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Nurseries and Baby Gear
baby3ob
member
Name your most unnecessary baby item
baby3ob
member
It's coming close to registry time! Help a gal out and tell me what you never used 
We recently moved and my goal is to be limited in clutter, and the last thing my husband and I want are useless baby toys around the house!
Thanks in advance!
This discussion has been closed.
Re: Name your most unnecessary baby item
An unneccessary to me may be a must have to you...but here goes:
Wipes warmer, bottle warmer/sterilizer, lots of toys, pick 1 of the exersaucer, jumperoo, walker family, not all three.
Totally agree with everything listed above. I'll also throw in the oh-so-coveted Bumbo chair. I thought it was a total waste! LO used it for such a short time totally could have done without it.
Our family blog
Wipes warmer, bottle warmer, large toys, stuffed animals (they are cute, but can get out of hand), baby shoes and mitts (socks do fine for both, plus you should let them breath), bassinet, the traditional baby bath tubs they take up a ton of space and you don't even use them that long a puj tub or the bucket kind are better solutions, and baby bedding set they are cute but sheets and maybe a crib skirt is all you need and makes it easier for if/when you want to change up the bedroom.
Things we used a lot are the exersaucer,swing, bumbo (DD was small so we used it a long time), covertible crib, dresser large enough to grow with your child I reccommend a 6-8 drawer double dresser so it can still be used as a changing table. Also we bought a ton of toys and as long as you have a good storage system then you should be good, I like having a big variety of toys even if they don't all get played with they will eventually. It helps when you are a stay at home mom.
Baby shoes and lots of actual "outfits" like jeans, button ups, etc. Those first few months he lived in onsies, rompers and sleepers. One or two cute outfits would have been more than sufficient.
He hated the Bumbo, but I know others swear by it. We also never used the boppy....but we're in the minority on that one. Tons of those newborn type toys were a waste too. He never played with most of them.
BFP #1 11/28/09 ~ EDD 8/6/10 ~ DS Born 8/9/10
BFP #2 8/27/13 ~ EDD 5/8/14 ~ Natural MC 9/18/13 at 6 weeks, 6 days
BFP#3 3/28/14 ~ EDD 12/7/14 ~ DD Born 11/21/14
BFP#4 6/15/17 ~ EDD 2/20/18
Swaddle me's, baby powder, baby lotion (I got multiple bottles) and Baby Bjorn (my ds absolutely hated it!).
I live in a really cold area (Michigan), so we used our wipe warmer constantly. It made a huge difference.
Crib bedding sets.
All a baby needs is a sheet. Everything else is overkill and a potential safety hazard. There are plenty of ways to decorate without buying an overpriced pile of bedding.
Natural Birth Board FAQs
Cloth Diaper Review Sheet
Unnecessary for me so far:
- Those clothing size dividers for the closet. (some 3 month brands are as big as 6 month, etc.) I organized according to how big or small they look, not by size.
-Any outfit that has to go over his head. He hates it. I have tons of white onsies that will never be used.
-Newborn size diapers. He was 8 lbs at birth, but the hosp put him in size 1 pampers. The newborn ones just appeared to be to small when we got home despite them going up to 10 lbs. (do not buy several boxes, just incase).
I just skimmed the other responses so sorry if this is repeated stuff...
Useless for us:
Baby robes
Many of the baby socks because they just slip right off. We had the best luck with the Target brand crew socks or JCpenny has ones that worked well too. But many of the cutesy or fancy ones just slip off.
Stuffed animals. We have a whole bin and ds is 16 months old now and likes to sleep with them, but really he doesnt need 50 of them and definately didnt need them when he was a newborn.
Johnson and Johnson or Baby magic lotion/bath products. We had to switch to Aveeno because the other brands had too much perfume in them and made him break out.
Bibs...this probably was just our own experience but ds didnt spit up and didnt go through a ton of bibs.
Travel system. We used the snap and go for the infant seat and by time he was out of the infant seat it was easier to get an umbrella stroller. We barely used the travel system stroller and now we are expecting again and wont need it at all, because well need to get a double.
