[blparent] Items you couldn't live without

[Dena Wainwright]

Angela.

unfortunately, some of this really depends on your particular baby, who, of 
course, you won't know anything about until he or she arrives. e.g.,
I spent a lot of money on a breast pump. it turned out to be one of the best 
things I could have purchased, as I ended up pumping exclusively for 22 
weeks. however, if I had been fortunate enough to be able to establish 
nursing with my daughter, or if I hadn't been able to produce enough milk 
and had to suspend breastfeeding, I might not have needed a pump at all. 
similarly, for my daughter the swing was a total life saver, but I've spoken 
with other parents whose kids hated their swings.

what you might find helpful to do is to divide your list of baby items into 
categories. e.g., I had a group of items we absolutely had to have when the 
baby came home from the hospital: a carseat, a place for her to sleep, 
clothes for her to wear, etc. I had another group of items that we would 
eventually need, but that weren't necessary immediately: a highchair, 
certain baby toys like a jumper, etc.

some of what you'll need will also depend on what you choose to do as a mom. 
e.g., if you plan to take baths with your baby, a baby tub won't be 
necessary. if you plan to co-sleep, a crib won't be necessary.

some items that I personally feel aren't worth buying are as follows. of 
course, there will likely be others on the list who found these things 
essential.
- a sterilizer (I just boiled everything in a big pot on the stove before 
using it for the first time.)
- newborn-sized clothes (my daughter weighed nearly 8 pounds at birth, and 
those clothes only fit babies up to 8 pounds.)
- a baby tub (I only used ours for a very short period of time before 
beginning to take baths with my daughter.)
- a baby wipe warmer (I just use good ole warm water when necessary.)
- swaddle blankets (my daughter hated being swaddled.)
- those night gowns with the open bottom (my daughter kicked so much that 
they ended up around her chest - making her cold.)

some things that I personally found I really needed were as follows.
- a bundleme (a sleeping-bag-type thing that zips into the baby's carseat to 
keep him warm in the winter).
- sleep sacks (again, sleeping-bag-type things with sleeves that the baby 
sleeps in).
- a baby gym/play mat (my daughter loved laying on hers, and would stare up 
and the toys for 30-45 minutes at a time. sometimes she would even nap on 
it.)
- a swing (my daughter was colicky and had reflux, so this is one of the 
only places she would sleep for the first 14 weeks of her life.)
- a breastpump (again, I pumped exclusively, so it more than paid for 
itself.)
- music for the baby to listen to (we had a musical crib soother for my 
daughter that was a huge hit.)
- bright and interesting toys and mirrors that the baby can just lay there 
and watch.

my best piece of advice is not to buy too much of any one thing. e.g., don't 
go out and purchase 10 bottles of the same brand. your baby might never use 
bottles, or that brand might not work for him (I tried four brands of 
bottles before finding one that worked for us). this is the same for 
diapers. don't go out and buy 200 newborn-sized diapers. they only fit the 
baby up to something like 8 or 10 pounds, and if you have a big baby, it 
won't be long before they won't work for you anymore.

keep in mind, that for the first several months, the only things your baby 
will be doing are eating, sleeping, and filling up diapers. when considering 
your "must-haves," remember that. also, keep it simple. cute little outfits 
with five matching pieces are fun for special occasions, but they're not 
practical for daily use.

no matter how prepared you are, you'll find there are things you forget to 
buy, things you're thrilled you bought, and things you kick yourself for 
buying. that's the nature of the beast. you can make as many plans as you'd 
like, but when the baby arrives, many of those plans go out the window.

hope some of this helps.

Dena





----- Original Message ----- 
From: "Angela Frederick" <angelahoward at mail.utexas.edu>
To: <blparent at nfbnet.org>
Sent: Saturday, October 10, 2009 10:47 AM
Subject: [blparent] Items you couldn't live without


> Hi, everybody,
>
> Okay, so I am a huge nerd and have been trying to figure out what our 
> family budget could be if we succeed in getting pregnant.  I've been 
> looking at baby items and their costs and wondering what is really 
> necessary and worth spending money on.
>
> So, I would like to know from all of you who have kids:
>
> 1. What baby items do you consider a necessity or a life-saver?
>
> and
>
> 2. What baby items do you wish you hadn't spent money on?
>
> Thanks for the feedback!
> Angela
>
>
> _______________________________________________
> blparent mailing list
> blparent at nfbnet.org
> http://www.nfbnet.org/mailman/listinfo/blparent_nfbnet.org
> To unsubscribe, change your list options or get your account info for 
> blparent:
> http://www.nfbnet.org/mailman/options/blparent_nfbnet.org/dena%40envogueaccess.com