Purchasing things for baby


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That's one of the reasons I bought a lot of sleepers with my first child that were yellow, green, or red. So if I needed them again I could use them if the next child was the opposite gender.

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Oh and the problem I had was, I had twins after we adopted my daughter who was only 22 months when my boys were born. So I still had to purchase 2 more cribs, a double stroller, more car seats..in fact had to buy a van because my car couldn't fit 3 car seats in them. Man those boys were expensive. Still are.

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My nephew's wife is pregnant and she's thinking about sewing her own diapers. She has a friend who does this. It seems to be very popular. I did cloth diapers for my son but they were the old fashioned kind - square diapers that are folded, plastic pants and safety pins. They were great, never had to run to the store due to a shortage of diapers. And I learned that adding vinegar to the laundry (all laundry not just diapers) made everything smell good.

M.

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I had to wash my couch slipcover about every other day.

A word of advice...don't buy too much gender-specific stuff. If you are only planning on having one child, then go for it. If you are in a financial position to buy all new stuff for the opposite gender when it comes around, then go for it. But otherwise, don't buy all pink and purple ladybug and butterfly bedroom sets, and flowered towels, etc. Don't focus on trains and cars and browns and reds for boys. Buy gender-versatile (not necessarily neutral, but versatile) items, like frogs, ducks, turtles, greens, yellows, and blues. With clothes, obviously you want dresses for girls, and especially if your girl is bald, you want feminine clothing for her. Clothes are different. You don't want to have to completely redecorate the nursery with each child. The way I figure it, with clothes (some, not all) and bedroom sets, etc., it's much easier (less taboo) to put a girl in browns and blues than to put a boy in pinks and purples.

I was mostly referring to clothing, really; I would like SOME things to be gender-specific obviously, but for what it's worth I'm not even a fan of the "traditional schemes" for babies (blue for boys, pink for girls, etc...). I'm definitely going with brighter and more vibrant colors (in my child development class we read that those colors stimulate the baby's brain and are easier for them to see first) when it comes to what's in the nursery (though as we live in an apartment it won't be much as we can't paint walls so it'll probably just be bedding).

Kind of funny, actually; I'd never even thought about decals on stuff like the flowered towels (except that now I am, lol). I generally tend to go with plain white on most things other than clothing because it's always neutral, and though white gets dirty fast and white in itself might be kind of boring, it's just easier to reuse. ;)

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I think sometimes we tend to focus too much on gender specific colors anyway. I say use whatever colors you like. Babies don't know any different.

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I had to wash my couch slipcover about every other day.[/quotr]

LOL true one purchase I would consider is a leather sofa, has made my life as a parent much easier to have wipe clean:)

A word of advice...don't buy too much gender-specific stuff. If you are only planning on having one child, then go for it. If you are in a financial position to buy all new stuff for the opposite gender when it comes around, then go for it. But otherwise, don't buy all pink and purple ladybug and butterfly bedroom sets, and flowered towels, etc. Don't focus on trains and cars and browns and reds for boys. Buy gender-versatile (not necessarily neutral, but versatile) items, like frogs, ducks, turtles, greens, yellows, and blues. With clothes, obviously you want dresses for girls, and especially if your girl is bald, you want feminine clothing for her. Clothes are different. You don't want to have to completely redecorate the nursery with each child. The way I figure it, with clothes (some, not all) and bedroom sets, etc., it's much easier (less taboo) to put a girl in browns and blues than to put a boy in pinks and purples.

I kind of agree with this, although neither of my boys have objected to being dressed in pink:mellow: which i have been known to do. Dresses are useful with little boys especially round the house, nappy changing and potty training are much easier with them.

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I kind of agree with this, although neither of my boys have objected to being dressed in pink:mellow: which i have been known to do. Dresses are useful with little boys especially round the house, nappy changing and potty training are much easier with them.

Now this I know my husband would object to. He has this idea that boys must be dressed as boys and girls as girls. When he was a little baby just home from the hospital his sisters painted his nails and his dad made them take it off. I think he has fears that I will paint the nails of any boy we have. LOL. I think he would have a conniption fit if I dressed one of our little boys in pink or in a dress. :lol: Maybe little kilts though, he has no problem with kilts.

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My nephew's wife is pregnant and she's thinking about sewing her own diapers.

My sister-in-law is expecting. She and her husband both have a lot of food and chemical sensitivities and allergies. She's definitely going with cloth diapers. She's using the Flip system as a base, but sewing her own inserts.

