What do I need for my Newborn?
Being a first-time Mum with no real experience with a Newborn meant I was really starting from scratch with baby product knowledge. I’ve had some great recommendations from friends and family and I thought I would let you know what I’ve loved using and what we could not do without.
Products I loved in the first 3 months with my Baby Girl
I have also added my checklist spreadsheet which I used when preparing for our baby- it includes everything from prams to socks!
Moses Basket
One of the first things I purchased was the Shnuggle Dreami Moses basket. I love the design and the colours fit in with our decor perfectly. The basket is really light weight and I found it easy to move from room to room even the day after arriving home from giving birth. The stand which we use next to our bed can also be turned upside down and turned into a rocker which we use in our lounge. The best thing is that when she was tiny I didn’t have to have separate sleeping baskets around because it was so portable. I also purchased their fitted sheets which are beautiful. Summer still sleeps in the basket at 3 months and I think she will be fine for another month or so at least.
White Noise Toy
I heard mixed reviews before Summer was born so we actually held off buying a white noise toy. In the first week we found she really enjoyed the soothing Shhhh sound we kept making and tried some white noise on our phone for a couple of days. Once we realised it was settling her to sleep I purchased Grofriends Ollie the Owl. We used it constantly 24 hours a day for the first 4 weeks which really helped when Summer got restless in the night. I honestly don’t know what we would have done without it for that first month or so. I haven’t used it recently but even if we don’t use the sound again it makes a lovely soft toy.
Bath Time
We bought the Angelcare bath support due to recommendations. Now Summer is bigger and enjoying bath time I love it as she sits well supported and can splash around happily. I’m not sure it is the best option for tiny babies though as filling a bath tub is a bit pointless compared to how much water would be needed for a small baby bath.
I definitely recommend a bath thermometer, there are lots of fun character ones which digitally display the temperature. Ours also flashes red when the water is too warm. I bought it from Tesco one day for about £10 and we couldn’t do without it. When we went to our parenting course before Summer was born we were told the water needs to be warm, use your elbow etc. and that these devices are a waste of money. From my experience when your baby is screaming, you are trying to get them undressed, get towels ready, a clean nappy and a million other things, the worst thing you want to be doing is arguing with your partner over whether the water is warm enough. For first time parents its just a reassurance, a time saver and peace of mind.
Travel System
The single biggest purchase we made was our travel system. We tried lots out in various shops and I got my heart set on the Silver Cross Pioneer. My Mum used a Silver Cross when I was a baby so I loved the nostalgic link and I found the quality was more superior to others when we were comparing. It hasn’t disappointed, I find the pram easy to get around, even on rough terrane. We loved the fact we could use the newborn carrycot as a travel cot which we did when we went away several times. I do recommend purchasing a mattress cover though to protect it from day to day to use. I’m looking forward to using the pushchair seat unit over the next couple of month.
Bouncer
At 4 weeks Summer was beginning to become more active during the day and wanted to look around the room more. Up to that point she had either been in the moses basket, playing on a mat or of course constantly feeding! We saw this bouncer on offer at mamas and papas and thought for the price it was worth giving it a try. Well I wish we had purchased it sooner- she loves it. If we go out for the day I take it with me. Summer is such a curious little baby, she likes to be in her chair watching everything rather than lying down now.
Dummies
Yep, I was one of those first-time Mum’s- I’m not giving our baby a dummy, she wont need it. 4 weeks old and I gave in, watching her suck her hands and need to be comforted was too much. I used the MAM ones which she took to straight away and look pretty. She still has them now to comfort her to sleep.
Breast Pump
I originally purchased the pump to increase my supply after Summer’s large weight loss in the first week. Whilst in hospital with limited time to research we quickly bought the Madela Swing pump. I now use it constantly and love that it can be more portable as it can also run off batteries. We use the madela bottles for both breast milk and formula so we don’t confuse Summer with lots of bottles and she straight away fed brilliantly from them and because they still require work to get the milk out I have been able to combination feed.
Nappies
We have tried a variety of different brands and we really like Asda’s Little Angel Nappies. I am still using size 1 but in the first few weeks I used their size 0 which I couldn’t seem to get in other brands. The price for what you get I think is great.
We couldn’t do without our Tommee Tippee nappy bin. With the amount of nappies we get through in a day, being able to quickly dispose of them in here without odour certainly helps.
Muslins, Muslins & Muslins
I soon found you can never have enough. I did purchase some nice ones from the White Company which I use when I go out but with the amount I go through I have found the Primark and supermarket ones I purchased work perfectly well and have washed brilliantly. You can never have too many!
