Newborn Essentials





As I sit here writing this post, it feels like Rae's newborn days were a lifetime ago (16.5 months ago exactly). I hate to be one of those annoying, count the time in months kind of mum's and I am looking forward to her being 18 months so I can say she one and a half  when people ask (feeling like a bad mum now putting that in writing).

Even though quite some time has passed since she was a not so tiny newborn, (9.5 lbs ouch) my most asked question and most requested blog post is "what were your newborn essentials".I remember being pregnant and trawling the internet for hours looking through every new born essentials list I could possibly find. I will be 100% honest and say I was such a sucker for some utter crap.


The perfect example is, those bulb snot suckers, they are useless and in my opinion the Snufflebabe aspirator, though it looks intimidating and gross is an actual life saver when you have a snotty baby who cannot clear their own nose #MUMLIFE.


Today I have been trying to think of all of my life saving new mum / first time mum suggestions to share with you and they are listed between a few of my phots below (some are linked below) . I am calling these things "suggestions", as I would never want anyone to feel like you "MUST HAVE" these items to be a good mum, because that is total rubbish. These are just a few of the things that I found helpful through some of the tough newborn phases but really all your baby needs is your love.

For all of the expectant mums and new first time mums reading this, please just 
know that no matter how you are feeling, you are doing a great job. Sometimes
it is really tough and you might feel like you're not doing it right, but as long
as your baby has you and your whole hearted love you are doing amazingly!




Ok, first thing is first, Breastfeeding! 
I always said I would never do it, but I did and it felt 100% natural to me, (although lets be honest it can be sooooo painful at times and I will not downplay that fact at all). So here are some items to really help you if you do decided to breastfeed, they helped me hugely. 



Your nipples will thank me later.

Breast Pad's 
 I used loads of different brands and they all worked the same.  

I loved the huge muslin swaddles from Aiden + Anais to use as cover up's for when feeding, although after about two months I just went cover free and did not care. It will just depend on if you prefer to be covered or let them be free.

If you want to pump alongside your feeds to have some milk in storage, you may want to invest in a breast pump. I used the Tommy Tippee manual pump and did not get along with it at all, so ended up getting their electric one and I loved it although it is very loud. 

- A Comfy Chair for home feeds.

Some form of clock to time their feeds 
I used the Glow Newborn tracker app to start with as it also allows you to track their toilet and sleeping habits too and gave good peace of mind. 

Good Nursing Bras
I got some really good ones from H&M and I think Figleaves, I am struggling to remember this as I threw them away. 

A Breast Feeding Pillow
I found this really useful for night feeds when you are exhausted and it also doubled
up to give to people who were not so confident holding little one, as they then have
a bit of extra support. 

A Hot Flannel and Epsom salts
Now, I will not sugar coat it, mastitis hurts like a bitch and a hot epsom salt bath is amazing but sometimes you do not have the luxury of time for said bath, so a hot flannel on the area of pain and some gentle massaging will really help, and repeat. 


To end this feeding section, I just wanted to add that although I breastfed,  that is not to say it is what you will want to do. If that is the case then one of my closest friends highly suggests the Tommee Tippee, one minute perfect prep machine, which we now use for Rae 
and it is marvellous. Just do some research on proper use.

I would always just suggest doing your own research on breast and bottle feeding.




Now onto non-feeding related suggestions. 

Lot's of baby grows - with build in scratch mitts / hand covers.
Always take the first three sizes into hospital. Rae was a lot bigger than anyone except me
expected and I kept being told she was tiny, even though I could feel she wasn't and it made me doubt myself, trust your instincts. To be prepared, just take a few sizes with you to the hospital. We got the ones with integrated scratch mitts so her hands were covered but they would not pull off loose like normal scratch mitts. Next have some great options of these.

If you are a breast feeding mum or just know that you want to have baby really close at night then this bedside cot is amazing and I would buy it over and over. 

You can either go super fancy or totally basic with a baby bouncer and I went BASIC and it worked a charm. If I had another baby I might get a fancier one just to keep them entertained for longer as I would then have two to keep occupied but Rae really did love the basic one.

