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OctoberLove13

Can we start a new one of these?! The other ones are so far down the list! 

I have a question to start this off. Has anyone used the Britax B-Safe 35 or Britax B-Safe 35 Elite? The rep at Buy Buy Baby had me convinced that it was the carseat for us but now I'm second guessing it due to the reviews. Of course the safety ratings are top notch but I would like to know from personal experience if you hated or loved yours.  Thanks!

dizzymom-2

We're going to start looking for a doctor for baby. Did anyone go with a family practice doctor instead of a pediatrician? I kind of like the idea of moving everyone to a family practice office since we moved not long ago and also, we wouldn't have to switch doctors when LO gets older. 

Spartanrd4

I bought a changing table which came with a flat changing pad....would you recommend getting an extra pad or one that has the contoured sides? It came with a buckle and the table has railings on all sides so not sure if I need the contouring or not to keep LO from rolling out. The pad just seems thinner than pads I've seen in stores that you buy separately.

kiyamurph

OctoberLove13 said:

Can we start a new one of these?! The other ones are so far down the list! 

I have a question to start this off. Has anyone used the Britax B-Safe 35 or Britax B-Safe 35 Elite? The rep at Buy Buy Baby had me convinced that it was the carseat for us but now I'm second guessing it due to the reviews. Of course the safety ratings are top notch but I would like to know from personal experience if you hated or loved yours.  Thanks!

We have the B-Safe 35 and never had any issues. What are the bad reviews saying? I tend to take some reviews with a grain of salt because more people are going to complain than the ones who had no issues. The car seat was easy to click in and out of the base and also getting it on and off the compatible stroller (B-Agile) was a breeze as well. We plan to use it again with this next baby.

Gators&BoSox

@Spartanrd4 I wouldn't worry about getting the pad. Honestly, after a few weeks I never used the table and just changed DS on the floor or bed (with a hospital blanket underneath). If you find using the table useful and that you'd like a contoured pad, then it's an easy purchase to grab one day and fix. 

kap1988

kiyamurph said:

OctoberLove13 said:

Can we start a new one of these?! The other ones are so far down the list! 

I have a question to start this off. Has anyone used the Britax B-Safe 35 or Britax B-Safe 35 Elite? The rep at Buy Buy Baby had me convinced that it was the carseat for us but now I'm second guessing it due to the reviews. Of course the safety ratings are top notch but I would like to know from personal experience if you hated or loved yours.  Thanks!

We have the B-Safe 35 and never had any issues. What are the bad reviews saying? I tend to take some reviews with a grain of salt because more people are going to complain than the ones who had no issues. The car seat was easy to click in and out of the base and also getting it on and off the compatible stroller (B-Agile) was a breeze as well. We plan to use it again with this next baby.

This is the travel system I have on my registry.  I have read a lot of reviews and have come across a few that said that the car seat is really narrow and their baby grew out of it quickly.  Other than that though the reviews seemed pretty positive to me.

datalover13

@DizzyMom We use a family practice, and honestly I love it. It's nice that we all have the same doctor, and the same doctor will deliver and take care of the new baby as well. 

kjd291

DizzyMom said:

We're going to start looking for a doctor for baby. Did anyone go with a family practice doctor instead of a pediatrician? I kind of like the idea of moving everyone to a family practice office since we moved not long ago and also, we wouldn't have to switch doctors when LO gets older. 

I ended up going with a pedi, but I plan on switching to a more local family practice at 2 years when more offices accept them as patients.  There are SO many appointments in the first couple years of life! I just decided to stick with the pedi for all these monthly visits and shots with a more kid friendly atmosphere.

