We had a January and Febuary babies. We live in South Texas . The temp really depends on where you live and how to dress your little one. It also depends on how often you plan on washing clothes. Spit up, pee, pooh and who knows what else can call for a change of clothes. I have changed a bed sheet 4 times in one hour. Its rare but it did happen. Then again my kids grow like weeds and the five month old baby is now in 9 and 12 month size clothes. The little caps we used a bunch for the first couple of months, warm socks, swaddle blankets. Coats were rare as we didnt take our kids many places. i would think six of each (flece footed p.j., light weight footed p.j.'s, onesies) would last you several days and give you a good idea on what your going to need.

One thing to keep in mind is that a lot of people may give you clothing as gifts, so you may not want to go crazy upfront. Long sleeve white onesies and footed one-piece jammies worked pretty much round the clock for our late September-born second son. I'd focus on warmth and softness rather than fashion for newborns, but that's maybe just me.

We live in New York and had a late September baby in a drafty loft building. Our first six months of wardrobing broke down like this:

--4-6 warm, footed sleepers (Probably 80% of her time was spent in Petit Bateau terry sleepers from Century 21.)
--6-8 long sleeve onesies (These tended to stay in the drawer, but it was nice to know they'd always be there, even when laundry was overdue, and a pack of white Carter's is very affordable.)
--2-3 pairs of soft, pull-on pants
--6-8 pairs of socks (Wash them in a lingerie bag and you'll never lose them.)
--2 hats, 1 cotton jersey for indoors and 1 warmer one for outside
--1 outfit for showing off, with maybe a second one added around the holidays

Good luck!

Both my kiddos were born in October, and I loved long-sleeve onesies layered under footed sleepers or paired with footed pants (such as Woollybottoms). I hate trying to keep socks/shoes on newborns, so the footed outfits were great. Sometimes you can find long-sleeve onesies with flaps that go over the hands to prevent baby scratching herself.

For going outside, we used fleece one-piece sleepers. SmartWool baby socks are great and tend to stay on okay (you can put them on baby's feet underneath a sleeper for added warmth). Also Hanna Anderson makes these great thick socks with leather bottoms. (I think they're called Swedish Moccasins).

Beyond that, I just always kept a baby blanket handy in my diaper bag. If the weather is chillier than you expect, just wrap it around your little one.

Have fun!

The best advice I could give a new mom would be to wait until after you have your baby to buy as much as you can. That sounds crazy I know, and the nesting instinct makes you want to buy everything baby related you can get your hands on, but it's good advice. Every baby is different. When I had my daughter 4 years ago at least half of the things I bought for her we never used. She cried when we swaddled her, even now she sleeps with her legs and arms straight out like a starfish. All the swaddling, restricting sleep outfits, crib positioners, etc were never used. She loved her baby swing but screamed bloody murder when we put her in the vibrating bouncy seat. She hated the exersaucer AND the walker. I seriously never used at least $400 worth of baby gear because she hated it. Now that I'm about to have my second child, aside from what I kept of my daughters things I haven't bought much of anything. It got to the point with my daughter where I would actually take her to the store and put her in the display models before I bought anything because I just couldn't predict what she would like and what she would hate. I plan to do the same for my newborn when he gets here. I guess what I'm saying is, nobody can tell you for sure what your child will like. But trust me, you'll figure it out really quickly on your own, after that little bundle of joy gets here. I include clothing in this because, again, half of what I bought for my daughter was never used. She's hot natured and the only time I put her in a footed nighty when I got her up for her midnight feeding she was drenched in sweat and red-faced and miserable. After that I'd put her in a onesie with no legs and a pair of socks and that was enough for her. I would buy as many separates as you can, instead of footed onesies buy a onesie and pants, socks, etc. If you can, just buy one of what you think you might need and trial and error it until you know what works, then go back and buy more. Also, as cheeky pointed out if you have a baby shower you will probably get PLENTY of clothes.

I'm having my second this November but my first came at the tail end of winter...since babies temperatures fluctuate its good to be able to change them quickly so layers are nice. Here's the essentials I plan to duplicated the second time around. Instead of socks or booties I used swedish mocassins - they just seemed to stay on better and could also be put on over socks. A few kimono style onesies (my favorite is by tomo and edie but I'll be buying some white carters long sleeved ones too) that button on and off easily which I layered with booties or leg warmers from Makie. A great kimono style velour jacket for chilly days. Finally - in heavy winter we found this awesome one piece lands end snowsuit. It had a zip on hood and button on mittens and booties. It is lined in fleece and so warm it made going outdoors super simple and worry free.

