Trying to keep it under control and not spend way out of budget. Any suggestions are welcome.
Any Tips, Suggestions, or Things to Consider for First Time Parents?
haddy on 19/07/2023 - 16:05
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Congrats! While this may not help, a few things that good for us:
* get second hand stuff as much as you comfortably can. For us, clothes are second hand from other parents. Depending on the baby size, you may only use the clothes once or twice so don't splurge on clothing.
* The only brand new ones that advisable is car seat. Generally they have 10 years life (model dependent) and getting second hand is hard to judge whether they have been on an accident or not.
* We rent capsules from babyfactory for 7 months $50 as this is easier to put the baby on then clip on the car (leaving the base in the car) than using the newborn carseat where you need to take out the baby.
* if you're using disposable nappies: bulk buy when they're on specials.
* If you don't need stroller/able to wait for a while as we found out that we don't actually use it the first 3 months. And get 2nd hand or sample model. This can get crazy expensive brand new.
* go to baby show but hold yourself back from buying a lot. Sometimes they have bargains during the show period (nappies, bag, bottles, etc.) and will give you ideas on what you need but bear in mind shows can be a trap to get you buy things that you don't need.
* For the first few weeks, meal is the challenge. If you're able to stock up on ready made/re-heat meals (either cook yourself - cheapest and freeze or get ready made/easy meal). This helps your sanity to not worry on what to eat the first few weeks.I'll add more if I think of something more.
One thing to note is that baby cries A LOT for all sort of reasons. Don't beat yourself up and work with your partner. This is what we found helped a bit with post partum depression: if it's becoming too much, it's OK to put the baby down for a minute (in a safe place/position) then spend 10-15s to regain your sanity: wash your face, have a cold drink, etc. before calming the baby.
This is all the same advice that I would give too! I would like to say that you can save some decent money on using reusable nappies, but it comes at a cost of soaking up very limited time to maintain them. They require 2 soaks before a wash, usually should be dried in the sun, should be washed alone etc. They also usually hold their second hand value (and obv can be brought second hand). Otherwise, second hand market is king. Even the toys we've been able to get second hand have been amazing. Good luck OP!
I reckon for the first few weeks anyway perhaps use disposable first to get your head around it then switch to reusable. Newborn nappy changes are a lot in the first few weeks. Also depends on the baby I guess, some are fussy, some are lenient with the pee and poo.
Meals in the freezer, and/or a request to friends to deliver you some meals is a definite winner.
Baby will push you "why is baby doing this" but the answer is always - it won't last long, the phase will pass.
With crying it is usually one of Hungry, Nappy, Too Hot/Cold, Tired, Burp. The hard thing is remembering to check off all 5 while the baby is crying and you are tired out of your mind.
Reusable nappies are good, but they do take up a LOT of time and effort with washing and drying them all. Starting off with disposables is all good until you get things under control. The risk is you never start because disposables are so easy.
Agree with brand new for the car seat. One of the things I found is get one with a lever that locks down over the seatbelt (i.e. Graco SnugLock). These are worth the extra cost as they allow you to easily get the seat really locked in place and not move around.
Only thing to add to that is we found a stroller\buggy that the capsule slotted into quite useful. It's nice to get out of the house for a walk, the capsule is a snuggly safe place for the baby (just don't leave them in there for hours when sleeping). We had the Edwards & Co setup, buggy, capsule and base, really easy to use, was great that the main part could be parent facing easily and has all the usual accessories like rain and sun covers.
A lot of the little baby stuff I got second hand and was able to sell for similar amounts as what I paid. A few things I actually made money on because I took better photos. Things like bassinet, changing table, playmat, etc. Shoes sell well too especially the Bobux ones. They're basically accessories/sock keeper on-ers for awhile.
This of course doesn't work if you're planning on a second (or more!).
As above bulk sets of the newborn clothes (don't forget the 0000) but if you get the Bonds pyjamas and hang dry them so they don't fade they do resell pretty well. Jamie Kay has good resell groups if you have a girl and want some nice outfits for photos or special occasions.
I did reusable nappies for a year so can answer questions about that if you want.
Well done you ! We did them also - mainly because disposable ones didn't exist lol. Bit of work involved and of course the ongoing cost of NappiSan or similar. I think that stuff is good to use anyway. You kinda have to change the child more often with reuseables but they're WAYY cheaper I'd say.
If you have a winter baby remember to dress them up in merino. Ideally you'll need a merino next to the skin, and a cotton layer on top, or vice versa.
Remember that babies will feel colder than you. (I took my midwife's advice and brought a lot of merino, the hospital midwife was very pleased.) Merino sleepsacks are great later (not sure about newborn stage).Farmers' Superfit brand is quite generous, a newborn size can fit an average baby up to 6 months.
Ideally you need about 4-6 changes of clothes, unless you're prepared to wash daily.
The first 3 months is like the 4th trimester; baby will only need 3 things: sleep, eat, clean bottom. Don't worry about toys. Don't even worry about buying toys for under 1-year old; the best toy they have is you, and they are quite happy playing with loose parts (e.g. pots and pants, real oranges etc).
