Life Savah
With my first pregnancy I was on bed rest for months. Which translates into “not working.” Which equals BROKE. Therefore, we relied on the generosity of our family and friends in order to outfit both our daughter and her nursery. We were so blessed in that we were given just about everything we could possibly need to bring home a newborn.
With this pregnancy, we are in a much better place financially and we have the benefit of being able to use the majority of the items we got for Maddie. The only things that I really need to get for The Boy are clothes (that aren’t pink!), a travel system (that isn’t pink!) and a dresser for his room. HOWEVER – there are some items that I really wanted to get for Maddie, but they weren’t necessities so finances dictated that we skip them. For instance, I really wanted a Baby Bjorn carrier for her and never got one. (Aside: A month or so ago I lucked out and got one for The Boy at Target in an open box for $27 marked down from $98. SCORE!) I’m not going crazy spending money on this kid, but I want to know what was the ONE THING you purchased, or were given, when you had a baby that was indispensable. What saved your sanity or made your life easier and will forever be the shower gift you give your pregnant friends and family?
Filed under: knocked up, products
We used the bouncy seat the most for all 3 of our kids. The same one even. It’s the fisher price aquarium one. LOVED IT, and it still looks pretty good after 3 kids. They slept in it alot at first, and then napped in it as they got bigger. I used it to feed them their first solid foods. They loved the vibration and as they got bigger they loved the aquarium toy that attaches. Did you have a bouncy seat for Maddie? Thing I could do without? Bumbo. I only had it for my 3rd and she always hated it. I don’t like that I had to stay right next to her because she would arch her back and fall out!
1 meowmix said this (February 26, 2010 at 9:10 pm)
Gosh, I’m having a hard time remembering. One thing- with our 2nd pregnancy we were able to borrow things from friends (didn’t have many friends w/ kids the first time around). Bumbo, swing, etc were all borrowed.
I was a big fan of Robeez (kept socks on) (and painfully adorable). I also loved the uber-plush yellow blankie (from a higher end baby botique) that we received. It’s been washed a zillion times and it’s STILL softer than powdered sugar.
2 Marie Green said this (February 26, 2010 at 9:32 pm)
I used a baby bjorn for the boys when they were little – under 3mo. After that, I used a ring sling for the 7yo and the mei tai sling for the 3yo. I could not have done it without those slings. Omg.
And I love Robeez. They are awesome and cute and omg cool.
peace…
3 Margaret said this (February 26, 2010 at 9:56 pm)
I have to say that instead of a travel system we just got the snap-and-go for the carseat/ babyseat and I loved it because it is light and not bulky like a travel system. Top five for us are listed below. Have fun shopping!
1. Glider chair (still use with our boy at 2)
2. Breast pump (we had trouble with feeding)
3. Angel Care Monitor (senses baby’s breathing when they sleep, alarm goes off if they stop breathing, lots of piece of mind since I was SIDS paranoid)
4. Bjorn Carrier (glad you got such a great deal!)
5. Bumbo (loved ours but I also agree with the other poster that when they get bigger they can get out, this is what we did first foods in)
4 Dorothy said this (February 26, 2010 at 9:59 pm)
It was the swing for us. She didn’t care too much for the bouncy seat, but that swing saved my life for at least 3 months. It was the only place she would nap and the only thing that made her happy. I joked I was going to cry when she outgrew it at 30 pounds, but thankfully it didn’t come to that.
I have to agree on the Bumbo, too. Waste of money for us.
5 Shelly said this (February 27, 2010 at 7:44 am)
Exersaucer. When he’s too big for the bouncy seat, stick him in this and he’ll be happy and you can shower… and cook… and clean things… and anything else that is difficult to do when your hands are occupied holding a baby.
6 Fiona Picklebottom said this (February 27, 2010 at 8:34 am)
Miracle Blankets. Everyone says “my baby’s a little houdini! She/he gets out of EVERY swaddle!” but the miracle blanket is a total straight jacket and it was a life saver for both our babes.
Oh and I couldn’t survive having two kids without my Ergo carrier. The baby bjorn is good for the first three months for me but then my shoulders start aching. The Ergo can carry the heavy ones for long periods of time.
7 Jenna said this (February 27, 2010 at 8:38 am)
A vibrating baby seat for my first, and a swing for my second.
I also love the Ergo carrier for both, but only after each baby was ~5 months old. They don’t work well for infants (the bjorn rocks for that as far as I’m concerned).
