Taking Baby Home from the Hospital

The day finally arrives that you can take your baby home from the hospital! What an exciting day! 

Daddy will probably be beaming and will most likely be keen to get his family back home.

For Mum, emotions will most likely include a mix of excitement and nerves!

Up until now, you have had the midwives to help you with breastfeeding tips, to answers all those questions you have had as well as lend a hand when you were exhausted!

Now comes the time for you to do it by yourself, and this could be a pretty daunting concept.

Taking Baby Home From the Hospital

With Avalee-Rose’s birth I stayed in hospital for 2 nights. With both of my other girls, who were also born via C-Section, I stayed in the hospital for 3 nights.  2 Nights were not enough to heal properly before tackling life outdoors, and the pain of the LONG journey out of the hospital was totally excruciating!!

You can read more about her birth here if you are keen.

What to Expect as you Leave the Hospital

• The pain: The level of pain will vary depending on your birth experience, but I’m sure everyone who leaves will feel some sort of discomfort.
•  The stomach:  Another important thing to keep in mind is that when you leave the hospital, you will most likely look like you are around 5 months pregnant.  So do take a comfy outfit to the hospital. With my first bub I thought that I would have a pretty flat stomach, but uhmmmm nope, it takes a while for the tummy to contract back to pre-pregnancy size!!
• The exhaustion: Keep in mind that you have just had a massive event occur in your life.  You will most likely be tired after the adrenaline high from the birth, add in some exhaustion from looking after a newborn baby and you will understand why taking your baby home from the hospital is such a big event.  When you get home, you might feel truly ‘buggered’.  Ask hubby to help so you can go and get some rest.  Be kind to yourself!!
• For the C-section ladies:  From my experiences, the journey home is far from fun.  You will most likely feel every bump in the road and every rocking movement on the drive home. I was in pain!  Try to grab some strong pain medication from the midwives 30 min prior to leaving the hospital. Place your hand on your wound to help support it from all the movement. And when you get home, go and collapse on your comfy bed!  The journey home took so much energy from me, that it left me feeling shaky, nauseous, dizzy and a bit ‘spaced out’.  Lucky I have an amazing husband who did an incredible job of looking after me!

3 Essential Items You will Need to Get Home

1.  Baby’s Pram/Stroller

The easiest way for a baby to leave the hospital is via pram.  For a start, you might be too sore and too weak to carry bubby all the way out of the hospital and while Daddy might be able to carry bub, he will most likely have his hands full with the hospital bags, flowers & gifts.[

2.  Car Capsule

Our current rear-facing baby capsule that we use both in the car as well as with our Baby Jogger City Mini GT.  You will need to purchase a car seat adapter, in order to click it onto your stroller, you can find the adapter that works with the GT and the Peg Perego capsule here.

3.  Infant Head Support and Snuggler Insert for the Capsule

And lastly, you will need an infant head support insert for your capsule! Your baby will be sooo tiny, and his/her head will ‘flop’ around everywhere.  They will be so much comfier for the first while with a head support system!

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Baby’s Arrival Home

As we drove into our driveway at home, our two eldest daughters were already awaiting our arrival!!

I guess they beat us to the house as we had to stop TWICE to breastfeed our baby, she was screaming and screaming on the way home! So much so that she lost her voice for the next day! It was pure torture sitting next to her and trying to unsuccessfully soothe her, whilst not being allowed to pick her up and snuggle her close. So I made hubby stop and we sat next to the road, boob in her mouth until she fell asleep.

The sisters were so excited to have her home!  Their excitement and energy were a bit overwhelming for the first few hours, I was completely exhausted!  Lucky that newborn babies can sleep through almost anything, and little Avalee-Rose just didn’t seem fazed by all the ruckus around her!

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3 Essential Items you will Need at Home

Life will be so much easier if you already have a little space for your newborn baby set up.

You don’t need millions of toys just yet. Forget about those fancy playmats for now. We didn’t even bother getting her cot just yet. What we did have, is the essentials – newborn babies tend to feed, poop, sleep and repeat.  You only need baby gear to keep those three essential needs met.–

1. Rocking Cradle/Bassinet

I would be very lost without my rocking cradle.

In reality, I really recommend a ‘gliding’ cradle over a ‘rocking’ one as the rock is so much smoother!!  Avalee’s cradle lives right next to my bed and often when she squirms at night, I simply extend my arm with my eyes closed and just rock the cradle until she settles back down. I truly find it a lifesaver!

Plus the size is not only perfect for a newborn baby, but it is also perfect if you want your baby to sleep next to your bed for the first few months.

Anything to make those first few months easier is worth the cost.

2. Change Table

A baby change table is one of those essential items that you will use for at least the next two years.

I found it was especially important as I had a c-section and bending down low to change her on the bed or couch simply hurt way to much.

I really like the change tables that have two levels underneath the table itself, so you can pop all sorts of bits and pieces there, ready to grab for when you need them. Really helpful in the months when your baby sleeps in your room, so you don’t have to wander to her/his room in the middle of the night when that poo explosion hits.

3. Baby Bath

Another essential item is a baby bath. We got a baby bath with a stand as we don’t have any space in our bathroom to pop the bath.

I also highly recommend you get a ‘hammock’ for the newborn baby! You have no idea how slippery your baby can get in the soapy water, and it truly is a bit tricky holding a ‘floppy’ baby with one arm while you try to get the soap and wash her/him with the other.

Our baby LOVES hanging out in her hammock in the bath and it frees up my hand so I can enjoy the bath time more too!!–

The rest of the items for bubby? Well why not go and purchase them as you need them! As a third time mother, I can safely say that you really don’t need everything that you think you would need.

So instead of spending money on millions of baby gear, that might never get used, how about taking it easy for now … we don’t need those toys or Bumbo seats or highchairs for months yet!

Until then, even though those nights might be long and the days with an unsettled baby will be super challenging, do try to enjoy this little newborn baby.

Over to you:

• What items did you use in the first 6 weeks of your bubby’s life?
• Which of the items above do you still need to purchase to prepare for baby’s first weeks of life?