I packed at 36 weeks because I am a planner--A planner I am. Packing my hospital bag helped me to calm myself and find some sort of organization in the whole "becoming-a-new-mother-VERY-soon" mess of a brain. I did find the task a little daunting at first and so of course turned to Google to help guide me. Babycenter I have found does a great job organizing information whether you are having a c-section or planning a natural delivery; however, like most magazine articles and self-help guides they do go a little above and beyond. For example, a journal to document feelings and/or to track feedings??? Um, yeah right. Those first few days in the hospital for me were a blurred mess. When baby was not nursing; there was not a visitor, doctor, or nurse in my room; or I was not being served a meal, I was making every effort to catch up on some much needed shut eye. Journaling was the LAST thing on my mind. Also the nurses did a great job of waking me when it was time to feed baby at night and encouraged lots of feeding while I stayed in order to help my milk come in. Trying to get baby on a feeding schedule or making any effort at deducing feeding/sleeping patterns those first few days seems a bit ridiculous to me, but that is just my opinion.
I tried to stick very closely to Babycenter's guidelines mainly because I had no clue what to expect once I got through those hospital doors; therefore, I over packed. After my experience and some thought about my experiences one year ago here is my refined list. When it comes to our next one this is what I will bring in my bag. Hubby can fend for himself :).
- a copy of the birth plan-A few weeks prior to my due date I sat down with my doctor during our appointment and reviewed my ideal plan that I again got off of Babycenter here. I loved that it listed options and I could fill it in as if I were filling out a survey. I even added my own little remarks with further explanation to the side if I felt it necessary. At my appointment my doctor made a copy to put in my file, but having one on hand just in case it was needed for any reason was comforting.
- camera-I feel this is pretty self explanatory. I mean, duh!
- batteries-For the camera...Hello! It has always been just my luck to be ready to take pics and dun, dun, duuuuun...the battery in my camera is dead. I was NOT going to let that happen on the most special day ever!
- cell phone charger-The texts, the phone calls, the photos, the Facebook browsing while waiting for labor to progress wears down that battery pretty quick and you'll likely be there for more than just one day.
- bobby pillow-I did not bring one and had to have ours brought from our house. This is the ONE item I really, really, REALLY needed while in the hospital as I was making every effort to get acquainted with this breastfeeding business. Figuring out how to support your baby while he feeds is a tricky game even with all those fancy holds they teach in that overpriced breastfeeding course your doctor "encouraged" you to attend. The boppy helps tremendously! Thankfully we live close enough to the hospital that sending someone home for it wasn't that big of a deal.
- LANOLIN-A must have!!! Your poor little boobies will be screaming for mercy once they are put to work. Remember these ladies aren't used to manual labor!
- nursing tops/ nightgowns-Notice plural--For a reason. I wore a nightgown in the hospital, but wished I had just worn a nursing top merely because hiking up the nightgown at each feed was annoying and there was all this extra fabric to deal with when attempting to figure out breastfeeding. I also felt more was exposed of me than necessary (i.e. my post pregnancy belly. Ugh). Nightgowns are important because doctors and nurses need easy access to The Baby Exit (if you know what I mean) for follow-up monitoring, but since your pretty confined to the bed anyway going pantless under the sheet really isn't a bad choice. Have a pair of pants at the ready for those few instances when you are brave enough to get out of bed (Ouch!--The memory sends chills down my spine).
- robe-I packed one, but didn't end up needing it. Some women recommend them for the hours of walking around the hopsital that may be necessary when trying to get that labor moving a long. I guess this could also provide a good alternative to pants if you aren't ready to brave pants yet when getting out of bed. Actually, as I'm typing this it sounds like a fantastic idea--Especially after a vaginal delivery where every single movement of your legs, waste, or any other connected body part to The Exit is excruciating. The last thing you want to do is bend over or lift a leg to get your pants on.
- yoga pants-Anything stretchy is fantastic! I wore yoga pants when leaving the hospital with a maternity T. The only downfall of yoga pants is their tightness around The Exit. I was embarrassingly swollen and was grateful my shirt was long enough to cover up what my yoga pants were exposing. Maybe a loser pant choice (i.e. sweat pants) would be better.
