Top 10 Things Every Postgrad Parent needs

After falling down a YouTube rabbit hole of best and worse baby buys while bored on an early morning feed I have decided to write my own top 10 list of things every postgrad parent needs, I might do a worst list too.

Of course this is just for fun, you don't need any of this stuff, it's just things I've found super helpful which you might also find helpful too. I'm not being sponsored for any of these, just my opinion about the stuff we use.

No 10. A baby-wearing coat. I've put this at number 10 because it is a purely luxury item but I found having a baby-wearing coat gave me back my freedom. Suddenly we could pop out to the shops without expedition planning. Now I'm back to work TB comes inside the coat to nursery, then I take off the baby panel and wear it like a normal coat to work, which means less stuff to carry. We have a Mamalila All-weather, and while it's not warm enough for some winter weather, it's done really well overall considering we are in  North-East England*

Why do postgrad parents need this?  Leaving the house planning and prep is reduced to about 5-10 min, no more fighting a pram into shops or onto trains, only 1 coat to carry to work.

No 9. Pillows. All the pillows. We have soft ones, firm ones, a long body one, a wedge, 2 v-shaped ones and 2 feeding pillows. At the end on my pregnancy I needed about 8 to get to sleep, we have a feeding pillow or V- shaped pillow on each sofa and the rocking chair (see no 1.) and a Boppy for ThesisBaby to sit up on her play mat with. One of my favorites is my travel J-pillow- I use it as a head rest in the rocking chair and when it's not needed the funny shape amuses TB.

Your basic pillow equation is:
Npn= (Npt*2)+2sp

Where Npn= no. pillows you need, Npt= no. pillows you think you need, and sp is spare pillows for then the others are being washed.

Why do Postgrad parents need this? Great to make a pillow fort for hiding in when it all gets too much

No 8. A hand powered food processor.  ThesisBaby screams at the sound of the stick blender. after a few attempts to prep her meals with ours and failing because of the post-scary-things-cuddle needed to calm her down,  I got a handheld food processor form Tupperware, called a herb chopper in the UK, It's small, light, I can take it with us when we visit Nanny and Granddad and best of all no dinnertime tears. It's also bright pink :) It  makes chopping veg for grown-ups a breeze, so I'll defiantly keep it after weening is over.

Why do Postgrad parents need this? Save time and tears on food prep, because weening and writing are stressful enough. Also very good for salsa.

No 7. Baby Sleeping bags. TheisBaby kicked off her blanket from her first night and she hated to be swaddled. She even  managed to wiggle out from under her blanket at nap time and rotate in the cot, while leaving the blanket tucked in (!) so  we started to use sleeping bags instead. My favorite is Bambino Merino ones, so soft and warm! They are super expensive new, not student-budget friendly at all, but are pretty easy to find second hand. ThesisBabay started to sleep better immediately because she wasn't getting cold anymore and I don't need to worry about her as much, leaving me  more focus on work during the evening once she is in bed.

Why do Postgrad parents need this? Keep you little one safe and warm so you can get down to studying in the evening rather then rescuing a blanket every 10 minutes.

No 6. A baby Sling or carrier. I never expected to be a baby carrying parent but if ThesisBaby wasn't slinged I'd get very little done as she will quite happily cozy up on me for most of the day. With a sling I can move around the house and we get cuddle time. We have also gone to lectures and the lab with ThesisBaby in a sling- it is much easier to move about than parking her buggy.

Why do Postgrad parents need this: Work and cuddle, easier to manover in a lab** than a buggy.

No 5.A V Kit. This is a kit put together for new mums to take to hospital with such necessities as  maternity pads, Epsom salts for a soothing bath and the most important postnatal item ever- a peribottle. This is a squishy bottle you fill with warm water to sloosh over your sore bits while on the loo. As someone who had unexpected surgery and stitches this is a real help if you had perineal trauma because it helps with pain control and stitch hygiene. Yeh it does sound a bit icky, but by the time you are that side of labour you a. probably won't care much anymore and b. have had to do way worse then slosh warm water while you pee.

Why do Postgrad parents need this? It looks like a bottle you might find in a wet lab, which is funny and when it hurts to pee you just gotta laugh at something. Also my new go to gift for baby showers.

No 4. An electric breast pump and milk storage bags. This wasn't something I had initially intended to buy, but after using a  Medula while we were in hospital I decided I needed one at home to build up the freezer stock of milk before I went back to work, so I brought a Swing. I'm really glad I did because I struggle to pump and it allows me to control the suction. It also makes expressing at work quicker.

Why do Postgrads need this? If you are breastfeeding it allows you to provide milk for your little one while you are at work or studying.

No.3 Muslin cloths. Hundreds. Thousands. Okay, maybe not thousands, but defiantly more than you think. Babies are sticky, gungy, leaky, drippy piles of dampness who require near constant mopping. Also useful for removing the above from laptops or research papers.

Why do Postgrad parents need this? All parents need these, especially if they have a sicky or teething baby.

No 2. Dictation Software This is an absolute lifesaver when bubs has fallen asleep on your arm and you need to get some work done or jot down a thought while you read. It takes a little forward planning because you will need the laptop/ mic set up within your free-arm's reach before the baby falls asleep (trust me being able to see the equipment and not get to it is a really frustrating way to spend an afternoon!), but if you have managed to get organised, you can get heaps done while you have baby cuddles.

Why do Postgrad parents need this?  Lets you successfully combine cuddles and work.

No 1. A gliding rocking chair and foot stool. I always said that if/ when I had a baby I wanted a rocking chair, so when I was about 5 months pregnant we brought one second hand for £50- I think it is the best £50 we every spent of baby stuff! I have spent hours feeding ( sometimes 6-8ish hours a day), comforting, rocking and holding ThesisBaby in the rocking chair. I also tend to wonder into the nursery absent mindedly to read papers and contemplate the universe so it gives me somewhere to sit. It's very soothing, sometimes so soothing TB and I have both ended up asleep on it at 0300 during those long night feeds!

Why do Postgrad parents need this? If you have a thousand research article to read, read them in comfort and let the gentle rocking relax you as you contemplate the universe.

* very cold and wet- this year it's still snowing in April!

** It's a motion capture lab, no chemicals or wet splashy things