I'm definitely going with brighter and more vibrant colors (in my child development class we read that those colors stimulate the baby's brain and are easier for them to see first) when it comes to what's in the nursery (though as we live in an apartment it won't be much as we can't paint walls so it'll probably just be bedding).

It's partly bright colors, but mostly it's contrasting patterns. With brighter colors you tend to get a lot of contrast, as opposed to softer pastel palettes that are popular. We went with a lot of black and white in our nursery.

Kind of funny, actually; I'd never even thought about decals on stuff like the flowered towels (except that now I am, lol). I generally tend to go with plain white on most things other than clothing because it's always neutral, and though white gets dirty fast and white in itself might be kind of boring, it's just easier to reuse. ;)

When we had our daughter, we bought towel-and-washcloth sets that were blue, yellow, and white, and had duckies on them. It's been nice.

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Now this I know my husband would object to. He has this idea that boys must be dressed as boys and girls as girls. When he was a little baby just home from the hospital his sisters painted his nails and his dad made them take it off. I think he has fears that I will paint the nails of any boy we have. LOL. I think he would have a conniption fit if I dressed one of our little boys in pink or in a dress. :lol: Maybe little kilts though, he has no problem with kilts.

LOL I just told my husband if he objected I'd assume he wasn't secure about his own sexuality, he's not said anything since. My middle child is gorgeous in pink, so I bought him some dark pink tops, and he has been known to choose pretty pink wellies and trainers etc his favourite garden outfit is nothing but a pair of his sisters old wellies with lots of bright flowers on them, he loves playing dress up, his favourite is Cinderella or He Man.

Although I used my daughters tinkerbell kniickers (underpants for girls), renamed them tinklebell and told if he wet them a fairy would die, never had an accident in them lol and my best friend reckons I have scarred him for life

Seriously though little jersey dresses or very long tshirts make around the house a lot easier with boys etc,

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  • 2 weeks later...

Not that I'm AT ALL the type to count on people buying you things, but if it's likely that friends will be throwing you a baby shower or two, you will probably end up with quite a few things. If this is the case, I wouldn't worry about buying too many little things like cute outfits. That's what everyone else buys. If I went through it again for the first time with what I know now, I'd be focusing on the big baby hardware, diapers, or even just saving my money so I could buy things as the time gets closer (or for when your husband gets the urge to nest... and he will).

Just keep in mind whatever you buy now, you'll be storing for the next few months if not longer. We didn't even set up the crib until a few months after our son arrived because he was in our room with the bassinet (borrowed) or the pack-n-play next to my side of the bed making night time nursing easier.

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Carseat and then a baby fund that you pay into until You catch things on sale or at garage sales or resale shops. Be smart. Temptation is great :) I could not pass the girls baby dept at Walmart which so happen to be right next to the groceries dept. when my daughter's twins were born. Sigh and most of the stuff I bought they grew out of so fast. So if I could advise anything it would be control. lololol Something as a nannie I had none.

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Guest Alana

I totally don't think babies are expensive, at all. When they are first born, you really don't need that much in my opinion. Since it's summer, hit the garage sales. WHen you can find baby clothes that you like for under a dollar buy them, try to buy all of them, and offer the people a good price. My son was pretty much totally clothed by about 3-4 garage sales for the first three of his life, for well under $100.

In the beginning you need a good stack of onsies and sleepers. For sleeping, you can use a bassinet or moses basket for the first few months. I never had a crib for my first child. I'm due in one month and I'm not going to get a crib for a few more months, probably from craigslist. Diapers, I used the package of newborn diapers the hospital gave me and then it was on to size 1. Diaper wipes, buy in bulk so it's cheaper. I don't have a preference for type of wipe. When newborns, I'll rinse the wipe in warm water first, to get some of the soap out and to warm. I just bought a swing at a garage sale for $5.

Onsies

Sleepers

Diapers

Wipes

Sleeping basket

waterproof pads

bedding for whatever kind of sleeping arraingment

blankets 5-6

Pacifier (totally thought we wouldn't use them, so needed them:P)

diaper rash ointment

thermometer

baby comb (gave me one in the hospital)

baby shampoo

nursing pads and bra for you

car seat (find a good shape used one)

burp rags (either receiving blankets or cloth diapers, buy the cheap ones)

That's all I can think of for now. Bouncing seats, toys, fancy type bottles, even a changing table, for me, these are all extras. You don't need them ahead of time, and if you find yourself wanting one, buy used. I wouldn't even go to babies r us.

