Dad to be Hospital bag???

[Yorkshire Andy]

Well in about a month and a bit im going to be a dad


So Mrs Andy has packed her hospital bag with a pile of "stuff" that her and baby might need


and she has told me i need my own bag of "stuff" So those of you who have sat for hours on a maternity ward whilst SWMBO has done "the hard work" what did you take / wish you had?

We did have a heated debate in ARCO's shop when i selected the ideal £5 bag for it:

Anyway once she discovered it was for hospital i was then granted permission to spend £5 (not that i already have several bags but she thinks its a funny bag and will make a good changing bag once baby appears due to the text on it) little does she know it will become babys "BOB"


Well apparently i need to be prepared So far the plan is to convey her to hospital in my car (which is kept full of fuel anyway not thats stopping her flapping about me keeping it filled up) which has my usual EDC of a scruffy change of clothes (work clothes) sleeping bag, 5l water et all


So i have a bag to fill...

So far i have chucked a MRE all day breakfast in it,, some tea bags, my digital camera, spare sd card, spare battery pack... and some biscuits.. Need to add a reading book..... and my Power bank, a phone charger and a MRE heater pouch ...

Any prepping dads thing of anything i really NEED? thinking a Skivvy roll of shirt pants and socks and more food to snack on and change for any vending machines

[Jamesey1981]

I believe a cigar is traditional.

These are my favourite (I gave up the fags but a cigar every month or so doesn't count!)
https://www.cgarsltd.co.uk/montecristo- ... p-506.html

Chuck some extra loo roll in your bag, you might be there a while and you don't want to use institutional stuff or run out!

[Deeps]

Kindle/headphones for the music on your phone, preferred nibbles and a couple of litres of water. You can leave all the rest of your apocalypse gear in the back of the car. Its been 24 years since I had to consider it but for years man has had to endure being a spare wheel at the child birth thing, its a good thing we're a stoic bunch.

Hope it all goes well for you and the missus mate, just another 30 years or so until they grew up and you get your life back.

[jaffab]

Its been a while, but the one thing I recall was that she got fed by the hospital, whereas I got jack. We were in the hospital for 14 hours, so after a while I was getting pretty peckish.
I would suggest all you need is:
1) Your phone (games/music/ability to SMS to relatives)
2) Headphones
3) A few bottles of drink
4) A sandwich/some food
5) Plenty of coins for parking
6) An empty backpack for bring all the junk home (you will be given a big box of samples - nappies, wash power, wipes, etc etc etc) - I think they stil give this lot out

Things not to forget....

1) Wife
2) Baby travel car seat for getting Baby home
3) Baby pack (baby clothes, baby hat etc)

[aldhelm]

I was going to say a load of 10p's for the phone calls, but then I remembered we're in the 21st century, that really makes me feel old, I know I didn't have enough when my first arrived.

All I can think of off hand would be money for the coffee machine and maybe some pro plus type tablets, these things can last a real long time.

Hope all goes really well for both of you.

[jansman]

Sounds like you got it. Covered son! 24 years since I last did that,but nothing changes...it could be a long wait or damn fast.Take plenty of change and plenty of folding cash ,as much as you can possibly carry.It will get you used to being a walking twenty pound note for the rest of your life!!!

[Plymtom]

Good luck Andy, I was there for all of mine, and assisted the midwife for the main part of the last one ( It was just the three of us) so long as you have the pro plus and money for the vending machines you'll be fine.... unless you're squeamish then smelling salts?
The only time I left her side was to nip outside for a smoke, if you don't you'll have no excuse of course.

[Brambles]

Wet wipes. It can get pretty hot and stuffy in hospital and both you and Mrs Andy will appreciate something cool and soothing. Get the good ones that smell nice and there's some extra Brownie points right there.
Good luck to you both.

[featherstick]

An inflatable pillow, perhaps a lightweight fleece blanket. I remember trying to kip on the bare floor after 35 hours awake, it was possible, but only just. If you can cat-nap, you'll be all the better for it.

And please, buy and read Beatrice Hollyer's "Sleep - the secret of problem-free nights" now. It is a guide to helping baby get to sleep on his/her own, which really works. Our first was a nighttime baby in utero and when he was born - slept all day, woke up about 11pm. We got him turned around and sleeping 8 hours a night by about 10 weeks in, and now he is a very sound sleeper. Our second took more work to get to sleep but is now also a sound sleeper. It really works.

[Captain Darling]

Make sure you wear really comfy shoes. As soon as you think it's safe to sit down, someone, somewhere will have something for you to do. You will be a busy, busy man. Naturally Mrs YA will be otherwise engaged.