I love love loved and still to love this monitor, great picture, great sound and you can also buy one with a cot sensor pad, we actually never used that part. This monitor to this day gives me peace of mind but like I said at the start it is all down to preference and there are probably some cheaper ones that are just as good. 


We decided to invest in a Sleepyhead instead of a Mosses basket for around the house as
it just seemed so portable. I would buy this for myself if I could and I have no shame in saying that.
 Rae loved this so much and it became such an essential part of daily life and as Rae and I were not very well when she was first born, it meant that lot of sofa time. 
She slept in this right next to me whilst I caught up on my reality TV and binged watched Netflix. This even came away with us if we needed to stay away for a night, it was a life saver as I think she enjoyed the feeling of being totally surrounded and snug. 

We got the Maxi Cosi Pebble (plus linked) above and we used it alongside the Maxi Cosi isofix base. This to me felt the most secure and I felt more safe driving with this installed although it may not be everyones cup of tea. 

Most baby baths look quite hard and uninviting. Bathing your baby in a huge bath to start off with can be scary and a little daunting. We got this bath and used it until Rae was about 5 months old. She has always loved baths and I put it down to this, as again I think the size for her was not intimidating and she felt secure in it. 

I love love love this pram so much, it has taken Rae through every stage so far and she will be using it for a while to come I think as she loves being in there. I love the sleek style of this pram and also the carrier underneath has lots of room. It is however easier to get to the storage once you move into using the seat rather than the carry cot. 

These mats are a god send if you are strapped for space when travelling and also in the early days when baby is more prone to poo explosions, as these are disposable and no need to worry about cleaning your baby and the changing mat. 

Again, when leaving the house this is amazing as your baby will 100% at some point throw they dummy on the floor. You can keep a spare one in this and then swap and put the dirty one in and it will be clean and ready to use again in 15 minutes. 




Other general items you will need

- Cot 

- Changing bag 

- Nappies - I loved the pampers premium protection 

- Hat

-Mittens

- Age appropriate snowsuit if winter time.
 I found layering other clothes better than these, alongside blankets.

- Scratch Mitts - only for daytime and supervised use.

- Lots of towels

- Baby hair brush

- Muslin squares - I had a lot of these and used them always

-General clothing - vests, cardigans, onesies. Rae was in onesies a lot as buying fancy outfits that she would quickly grow out of seemed pointless. 

- Blankets - you can get some beautifully personalised ones at My 1st Years

- Steriliser if bottle feeding - One of my closest friends recommends the Munchkin latch steriliser bags to sterilise when traveling. 

- Bath thermometer 

- Nail clippers

- Nappy Bags 

- Baby wipes, Baby wipes BABY WIPES! 
You will use a lot of these, I loved the Water wipes and Johnsons sensitive wipes. 

-Sudo Cream 

This gave me huge peace of mind as Rae was born mid summer in the middle of a heat wave. 

This also gave me peace of mind as it gives you a reading in seconds and no faffing around holding a thermometer under and armpit for ages. Do you see a trend here with the need for peace of mind. 

This little sheep will never understand the love I have for it. Rae slept with this near her for about 10 months and she loved it. It mimics heartbeat and three other white noise sounds, with a red glowing light. She found it very calming, as did I. 

My Close Mum Friends Suggest 

- Lanolin nipple cream (see I told you)

- Hakka Pump

- Nature bond pump

- Medela swing breast pump

- Grosnug - 
A small baby sleeping bag that you can zip baby's arms into to make them have the
feeling of being swaddled but in a safer way. 

- Vanish Oxy gold - for the inevitable poo stains

- Sleepy cream from Lush - I also loved this as Rae got older. 


And that I think is everything I can think of right now. 
Thank you for taking the time to read this post. Just to finish off I wanted to say make sure you also have essentials for yourself like lots of water and cosy clothes, along with Chocolate and treats that will make you feel good. I will be doing a whole post on breast feeding soon and what to do to prepare for the arrival of your newborn, but until then I really hope you found this post helpful. 

Please let me know what you think and if you have any suggestions, please leave them in the comments for everyone to see. I would love to build and see a supportive network of Mummies reading my blog and sharing their tips. 

Thank you again for reading and we hope to see you all again soon

Jordan

&

Rae 

x






























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