What I Packed in My Hospital Bag with Baby #2
By TMoM Team Member Anna Keller
I just had my second baby on February 19, so since the hospital stay is fresh on my mind I thought I’d share a peek into what I packed in my hospital bag this time around.
When my first baby was born, I remember doing tons of research to try to figure out what to pack. This time around, I had the benefit of that past experience, and I knew the things I definitely used last time, the things I DIDN’T use, and the things I wished I’d brought along.
The list wasn’t necessarily shorter this time (I still felt like we were moving into the hospital with so many things!), but I used just about everything I brought. Here’s what I packed!:
For Me:
- Baby book (I had them put his footprints directly into the book after delivery)
- Birth goals (print these out and bring them with you so the nurses can easily reference your goals)
- Pillow with non-white case (bringing your favorite pillow from home makes a big difference, and the colored pillowcase makes it much less likely that you’ll leave it at the hospital!)
- Snacks (I had a loooong induction this time, so the snacks were incredibly necessary for both my husband and me during the birth as well as in mother/baby)
- Water bottle + electrolyte powder (I love mixing LMNT into my water for extra electrolytes, and they were definitely needed during labor!)
- Scrunchie (you’ll definitely want to pull your hair back at some point)
- Lip balm
- Portable phone charger + cord
- Disposable underwear (I MUCH prefer using disposable underwear to putting huge pads in my own undies after giving birth, and was glad I had these to wear home. It feels much less messy to just toss the disposable underwear. I even ended up using some during labor when I was bleeding a bit and didn’t want to make a mess everywhere.)
- Slippers (these make things much comfier in mother/baby)
- Glasses + contact case and solution
- Brush
- Dry shampoo (washing my hair and blowing it dry in the hospital wasn’t something I was interested in, so dry shampoo was the perfect solve)
- Going home outfit (For me this consisted of high-waisted yoga pants, a nursing cami, and a comfy sweater. You’ll notice I didn’t pack any other clothes for myself, because while I’m in the hospital I prefer just wearing their gowns. They get gross and often bloodstained, and I’d rather leave those there than worry about my own clothes getting stained, bringing them home, etc.)
- Minimal toiletries (toothbrush and travel-sized toothpaste, makeup remover wipes, face moisturizer, travel loofah, travel-sized body wash – that’s about it!)
- Makeup (I brought a few key makeup items and used them before heading home)
For The Baby:
- Carseat
- Going home clothes
- 1-2 other outfits
- Diaper bag (although they have all the essentials – diapers, wipes, blankets, etc. – at the hospital!)
- Gift for him to “give” his big sister
Comment below and share other items that you would recommend packing in your hospital bag!
For more blogs on pregnancy and babies, click here and here.
For more of our favorite things, check out our Amazon Store Front. We continuously add new items sorted by category. Plus, want to see more blogs like this and get notifications on local events and happenings? Subscribe to our free weekly newsletters!