So coming back to the bassinet... We are very much considering getting the halo swivel this time. Here's the reason - with DS we figured he could tlgo straight in the crib (it was in our room). He slept there for 3 months, waking up every 1-2 hours. Then we accidentally coslept one night and oh sweet rest. We still cosleep about half the night now.
I do want to try to be safer about it though, especially if they both end up in our bed. The halo swivel moves into a co sleeper and you can nurse by folding down the side of it. Do you all think it's a waste of money for the few months she can use it? It's $250
I also thought the bumbo was a waste. DD's legs were too chubby for it, but I don't think we would've used it much anyway.
I didn't use my boppy for anything other than letting her sleep next to me on the couch, but I've heard some moms swear by it for nursing. Again, I think DD was just too big/long.
I have been told that wipe warmers can be a fire hazard, so we never used the one that we were gifted. Also, if your baby gets used to warm wipes at home, then they will most likely be very displeased when you have to use cold ones out of the house.
I love the PNP. She slept in it during the early months and so had no trouble sleeping in it when we traveled.
We never bought a bassinet, but I did use a summer infant co-sleeper, and it was awesome. You could move it all over the house and she could sleep anywhere. My SIL swears by the RnP (rock n play), especially if your baby doesn't like being flat on their back. I haven't used it, but I've heard many moms rave about them.
Just a tip for those of you who may have large babies: make sure to buy plenty of 0-3/3-6 month clothes. DD could only fit into a few newborn items for a couple of weeks, and then had to go straight to 3-6 month clothes.
on changing tables: We just put a changing pad on her dresser and our upstairs dresser. I know some people will change on the bed, but DD had some EXPLOSIVE poops when she was little that I wouldn't want anywhere near the bed. One time at 3 a.m. she shot it a good two feet across the room and hit the wall.
I would say the biggest waste of money was the Mamaroo. Our son hated it and my friends son who we gave it to did as well. Luckily someone gifted us a graco baby swing when he was about 2 months old and he loved that. Also didn't get much use out of the diaper genie and am mostly just annoyed by it.
I did use a wipe warmer with our first but I think it was more useful because it was winter and he hated cold wipes!
Agree with a PP (forgot which one) that baby shoes are SUCH a waste. Sure, they're cute and it's sooo tempting to buy them. But if your child isn't walking, shoes aren't necessary. They're really just one more thing to keep track of and make sure stays on!
With DD, we used the changing pad on top of her dresser as the changing table. She was changed there almost always until she got older and was too wiggly - then we just changed her on the floor. The changing pad comes with two sets of straps - one to buckle baby in (which we never used as we never walked away from her) and another to secure to the dresser, which we did use. Plus, it had non-skid material on the bottom so it didn't slip around at all.
We used a small foot-operated trash can with a lid for diapers in DD's room. It worked fine but has become pretty smelly over time. I swear, the trashcan itself has somehow absorbed the pee/poop odors from the diapers because even when it's empty, it smells atrocious. (We've always used plastic shopping bags as liners and have tried to deodorize it as well.) Maybe that's just what happens after 2.5+ years of use? I'm ready to toss it and just start throwing diapers in the kitchen trash - or straight in the garage!
@camichael84 Good to know about the PnP. We live in a condo so we don't have much space. It's unlikely we will be out of there before the baby is born, but plan on moving shortly after. I don't think its worth it to set up an entire nursery, so I think we are going the PnP route until we move into a house.
Oh good reminder - shoes, complete waste. Bumbo chair (handed down) complete waste, he never wanted to be in it, high chair was fine, Boppy pillow - did not find it helpful for breastfeeding really at all, it didn't hold him firmly enough to stay with a good latch. A lot of newborn outfits that we never got to - jeans, khakis, button down shirts - they're not even cute on newborns who are too squishy to make real clothes look normal... lots of onesies/pants or footie sleep'n'play time outfits for this little
I'm a first time mom, but from witnessing observing my other mom friends (and sister!) it seems like the necessity of a changing table will largely depend on your house, your physical capabilities, your preferences and your baby! My sister lived in a two story house with all the bedrooms on the second level. She almost always changed her kids diapers on the floor of her living room because that is just where they were. For middle of the night changes she preferred either the bed or the bedroom floor since her baby was pretty wiggly on the table.
