What you really need… Your Basic Baby Changing Kit
When you are pregnant it is easy to become over whelmed with information and advice on what you need for your new baby. Complicated and expensive lists can be alarming. Having no prior knowledge on a baby’s needs can undermine your confidence, or lead you to packing everything but the kitchen sink. Don’t panic, apart from a lot of love and patience, baby’s don’t need as much as we carry around with us, and if all goes wrong, there are plenty of high street stores selling you cheap but practical products in an emergency.
We asked some seasoned mums what they thought was a baby bag essential, and broke it down into our guide below.
The changing bag
Editor Jen says: “You don’t need the best bag money can buy, and often these may be pretty or funky, but not practical. I use a normal back pack I got specifically for this purpose from Millets. It was about £12.00 and has three large sections. This is great for travelling on buses and trains, as it keeps you hands and arms free and will hang happily on the back of the pram.”
Emma: “I have a really cheap drawstring swim bag I got for about £1. It’s compact and I can find what I want really quickly. Because it is designed for swimming, if it has a bit of an oopsy then I can just shower it out.”
Katie: “My large, free changing bag I got from Huggies a couple of years ago is perfect. It pretty much has one large section which will fit my baby basics and loads of shopping.”
Emily: “I have a very basic baby changing bag. I didn’t see the point in spending lots of money on it. My favourite bag is a tiny blue bag that came with some shower gel one Christmas. It is about ten by twelve inches and I can get nappies and wet wipes in when I go to the park. There is a mistaken belief that you need lots of stuff to take with you and your baby. You really need hardly anything. Most of it seems to be for show.”
The contents
Four nappies
Chrissie: “I think it depends on your own baby for how many nappies you need. For a day trip I would take between four and six.”
Cheap changing mat
Bella: “I bought a changing mat from Ethel Austin. It’s great, it folds right up to a tiny size, and when the baby lies down it covers a really large space. When we are out I have also used it to sit on grass, or the park bench when it is wet. It’s only a pound or two, great value.”
Wet wipes
Jane: “You will need really good wet wipes, but really good ones don’t have to be expensive ones. Asda’s own brand Little Angels Sensitive Skin ones are really very good. They work out at a pound a packet and are just as good as expensive ones.”
Optional Extras according to need or climate
A spare baby grow
Helen: “I liked to have a back-up baby grow stuffed at the bottom of my bag. I never used it, but if there was a nappy explosion I would always have something to pop her in.”
Cheap nappy bags
Brooke: “I don’t often use nappy bags, but at some playgroups you have to take a dirty nappy home. They can also be handy if your child has soiled their clothes and you need something to put them in. A few nappy bags in the corner of your bag take up less room than a carrier bag.”
Bib
Hester: “Some mums use disposable changing mats and bibs, but I don’t see the point, its a needless expense. I just stuff a bib in my bag and it can washed when we get home. George ones at Asda are good, they are hard wearing and good quality.”
Medicine
Jodie: “If I’m going out for a day trip I make sure I have a bottle of Calpol and a spoon somewhere secure. I got caught out once with an ill baby and a day out turned out to be a nightmare with a miserable baby and a virus developing.”
Hot weather
Alison: “Don’t forget the sun cream. I always use sun block with an SPF factor of 50. That’s quite hardcore but it’s important to protect my baby’s skin. I make sure she wears a hat too, well what I really mean by that is I spend all day trying to ram it on her head, and she spends all day throwing it out the pram.”
Cold weather
Louise: “If it is cold it makes sense to have a warm blanket with you. I keep mine draped over the hood of the pram as it frees up space in my bag, but don’t forget to take it off or loosen it in shops or buses as the baby can overheat easily.”
Potty training
Spare clothes
Lola: “I make sure I have around three pairs of really light weight leggings in my bag for the difficult potty training stage. Accidents happen, and it’s easy to deal with them in light simple clothing.”
Hand gel
Emma: “A small bottle of hand gel is helpful for both of us, especially when dealing with poo. If you are out and have to eat a little later, then a gel or cleanser is good to have available. It has to be kept out of their reach though.”