We didn't have a autumn baby, ours was born in April, but lets face it, we live in Canada and it was still snowing when we were coming home from the hospital. I would suggest plenty of sleepers and light onesies. Our little guy wore a onesie under everything for the longest time. Baby hoodies or sweaters are great too as they wear them for a long time and layering is good.

If you are using an infant car seat I would suggest one of the inserts that zip up. Its dangerous for babies to wear a heavy coat or snowsuit in their car seat so blankets are handy.

I had a spring baby...which is sort of kind of similar right?
What I did with my little girl (and I know this is completely backwards-but it worked great for us!) At night we would put her in one of her little lightweight cotton knit dresses. This made diaper changes very very easy...newborns hate getting undressed and feeling drafts! A nightgown would also work if you are having a boy, but a little dress was better for us. Also, I felt like they didn't rub against her cord stump too much.

And then when we took her out, we would put her in her footie jammies, she would be nice and warm and she would stay that way! And this way you don't have to worry about shoes (they are a pain for very little ones) and you could put socks on their feet underneath the pajamas so they won't kick them off. Plus we usually had a blanket or two for her.

Don't underestimate the amount of clothing you will get! I wasn't expecting to get many things for my baby because I didn't want a shower, but so many people I knew seemed to come out of the woodwork with baby gifts...we ended up with way too many clothes! If I were you I would just get some basics...some onesies, dresses/nightgowns, pajamas, socks, hats, and thats about it. Also, if you're from a petite family, you may want to get a few preemie size clothes just in case you have a little baby. Congratulations!

Had a baby this last Dec ....one thing I found was a waste was any type of winter infant coat/snowsuit. They were all massive on him and even at 3 months they were too much even though he was normal height/weight. Plus you'd have to remove anything bulky before putting him in his car seat. What I preferred instead for going out were the fleece one piece sleepers (footed and non-footed). You can layer beneath them for warmth and you can still put the baby in car seat without having to get him/her in and out of a coat. Add a hat and a blanket when you are out and you are good to go.

Otherwise we kept the baby swaddled a lot at home, so make sure you have some swaddle mes or the like. In the early days we also liked having a few newborn gowns since it made diaper changing at night very easy.

Hi. Congratulations on your baby!!! And welcome to the older mom's club. I'm one too and didn't have a lot of immediate hand-me-downs. I agree that it's great to wait some to see what you need. (In fact, our baby was so big when he was born that we never used the "newborn" sized clothes we had.) One thing I learned the hard way:Apparently, babies aren't supposed to wear onesies until after their umbilical cord falls off. So, for your going-home outfit, be sure to have a 2-piece option (ie not a onesie). Also, for the first couple of weeks, be sure to have plenty of those side-snapping t-shirts (long sleeved for fall). Our son lived in those.
Good luck and congratulations again!!

I don't know what's necessary and what's not (I have a winter baby on the way), but there's a nice looking list here: http://lusaorganics.typepad.com/clean/2010/01/new-baby-checklist.html

Congratulations! I'm due in November (and my first was a summer baby) so I have the same question! I also thought I'd throw in the suggestion to look at consignment shops for clothes. They're both eco-friendly and wallet-friendly, and the infant clothes especially are usually in really good shape.

Our October baby wore lots of footed cotton sleepers and long sleeve onsies, and I felt like I always had a cloth diaper in hand for spit up or some other mess. The Miracle Blanket for swaddling and the plain flannel recieving blankets were all well used during those first few months. We never used hats (he hated them) and found hooded outfits and coats to be too bulky for carseats and strollers. And on one of those desperate late night runs for diapers I found that WalMart has very inexpensive organic cotton onsies that are pretty cute.

I second (third?) the advice to wait till after the baby's born to buy stuff.