My bestie actually used her kitchen table for the first few months (before you go EWWW they NEVER actually eat at their kitchen table....) and then switched to a dedicated changing table. They live in a compact-but-spacious single story apartment, so it was never much of a trip to the room with the changing table. Her husband is also a taller man with back issues, and is the primary caregiver, so a dresser wasn't simply tall enough for him to use.
Both feel confident that their way of doing things is absolutely the best way, so really just think about your house, how much space you have and any special physical needs of you and your DH.
We have a one story small house so we'll likely either use a dresser top or skip all together since we don't have a ton of space.
My sister also suggested using a laundry basket instead of a baby tub once the baby can sit up on their own - it keeps them and their toys contained, but makes it easy to avoid filling up and then dumping out what is essentially a heavy bucket.
Someone gifted us a bumbo and we loved it. I used it a ton from about 4 months till almost a year. DS loved sitting in it with a toy, or with me handing him snacks every so often, and I could work along next to him, and he'd sit still for about half an hour. As for a bassinet, I got this travel one from amazon https://www.amazon.com/BRICA-Fold-Go-Travel-Bassinet/dp/B004L2JJ6E/ref=sr_1_1_a_it?ie=UTF8&qid=1460385359&sr=8-1&keywords=travel+bassinet and used it in our bed for co-sleeping. It was nice not to worry about rolling onto ds, and I took it almost everywhere when he was little. It was nice because I could put him to sleep, lay him down, then if I needed to move him, or walk away for a couple minutes it wasn't a big deal. I also loved my boppy! It was way nice for especially the first couple of weeks for nursing. It was so nice to sit in a recliner or in bed with the boppy, and nurse him. It made early nursing much easier for me. I also used it after ds outgrew the bassinet for nap time and it was really nice for tummy time. We cd, so no idea on the diaper genie, but I love my wet bags, they keep the smell contained, even with the poopy diapers. I also did not get a bottle warmer, and have never missed it, but have ebf with a hand pumped bottle here and there. I did get a baby bath, and used it once or twice. It was definitely a waste of money. The newborn clothes didn't even fit ds his first day, so were a waste, but we only had 1 or two outfits, so it wasn't a big deal. Ds was a scratcher, and I do have to say I loved the onesies with built in hand covers, but if he was wearing one without, we just used socks. Edited to add: We never had a changing table, and didn't miss it.
@PoodleDoodleOoo- I have seen the laundry basket trick on Pinterest and Facebook but I never tried it. We bought a baby bathtub that had a newborn sling attachment. Once DS outgrew the newborn sling, he would scream in the baby tub. DH started just getting in the tub with him. He really liked that special bonding with our son. So outside of the newborn attachment, a baby bath tub has been a bit of a waste.
@BabyBoyH92016 That sounds like a good plan to me. My daughter slept in her PnP in our room until she was 5 months old. We kept it by the bed, and she was within arms reach to me at all times. We never used the napper, just kept it on the raised setting so she remained flat on her back. Then once she moved to her crib, we have used it for every overnight stay we've had (there have been quite a few). She's 19 months now and we can still use it!
@LizC216 we love our diaper caddy too! My son is 2.5 now and we still keep it in the kitchen on the counter and use it for diaper changes. I would definitely recommend getting one--it is a must have! We have a changing table and used it more when our son was young and we were in an apartment so it was closeby. Once we moved into a two story house when he was a year old, we totally stopped using it!
I also will say that those mittens are not worth buying! Just make sure your baby's nails are kept short. I am a mother/baby nurse and a lot of my patients bring them to the hospital but they are always falling off and getting lost in the crib. Just not worth it!
I also never had a swing for my son, just those little bouncers. I think needing a swing depends on the baby though--some kids just love to be swung and a swing is very helpful in that case! Other babies don't really care for the swing at all. I always think a swing is one of those things that you can get after baby is born. You will quickly learn if the baby calms down well when you rock him/her and then you can always get the swing at that point!
ETA: Diaper Genies still don't contain the smell of diapers. We have a small lidded trash can that we throw pee diapers in. Poop we just put in a grocery bag and stick right into the outside trash!
