Now that you’ve packed for labor (Hospital Checklist: Part 1) and post-labor for yourself (Hospital Checklist: Part 2), you’ll need to pack for baby. Below are items I packed for post-labor for baby.
Carseat
The hospital will require you to bring in a carseat and make sure you strap baby in correctly before they will discharge you. We’re obsessed with the Doona because you can strap baby in while in stroller mode and wheel baby out of the hospital that way. That means one less thing to carry, especially when you most likely will have so much baggage already. Once at your car, the wheels can retract and the stroller becomes a carseat. If you do opt for a more traditional carseat, I prefer a lightweight one, especially if you tend to take the carseat in and out of the car often. Two of the most light weight options currently on the market are linked below.
Going Home Outfit
The entire time baby is in the hospital, he/she will be swaddled with nothing but a diaper underneath. You’ll need to make sure to bring a going home outfit for when you get discharged. Choose something cute for those newborn announcement photos. Also, I detest newborn buttons, especially when they need a diaper change at least every hour. We love these magnetic onesies for easy diaper changes. Also note most babies are pretty small, so make sure you bring clothes in newborn size (maybe even in premie). I brought 0-3 month clothes for my firstborn and it was too big for him. If you think your baby may be bigger, maybe bring several outfits of various sizes.
Swaddle
After three babies, I still don’t know how they swaddle newborns at the hospital with the those coarse stiff hospital blankets. We like to bring in our own swaddles with Velcro.
Birth Announcement
We always like to take a birth announcement pic with the baby’s name, birthdate and some other details like weight or height to send to friends and family.
Photo Props
Maybe you have some sentimental family items you’d want your baby to take pictures with, like your own childhood blanket, or hubs childhood lovey. If not, you could also bring in any other cute photo props, like small stuffed animal or teeter. We also love getting an actual cake, singing happy birthday to our baby and taking some pics of them with it. Because if you think about it, it is technically their first birthday.
Reusable Grocery Bags
Try to bring several reusable shopping bags with you to the hospital for the all goodies you will be bringing home. Most likely you’ll get some diapers, wipes, baby blankets, disposable panties, various types of pads, various documents and printouts. Then depending on the hospital, you may also get some manual pumps, pump parts, baby books, sitz bath, seat cushion,
What not to pack
Diapers
Unless you’re particular about the type of diapers your babies wear, there will be plenty of generic Pampers (or Huggies) newborn diapers available at the hospital during your stay. Otherwise no need to pack any, and you could even stash plenty to go. Once you’re home you can order some newborn diapers if you still need them. Babies will grow out of newborn diapers quickly, so you may only need one or two weeks supply before going up to the next size.
We usually use Pampers or Huggies, but find Pampers run smaller than Huggies for us. The Honest Company diapers come in cute prints but do cost a bit more than Huggies. We’ve also tried Coterie and they feel pretty dang amazing, but cost even more than the Honest Company. You can even go cheaper with Kirkland or any of the other lesser known brands, but we found we would get more frequent leaks and blowouts in them.
Wipes
Same as with diapers, unless you’re particular about what type of wipes used on your babies, there will be plenty of generic Pampers (or Huggies) wipes at the hospital. Once you get home, you can order some different brands to see what you prefer. We usually go with one of the brands linked below.