1st-everyone will give you more clothes than you know what to do with, seriously! My kid could go for 3 months and never re-wear something because my relatives sent me boxes of stuff.
2nd-my baby never fit into newborn stuff and is already stretching some 3-6 month stuff at barely 2 months old. It's best to just buy maybe a couple of basic things in a couple of sizes for the first week so you can figure out what size is going to fit your baby. If you *must* buy clothes because you're nesting (raises hand :), don't buy newborn stuff. They'll always grow into bigger sizes but you may never use the NB sizes.

As far as sleeping--mine likes to be swaddled with her arms free so I tend to like long sleeve onesies...keeps her arms from getting too cold but keeps her from being over-covered on the bottom half. That being said, she HATES getting a onesie on so it becomes a huge hassle if I have to change her outfit in the middle of the night. My second favorite night outfit is anything with long sleeves that snaps up the front..so much easier to get on and doesn't require going over the head. If it's warm, I have a couple of short sleeved onesie type things that are kimono-style that I don't have to put over her head (those are harder to find--usually boutiques have them).

As far as other gear, I waited till she was starting to become more alert before getting a lot of other "stuff"...even then, I wish I hadn't bought a swing because she hates it. I also have a pack n play sitting in my closet that I'm going to sell because I've never used it.

It really is worth it to wait till you can kind of "feel out" your baby and what works for him/her. You'll save a ton of money and space. If you can find other mothers that will let you test drive some of their gear (swings, pack n plays or other travel sleepers, boppy, etc.) you'd be a step ahead...every baby is so different and likes different things.

our baby was born late january and my biggest suggestion would be to look for footed pajamas that zip instead of snap. for late night changings they are ideal since when you are sleep deprived you don't have to find the coordinating snaps. i'm not sure how many time we would get up the next morning and realize his pj's were all snapped up wrong.

my favorites are walmarts faded glory organic cotton, the best part is they are only $5 each and we had at least 6 of them to rotate out. good luck and congrats!!!

Both my daughters were late fall/early winter. I agree with all the comments about waiting for as much as you can.

Both girls were different in temperature, etc, so we had different clothing needs for them.

My advice would be to get ready with about 5 soft, cotton sleepers, 6-8 onesies, some socks, and a couple of cotton/warm hats. Also one or two (max) cute outfits. That's it. It will keep your drawers from being cluttered, which is frustrating when you are looking for something, and will give you enough things - plus, you will be adding a stack of gifts to that collection!

Enjoy. :-)

Just be ready to make a shopping run when the baby is born. It all depends on the size of the baby! Yes, you'll get lots of gifts -- in the 6-12 month size range. My babies were all small, so they needed teeny little clothes, which I didn't have the first time around! Everyone says to skip the newborn or 3 month size because the baby grows so fast. But I found that my babies needed those sizes for a looooong time. So, you'll see. Start out with a few little things (be prepared for lots of laundry) and see how your baby grows. And then get out of the house and start shopping! It's a fun pastime when your baby is too little to do anything but sleep. (Oh yes, and don't forget to stock up on receiving blankets. They're one-size-fits-all and you'll use them a lot in the fall and winter. And a big stack of cloth diapers if you have a burpy, spitty baby. And a good stain remover.) Congratulations!!!!!!!!

Oh, and my babies never did well with the two piece outfits. One of my kids did well because he had a bigger tummy. The others were too small! The pants kept falling off and the shirts kept riding up. You'll want to start buying little "outfits" right away (because they're so cute), but there really is something to be said about cozy little one-piece pajamas. There's plenty of time for "real" clothes. Ooooooh, I love babies.

my winter newborn spent most of the time swaddled up in the muslin swaddle blankets. i loved the simple gerber long sleeved kimono tops (or go a little spendier with the under the nile kimono tops). and the rest of the time in footed sleepers. if it's cold, you'll need a cozy bunting, too.

Separates, separates, separates!

Basic short-sleeve onesies, long-sleeve thin cardigans, thin sweatpants. If you want to buy thicker sweatpants or sweaters, size up! Our 2 month old is currently wearing super-thick sweatpants, size 12 months, with the bottoms cuffed and the waist rolled down once. He'll be able to wear them through the end of this calendar year, NOT the end of the season (see my note below). We bought them for ONE DOLLAR at a consignment store. We call him "Hammer Pants". But he only wears them when he's sleeping in the full-blast A/C.