We had a bottle warmer and used it but a lot of my friends have gone without it with no problems. My one friend just microwaves some water in a cup and then sticks the bottle in that to warm up for a few minutes.
We actually used the baby bathtub but just got one of those little mesh ones. It worked well for us!
I loved my boppy so much and used it many many times throughout the day. I had C-section with my first and it was a lifesaver; the pressure of baby on my abdomen sucked so the boppy made for a nice shock absorber. I didn't have that exact issue with my second but by then I was already a boppy believer.
That being said, it was great for when I wanted to read or play video games. Once my babies were situated on their boob of choice, I was basically hands-free until I needed to switch sides. Great for holding a book, controller, or reaching a keyboard (the apex of the "U" portion of the boppy fit snugly under my desk and I imagine it wouldn't be too hard to attain if you have an adjustable desk chair). Being able to multitask was essential to me being successful at nursing.
As far as changing tables go, mine wound up being a storage dump. A much needed storage dump, mind you, but a storage dump nonetheless. For diaper changes I set down a receiving blanket -- 9 times out of 10 on the floor, and very occasionally on the dead center of the bed -- and did my changing there.
September '16 - May Signature Challenge Awkward Family Fun
@PoodleDoodleOoo- good point on the different houses/situations! We have a house similar to the first described, where the 2nd floor is all bedrooms. In those first couple of months I can't imagine trekking upstairs for every diaper changed (sometimes only a few minutes apart if the babe decides it's time to poop), and I also had a slight fear of tripping down the stairs with baby, so I liked to limit my trips up and down each day. We ended up doing a changing table in his nursery and an Ingenuity play yard (pack'n'play) with a changing table attachment in our living room. That way we had a station upstairs and one downstairs and it worked out really well for us because we have such a big house.
@camichael84 my hesitation is because I want to keep the PnP in the living room full time. I hate being stuck in the bedroom so we'll likely go to the living room in the mornings and hang out there and I don't want to have to move it every morning and evening. It's not a safety thing for me as I know they're safe just a convenience thing. I'm not getting a bouncer, napper or swing, so we'll rely completely on the PnP to be able to put baby down and do things around the house. I'm thinking of getting the Arm's Reach Co-sleeper but using it as a bassinet as we won't be co-sleeping. I feel like buying a mini crib is unnecessary if we'll have a full crib in her room.
@camichael84 my hesitation is because I want to keep the PnP in the living room full time. I hate being stuck in the bedroom so we'll likely go to the living room in the mornings and hang out there and I don't want to have to move it every morning and evening. It's not a safety thing for me as I know they're safe just a convenience thing. I'm not getting a bouncer, napper or swing, so we'll rely completely on the PnP to be able to put baby down and do things around the house. I'm thinking of getting the Arm's Reach Co-sleeper but using it as a bassinet as we won't be co-sleeping. I feel like buying a mini crib is unnecessary if we'll have a full crib in her room.
When we wanted to put the baby down to do something, we quite often just put him on a blanket or playmat on the floor. There is no need to put them in something to put them down. I think putting them on the floor to stretch out and later on practice rolling is a great thing.
@AlwaysAuntNeverMom Gotcha. Definitely don't buy a second crib, even if it is a mini. The co-sleeper as a bassinet sounds like a good idea to me. Or even a bassinet itself may work for you if you're not planning on keeping the baby in your room past 3 months.
@camichael84 have you seen those smaller pnps? We saw one at Target and my dad really wants to get it for us. It was only like $80 and I think it could work for baby to spend the night with us. They fit through doorways but look just like a regular pnp (I think maybe the legs were angled on this one). I just don't know of anyone who's used them.
@AlwaysAuntNeverMom I haven't seen them, but when I googled them a Travel Lite system popped up. I'm not sure if that is the right one, but it looks good to me. It has a 15 lbs weight limit, which is about the same for a bassinet. My DD was 15 lbs somewhere around 5 months (I checked the baby book to be sure ) and was usually in the 50th percentile, so she was your average sized baby. It looks like it is bigger than a bassinet (if I can trust the reviews), which is a score in my opinion. I feel like most babies would outgrow a bassinet before they reached the weight limit.