If you have someone in mind that you love, and they accept newborn patients then totally go for it!!

kjd291

@Spartanrd4 I'd pass on buying another pad. Once you get to the point where your kid is rolling around enough that they could use a contour, you most likely won't be changing them up there anyway.  Like Gators said, I rarely used mine and found the couch, floor, or bed on a blanket worked better for me--especially as baby got older. 

kiyamurph

@Spartanrd4 I'm in the minority in that I use the changing pad everyday to get my son dressed and ready for bed and he's 2. It's especially helpful after the bath. I lay him on it and lotion him up. We skipped the changing table and just put a pad on top of the dresser, but all the same it's still functional for us. I was never one to change him on the floor or crib if I was in his room. Plus it's easier to get him dressed for the day or ready for bed on the changing pad since I don't have to bend over. I say this to say that you're not going to be sure what works for you until baby's here. If you want a contoured pad or a thicker one and find that the flat one isn't for you then it's an easy replacement. 

kiyamurph

kap1988 said:

kiyamurph said:

OctoberLove13 said:

Can we start a new one of these?! The other ones are so far down the list! 

I have a question to start this off. Has anyone used the Britax B-Safe 35 or Britax B-Safe 35 Elite? The rep at Buy Buy Baby had me convinced that it was the carseat for us but now I'm second guessing it due to the reviews. Of course the safety ratings are top notch but I would like to know from personal experience if you hated or loved yours.  Thanks!

We have the B-Safe 35 and never had any issues. What are the bad reviews saying? I tend to take some reviews with a grain of salt because more people are going to complain than the ones who had no issues. The car seat was easy to click in and out of the base and also getting it on and off the compatible stroller (B-Agile) was a breeze as well. We plan to use it again with this next baby.

This is the travel system I have on my registry.  I have read a lot of reviews and have come across a few that said that the car seat is really narrow and their baby grew out of it quickly.  Other than that though the reviews seemed pretty positive to me.

That's really interesting. I think for the ones whose kids grew out of them quickly, they either have tall or bigger babies. My son was always in the average percentile and he was in this car seat for a full year. Didn't find it to be more narrow than any other brand truthfully. 

Cbeanz

@Spartanrd4 Like @kiyamurph , we used our changing pad on a dresser a LOT and still do with our two year old.  It saved my back to not have to constantly bend down on the floor to wrestle clothes on a toddler or lotion up after a bath.  But I saw a ton of contoured pads last time I was at Once Upon a Child - they ran about $10 each, so an easy purchase if you do end up wanting one.

OctoberLove13

@kiyamurph the bad reviews are what @kap1988 said. The seat is too deep and narrow. There are tons of good reviews too though! I just wanted to get some real opinions before I commit fully to the B-Safe 35  

@kap1988 I do have to say that the quality of the B-Safe 35 Elite seems better than the standard B-Safe 35. My husband and I went to Buy Buy Baby to feel and see them in person. Just food for thought!
I think we are going with the Britax B-Safe 35 Elite and the Baby Jogger City Mini GT stroller. 

Edit: words are hard. 

sunshine507

Is it worth putting a baby food maker or baby food storage system on the registry, or is that jumping the gun?
If I plan on making most of the food (I'd like to make all of it but people keep telling me that's impractical even though I won't be working) when we start adding solids to BFing, is having an all-in-one (that steams and purees) worth it, or should I just use the blender and immersion blender I have now and get some small containers to put the food in? 
Any products people particularly like? 

kap1988

@kiyamurph That's kind of what I thought. Thanks for your review

C25

@sunshine507 making your baby's food is easy, just time consuming. Don't let others convince you one way or the other..just do what works for you! If you want to make it all, you can. with each of my boys I found myself making their food in bulk only two times and that lasted me long enough because I also used organic pre made food. 

As far as the food maker goes, it sounds like it would be nice to have..but I used my immersion blender and it worked just fine for both hot and cold food. I would steam a lot of the veggies in the microwave and that kept it a little simpler. 

Amazon has some good storage solutions, although I really haven't found ones I love yet. I personally like individual containers over the multiples (like ice cube trays), simply because I always experienced a difficult time trying to get one square out and thawed while keeping the others frozen. Quite the pain in the butt. 

If if anyone knows of good containers or storage systems I'll be paying attention too! 

