It's officially crunch time! Colton Cornett will be here in T-minus 3 months (and hopefully no sooner due to internship requirements) and Spencer and I are so excited! Being pregnant has been a TON of fun, (yes, I DID say fun. My 2nd trimester has helped me completely forget about 1st trimester nasties.) but I can't even begin to imagine how much better life will be once he's finally here.
So here's the deal: Spencer and I are poor. We won't have enough money to do any sort of "theme" for our "nursery" (which as of now consists of a crib in the office) and all I really care about is making sure we have the the essentials. I'll consider it a bonus if any of our furniture matches. I just want a happy baby and I know you don't need a lot of "stuff" for that. I have received advice in the most random places about what baby things are or are not required to get a passing grade in Parenting 101 and I'm asking for yours.
I know every baby is different but I also know there's a lot of crap out there that's purely for convenience or luxury. Yeah... I don't think we'll get any of that unless it's a shower gift. Googling "essential baby stuff" just makes me laugh... and feel more poor. I guarantee our baby will survive without half of those things. Now I ask you: What have you found was a life-saver? What did you get and NEVER use? What do you wish you had? What are some things that people told YOU you would need and you really didn't? What's okay to buy used (because I LOVE me some Craig's List and KSL Classifieds...) and what needs to be new? Hit me with your best practical advice.
We're not planning on buying anything until AFTER any baby showers (the Ward is throwing another girl and me a joint one in a few weeks) because... well... because we truly can't afford to spend money on something we might get for free otherwise. In the meantime, we've been gratefully accepting freebies and hand-me-downs and scouring local garage sales for free or dirt-cheap baby things.
This is what we have so far:
Crib and mattress (thanks, Kent and DeRue!)
Car seat (thanks, tax return!)
Stroller (see above)
A few little outfits (thanks, lots of people!)
Baby monitor (thanks, Jeff & Becca!)
Changing table (it was SUPER cheap. And we needed another dresser anyways. Bonus!)
... and except for a few other little things, that's about it.
We're off to a good start but I'm pretty sure there are some other things we're going to want or need.
So what do you think?
P.S... You're all wonderful and I love you :)
Um, obviously you're getting a blanket from me - that's an essential...not sure when it will get there, but definitely in time for baby (would probably help if I had your address)!
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ReplyDeleteI would definitely get a portable changing mat, something that's water-proof on at least one side. Rebecca and I never had a changing table, so maybe your experience will be different - but that mat has saved our skins on dozens of occasions. Rebecca used her boppy pillow all of the time when nursing - it helped elevate Paige to the right height without the need to lift her - but I think she's already sent that to you anyway.
ReplyDeleteThis next one may be a little...um...weird coming from your brother, but a small manual breast pump might also be a good idea. There were times in the early days when Rebecca would have so much milk that it would be painful - and Paige wouldn't be in the mood to eat. There are mixed theories out there about whether you should pump to relieve pressure - but sometimes it can help. Also, once Paige was older we liked to store up a bottle to have handy for public occasions, or just when Rebecca felt like she needed a break (she really, really didn't like nursing). If you have a bottle handy it also lets Spencer take care of the early morning feedings every once in a while - which is not only a little fun for him (at least for a while), but lets you get some much needed sleep. (If you like the idea, let me know - we have one that we could sanitise and let you have)
I'm glad we gave you the baby monitor - but honestly, we never used one. We've always been stuck in one-room apartments and have had no trouble hearing when Paige wakes up.
Desitin! Buy Desitin! And a small bottle of liquid vitamins for babies.
The one 'luxury' that we had that we found truly indispensable was bed-height rocker/sleeper. Like this one: http://www.amazon.com/Fisher-Price-Newborn-Rock-Sleeper-Yellow/dp/B002M77N22 We didn't have a crib until we got to the UK, so we used this as Paige's bed for the first three months. It was SO nice to be able to put right next to the bed, where we could lean over and soothe her in the middle of the night without having to get out of our warm bed to walk over to a crib. But, as I said, we bought it primarily because we didn't have a crib - if you already have one then it's probably just as easy to forget about this idea.
Like you guys we tried to keep things cheap and to the minimum - if we couldn't get from friends for free we usually tried to do without - and generally speaking that worked with us. It's especially easy to get by without stuff for the first few months - as you don't usually go anywhere with your little guy and all the essentials are there in your home. Clothes; some socks, if Colton's not wearing close-toed trousers; definitely a few sets of warm sleepers (with closed feet, of course)- Colton will mess his sleepers on a regular basis and it stinks to run out; diapers; baby tylenol/butt cream/liquid vitamins; blankets (we got about 40 from friends and family); WIPES (lots of wipes); maybe some cloth burpies (Paige never spit up much, so I'm a little lazy about using them - though some friends of mine wouldn't have any clean clothes if they DIDN'T use them); a crib/sleeper; maybe a baby bag to take with you (a backpack work fine); a changing mat; a pacifier or two; a small set of nail-clippers (grown-up nail-clippers work, if you're careful); a hat (if you plan on taking him outside - mostly to keep the sun off of him - little babies can use sunscreen, but you have to be careful of rashes and them rubbing it into their mouth and eyes); we use a baby carrier now, but Paige didn't fit it until she was six months or so, so you can wait; really little kids don't need much by way of toys - they can hardly focus on things - so a basic rattle or something with simple contrasting colors is more than enough. Maybe a cuddle toy, like a stuffed animal or a blankie - something he can snuggle up to at night (we like the idea, but Paige usually just ignores her blankie and kicks her covers off).
