All This Stuff
Holy Moses Basket, this registering for Baby business is mind-boggling!
We were entirely snowed in yesterday, so we finally planted ourselves down to research and select a few things online. Armed with Baby Bargains, a must-have book gifted to us by friends who’ve already been down this path (see link in list of good books to right), and printed registries of four friends who recently made it through the process relatively unscathed, we made some slow progress.
But if you’re reading this and you have any advice, suggestions, insider knowledge or absolute favorite items, please pipe up. We’re all ears.
Wading through all this stuff—the options, the requirements, the restrictions and the rules—makes me wish a little bit for simpler times…like maybe circa Laura Ingles on the prairie when toys and playmats in primary colors didn’t exist, the best swaddling option was a bear skin blankie, and “breast pump” meant baby or milking the cow.
Speaking of breast pumps, I was alarmed by the term “professional-grade” in the context of those. My mind translates this to “industrial strength”, which equates to “ouch” and begs the question “is that really necessary?” The cost of these machines (which bare an unfortunate resemblance to the torture contraption Count Rugen uses on Wesley in The Princess Bride) is also exasperating. But alas, a baby’s got to eat, and I suppose compared with some of the “toys” (so that’s what the kids are calling them these days…) that parents are buying for their children this Christmas, the medieval expulsion device disguised by chubby bottles and a colorful logo seems practical.
Registering and shopping for Baby is an exercise in evaluating and defining “need”. The trouble is, as a new parent, there is just no way to tell what need will mean for you and your own baby.
So we’ll continue to read and reference, and outright copy our friends’ decisions until we know enough to help another set of parents make theirs a few months from now.
Until then, help us with ours. Leave a comment with some recommendations!
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December 20th, 2009 at 12:10 pm
Eliza (and therefore we) love the Kiddopatomus swaddlers. We have a variety of fabrics (fleece, cotton) depending on the temp. So far she has liked The First Years Breastflow bottles – no transition problems here. Pampers Swaddlers are great diapers and we should just buy stock. Speaking of which, I hear diapers.com is awesome, but my mom (thankfully) bought so many we haven’t needed that service yet.
Eliza LOVES her swing and that has been a lifesaver for us. Also, Boppy makes covers for changing pads that allow the cover to get dirty and not the fuzzy pad. They’re on my registry and I suggest multiples. The Boppy itself is, I think, overrated for nursing but she likes hanging out in it on the couch.
I think that about covers it. Don’t even bother going to Babies R Us to register – just do it online. The in-person experience is less than satisfying.
December 20th, 2009 at 12:10 pm
I love this stuff! I’m digging thru my gear and promise to foward you an excel document that an former manager of mine created. It’s awesome. Off the top of my head, here are some of my faves (keep in mind, things have changed tremendously, I hear, in 5 years since I first registered).
- Moses Basket. I loved this – Julia and PJ were both jaundiced, so moving them with the sun was wonderful. Also nice not to have to pack the pacnplay when you have so much other stuff if you go to visit someone. You can find great prices at TJMax/Homegoods.
- Bjorn. Bjorn. Bjorn. Takes a washing and has kept on ticking.
- I love my Peg Perego stroller. My 5 year old still can climb in in the city. Very nice. Tight on corners.
- Pump/Bottles. If you get the breast pump, don’t unwrap it. They don’t take tampered pumps back! The same with bottles. The baby might not like the ones you think he/she will like. Stick with picking up the singles at first. I think I went thru $50 in bottles w/J. Also, start cheap (but safe).
- Swaddle me’s – I don’t know how we survived without them with J. P lived in them!
- Boppy. They are awesome. You can sit on them at the beginning, the baby uses them, too. I have 2. It’s nice to keep one in your room and one in your living space. Who needs to be running around looking for things when you have a screaming babino???
- Lansinoh cream.
- Rocker. Make sure that it is wide enough to grow with the baby. I bought myself a Best chair, and plan on keeping it forever.
Enjoy!!!!
December 20th, 2009 at 4:31 pm
We did what what you guys have done, Tara-lived by the Baby Bargains book and copied our friends’ registries!
I second Carita’s suggestions…the swaddle me was invaluable. We were lost when Emily began to flip herself over in the crib, which meant her swaddling days were over. It depends on the hospital, but I actually got an industrial pump to take home with me (covered by insurance) which they then swapped out for a top of the line one for me. So, I returned the one that I had registered for.
We loved a mobile, which we had not registered for because we discovered it through a friend. It was the Symphony in Motion by Tiny Love. Emily LOVED it! Lots of black and white patterns and strange looking animals, which is supposed to be good for their cognitive development…which just about everything claims to do these days! That’s a whole different matter…
She also loved her bouncer, which made it possible for me to shower, so I loved it as well!
Those are the things that we liked. Emily HATED her swing, but from what we’ve heard, many babies love them.
Good luck!
December 20th, 2009 at 8:28 pm
One more piece of advice – borrow as much as you can!
