Thursday 1 October 2015

What I took to hospital; the vital, the useful, the bonus and not needed.

Before having baby J I spent ages Googling hospital lists and watching every YouTube video of what to take when you have a baby.  For what it is worth - here is a list of everything I took and how useful I found it.  This was me though - I felt a little guilty taking twenty minutes to pamper myself in the bathroom having a shower and putting make-up on but it made me feel a lot more human after giving birth and ready to face the world again - so some may view this as a luxury or unnecessary item.  That's fine :) each to her own and all :) I am also aware that some of the items might have been needed if things had gone differently, this is just a list of what I used this time. It might also be worth checking what your hospital provides - for example I had no idea there would be a changing mat there for us to use.

The only extra I would have taken was some more baby grows as Baby J was a poo monster while we were in hospital and worked his way through everything we took.  I didn't really bother with a "to come home" outfit for him as I knew we were all going to come home and put PJs straight on and order a take-a-way

I would also put all the bags IN the car next time even if that meant driving around with packs of maternity pads in the boot of the car for three weeks.

I also took the Tens machine - attached to me!

Medusas bag:

Item
Vital
Useful
Bonus
Not used
Notes
Green doctors   notes
ü
Take out anything you want to keep such as scan pictures as you won't get these back
Birth Plan
ü
There wasn't time and I had only written 5 bullet points
Dressing gown
ü
I wore this after I had had a shower and meant I could easily feed Baby J
Flip flops
ü
I put these in in case the shower was manky - but it was perfectly clean
Socks
ü
Why did I put these in?!
Cheap nighty (to throw if need be)
ü
I did wear this but not for long
Pyjama Bottoms
ü
I did not want anything near my bottom half afterwards - for a good few hours a sheet did the job nicely
Pyjama top
ü
Again - I didn't want anything on me and I wanted to be able to feed Baby J easily
Swimwear
ü
Haha not needed as I just tore my clothes off when I got there - so much for modesty!
Clothes to come home in
ü
Something easy to wear and forgiving as I had no idea what shape I'd be after (leggings, dress and cardi)
Soft sports bra
ü
Really soft after all that boob munching
Big granny pants
ü
Little pretty pants are not what is needed after v-day!
Towel
ü
They had towels there but this made me feel a lot more at home
Face wash
ü
I was a sweaty betty afterwards
Shampoo and conditioner
ü
I would say vital as I felt pretty gross afterwards
Hair bands and hair grips
ü
You could have shaved my head during and I wouldn’t have cared!
Toothpaste
ü
Everyone should brush their teeth after 12 hours even if you are giving birth!
Make-up
ü
Made me feel a lot more human afterwards.
Deodorant
ü
Sweaty Betty….
Hairbrush
ü
For primping
Chewing gum
ü
My mouth was pretty manky after the gas and air
Maternity pads (2 packs)
ü
The more of these the better - I could have taken a whole case!
Breast Pads
ü
I didn’t use these as there was no leaking milk till day 3/4
Important phone numbers on paper
ü
Just in case both phones ran out of battery or mobile communication devices temporarily all stopped working
Plastic bag
ü
To put slightly manky clothes in.
Squirty sports bottle
ü
For the first pee….
Nipple cream (Lansinoh)
ü
If I was allowed to take only one thing - this would be it!
Nail scissors
ü
Someone said I'd want to cut his nails. Pah! That waited till we were all home.

TechnoDads bag:

Item
Vital
Useful
Bonus
Not used
Notes
Change of clothes
ü
We don’t want a stinky Daddy
Phone charger
ü
We seemed to text and ring the entire world so charging the phone was needed
Camera and charger
ü
To capture the first few moments – priceless
Spare change
ü
For the vending machines – chocolate was needed afterwards!
Snacks
ü
It is hungry work having a baby.  We packed flapjacks and salty crisps.
Toiletries
ü
So Daddy can freshen up before the journey home

Baby J's bag:


Item
Vital
Useful
Bonus
Not used
Notes
Outfits in different sizes
ü
We though we took enough – until poosplosion time happened
Blanket
ü
We took two cellular blankets with little holes in them.
Nappies
ü
Lots were needed!
Muslin squares
ü
Useful but not necessary I found.  There wasn’t enough milk being made to produce sick.
Hat
ü
Not vital as only a short journey from the door to the car
Car seat
ü
A must!
Cotton wool pads
ü
Wish we had taken more! But the pads are more useful than the balls. They disappear when wet.
Wet wipes
ü
I used these for me not for him the first day.
Cardigan
ü
Don’t want a cold baby!
Fold up changing mat
ü
There was one there we could use

Hope this is of some help to someone! If not - I can use this "next time" ;)

Medusa Mum x

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