Prep a Nursing / Breastfeeding Basket with me

The Essentials

• A basket or box

  To keep everything in, obvs. Mine was about the size of a shoe box, but I’d say gather together your must-haves and see what size you need

• Burp Cloths / Muslins

  Shizz can get messy. I had a barracuda baby who guzzled like it was going out of style and promptly brought a good half of it up again. A nice clean stack of muslins (such as the Essential Muslin) will act as burp cloth, face wipe and if you feel like it, nursing cover. And trust me, you will ALWAYS need one when you don’t have one   EDIT Feb 2024: Our essential muslins are so essential, we were able to bring the price down so even more parents could try them!

• Water bottle or cup

  As anyone who has pumped or breastfed before will tell you, you get parched. All that liquid gold has to come from somewhere! I had a cup with a straw for during labour, as advised by my antenatal teacher (yes, here in Canada they not only let you eat and drink but encourage it). The straw encourages you to drink more, and become better hydrated apparently. A sports bottle is handy too, as it can be chucked in the box more easily than a glass

• Healthy snacks

  I was SO fortunate to have my mum around for the first few weeks and one of the many things she did was keep my little container of nuts full. All those calories that make your baby nice and squishy have to come from somewhere and keeping up your own nutrition is imperative. Nuts and granola bars are great for replenishing proteins, fats and iron, or these post partum energy balls, which are great for any parent in the throes of early babyhood, not just those lactating

• Actual real life book

  in case you forget / can’t find your…

• Phone/charger (preferably with an ebook or audiobook)

  Sure, plenty of us will just scroll our phones and hey, maybe that’s what you’re doing right now! All I will say is that sometimes it’s good for the old brain to take a break from googling what that weird mark could be or how long naps should be at this age, ESPECIALLY during night feeds. A great audiobook series can be proper company and relaxation at a time that you, my friend, especially need it

   

  Other useful stuff:

• Nursing pads

  I personally didn’t use them, but lots of people find these absolutely essential so they don’t get drenched. Check out some of the washable reusable ones now available

• Nipple cream

  In an ideal world, breastfeeding would be easy and accessible for everyone. For many of us though, it’s a bit of a learning curve to get that latch just right and your poor nipples might feel the brunt of it. If this is you, chuck a little tub of nipple cream into your nursing box to help things be more comfortable

• Diapers and changing gear

  Depending on the layout of your home, it might be an idea to have a slightly larger nursing box for those inevitable pre- or post-feed changes