February 10, 2021 • 28 mins
Most parents make a lot of purchases when they’re expecting their first baby. But how much baby stuff do you really need? This week, Heidi and Emma break down the most important newborn and postpartum necessities, the best baby products to get as hand-me-downs, and the things you can wait on—or save your money on.
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Speaker 1 (00:00):
Who baby, my baby. Below I need you, Oh Hell,
I need you. What to Expect is a production of
I Heart Radio. I'm your host Heidi Murkop and I'm
a mom on a mission, a mission to help you
(00:20):
know what to expect every step of the way. They
arrive in the world equipped with nothing but a birthday suit,
definitely the sweetest suit your precious bundle will ever wear.
But get ready, your tiny baby will be way more
high maintenance in the next twelve months. And here she
(00:43):
was in the last nine. It may take a village
to raise a child, but it also takes a whole
lot of baby gear and itty biddy outfits, supplies of
every variety, and diapers lots and lots of diape first
Watson must have, probably not nearly as much as you think.
(01:05):
I mean, you can definitely lay out a bundle for
your little bundles, lay at a nursery, and you can
absolutely ask your friends and family to chip into That's
what registries are for. But before you get carried away
and your credit card gets maxed out, it's a good
idea to have some idea of what you really need,
(01:27):
what's nice to have, and what you'll probably realistically, never
use not to worry. We've got you. We're tackling everything
you need to know about buying for your baby, including
what you definitely need and what you definitely don't. I'm
here with Emma, Hey, Amma. Ready to go shopping? Yeah?
(01:51):
You were born ready to go shopping? Right? Yes I was.
If anybody knows about shopping, it's you. Like we all
have our strong suits. Yes mean to yes, we do.
I hate shopping. This is definitely your episode. I mean
especially shopping for baby stuff, shopping for baby clothes that
could become addictive. And we're gonna hopefully make sure it
(02:12):
doesn't get addictive because we're gonna help you navigate through this. Now,
what about you? When did you start buying stuff for
the baby? Okay, so my first baby, I was nervous.
I think eventually I started probably around seven months, six
seven months, such self restraint. And for me, it is
I was just like I did IBS and I was
(02:34):
so nervous about God forbids thing happening, so I didn't
want to Like Jinxit, I kind of did the same
with my second. However, like having two kids, I think
you really realize the crap you don't need everything I wanted.
The first time, I wanted the best roller out there,
I wanted the best car seat out there, And now
(02:57):
the second time, I'm like, yeah, I feel like Seby
got ah the second child syndrome, because you know, Lennox
had beautiful clothes and then Sebby was like always in
the cheap Amazon clothes. But that was kind of a
blessing because Sebby spit up eight hundred times a day,
so he would have ruined all those nice clothes. So
did you pay back? It's a bit okay, mom, Let's
(03:19):
talk about what your baby actually needs and what you
can save some money on. First of all, what you
actually need before the baby is born, and what can
or should you wait on until after? You should definitely
buy in baby steps. Try to start with just the
newborn needs. I mean, for one thing, you can't leave
(03:40):
the hospital without a car seat. You can't go anywhere
without a car seat, So that's must have a safe
sleep space, so a bassinet or a pack and play
with a bassinet insert he needs the sheets to go
with it. You don't need any other betting a changing
table maybe, or you can just use a portable changing station.
At first, especially if you're short on space. Lots of
(04:03):
burp cloths, spit happens, It happens, a lot swaddles or
sacks for sleep, a wrap or a baby carrier that's
comfortable for you, and every mom is different in that department,
but you will need one because your arms will get
tired as excited as you are about snuggling your baby,
and you'll want to wear your baby. And also that
(04:24):
less exciting but necessary stuff the baby grooming supplies like
a clipper or scissors for trimming those gency tiny finger
and toenails with because they can be overgrown by the
time of baby is born. I know you're dreading cutting them,
but still baby wash, shampoo, wipes, more wipes, diaper, rash cream,
cotton balls, and then the medicine cabinet stash. You won't
(04:47):
need very much infantile and although you won't be able
to use it until after age two months, a rectal thermometer,
nasal aspirator, a k ace not sucker very important. And
also don't forget supplies for you. You're gonna need supplies
to you need nipple cream, breast pads, maxi pads. You're
gonna need warm and cold packs for your sore breasts.
(05:10):
And of course you're gonna need your free to Perry bottle.
It's going to be way better than the one to
give you at the hospital. That was the best thing
that's ever happened to my vagina. God, and you can
use it after it's like a bi day. It's like
you're in France when you pee. If I can tell
you one thing to get on your registry, get the
free to Perry bottle. I'm thinking about it right now.
(05:32):
It's a postpartum crowd pleaser. Now you need newborn clothes
and diapers, but here you can definitely easily over buy.
And I'd say we definitely recommend that you don't over
buy because you never know how big or small your
baby is going to be when they're born. But also
they grow super super fast, and it'll be tempting to
(05:54):
doll your baby up. But try to keep it simple.
Please try to keep it simple. You'll understand why after
the first diaper blowout, a few spitting up episodes, and
during all the midnight changes. Really all you need are
a few T shirts and onesies, some footed sleepers, a
few sleep sex or nightgowns with elastic bottoms. Easy access
(06:18):
to the poop deck is essential. You want to keep
in mind that baby arms and legs, and they got
the floppy heads. It's really hard to put clothes on them,
so you want easy on and easy off and definitely
easy wash. I love the soft cotton that really feels
the best on baby soft skin. I love bamboo cotton.
