How to Stock Your Shelves for a Newborn Baby

The baby is on the way. Do you have everything you need? The shower may have covered most of it, but there always will be a few surprises. If this is your first child, expect a lot of surprises. Sometimes these needs come in the middle of the night, or when you are least able to respond. So be prepared for every contingency.

Difficulty: Easy

Instructions

Things You'll Need:

• An area to keep the baby supplies, preferably near the changing pad
• A dresser dedicated to your child
• A nursery is preferred

How to stock your shelves for a newborn baby

1. Read through every baby book you can find, and make a list of all of the recommended items you see. Talk with friends and relatives, particularly the mothers in the group. What do they suggest? Keep a master list. Don't just ask people what they needed. Also ask what they bought and never used.

2. Before the baby comes, scan the aisles oriented toward young children. What are people selling? That's probably what people are buying. Look over what's offered. And get a sense of the vast quantities of stuff out there for babies, which hopefully will dissuade the impulse buys of anything cute and little.

3. Consider the season. If you have a winter baby, concentrate on covering the child from head to toe. A summer baby might not need the heavy bunny suit, maybe the thinner version will do.

4. Don't just focus on pink or blue. You could be surprised, of course, but it also gets monotonous to see drawers and drawers filled with the same color. Green and yellow and red all add variety, and you aren't going to create any gender issues in the process.

5. Wash all of the baby clothes with an infant-oriented detergent before putting them on the child. This will make the clothes soft and comfortable while not irritating the baby's skin as easily.

6. Babies love to be wrapped in blankets. Thin blankets in layers are just like dressing in layers, flexible and efficient.

7. Get the basic medicines that you likely will need in the first year: baby Tylenol, diaper cream and Orajel. And you probably will need a vaporizer at some point.

8. Keep it all together. Know where these things are. When you need anything for a baby, it likely will be when that child is crying and frantic, and you won't have much time or energy to look around.

Tips & Warnings

• Buy what you need, but try to avoid buying too much.
• Remember that everyone loves to get gifts for new babies. If you want something, and people ask what you want, there's nothing wrong with saying diapers or some other staple.
• Your baby is not a fashion model. Think simple and comfortable, not flashy and unrealistic.