@AlwaysAuntNeverMomJust wanted to chime in on your question regarding the mini PNPs. If I remember right, @618mom22boyssaid she used one with one of her kids...she might be a good resource for questions! (And I apologize in advance if my memory is off and it was someone else entirely who mentioned the mini PNPs...it had stuck with me because I had never heard of them but I may totally have the person wrong!)
Ooh I'm really interested in this. Here's a question I was going to post in the BDTD thread, but I'll start with it here.
We have limited space (nursery will be shared guest room/nursery), and I keep reading things that say traditional changing tables are totally unnecessary, especially with limited space. Do people agree? Can I get by without one, or maybe convert the small dresser we'll be using for LO to have a changing pad on top? Just wondering if people have them, if they even use them that often. I'd like to avoid extra furniture if we can
I'm pregnant with my fourth and I only just got a changing table. I only got it because it was free. I put a changing pad on top of a dresser for a while, and I'd often change diapers on the floor, or the couch, or the bed. So yeah, they're totally unnecessary. Nice, but uneccessary.
As somebody else said, I never used newborn outfits. My babies wore pajamas and a onesie until they were at least a month old. I don't really take them places in that either, though. Just to the doctor. Otherwise we stay home. I also think the travel systems are a waste. It's very nice to have a stroller that your carseat latches into, but you can get one of those simple frame kind and it folds up way smaller. Travel system strollers tend to be kind of cheap.
@camichael84 and @AlwaysAuntNeverMom - we had a Graco Travel Lite system and loved, loved, loved it. Both DS's were in it for a few months before they went into their cribs. It's light, it's portable, it fits through doorways when open and fit nicely in our room in place of a bassinet. I think the weight limit was 15 or 20 lbs, but by then they were in their cribs. DS2 was born 9lb 1oz and he didn't outgrow it. We 100% plan on using it again.
I loved my travel system stroller. We used the whole system for the first 6-7 months before DD started sitting in it without the carseat. We still take the stroller everywhere, and while it's big, it's easy to maneuver and has a lot of storage in it. I actually love it so much that I'm keeping it even though we are getting a double stroller this time. I can legit see scenarios where I will just want the single stroller to put one or the other into without wanting to lug the bigger stroller around.
We have a Graco carseat and were going to get a frame for the carseat as a stroller.. we found a graco travel stroller at Target that the carseat clicks into but also has a seat for when baby is older. It was something like $65, the same price (or cheaper) than some of the frames and not a terrible amount larger. We still use that stroller from time to time at 16 months and plan to use it for the carseat with baby #2 on short walks where my little man wants to walk along. There are lots of stroller options out there!
For our first, we spent one weekend on Amazon two weeks before my due date to buy what we thought was necessary (not sure I would recommend that strategy...). That probably limited the amount of stuff including the unnecessary stuff that we got but there were still a few things that we could have done without:
- baby hairbrush - didn't do anything for her hair so she went basically uncombed for the first year. Now we use my hairbrush. - receiving blankets - just too small to be good for much. A&A swaddling blankets were much more useful (but not as nice looking) - car seat canopy - A&A swaddling blanket does the job when needed. If you want one, you can get them for free though (in exchange for you email + address and lots of subsequent junk mail)
I'm thoroughly impressed by all of you who went without changing table! That would have been a mess for us. We have a cheap changing table from IKEA in the bathroom and still use it all the time. DD is now 20 months. And, the few times she pooped while the diaper was off (as an infant), I was glad it was in the bathroom. Infant poop can really shoot out! I'm talking feet not inches... And, yes, she still pees sometimes when the diaper is off and a bathroom is pretty easy to clean.
We also got quite a few nice outfits gifted. We tried to put them on a few times but they are really not necessary. For us, footed sleep & play plus onesies were the go to outfit for the first 6 months or so. Anything short-sleeve isn't very useful because it doesn't offer sun-protection and socks etc. tend to come off.
Also, I don't think a piece of furniture specific to changing is necessary, but I do use the changing pad on top of a dresser all the time. Our house is so small, it's never a long walk away. But when I do have to change on the bed or floor, I find that LO tries to roam more and that the consistently of being changed in the same place makes it go faster. But I have a kid who is turning out to be quite a stickler for routine, im sure other babies are more flexible.
