Any dads-to-be on this forum?

[papa2b]

My wife is delivering in mid-May 2009 - and we're first time parents! Although i think (she won't tell me her username!!) my wife is quite active on this forum - i'm wondering if there any other dads-to-be here - especially first time dads?

Im sure there is a lot we could be learning from each other to prepare for the new arrival too...

 

[JO&ROB]

Hi papa2b,
I'm a first time father of a 4 month old born in HK and would be happy to share my limited parenting experiences with you

 

[Neha]

Hi Congrats. We( wife & I) write under one name. But I am also a dad of 2 year old boy

 

[intercal]

Hi and Congrat. I have a toddler and can offer some advice if needed

 

[rebekah]

my husband doesn't have a login but i do frequently show him threads, ask his opinion, etc.

I bet if a new dads group formed he'd be in.

 

[mwong222]

i am a first-time father (delivery in feb-2009). but i am afraid i don't have any advice. i only have questions. i am only finding out that there is so little i know and my due date is so close.

 

[papa2b]

Just go back from a trip....

Lets go ahead and ask questions and hopefully we'll get some good advice from some of the dad's (and mum's) on the site...

So i've got a couple...

1) What was probably the most useless purchase that you made prior to the baby being delivered? The list of stuff we need to get is endless, but i get mixed messages about what is important and not! What should i absolutely not bother with?

2) Air Purifyers - I am thinking about getting air purifyers for the house, but again am getting mixed signals. Some people say that it's absolutely essential in Hong Kong due to obvious reasons. Others say it's not good for the baby, because the air becomes too sterile and they don't build up their natural immune to germs/bacteria etc. What are your thoughts?

3) For working dads - does anyone know if there are any laws regarding paternity leave in Hong Kong?

Thanks!

 

[Neha]

dont buy too much in advance as u can always buy stuff later. the lists that they give u at bumps to babes is excessive. we bought a rocker early on but didnt use much of it. havea place where u can change the baby without having to bend so much .

dont know about the air purifier as we didnt even consider it

i dont think there is a paternity leave but surely your company will give u days off but better ask your Company

take care

 

[tikkunolam]

My most useless purchase prior to birth was a hair brush and comb set. My baby is 6 months old and still doesn't have enough hair to comb or brush. It isn't as if she is going to wake up one morning with a full head of long hair that needs brushing. Eventually she will have hair but I could use even that little bit of extra clutter out of the way.

Really, try to avoid a lot of the gimmicks. Swaddle blankets were a waste. You can swaddle with any blanket. Creepers and onesies- I can't tell you how many I've donated that my baby had never even worn. I was so worried I wouldn't have enough of the basics and in the end I was given so much stuff I never got around to using it all. Newborns don't get dirty. Mine didn't even spit up. So often times I could use the same onesie twice before washing. If you find you need something you can always go to the shops and get it. Rarely are the shops closed for a holiday and most likely what you find you might need isn't so urgent that you can't wait an extra day.

 

[pangmei]

Hi there,

When I was pregnant, my husband & I were completely overwhelmed by baby shops. The 'what to buy' checklist in my pregnancy book was an entire chapter and there was such a dizzying array of choices in the shops.

Now that Finn is 7 months old, here is a list of what we found to be most useful for those first few months:

* A sling/carrier - we got the Ergo with infant insert and Finn loved it. He would pretty much fall asleep as soon as he was put in it. My husband used to go out for long walks with Finn and let me catch up on sleep

* Large lightweight cotton muslin wraps - we were given a pack of Bubba Blue ones and they were fantastic. Finn really liked to be swaddled and slept much better wrapped.

* A rocker - A real lifesaver for us. In the early days, Finn really didn't like his cot and would sometimes only sleep in the rocker.

* Muslin cloths - we got a pack of 20 from Mothercare. We've used them as burping cloths, makeshift bibs and they're also large enough to cover up baby in the stroller.

In terms of an air purifier, we live in Guangzhou which is much more polluted than HK so we have bought an IQ Air. It's hard to know how much difference it really makes, but it does give us peace of mind.

Cheers,

Grace