Gators&BoSox

@sunshine507 I made DS' baby food for a few months and just used a blender. It works just as well. I honestly can't remember what the heck I stored it in... oy pregnancy brain. But ya I wouldn't get something specifically for baby food.

kjd291

@sunshine507 like gators said ((girl, I feel like I have the same opinion on everything as you!)) blender/immersion blender work fine. For us there was only about a 3mo period where we ate solids that needed to be mashed. 9-12mo or so, but still ate mostly milk.  It was over so quick!  I used, and liked the Kiinde milk storage bags - bought the pouch spout adapter thing for two bucks or so and ate all our food on the go that way.  A little difficult to get the food in (funnel) but worth it to me in the end. 

Gators&BoSox

@kjd291 lol we are pregnant internet twins 

Gators&BoSox

@sunshine507 I remember how we stored the food lol... I'd put the puree into ice cube trays and put them in the freezer, then put them in labelled zip lock baggies in the freezer. That puts them in 1 oz portions and makes it easy to mix up different fruits and veggies  

kiyamurph

@sunshine507 Don't listen to the peanut gallery! I don't know why people would say it's impractical to make your own food. It's anything but impractical! It's far cheaper to steam and blend your own veggies and fruit than buying jars of food. More than anything, I liked knowing exactly what was in the food that my kid was eating, so if you want to make your own food then tell those negative Nancys to shush! And also, I was like everyone else in that I just used what we had. The downside to making baby's food was that it was pretty time consuming, but once you've made a bunch in bulk it's totally worth it. 

Burrberrymum

Gators&BoSox said:

@sunshine507 I remember how we stored the food lol... I'd put the puree into ice cube trays and put them in the freezer, then put them in labelled zip lock baggies in the freezer. That puts them in 1 oz portions and makes it easy to mix up different fruits and veggies  

This is exactly what we did and it worked really well for us, no wasting this way since you can take a cube at a time or if you know baby is a big eater grab 2 or 3. 

I also used my regular blender and I didn't even consider the baby versions because they're smaller and I wanted to make a lot at once. I just always saw it as a marketing thing that was completely not necessary if you have a blender already. 

jenny0228

What are your opinions on white noise machines? Some friends swear by it - some say don't do it because if you go somewhere and don't have it with you, they can become dependent on it and become unable to sleep without it. Curious about those who use it or don't use it. 

Gators&BoSox

@jenny0228 we use one for DS and I love it. It helps cancel out a lot of outside and dog noise since he goes to bed at 6, plus it helps signal to him that it's sleep time. We usually don't travel with it and he doesn't seem to have a problem without it. It's really the pack n play he's not fond of lol. Plus it's so small, you can bring it with you if you want. The one we have has a little projector, lots of noise options, and can even be voice activated... we just use the white noise lol but it was cheap so why not have options.

kjd291

@jenny0228 definitely a must at our house! I was also skeptical of them, and went a while without--once we had it (around 10mo) I wish we'd had it the whole time! every kid is different. I have friends who's kids can sleep through an earthquake, mine on the other hand hears me walk by her room and instantly pops awake.  I just bought a 15dollar thing on amazon. When we go to families homes I use a white noise app on my phone for naps .  Like gators said it's also been a nice way to signal naptime--DD knows It's time to sleep when we turn it on. 

DrillSergeantCat

I have only changed my 9 month old on other surfaces other than the changing pad about 5 times. He knows when he's laid there that it's time for a new diaper or clothes so he doesn't try to run away like he does on the floor. 

I don't make my own baby food, but if I did, I'd just use the immersion blender. I have such a tiny kitchen that I don't need another item taking up space especially if it's just got one use.