(06:39):
Kicky Pants makes the softest, like I would love to
wear myself. What about the stuff you're not gonna need
right away but you'll need later. I feel like these
are things you can register for, but if you don't
get them right away, it's actually I would say it's
better to wait until you need them, because then you'll
have a better sense of what you will need. Um
(07:02):
high chairs for my second I didn't register. I just
ended up buying one when he was like seven months old,
And I think that makes sense. You know, even a
crib isn't must have until your baby outgrows. You know,
whatever the safe sleep spaces that you have early on
the bassinet. And one thing you will never need, not early,
not late, not ever is bumpers because they are not
(07:24):
considered safe, or blankets for sleep or pillows for sleep.
What about feeding supplies. I think with feeding supplies, what
you need really depends on how you plan to feed
your baby, even though that might change because Emma, of
course you plan to breastfeed and then you ended up
bottle feeding. But even if you're planning to breastfeed and
(07:44):
your breastfeed exclusively, you're still gonna need bottles and nipples,
I mean even for an occasional bottle of breastmel just
to get your baby used to a bottle, because if
you don't do that early on, your baby will never
ever take a bottle, like like you and why it
never took a bottle, I had to be the human pacifier.
And also speaking of pacifiers, it might take a while
(08:07):
for your baby to find the perfect passy, and so
I wouldn't suck up on one brand of bottle or
one brand of passy because you never know what your
baby is gonna end up taking. And then also something
else to keep in mind is that breast pumps are
covered under the A C A, So a lot of
insurance plans, probably not all, but most insurance plans are
(08:30):
going to cover a good breast pump, and so you
won't have to buy one. There might be a copay,
but call your insurance company and see what is covered,
and they might also cover other breastfeeding supplies. You know,
it can be the Michelin Star passy, but that doesn't
mean your kid's gonna take it. Your kid might take
the Dollar Store pass So even though they're cute, doesn't
(08:54):
mean your kid's going to be on board exactly. Okay,
so what about the nursery. I think that's everybody's kind
(09:16):
of like favorite. They start pinning things on Pinterest, But
how necessary is it Because for me, at least, Sey
didn't go into his room until he was twelve months.
That wasn't my husband's idea, that was mine. So it's
funny because everybody stresses so much about getting the nursery ready,
but you know, the truth day is your baby isn't
gonna be moving in there for at least six months,
(09:39):
maybe up to twelve months. Are supposed to share your
room until then, So it's great to have it all
set up and Instagram ready, but it's really not necessary. Now.
The glider is gonna be a great thing to have,
but you don't necessarily have to put it in the
nursery if you're not using the nursery yet or it's
not set up yet. You can keep the glider, which
is perfect for breath feeding or bottle feeding, or just
(10:02):
for soothing your baby. You can keep it in a
more convenient place where you're gonna be more often, like
the living room for now. And all those stuffed animals
that you would put in your nursery, they're just for decoration.
So what can we borrow and what's safe for hand
me downs? And what definitely needs to be new because
I used a lot of hand me downs from one
(10:23):
kid to the second. And actually I gave my beautiful
fancy crib with Lennox to my best friend and she
still uses it for her daughter. So when is sharing
is care and good? And sharing is caring not so good? Well,
we're here to save as much money as possible because
you're gonna be stolen out a lot of cash. Babies
are expensive. Babies are expensive. Absolutely, I would borrow as
(10:48):
many clothes as you possibly can. I would say the
same goes from returney clothes because you're only going to
wear them a couple of times. Annie, And all clothes
they're gonna get pooped on, they're gonna get split up.
One and the same goes for baby receiving blankets and
burp clothes, even cloth diapers. Listen, if they've lasted, let's
recycle them. There are some things that you should not borrow,
(11:11):
and that would be things that might have been recalled
clearly or might not meet current safety standards, like a
car seat. Definitely don't borrow a car seat. If you
maybe you've had babies coast together, you might be able
to use the same car seat. You want to make
sure it's up to safety standards that are most recent,
because the newest car seats are always the safest ones.
(11:33):
Toys also, they might have been recalled or they might
not be up to safety snuff, so check that out first. Now.
Breast pumps are one thing you should definitely not consider
borrowing or even buying us because most are designed only
for one mom use and not to share. They're totally
impossible to seralyze most of them, and even if the
(11:54):
tubing and the other parts are bought new, it's not
a good idea. So you can rent a hospital great
pump that's properly sterilized, but it's best to buy them
new or get them under your insurance plan. Okay, so
there are obviously some must haves strollers, car seats, they're
the big purchases. How do moms know they're picking good ones?
(12:18):
You've got to look for safety certification of course, um SO,
j p M A, cps C, this Consumer Product Safety Commission,
do your homework online and look at those online reviews,
because nobody knows what a mama needs more than another mama.
I mean, what to Expect community is a great source
of info, and there are reviews on what to expect
(12:41):
for products. And also every year we have the What
to Expect Awards that only moms get to vote on.
So I think that's a great way to find what's
worked for other moms. But you also have to factor
in because every mom is different. You've got a factor
in your budget, your circumstances, where you live, how you live,
(13:01):
what's important to you, and that might be very different
from other moms on your message board. So if you
live in the suburbs and you've got sidewalks everywhere and
you're going to be using your stroller a lot on sidewalks,
that's very different than a stroller for the city. Comfort
levels are going to be different depending on your size too.
For me being so short, I need something, you know,
(13:24):
down low, you need something that's more high. You also
have to take into account your local store aisles. In
New York City, the store aisles were so narrow that
I couldn't get through them with my double stroller when
I had two of you. Or the size of your trunk.
How much will your trunk fit, or even if you
have a car, or you're gonna be doing public transport,
(13:44):
and that means you're gonna have to open and close,
open and close. It's got to be easy to open
and close. And season matters too for certain items. So
a summer baby might need a lightweight baby carrier or wrap,
and a winter baby might need something more snug like.
