What Do We Need For The New Baby

[siamkiwi]

I'm new to babies and have read on this forum that some things are hard to get, or expensive in LOS.

I'm probably going to be over concerned being a first time Dad, but want to have the best for the little one.

I'm back in NZ at the moment and want to know if people with a bit more experience in this department can offer advice on what I could buy here and take back to LOS.

The first thing that springs to mind is a car seat. In NZ it is against the law to carry a baby in a car without an approved child restraint, and I'm sure most will agree this kind of thing is not taken seriously in LOS. I'm sure my Thai family will have a good laugh at this one, but I'm going to try and educate them.

Are good child restraints available in LOS and what other things should I be considering.

Edited October 21, 2009 by siamkiwi

[onnut]

hello mate, congratulations on being a dad for the first time.

dont worry about finding anything that you may need or want in Thailand it is all here. prices are ok as well except for stuff like good quality buggys and car seats, they are expensive but everything else is very cheap. the Thais manage on very little money so you should be ok.

I thought the same last year but most things were bought for us by family members and friends.

good luck

[siamkiwi]

hello mate, congratulations on being a dad for the first time.

dont worry about finding anything that you may need or want in Thailand it is all here. prices are ok as well except for stuff like good quality buggys and car seats, they are expensive but everything else is very cheap. the Thais manage on very little money so you should be ok.

I thought the same last year but most things were bought for us by family members and friends.

good luck

Thanks

PS. Like your signature

[choppychugger]

I would say that Baby intercomms are cheaper abroad with a wider range available to you. They don't seem to be high on the list over here.

Choppy ( in Phuket )

[MJo]

Everything is available and before you know it you have bought lots of stuff you dont need or never use. I know i did

Sure some items like car seats you propably can get cheaper outside but is it worth the hassle transporting them by plane.

Our's was born in Bumrungrad and with all the freebies you get from them your ok for a week or two.

For first bed you can get something like moses basket with couple of blankets, IMO better than "big" baby bed for the first month or so. Small pack of nappies, basic clothes and few bottles should do it. If your planning to breast feed then a breast pump could come handy if with formula get few more bottles and maybe a bottle sterilizer (if the MIL is not around to boil the bottles).

And congrats !

[siamkiwi]

Everything is available and before you know it you have bought lots of stuff you dont need or never use. I know i did

Sure some items like car seats you propably can get cheaper outside but is it worth the hassle transporting them by plane.

Our's was born in Bumrungrad and with all the freebies you get from them your ok for a week or two.

For first bed you can get something like moses basket with couple of blankets, IMO better than "big" baby bed for the first month or so. Small pack of nappies, basic clothes and few bottles should do it. If your planning to breast feed then a breast pump could come handy if with formula get few more bottles and maybe a bottle sterilizer (if the MIL is not around to boil the bottles).

And congrats !

Thanks,

I checked out the pinned forum on seats and sounds like you can get quality cheap enough.

[MJo]

I got Chicco package with seat that also fits to the buggie, handy as you don't need to take the kid out from the seat. Just open the belts and lift the whole thing to the buggie. Propably in the expensive range but should be fairly safe as it is the same sold in US and EU.

There is also one good web page / online shop. Britbaby? that has ok selection of imported stuff. Pricey but easy to compare the prices online.

[siamkiwi]

I got Chicco package with seat that also fits to the buggie, handy as you don't need to take the kid out from the seat. Just open the belts and lift the whole thing to the buggie. Propably in the expensive range but should be fairly safe as it is the same sold in US and EU.

There is also one good web page / online shop. Britbaby? that has ok selection of imported stuff. Pricey but easy to compare the prices online.

I'm after one that is multiple use. So you can take it out of the car and bub can sleep in it. Money not a problem when it comes to safety and convenience.

[fletchsmile]

Congratulations on the new arrival.

Hardest thing to get is a good night's sleep. But that doesn't really depend too much at the start on being in LOS. Good car seats are easy to come by. We have two by Cool Kids. One faces backwards, for younger and one forwards, for older. One from Mothercare. One from a childrens fair event at Queen Siriit Centre.

One other thing we found difficult was - full body baby suits, that cover the arms as well as legs with press studs. Could get the short ones easily that cover upper body, and underneath , but not the long ones that cover feet and legs as well. Mothercare had one or two, but they were much more expensive than back home, and not much choice.

Edited October 21, 2009 by fletchsmile

[Heng]

I'm sure plenty are happy with 'local' Pigeon bottles, but if you prefer say Avent, Evenflo, Born Free, etc. you might want to bring those with you as the price difference is 2x and sometimes 3x. But yeah, all available here if you prefer to travel light and don't think the price difference is an issue.

If you get a bottle sterilizer make sure you get the same voltage (NZ same as here I believe). For both of my kids, everything else (car seat, crib, toys, etc.) was acquired locally. Car seat was way overpriced, even at the yearly Queen Sirikit Convention center baby fair, but I didn't have any trips to bring one over before my kid was born.

[Thongkorn]

I Think I have seen a package in Big C and Carfore , That has every thing in it , ie bottles nappy changing mat and all the rest ,

[mizzi39]

Congratulations! We had our little one a little over a year ago. You can get pretty much anyone here. Some items are reasonably cheap and other items will cost you about the same as in the west (or slightly more). My mother used to send boxes of stuff from the States, thinking that we could not get what we needed here. i finally had to tell her to save her money, (and send gift cards instead ) since shipping alone from the States to LOS was ridiculously expensive.

Invest in good baby bottles (Advent). It made a huge difference with our little one. He was not colic at all! You can get these at "The Mall", Paragon etc... A little pricey, but well worth it.

If you need a car seat PM me. We have an extra one if you are interested. My mother sent one over from the States. Did not know she was going to do this. In the mean time i had bought one, so now we have 2.

Good luck!

Edited October 22, 2009 by mizzi39

[whistleblower]

The only thing i have found here (we have a 7month old daughter) is that clothing although cheap is pretty repetetive. (ie all blue for boy, all pink for girl) Got my sis to send over some mixed coloured clothes.

And congrats

[mizzi39]

Sorry, the bottles we use are "Avent" by Phillps, not Advent.

[Heng]

We use the same. Google 'babycenter' for a good source if you have anyone stateside who can carry them over or if you have a place there and visit periodically.

[siamkiwi]

Thanks for all the advice. I,m sure Fletch is rite and sleep will be the hardest thing to get. We are down south, so Phuket is the closest place with any real selection when it comes to shopping. Trang has a Tesco but its pretty limited.

[Goinghomesoon]

Check out the BAMBI Thailand classifieds too. Lots of expats selling kids stuff at very reasonable prices.