Stuff we couldnt live without:
Boppy pillow. We used it for feeding, proping him up for tummy time, helping him sit to play with his toys and even when he started to hold his bottle on his own he would lay in it. We got away with two covers though because he didnt spit up a lot.
Jumperoo. Ds really liked his jumperoo at about 4 months and his swing when first born.
burp rags - just the gerber cloth diapers.
for later when we started cereal the wipeable bips are the best.
Ive also found that the target brand and bru brand of unscentable wipes work just as well as huggies or pampers.
We used our baby tub until he was like a year so thats hit or miss for your situation. it was easier for us because we have glass doors on our tub and it kept him in one spot and used less water. It was plenty big for him to sit up and play in it.
Mommy's little helper
I agree with this, also the diaper genie.... We have a small 3 bedroom one story house, I prefer to just take the diaper to the main kitchen trash which gets thrown out every night. Why have poop diapers in LO's bedroom.
Also, I really disliked two piece outfits (like loose fitting shirt) on my DD when she was a newborn. It was so hard to handle her with her clothes getting all bunched up. And she never wore any of her newborn shoes (we live in FL though, and it's hot right now).
Goodluck!
For us, it was a little different. We didn't register for a bottle warmer, so unless you want your child's bottles warm, it's not needed. They don't have to be warmed.
We DIDn't use: swing, bouncer
Must haves for us: wipe warmer (we use cloth wipes), swaddles (she would only sleep swaddled for 4 months), exersaucer (she loved this), noise machine for nighttime
These were the top of the lists.
I used most of the things others said they didn't.
However there are a few things we didn't use.
Mobile (we used a lullabye CD instead)
Bath robe
We didn't own a wipe warmer, but heard they are great for boys
Things I used a lot: Diaper Genie, bottle warmer - safer than microwave, bottle sterilzer, dishwasher rack for bottles, jumperoo,
good luck!
Monitor
Bumbo
Swaddle Me's
Sleepers that button (they will be the cause of insanity at 3 a.m., trust me)
Lots of NB sized clothes (outgrown so quickly)
Lots of Baby Wash and Lotion
Boppy
Mobile
Lots of NB sized diapers (my son outgrew them in a few weeks and he was only 7 lbs 7 oz at birth, they claim up to 10 lbs, that is a crock)
Swing
Wipe Warmer
Diaper Pail/Genie
5 most useless items:
Pack n Play, it's only ever been used as toy storage.
Baby laundry detergent, it is so expensive and I now make some that works better and is cheaper.
Bibs, with the exception of some I got from Ikea that have long sleeves. DS always made such a mess that a bib was just something else to wash. It was easier to change him or have him eat in a diaper.
WTE the first year and other parenting books. I may have browsed through them during pregnancy but that's it.
Burp cloths, they were too small for how much DS spit up. Flanel receiving blankets worked great as burp cloths.
5 most useful items:
Baby powder, we cant use diaper rash cream because it is hard to get out of cloth diapers. We've never had any issues and it's much easier to apply.
Medela PISA, BFing never really worked out for me but I pumped for 6mo.
Cloth diapers, DS had blowouts with every type of disposables I tired but has never had one with cloth diapers. We use inexpensive prefold. They are also great for wiping up spills.
swaddle blankets, I couldn't have survived the first months without them.
Jersey fabric blankets, DS has to have one to go to sleep.
Microwave sterilizer
Cutesy burp cloths/bibs (go for functionality)
Bumbo chair
Wipe warmer
Bottle warmer
More than 1 bottle of baby soap (my DD is 6 months old and we are only halfway through a bottle)
Any clothing beyond a month from where are are. She went from 10th %ile to 98th% in 2 months. Closet.is.screwed.
Life As We Know It: my Blog
I use my boppy at least 8x a day when I breastfeed (up to 10x a day if LO and I don't get out). I got mittens I never used and a nursing cover. LO loves his hands so I'd hate to cover them up. I use a blanket to latch and then leave LO uncovered (I wear two shirts and pull one up and one down)- I like to be able to see him and he overheats under a blanket.