For going out, there are also infant carseat covers to hold body heat near your kiddo, or just throw a blanket on their legs. Winter winds whip, though, so the carseat cover (also can be found at some children's consignment stores such as Once Upon a Child) can come in handy if you are buying.

Also, what I haven't seen anyone mention: once your little one gets here, you'll find that clothes do NOT fit as they are sized. We tie-dyed 3, 6, 9, and 12 month onesies for him to wear throughout his first year. Once they were washed and dried, we discovered that he would just barely fit into the 3 month size at birth (7lbs), and he goes through all of the sizes regularly (was wearing the 12 month yesterday (at 13 lbs). There's no way he'll be able to fit into any of them by the time he's crawling this winter. You'll have to hold clothes up to your child to see if they'll actually fit. Some will run long and skinny, or short and wide, or any combination of those. The benefit of buying gently worn clothes is that they've been preshrunk for you!

another vote for the long-sleeved white onesie suggestion. the only clothes we bought for our girl at first was a pack of plain onesies, which we could layer under other things. we got a lot of great hand-me-down stuff & clothes as gifts that were often too chilly for our november baby.

footie pajamas were very useful, too. i personally preferred the snap kind to the zipper kind when she was small & needed frequent night-time changes, because we only had to undo a few snaps as opposed to completely unzipping her & exposing more of her to the cold house.

one thing we found was at first none of the hats we had fit her properly. my mom drove around town to find something that seemed like a newborn could wear -- quick plug for the lamaze brand (not affiliated). also, she weighed 8.1 pounds at birth & never wore newborn clothes & almost immediately couldn't wear any <6mth socks.

littlesweetsandme.com

In a word: Hand-me-downs! (or is that three words...?) Layette gets worn for such a brief time and newborns aren't exactly hard on their clothing. In addition to being a huge cost-saver, we also found that hand-me-downs had the distinct advantage of giving us a variety to try. There is a lot to have preferences on: one-piece vs two-piece, snap vs zipper, etc.

Our favorite for layette was long-sleeved t-shirts or snap-up one-pieces with a swaddle. We liked the quick access to diapers that snaps or just a blanket offered. We used t-shirts exclusively until the umbilical stump fell off. We favored Carter's double knit blanets for swaddling an itty-bitty newborn and Aiden Anais muslin for a little latter. Our favorite snap-up pjs were from Nordstrom. They are soft, cute, and well-sized for cloth diapers - and only $10. They are (or at least were last year) available only in store.

I also recommend a hat, mittens, and socks. Pilot hats worked by far the best, similar to what Hanna Anderson sells. Hahah, I thought mittens were the silliest thing until I had a baby. Get socks that have a little elastic at the top for best staying power.

Waiting to buy is always good advice with babies. Somehow what we envision usually doesn't turn out to be reality.

If you are lucky enough to have friends with babies, see what you can borrow or have (one of the great advantages of advanced maternal age is that friends may be ready to ditch all their baby stuff).

With our first, I bought a lot of 0-3 late Summer and Fall clothes, and the boy turned out to only love the little cotton gowns (sweetpeas) and being swaddled in soft waffle blankets. We really didn't get out of sleepers and sleep and play rompers until Spring.

Number 2 (a winter baby) loved the fleece sleepsack with swaddle wings at night, but wanted to move freely the rest of the time. With that up-chuck prone baby, we all found sleep and plays to be most advantageous (over the head onesies were a disaster).

Of course there were dressy outfits for going out (many of them gifts), but they were always more maintenance than simple, soft clothes.

It's truly amazing how quickly a baby grows into the next size. Get a few things you especially like, but, if you can, fill in with stuff you can for free or on loan.

both of my kids were born in the warmer months of the year and i also live in TX.. double whammy. anyway, because our home only has one heater and i didnt like the idea of using space heaters in a room where only my baby would be sleeping, i bought a couple sleep sacks and about a weeks worth of fleece sleepers. as for day time blankets worked fine, again i live in texas, so theres not really much of a need to bundle up as you would if you lived someplace cooler...

with my first baby i HATED sleepers with zippers because you had to zip them all the way down to get them off. with my second i LOVED them. much easier to change a hungry, screaming baby in the middle of the night when you dont have to worry about getting all the snaps right. :)

I have to say (in contrast to a comment above) that I really *disliked* separates for a newborn/young infant. Because they were always being carried or laying down, nothing seemed to stay in place--shirts and sweaters and jackets would ride up (sometimes leaving a bare tummy open to drafts), socks would fall off, and pants would ride up or down. This was disappointing, because the separates were cute, but they just weren't so functional for us. My very favorite thing when my daughter was a newborn were the newborn gowns. They were oh so comfortable, simple to put on and take off, they stayed put, they covered her legs and feet so she didn't need pants or socks (although she was born in August--this may not be as true for a fall baby), and diaper changes were a breeze.