@camichael84 and @AlwaysAuntNeverMom - we had a Graco Travel Lite system and loved, loved, loved it. Both DS's were in it for a few months before they went into their cribs. It's light, it's portable, it fits through doorways when open and fit nicely in our room in place of a bassinet. I think the weight limit was 15 or 20 lbs, but by then they were in their cribs. DS2 was born 9lb 1oz and he didn't outgrow it. We 100% plan on using it again.
Thanks for the input! I'd hate to buy something totally unnecessary or that won't work for us! I'm not sure when I'll be ready to have baby sleep in her room alone (nursery is clear across the house from the master) and don't want to limit myself to something like 2 or 3 months like a bassinet. There's lots of things out there for baby that can be a complete waste of money in the end.
My daughter stayed teeny tiny for awhile so newborn sized clothes were very necessary. Next size swallowed her.
Same with me. Clothing sizes are so varying from baby to baby, and your never know how big they will be until they are here. I was a 8.5 lb baby, and DH was 9.5 lbs. I doubt we would have fit in newborn clothes long, if at all, so I hadn't planned on getting any expecting DD to be the same way. The last two months of my pregnancy, I began to second guess myself and got several newborn outfits. DD ended up being 7.5 lbs when she was born, and didn't get back to her birth weight until she was a little over 3 weeks old. She was in newborn clothes until 6 weeks and we had to buy her more after she was born because we didn't have enough. Even when we moved her to the 0-3 month, they looked huge on her for 3 or 4 weeks. I wouldn't recommend anyone to buy a ton of newborn clothes, but I'd have some just in case.
We only had a few newborn outfits, and only had 1 or 2 washed and ready for baby. The tags were left on everything else and we ended up returning those. My son never fit into newborn clothes or diapers.
We kept him in long-sleeved, footed sleep-and-plays for the first 3 months. We didn't really dress him in separate pants & shirts until we sent him to daycare. He was a winter baby, so we wanted him more covered up than a onsie could handle. And you want all the clothes to be very stretchy. We were given a flannel onsie as a gift. It was really cute, but the material had absolutely no stretch. I felt like I was going to dislocate his shoulder getting it on him!
Other clothes that were a waste of money (but were mostly gifts) were ones that didn't allow for easy diaper changes. We had a long-sleeved, footed sleep and play that had the snaps on the back. DS only wore that once or twice (we snapped a pic, sent it to DH's aunt raving about how cute it was!). We were also given a sleep and play that zipped up, but the zipper only went from the neck to the belly button. DS wore that for like 2 hours.
Thanks for the tag JennM205 ! We haven't actually used one yet. We had normal size PNP. But I am getting one this time around. We don't have a room for the baby, 3 bedroom house with a soon to be family of 6. So I like the idea of being able to put her in that an transfer it from room to room without taking it down.
I have never used a changing table. We just changed diapers on the floor, couch or bed. Bottle warmers and wipe warmers were a waste for me. ALthough I do love the crockpot idea!
Where do you ladies stand on a bottle sanitizer? Was looking at the Dr Brown version that cleans in 12 minutes. Our dishwasher takes forever so this seems much better to me.
Sophie the giraffe was a huge waste of money. When we had our first everyone we talked to said it was so great and babies just love them so my husband bought it for our daughter. She hated it and the dumb thing cost $34.00.
@Forever0905 We only sanitized in the microwave. Takes 3-4 minutes. Another plus: no additional gadget cluttering up the kitchen. We bought some special sanitizing bags for that purpose (Dr. Brown and others sell them). Not sure that's strictly necessary. Also works well for pumping equipment if that's relevant to you.
Question - are most bottle sanitizers compatible with other bottles? I didn't even think about it, but we don't have a dishwasher, so a bottle sanitizer might be the way to go.
Re: Well that was a waste of $$!
I do want to try to be safer about it though, especially if they both end up in our bed. The halo swivel moves into a co sleeper and you can nurse by folding down the side of it. Do you all think it's a waste of money for the few months she can use it? It's $250
I didn't use my boppy for anything other than letting her sleep next to me on the couch, but I've heard some moms swear by it for nursing. Again, I think DD was just too big/long.