December 21st, 2009 at 9:04 am
T, I understand your pain. I walked into Babies r Us and right back out again when registering. So let’s see – things that worked really well for us – the Miracle Blanket (it was the only one that could keep Jane swaddled); the Halo sleepsack (for when she couldn’t be swaddled anymore but would get her legs stuck in the crib – we still use them); a pump with a battery pack (I don’t have this and it’s really hard to find places to pump with outlets); the Baby au Lait nursing cover (it makes nursing in public so much easier); the Ergo baby carrier (we had a Bjorn but Jane grew out of it and living in the city, we need to be able to carry her around still); a really good stroller (again, living in the city, it is worth spending money to get the good wheels – I also found that being able to switch the handle bar back and forth was a necessity so that she wasn’t always staring into the sun). Things that didn’t work for us -the Moses basket, swing, car seat as stroller, etc – Jane didn’t like to be confined in anything so you may want to hold off on some of these expensive items until you know whether Baby Desmond likes them (Jane liked her crib and the bassinet feature on her stroller). I’m sure there is more so I’ll write again if I think of things. Happy registering!
December 22nd, 2009 at 9:29 am
Oh girl, I acutely remember your pain! We discovered that 95% of what people recommended to us as “must-haves” we didn’t even use… it stinks but it’s mostly trial and error. If you have an option to borrow anything, that’s a good way to test drive stuff. Also keep in mind that when you discover you need to return stuff you registered for, you’ll likely know what you need at that point and will have the ability to swap stuff out at the store instead of spending a lot!
Bottles were the most confusing thing to us – Emma ended up using the Medela and Dr. Brown’s bottles mostly but all of the choices out there STILL confuse me.
I would highly recommend investing in a good dual breast pump right off the bat – makes life much easier when you only have to spend 10 minutes pumping as opposed to 20 on each side with some of the smaller ones. Those 10 minute increments add up! I never got the hands-free bra but I hear they’re awesome. And if the evil mastitis should hit, you’ll be better equipped with an industrial grade pump to fight that beast.
Since we’re throwing things out there, we loved the co-sleeper (the mini Arm’s Reach), the swing (a life saver for the Brittons), and after trying every diaper out there, we’re also big fans of Pampers Swaddlers and New Baby. Pacifiers and paci clips are awesome. I will probably get a Moses basket for #2 if that’s in the cards but Emma was so long from birth that she outgrew it after about 2 months (I mention that because I suspect baby Desmond might be a little lanky). Emma didn’t take to swaddling so we gave away all of our swaddlers. We do use a sleep sack for her naps sometimes. Finally, we got a jogging stroller for bumpy DC sidewalks and that’s been great. We don’t jog with it but the oversized wheels make it possible to do a walk for pleasure or even just to the market and back.
One last thing would be to register for some toys too. We got all of the necessities but had only one or two things to play with when she really started to interact. The girl LOVES a Taggie (any kind) and rattles and teething toys. Also soft blocks and balls and stuffed animals (oh my!)
You’ll figure out quickly what you like and what you don’t need. And then, of course, the baby will change and grow and one thing that didn’t work last week will be a favorite this week! So much fun
December 26th, 2009 at 1:39 pm
You can see already that every baby is different after reading the other entries! Some babies love things, others not so much. Very true what someone else said–all trial and error so keep receipts for EVERYTHING. And believe me–you will be visiting Babies R Us about once a week once the baby comes! Always need something.
Invaluable to me as an easy “handbook”.
Here are our favorite things:
-”Baby 411″ book–don’t worry, I’ll supply you with a copy as a gift
-BOB stroller—-LOVE IT. Have never met another owner that didn’t love it. You buy the infant seat attachment bar then your infant seat just snaps in and baby faces you.
-Swaddlers and Sleepsacks–Owen loved being swaddled but every baby is different
-Pampers Swaddlers–agree!!! So soft and smell so nice.
-Medela dual breast pump–a necessary evil but very fast and efficient.
-bouncy/vibrating seat–recommend having 2–1 for upstairs, 1 for down. You can borrow one from us, if you like, as a second. Great to not have to trudge it and baby up and down the stairs.
December 26th, 2009 at 1:42 pm
Oh and sorry but I do disagree with Erika–I would say to definitely go to Babies R Us at least once to complete your registry. They have random things hanging everywhere that you might not think about registering for but then you see it and say, “Oh that would be nice to have.” I still go there now and walk by an aisle and find something that catches my eye.
December 26th, 2009 at 4:26 pm
Wow! Unlike most, I loved registering… I know, I’m weird! I second the comments about learning as you go, unfortunately. I have a swing that neither of my boys liked, yet know other moms whose babies loved them! Borrow what you can and if you want to purchase later at least you’ll know what he/she likes.
Some must- haves that I found were:
1. Moses basket- so easy to have the baby sleeping wherever you are while necessary.
2. Pump- spend the big bucks for the good one – it becomes a necessary life line for a little freedom/ engorgement relief.
3. bjorn! or hot sling for household chores.
4.swaddle blankets
5. tiny luv mobile…both boys loved it, and it allowed them to stretch free of mom for a while at first.
MOST OF ALL a good rocker… Carita recommended the “Best Chair” line at my baby shower, and it is the best money we have spent in our house by a long shot. We got one that glided, swiveled, AND fully reclined (very handy at night when little baby won’t sleep in the beginning or wakes up sick)Chris actually wants one for the living room!!
Best of luck!
P.S. Diapers.com is awesome and prices are comparable to Sam’s Club… I would think a great use for a city family!