What Was in My Hospital Bag

     Being a first time mom, I didn't know what to bring to the hospital with me.  Ok, I admit, my ignorance got the best of me and I didn't know I was supposed to bring anything to the hospital...until three weeks before my due date (YIKES!)  When I found out about this "Hospital Bag" thing, I freaked out, thinking I wasn't prepared and I wouldn't be prepared in time, and got on the computer and looked up lists of what to pack in a hospital bag.

     I found all sorts of lists!  Ones that would require me to have three bags (this coming from a girl who can pack a month's worth of clothes in one suitcase with only a pair of shoes and a blanket in a back pack), ones where I didn't need a thing (only to find out later that it was because the person who wrote it was having a home birth, thanks comments for pointing that out), and even one where I would bring pointless things (a desk fan, picture frames, laundry basket, shopping bags, drinking glasses, floor lamp, and a fold up chair).  I just wound up using the one that made the most sense to me and was more relative to me.

     This is the list I found:

• Camera, charger, and extra memory card
• Comfortable PJ's
• iPod/Earphones
• Chapstick
• Robe
• Hard Candies
• Skid Free Socks
• Flip Flops (for the shower)
• Nipple Butter
• Cash/Change (for vending machines)
• Mints
• Phone/Charger
• Disposable Nursing Pads
• Hair Ties
• Toothbrush/Toothpaste
• Make-up
• Body Wash and Loofa
• Baby Book/Journal
• Towel
• Nursing Bras
• Dry Shampoo
• Going Home Clothes
• Granny Panties
• Snacks
• Prenatals
• Chocolate (for the nurses)
• Deodorant
• Change of Clothes
• Bag (in the car)
• Car Seat
• Blanket/Pillow (for Daddy)
• ID, Insurance Card, Hospital Paperwork, Birth Plan
• Bathing Suit Bottoms (for Daddy to help with showering)
• Diapers
• Receiving Blanket
• A Few Onesies
• Baby Wash
• Coming Home Outfit (for baby)
• Wipes

     I saw this list (I can't remember where I saw it or where I got it from, so if any of you just so happen to know where this came from, please let me know!) and thought "Cool beans.  I'll pack it all!"  However, even with (by then) two weeks left until my due date, I wasn't able to get everything on the list in time.  This is what I wound up NOT packing:

• Camera, Charger, and Extra Memory Card (I had my phone, Hubby's phone, Mother-In-Law's phone, my mom's phone, and my dad's phone for pictures)
• iPod (Once again, I had my phone)
• Robe (I accidentally left it at home)
• Flip flops (I have a pair somewhere...key word: "somewhere")
• Body Wash (I just used the baby wash)
• Nursing Bras (It wasn't until Piggy Baby was almost three weeks old until I found a nursing bra in my size.  Curse you enlarged breasts!)
• Granny Panties (I just used the underwear the hospital provided)
• Snacks (Forgot to buy some)
• Chocolate (I forgot to buy some, too)
• Change of Clothes (I was just going to wear the hospital gown)
• Bag (Forgot to bring it)
• Pillow (Daddy didn't want to bring one and I brought a blanket for him against his will)
• Hospital Paperwork, Birth Plan (Didn't have either one of those, I didn't have to fill out paperwork until a day and a half after Piggy was born)
• Bathing Suit Bottoms (Hubby wasn't "afraid to get [his] clothes a little wet!")
• Receiving Blanket (Didn't have any...at the time)
• Wipes (I didn't want to lug around a huge tub of wipes)

     When I got to the hospital, I was all set and ready to go.  I was confident that I had everything that I needed and everything I brought I would use!  However, even though I had done all that panicking about not being prepared, I discovered that even if I didn't have a hospital bag, it wouldn't have been that devastating to me.  Why?  I hardly even opened the suitcase.  Learning from experience, I discovered what I could have lived without (or did live without just fine) and what I actually needed.  So, here is my list of what I should have packed aka, my list:

