About What We Took To The Hospital (And What We Brought Home!)

After the premature labor scare, we made sure that we did everything we could to be ready for when baby really did decide to show up.

Birth plan written. Nursery finished. Car seat installed and inspected. Baby clothes washed. Bags packed. My bag, daddy's bag, and the baby's bag.

I'd scoured the Internet, studying multiple hospital bag checklists. I asked friends on Facebook for their input. Here's what we ended up packing:

My bag:
Pillows from home.
Nightgown.
Yoga socks (with rubber grippies on the bottom.)
Always Infinity Plus overnight pads.
Underwear and nursing bra.
Toiletries.
Freezer pops.
T-shirt dress to go home in.
Flip-flops.
Birthing ball.

Copy of the birth plan.

Daddy's bag:
Pillow.
Clothes to sleep in.
Clothes to wear during the day.
iPads, camera, phone chargers, all the electronic stuff.
Snacks.
Toiletries.
Lots of spare change.
Copy of the birth plan.

Baby's bag:
A couple newborn and 0-3 month outfits. (Wasn't sure how big he'd be.)
We left the rest of his bag empty because we knew we'd be bringing stuff home.
Copy of the birth plan. (Seriously, we had copies of that thing stashed everywhere.)

What did I really end up using? My nightgown, pillows, toiletries, and Freezer Pops. I wore my socks once, until I got blood on them.

It was nice to have my own nightgown instead of dealing with all the strings and ties on the hospital gowns. Some of the packing lists that I'd checked out on the Internet suggested bringing your own towels, hair dryer, and makeup. I didn't care about the quality of the towels - I was just grateful to scrape the grunge off and get back in bed. Hair dryer and makeup? My hair was in a ponytail the whole time. I might have brushed it the morning we checked out.

Thank goodness for my own pillows. I think it's the only way I was able to get comfortable and get any sleep. I used the hospital pillows as supports for when I was nursing.

Bringing my own pads and underwear? Ha. The mesh granny panties and ginormous hospital pillow pads are where it's at. I asked for (and received) an extra stash before we left.

The birthing ball sounded like a great idea when we were at our childbirth class. I was so comfortable sitting and gently bouncing on it. But when I was in labor - any pressure on my lower back/butt was no good. Plus we'd already packed so much stuff that I couldn't imagine daddy making any more trips back and forth to the car.

Daddy ended up using most of his stuff. He was smart and pre-wrote an e-mail letting friends and family about the baby's arrival. He did a great job at running all communication (phone, texts, e-mails) until I felt like dealing with it. All he had to do was plug in the time, weight, and length and hit send. He used the spare change for snacks and to buy a newspaper with the date baby was born.

Baby ended up coming home in a 0-3 month shirt and hat. Most of what the hospital put him in was 0-3 months. Little man kind of skipped right over the newborn clothes.

What did we bring home from the hospital?
All of my postpartum supplies. Any opened packages of diapers and wipes. Two nose bulbs. Saline drops. 4 or 5 baby blankets. Two water pitchers/mugs. (They were huge and I was thirsty!) Two tabletop personal fans. (I'd had serious night sweats and was dying, plus the nurses said once they were opened, they wouldn't get reused!)

And of course, we brought home one perfect, healthy baby boy!

What items did you just have to take to (or bring home from) the hospital?