'I'm pregnant for the first time, so I asked every mum I know what product they can't live without.'

There are lots of things about being pregnant that people don’t warn you about.

You hear about all the usual symptoms – extreme fatigue, all day sickness, food aversions and weird cravings.

But while people constantly tell you to “sleep now, while you can” and to “enjoy binge watching TV while it lasts,” they forget to tell you about the long and painful stretch that is between 13 weeks and 20 weeks.

The time when you (most likely) can’t feel your baby move, no one stands for you on public transport because you look bloated rather than pregnant and worst of all, the scans dry up. It can leave you wondering, “Is this actually happening?”

Sack Dr Google and ask OB Joe: It’s OK if your first and second pregnancy symptoms don’t match? Post continues after video.

So in order to distract myself I decided to start reading up on baby products, to look forward to what I might need, and utilise this time that I’m apparently meant to enjoy – the second trimester!

It took about five minutes for me to learn it’s a jungle out there. Between the prams that cost as much as my first car, to breast pumps, cots, clothes, snot apparatuses (yes apparently they’re a thing) it’s enough to make your head spin.

So, I asked a bunch of mothers in my life the following questions;

What are the top 3 baby products you couldn’t live without?
What did you not buy that you wish you had?
What was the one thing you bought and didn’t use?

Zoe Marshall shares the baby products every new parent should own on The Baby Bubble podcast:

Here is a definitive list of what I’ve learnt:

1. There’s something called a Haakaa breast pump and you need one. And no, it has nothing to do with the Maori war dance. It’s a clever milk catching device mum’s swear by, because apparently while you’re feeding with one boob, the other boob leaks. Who knew? A very good friend told me it was a lifesaver and sometimes she would get an extra feed from it. So, it’s definitely on my list.

 

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A post shared by Haakaa USA (@haakaausa) on Jun 15, 2019 at 4:00am PDT

2. You need cloth nappies, but not to use as actual nappies. You need them to clean up all the things, from vomit to drool to spilt milk to wee. You can even get colourful ones, to help disguise the array of bodily fluids you’re sure to be mopping up.

3. Riff. Raff. Toys. Riff Raff and Co have toys specifically designed to put babies to sleep and teach them to self-soothe, with two tracks including a heartbeat with white noise or a lullaby. Mums swear by them and say they’re a godsend.

 

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A post shared by Riff Raff Sleep Toys (@riffraff_sleeptoys) on May 24, 2019 at 8:57pm PDT

4. If you’re investing in a pump, I’ve been told to get a double, electric one. It’s much easier. Although there were mixed reviews about whether you should buy one before or after the baby is born – it is a bit of an expense if it turns out you can’t breastfeed.

5. Wondersuits, wondersuits… and did I mention wondersuits? Because precisely no one has time to clip buttons together when your baby is crying and wriggling around.

 

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A post shared by Bonds Bumps & Baby (@bondsbumpsandbaby) on Jun 10, 2019 at 7:07pm PDT

Then, perhaps the biggest question, what ended up being a huge waste of money?

The general consensus was change tables. Whilst used religiously for the first few weeks, most people ended up changing their baby on the floor, the lounge, the kitchen bench… Well, you get the gist.

The sensible thing seems to be to buy a chest of drawers that you can actually use beyond six weeks and use a change mat for the top.

The big comfy chair in the nursery? The jury’s still out, with some people preferring the comfort of their lounge or bed, while others swear it was a lifesaver.

What were the baby products you couldn’t live without? Tell us in the comments below.