How Nurse and Rhythm First Aid Founder Nicole Gleeson Would Re-Do Her Registry

As a nurse in the emergency department of a Melbourne’s children’s hospital, Nicole Gleeson came to parenthood with a lot of context of the baby space. “I literally see 50 prams a day. I’ve seen thousands of people breastfeed and bottle feed their babies. I’ve seen thousands of nappy changes. I’ve also always been quite maternal so I’d take notice of the brands and products parents and kids liked.” Also the founder of Rhythm First Aid, who create and host dynamic, engaging infant and child first aid courses for parents and care givers, Nicole was starting her baby shopping largely knowing exactly what she wanted.

“We certainly had a large amount of The Memo packages arriving at my door. We live in rural Victoria, and don’t have a baby store within a half hour drive, so there’s no popping out to quickly grab dummies or anything like that. Having the option to shop The Memo, with express shipping, have it be reliable and on-time, was a big help for me.

Now a mother of two boys Oliver (aged 2) and Hugo (3 months at the time of interview), Nicole shares her insights of her very favourite baby gear, based on her own trials, errors and paediatric care knowledge, to deliver exactly what she’d put on her Gift Registry, if she was doing it all again.

A proper nursing chair

“I started with a normal, cheap-ish armchair, and ended up getting a proper nursing chair when my first son was nearly one. With the benefit of hindsight, I know I should have bought a proper rocking or gliding chair in the first place. Now that I have it, I don’t know how I survived without it. It helps with holding and feeding positioning, and is supportive of my recovery too. I actually have it out in the lounge room now, so I can support Oliver playing while I feed comfortably, and everyone who sits in it is like, ‘wow! This is nice!’”

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A pram with all the pieces

“I deliberately chose a pram that would convert to a double, knowing that we’d want to have a second baby sooner, but once we were pregnant with Hugo, and I went to buy the additional pieces to convert the pram to a double, I realised it had been discontinued and the additional pieces unavailable. It wasn’t something I’d ever thought could happen, but it left me a bit stuck: and having to get a totally new pram but already owning a perfectly fine pram. I suppose the fix for this is to buy an established model and brand that will continue to make compatible pieces, even if it is updated, or buy all the bits you’d need to make it a double in the first place.”

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A wearable breast pump

“A wearable breast pump was a big success for me. I used a few different ones, including the Medela, and they are just so easy and convenient especially if you’re breastfeeding for a longer time.”

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Digital Under-Arm Thermometer

“It’s strictly digital thermometer under the arm for taking the temperature of babies under 3 months. From 3 to 6 months you could swap to an in-ear thermometer if you wanted to. Learning how to take and accurately read your baby’s temperature is an absolute passion point for me. It’s so important and something we spend time on in our Rhythm First Aid courses. A recent chart review at the Children’s Hospital found 79% of babies under 3-months who presented with a fever, which is a temperature over 38 degrees, did not develop a subsequent fever. Hospital visits that would have been preventable if parents better understood how to check their baby’s temperature. It’s unnecessarily presentations, but it’s also the preventable trauma of hospital visits, for babies and parents. Depending on what’s happening and who’s on that could be a blood test, intravenous antibiotics or a lumbar puncture… it’s quite invasive because a fever in a newborn is serious.”

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SNOO Smart Sleeper

My brother had a baby before us, so we borrowed his SNOO, which was so great. We were also given a cot, so together they took care of where our babies slept.

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Ergo Pouch Cocoon Sleep Suits

"I love everything Ergo Pouch. I use the Ergo Pouch sleep suits under the SNOO Sleep sacks for my two winter babies. I often had people ask me about that because the SNOO sacks a thin, and in winter you need a thicker TOG."

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NaturoBest Prenatal Supplement

“I took prenatal supplements a little too literally, and didn’t realise that you can, and should, continue taking them after you have the baby too. I stopped taking it, even though I breastfed for a long time, and then later realised it has all the stuff in it to support her postpartum and feeding journey too! The one I was taking, even says on it in capital letters 'prenatal trimester two and three', but then it says 'plus breastfeeding'. I just never read the bit that last bit."

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A practical baby bag

"I got a baby bag that’s really puffy and just takes up so much space without actually giving you much internal space. It looks awesome, but it’s just not practical. I would have preferred a PHILE or By Billie design."

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SleepyBelly Pregnancy Pillow

"I had a different pregnancy pillow with Oliver and it was rubbish. The Sleepy Belly one made a real difference to my comfort at night. I actually tried it at an expo and went home and bought it online that same night."

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Snotty Boss Nasal Aspirator

"Both my babies seem to have a lot of snot, so this has been really beneficial. My two-year-old uses it on himself now. He thinks it’s so funny."

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Perineal Recovery Aids

"I loved the DUE Peri Soother and wore it in the Bare Mum Postpartum Pants. I love those undies because they have the slit to keep them in place. They’re great and feel really good on."

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