I had promised that I would post about what I packed for hospital, but given that I had only just finished packing the thing before she made her great escape it completely slipped my mind. So I thought in light of that, get your bags packed early ladies because you never know what will happen. Before being induced I thought I would probably go overdue, it’s quite common for first time mums and of course that would give me all the time in the world to finish packing my hospital bag.
As you may remember I wanted to give birth ideally at the birth centre, but I had to prep my bag for both hospital or birth centre just in case. There are some things like flip-flops for the communal shower for example that I was hoping I wouldn’t need to use if I managed to make it to the birth centre (since you have an ensuite for the entire duration of your stay). I’ll highlight below what I packed and whether I actually used it or not.
What I packed for me
- Flipflops – Really handy for shared showers
- Slippers – For roaming the halls with
- Maternity Robe – Better than walking around in your nightwear outside your room
- 2 x Maternity nightdresses – Buy something you don’t mind getting ruined
- Slipper socks* – Apparently your feet get cold during labour but I didn’t get that far!
- Hair dryer*
- Tangle teaser
- Wash bag – Including the usuals for an overnight stay, shampoo, shower gel, tooth paste etc
- Disposable breast pads – You’ll need these whether you breast feed or not
- Disposable underwear
- 2 x Maternity Pads
- Towel
- Wash cloth*
- Headphones*
- Ear plugs*
- Makeup
- Swimwear – for the birth pool*
- Snacks – Cereal bars etc
- Going home outfit
- Phone chargers
- Change for the vending machines
- Maternity notes
- Body pillow
For my husband
- Change of clothes
- Washbag
- Swimwear
*I didn’t use these, although I wish I had remembered I had earplugs when I was on the postnatal ward with the crying babies. But then I probably wouldn’t have wanted to use them as I would want to be able to hear my own daughter crying. I didn’t need the headphones as I had an ensuite for the induction process and just had the music playing out of my phones speaker.
For Baby
- Formula milk – Cow and Gate starter pack (with sterilised teats included) just in case*
- 1 x vest newborn size
- 1 x vest up to 1 month size
- 1 x baby grow newborn size
- 1 x baby grow up to 1 month size
- 1 x newborn hat
- 20 x newborn nappies
- Water wipes
- Muslin squares
- A swaddle blanket
- Carseat (in the car)
*Didn’t use these, the hospital had plenty of the exact same formula bottles but I breastfed initially anyway.
It was worth taking bigger sizes as my daughter was only in the newborn size for the first night, then we switched her to the up to 1 month size (9lb) which was more roomy as she weighed 8lb 4oz when born.
I didn’t feel like I was missing anything at all, we survived on mostly food from outside the hospital. Hospital food was OK but I much preferred the treats my husband would venture off and bring back. The cereal bars I packed were handy for those in between times when my husband couldn’t disappear off to find food.
I think if you happen to have access to your car, you should totally take anything you want. The hospital didn’t provide car parking so booked car parking spaces that were rentable nearby and this allowed us to have lots of items stored in the car boot. However I would say depending on how far away the parking is, remember someone has to carry the items!
