Bringing home baby?

*Disclaimer: I intend no harm, insult or any other form of ill feelings on the part of any of my readers with this post. If you have/had an absolutely adorable "first outfit" for your peanut, I'd love to hear about it!*

Am I missing the boat? I am having trouble understanding the significance of the "bringing home baby" outfit for the newborn. Do we really have to start coordinating their wardrobes before they hit outside air for the first time?

I've looked at a lot of pictures of newborns, including snapshots of them getting loaded into the car for the first time, and without fail I cannot tell you what they were wearing.

(One caveat: My little Indigo Rose had an incredibly cute Little Ewok onesie for her trip home, and I have to take exception as I was the one who had the honor of dubbing her "Little Wicket" while she was still an inside baby.)

I guess I've always assumed you just pick out the smallest outfit you've purchased/received as a gift prior to birth and stick that in the bag. Honestly, before I gave any real thought to it, I assumed the hospital put them in some kind of garment before releasing them to the completely overwhelmed hands of the new parents.

Does this mean you have to pack multiple outfits for them while in the hospital? And the little hats. Do the hospitals provide those? Or do the little squeakers need a variety of appropriate headgear brought to the hospital as well?

I guess it's a good thing we have a while to go before I'm even close to having to worry about any of this stuff. I clearly have lots to learn about newborn fashion!