ReplyDeleteThese are the things that we used, and we found them more than sufficient. (Rebecca will wake up here in a minute and remember some necessity I forgot, just you wait). We didn't have a stroller until the UK and, again, we found we didn't need it until just recently. We didn't have one of those swinging rockers or bouncers and thought nothing of it. We didn't have a 'baby burrito,' and Paige hates being bundled up anyway. That's all I can think of for now. Love you guys!
Rebecca says, "A WASHING MACHINE AND A DRYER! A DRYER! A DRYER!" (Can you tell she misses her dryer?)
ReplyDeleteJeff's listed out most of our thoughts. The rocker he mentioned was really nice as a bassinet, plus it was easy to tote up and downstairs or where ever we wanted to be. The pump was really nice since I wasn't very skilled at breastfeeding, particularly in public. (You might want a nursing bra or two to take to the hospital and for the first few days, but I'd wait to get any more until the milk comes in and settles into a predictable amount. You'll also probably use a lot of breastpads and lanolin the first couple weeks. I have a tube of the latter if you want it.)
ReplyDeleteGap makes some sleepers that look like really long nightgowns with elastic at the bottom, which were nice--no zippers or snaps to mess with at 2 am.
Um...clothes in lots of different sizes, since the baby grows pretty quick. You don't need a ton of any size if you have a washing machine.
Honestly, you don't need all that much. Baby's usually good to go if you have diapers, clothes, and a place to sleep.
Here's the straight up scoop, babies need very little: sleep, food, love, (repeated...). Hey, that's the same stuff parents need too! So, to sustain the little one all you will really need is something for him to sleep in (you've got that covered or I would have said a drawer or even a cardboard box for the first several months); lots of sleepers, blankies, burpcloths, diapers, & wipes cause he'll wee (that's what the British call it!), poop & spit up alot (Paige was the unusual dream child who didn't urp). And...grandma & grandpa kisses, loves, & photo-taking. Jeff & Becca gave you really good gouge; breast pump, desitin, & pacifiers. But really, anything else is just fluff. You already have the essential car seat & if you need to put Colton down, he can sit in there or lay on a blanket on the floor. Easy peasy! Now, hurry Aug so I can start on my infinity quota of loves & kisses. PS, I love you guys!
ReplyDeleteAll those things that your mom mentioned, plus one gadget. Since Tricia and Tim lived with us when Gavin was born, I can sorta kinda speak with a fairly reasonable knowledge base. We really, really like having one of those bouncy infant seats that vibrated. It was not only handy when we wanted to have Gavin near us, but needed to have our hands free...like to eat or wash dishes or do laundry; the vibration was soothing to Gavin, especially when he was colicky...colicy...colickey...had unremitting gas. Aunt Nancy was the one who had told us about the seat.
ReplyDeleteOh, and bottles. Even breast fed babies still will have need of bottles, for water if nothing else.
You already have so much wonderful help! But I'll throw in my two cents also. The only thing that is a "luxury" item but I consider really neccessary is a bouncer, and/or baby swing. The bouncer is the only way that I could take showers when he was little, I would put him in it and siwtch on the lights/sounds, and he'd be happy for ages. The baby swing was awesome because he loved to be held so much that the swing was the only way I could put him down the first few weeks. I know they're expensive, but in my opinion it would be a great thing to put any gift certificates too. Another investment that I am ridiculously glad we made was a mobywrap. At least 2 cribsheets, so when he pees through all his blankets and his clothes during the night you have a new one to replace it with. This next thing is cheap, but awesome! Books! Wyatt can't get enough of reading baby books with all the colors and pictures and stuff. He loves it. Someone told me we needed a wipes warmer..don't have one, don't need one.
ReplyDeleteI'm going to second the pump thing, actually because you are a full time student/working WIC will loan you a lovely double-electric one for six weeks, then will GIVE you one to keep as long as your supply is still good. It's kind of awesome. Also, I'm going to continue with what your brother said, there is a lot of conflicting information about whether to pump to relieve pressure, but What I would suggest because I wish I could go back in time and do this, is to take advantage of how much you have in the beginning and pump like crazy. That stuff stores in the freezer for up to 6 months, you'll have a nice supply for when you go back to school and work, Spencer can help feed him, and if something goes not as planned, like you start losing your supply or Colton isn't going to take to nursing like you want him to, he can still get milk for you. Seriously, that is the BEST advice I could give you. I soooo wish I had done that, but 20/20 hindsight I suppose.
Something I was thinking about too, and I know you'll wanna wait until after all the showers, but we were just putting away all of Wyatt's 3month clothes, and we have quite a few newborn things also. We borrowed a ton from Blake's sister and it was great! Let me know if you wanna come and 'shop' our stuff, because he isn't using it anymore, we're just downstairs and we'll be here for a while!! It makes things so much easier!