8 Penny said this (February 27, 2010 at 12:45 pm)
Oh! And a large swaddling blanket. We skipped the miracle blanket route and learned to swaddle the old fashioned way, and it SAVED US. Oh mah god, it saved us. It’s nearly impossible to find an actual swaddling blanket that is large enough and not stretchy, so make one yourself or buy it off etsy or whatever – it’s got to be like, 46×46 and NOT stretchy. hooray!
9 Penny said this (February 27, 2010 at 12:47 pm)
Boppy. On my Lord in Heaven, I thanked everyday for that thing. And for the extra one we got at the shower after he was born. Breast feeding was hard for me, and that was the only thing that made it bearable for the 3 months I did it. He’s 4 and a half now and still sleeps on his blue one. It was a great place to lay him from newborn to 2 months and take numerous pictures too, and it was often the place where he’d like to fall out during nap time. The best 20 bucks we spent on him so far. That’s like 5 bucks a year! lol
10 Amiyrah said this (February 27, 2010 at 3:15 pm)
Elastic bottomed baby gowns. So much easier and less disruptive to baby to change diapers in the middle of the night!
11 Karey said this (February 27, 2010 at 7:59 pm)
Pacifiers.
We gave them to all our kids and loved that we could easily help them comfort themselves. Especially when in public.
12 Jodi said this (February 27, 2010 at 8:32 pm)
The Red Cross brand nasal snot sucker-thing. It works like a MACHINE. Seriously. And it’s only $2.49.
13 Korinna said this (March 1, 2010 at 8:20 am)
We have a bjorn and love it, but our daughter was under 6 pounds when she was born, so I’m glad we got a sling too. It was a life-saver when she needed to be held, but I needed my arms free.
A friend of mine gave me a journal as a shower gift. BEST IDEA EVER. I probably wouldn’t have thought about this until I had forgotten everything she used to do as an infant. AND I’m still writing in it at least every few weeks after 9 months! Every time she does something new or makes a new noise, I write it down. I want to be able to re-live these years…and also to give it to her when she has her first baby.
14 Amy said this (March 1, 2010 at 8:28 am)
its been a while since the Chicken is 12, but for both of the girls we used the jumpers that hooked on the doorways. now they are stationary and that would have been so much easier, because really a kid blocking the doorway, super safe.
15 Domestic Extraordinaire said this (March 1, 2010 at 2:18 pm)
I’m sure you probably have a swing already but if not, get the one that plugs into the wall, not the one that uses batteries. Then you’ll never EVER have to pray that the batteries don’t die in the middle of a much needed nap.
16 bitchy mcbitchesalot said this (March 1, 2010 at 4:00 pm)
The Podee Hands Free Bottle. Bottle with a long tube from nipple to bottle – no propping, no bubbles or gas. When I was in the car it SAVED my sanity with both babies. You can’t drive and hold a bottle and you can’t drive with a screaming baby either. Babies R Us is one of the few places that carry it.
17 Jules said this (March 3, 2010 at 12:02 pm)
We had a side to side swing that he laid back in that we used up til 17 pounds, then a front to back swing that many a night he would sleep in.
Also the boppy
The diaper champ – best diaper pail ever
The bumbo
Rings!! so simple, but we have shitloads of rings everywhere and he’s always happy with them
A standing mirror for tummy times
Swaddlers
Stroller blankets – the kind that have holes for the straps and wraps around? awesome
I’ll tell you one thing I hate – t shirts for kids that still have to be held. All onesies, all the time
A headlamp for clipping nails
A really really good changing pad. We have one that is cushy on all four sides and he will just lay in it and be happy forever. He’s also safe because it would be really hard to roll on up over those sides
teething tablets
mylicon drops
never buy pants that don’t have snaps, almost as annoying as the t shirt thing
an excersaucer for sure, I doubted it and then we needed one to work on flad headedness and our baby leaped forward with standing and sitting and he’s so happy with all the toys. Make sure you get one that has hooks for your own toys (attached with RINGS so they don’t keep falling on the floor!) so you can shake things up
don’t get those pulldown shades for back windows, what a waste of money. You should have a post on what NOT to get! Get them tinted or buy the rub on tint for 5 bucks
A stroller with a basket underneath so that you don’t have to put baby in a cart if you don’t have to when you have small shopping trips
That’s all i can think of.
18 parkingathome said this (March 3, 2010 at 11:52 pm)