If you can breastfeed, great, if not don't let it add stress to your life.
Very important to establish a routine. Avoid going out at your baby's usual nap/sleep time.
Giving yourselves some sleep is more important than keeping the house tidy.
Costco cheapest for nappies and wipes (probably other things too but these are what we got from there). But also bad on the environment.
Second hand bottles are okay, a lot of them you can change out just the latex/silicone for the teat as they are only recommended to last 3 months.
Newborn clothing literally only lasts weeks, but it is necessary because they do have to wear something.
The starship nurses will tell you Karicare (not gold) is absolutely fine for formula. S26 is made overseas.
Value convenience, you will be SO tired. Nice comment about the crying by @spam.
Yes baby show is a trap. Go to get an education but don't buy anything until you've thought about it again at home.
If you need to use formula use it! Don't feel guilty. Full bubba is happy bubba.
Get a microwave bottle steriliser:
https://www.google.com/search?q=microwave+bottle+steriliser+…Stock up on wet wipes and nappies when they're discounted. But not all nappies suit all babies. Test drive until you find what suits.
The Noisy Book is really fun:
https://www.google.com/search?q=the+noisy+book&client=ms-and…And books in general. Lots of reading will help with connecting with each other.
White noise helped with bubs sleep. We bought a cheapo phone and download a white noise app.
About formula: don't bother buying the premium/gold/enhanced type ! There are very high restriction and requirement when infant formula is sold in NZ. The tiny pinch of salt they add in do not worth the higher price.
Saying that, the formulas have different ratio of type of protein which have different outcome for your baby. We did tried all type/range/brand to find which the baby like best and don't have negative consequence (vomit, loose poo, nappy rash …). And we re-done that for the second baby as each of them are a different beast !!!
Chemist warehouse has a number of nursery items and they have a price beat policy means that you can get reasonable price from one place (e.g. nappies, or formula), also warehouse does price match if you need more than one item.. agree Karicare non-gold is good.. S26 actually does not have omega free fatty acid, I recalled WHO now recommends having omega free fatty acid in formula.
Farmers often offers 50% discount for car seats and also worth looking at baby factory.
Kmart used to have a baby cot + spring mattress at a reasonable price
Clothes: the cotton range from Kmart is reasonable, often there are stuff on clearance in store.
Books: local library generally is a great resource for children's books, you can recall some new items at no extra charge. Kmart has disney series for around $5.5 or $2.5 for smaller books. (much better value than the warehouse.
toys: Aliexpress has good prices, there are the $10 for 3 deals via app.. (US5.99 for 3 items +GST).. also breast pumps you can get from Aliexpress at a fraction of the price..
if you use aliexpress delivery they are more likely to arrive and in a timely way!
Aliexpress was kiwiwallet cash back as well.
Baby wipes.. Ministar at warehouse at $10 per 8 packs of 80 are good and best value.. (NZ made).
Wear a condom next time - best money saving tip
Your life is over, just accepted it.
Branded second hand stuff resells for same price.
Depends. If you take your time you can pick up good stuff from rich people on FB Marketplace that just want rid, but you need to get in quick.
You buy second hand branded in demand stuff and when you resell it you get the same amount of money back (sometimes more).
my partner does this or buys the branded stuff on last season clearance in the bigger sizes and flicks it next season once worn.
Thank you so much guys, this has been really helpful. :)
It is great to see so many of you agree on the same things.
Congrats first of. All good advises above. Keep in mind, don't ONLY rely on outsiders/social media information on this. Talk to elders in your family (traditions) about things you should do/don't in different cases. Many won't work, but some will so explore everything. Get help & talk. Plan a month or so in advance if you are buying things. Don't go overboard, they grow so fast, that sometimes you will find within a week somethings don't fit or they don't like.
Each baby is different, even the siblings can be way apart. Many times something won't work the first time, so don't get upset. Try again the next day or 2 and see. Patience is the key. Help your partner, especially mother needs lots of support. Both parents need to give space and support each other. Shit will happen so be calm and figure it out.
If you have the budget to get Snoo smart basinnet. Snoo paired to your mobile phone. Snoo was invented by an American pediatrician whom specialized in baby sleep. It detect baby cry and movement and apply rocking motion with white noise. Just like an AI bassinet. Snoo is definitely a must! We have it with our baby! It's miracle to get our baby into a nice sleeping routine. Particularly overnight for the parents. Our baby was sleeping 6 to 8 hours straight at 5 weeks, where others are struggling. It's useful for the first 4 to 6 months. You can sometime find at a good price 2nd hand on trademe or fb marketplace. It's expensive, but every cents spent on it well worth it. Nothing beat a good night sleep for parents and routine sleep for your baby. It's going to help with your baby growth and development, as they need the sleep to grow.
Snoo has good resale value and unlikely to lose much money once your baby is done with it. If you get it at a really good price, your likely to make money out of it. It's a high demand product.
All the best!
Get some sleeps and enjoy your life now!