Things to have before bringing baby home

There are a lot of lists out there online. Here is the our family's list of things that are nice to have before bringing your baby home.

Transportation:
1) Carseat - required in order to leave hospital! Stroller system (ie. snap and go) is optional but very handy to have. 

Nursery/Sleeping/Changing:
1) bassinet or co sleeper and bedding (ie. 1-2 sheets)
2) changing pad or area with diapers - we started off with some leftover diapers from hospital, then ordered from amazon prime after we got home.
3) wipes - we used soft cotton like tissues as recommended by hospital with water (rather than wipes) for the first month. 
4) diaper cream - we initially were told that our baby probably wouldn't need it for the first month but after our baby developed diaper rash in his second week, we have since been using A&D at every change to prevent any further irritation. Many pediatricians recommend desitin - we found this seem to irritate and cause redness for our baby so use it to treat, but not prevent diaper rash. 
5) boppy newborn lounger - this is certainly not a neccessity, but our baby really liked sitting in it and it was nice to have a place to put him down to rest during the day other than his bassinet.  
6)  pack and play - we live in a split level home, so we put the pack and play downstairs with the newborn napper and changer options so that we don't have to go up and down stairs for diaper changes (which are frequent)

Bathing/ Health:
1) baby wash and shampoo - we like the aden and anais line
2) baby nail file and nail clipper
3) baby comb
4) washclothes
5) thermometer

Clothing/Swaddle:
1) little mitts to keep from scratching face
2) little socks to keep his/her feet warm
3) 1-2 outfits in premie and newborn size - you can always buy more clothes later once you know the size that fits your baby the best. If you are overdue (ie 42 weeks) or bigger babies run in your family, you may want to bring a 0-3 month outfit to the hospital as well.
4) Sleep gowns / Kimono style tops/onesies. The sleep gowns make for easy changing of diapers at night. The kimono style openings are nice becasue your baby probably won't like having things pulled over his/her head at first.
5) Receiving blankets / swaddles - we love our aden and anais ones!
6) Sleep sack - your baby may or may not like this vs swaddle so I wouldn't recommend investing in more than one to start.

Nursing stuff:
1) some gel ice packs for boobs - feels good to put on cool when engorged during first week
2) breast pads (to prevent leakage when milk comes in) - I like lasinoh brand
3) some lanolin cream (if nipples chafed in beginning) - hospital may give you some for free, ours did.
4) some breastfeeding/ tanks/ bras - I like the bravado line at target
5) breastfeeding sleep bra (ie very loose stretch sports bra) - I essentially lived in this for the first two weeks and a robe
6) earthmama milkmaid tea - I swear this stuff helps boost your supply!

We discovered that Amazon Prime became our new favorite website/service once we came home with EW Baby.   It is hard to get out of the house the first few days and even weeks, and we love the convenience of ordering online and getting the products delivered to our doorstep 2 days later.  

When you're in the hospital they should give you:
- diapers/ wipes
- nose bulb (though we haven't had much use of this)
- little hat
- thermometer
Stuff for mom including:  
perineal care:
- tucks medicated pads
- ice pads
- maxi pads
- mesh underwear
- perineal care squirt bottle
- dermoplast numbing spray
(though I recommend bringing your own thin pads, and some depends silouettes)