I also think it's a great to look into a
travel system where your car seat can attach to the stroller.
(14:07):
You can register for like a set which is like
the stroller and the car seat and they all connect
and it makes it so much easier because if your
baby is sleeping, the last thing you want to do
is wake a baby and put them in the stroller.
For sure. That's more for the newborn car seats. Yeah, yeah,
so I'm saying you don't want to get a stroller
that doesn't work with your car seat because you're just
going to be screwed. Yeah, and more expensive doesn't always
(14:28):
mean better, right, No, there's so many cheap travel systems
and they're amazing reviews. Okay, so what about registering? What
is the best time to do that? For me, registering
is the best thing on earth. As for when to register,
the ball is really in your court. You can think
of it as a work in progress, like a working
(14:50):
document that you can keep adding to or subtracting from
as you do more homework and get more feedback online
or from family and friends. I mean, you can even
started before you announce that you're pregnant. There's a private
mode that you can choose, and definitely get registered before
the baby shower invites go out, because that way people
(15:13):
know what to buy you. And if you're superstitious, you
can just wait until the baby arrives to push send.
Or you know, if you are waiting to find out
the sex of the baby and there are certain things
that you want to be pink or blue on, then
you can wait until you find out. Okay, but like
g got one registrate, you get two registries, three or
(15:34):
four registries, Like what do you think? That's totally up
to you. Some moms like getting the multiple welcome gifts
from the multiple registries, so that could be a plus,
but it's really not going to be as easier to
keep track of. Now, make sure that you register for
items in a wide price range, because some friends and
family might want to combine their buying power for bigger
(15:56):
ticket items, and others are gonna want to buy lots
of little things, even you know, breast paths diapers and
you're gonna need it. Also, why not Sometimes people can't
afford to buy something that's more than like five dollars,
So you've got to give everyone the option of what
they can afford in their price range. So I'm going
(16:27):
to turn the table over to you now, Emma, because
you really are the shopping and product guru, Like this
is not my area of expertise. Okay, so we're gonna
go over some must havevs. What were your favorites and
what have you heard from your mom followers? Okay, let's
(16:48):
do this on Instagram. Mom said the nose freda aspirator,
Like a million people said this, and I cannot agree
more exactly, because here's the thing about baby nose is
that that's stuffy. But there's no way you can blow
their nose, So you've got to get that snot out
one way or another. And the snot sucker besides the
(17:09):
name of it is so amazing. But any nasal aspirator
is important to have. That should be at the top
of your register totally. It is now. Okay, a good monitor,
I agree, but it also depends, like if you have
a small home or like a studio apartment, you don't
need a monitor. But if you have um multi room house,
a monitor is great, and there's different options. And keep
(17:31):
in mind, of course that if they're sleeping in your room,
which they should be for at least the first six months,
it might not be as essential, but still good to
happen because you're not going to be sleeping as many
hours hopefully as your baby is. Okay, Bobby pillows and
boppy newborn loungers. I had them both, and I love
them both. If anything, the body lounger is great for
(17:56):
taking pictures of your new born. That's so true. That's
so true. And it's like the snug little cocoon and
it's so soft and cozy, but we've got to have
a safety caveat here, because you can never leave your
baby unattended in one of these. They might fall asleep.
Don't leave their side in that all things freed to.
(18:17):
I use their nail clippers, I used the windy, I
used the squirt bottle for my postpartum vagina. Everything that
freedom makes is amazing and I think that moms all
agree on this totally. Okay. So humidifier, So here's the
thing about humidifiers. I wouldn't say they are necessary, but
(18:38):
if you are going to use a humidifier, the hotness
is not safe, so you use a coolness. You've got
to keep it clean. That's the most important part. So
you've got to follow those instructions that it comes with
manual breast pumps, because even if you get the hospital
grid one, it's always nice to kind of do some
manual pumping. Well. The thing about the manual pump is
(18:59):
if your breast are really really full before you put
your baby on on the breast so that it's easier
for him to get a grasp on it, you can
just pump a little first. Or if your baby is
always like gulping because there's so much milk coming out
at first. Just take a little edge off before you
put baby on. Mattress protector for those leaks. You might
(19:19):
also want one for your bed because especially in the
early months, when your breasts are leaking a lot, you
definitely don't want to have to keep changing your mattress out.
And also on the topic of mattresses, it's so important
to invest in a good mattress for your babies crib
when you get to the crib point because it should
be super firm baby swing. The swing is fine for
(19:44):
you know, maybe thirty minutes at a time, um, but
not for sleep. It's not safe for sleep, and you
don't really need it, honestly. Pack and play, yes, definitely
pack and play, especially if it has the insert for
the bassonet, because you can put that right next to
your bed and that way you have easy access to
(20:06):
your baby. And and also you said that they have
changing so they have changing tables on them too, multi
purpose and that way you save a lot of money
because maybe you want to end up needing a changing table.
Banky clips. I love woman up pass these, They're so cute.
A woman up has a little teeny stuffed animal attached
(20:26):
to it, not big enough so that it's a safety risk.
Safety first, they are super cute and babies love them
and parents and parents. But you know the other thing
is you want to be able to find the past
see quickly. You know, don't buy tons of pass these
or anything that you're not your Your baby's gonna like
(20:47):
stock up later. Okay. Swaddles and Muslin blankets. I love
Muslin because we live in California and I'm always scared
my kids getting hot. Swaddles I only use bell Grow
because I can't swaddle, because there's a lightweight that makes
them safer. But you're not going to need blankets at
all for the crib. But they're great to like just
(21:10):
hold the baby, especially if you want to protect yourself
from spit up. Speaking of which or class, everybody said
you need our class, which is true. I went through
so many with Seby. He would spit up constantly. But
also bibbs, because you think of bibbs is something you
need just for feeding, but in fact baby spit up
so much it really helps to protect their clothing. You
(21:32):
don't have to dress them and undress them if they're
wearing a bib and they spit up on their bib.
