Things to buy for baby - part 1

My pregnant friends have asked me what to buy for baby. I'm a thrifty mom, so I try to look for the best deals in baby stuff. Some of them are just so expensive!

It would be wise to wait until after the baby shower, if there is any, before going out to buy gifts because there might be some items that your family or friends might be giving you so you don't have to go out and buy them anymore!

This is just from my own experiences. I have also injected some of my own thoughts here.

Clothing supplies:
- tie side shirts, how many depends on how often you do the laundry, but I had about 12 pcs (that's a combination of sleeveless, short sleeved and long sleeved shirt.) These are easier to put on especially when the baby does not really have any neck support and mom is inexperienced.

- If it's going to be cold (for the Phils, if you're going to stay in an airconditioned room), better get some creepers/long johns/sleepers. How many depends on how often you think you will do the laundry, but 2-3 pcs will probably be okay. These would negate the use of blankets, which are discouraged in small babies because of the risk of SIDS (sudden infant death syndrome)

- Onesies/rompers -- when the baby is a little bigger (around 1 month old) and mom has a little experience with dressing the little one, these are better because they do no ride up the tummy like the shirts do. Again, how many depends on how often you would do the laundry. I did not buy because I got a lot of these as gifts.

- Mittens - I just bought 6 of these since they are very easily laundered and dried. I only used these for the first month when it's difficult to cut his fingernails. After the first month, I didn't use them anymore so that motor development in his hands and fingers will be better. I just made sure that his nails are clipped every so often. Get the ones that have ties rather than elastics. The latter comes off too easily.

- Booties / socks - I preferred socks. They seem to keep the feet warmer. But I don't use them when the weather's hot.

Feeding supplies:
If you are planning to breastfeed, you may not even have to buy any supplies. However, experience tells me that even if you're breastfeeding, you do need to buy a few feeding bottles especially when you're going out a lot (e.g. work) so that baby may be fed milk (preferable expressed breast milk) while you're gone.

Feeding bottles - My son and I liked the Avent bottles even if they are more expensive than the usual bottles. They are very durable and the nipples are shaped to mimic the shape of the mother's nipple, so I didn't get any nipple confusion problems with my baby. I had 5 Avent bottles (3 9 oz bottles, 2 5 oz bottles), but I also had several conventional bottles which I received as gifts.

Sterilizer - I bought the electric sterilizer from Chicco. They are more expensive than the stovetop variety, but they are so much more convenient. I do not need to worry about forgetting about it since it automatically stops when it's done. Other brands available are Pigeon, Avent, Imarflex. Which one you get depends on your budget and your brand preference. The Chicco brand worked very well for me.

Breast pump -- I had 2. Initially, I just bought the Avent Isis because it had good reviews. It's a manual hand pump. It worked very well for a manual pump, but I found that my hands get tired with pumping (or I'm just plain lazy, hahaha!).

So I went out and bought an electric pump. I bought a Medela because it has been highly recommended. Since the Medela pump is style is out of my budget, I opted to just buy the double mini electric which worked well for me.

I still use the Avent manual pump when it's difficult for me to bring along my electric pump and it works well too.

Breastpumps are a great investment if you believe in breastfeeding. They enabled me to give breastmilk to my son for more than a year. I actually breastfed for 1 year 10 months, but I didn't pump anymore when my son turned one, instead I introduced him to boxed soya milk (he had cow's milk allergy) as part of my gradual weaning. But I still continued to nurse him directly whenever I'm with him.

Milk container - Very convenient if you're bottle feeding since you can premeasure formula good for 1 feeding into each individual container so that you just need to pour the contents into the feeding bottle. Convenient for travel. I didn't use this much because I was breastfeeding. Got this as a gift.

(to be continued...)