My unnecessary baby item list:
-bath thermometre (use your elbow and common sense)
-ovol/gripe water
-pack and play
-swaddleme (DD hated these)
-diaper stacker (a bin worked way better)
-wipe warmer
-bottle warmer (my DD never took a bottle)
-bottle sterlizer
-bottles
-nipple cream (expressing milk onto your nipples and letting air dry is way better)
-nursing cover (receiving blankets worked way better)
-pacifiers (DD never took a pacifier)
-pacifier clips
-baby powder (unsafe anyway)
-burp cloths
-no scratch mittens
-excessive amounts of stuffed animals (I can't believe how many we got!)
-infant snowsuit (unsafe in the carseat)
My kiddo hated all of the "gear": pack and play, bouncer, swing, bumbo- he was happiest lounging in a boppy or on a blanket with some toys. I use our microwave sterilizer everyday (he goes to daycare and they don't rinse the bottles, so I sterilize every night b/c the milk sits all day), swaddle-me's got him sleeping through the night at 3 weeks and we used them almost until 8mths! (with pedi's blessing).
Every baby and parent is different when it comes to what works/doesn't work. Some of the best advice I got was not to open anything until ready to use it, and save the packaging in case it can be returned if you hate it. I ended up being able to return so many "essentials" that I didn't have to pay for diapers for the first few months because I had so much BRU credit! Some examples: had a friend who only pumped a few times on her Medela PISA ($300 down the drain), another who co-sleeps and has never had baby in a crib- kid will probably go right to a regular bed ($700), some babies are born big and never wear NB sized diapers or clothes. Resist the urge to wash and set up everything ahead of time!
the PPs are right, every baby is different. so many people here say a bottle warmer is unnecessary, but our dr brown's warmer is probably in the top 3 most used baby items at our house. we also use a wipe warmer all the time and the kid loves his pack n play and it was perfect for us in our hotel room this past weekend.
Yep, everyone is different. For me, bottle warmer was such a necessity I needed two. I was an exclusive pumper and 80% of the time I was giving my son refrigerated ice cold pumped milk so I needed to warm it slightly to take edge off. I had one in his nursery for MOTN bottles (I would put bottles in cooler) and one in kitchen. Once I switched to formula and 9 months, I never used warmer. Just used room temp water. Also, since I was pumping 6-8 times a day, the sterilizer was good for me to make sure the parts were sanitary.
Swaddle Me's and any other velcro swaddlers were useless for us. Miracle blanket was lifesaver. Shopping cart cover useless for us as was infant insert on Ergo.
-pacifiers. DD never took to them, so I have a bunch unopened. I have just given them to friends.
-pre-buying a huge set of bottles. My DD was very picky about bottles. I just wouldn't buy too many until you know which one he/she likes. Same can be said for sippy cups down the line.
-Moby wrap--- it was good to us for only a few weeks. Much rather enjoy the easy of my Ergo.
-Baby robes---never used the ones we got
- Cloth bibs. My baby wasn't a drooler. Don't really use them. Much rather like the wipe off kind for when they eat solids.
- Mobile - baby didn't really care for it all that much. It wasn't a light up kind, so in the dark it was a little useless. She much rather is soothed by her seahorse. We also liked the "sleep sheep" as well.
-Don't buy too much skin product in case your baby has an allergy etc
*I never bought a bottle warmer or wipe warmer. Glad I did not get those items.
Helpful:
-Rock n Play sleeper. Prob the best item we got. She slept by my side in it for the first 6m, making nursing easier. It has an incline so it was great when she was sick. Very portable, so I could move it from room to room or take to her grandparents. She never got flathead in it.
-Swaddle-me and wearable blankets. DD loved being swaddled and the swaddle me contraptions worked well.
-Swing and jumperoo. I am so sad she has outgrown her swing. I would suggest looking on CL for a swing.
-Buying bedding from places that let you get a la carte so you aren't stuck with a set w/ useless items like a diaper stacker or the crib bumper. That way I could get extra sheets etc. I got my bedding from Land of Nod.
-Euro Spa bath tub---great because it is bigger than other baby bathtubs and lasts a lot longer due to its size etc. This has been a great tub for us.
Agreed on all of this.
I add that a diaper genie is a waste - our small step can is much easier to use - and we can keep it from being stinky.