Very true. What do you not need because we're trying
to save mama's money here, what are places of parents
typically waste money on? Okay, so I asked on Instagram,
of course, and these are the things that moms were like,
don't need it. I thought I needed it. Don't need it.
(21:54):
Swaddles with no vel grow amen, because in the middle
of the night, the last thing you want to do
is try to do like a traditional swaddle. They're going
to be diaper changes in the middle of the night,
and that's again why you want easy access to the
poop deck. Yes, and hybrids like the sacks. Just don't
make me do oregon me at two am. You know,
(22:18):
way too many clothes. People say it's not necessary, and
they grow fast and they get stained and it's just
not necessarily. One thing that wasn't on the mussouse, but
you gotta have it is stained remover. Oh my gosh, yeah,
because that's been up if you don't get to it fast.
Oh boy, it's forever. Baby shoes for newborns adorable, but
(22:40):
not necessarily because they're not walking or doing much of anything.
You know. The funny thing is even after they're walking,
they're better off walking barefoot. And the other thing is
that baby shoes they kick them off. Okay, bumpers obviously
not safe. Not safe. Diaper genie, I don't know. I
liked the arm and hammer one by Munchkin. I thought
(23:03):
it was great. Someone said that the diaper genie was
not something they needed and maybe they use cloth diapers.
I feel like you do need a pail of some sort.
There are gonna be a lot of diapers early on,
a lot of diapers. And we're talking like eight poops
a day, ten poops. Said hey, if the baby's breastfed,
so yeah, okay, so the mom Maru. You guys, some
(23:24):
of you said your babies didn't like it. Lennox loved it,
Sebby wasn't that into it. It's like this super expensive
swing thing. You know. It looks really cool. It's like
space ag looking and you can do it back and forth,
front and back. Some babies just don't like the sensation.
(23:46):
It is very pricey, so I mean, if you want
to register for it, but your baby might not love it.
After all. Sterilizing kits, I think I may have bought them,
but didn't use them because I can also just boil water. Yeah,
and and the truth is that only maybe Premise would
(24:06):
need their bottles sterilized. Um. If your doctor recommends it,
that's one thing. But you can just boil water. But honestly,
you can stick them in the dishwasher for the most part.
That's fine. P pods to cover the penis, the p
P T pas. I got them as a gift for Lennox,
and I didn't use them. So the idea is, when
(24:29):
you're changing a boy, you always have to consider them
armed and dangerous and so um. You can just you
don't need a p P T P. You can just
use a taper, put it over just to protect you. Also,
that p is strong, it's going to shoot that little
hat off the penis. I'm sorry, that's true, Okay. Bottle
(24:49):
warmers I used religiously, can also just use hot water
and save money. Babies are not born needing their bottles warmed,
and it's just a matter of like it becomes a habit.
My bottle's got to be warm, my wife's have got
to be warm. And in fact, you can do everything
at room temperature. Some people said that they didn't feel
(25:12):
the baby breathing monitor outlet was necessary. I actually totally
agree with that, because, first of all, there can be
lots of false alarms on those things, and it can
give you a false sense of security too. So that
actually worries me more is that if you're like putting
your baby in an unsafe sleep space because you feel, oh, well,
(25:32):
I've got the breathing monitor, so I'm gonna know if
something goes wrong, that's actually really dangerous thing to do. So,
you know, unless your doctor recommends it, you know you
have a premy there's some reason for your baby's breathing
to be monitored. I would say no. The wrap. I
love when moms wrapped their babies. I couldn't figure it out.
I think that's an item that either you like it
(25:54):
or you don't. You know, well, I wouldn't wait until
the baby's there to like give it a whirl. I
would pack by ahead of time. I mean, of course,
it's going to be different when you have a bump
than afterwards. But here's the thing that I love about
baby wearing is that it's really can help with post
partum mood disorders. Um Wearing your baby has been proven,
(26:15):
in fact to minimize the symptoms. So if you can
baby where in that situation your baby is close to you,
they cry less, they hear your heartbeat. It's very soothing
and it does release oxytocin so you feel happier. Okay,
So am I any final tips for nesting moms, especially
(26:36):
moms who are worried about budgeting for babies. Sometimes you've
got to step away from the Pinterest board because everything
is super cute, and you know, especially as the first
time mom, you want to make everything look perfect and
get the best of the best. But then babies are
messy and nothing's perfect, and that nursery is gonna be
(26:57):
like a mess. You're gonna be tied, You're then you're
gonna throw those beautiful swaddles on the floor, and there's
gonna be laundry piled up, and there's gonna be diapers overflowing. Honestly, like,
get what's necessary, you know, and you can always get more,
there's no like time limit. And enjoy that baby, yes,
and also have fun shopping baby love my baby, belof
(27:25):
I need you, Oh how I need you. Thanks for listening.
Remember I'm always here for you. What to expect is
always here for you who are all in this together.
For more on what you heard on today's episodes, visit
what to Expect dot com slash podcast. You can also
check out what to Expect when You're Expecting, What to
(27:47):
Expect the First Year, and the What to Expect f
and We want to hear from you. Connect with us
on our community message board or on our social media.
You can find me, Heidi Murkoff and Emma at Emma
Being w t E and of course at What to Expect.