Once she got a bit bigger and wanted to move around more, I liked the footie pajamas with a zipper (snaps are cuter, but with as many times as you'll be changing diapers, you'll want the zipper), or any one piece daytime outfit that basically works like footie pajamas, or comfy cotton or fleece pants over a onesie.

I like one piece outfits as much as possible, but I'll admit that babies seem to grow out of them faster than separates, which have a little more wiggle room in the sizing (esp. for my daughter, who grew at an astounding pace AND wore bulky cloth diapers that meant she might fit best in a 3-6 month sized top and a 6-12 month sized bottom, for example). So, if you're layering, I liked a onesie on the bottom for sure (the fact that it snaps at the crotch holds it in place and prevents the bare tummy problem, and also helps hold everything else in place that you put over it). If you can find pants with feet attached, those are the way to go. Babies do not need shoes (AT ALL--they don't even use their feet until they start cruising), but they do need something to keep their feet warm, and socks will fall off or be pulled off constantly and provide a steady source of irritation to you.

* my post earlier should have ended with "she almost immediately couldn't wear any socks smaller than 6 month size."

I just had a baby and swaddlers are key for any season. You can get them at any baby store. We use the ones by summer infant. My 2 month old still sleeps in one every night.

Newborn size kimono (that means a side-snap or side-tie) shirts, with long sleeves and foldover hand cover mitts. And then kimono onesies once the cord falls off. (Under the Nile makes them.)

Hanna Andersson zip-up jammies.

Petit Bateau cotton velour footie things.

Hanna Andersson pilot cap.

Sckoon monkey pants.

Old Navy socks.

Side-tie/snap machine-washable sweater.

One pair of footie pants for before the cord falls off.

Under the Nile organic cotton fleece blanket for going outdoors, or a wool fleece blanket if it's snowy where you are.

That is what I would personally have on hand pre-birth, then after a couple weeks you can make an internet order to fill in any 'holes'.

I had a july baby, so it was just diapers for home and sundresses for public...

One thing I loved that I didn't get to use as often as I would have liked was her fluffy, quilted coat thing...lol. I didn't realize I had no idea what it is called until right now. Think that episode of the Simpsons when it snows...maggies in that blue star shaped snowsuit...Okay, found pic here-http://bit.ly/dowBhE

Anyway, we had a pink one, but live in GA, so she only got to wear it a few times be for she got too big. It was sooo cute.

Carter's baby sleep sacks are the best--warm and snuggly, easy to change a diaper when you are bleary-eyed.

http://www.amazon.com/Carters-Cozy-Fleece-Sleep-Bag/dp/B001RJS96U

My first wore them until she walked, and #2 is in one nearly every night.

My son was born in November. He lived in footed pj's (both the heavy fleece kind and the lightweight cotton kind) and nightgowns (the kind that cinch on the bottom). We also had side snap and some tie t-shirts to layer under them, I did not like the pullover kind. We never had a snowsuit thing and I never would have used one. We just layered, layered, layered.

We used babylegs quite a bit, especially as it got warmer. We did have a couple cute outfits, little pants and shirts, and shirts and overalls, and he wore those for holidays or special outings. Otherwise, it was pj's pj's pj's.

Go to Babies R Us and get some kimono-style tops (Gerber) that snap across the front, plus footed pajamas (like carters) that snap in the front or zip up. Newborns poop and poop and poop so often that it isn't worth trying to put on onesies that pull over the head or to bother with pants. Things that go on and off quickly will be best until about 3 months when the poop parade slows down.

