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Registry Question- What DO we need?
So I am due in February and with the holidays coming up, we want to start registering so if people want to buy us Christmas gifts off our registry, they can as well as prepare for my showers in early January. I was looking through suggestion lists online and in my baby books, but there is just SO much stuff.
What were the things that you could NOT live with out?
What were the things you got that you never used or felt were useless and think I should avoid?
Any advice would be greatly appreciated!
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Re: Registry Question- What DO we need?
Onesies, burp clothes, washcloths, baby wash, lotion, nail clippers, thermometer, car seat + stroller system, baby carrier, Miracle Blanket!!! -IMO, something to put LO in( bouncer, swing, bumbo), diaper bag, changing pad for diaper bag, Trivisol, baby tylenol or off brand, baby motrin(can't use that until 6 mo), some baby spoons, bibs, socks, sleepers, a snuggle-me or other brand( It's basically a super warm blanket that is specially made to be zipped up around your LO when they are in the cars seat. Then you don't need to put them in a snowsuit.) some warm hats, warm blakets to put over the carseat when it's really cold
HTH
A sling of some sort. DH did dishes many nights while wearing DD. Try some out before you pick one. Some are easier to use than others.
Didn't feel we needed a wipe warmer. What happens when you are out and about and don't have warm wipes, you kiddo will start screaming if they are used to warm wipes and you wipe them with cold wipes.
We washed her bottles by hand instead of the dishwasher so we didn't use the dishwasher baskets.
My one suggestion would be to wait on opening everything. We got 3 Swaddles and it didn't work for DD, but we had opened all 3 of them and washed them before we knew that, so we couldn't return them.
Don't register for blankets, as you will get 12 of them between now and when your baby is born. But don't forget you can give the blankets to the grandparents to have at their house when you visit.
It is really daunting, the only way it gets less so is to just go through each book/list and start making some decisions! Baby Bargains was my best friend when I was doing my registry - I basically just chose the least expensive best rated item in each category and went from there.
Beyond a carseat, diapers and something for baby to wear, nothing is truly ESSENTIAL, but I really appreciated our FP Little Lamb swing, Miracle Blanket, my bebe au lait nursing cover and cloth diapers to use as burp cloths in the early days. I kept the registry pretty bare bones and we ended up getting almost everything on there which was great.
Things I wish we hadn't gotten were: Multiple kinds of bottles (we use Dr. Browns at daycare and breastfeed when I'm around), a bumbo type seat (just never used it), and 90% of the baby toys we got, including the playmat. You really won't know that until you get into it though, and you can always give things away you don't end up using.
A few things I really like - the JJ Cole Bundleme for the car seat, it keeps them warm in winter and makes it easy to take them out. We've also used our swing all the time for both kids.I also really like the paper/disposable changing pads you can get at Target - I use them rather than the one that comes with the diaper bag, because I get grossed out putting that thing on a germy public changing table and then putting it back in my diaper bag.
For bottles - start out cheap. You don't know what's going to work, but start with the cheapest ones and if they don't like those you can upgrade from there.
Agreed with above about blankets, people love to make baby blankets, we've gotten 4 of them as gifts for our second kid.
I would have to agree on the toy thing...man, we saved so much money on not getting many toys! If they wanted to get something more sentimental, I asked for books.
BOUNCER BABY! And the swing. but all kids are different and may not need these. But the Bouncer was a life saver. We borrowed a lot of our newborn items and have a circle of ladies that pass them around, each of us has donated something when we use the items!
Wait for bottles until you begin bottle feeding, and the same goes for pacifiers. Each baby is different here too, so you never know what they won't want.
I will post if I think of anything else!
Things we had to go get ASAP when we got Instant Baby here:
- bottles (at least 6; we only had 3 for awhile and that was annoying)
- a nipple/paci basket for the dishwasher
- changing pad + covers
- Boppy + covers
- Cozy Cover for the cart seat (goes on like a shower cap so that nothing is between baby and the car seat straps).
We had on hand: car seat, stroller, cradle, a Sleepy Wrap.
(Diapers, wipes, formula and clothes go without saying.)
We are still pretty bare bones around here, but want to get a bathtub, monitor and a car seat attachment for our stroller frame pretty quickly.
There are definitely so many things that you don't need. I'd suggest not getting a bassinet and going straight for a pack-n-play with a bassinet. We had borrowed a bassinet from a friend and dd was so squirmy at just a few days old that she would end up right against the sides of it and it worried me. She did better in the pack-n-play bassinet because there was more room and the sides were mesh so it didn't worry me as much if her face was against it. Other must haves- angelcare monitor, video monitor, Fisher Price cradle swing that plugs in rather than uses batteries, bouncy seat, hands-free pumping bra if you are going to pump/breastfeed (Simple Wishes brand at Target rocks!), a few bottles, Nuk pacifier, washclothes, towels, diapers (ask for size 1 and up because you may not be in NB for very long), Halo swaddle sleep sack, gowns, carseat, stroller.
I would agree with others that you get a lot of toys. I wouldn't register for any toys, blankets, or really in clothes at all aside from the sleep sack and maybe a few gowns. We really liked the gowns because they were easy at night for diaper changes.
Good luck!
Photo taken at 16 months old
This is always such a hard question because every kid truly is so different. What one likes, another won't. What works well for one parent, won't for another.
I think things like wipe warmers, bottle warmers, etc. are useless. Like a pp, we always wash bottles/pump parts by hand, so the dishwasher basket is useless (but a good, sturdy bottle brush is necssary).
We got huggies and pampers for our first, but can't use anything other than pampers or she breaks out (so, don't super stock on any one kind of diaper until you know what will work).
I wouldn't bother registering for blankets, clothes or toys because people will buy you those things anyway (and you'll end up with a ton of each).
Oversized receiving blankets have been a godsend with DD2. A miracle blanket/swaddle me/halo sack would be great.
If you are going to breastfeed, register for a nice, double electric pump. Even if somebody doesn't buy it, you can use the completion discount to buy it. Milk storage bags and a boppy or breastfriend.
Just like diapers, don't overstock on bottles. Babies can (and usually are) very particular about bottles. We used the Playtex Drop-In's with both girls and they've both taken to it really well, so I like to recommend those
Plain white onesies...they are boring, but they are great to go under any outfit. Cloth diapers are great for burp clothes, and I'd stock up on some of those.
We love our Bebepod (like a bumbo chair)...we've used it all the time, for both girls. The swing, bouncer, jumperoo, etc...are nice to have, but keep your receipts and the boxes because not every LO takes to them. The swing and bouncer proved useless for both of my girls. But, they both have loved the jumperoo. And, like PP said, a swing that plugs in is a HUGE plus because those things drain batteries like nothing!
I agree on going with a Pack N Play rather than a plain bassinet. We got a bassinet for DD1, and ended up having to buy a PNP as well for when we were out and about...and, she outgrew the bassinet VERY fast (we just moved her into her crib at that point though). DD2 is tiny, so she's still in the bassinet no problem, but the PNP with a bassinet is just the best way to go.
A good quality monitor. We registered for a pretty cheap one, and it was definitely not worth much.
Onesies in many sizes (FYI - Gerber runs very small), both short-sleeved and long-sleeved
Diapers and wipes
Sleep sack (we've liked Halo)
Pack 'n' Play (agree with PP - skip the bassinet)
The nice thing to remember is that all you really need right away is items to feed, clothe, and bathe your child. The rest will fall into place.
If you are going to breastfeed, the one thing that I highly recommend is a Boppy pillow. It was a life saver for me while feeding my son.