Baby Love is performed by Riley bed. What to Expect
(28:11):
is a production of I Heart Radio. From more shows
from I Heart Radio check out the I Heart Radio app,
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In My Arms White Don't Just Stay Knija Knija Baby
Love Baby below
Who baby, my baby. Below I need you, Oh Hell,
I need you. What to Expect is a production of
I Heart Radio. I'm your host Heidi Murkop and I'm
a mom on a mission, a mission to help you
(00:20):
know what to expect every step of the way. They
arrive in the world equipped with nothing but a birthday suit,
definitely the sweetest suit your precious bundle will ever wear.
But get ready, your tiny baby will be way more
high maintenance in the next twelve months. And here she
(00:43):
was in the last nine. It may take a village
to raise a child, but it also takes a whole
lot of baby gear and itty biddy outfits, supplies of
every variety, and diapers lots and lots of diape first
Watson must have, probably not nearly as much as you think.
(01:05):
I mean, you can definitely lay out a bundle for
your little bundles, lay at a nursery, and you can
absolutely ask your friends and family to chip into That's
what registries are for. But before you get carried away
and your credit card gets maxed out, it's a good
idea to have some idea of what you really need,
(01:27):
what's nice to have, and what you'll probably realistically, never
use not to worry. We've got you. We're tackling everything
you need to know about buying for your baby, including
what you definitely need and what you definitely don't. I'm
here with Emma, Hey, Amma. Ready to go shopping? Yeah?
(01:51):
You were born ready to go shopping? Right? Yes I was.
If anybody knows about shopping, it's you. Like we all
have our strong suits. Yes mean to yes, we do.
I hate shopping. This is definitely your episode. I mean
especially shopping for baby stuff, shopping for baby clothes that
could become addictive. And we're gonna hopefully make sure it
(02:12):
doesn't get addictive because we're gonna help you navigate through this. Now,
what about you? When did you start buying stuff for
the baby? Okay, so my first baby, I was nervous.
I think eventually I started probably around seven months, six
seven months, such self restraint. And for me, it is
I was just like I did IBS and I was
(02:34):
so nervous about God forbids thing happening, so I didn't
want to Like Jinxit, I kind of did the same
with my second. However, like having two kids, I think
you really realize the crap you don't need everything I wanted.
The first time, I wanted the best roller out there,
I wanted the best car seat out there, And now
(02:57):
the second time, I'm like, yeah, I feel like Seby
got ah the second child syndrome, because you know, Lennox
had beautiful clothes and then Sebby was like always in
the cheap Amazon clothes. But that was kind of a
blessing because Sebby spit up eight hundred times a day,
so he would have ruined all those nice clothes. So
did you pay back? It's a bit okay, mom, Let's
(03:19):
talk about what your baby actually needs and what you
can save some money on. First of all, what you
actually need before the baby is born, and what can
or should you wait on until after? You should definitely
buy in baby steps. Try to start with just the
newborn needs. I mean, for one thing, you can't leave
(03:40):
the hospital without a car seat. You can't go anywhere
without a car seat, So that's must have a safe
sleep space, so a bassinet or a pack and play
with a bassinet insert he needs the sheets to go
with it. You don't need any other betting a changing
table maybe, or you can just use a portable changing station.
At first, especially if you're short on space. Lots of
(04:03):
burp cloths, spit happens, It happens, a lot swaddles or
sacks for sleep, a wrap or a baby carrier that's
comfortable for you, and every mom is different in that department,
but you will need one because your arms will get
tired as excited as you are about snuggling your baby,
and you'll want to wear your baby. And also that
(04:24):
less exciting but necessary stuff the baby grooming supplies like
a clipper or scissors for trimming those gency tiny finger
and toenails with because they can be overgrown by the
time of baby is born. I know you're dreading cutting them,
but still baby wash, shampoo, wipes, more wipes, diaper, rash cream,
cotton balls, and then the medicine cabinet stash. You won't
(04:47):
need very much infantile and although you won't be able
to use it until after age two months, a rectal thermometer,
nasal aspirator, a k ace not sucker very important. And
also don't forget supplies for you. You're gonna need supplies
to you need nipple cream, breast pads, maxi pads. You're
gonna need warm and cold packs for your sore breasts.
(05:10):
And of course you're gonna need your free to Perry bottle.
It's going to be way better than the one to
give you at the hospital. That was the best thing
that's ever happened to my vagina. God, and you can
use it after it's like a bi day. It's like
you're in France when you pee. If I can tell
you one thing to get on your registry, get the
free to Perry bottle. I'm thinking about it right now.
(05:32):
It's a postpartum crowd pleaser. Now you need newborn clothes
and diapers, but here you can definitely easily over buy.
And I'd say we definitely recommend that you don't over
buy because you never know how big or small your
baby is going to be when they're born. But also
they grow super super fast, and it'll be tempting to
(05:54):
doll your baby up. But try to keep it simple.
Please try to keep it simple. You'll understand why after
the first diaper blowout, a few spitting up episodes, and
during all the midnight changes. Really all you need are
a few T shirts and onesies, some footed sleepers, a
few sleep sex or nightgowns with elastic bottoms. Easy access
(06:18):
to the poop deck is essential. You want to keep
in mind that baby arms and legs, and they got
the floppy heads. It's really hard to put clothes on them,
so you want easy on and easy off and definitely
easy wash. I love the soft cotton that really feels
the best on baby soft skin. I love bamboo cotton.
