Sunday 23 January 2011

Ignorant Claudia - weekly question (week 29)

Dan's coworkers are not very nice! They started to tease him about how "last minute" we are with the nursery. It is not our fault if the stupid crib is back order and the store pushes the delivrey date every week! So, even if I'm only at 29 weeks, they are telling him stuff like "but what if she goes into early labor".

Not that I want to focus on early labor but this made me think about my hospital bag. After a little bit of research, I found a detailed packing list especially written for this glorious day. I was pretty naive to think that my backpack would be big enough to fit all those items.

So, this is the LONG list of what I should bring...in theory. Do you think that it makes sense? What was your this-made-my-life-so-much-better item that you had with you at the hospital / birth centre?

for childbirth
massage oil
mp3 player with favorite music
small juices, bottles of water and snacks
brumisateur (you know, the Evian spray thing!)
magic bag (Dan calls it the warm hippie bag)
watch to calculate the contractions
health insurance card and proof of private insurance
birth plan

clothing and accessories
robe
warm socks, slippers and flip flops
panties (6x)
bras (2x)
bag for dirty clothes

for the day: loungewear or yoga outfit
for the night: night gowns with buttons (breastfeeding)
for the exit: outfit from the 4th or 5th month of pregnancy

hygiene
very absorbing pads
thin towels and facecloths (dry quickly)
daily beauty products
daily shower products
comb, brushes, hair drier and hair accessories
tooth brush and toothpaste
box of tissues
breast pads

baby
blankets (3x)
socks, mittens and hat
diaper covers (5x)
pyjamas (5x)
outfit to exit the hospital (according to the season!)
bibs (4x)
facecloth (a few)
burp cloth (a few)
wet wipes (package)
diapers (that fit a newborn!)
baby shampoo and soap
bottles and milk preparation if you don't want to nurse
pacifier
car seat

others
camera and batteries
phone number list
pencils and notebook
magazines
small alarm clock

for dad
daily shower and beauty products
replacement outfits

large…but sometimes essential
breastfeeding pillow
pillows
exercice ball

note: you know I'm pregnant when I started to cry while looking at my weekly picture!!!

16 comments:

French Knots said...

I was really pleased to have my nipple cream, after hours of feeding it was crucial!

mjb said...

A lot of that stuff was provided by our hospital, but yours might be different (pads, exercise ball --which I HIGHLY recommend), etc. But we also appreciated having movies to watch/books to read since you're there for a couple days and the baby sleeps a lot.

Ali said...

Your picture is gorgeous!
My second labour, the bag didn't even make it in from the car park till after the baby was born! But first time around, the glucose tablets were invaluable. I couldn't eat, but after 36 hrs in labour, I needed a sugar boost.

UK lass in US said...

Whoa, that's a lot. I had a tendency to bolt from the hospital as soon as possible - I even managed to persuade them to let me go before the 24 hours were up with my second, so I didn't need much.

Um, all I actually used of mine was a camera, toothbrush and facecloth, hairbrush, car seat and some clean clothes for me and the babe to go home in.

After the delivery, there were visitors etc. The baby just had a diaper on and was swaddled in a hospital blanket, as that made it easier for tests etc. They provided wipes, swaddling blankets, hat, pads etc. I slept in a hospital gown. Then the next morning I got up, got dressed, waited for them to finish their tests and went home. It would be different for a c-section, or if you plan on staying longer, of course.

Renae said...

Wow! I like seeing the photos of your belly as it gives me an idea of where I'll be in 8 weeks time!

That list is massive- I'll bookmark it so I can refer to it when packing my bag!

So exciting!

alyson said...

wow, what a great list!! bookmarking this for later. :)

Novita said...

Oooh sweet pictures!
Good luck!

Jacinthe said...

Tu passeras prendre un thé; on en jasera!

jen said...

Lady you are just the cutest thing ever with these pictures! It seems like you will need a suitcase to tote all this stuff, wow!

Anonymous said...

You might want to check with the hospital to see if they have a recommended list of what to bring. Mine has very little storage space so they keep telling us "only one bag". Also, don't forget that your partner can bring in more stuff as you need it (going home clothes, extra nappies...), so it may not be necessary to take everything in immediately.

Oh, and don't worry about the nursery stuff - I'm still stockpiling at 37 weeks!

The Franglaise said...

Apart from the clothes, everything was provided by my hospital in France. I packed my hospital bag at the last minute - it would freak me out to just see it sit there waiting for D-day. One thing that I didn't bring to the hospital and desperatly needed was the breastfeeding pillow. Always handy!

The Franglaise said...

ps: and if it can make you feel better, we put up the furniture in our nusery when I was 37 weeks pregnant! At that stage, you sit back and relax and the mister does it all, he he ;)

Cal's mum at candepop said...

My two main tips from what I remember of it all.

Baby was born at Christmas and I brought in a little muji plastic Christmas tree. I really liked all through the labour etc having something that was mine, something that was home there in the hospital.

Also, I followed every list available and had everything I could possibly need but crammed it all into the smallest bag possible. This meant that once we went to get something, everything had to come out and we couldn't get half of it back in. When you have to go from labouring ward to delivery ward and then to your room not being able to easily repack the bag is not good. I will always recommend a bag big enough to be able to root in and find things easily.

Marianne said...

For me, a comfortable nursing bra and breast pads were essential. I leaked terribly when the milk came and boobs got HUGE and sore instantly. I also got supersoft lambswool breast pads to keep outside the paper ones as Norway is freezing in the winter and that puts one at risk for inflammation. Our hospital provided most of the things on your list. I would def bring snacks.

Anonymous said...

Nipple cream is a definate, but I have to advise against yoga cloths for after child birth. Purchase several (6-7) nice pajamas that are appropiate for guests to see you in. Once your husband sees you in regulsr cloths, he thinks you are back to normal....and that won't be while you are at the hospital....give that about 6- 8 weeks.(and then some).

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