Pregnancy, Labour, Birth, Maternity Hospital and New Baby Checklist

There are so many items to get your newborn baby from their time in the hospital, to the home - and even to see him or her through their first year. With such a large range of products on the market to choose from, how can expecting parents really know what they need and what they can ignore? It's so tricky, because some items new parents buy will never be used and others that they ignore would have been used every day!

At Parent Packs we have researched and selected quality, well priced, popular branded products, to help see you through from pregnancy, labour, and for when you bring your newborn baby home.  We hope our research in selecting the products for you, will help save you time and money (as items listed in our essential Baby Checklist are 10% less than RRP!).  We know that just the thought of having a baby is enough to deal with mentally and physically, so we hope that by us selecting which brand of products you could buy should help reduce any stress.

Walking into your first baby store can be very daunting for a first time mum - there are so many baby products and so many options.  For example, you would expect that an item such as breast pads should be pretty straightforward, but no - there are disposable ones and washable ones.  And then in each category there are at least 8 different brands on the market.  Why complicate things by offering so much choice?  At Parent Packs we are mums too and we have tried and sampled many items on the market.  We really hope that our essential Baby Checklist, with one brand of products available for sale in each category will assist you in your baby product purchases.  And we are always looking for feedback to ensure that we have the most comprehensive list.  So, please feel free to get in contact with us with your suggestions.

Check out our online Baby Checklist (which incorporates a Labour Bag Packing List, Maternity Hospital Checklist, New Baby Shopping List and a Nursery Checklist)

Here are a few pointers to get you started when you are preparing for you baby....

1. Baby Clothing - This one should be obvious! Other than making your baby the coolest toddler in the playpen, baby clothing is important to keep your baby warm and comfortable during the early years of life. Parents often make the mistake of buying too many clothes early on and then watch as their babies outgrow them in all in a matter of weeks - so be careful and make sure you only buy a few select items when you do your baby clothes shopping. Remember, it's always more cost effective to think of new baby clothing 2 sizes in advance. As far as specific items go, you'll need a going home outfit for your baby, one or two jumpsuits, some singlets, a hat and wraps to keep baby warm, and of course the best clothing of all: lots of hugs!

2. Baby Nursery Items - Clearly your baby is going to need somewhere to sleep, so a cot or cradle/bassinet is a must. Just like any other bed in your house, make sure you have a few changes of sheets and blankets - and ensure that they're at the ready for midnight changeovers! When it comes to buying the cot/cradle/bassinet, it's best not to scrimp and to get a good quality mattress set - since your baby won't be outgrowing it any time soon, it's a very wise investment. It's a good rule of thumb to also remember that being practical will always win out over looking "cool". Other important nursery baby products include nappy buckets, feeding chairs, changing tables, dressers and baby monitors.

3. Baby Care Products - These are products that you'll use for the baby's basic hygiene. So, we're talking about stuff to keep your baby happy and clean, like bathtubs, shampoos, toothpastes, towels - as well as general maintenance items like thermometers, clippers, wash cloths and nappies. When it comes to buying nappies, you won't know until you give both a try but both disposable and cotton nappies are exceptional at holding in all your baby's waste. Try both out and decide for yourself which your baby likes more and, of course, which you like more!

4. Baby Feeding - This is a really fast growing area of baby care as new products are rolled out what seems like every day from bottles to brushes to formula. There are also new technological items coming out all the time in the field of breast pumps, breastfeeding pillows, maternity nursing bras and lanolin just to name a few. Like the nappies, it's up to you whether you use formula or breast milk but experts all suggest you should do what you think is best for the baby and for you.

5. Other Baby Products - from dummies to teething rings to entertainment items like mobiles and play mats, there's a veritable cornucopia of baby products on the market designed to keep your baby happy, healthy and safe. Take a look through our extensive packs at the really useful items we stock in this regard. Depending on your budget, there's a range of entertaining and sooth baby products just perfect for your newborn and you can normally work out which your child likes the most within about 5 seconds of them playing with them. It's worth noting that like adults, not all babies are into the same things - so don't bank on the same toys being ideal for your next baby too. Let your baby play with a range of items and remember to keep trying to stimulate their minds constantly with new books, toys and movies. Also falling into this category is the wide range of baby travel products like nappy bags, strollers and car seats etc. - you can't afford to forget that stuff!

This short list is just an overview of the sorts of products to consider for your new baby. For a detailed list of the TRUE essentials, check out our essential checklist - the ultimate in baby necessities to-do lists. And if you have any questions about any of this, please feel free to contact us. Thanks for stopping by!

If you want to save more time in preparing for parenthood, check out our Maternity Packs / Pre-Packed Hospital Bags / Labour Bags / Labor Bags.

Or if you are looking for a gift, see our Gift Packs / Essential New Baby Gift Packs / Pregnancy Gift Packs / Pregnancy Pamper Packs / Newborn Baby Gift Hampers.