We were pretty hard strapped for cash when our first was born, but other than the fact that I wasn't working, we didn't have to shell out much cash.

Also, a great idea for baby showers is to have a 'diaper drive'. Provide a prize of some sort, we had a nice orchid plant for mine, and everyone who brought a pack of diapers to the shower got their name entered into a drawing for the prize.

Congrats! Don't get overwhelmed. Once your baby is a month old you'll find yourself thinking "I sure am tired but babies are a lot more simple than I thought."

---maybe some things I forgot...

Edited by Alana
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Congrats on your baby, how exciting! I know how much fun it is to look at all the stuff in the stores. I had to show a lot of restraint in the early days with my latest. My husband and I spent the first few months (after we got over the shock :P ) deciding what was necessary and what we were gonna hope family would buy lol. Now that Gwendolyn is 33 weeks old we've gotten a bit more serious about shopping for big things. Garage sales and thrift stores are great for baby clothes. Wal-Mart also has a lot of clearance baby clothes right now. Given that your little one is due in January I'd hold off a while on buying a lot, especially until you know the gender (assuming you and your husband want to know. I couldn't take the suspense).

As far as big items, unless you have a lot of room I'd hold off til the 7th or 8th month. No point in setting things up only to be dusting them for 5 months :D

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We went to a thrift store over the weekend and I found a stoller and a baby swing. They went into our storage. However I am thinking of getting a doll and getting the baby carrier that came with the stroller out of storage and using them around my dogs so that they get used to having the baby carrier around and used to not being jumpy around it.

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I agree with Alana.

Babies need a lot less stuff than we think.

My first-born - I had everything but the kitchen sink in a diaper bag everywhere I went, so of course, I needed a stroller to cart everything in. I took him on a trip to the Philippines when he was 7-months old and that's when I realized I really don't need much. I had close to a 20-hour trip through 3 countries and all I had was that backpack that you strap the baby in and it has a little bag that snaps to the back of the "seat" that held his stuff. There was another woman with a baby on the international flight and I was waiting behind her while she waits for a stroller and figures out how to maneouver that thing in-between the aisle. I was very happy for my backpack. With that tiny bag, I learned about minimizing.

When my 2nd child was born, I can go to the mall with him strapped to me on a baby bjorn (handed down from the first born), extra diaper and wipes on one hand, burpee on the other. That's it.

So, from that experience, this is what I would suggest to first-time mothers:

1.) Strapping the baby on to you on something like a baby bjorn is surprisingly more convenient than strollers. And especially much, much easier than those baby basket things that's so heavy and inconvenient to lug around! When they get bigger and they get heavy, you can go with the umbrella strollers for a few bucks. Very quick and convenient. You can buy this at any time before baby is born.

2.) Splurge on a car seat. Get the best one that you can afford that will last them until they get to 80 pounds. Since you don't need a baby basket, you don't need that car seat that snaps a basket onto it that they will outgrow in 5 months. Buy this on the last trimester. You want to wait so that you get the latest info on the seats.

3.) Diaper genies are a waste of money. Put soiled diapers in grocery plastic bags, sprinkle baby powder in it then throw it in the trash in the garage.

4.) Breastfeed. Then you won't need to carry formula, bottles, warmers, etc. everywhere you go. Formula is very expensive.

5.) Splurge on a breast pump - the electric one with dual pumps. I recommend the medella one. Then get the Avent manual pump as well. Then get a few good baby bottles. Why I recommend this. This is so that Daddy can help you feed the baby. Formula is super expensive and it's not as good for the baby as your milk. Then, you can schedule your nights so that you get to sleep from 7PM to 1AM uninterrupted then your husband can sleep from 1AM to 7AM uninterrupted... or however your schedule works out for you. The manual pump is for times when you are traveling. You can buy this at any time before the baby is born.

6.) Don't bother with too many cute outfits. Get onesies and sleep-and-plays. All white then if they burst poop on it, you can bleach in hot water setting of the washing machine. Get 3 cute outfits for going out. If the stain that while you're out, then put him back on his onesies/sleep-and-plays. Nobody really cares what they wear at that age. They sometimes go on sale at Wal-mart/Target, so keep an eye for a sale then buy them.

7.) Don't bother with teeny-bitty shoes - it's the hardest thing to keep track of! Get thick socks.

8.) Get one of those packages that has nail clipper, comb, nose sucker thingee. Maybe you can drop a hint to somebody who is attending your baby shower to give you this one - it's a good baby shower gift.