Not sure if someone else suggested this since I just skimmed through previous posts, but for my daughter who was born in February I bought most of her everyday clothes for the first year from ebay. You can buy a lot (as in a bundle) of clothes for a good price with each piece ending up being around a dollar. Just search for "baby girl 0-3 months" and then look through each list. It's a good way to get a variety of clothes (short and long sleeved onesies, sweaters, socks, hats etc.,) all in one place. Make sure to read feedback etc., and look closely at the pictures. I had great success with this for my daughter's clothes before we found a great consignment store in the neighbourhood we moved in to (also another way to find good, cheap clothes).
I'm sure you will also receive lots of clothes as gifts that you can use for special occasions or pictures, but used stuff is great for every day. It just gets puked, pooped and peed on anyway! Congratulations on your baby! :)

Long sleeve onesies!! I have lots of them, and I love them. Our Target here in Aus sells Organic ones that are really affordable. I embellished some with appliques, lace and whatnot. I preferred footless bodysuits with socks, because all my kids have long legs, and footed suits always seemed to look too short and uncomfortable. Agree with the suggestion of kimono tops, and I loved light, cotton cardigans. All my babies were born around autumn, and I loved light, cotton hats for them. All my babies pretty much wore a singlet, long sleeved onesie, cardigan, pants, socks and a hat for the first 6 months of their lives. Also cannot recommend Ebay enough for bulk sets of clothes from people!!
Also concur with the poster who suggested waiting til the baby is born. I too had heaps of clothes that I never used with my first, because I went a lil crazy! Apart from waiting to see what baby likes, it's important to wait and see what YOU like.

Our one must have for both our babies were the Kissy Kissy convertible gowns. They snap up the front and are open at the bottom for quick and easy diaper changes. One night of fumbling to stick our first daughters feet in a footie and snap her up in the dark was enough for us. For a newborn you want clothes that you can lay them on top of and snap or tie them in (kimono style). I recommend not buying anything that you have to pull over their head.

I live in Canada and second or third or fourth the suggestion to buy the footie jammies that ZIP. So much easier in the dark...and my hubby much preferred to fumbling with snaps in the middle of the night (or day for that matter) and always having them not match up right :)

I love the quality of Children's PLace. However, Walmart sells 3 footed zipper jammies for 9.99! That's right! They are hung up with the infant clothes! I discovered these with my son two years ago but they had smaps back then. I'm expecting my second any day now and just bought some more in gender neutral colors and they are now in zippers! They will outgrow them so fast and barf on them so much you cannot go wrong for 9.99!

Do you expect to be able to do laundry every day? Easily? Or is laundry harder for you to get to (like you are in an apartment etc) that will make a diff in your number of jammies. I liked (and my son was born in December) a onesie that buttoned up all the way up the front for the newborn stage when I was sheepish about getting things over his head, and then a sleeper/jammies. I would say you could go through three sleepers and three onesies in a day. Truly. Not every day, but definitely two. So plan accordingly for how often you want to do laundry. I would say 6-10 newborn sleepers and onesies. That is all. Then wait to buy the rest when baby comes because I loved having a little reason to get myself out of the house when I had my newborn...and a trip to Walmart or the mall and a Starbucks was sometimes big enough of an outing!

People will give you "outfits" for sure if you are having a shower...way too many baby blankets and baby hats. I seemed to have more of these than I could ever use.

We used the Kiddopotomus Swaddle Me's faithfully. You can open the bottom without disturbing their tightly held little swaddled arms-so you can nurse/feed, then diaper change, not getting them too cold or waking them up too much. We loved these so much and the swaddling really worked for my son.

Congrats and good luck!

Yeah, WAIT til later to see what you'll like...and what others will give you! We loved having open-front outfits, instead of over-the-head kinds (and thus had to go back to the store to find more, after baby arrived), and you'll want to have layers. But don't stock up more than a few basics beforehand.

If you think you might swaddle your baby, that's an added layer while sleeping and you may not need warm stuff right away.

Yes, yes---ZIP instead of snaps! My son lived in zip-up footed jammies almost around the clock for months---even when we left the house. It was just easier than socks and whatnot. When it got later in the fall, we added a onesie underneath.

Good luck!!

