As a mum of three, and with each child, I’ve managed to learn more and more about what babies really need. It’s easy to feel confused when there seem to be about 10 different products for the same thing and it’s so hard to know what’s right or wrong to get, and what would work for you.
The truth is that everyone is different. We have our own personal tastes and preferences, we have our own ways and we have our own babies who do things their own way too. There’s truly no right or wrong. However, it is easy to go overboard and spend a crazy amount of money on things, and that’s ok – it’s nice to add a little luxury sometimes, but you really don’t have to.
There are lists upon lists, checklists upon checklists, both on the internet and in print, on everything you need to buy for your baby, though half the time you wonder how things will pan out. The one that springs to mind is breastfed or bottlefed or combination. You might buy all the gear for breastfeeding and then can’t, or you might buy loads of bottles only for your baby to hate the teat, or a mix of both. It’s so, so hard and if you’re looking for something to go by, then here are my top 3 things I think you need to buy for your baby – I’ll even throw in a save or splurge option for each.
Nappies
No matter what, you’re going to need nappies of some description.
Splurge (but save)
You could easily opt for cloth. Despite the initial outlay, cloth nappies can save you a huge amount of money if you use them for the whole time your baby is in nappies, and for any subsequent children, plus they often have good resale value. They are eco-friendly, though they can feel like a lot of work in the beginning with the washing and drying. You could start with 1 a day and see how you get on.
Save
Typically I would always recommend Aldi Mamia nappies. We’ve always used them and had no issues, though we have used other brands in the past such as Mum & You, Merries and ASDA Little Angels.
Clothes
Yep, you’re going to need to clothe your baby. How much you get of everything is entirely up to you but I normally start with a few basics and then add to the wardrobe and drawers as I need. Babies grow so, so quickly in the early days you really don’t need a lot!
Splurge
If you want to spend a bit more on your baby there’s nothing wrong with a few designer labels. You could kit out a whole wardrobe with everything from Moschino baby clothes for newborns right through to Dolce & Gabbana sandals if you really want. These things also tend to have a good resale value if they’re in good condition after your baby has outgrown them.
Save
My choice for clothes for babies right now would be second hand. Whether it’s charity shops, bundles from eBay or a local parent selling on their (probably barely used) newborn clothes on Facebook Marketplace which is an excellent way of recycling clothes. It’s always worth seeing what you can find.
Feeding
This will differ for you whether you’re bottle feeding, breast feeding or a combination of both. For the purpose of this post I’m going to focus on breastfeeding. Bottle feeding is a difficult one to do because you may find that your baby doesn’t like your choice of teat, or that they need anti-colic bottles rather than other standard ones amongst other things.
Splurge
You could splash out on an electric breast pump, Lansinoh and Medela would be my “go to” for this, but if you’re unable to breastfeed or don’t get on with pumping it could be a waste of money. If you do want to splurge on this, I would 100% wait until a good supply has been established and you’ve perhaps tried with a cheaper hand pump.
Save
Grab yourself a manual breast pump. If you want to see how it goes first you can easily pick them up second hand and buy the small valves new, or you can sterilise the whole lot. I did this just to make sure I felt comfortable with expressing milk and felt able to do it, and then I knew where to invest my pennies!
There are, of course, a million and one things you can buy for your baby, and with a huge range of prices too. Don’t be put off by a price tag because you’re likely to find things second hand, nearly new or even the equivalent under a different brand name. Shop around, do your research and find out if cashback is available on anything. It’s all about smart shopping which could leave you with some leftover money to splurge on those extra little luxuries.
*This is a collaborative post.
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