- long shirt-to cover that swollen vag. For real! It's not so much of an issue of your pants are a looser fit (see above). When your any part of your body goes through trauma (i.e. sprained ankle, broken wrist) one expects swelling. Your The Baby Exit is not exception.
- reading material-If you find you are waiting, waiting, and waiting conversation can be exhausting with friends and family who are gracious enough to ride it out with you. If they love you, they will understand if you need some quiet time as you prepare for the bumpy ride ahead.
- glasses if you wear them-I don't, but if you do, you need them!
- makeup-I am vain enough that I considered what I would look like post labor and delivery. I was determined not to look as though I had just been through labor and delivery in all the hospital photos. While most of our hospital photos post delivery still depict me looking comparable to someone who had been run over a bus, I'd like to think I look more like I was hit with a short bus (beep-beep) and not a Greyhoud (hooooonk-hooooonk).
- face wash
- toothbrust/toothpaste
- hair brush
- ponytail holders
- deodorant
- body wash
- underwear for home
- baby's going home outfit- I packed clothes for his stay, but quickly realized the hospital provided him with shirts which were much more convenient for those first few diaper changes (oye!) when we still didn't quite have the swing of things. Sometimes I wish I could have been a fly on the wall that night in our room when my husband and I attempted to change our first poopy diaper all on our own. So glad we had FOUR hands and not just the usual two! Giggle. We did have an outfit planned for him to go home in and changed him quickly before walking out of the hospital doors with our discharge papers. Yes, the hospital provided a shirt, but it was not near as cute as the OU onesie we have in all our going home pics. For those concerned about pictures in the hospital with baby--Baby is rarely unswaddled during the hospital stay and clothes will not be seen anyway.
- blanket for baby when leaving the hospital-The hospital is nice enough to let you use theirs while you are there, but they are not for keeps.
- socks- Some good socks. Your feet will get cold, then hot, then cold, then hot. It's weird how the body reacts to all that stress and medication it's trying to manage. I wore blue fuzzy socks and at one point I think even had one sock off and one sock on..."something, something...My son John."
- comfy shoes- Whether your feet swell or not post delivery will be unknown. Make sure you bring shoes to leave the hospital in that have a little leeway. Thankfully my son was born in September so I could still get away with flip flops.
- snacks-While in labor you can't eat a thing, unless the hospital gives you a popsicle or something. Afterward you may or may not want something on your stomach. I remember feeling very grateful I brought granola bars in my bag, because after 12 hours of labor I had not had a thing to eat and I was famished. My husband kindly fed me a granola bar I had packed in my bag while I did skin to skin time with my son. I've known friends to be too nauseous to stomach much, whereas I did not have a problem eating meals.
- baby book- Those tiny feet MUST be documented! They will never be that tiny again.
- clothes for baby while at the hospital-see above at baby's going home outfit.
- blankets for baby while at the hospital-see above at blanket for baby when leaving the hospital
- breast pads-I brought several because I didn't know any better. I knew my milk would come in delayed, but had no idea of the time frame. I personally do not know anyone who's milk came in while they were in the hospital, unless they had a c-section. It wouldn't hurt to take a couple, but definitely not the whole box. Such a waste of space.
- maxi pads- The hospital provided all of my needs regarding The Exit as part of my post-delivery care package. I would still suggest bringing a few for when the hospital supply runs out. I asked for more, but was informed that I had no more in my package. Not a big deal.
- underwear for days- I don't know about you, but when I pack for even just a weekend getaway I pack enough underwear for a week! I don't know why. I just do. There's just something about wearing fresh underwear that makes me feel clean, no matter if I'm covered head to toe in mud. And I always have this fear that I will run out of clean underwear, thus I over pack. In the case of your hospital bag, there is not need to pack underwear for days because the hospital provides disposable mesh panties for all the after birth goodiness that can only truly be appreciated after you've experienced it yourself. Trust me, you don't want to be wearing your nice VS bikini cuts the first few days post birth. Take your own if you're really uncomfortable wearing the mesh disposables, but I suggest you get some oversized Wal-Mart cheapies.
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