I have been told that wipe warmers can be a fire hazard, so we never used the one that we were gifted. Also, if your baby gets used to warm wipes at home, then they will most likely be very displeased when you have to use cold ones out of the house.
I love the PNP. She slept in it during the early months and so had no trouble sleeping in it when we traveled.
We never bought a bassinet, but I did use a summer infant co-sleeper, and it was awesome. You could move it all over the house and she could sleep anywhere. My SIL swears by the RnP (rock n play), especially if your baby doesn't like being flat on their back. I haven't used it, but I've heard many moms rave about them.
Just a tip for those of you who may have large babies: make sure to buy plenty of 0-3/3-6 month clothes. DD could only fit into a few newborn items for a couple of weeks, and then had to go straight to 3-6 month clothes.
on changing tables: We just put a changing pad on her dresser and our upstairs dresser. I know some people will change on the bed, but DD had some EXPLOSIVE poops when she was little that I wouldn't want anywhere near the bed. One time at 3 a.m. she shot it a good two feet across the room and hit the wall.
I did use a wipe warmer with our first but I think it was more useful because it was winter and he hated cold wipes!
With DD, we used the changing pad on top of her dresser as the changing table. She was changed there almost always until she got older and was too wiggly - then we just changed her on the floor. The changing pad comes with two sets of straps - one to buckle baby in (which we never used as we never walked away from her) and another to secure to the dresser, which we did use. Plus, it had non-skid material on the bottom so it didn't slip around at all.
We used a small foot-operated trash can with a lid for diapers in DD's room. It worked fine but has become pretty smelly over time. I swear, the trashcan itself has somehow absorbed the pee/poop odors from the diapers because even when it's empty, it smells atrocious. (We've always used plastic shopping bags as liners and have tried to deodorize it as well.) Maybe that's just what happens after 2.5+ years of use? I'm ready to toss it and just start throwing diapers in the kitchen trash - or straight in the garage!
My bestie actually used her kitchen table for the first few months (before you go EWWW they NEVER actually eat at their kitchen table....) and then switched to a dedicated changing table. They live in a compact-but-spacious single story apartment, so it was never much of a trip to the room with the changing table. Her husband is also a taller man with back issues, and is the primary caregiver, so a dresser wasn't simply tall enough for him to use.
Both feel confident that their way of doing things is absolutely the best way, so really just think about your house, how much space you have and any special physical needs of you and your DH.
We have a one story small house so we'll likely either use a dresser top or skip all together since we don't have a ton of space.
My sister also suggested using a laundry basket instead of a baby tub once the baby can sit up on their own - it keeps them and their toys contained, but makes it easy to avoid filling up and then dumping out what is essentially a heavy bucket.
As for a bassinet, I got this travel one from amazon https://www.amazon.com/BRICA-Fold-Go-Travel-Bassinet/dp/B004L2JJ6E/ref=sr_1_1_a_it?ie=UTF8&qid=1460385359&sr=8-1&keywords=travel+bassinet
and used it in our bed for co-sleeping. It was nice not to worry about rolling onto ds, and I took it almost everywhere when he was little. It was nice because I could put him to sleep, lay him down, then if I needed to move him, or walk away for a couple minutes it wasn't a big deal.
I also loved my boppy! It was way nice for especially the first couple of weeks for nursing. It was so nice to sit in a recliner or in bed with the boppy, and nurse him. It made early nursing much easier for me. I also used it after ds outgrew the bassinet for nap time and it was really nice for tummy time.
We cd, so no idea on the diaper genie, but I love my wet bags, they keep the smell contained, even with the poopy diapers.
I also did not get a bottle warmer, and have never missed it, but have ebf with a hand pumped bottle here and there.
I did get a baby bath, and used it once or twice. It was definitely a waste of money.
The newborn clothes didn't even fit ds his first day, so were a waste, but we only had 1 or two outfits, so it wasn't a big deal.
Ds was a scratcher, and I do have to say I loved the onesies with built in hand covers, but if he was wearing one without, we just used socks.
Edited to add: We never had a changing table, and didn't miss it.
I also will say that those mittens are not worth buying! Just make sure your baby's nails are kept short. I am a mother/baby nurse and a lot of my patients bring them to the hospital but they are always falling off and getting lost in the crib. Just not worth it!