Probably some repeats
1. Certain clothes- such as tshirts for babie s(they are cute but they dont stay down) stick to onesies and stuff that is easy to take on and off of them. and maybe like 1 or 2 cute things. They grow out of nb quick!
2. Don't stuck up on NB or size one diapers ahead.
3. Pack n Play- so far I have yet to use it really.. We have the rock n play and love it!!!!!
4. Newborn toys (they really dont care much about them.. maybe just one or two but don't get obsessive
5. Def. agree with the wipes warmer
6. In my opinion dont buy an expensive playmat... my lo is 3.5 months and is already kinda over it. He is just fine laying on a blanket looking at toys
7. I like the bumbo but dont buy new. they are very easy to clean and they dont use long at all
8. Expensive bottles. First see if they like the cheap ones first then get the expensive ones if they dont work
9. Fancy burp clothes... just use cloth diapers they are big and work so much better and much cheaper
10. Baby robes
11. Infant tub.. they grow out really quick. obviously you need something but dont buy the fancy tub with all the bells and whistles
12. Baby lotion. Our pedi told us not use
And had to add my fav items
1. Angelcare monitor (I am paranoid about SIDS)
2. Rock n Play
3. MAMs pacis
4. Vaseline
5. Bulb syring from the hospital
For us the most unnecessary things would be:
Travel System, wipe warmer, burp rags, newborn rattle toys...
This is mainly what I can think right now..
DD #2: BFP: 8-19-18 EDD: 4-30-19
Wow there have been a lot of responses to this, but like others have said, it all depends on what YOU like and what your baby likes and how you operate.
I bought everything I thought would be useful and I only took things out of the packages when I went to use it.
I took back the sterilizer and boppy and all of the pacifiers that I had and several other things.
I went back to buy the bottle warmer because I was an EPer.
Yep. This exactly.
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As you will find out and can see from the list every baby and mama are different in what they love and hate.
I never touched all the J&J bath products. We used Cetaphil because DS had eczema.
Pacifiers
Bedding set, I didn't use the bumpers or the quilt. Only the crib skirt and sheets.
Miracle Blanket, I gave it away because he hated being swaddled and needed his arms out.
Boppy pillow
Swing, DS hated it after 2 months
Things I couldn't have lived without:
I love my wipe warmer but we use cloth diapers and wipes so it is handy to have moist wipes right there.
Baby gym (the kind on the floor with toys hanging over him), it kept DS busy so I could get things done.
Baby Jogger City Mini Stroller with the car seat adapter. I was on the go and this easy set up was a life saver. DS stayed asleep and I could get out of the house.
Bum Genius 4.0 cloth diapers and cloth wipes
Dr Brown's Bottles, we had a gassy baby and these fixed everything
Puj Tub, I used it until DS was 6 months and could sit up on his own and then we went straight to the bath tub.
Good luck!
We didn't buy too much stuff to begin with, but we got tons of baby shoes at the shower and, of course, he hasn't worn one pair.
For us, it was the bjorn.. I think we used it 3 times. Outfits for 0-3, 3-6 months.. she was in onesies or sleepers all of the time because they were comfy and easy to get on/off. We borrowed a co-sleeper.. ended up using it as a changing table.. now the pack-n-play is for diaper changing.
DD loved her bumbo chair, we used the boppy all of the time for breastfeeding, we love the video monitor to be able to check on her without waking her up, and the medela pump in style helped us when I had mastitis and went back to work.
Wipe warmer, diaper genie - never actually bought them, but they just seems so super useless to me
My bedding set was SO useless. I thought I had to have a full bedding set. Now the only thing we use is the crib skirt at the bottom of the crib. I switched the puffy bumper for the safer breathable bumper, tossed the blanket in the closet because he couldn't use it, and the sheets that came with it were not comfortable, so I went with jersey sheets in different colors. That's been my biggest regret.
Also, I wish I hadn't gotten the travel system from Graco that I also thought I needed, as well as the lightweight stroller I then bought... and went right to the City Mini... LOVE it!
I also wish I would have saved money on the monitors I bought and went right for the Angelcare motion monitor I ended up with.