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CONGRATULATIONS! IT’S A BABY! NOW WHAT???

For many people, having a new baby is an exciting and happy time. But along with that comes fear and uncertainty. Even if it’s not your first time!

I just had my sixth baby a little over 5 months ago. While it was a very exciting time for my family, I still wondered, “Do I have everything that I need to take care of him?” Especially for the first couple of weeks.

The question: “What do I need for my baby?” can be almost overwhelming. Diapers – how many? Formula – how much? Clothes – what do they wear? Bed, swing, car seat???

AAARRRGGGHHH!!!

RELAX! TAKE A DEEP BREATH, IT WILL BE OK!

That’s what this article is all about!

Many people tend to over-do it when it comes to buying for baby! The truth is, babies grow fast! You really don’t need as much as you might think.

Many of the items you will need you may get as gifts from family and friends or a baby shower (if you have one), but there will probably still be things you will need.

I am going to go into a little detail on a few items because they are the most important.

DIAPERS

When my son was born, I decided to take note of how many diapers he used. By the time he was about a month old (1month and 3 days), he had used 172 diapers. Most of those were newborn size. ( I think we switched to size 1 at about 3-4 weeks) About 2 1/2 weeks later, he was up to 244 diapers. 2 weeks later, 300 diapers and again 2 weeks later, 356 diapers and switching to size 2. As you can see, we went through 356 diapers (and 2 sizes) in the first 11 weeks of his life!

The number of diapers your baby will use on a daily basis will be more in the first few weeks and probably decrease a little after that. I think the reason for this is that newborns don’t sleep through the night so you tend to change them more often. As they get a little older, they sleep longer at night so you change them a little less, unless you are a parent who wakes their baby up just to change them. I don’t recommend this! LOL

FORMULA

When I had my son, I breast fed and formula fed. The split was about 50/50 until he was about 2 months old. Then we went to 100% formula. I didn’t keep track of the formula like I did the diapers, but what I do know is now, at 5 months, he goes through about 10 or so 12.9 ounce cans of the powdered formula per month.

If you are strictly formula feeding your baby, we can easily calculate the approximate amount of formula your baby will eat as a newborn.

A 12.9 ounce can of powdered formula makes about 94 ounces. When a baby is first born, he or she will eat anywhere from ?ounce to 2 ounces at each feeding (about every 2-3 hours).

We will calculate on the higher end. 2 ounces every 2 hours = 12 feedings per day. 12 feedings x 2 ounces = 24 ounces per day. 24 ounces per day x 4 days = 96 ounces

So we can estimate that one can of formula will last your baby approximately 4 days. Of course every baby is different. Smaller babies tend to eat less where larger babies tend to eat more.

CAR SEATS

I won’t go to long on this topic but it is a very important one. Many people do not know that you can NOT bring your baby home without the proper car seat. The hospital will not let you. Some hospitals have a loaner program, but you should check with yours first if you need to.

Choosing a car seat can be tricky. They make some that are car seat/carrier combos, some that are only for infants, some that are only for bigger babies and so on.

What you want to look for is one that says specifically for infants from birth to however many pounds and rear facing.

I prefer the car seat/carrier combo, although you will have to get a second car seat when your baby gets a little larger. Usually around 5-7 months.

If you do choose to get one that is for infants and older babies, make sure that it can be rear facing until they reach a certain age/weight. The disadvantage to this kind is that it is not the kind you would carry your baby around in.

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VISIT: http://its-all-about-baby.blogspot.com