I don't use a white noise machine, but I have noticed that LO sleeps better when the humidifier and fan are running. Unfortunately, his humidifier sprung a leak. 

kiyamurph

@jenny0228 We use a fan as white noise and didn't bother with a machine. A fan is something that can still be used years later. My husband and I absolutely have to sleep with our ceiling fan on or else it's too quiet and uncomfortable. We don't have issues when we travel since we put a hotel thermostat on fan mode and that works just fine.  We use a Lasko round floor fan for the boy and it's nice and loud. It's sooooo helpful during 4th of July! You'll notice it's a holiday you won't enjoy as much when you have small children. 

disneybaby84

Have any of you done job searching while pregnant or shortly after baby and if you did, how was that process?

CanadianintheSouth

@jenny0228 we have this one: https://www.amazon.com/Giraffe-Machine-Soothing-NewBorn-Childern/dp/B00LC3KN7O/ref=sr_1_16_a_it?ie=UTF8&qid=1480534574&sr=8-16&keywords=giraffe+sound+machine

DD is not dependent on it, but like a PP said, it does help signal to her that it is time to sleep. Also a plus that it is in a stuffed animal, so we can easily bring it with us when we travel and it does a double duty of stuffed animal/sound machine for bedtime. You can remove the sound machine part and wash it in the machine machine as well. 

thisisallyson

disneybaby84 said:

Have any of you done job searching while pregnant or shortly after baby and if you did, how was that process?

Yes! Just went through this process and I start the new job on Monday. I interviewed when I was 19 and 20 weeks and didn't really make an effort to hide the pregnancy, but I didn't bring it up either. At that point, I still mostly fit into my pre- pregnancy clothes though. When the recruiter called and offered me the job, I accepted and let her explain what next steps I would need to take. When she asked if I had any questions, I brought up the fact I was pregnant with "I don't know if they told you, or if they even realized, but I am pregnant. What options will I have?". And so far, they've been great. I won't qualify for FMLA since I haven't worked there a year, but she was quick to assure me my job was not at risk. If I were further along in the pregnancy, I might have acknowledged it during the interviews....maybe. From what I understand, they can't legally bring it up but it might be a big elephant in the room if you don't even mention it but it is clear that you are expecting. It is a delicate dance!

hippiemama-2

@disneybaby84 I job searched during my maternity leave with DD and actually started at my current position when she was 12 weeks old.  I intend to hunt again while out on leave with this guy. My advice, have your resume ready now so you can just shoot it out while on leave!

I have no experience searching while expecting though, sorry.

wintersong

Old threads in case you want to reference...

Ask a STM Version 3: 
Ask a STM Version 2: https://forums.thebump.com/discussion/12693317/ask-a-stm-10-31
Ask a STM Version 1: https://forums.thebump.com/discussion/12689674/ask-a-stm 

wintersong

sunshine507 said:

Is it worth putting a baby food maker or baby food storage system on the registry, or is that jumping the gun?
If I plan on making most of the food (I'd like to make all of it but people keep telling me that's impractical even though I won't be working) when we start adding solids to BFing, is having an all-in-one (that steams and purees) worth it, or should I just use the blender and immersion blender I have now and get some small containers to put the food in? 
Any products people particularly like? 

It is worth it, but just register for a nutribullet and not the baby specific kind. I use it for everything...I got rid of my regular blender, lol. More useful I got one at my baby shower and use it for smoothies all the time! 

But I rarely actually make baby food. I tended to just feed him whatever we were eating plus some Gerber food thrown in. I think I'm gonna give baby led weaning a go this time because the baby food is so expensive to buy ortimeconsuming to make for me. 

Phil413

We used her changing pad all the time for dressing and changing but usually if we were upstairs near her bedroom. If we were anywhere else it was always the floor.

We used the sleep sheep for naps and it was fantastic. It was a great way of letting her know that this is the time for sleeping, not playing. That was in her minicrib at Nana and PopPop's house. At night we had a crib soother with a fish that played soft music and sleep training was a breeze. We will definitely be doing this again.