(06:39):
Kicky Pants makes the softest, like I would love to
wear myself. What about the stuff you're not gonna need
right away but you'll need later. I feel like these
are things you can register for, but if you don't
get them right away, it's actually I would say it's
better to wait until you need them, because then you'll
have a better sense of what you will need. Um
(07:02):
high chairs for my second I didn't register. I just
ended up buying one when he was like seven months old,
And I think that makes sense. You know, even a
crib isn't must have until your baby outgrows. You know,
whatever the safe sleep spaces that you have early on
the bassinet. And one thing you will never need, not early,
not late, not ever is bumpers because they are not
(07:24):
considered safe, or blankets for sleep or pillows for sleep.
What about feeding supplies. I think with feeding supplies, what
you need really depends on how you plan to feed
your baby, even though that might change because Emma, of
course you plan to breastfeed and then you ended up
bottle feeding. But even if you're planning to breastfeed and
(07:44):
your breastfeed exclusively, you're still gonna need bottles and nipples,
I mean even for an occasional bottle of breastmel just
to get your baby used to a bottle, because if
you don't do that early on, your baby will never
ever take a bottle, like like you and why it
never took a bottle, I had to be the human pacifier.
And also speaking of pacifiers, it might take a while
(08:07):
for your baby to find the perfect passy, and so
I wouldn't suck up on one brand of bottle or
one brand of passy because you never know what your
baby is gonna end up taking. And then also something
else to keep in mind is that breast pumps are
covered under the A C A, So a lot of
insurance plans, probably not all, but most insurance plans are
(08:30):
going to cover a good breast pump, and so you
won't have to buy one. There might be a copay,
but call your insurance company and see what is covered,
and they might also cover other breastfeeding supplies. You know,
it can be the Michelin Star passy, but that doesn't
mean your kid's gonna take it. Your kid might take
the Dollar Store pass So even though they're cute, doesn't
(08:54):
mean your kid's going to be on board exactly. Okay,
so what about the nursery. I think that's everybody's kind
(09:16):
of like favorite. They start pinning things on Pinterest, But
how necessary is it Because for me, at least, Sey
didn't go into his room until he was twelve months.
That wasn't my husband's idea, that was mine. So it's
funny because everybody stresses so much about getting the nursery ready,
but you know, the truth day is your baby isn't
gonna be moving in there for at least six months,
(09:39):
maybe up to twelve months. Are supposed to share your
room until then, So it's great to have it all
set up and Instagram ready, but it's really not necessary. Now.
The glider is gonna be a great thing to have,
but you don't necessarily have to put it in the
nursery if you're not using the nursery yet or it's
not set up yet. You can keep the glider, which
is perfect for breath feeding or bottle feeding, or just
(10:02):
for soothing your baby. You can keep it in a
more convenient place where you're gonna be more often, like
the living room for now. And all those stuffed animals
that you would put in your nursery, they're just for decoration.
So what can we borrow and what's safe for hand
me downs? And what definitely needs to be new because
I used a lot of hand me downs from one
(10:23):
kid to the second. And actually I gave my beautiful
fancy crib with Lennox to my best friend and she
still uses it for her daughter. So when is sharing
is care and good? And sharing is caring not so good? Well,
we're here to save as much money as possible because
you're gonna be stolen out a lot of cash. Babies
are expensive. Babies are expensive. Absolutely, I would borrow as
(10:48):
many clothes as you possibly can. I would say the
same goes from returney clothes because you're only going to
wear them a couple of times. Annie, And all clothes
they're gonna get pooped on, they're gonna get split up.
One and the same goes for baby receiving blankets and
burp clothes, even cloth diapers. Listen, if they've lasted, let's
recycle them. There are some things that you should not borrow,
(11:11):
and that would be things that might have been recalled
clearly or might not meet current safety standards, like a
car seat. Definitely don't borrow a car seat. If you
maybe you've had babies coast together, you might be able
to use the same car seat. You want to make
sure it's up to safety standards that are most recent,
because the newest car seats are always the safest ones.
(11:33):
Toys also, they might have been recalled or they might
not be up to safety snuff, so check that out first. Now.
Breast pumps are one thing you should definitely not consider
borrowing or even buying us because most are designed only
for one mom use and not to share. They're totally
impossible to seralyze most of them, and even if the
(11:54):
tubing and the other parts are bought new, it's not
a good idea. So you can rent a hospital great
pump that's properly sterilized, but it's best to buy them
new or get them under your insurance plan. Okay, so
there are obviously some must haves strollers, car seats, they're
the big purchases. How do moms know they're picking good ones?
(12:18):
You've got to look for safety certification of course, um SO,
j p M A, cps C, this Consumer Product Safety Commission,
do your homework online and look at those online reviews,
because nobody knows what a mama needs more than another mama.
I mean, what to Expect community is a great source
of info, and there are reviews on what to expect
(12:41):
for products. And also every year we have the What
to Expect Awards that only moms get to vote on.
So I think that's a great way to find what's
worked for other moms. But you also have to factor
in because every mom is different. You've got a factor
in your budget, your circumstances, where you live, how you live,
(13:01):
what's important to you, and that might be very different
from other moms on your message board. So if you
live in the suburbs and you've got sidewalks everywhere and
you're going to be using your stroller a lot on sidewalks,
that's very different than a stroller for the city. Comfort
levels are going to be different depending on your size too.
For me being so short, I need something, you know,
(13:24):
down low, you need something that's more high. You also
have to take into account your local store aisles. In
New York City, the store aisles were so narrow that
I couldn't get through them with my double stroller when
I had two of you. Or the size of your trunk.
How much will your trunk fit, or even if you
have a car, or you're gonna be doing public transport,
(13:44):
and that means you're gonna have to open and close,
open and close. It's got to be easy to open
and close. And season matters too for certain items. So
a summer baby might need a lightweight baby carrier or wrap,
and a winter baby might need something more snug like.
I also think it's a great to look into a
travel system where your car seat can attach to the stroller.