• Skid Free Socks (Rescue those tootsies from getting cold and rescue me from slipping and falling flat on my face when going to the bathroom)
• Nipple Butter (I'm pretty sure my nipples would have fallen off without this stuff)
• Phone/Charger (It was my camera and my door to Facebook so the rest of the family could keep up with what's going on)
• Hair Ties/Hair Clips (I brought both because I just love to use my hair clip, but the clip hurt when I was trying to sleep)
• Toothbrush/Toothpaste (Got to keep those pearly whites white!)
• Baby Book/Journal (Get those footy prints!)
• Towel (I used mine for more than just drying off!  I rolled that sucker up and used it for back support when nursing!)
• Car Seat (Duh)
• Pillow (Man!  Forget the pillow for Daddy!  I had Hubby go back home and bring my body pillow and I used that thing as a nursing pillow, to hold to my incision when I laughed, coughed, or sneezed, and to keep Piggy up next to me when she was sleeping and my arm was tired!)
• ID (It's a military hospital.  You can't really get that far without an ID.)
• Baby Wash (I didn't use it on Piggy, but I did use it on me and it made my skin really soft.)
• Going Home Outfit (Piggy Baby going home wasn't really that big of a shin dig, but I did use her going home outfit for when this woman came to our room to take her pictures.)
• Baby Blanket (The regular, fuzzy kind for pictures and incase it's cold outside)

     There.  That's everything that I would bring, if I could go back in time and stop myself from packing all of that stuff.  Now, there might be some things I didn't list and it's making you think "WHY THE HELL NOT?!"  So, let me explain:

• Flip flops- When I (finally) got to take that shower, I was in an "I don't care!  I'm taking a damn shower!" kind of mood.  I couldn't have cared less how nasty the floor was.  I didn't care, I was getting a shower.
• Dry Shampoo (or any shampoo)- There's not a lot of sweating going on when you're laying in a hospital bed continuously and the only activities you're doing are nursing and going to the bathroom.  When I got that shower, I just got my hair wet and ran my fingers through it to get the few knots out that were in it.  If you must though, go on ahead and bring some dry shampoo.
• Prenatals- This might just be for some, but my doctor changed my prenatals.  Ask your doctor before hand if he is going to change them.  If not, then bring yours.  This just so happened to be how it was for me.  So, don't get to the hospital and say "This random woman posted on her blog to not bring prenatals, so I didn't."  Yeah...don't do that please.
• Deodorant- This is the same reason as the dry shampoo.  So, just go back and read that.
• Onesies- We weren't allowed to put any clothes on her because nurses were constantly taking Piggy Baby to get weighed, tested, and having to take her vitals to the point that more time would have been spent dressing and undressing her than logically necessary.  If the hospital allows you to dress your baby, then by all means, bring some clothes.
• Diapers, Receiving Blankets, Wipes- The hospital provided these for us.  Feel free to take advantage of it.  We used half of the diapers, then were like "Oh no!  We need more diapers!", get more diapers, and then stash the ones they just gave us.  We kept this up the entire time we were there and wound up with almost as many newborn diapers as she wound up needing.  We actually had to get another pack, had about ten leftover, and wound up using those as emergency diapers for when we ran out (lost track of stock).  We did the same thing with the wipes and wound up with about ten to-go packs of wipe (which we are now out of).  With the receiving blankets, we had to be a little bit creative.  If we told the nurse the blanket was dirty, she'd bring back a clean one and take away the dirty one.  We made sure to always have "two".  "She's cold, can you bring us another blanket?", we'd get the new one and then stash it.  When they would wheel her away for testing or weighing, "They only wrapped her back in one blanket, can we get another?"  Then when it was shift change, we would once again go back to the "She's cold" bit.  Even though we did this about fifteen times, we only came home with seven blankets.  Mainly because she actually did get some dirty and once or twice she came back from getting weighed without a blanket.  Oh, and while you're at it, make sure to stock up on those mesh underwear things!  You don't have to be sneaky about these, they'll just hand them out if you ask for them to take home.

     Those are the main ones that I can think of that someone would react with "Why not."  If you have any "Why not"s, then just go on ahead and post them in the comments and I'll be happy to answer.  What all did you pack in your hospital bag?  What did you wish you packed?  What did you wish you hadn't?