Bring Home Your Baby

Bringing your new baby home is bound to be a significant moment in your life. One that will demand preparation on your part, not just on the physical, but also on the mental and emotional levels.

These are just a few things you may need to remember:

• Before bringing the baby home, prepare the baby’s room. Make a note of all the things you will require immediately, and keep them ready where you can easily find them.
• Before your spouse is discharged from the hospital, take home all the flowers, gifts, and other surplus stuff. This way you will have much less to carry and worry about when you are actually leaving. This frees up your hands to fully attend to your spouse and new baby.
• Keep painkillers and other medication that your partner is supposed to take inside a handbag. Carry this with you. Do not pack these in with the rest of the things; you may have to unnecessarily hunt for them when you require them.
• Your spouse may experience some difficulty in walking, especially if she has had a cesarean delivery. Ask her to wait and bring the car right up to the hospital door.
• Remember that American hospitals will not let you take your baby home from the hospital in a car if you do not have a car seat. If you have never used a baby car seat before, it is better that you read the instruction manual and practice setting it up well in advance. Never take the baby out of the seat while in a moving car. Pull over to the side of the road first, if you have to attend to the baby.