(14:07):
You can register for like a set which is like
the stroller and the car seat and they all connect
and it makes it so much easier because if your
baby is sleeping, the last thing you want to do
is wake a baby and put them in the stroller.
For sure. That's more for the newborn car seats. Yeah, yeah,
so I'm saying you don't want to get a stroller
that doesn't work with your car seat because you're just
going to be screwed. Yeah, and more expensive doesn't always
(14:28):
mean better, right, No, there's so many cheap travel systems
and they're amazing reviews. Okay, so what about registering? What
is the best time to do that? For me, registering
is the best thing on earth. As for when to register,
the ball is really in your court. You can think
of it as a work in progress, like a working
(14:50):
document that you can keep adding to or subtracting from
as you do more homework and get more feedback online
or from family and friends. I mean, you can even
started before you announce that you're pregnant. There's a private
mode that you can choose, and definitely get registered before
the baby shower invites go out, because that way people
(15:13):
know what to buy you. And if you're superstitious, you
can just wait until the baby arrives to push send.
Or you know, if you are waiting to find out
the sex of the baby and there are certain things
that you want to be pink or blue on, then
you can wait until you find out. Okay, but like
g got one registrate, you get two registries, three or
(15:34):
four registries, Like what do you think? That's totally up
to you. Some moms like getting the multiple welcome gifts
from the multiple registries, so that could be a plus,
but it's really not going to be as easier to
keep track of. Now, make sure that you register for
items in a wide price range, because some friends and
family might want to combine their buying power for bigger
(15:56):
ticket items, and others are gonna want to buy lots
of little things, even you know, breast paths diapers and
you're gonna need it. Also, why not Sometimes people can't
afford to buy something that's more than like five dollars,
So you've got to give everyone the option of what
they can afford in their price range. So I'm going
(16:27):
to turn the table over to you now, Emma, because
you really are the shopping and product guru, Like this
is not my area of expertise. Okay, so we're gonna
go over some must havevs. What were your favorites and
what have you heard from your mom followers? Okay, let's
(16:48):
do this on Instagram. Mom said the nose freda aspirator,
Like a million people said this, and I cannot agree
more exactly, because here's the thing about baby nose is
that that's stuffy. But there's no way you can blow
their nose, So you've got to get that snot out
one way or another. And the snot sucker besides the
(17:09):
name of it is so amazing. But any nasal aspirator
is important to have. That should be at the top
of your register totally. It is now. Okay, a good monitor,
I agree, but it also depends, like if you have
a small home or like a studio apartment, you don't
need a monitor. But if you have um multi room house,
a monitor is great, and there's different options. And keep
(17:31):
in mind, of course that if they're sleeping in your room,
which they should be for at least the first six months,
it might not be as essential, but still good to
happen because you're not going to be sleeping as many
hours hopefully as your baby is. Okay, Bobby pillows and
boppy newborn loungers. I had them both, and I love
them both. If anything, the body lounger is great for
(17:56):
taking pictures of your new born. That's so true. That's
so true. And it's like the snug little cocoon and
it's so soft and cozy, but we've got to have
a safety caveat here, because you can never leave your
baby unattended in one of these. They might fall asleep.
Don't leave their side in that all things freed to.
(18:17):
I use their nail clippers, I used the windy, I
used the squirt bottle for my postpartum vagina. Everything that
freedom makes is amazing and I think that moms all
agree on this totally. Okay. So humidifier, So here's the
thing about humidifiers. I wouldn't say they are necessary, but
(18:38):
if you are going to use a humidifier, the hotness
is not safe, so you use a coolness. You've got
to keep it clean. That's the most important part. So
you've got to follow those instructions that it comes with
manual breast pumps, because even if you get the hospital
grid one, it's always nice to kind of do some
manual pumping. Well. The thing about the manual pump is
(18:59):
if your breast are really really full before you put
your baby on on the breast so that it's easier
for him to get a grasp on it, you can
just pump a little first. Or if your baby is
always like gulping because there's so much milk coming out
at first. Just take a little edge off before you
put baby on. Mattress protector for those leaks. You might
(19:19):
also want one for your bed because especially in the
early months, when your breasts are leaking a lot, you
definitely don't want to have to keep changing your mattress out.
And also on the topic of mattresses, it's so important
to invest in a good mattress for your babies crib
when you get to the crib point because it should
be super firm baby swing. The swing is fine for
(19:44):
you know, maybe thirty minutes at a time, um, but
not for sleep. It's not safe for sleep, and you
don't really need it, honestly. Pack and play, yes, definitely
pack and play, especially if it has the insert for
the bassonet, because you can put that right next to
your bed and that way you have easy access to
(20:06):
your baby. And and also you said that they have
changing so they have changing tables on them too, multi
purpose and that way you save a lot of money
because maybe you want to end up needing a changing table.
Banky clips. I love woman up pass these, They're so cute.
A woman up has a little teeny stuffed animal attached
(20:26):
to it, not big enough so that it's a safety risk.
Safety first, they are super cute and babies love them
and parents and parents. But you know the other thing
is you want to be able to find the past
see quickly. You know, don't buy tons of pass these
or anything that you're not your Your baby's gonna like
(20:47):
stock up later. Okay. Swaddles and Muslin blankets. I love
Muslin because we live in California and I'm always scared
my kids getting hot. Swaddles I only use bell Grow
because I can't swaddle, because there's a lightweight that makes
them safer. But you're not going to need blankets at
all for the crib. But they're great to like just
(21:10):
hold the baby, especially if you want to protect yourself
from spit up. Speaking of which or class, everybody said
you need our class, which is true. I went through
so many with Seby. He would spit up constantly. But
also bibbs, because you think of bibbs is something you
need just for feeding, but in fact baby spit up
so much it really helps to protect their clothing. You
(21:32):
don't have to dress them and undress them if they're
wearing a bib and they spit up on their bib.