Definitely wait till after your baby shower to shop, because you'll get tons of clothes. Don't register for any clothes but the most basic, 'cause people buy that stuff first and then you have no breast pump! Wash everything and then ignore the size labels and sort them by actual size--it varies. I was out of work so I put everything in labeled boxes :)

I liked for my November son:
--a 5-pack of kimono shirts (so that they don't go over the head; a onesie would rub the umbilical cord). Can be undershirts later, too. This is the only thing I bought newborn size. Everything else--3 months.

--It can be nice to have 2-4 gowns with drawstring bottoms for nightime in the first month--easy diaper changes--but not as great for when you are holding baby...like the shirts, they ride up.

--Cannot have enough footed PJs that snap or zip. At least 6. We wore ours 24/7 and changed every 12 hours or when dirty. I couldn't keep socks on, feet are better. I found I prefer the cotton ones to the fleece ones--the fleece are good for going out, but too hot to layer with the sleep sack.

--Halo Sleep sack with swaddle arms that velcro--so much easier than swaddling with a blanket, and if your baby turns out to dislike swaddling, it comes off (it's velcro'd on). This is my #1 favorite item. Important to avoid SIDS. Get 2 in case one gets dirty, and then get them in every size they make.

--People will give you more onesies than you can stand, you can layer them with the footie PJs after the cord falls off.

--I don't like anything tight around the waist, but footed pants are nice if you find them.

--Stretchy cotton hats; 3 should do. They give you some at the hospital, too.

--I got 20 receiving blankets and planned to regift a bunch of them but wound up using them all! Would also recommend 10 cotton diapers or spit cloths so you don't have to waste a whole blanket when only part is dirty.

--Would not bother with: bibs, scented baby detergent (ick! I got Seventh Generation Unscented), socks (you'll get them anyway), anything handknit or bulky, jackets of any kind, anything of a woven material rather than a nice stretchy knit, any any top that does not open up big to slip over the head.

Best wishes!

I didn't read every comment, but here are a few thoughts:

I agree with everyone who says you will get lots of clothes from people. Of course, this doesn't mean it will be what you need! ;)

I preferred one-piece, footed outfits for the first few months. And, I definitely prefer onesies over shirts. It drove me crazy when my daughter's tummy was exposed. It just doesn't seem comfortable.

Also, for anything with a zipper - look for the zipper to close at the foot and not the neck. If it closes at the neck that means you have to expose the whole length of the baby's body to change a diaper - ridiculous!

We swaddled my daughter with receiving blankets for the first 7 weeks and at night I put her in gowns with an elastic bottom. Very easy for diaper changes.

Then we switched to sleep sacks for the duration of the fall, winter and early spring (we're in New England). I LOVE the Aden and Anais sleep sacks for fall and spring: http://www.adenandanais.com/shop/sleepingbags.aspx

Also, I loved this super soft sleep sack for the cold nights in winter, Swaddle Designs wearable blankets: http://www.eswaddle.com/cgi/commerce.cgi?listcategories=action&parent=ZS00&template=PDGCommTemplates/HTN/CategoryzzZipMe.html.

Congratulations and enjoy your baby!

Oops! I messed up that link for Swaddle Designs. Let's try again:
http://www.eswaddle.com/cgi/commerce.cgi?listcategories=action&parent=ZS00&template=PDGCommTemplates/HTN/CategoryzzZipMe.html

I burned out before finishing the comments but the ideas I've read were all great. My two absolute favorite things for babies (mine were born in January and October):

-Gap First Favorites nightgowns: these are soft and comfortable and so easy for nighttime diaper changes. I put the 3-6 month size on my kids from the beginning, so they were a little baggy at first, but both my kids wore them until at least 6 months and my daughter, who was smaller, lasted until about 14 months in hers! They are fantastic and I can't say enough about them. I bought mine in stores but unfortunately it looks like they are now a "gap.com exclusive." Here's the unisex one, there's also a girl version and a boy version. Love 'em.
http://www.gap.com/browse/product.do?cid=7190&vid=1&pid=727922&scid=727922012

-Hanna Andersson pilot caps.
Love love love these, so cute and so simple, and in neutral colors they worked for both my kids (a girl and a boy). These are so sweet and simple and just scream "cute old-fashioned baby" to me. They tie at the neck too, so won't come off. I used these on my kids until it wasn't cold anymore. They have warmer ones as well--I also have a cable-knit one and a thicker cotton knit one--but the plain old breezy cotton worked great through the fall and winter.
http://www.hannaandersson.com/style.asp?from=SC|1|1|156|47|11||&simg=22733_001

Have fun!!

