A few years before I even began to think about having a baby, I went with a friend of mine to help her do her registry. I thought it would be some fun girl time for us before she had her baby and maybe I would learn a few things if that day should ever come for me. We walked into Babies ‘R’ Us and she set up her registry, they handed her the little gun and a list and we were off to scan items. We figured the best option was to just start with aisle one and work our way through the store. First aisle, bottles. Well that shouldn’t be too hard, right?
I think my jaw literally dropped when I saw how many bottle options there were. It seems like it should be so simple. That was my first peak into the world of baby items.
When it was finally my turn to do my own registry, this memory stuck with me and so I did research overload. I asked my friends, I bought a book, I Googled what baby items are necessary and read multiple blogs to see what moms did and did not use. Of course people had opinions on everything and everyone’s opinion was different. “You’ll use this all the time” was followed by someone else’s opinion of “it’s a complete waste of money” and of course to top it all off, every baby is different so they may or may not like any of it.
I was still overwhelmed and probably more confused, but we made our list and hoped for the best.
Now that I’ve been through it once, which obviously makes me an expert, there are some items that I thought would fall under the waste of money category, but looking back I wish I had them. Now most lists will say these are unnecessary and since we survived without them I’m sure they are; but if I were to do it again, I think I would splurge on these items.
- An extra nursing pillow. Yes this one is out of pure laziness. I have a two-level house. The nursing pillow was never in the room I wanted and was such a pain to have to run upstairs or downstairs to get it when your baby is crying. Does a couch pillow work? Yes. However, if you accidentally get two at your shower, you might want think twice before returning one.
- An expensive bottle warmer. Everyone told me this was a waste of money and it probably is, but there were times when a fast-action bottle warmer might have been nice. Will a bowl of warm water work? Yes. but when you haven’t slept in two days, you’re stressed from work, your husband offers to give the baby a bottle but she won’t drink it cold and she’s crying hysterically, the idea sounds nice. I did buy a cheaper one, but I saw a friend who had a really nice one and wow did it seem to work fast. I could have been imagining things but in my mind I like to think this would have saved my sanity a few times.
- A co-sleeper. This is not really an unnecessary item, but we initially had no plans of co-sleeping so it seemed like we wouldn’t need it. I assumed I would use the bassinet feature of the pack and play for a few nights until I could get her to sleep in her crib. Then I had a baby who wanted to eat every hour at night and would only sleep on or next to me. I kept telling myself this will not last long, this will not last long. In the long run it did not last long and after two months she was sleeping in her crib but I still think a co-sleeper would have been worth it even for only a couple of months.
- A video monitor. This item is probably completely unnecessary and I only want it for entertainment purposes. Sometimes at night she is in bed talking and singing to herself for an hour. I’m just so curious what is happening. For the most part I can differentiate between cries of just trying to get me back up there and I got my leg stuck in the crib or I’m not feeling well so a sound monitor works just fine, but I’m still debating splurging on this one.
- A better diaper bag. A diaper bag is not unnecessary (in my opinion) but I would actually like two diaper bags. This one was my own fault. I was so concerned with finding a diaper bag that would be manly enough for my husband to use that I didn’t think about what I would actually be putting into it and how much stuff. I really wish I had two bags. One slightly larger and one slightly smaller. I feel like my current bag is too small when I want to bring everything and too big when I only need essentials. Now, I will admit I have a purse obsession so this may play into my wanting options for a diaper bag and many people get along with just using a tote or backpack. I guess my advice here is to just make sure you really think about how you want to use the bag.
So if you’re a mom-to-be trying to search for what items are necessary and what aren’t and getting more confused, my advice is get what will make you happy and works with your budget. It can get overwhelming the amount of baby gear you can buy. There will be so many opinions you will always find one to justify why you should or should not purchase something but in the end it’s you that has to get through this time. Somethings will work out, some won’t. You’ll learn along the way.
