what do you have for baby what do you still need? « Back to Group Discussions

[Pogo0685]

I am trying to figure out what I need for this baby. My son will be almost 4 so I can't remember what all I will need for the new baby. I figured between all the mamas here I could come up with a nice list and get it all before baby gets here! I know I need more than a car seat and a dresser but that's all I can think of when I am asked what I need. Thanks in advance!

[sapientia]

I think I have most everything for the early weeks-cloth diapers, covers, lots of receiving blankets, car seat, bouncy seat, bassinet for naps, some onesies and nightgowns and socks. Only thing I really need are more baby clothes but I am going to have dh and my older girls go out and buy some after the baby is born when we know if the baby is a boy or girl.

[hotsauce]

I have cloth diapers, onesies, pants, baby legs, blankets, swaddling blanket, car seat, stroller, ergo, baby bath supplies/towels, wooden high chair, boppy nursing pillow, lanolin, cloth wipes, wet bag for diapers

I need more clothes, co-sleeper, maya wrap, nursing tops and belly wrap, lambskin, fleece bodysuits, changing table, baby proofing items/baby gates, breast pads, diaper bag, diaper pail, nail clippers and snot bulb, glass bottles and breast milk storage bags.

I'm sure there are a few more items I could add to both lists, but I think that's the bulk of it.

[rebeccajm]

I've had to think long and hard about what we need as well.  I think I have enough cloth diapers, cloth wipes, receiving blankets, baby blankets, towels, boppy, changing pad and covers, car seat, swing, etc.  Basically everything we used for the boys.  I haven't sold anything!  I will make her baby wash and moisturizer.  And last weekend, we shopped a consignment sale and got her enough clothes for 0-3 months, I think!

I still came up with 20 or so items to do a registry, lol.  I need milk bags, glass bottles, extra nipples, bottle brush, lanolin, cloth nursing pads, cloth diaper inserts, pink canvas totes, bac out, humidifier, baby carrier, pink boppy cover, and chlorine-free sposies and wipes for emergencies.

[tiqa]

Hmm.  Well, the one thing I really need is some diapers.  I tried asking my mom for help with them because we're tight right now but she didn't really seem to go for it.  =/  She will send the Moses basket up though.  We got it for #1 but we couldn't put him down for anything, so we never used it.  Maybe with this one.

Kind of a tangent here but I am kind of disappointed in how little my mom seems to care that I'm pregnant.  She was so obsessed with DS, even wanted to adopt him.  She bought EVERYTHING for him, stuff we didn't even use.  Cosleepers, a crib (never once used!), stroller covers, strollers, shopping cart stuff, bottles, clothes, outfits... just tons of stuff.  Tons of EXPENSIVE stuff.  She fawns over him even though she doesn't see him much.  DD, born 10 months later, didn't really get anything from her but at least she was interested in her.  This pregnancy, she doesn't even ask me how I'm feeling, when I'm due, nothing.  I bring it up and she just shrugs it off.  Maybe she got offended that we didn't use the stuff she got for DS (we didn't even have room for it in our apt) or that we chose AP over her childrearing methods, but it's weird that she a) still has all that stuff in storage, unopened, from 6 years ago... and that she doesn't even care that she's having a third gc.  OK I'm rambling here, I just got off the phone with her after a long convo though so it was on my mind.

Otherwise I'm not really sure what we need.  A carseat, I guess.  So yeah, a carseat and diapers.  I have wraps, a MT, and I did splure on a secondhand Ergo that I should be getting soon... I will cut up some T-shirts for wipes.  I will get maybe half a dozen receiving blankets from Old Navy because I remember those being good quality, but if I don't get around to it, I won't stress, we have lots of old sheets and stuff.  I can just hem some quickly - one of those jersey sheets cut up into square yards is about the same size as the blankets.  Other than that, I really don't know what we would need.  I already got a nose bulb, which is our go-to cold remedy.  Some of those magic coconut drops for gas if needed.  We have some baby outfits - not a lot, but enough for the first weeks, and since we don't know if we're having a boy or a girl I'm not sure what we'll need.  We have a lot (well, not a LOT, but a few totes) of stored baby clothes, so we might be able to use some of those, depending on the size.  DS was on the smaller end, but DD was very small for her whole first year so I don't know what sizes we will need in what seasons, and I'd rather go to the thrift store where they have huge selections of baby clothes, when we need them.