Very true. What do you not need because we're trying
to save mama's money here, what are places of parents
typically waste money on? Okay, so I asked on Instagram,
of course, and these are the things that moms were like,
don't need it. I thought I needed it. Don't need it.
(21:54):
Swaddles with no vel grow amen, because in the middle
of the night, the last thing you want to do
is try to do like a traditional swaddle. They're going
to be diaper changes in the middle of the night,
and that's again why you want easy access to the
poop deck. Yes, and hybrids like the sacks. Just don't
make me do oregon me at two am. You know,
(22:18):
way too many clothes. People say it's not necessary, and
they grow fast and they get stained and it's just
not necessarily. One thing that wasn't on the mussouse, but
you gotta have it is stained remover. Oh my gosh, yeah,
because that's been up if you don't get to it fast.
Oh boy, it's forever. Baby shoes for newborns adorable, but
(22:40):
not necessarily because they're not walking or doing much of anything.
You know. The funny thing is even after they're walking,
they're better off walking barefoot. And the other thing is
that baby shoes they kick them off. Okay, bumpers obviously
not safe. Not safe. Diaper genie, I don't know. I
liked the arm and hammer one by Munchkin. I thought
(23:03):
it was great. Someone said that the diaper genie was
not something they needed and maybe they use cloth diapers.
I feel like you do need a pail of some sort.
There are gonna be a lot of diapers early on,
a lot of diapers. And we're talking like eight poops
a day, ten poops. Said hey, if the baby's breastfed,
so yeah, okay, so the mom Maru. You guys, some
(23:24):
of you said your babies didn't like it. Lennox loved it,
Sebby wasn't that into it. It's like this super expensive
swing thing. You know. It looks really cool. It's like
space ag looking and you can do it back and forth,
front and back. Some babies just don't like the sensation.
(23:46):
It is very pricey, so I mean, if you want
to register for it, but your baby might not love it.
After all. Sterilizing kits, I think I may have bought them,
but didn't use them because I can also just boil water. Yeah,
and and the truth is that only maybe Premise would
(24:06):
need their bottles sterilized. Um. If your doctor recommends it,
that's one thing. But you can just boil water. But honestly,
you can stick them in the dishwasher for the most part.
That's fine. P pods to cover the penis, the p
P T pas. I got them as a gift for Lennox,
and I didn't use them. So the idea is, when
(24:29):
you're changing a boy, you always have to consider them
armed and dangerous and so um. You can just you
don't need a p P T P. You can just
use a taper, put it over just to protect you. Also,
that p is strong, it's going to shoot that little
hat off the penis. I'm sorry, that's true, Okay. Bottle
(24:49):
warmers I used religiously, can also just use hot water
and save money. Babies are not born needing their bottles warmed,
and it's just a matter of like it becomes a habit.
My bottle's got to be warm, my wife's have got
to be warm. And in fact, you can do everything
at room temperature. Some people said that they didn't feel
(25:12):
the baby breathing monitor outlet was necessary. I actually totally
agree with that, because, first of all, there can be
lots of false alarms on those things, and it can
give you a false sense of security too. So that
actually worries me more is that if you're like putting
your baby in an unsafe sleep space because you feel, oh, well,
(25:32):
I've got the breathing monitor, so I'm gonna know if
something goes wrong, that's actually really dangerous thing to do. So,
you know, unless your doctor recommends it, you know you
have a premy there's some reason for your baby's breathing
to be monitored. I would say no. The wrap. I
love when moms wrapped their babies. I couldn't figure it out.
I think that's an item that either you like it
(25:54):
or you don't. You know, well, I wouldn't wait until
the baby's there to like give it a whirl. I
would pack by ahead of time. I mean, of course,
it's going to be different when you have a bump
than afterwards. But here's the thing that I love about
baby wearing is that it's really can help with post
partum mood disorders. Um Wearing your baby has been proven,
(26:15):
in fact to minimize the symptoms. So if you can
baby where in that situation your baby is close to you,
they cry less, they hear your heartbeat. It's very soothing
and it does release oxytocin so you feel happier. Okay,
So am I any final tips for nesting moms, especially
(26:36):
moms who are worried about budgeting for babies. Sometimes you've
got to step away from the Pinterest board because everything
is super cute, and you know, especially as the first
time mom, you want to make everything look perfect and
get the best of the best. But then babies are
messy and nothing's perfect, and that nursery is gonna be
(26:57):
like a mess. You're gonna be tied, You're then you're
gonna throw those beautiful swaddles on the floor, and there's
gonna be laundry piled up, and there's gonna be diapers overflowing. Honestly, like,
get what's necessary, you know, and you can always get more,
there's no like time limit. And enjoy that baby, yes,
and also have fun shopping baby love my baby, belof
(27:25):
I need you, Oh how I need you. Thanks for listening.
Remember I'm always here for you. What to expect is
always here for you who are all in this together.
For more on what you heard on today's episodes, visit
what to Expect dot com slash podcast. You can also
check out what to Expect when You're Expecting, What to
(27:47):
Expect the First Year, and the What to Expect f
and We want to hear from you. Connect with us
on our community message board or on our social media.
You can find me, Heidi Murkoff and Emma at Emma
Being w t E and of course at What to Expect.
Baby Love is performed by Riley bed. What to Expect
(28:11):
is a production of I Heart Radio. From more shows
from I Heart Radio check out the I Heart Radio app,
Apple Podcasts, or wherever you listen to your favorite shows.
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