Another weekend, another trip to buy things for the baby. I'm not complaining. We're pretty much there now; everything we're going to need for January's arrival is stuffed into K___'s wardrobe now, certainly the essentials *. If the baby were to arrive now - and it's a scary thought to think that if junior was born in just a few weeks time, s/he probably would survive - we would be okay.
This weekend it was a changing mat, a tops-and-tails bowl, a baby support cushion and a thing that wedges across the width of the bath and makes it easy to wash the baby with only one hand. I believe the correct name for one of these items is a 'thing that wedges across the width of the bath and makes it easy to wash the baby with only one hand'.
The changing mat is fairly obvious. It's a poo'n'wee-proof padded mat that you put on top of your preferred baby changing piece of furniture. Not much to say about this, really. We've gone for a non-gender specific colour, since we don't yet know, but that's about the most exciting thing to say.
Actually, when I said we'd got everything we need, one thing that we may end up getting is a baby-changing unit. We saw some in Ikea that are essentially a chest of drawers with a removable baby-changing platform that sits on top. The thing about these is that it means I will be able to change the baby without stooping too far. There's very little that we currently own that we could use instead, so it may be something to think about.
Tops and Tails bowls... I'm sure I'm very stupid for having to ask. There is some sort of clue in the name, after all, but 'face and arse' would be better and stop dumb fathers-to-be asking apparently asinine questions. I don't know. The thing is, they're all displayed with baby baths. Now a baby bath is obvious, there's no explanation necessary. But a Tops and Tails bowl, well, that's not. I hadn't realised you weren't supposed to sit the baby in it. I didn't know it's just a time saver for when you're washing the baby, so you don't wash the baby's face in water that's sloshed off its bum. It's more like when the baby needs a bed bath, if you like. I'm sure everyone reading this is probably laughing at how stupid I am, but I've never seen one used before and I certainly didn't know we needed one, all right?
The baby support cushion is a dual-purpose device that is essentially a plump ring-shaped cusion with a cut out, so that it can be pushed over a parent's waist. This supports the weight of the baby in the lap, rather than on the parent's arm, so in theory at least, it's easier to feed Jr. It also doubles as a floor cushion. Plop the bambino into the middle and it can lol around safely.
Our trip to Babies R Us revealed a plethora of items I couldn't have imagined we needed in our wildest dreams - and probably don't. The trick is knowing which are useful and which are designed to part fools from their money. We hope we've chosen well. With some of these things, I get the feeling that it won't be until we have a baby to wash or change or feed that we'll actually know.
* er, except a cot, which is probably quite essential...
We're not really 'do things at the last minute' people. For us, it's much better to get things over a longer period of time and have everything ready in advance. It's also allowed us to take advantage of loads of deals and save a huge amount of money, something we wouldn't be able to do if we waited until January. I'm not too sure changing mats go out of fashion though...
ReplyDeleteThis is what works for us. As I hope I've always tried to say, other people may find different things work for them and fair play. By the same token, we may will undoubtedly be into some things that others wouldn't choose for themselves.
Is this some sort of parallel dimension where only I can see the bit where it clearly states that we've got everything we intend to get, bar a cot..?
ReplyDeleteMaybe if I'd called this entry 'The last few bits (and my it was reasonably cheap)' there wouldn't be people acting like we've spent a million pounds. I dunno.
Oddballs.
We have brought:
ReplyDeleteA buggy (brought while on offer)
Bottles and sterilizer (brought while on offer)
Breast pump (brought while on offer and also particularly needed for me as I may have trouble breastfeeding due to medical reasons)
Baby monitor (brought while on offer)
A few sleep suits and vests (brought while on offer)
Re-usable nappy set (brought cheapo on Ebay)
Baby bath (£3!)
TENS machine (brought while on offer - as I am not having any form of pain relief other than Gas and Air a pretty good investment in my opinion!!! - also good for pain relief outside pregnancy so I might try it on my dodgy leg).
In addition to this we brought a bathing support and a support cushion, neither of which were particularly expensive. While not essentials they may make life easier and this is a totally subjective personal opinion.
Every item was researched to see what was best for us and to get a good deal on cost. We are borrowing a crib which will just require a new mattress and are being passed down a high-chair and lots of baby clothes. We have only to buy a carseat which we will do when a good offer comes up.
In terms of timing then why not buy things while they are on sale? What is the point of spending lots on stuff if you can get it cheaper. I saved about £1000 on the cost of our wedding by taking the same approach. It also spreads out the costs so that my last paycheck before going on maternity pay doesn't get hit.
I'd also liked to avoid having to worry about baby Christmas, which generally has lots of associated costs and shopping....