What else does a baby really need?  Oh, swaddles - we do swaddle, but we have a few left.  And eventually we'll pick up a secondhand pack and play probably to use as a baby container down the line.  We barely used one with the others, although it did come in handy traveling.  (Come to think of it... that won't work... we don't have our SUV anymore, and we sure can't fit it in the Civic. D'oh.  Oh well.  I'm sure it'll come in handy anyway at some point.  But we'll probably just yardsale one.)  Same thing with a high chair... we prefer the cheapie plastic ones with no padding so they are super easy to wipe down.  Not too fancy but hey.

I'd love a sheepskin, a natural baby teether, a new amber necklace, and a set of wooden utensils for when he/she is a bit older... but those are just wish list items.

Overall I'm trying hard not to jinx myself by getting too much before he/she arrives.  Guess I'm superstitious that way.  Still hung up on the thyroid issues.  =(

[aruss]

Ok what are the magic coconut drops for gas??? I need to know!

[tiqa]

lol... I don't know their real name but I call them that because a) they smell like coconut and b) they work like magic.  They're not some holistic cure or anything, they're sold at most grocery stores in a generic brown little bottle.  They're just some sort of gas drops.  But they were the only thing that worked for my colicky son - a few drops on the tongue and he settled down tons.  If I get a bottle I'll post the name. :)

[tinyblackdot]

we have the room set up for the most part, crib, dresser, glider......i have a newborn diaper stash already going and just about complete, just waiting on a few more covers to get here. I bought a bouncer off of craigslist, and i had my boppy left over from DD. I also have the strollers, my friend gave me an infant carseat with 3 bases, have a highchair, and .....i think the only things i am concerned with getting are a swing, and the 2 convertable carseats (which my MIL should get me since she "lost" our britax marathon a few months ago.) Im hoping to get approved for WIC to get a breastpump..........and i have tons of baby carriers left over, but really want to get a Moby, and an Ergo to replace my girly ones.  Then its just the little things, hangers, baby clothes (my bf just had a baby boy so i have a TON of stuff coming my way), bath stuff.......matress pads, sheets, breastfeeding accessories, Bottles ( i plan on letting dd help feed him) and little things like that.

Im in the same boat though, its been almost 6 years, i dont know what i need at all!

[rebeccajm]

Well, I thought I had enough diapers... I went through the stash yesterday and washed them again for fun.  (Yes, laundry for fun, LOL.)  How many newborn size diapers does one need?  I have 6 fitteds, 6 contoured and 5 covers.  That's it!  I do have some smaller inserts I could use in lieu of diapers with a cover.  This is my first time diapering a newborn, so I'm not sure!  I got all of them from a site that was closing down, dirt cheap!  I was thinking I had a lot, but that doesn't sound like enough. What do you all think?

I used BG pockets for the boys and plan to use them for her after the newborn stage.  Just need a few more inserts.

[Anilia]

For a newborn you easily need 12 a day.  So you have enough for one day, I'd say...  Covers you'll probably make it on but I'd grab a dozen prefolds or fitteds.  Otherwise you are doing laundry every six hours! :)  

[Clarasmama]

All I can think of is a dresser and car seat too. We know it's a boy this time, so I already went a little crazy with the babylegs...oops! I bought a few boy outfits too, but we really won't need much. DH is building the dresser, I think I have the carseat picked out, and most of our small gDiapers are neutral colors so we have plenty of diapers too! We didn't know DD was a girl, so most of our newborn stuff is gender neutral, and she was due in February so it's winter newborn stuff to boot! We'll need more clothes, but we have the cosleeper, tummy tub, bouncy seat, swing (maybe this baby will like it for more than 5 minutes ever), carriers including Moby and mei tai for newborn time, swaddling blankets, a few pacifiers and bottles even though we probably won't use them like last time...I really don't think there's anything else! We just have a jogging stroller, but we barely used it with DD, and if we ever need it now it will be for her to sit in and one of us will wear DS. I won't be getting a double stroller, it would be the biggest waste of space for us!

[rebeccajm]

Originally Posted by Anilia 

For a newborn you easily need 12 a day.  So you have enough for one day, I'd say...  Covers you'll probably make it on but I'd grab a dozen prefolds or fitteds.  Otherwise you are doing laundry every six hours! :)  

Thanks!  That's what I was thinking!  I do have about 10 Gerber prefolds to use in a pinch, but I'd love some "fancier" ones.