I also never had a swing for my son, just those little bouncers. I think needing a swing depends on the baby though--some kids just love to be swung and a swing is very helpful in that case! Other babies don't really care for the swing at all. I always think a swing is one of those things that you can get after baby is born. You will quickly learn if the baby calms down well when you rock him/her and then you can always get the swing at that point!
ETA: Diaper Genies still don't contain the smell of diapers. We have a small lidded trash can that we throw pee diapers in. Poop we just put in a grocery bag and stick right into the outside trash!
We had a bottle warmer and used it but a lot of my friends have gone without it with no problems. My one friend just microwaves some water in a cup and then sticks the bottle in that to warm up for a few minutes.
We actually used the baby bathtub but just got one of those little mesh ones. It worked well for us!
That being said, it was great for when I wanted to read or play video games. Once my babies were situated on their boob of choice, I was basically hands-free until I needed to switch sides. Great for holding a book, controller, or reaching a keyboard (the apex of the "U" portion of the boppy fit snugly under my desk and I imagine it wouldn't be too hard to attain if you have an adjustable desk chair). Being able to multitask was essential to me being successful at nursing.
As far as changing tables go, mine wound up being a storage dump. A much needed storage dump, mind you, but a storage dump nonetheless. For diaper changes I set down a receiving blanket -- 9 times out of 10 on the floor, and very occasionally on the dead center of the bed -- and did my changing there.
Awkward Family Fun
I'm pregnant with my fourth and I only just got a changing table. I only got it because it was free. I put a changing pad on top of a dresser for a while, and I'd often change diapers on the floor, or the couch, or the bed. So yeah, they're totally unnecessary. Nice, but uneccessary.
I also think the travel systems are a waste. It's very nice to have a stroller that your carseat latches into, but you can get one of those simple frame kind and it folds up way smaller. Travel system strollers tend to be kind of cheap.
ETA We have a BOB travel system.
Our dog loves the boppy. She has gotten more use out of it than anyone else.
- baby hairbrush - didn't do anything for her hair so she went basically uncombed for the first year. Now we use my hairbrush.
- receiving blankets - just too small to be good for much. A&A swaddling blankets were much more useful (but not as nice looking)
- car seat canopy - A&A swaddling blanket does the job when needed. If you want one, you can get them for free though (in exchange for you email + address and lots of subsequent junk mail)
I'm thoroughly impressed by all of you who went without changing table! That would have been a mess for us. We have a cheap changing table from IKEA in the bathroom and still use it all the time. DD is now 20 months. And, the few times she pooped while the diaper was off (as an infant), I was glad it was in the bathroom. Infant poop can really shoot out! I'm talking feet not inches... And, yes, she still pees sometimes when the diaper is off and a bathroom is pretty easy to clean.
We also got quite a few nice outfits gifted. We tried to put them on a few times but they are really not necessary. For us, footed sleep & play plus onesies were the go to outfit for the first 6 months or so. Anything short-sleeve isn't very useful because it doesn't offer sun-protection and socks etc. tend to come off.
We kept him in long-sleeved, footed sleep-and-plays for the first 3 months. We didn't really dress him in separate pants & shirts until we sent him to daycare. He was a winter baby, so we wanted him more covered up than a onsie could handle. And you want all the clothes to be very stretchy. We were given a flannel onsie as a gift. It was really cute, but the material had absolutely no stretch. I felt like I was going to dislocate his shoulder getting it on him!
Other clothes that were a waste of money (but were mostly gifts) were ones that didn't allow for easy diaper changes. We had a long-sleeved, footed sleep and play that had the snaps on the back. DS only wore that once or twice (we snapped a pic, sent it to DH's aunt raving about how cute it was!). We were also given a sleep and play that zipped up, but the zipper only went from the neck to the belly button. DS wore that for like 2 hours.
I have never used a changing table. We just changed diapers on the floor, couch or bed. Bottle warmers and wipe warmers were a waste for me. ALthough I do love the crockpot idea!
BabyBjorn bouncer seat? Yay or nay?
Thinking of registering of them. If I get them, fabulous. If I don't, I'll consider purchasing them myself.