What can you not live without?

[Picture.Of.Obedience]

We had our baby shower Monday and got bunches of stuff but still have a ton more to get.
What are some essentials you couldnt have lived without.

 

[Neenie1]

Just remember that newborns don't really need a lot of "stuff" just mostly lots of attention in the first months.



As far as essentials go in the first year, definitely the bouncy chair/rocker thingy, high chair when they get a bit older(from around 6mths), pram, car seat, portacot (also used as a playpen once they start crawling around, we kept it in the loungeroom, and if I had to go to the toilet or something and no-one was available to watch bub, I would put him in there and know he was safe for a short time ) then at night if bubs was hard to settle, I'd take him to the lounge (so I wouldn't wake the rest of the house hopefully) get him settled and put him to sleep in there. Definitely going to probably do the same with this baby too.

nappies, grow suits, singlets just basic clothing, with one or 2 "special" outfits, don't go overboard with those, because I found that most of the time bubs was just in really simple clothing.

 

[PegasusOnFire]

My swing, I can't live without that. It keeps Christian occupied and it settles her down when she is supper fussy. Also Nuk brand pasifiers, I find that she likes those between feedings, she loves to suck. Lets see what else, lots of quilts/blankets I lay them out on the floor and let her have her tummy time on them, she loves it, also blankets are great to wrap baby up in if they have an upset tummy, if you wrap them tight (they may show you how in the hospital) then the tummy will feel a little better, and it gives baby a feeling of security, remember they were in a really tight space for 9 months. Onsies, I can't live without them, they are great for protecting clothes if baby has a diaper blow out, this can happen no matter how many times you change them. THey are also good if it is really hot during the day, just leave them in the onsie to play until bed time, then put their jammies on them. Also jammies with snaps on the crotch and legs, that way you don't have to strip baby down when you go to change them.

 

[newcreature]

If your nursing, a boppy pillow. A mesh bath thingy. It sits at an angle, and holds the baby securely. You can use it alone, or put it in a baby bath. Floor bouncy seats are great to have. My kids loved them. I also loved the baby gowns that have a drawstring bottom. They were easy to take off the baby after they made a mess. I used onsies when we traveled though. A big diaper bag with changing pad included.

 

[newcreature]

How could I forget a playpen!! I rarely used it at home, because I held my babies most of the time. But, if you are going somewhere, and you need to put the baby down for a period of time, it really helps.

 

[Katydid]

BABY OIL GEL!!!! It is made by Johnson's and has aloe in it. It is sooooo goood on diaper rash. My son (3) calls it "poopy water" because it is clear and I put it on his sissy's hiney.

 

[andiesmama]

BABY OIL GEL!!!! It is made by Johnson's and has aloe in it. It is sooooo goood on diaper rash. My son (3) calls it "poopy water" because it is clear and I put it on his sissy's hiney.

 

[andiesmama]

I second the idea of a swing...it was a lifesaver! When they start teething, the natural teething tablets are awesome. A mist vaporizer for when they have a stuffy nose. Baby Einstein videos....it gave me 20 min or so to get a shower, do a load of laundry, etc. That's all I can think of right now....oh, and an exersaucer!

 

[PegasusOnFire]

If your nursing, a boppy pillow.

Even if you are bottle feeding this is a great thing to have. It really helps when you are on the couch and want to use the arm opposite the arm rest. It is also fun to sit baby up in the middle of it.

 

[wendythepooh]

All good answers. One thing for certain even if you plan on using disposable diapers, pick up some cloth diapers! They are perfect for spit up rags! They are soft and absorbant! And when baby grows enough you don't use them for that purpose anymore, they make wonderful dusting clothes!

 

[Picture.Of.Obedience]

My son (3) calls it "poopy water" because it is clear and I put it on his sissy's hiney.

ROFL......that is so cute....

What about gas drops. Do they work and which brand.

 

[newcreature]

ROFL......that is so cute....

What about gas drops. Do they work and which brand.

I have used store brands, Gerber drops, and one other I can think of, and they all work just fine. I would advise, however, that you get the nonstaining kind. i think most of them are nonstaining now. It works, and you only have to use a little. I used it when nothing else would work for my children.

 

[Emma's_Mom]

I'm pretty partial to my wipe-warmer. Emma doesn't like ANYTHING cold--hands, washrags--you name it. If I didn't have warm wipes in the middle of the night, diaper changes would be no fun for anyone!

 

[andiesmama]

ROFL......that is so cute....

What about gas drops. Do they work and which brand.

Oh yes, I swore by those!! I used Mylecon (sp?) but I had a friend who used the store brand (WalMart, I think) & it worked just fine as well.

Baby Tylenol, nail clippers, a noise machine if you live in a noisy neighborhood or have loud neighbors...

 

[Picture.Of.Obedience]

I'm pretty partial to my wipe-warmer. Emma doesn't like ANYTHING cold--hands, washrags--you name it. If I didn't have warm wipes in the middle of the night, diaper changes would be no fun for anyone!

what brand do you use? i have heard that some just dry out the wipes and turn them brown. i didnt want to buy one till i knew which were good.

 

[CarrieAg93]

When they are old enough to sit we love the bathing seat that is an enclosed ring. Much easier than trying to hold onto an slippery baby with one hand and clean him with the other.

 

[Emma's_Mom]

what brand do you use? i have heard that some just dry out the wipes and turn them brown. i didnt want to buy one till i knew which were good.

I will check the brand and get back to you, but I have found two things: 1) the bottom wipe in the stack always gets wrecked no matter what BUT 2)the rest remain fine UNLESS you leave the lid open for an extended period of time and then yes, they sort of "cook" and dry out and become useless, but as long as the lid stays closed, it's worked great.

 

[Leanna]

I absolutely could not have lived without an infant car seat, the kind that you carry into the house or store without taking the baby out. How many times he was asleep and my husband and I were able to eat without waking him, or go to the store without having to take him out in the cold. Alas, it was a sad day when he was too big for it. Now I have to wake him up to take him out of the car and its sad disturbing his peace.

 

[Leanna]

Oh, and Mylicon also was a lifesaver. My baby was gassy and maybe could have qualified for colicky but I never did figure that out before he grew out of it.

We used both the swing and the "bouncy seat" quite a bit. The bouncy seat was great because we did not have a portable swing and so we took the bouncy seat to our parents house etc. so that we had somewhere for him to sit and relax. We also used it as a portable high chair before he was good at sitting, because he began solids after 4 months before he could sit well.

Other than that, I do not have and did not use a bottle warmer, a wipes warmer (even in the winter, room temperature ones were fine for me), a bathtub seat (I used the baby tub until he couldnt fit in it, and then the sink until he couldn't spash and then I put him in the tub where he was already a great sitter), basically what I am saying is, try not to get EVERYTHING. Wait until the baby is born and then buy those things you find a need for and don't have. Otherwise you have all this stuff that you don't use (I have some stuff like that I could name also) when you could have used the money for new clothes. My son is 8 months and is fitting great into 12 months and is almost going to mvoe to 18 months. THis is not unusual, although he is taller than average, I know other babies his age also who are wearing the same size. What I am saying is, you are going to be buying new clothes every 2 months. Save money for that!!!

 

[baby girl]

my bf