We did a combo of store bought and homemade baby food. I had a veggie steamer appliance that I dragged out from my bridal shower gifts. Then I mashed them up and put them in ice cube trays. Like @C25 said it was a pain to get the ice cube trays out...but free. I put them in Ziploc bags and labelled them. Most foods you can just mash anyway though, like avocado, sweet potato, or bananas. It gets more difficult with foods like carrots or green beans. And DO NOT buy things just because it has the Gerber logo on them. Gerber apple juice is just apple juice but marked up in price because of the brand. Same with the applesauce, cereal bars, and such. It's a total waste of money. Buy NutriGrain bars or whatever and everyone in the house can enjoy them. Gerber puffs, however, are the best baby product ever.

Cbeanz

disneybaby84 said:

Have any of you done job searching while pregnant or shortly after baby and if you did, how was that process?

Last time around, I resigned from a job when my second baby was born.  I searched for jobs, wrote cover letters, applied, did phone interviews, the whole bit.  I was really lucky to have gotten a few job offers by the time my baby was about 6 months old - because it was eventually impossible to keep searching while caring for a baby who was becoming more and more interactive.  By 6 months old I couldn't reliably schedule a phone interview without planning for a babysitter, for example.  Good luck!

kap1988

I know this is going to vary a lot, but I'm wondering how often/when during the day/night your baby breastfed the first year.  I'm trying to figure out how often I'm going to need to pump at work.

Gators&BoSox

@kap1988 I'm not trying to scare you at all but my DS ate what felt like non stop the first few months. Especially during growth spurt times, I swear he just stayed attached all day. That being said, BF is a supply and demand thing so the more baby demands the more boobs make... eventually. Some days I cried bc he was crying and nothing was coming anymore. I didn't go back to work and didn't really pump the first few months.

Let me try to be more constructive though. I've heard wonderful things about Spectra from moms who switched from Medela and that it extracts so much more. I'm going with that this time. Also, look up tips for pumping. I had trouble getting milk out at first but there are a lot of good tips out there like looking at pics of baby, relaxing, and taking fenugreek. 

You'll also feel your boobs signal it's time to pump lol. You and baby will figure this out, don't get discouraged. It can be hard but hey it might be a breeze for you too! I hope I was somewhat helpful..

kjd291

kap1988 said:

I know this is going to vary a lot, but I'm wondering how often/when during the day/night your baby breastfed the first year.  I'm trying to figure out how often I'm going to need to pump at work.

Very very varried from kid to kid and even in the same kid week to week depending on growth spurts and sleep regressions. On average for us the first months I'd say it was every two hours through the day and every 4-5 hours at night.  

Cbeanz

kap1988 said:

I know this is going to vary a lot, but I'm wondering how often/when during the day/night your baby breastfed the first year.  I'm trying to figure out how often I'm going to need to pump at work.

I work in a large business center with a busy mom's room and I can tell you that almost all full time working moms there pumped twice daily while at work.

You'll feed or pump before and after work and at night, but the 2x/day pumping at work seemed almost universal, and these moms had anywhere from 6 week olds to year old babies. I hope that gives you a ballpark idea. I went around 10am and 3pm. You'll get your own personal schedule figured out pretty quickly.

kap1988

Thanks for all the input. I'm fortunate to be able to be home the first three months so I'm hoping that will give us time to get in a groove. @Cbeanz That's just what I'm looking for. I know we will come up with our own schedule, but other than knowing newborns eat pretty much every two hours, I'm kind of clueless as to an older baby's schedule. Thanks again everyone, you ladies are such a valuable resource.

kiyamurph

Pretty much spot on with what @Cbeanz said, so doesn't bear repeating. The first few months my little guy ate about every 3-4 hrs at night. I normally pumped in the morning and afternoon at work. You'll figure out baby's feeding patterns to determine how late you should pump before going home. When I first went back to work I had a (crappy) job where I worked until 6pm, I'd pump around 3 for the second pump session. By the time I got home he was ready for the boob. I'm not sure how much time you'll have off before going back to work, but whatever time you have should give you more than enough time to figure out the baby's feeding patterns.