[Anilia]

Rebecca- I love green mountain's work horse fitteds- they just switched to all organic and newborn fitteds are still just $5 each.  I think the ones without the snaps are easier to get just right and last a little longer. Can't beat the price and they work great.

[Ms Rabbit]

We have the car seat, crib, swing, wrap, swaddling blankets, plenty of clothes and diapers left from DS1 and DS2. I'd like to buy new baby towels, facecloths, receiving blankets and a few new outfits. We need to buy a new bassinet and bathtub. I am still on the fence about buying a double stroller, I don't know if the investment is worth the value we will get out of it.

[Pogo0685]

So reading all your replies I am really far behind. I still need to go through the boxes of stuff I had from DS but from what I am reading I still need s cloth diaper system (diapers, wetbags, pail), blankets, a swing (DS loved his swing), A wrap carrier of some sort (I will probably get one from etsy), a dresser, a carseat, clothes, and I am sure there is more.

I have a patapum carrier (like an ergo), a boppy nursing pillow, breast pads and nursing bras, a crib (used more of a clean clothes hamper last time), a co sleeper and a high chair. I am hoping when I go through boxes I find more stuff but I had not thought about the fact we would possibly have more children so I gave away so much stuff when DS was a year old. 

[gentlymade]

Still no car seat here! I keep putting it off until next month when money isn't so tight. I don't know what makes me think money won't be as tight next month... wishful thinking?! I have been hitting the yard sales and so has my MIL so we have most of what we need even though I sold nearly everything from my older kids when we moved. I've got the cosleeper, the moby wrap, a bouncy seat, a bunch of nb covers and a stash of nb prefolds. I am hoping that will hold over until he fits into the all in ones I have my two year old in now. And I plan on making some more fleece covers. Still need a changing table, but I think that is all the necessities! Now I just need some maternity clothes so I don't go naked for the third trimester!

[MamaBookworm]

I am obsessed with baby stuff right now. It's kind of driving DH crazy.  So, I am happy to have this thread so I can talk about it. 

This is our first boy so I was in bad shape for clothes, and then I decided to give my girl clothes that I saved with a friend who is expecting a girl! And she gave me a giant bag of boy clothes! This is kind of funny if you would know me IRL, because I am soooo not fussy about clothes. Ever. But, I did spend an hour or two taking out all the teeny tiny sleepers and caps and so forth out of the bag and ooing and ahhing over them. Gotta love pregnancy hormones!  I think I will keep 10 sleeper/outfits, 3-4 caps, a few pairs of socks, and 5 onesies. 

I already have an infant car seat, pack n play, bouncy seat and a couple of carriers. I also have a bunch of prefolds and diaper covers. SIL gave me her breast pump, so I need some of the tubes and stuff that go with that (or can you sterilize them?). She even gave me a couple of boxes of those bags you can freeze milk in! I have a glider that I got for free...it just needs cleaned up, and maybe a fresh coat of paint and new cushions.

I still need....

Crib mattress, but will probably wait and see where baby prefers to sleep. 

Receiving blankets

baby towels and washcloths

swaddling blanket

Also, I'm planning on splurging on a nice pair of pajamas or lounge clothes for after the baby is born. Not really for baby, but it's part of my "baby expenses" in my budget.

[tiqa]

They *say* you have to replace the tubes but if you know and trust SIL I probably would just try to sterilize them...  It's a no-no officially but meh.  If you'd be OK with SIL nursing your kid (well.. in theory, not in practice, I know lots of people esp. Westerners are squeamish about that!) then I'd be OK reusing tubes.

Then again I never could pump an ounce for the life of me, so "luckily" I don't have to worry about these things...

[MamaBookworm]

Just found out there is a community wide yard sale in a fairly affluent, baby-makin' neighborhood near me! Jackpot! 

[rebeccajm]

Originally Posted by Anilia 

Rebecca- I love green mountain's work horse fitteds- they just switched to all organic and newborn fitteds are still just $5 each.  I think the ones without the snaps are easier to get just right and last a little longer. Can't beat the price and they work great.

Thank you so much!  I didn't want to spend a lot.  Those look to be just what we need to get through the newborn phase!