Oh and this is OT but the one thing I hadn't realized about my October baby was that she would be born right at the beginning of flu/RSV season. I kept my 2-YO home from everything for about 2 months, and my visitors were very thoughtful and washed their hands, and whenever we went out and about I kept the baby in a sling. And we were totally safe from sickness that year. (of course the following year we were not cautious at all and were all slammed with swine flu! lovely.)

If you don't have other kids I'm sure you're fine anyway, but just something to keep in mind. Fall is such a beautiful time of year to welcome a new little one. Congratulations and have a cozy winter!

I think what you'll end up using most depends upon your personality and parenting style.

I didn't like using onesies or sleepers with snaps. Anything with more than three snaps isn't something I want to deal with every day. The other problem with onesies is that they're pretty limiting when it comes to longevity. Some of the newborn shirts/sweaters we used with our son fit him until nine months old! None of the onesies did, though.

We tended to use karate pants (American Apparel has some cute ones), a variety of shirts, hoodies, and zipper sleepers. One or two good hats that your child can grow into, like Zutano, will be more useful than ten tiny little hats that won't fit after a couple of months. Old Navy socks are wonderful and still our go-to sock at 18 months. Bigger is usually better with sizing, unless you have a preemie or very small kiddo :)

I liked the light cotton sleep sacks for at night. They increased the chances of our son sleeping through a late night diaper change.

I'd say get a couple of each type of item and see which ones you find the most enjoyable to use. Children's consignment sales, yard sales, and Craigslist are helpful places to look.. buying retail is a huge mistake and money waster with newborn clothes. I've found adorable, high-end clothes for very cheap at our local consignment sales.. Baby Gap, Children's Place, etc (stuff I would never buy new!) and the quality has been superb.

Our daughter was born last November in NYC. The two items in heaviest rotation were two hand-me-downs-- one was a bearsuit that she wore every day for months when we went outside for walks, the other was a patagonia fleece wintersuit (with hood) that served the same function when the bearsuit got a little snug. The hood is key-- stays on the head under all conditions, and keeps cold air from going down the body. These were NOT those puffy baby snowsuits-- which have no on walks every day (even in wind and snow-- and who has had only one cold since she's been born!)-- the wintersuit was super-useful.

Our daughter was born last November in NYC. The two items in heaviest rotation were two hand-me-downs-- one was a bearsuit that she wore every day for months when we went outside for walks, the other was a patagonia fleece wintersuit (with hood) that served the same function when the bearsuit got a little snug. The hood is key-- stays on the head under all conditions, and keeps cold air from going down the body. These were NOT those puffy baby snowsuits-- which have no on purpose that I can discern. But for a baby who went on walks every day (even in wind and snow-- and who has had only one cold since she's been born!)-- the warm fabric wintersuit was super-useful.

I had my daughter at the beginning of January. We cloth diapered, so onesies weren't the best since she had a very fluffy bum as a newborn. What was great for us:

- 3-6 long-sleeved kimono-style wrap shirts (Carters makes some)
- 5-7 footed sleepers (if they have the foldovers for hands and hoods, all the better)
- We had a fleece swaddler, but preferred the hospital-issue swaddling blankets for the best baby burrito
- 3 little knit caps
- The Kiddopotamous infant carseat cover in sherpa. Unlike other types that willa ffect the safety of a carseat, this one fits on like a showercap and will make a snuggly warm spot for baby. We had a Snap n Go to make a stroller so it was great for walks, getting around, as well as being in the car.
- Socks. The only socks that worked for us were the ones by Trumpette. A dozen socks that will actually stay on

That's all we felt we really needed. Our baby spent most of the time swaddled to sleep or worn by us in a Moby Wrap so she didn't need a ton of clothing.

I had an October baby. Pretty much all she wore were the footed onsies with the zipper. My husband has a really hard time with snaps and buttons. It was really easy to change her - unzip, pull out feet, change diaper. She's almost 4 now and I still feel guilty about all the clothing she was given that she never got to wear because she spent the first 4 months in sleepers. And I never had to worry about her kicking off her socks. I got most of mine at Target, Children's Place and Hanna Andersson.