We went into this adventure of having a baby thinking we will survive on the bear essentials that people say you actually need, to realising that, why make it harder for yourself, if you can make it easier with a few ''un-neccessary'' gadgets.
If you are expecting than it's more than likely you've seen those basic lists that are all over the Internet. The lists that say that you only need abut 5 long sleeved sleepsuits and 2 cardigans and something for a colder weather. I sure did. I saw them everywhere, and thought because everyone keeps saying it...it must be true. Little did I know, that poo seeps out of nappies daily and it does smell. Finding things around you while trying to change a baby is not easy at all, even though you might surprise yourself at how many things you can do with just one hand while holding a baby in the other.
So why worry about having to wash those 5 sleepsuits just after 3 days, if you can just stock up on some basic cheap ones. They usually come in a multi-pack of 5-7 and can cost as little as a pound for one. So get those onesies that you find are so cute and so cheap...you will thank yourself later. What I also found that before the baby I thought having the sleepsuits with buttons coming through all the way down aren't the best ones. I really like the ones that come over his head and only have buttons by the feet. You don't need to take the whole thing off for a nappie change :) And the top buttons usually come really high up and seem uncomfortable under his little chin.
Nappie genie - they tell you don't need this as you can just use fragranced nappie bags and a regular bin. We bought one just in case and kept it in the bedroom. We now have two...Finding the bags and then having to tie them up and then take your baby to the bin...........you get the deal. It's just easier to stick the dirty nappie in the bin with all the dirty wipes and giving it a quick twist does the job 3 times faster. And we're probably talking minutes here, but all those extra minutes add up during the day. We have the Tommee Tippee Sangenic nappie bin and it was just £10 and comes with a binlines that should last for 300 nappies.
This brings be to baby wipes. Every single page and midwife and parent education class will tell you not to bother and just use cotton balls with water. If you have the time to boil water and cool it down and have a place to keep it somewhere and then when you need to change the nappie boil some more, because the water you boiled earlier when you had 4 minutes to spare is now too cold for his bottom, then you just go ahead and do it. Otherwise, just use the wipes. I am actually thinking of getting a wipewarmer, because little O gets slightly upset with a cold/wet wipe every now and then. Yes it's another gadget, but I think it will be worth it once there is less crying. We are using Johnsons wipes for sensitive skin at the moment, and they seem to work, because he hasn't had a rash yet.
Baby swing. Sometimes you just need to put him down no matter how hard it might be :D I bought the Graco swing that plays music and swings and does all the tricks just so he would be in with the action once he's a bit bigger and more alert and awake. At the moment though I'm just using it for smaller naps, because the incline on the swing is too big for him...even with the blankets I've put in there. And he's not that interested in the music :D
Breast Pump - This is a touchy subject. You are meant to wait for at least 6 weeks until you start expressing so it wouldn't distract from breastfeeding(if you have gone for breastfeeding rather than using formule) But since it hurt too much to breastfeed him I got the pump on the 6th day and have been so much happier ever since. I'm not saying that you should give up as well. I mean they do tell you it will hurt for a good 2 weeks before your nips toughen up and the process will turn into a bonding session rather than torture, but I was weak, so I gave up. I have found though, that because I've cut down on breastfeeding to a single feed in the morning (That's when I have the most milk, as I don't pump during the night) it doesn't hurt at all, and it's kind of nice to know that I can breastfeed if I need to. I do use nipple guards though, because it creates more suction for him. He's gotten a bit lazy with the bottles :D
I have 2 manual and 1 electric pump, but I have to say I prefer the manual one. It just seems more efficient and it's less noisy. Another 10 pounds well spent, and since I have 2 I don't have to worry about sterilising it right away.
Feeding/sleeping/changing schedule. We only printed one out yesterday, but it's already because such a useful little thing. It might be the crazy hormones or the lack of them, but I just forget the times I've fed him and I know it's pretty much impossible to overfeed a newborn, but it's good to have that note that if I just fed and changed him an hour ago then there is something else wrong with him and I can deal with it faster and more efficiently. You can find pre-made blank ones all over the internet. We got ours from Babycentre.com webpage.
The last thing I've noticed about us is the muslin cloths, I just find paper cloths much better, because you can just throw them in the bin once you're done :D and you don't have to go on a search of a dry corner.
Hope you found this post useful, and it's made you feel better about those crazy baby buys you've made. They were invented for a reason :D
Anything you've found you can't live without? Leave a comment for me below :)
