There are two main shopping periods when your baby is on the way: before and after.  Many people attempt to buy everything they need before the baby has arrived, but this can often be a mistake due to the financial burden you put on yourself and your family, and often simply because many people don’t even know the sex of their child.

In today’s article we will be covering the checklist of what you will need to buy before a baby is born and after they have been delivered.

What to buy before a baby is born

What follows is a list of the most popular things that people buy before their baby arrives, based on our research; [please note that they are not in any order of importance]:

• Cot or crib.  This is by far one of the most popular choices for parents before their baby arrives.  The old wife’s tale about not buying a crib and putting it into the house is ridiculous, it makes far more sense to get your baby somewhere to sleep so that you don’t have to rush around and make do with what you can find when it arrives.  You may also want to consider what bedding your baby will need including a correctly fitting mattress; you should be able to get this from the same place you purchase the cot.
• Steriliser.  A baby bottle steriliser is an excellent idea before your baby comes along.  This is something you’re going to need almost straight away if your baby is to be bottle fed, and even if the child will be breast fed there is still a necessity to use a steriliser for such things as breast pumps etc in order to prevent dangerous bacteria.
• Pram.  A pram seems to be a logical choice these days and there are a huge variety of them out there.  Getting a head start on choosing one of these is certainly necessary simply due to the choice!
• Car seat.  A car seat is a practicality that needs to be considered, not least because your baby will need to get home from the hospital.
• Feeding bottles.   Even if you’re not going to bottle feed your baby, and breastfeeding is the option you prefer, you are still likely to need some bottles in the event that you express some breast milk to be used at a later date or to allow the father of the child to feed.
• Basic clothing.  Items of clothing like grow suits, vests and hats are important to get in and get ready for the baby before it arrives.  If you’re concerned about gender specific items you needn’t be; just buy neutral colours.

What to buy to newborn babies

There are too many things to write in this list, and we would need a website of encyclopaedic length to get it all in, but here are a few of the things that people tend to buy after the baby has arrived:

• Breast pump.  A breast pump is usually purchased after the baby has arrived simply because the mother doesn’t always know if she’s going to breast feed or not.  In the event that she is, she is certainly going to need one of these.
• Baby monitors.  A baby monitor will eventually be required for when you want to leave baby for particular lengths of time.  These are incredibly sophisticated these days including: video multi screen monitors and devices that enable you to talk back to your baby.
• Clothes.  Now it’s time to dress your baby up how you like them, and if you want to be gender specific you should by now whether your child is a boy or a girl.
• Baby baths and accessories.  Now that your baby is home they are likely to need a bath.  It’s arguable whether or not you get this paraphernalia before or after the birth, but with the ease of online shopping these days you don’t really have to go out for any of it anyway.

Remember that there will be a whole lot more stuff to buy for your baby while it grows into a little person. These are just the very basics of what you will need to purchase before a baby arrives and once that is here.  Good Luck and enjoy your time!