Baby on a budget : Newborn

I remember the lead up to having Tom and the hours spent looking at what I apparently needed! The must have items and the trendy items as well as reviews for the everyday. It was a minefield for my hormone filled brain! So I thought I would throw my two pence in, I will say that I am on team thrifty and would rather save money for Toms future than spunk it on a pram that costs the same as a small car, but that's just me...

Nappies

We used Pampers when there was good deals via Groupon as you could buy in bulk. Not good for newborn size as Tom was barely in them but it worked well for 2s and 3s. We also like Aldi when there wasn't a Groupon deal to be had. The Mamia range has won a whole host of awards and rightly so! I truly believe the nappies are equal in quality, the only difference I found is that the wetness indicater is more prominent on the Pampers, but still viable on Mamia.

From the word go we have used Mamia sensitive wipes, they are great! Everything you want in a wipe with a sturdy lid and they have never caused any adverse reactions on Toms sensitive skin. The other benefit is that Aldi do regular baby events in which there isn't usually a great deal in price difference but you can get in bulk.

Clothes

We were gifted so many beautiful clothes for Tom, which is what bred by love of Baby Gap! It was a great way to find out what companies you liked interns of fit, wash and design features. I rate Next (washes well, built in scratch mitts),  M&S (washes sell, timeless designs, quality), Baby Gap (bigger sizes, unusual designs, lasts well) and ASDA (good range, affordable, good for basics). 

I didn't get along with with scratch mittens and preferred them built into a baby grow, ditto for booties. He wore his little hats twice and there was plenty of other items only worn once or twice. I think next time I wouldn't bother too much with clothes and would just stick to baby grows for the first little bit. I did really like long sleeve body suits, which I hadn't bought any but ended up finding them handy for him to sleep in with a grow bag on warm nights. I still really like them now to layer under t-shirts

Food

Thomas was breastfed so that didn't cost us anything outside the outlay of the pump, I have reviewed that previously. Just a piece of advice, keep hydrated and drink loads of water, it can be thirsty work!

Washing Essentials

Clothing 

I also stuck with Aldi for this. I used the non bio powder and the sentence baby fabric conditioner. Tom had never reacted to these. The brand is ultra affordable and just as good as Persil etc.

Body

I have used Johnsons and it's good but for me, my newborn Tom smell is Burts Bees Baby Bee. It smells gorgeous and never irritated Toms skin. The range isn't particularly cheap but it is lovely! My stand out product is the body oil, I used to give Tom massages to help us bond and to was his dry skin on his wrists and ankles when he was all brand new.

Sleeping

Toms cot was kindly given to us by a friend of a friend which was greatly appreciated. I bought a Moses basket from eBay for £5 as I was half expecting Tom to not sleep in as, which is what everyone kept telling me would happen. Turns out, Tom loved the basket and remains in there in our room until he was 6 months. We have always used grow bags with Tom and I think he likes the feeling of security and warmth. 

I hope this has been helpful. What did you find was a newborn essential and what was a load of tosh?