a proper wet bag is better. There are some gorgeous wet bags out there. If you buy any Bambootys, their day nappies come with a small (one nappy size) wet bag in the matching print to the nappy. Here is a thread at the moment in NP with people discussing the best place to get yummy wet bags:
https://www.babyandbump.com/natural...u-got-your-pretty-pretty-wet-bags-please.html

I think others have given you great advice. A wrap/sling of some sort will probably be very useful too. I found my bath support seat handy (I could fit it in the kitchen sink when she was small).

 

[Maid Marian]

Pampers or Huggies ...? I like the look of the Huggies natural nappies ... but have heard lots of good things about both.

 

[happigail]

Huggies were an UTTER Disaster for us, I ended up giving the 200 odd I had stocked away because they leak. I personally feel they are also very hard on feeling. We use pampers and have never had a single leak since. But people will come in and the opposite to me! Maybe just a small amount of both and see which work best (especially when your baby is sleeping longer at night because that's where you need the high performance).

 

[Bingo]

Pampers or Huggies ...? I like the look of the Huggies natural nappies ... but have heard lots of good things about both.

In my own experience Pampers have a very awful strong chemical/urine smell as soon as they are wet so I wouldn't use them but the only way to find out what suit you and your baby is to try them. I used Pampers for a while when my LO was born. You could get a small pack of each and see which you prefer. I found that Asda's own nappies were fantastic when I was in the UK but now that I'm in Australia I use Huggies. I haven't tried any own brand nappies here.

 

[Nervous_1]

I recommend Asda Little Angels nappies - thought they were fantastic and the only leaks I had were from explosive poos that no nappy would have been able to contain!

 

[bigbetty]

I recommend Asda Little Angels nappies - thought they were fantastic and the only leaks I had were from explosive poos that no nappy would have been able to contain!

I agree with this! As someone else said Pampers have a strong chemical smell which put me off and whilst the size 1's were ok, once we got onto size 2's they were awful and leaked loads.

Little Angels are really good. I think they are softer than Pampers and the biggest bonus is that they are half the price!!!

 

[Maid Marian]

Thanks ladies I bought one pack each of Pampers/Huggies/Asda Size 1 and size 2 nappies, so we'll be able to see what suits baby best, and then get some more, but will hopefully still have enough to last us a few days.

My huge horde of baby stuff!
https://i660.photobucket.com/albums/uu330/rosesmischief/DSC02272.jpg

Couldn't resist these two on the big baby shop last night - DH has a Batman top just like it, so hoping for the cutest photo ever soon!
https://i660.photobucket.com/albums/uu330/rosesmischief/DSC02275.jpg

 

[Maid Marian]

Have updated first post - just about to start packing hospital bag.

 

[vaniilla]

I'm not seeing ear plugs on the list, the lack of sleep I got on the wards was the main reason I was so miserable, there were 3 babies on my ward crying non stop all night ear plugs are a savior for getting rest! I wish I had taken some, the whole 3 days I was there I got no sleep what so ever! I would have remembered my time with lo more if I hadn't been so exhausted


forgot to add: if you end up needing stitches keep using maternity pads as opposed to regular ones even after you go home, the thin pads have a plastic sheet top which chafes and rubs on the stitches and makes them worse, I was in agony after mine and it got better after I took my gp's advice and switched back to the big maternity pads.

 

[beccybobeccy]

Your list is similar to mine was. I think I packed for a nuclear fallout! But I felt like I needed it all to help me feel prepared despite not using it all.
The key pieces for me were:
1. Vaseline
2. My pillow
3. Loose change for parking/vending machine etc
4.Lots of Clean panties
5. Chocolate for after birth - it really helped my energy levels and I didn't feel like eating much.
6. Maternity Pads (NOT regular sanitary pads)
7. Lansinoh Nipple cream

I didn't need so much in hospital:
1. The 0-3 clothing (only needed newborn - Sofia was swimming in 0-3)
2. Breastpads - not enough to warrant wearing a pad if you are only in overnight)
3. Baby wash/shampoo - Its advised not to use any products on baby until they are older... water does fine.

I packed 2 bags. One I kept in the car with bits if I needed to stay longer, more clothes for me and baby, more nappies, more sweet treats, towel etc... Next time I will put more stuff in the bag in the car and take only the essentials. I was a bag lady on the ward!!