Newborn Essentials

Car Seat

One of the first newborn essentials is a car seat, because without it you can't bring your baby home—that is unless you plan to walk. That's right; most hospitals won't let you leave unless they see your baby safely sitting in an appropriate car seat.

Choosing the right infant car seat is important. Some of the factors to take into consideration include:

• Child's weight
• That the seat can be properly installed in your vehicle (car seat needs to be tightly held by the seatbelt)
• Don't place your baby in a rear-facing car seat in the front seat (Infants should ride in rear-facing car seats until they are at least 1-year-old and weigh at least 20 pounds.)

You can purchase one of two types of rear-facing seats:

Infant-only Seats

For infants who weigh up to 22-30 pounds these car seats:

• Come with a build-in carrying handle
• Are equipped with a built-in harness
• Often come with a removable base. This base stays in the car, and the seat clicks in and out of it to make it easy to secure your baby safely.

Convertible Seats

Convertible car seats are first used as rear-facing seats until your child is old enough or weighs enough to move to a front-facing seat. Convertible car seats provide three types of harnesses to help keep your baby safe.

Diapers

This should go without saying, but you'll be surprised how fast you go through diapers once you bring your baby home. If you received various brands of disposable diapers from friends and family, it will provide the perfect opportunity to decide which brand is right for you. But if you don't plan to go shopping for a couple of weeks after arriving home from the hospital and your baby goes through 10 diapers a day, that's 140 diapers. If the doctor tells you that your baby will be big, don't stock up on newborn diapers; they may not fit for long.

Crib or Bassinet

A new baby sleeps a lot, and whether he sleeps in a crib or bassinet, providing a place for him to sleep and feel secure is essential. If you're wondering which you should go with, consider the following advantages and disadvantages:

Bassinet

• Good for a newborn because it is small and helps the infant feel secure.
• The frilly bedding that comes with a bassinet adds to that new baby nursery decore.
• Available in many different designs.
• Small enough to fit beside your bed.

However, on the downside, because of its size a bassinet is only good for a few months. Once your baby starts to develop and can get up on his hands and knees, you'll have to move him to a crib to sleep to avoid the danger of having him fall over the low sides and onto the floor.

Crib

One thing to keep in mind as you make your decision on whether or not to put your newborn in a bassinet or a crib is that eventually you have to buy a crib. One of the reasons new parents choose a bassinet is that a crib takes up more space, so if your master bedroom isn't large enough to accommodate the crib, your baby will be in a separate room. This means that when the baby wakes up during the night to be fed and changed, you'll have to make a trek down the hall. However, purchasing and using the crib from the beginning avoids adjustments for the baby down the road.

Clothing and Other Newborn Essentials

Newborns grow fast, and because of this you don't want to overstock your baby's dresser, but in the same way you want to have enough infant clothing on hand to change your baby if she soil herself or spit up regularly. Here's a handy checklist to help you prepare:

• 6-8 undershirts
• 3-5 kimonos or nightgowns (loose fitting and can be used until the cord falls off)
• 6-8 one-piece sleepers
• 1 or 2 hats (This need will depend more on what climate you live in)
• 2 or 3 dressier outfits for going out
• 4 or 5 pairs of socks or booties
• 1 or 2 sweaters or jackets (even in the summer these can be used when air conditioning is chillier than comfortable)
• If your baby is born in the winter you'll want to have a bunting bag or snowsuit