9.) You don't necessarily have to have a crib or even a nursery unless you got money to spend for it. I wouldn't bother putting it on a credit card, is what I'm trying to say. Get a mattress and put it on the floor in your bedroom and get one of those sleep bumpers. If you have a dog, this advice wouldn't work. I would rather get one of those play gyms than a crib. Then you can move it around the house. You can buy this anytime too... even after the baby is born.

10.) Get a baby bath tub. Buy this at anytime before the baby is born. Or drop a hint at the baby shower. This is a good thing to gift too.

11.) Watch the Sunday paper... ask everybody you know to watch the Sunday paper as well. Diaper coupons are abundant in the Sunday paper. Collect the diaper coupons and buy diapers when you get a hold of one. Babies grow fast, so it is tricky to estimate how many of each size you need, so I don't really suggest stockpiling too many of them. My baby was born over 9 lbs, so I went straight to Size 1 and had to exchange the Newborns that I got at the grocery.

I'm sure I forgot a lot of things. So, hope this helps.

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9.) You don't necessarily have to have a crib or even a nursery unless you got money to spend for it. I wouldn't bother putting it on a credit card, is what I'm trying to say. Get a mattress and put it on the floor in your bedroom and get one of those sleep bumpers. If you have a dog, this advice wouldn't work. I would rather get one of those play gyms than a crib. Then you can move it around the house. You can buy this anytime too... even after the baby is born.

I'm sure I forgot a lot of things. So, hope this helps.

Yes, this helps a lot! We will probably look at getting a crib because we do have dogs and they do like to sleep on pretty much anything. I figure the only place the baby will be safe from the dogs possibly laying on it will be in a crib.

My brother and sister in law have been living with my parents over the summer while they wait to see which law school my brother will be going to. They just had a baby in April so when we visit I have been watching to see how our dogs interact with the baby. Often my bro and sis-in-law have put the baby down on a bed my parents have set up in the living room (they have had a lot of company this summer and just figured it is easier right now to keep it there until all the guests are gone) and we have had to watch the dogs and keep them from jumping up on the bed while the baby is there.

My sis in law mentioned that we will probably end up just letting the baby sleep with us, like they did, but with our dogs I just don't feel comfortable with that option. Even having the baby on a matress on the floor would probably not work, because our dogs are used to having dog pillows strewn around the bedroom that they can just plop down on. I would hate to have them plop down on the baby in the middle of the night. And training really isn't an option for the dogs. Our female has been very resistant to certain things we have tried to train her on and staying off the bed when we tell her to get off is one of those things. She is like the camel in the story of the sandstorm and the camel. She sneaks one bit of herself on the bed until she is completely there pushing you into unnatural shapes.

(for those unfamiliar with the story: A man was traveling in the desert with his camel and sees a sandstorm coming so he sets up his tent to shelter him through the sandstorm. The storm starts and the camel says to him, "Master, the sand is hurting me so, can I come into the tent to shelter from the storm?" And the man says, "But if I let you in the tent there will be no room for me and I will die in the storm." So the camel says, "Well at least let me put in just my nose." So the man agrees, the camel repeats with with his eyes, then his ears then his whole head and so on until the camel has put his entire body in the tent and has pushed the man out where the man ends up dying in the storm.)

This is all very good advice though, so thank you for it all. And when it comes to all the extras my parents have been slowly but surely filling their home with little fun baby toys and exersaucers, and mobiles, and baby play areas, so that when their grandbabies come by they can play with the toys. And as we will be moving to a place about 5 minutes from them I figure we can always go over there if we feel like the baby needs to play on something like that.

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Yes, this helps a lot! We will probably look at getting a crib because we do have dogs and they do like to sleep on pretty much anything. I figure the only place the baby will be safe from the dogs possibly laying on it will be in a crib.

My brother and sister in law have been living with my parents over the summer while they wait to see which law school my brother will be going to. They just had a baby in April so when we visit I have been watching to see how our dogs interact with the baby. Often my bro and sis-in-law have put the baby down on a bed my parents have set up in the living room (they have had a lot of company this summer and just figured it is easier right now to keep it there until all the guests are gone) and we have had to watch the dogs and keep them from jumping up on the bed while the baby is there.

My sis in law mentioned that we will probably end up just letting the baby sleep with us, like they did, but with our dogs I just don't feel comfortable with that option. Even having the baby on a matress on the floor would probably not work, because our dogs are used to having dog pillows strewn around the bedroom that they can just plop down on. I would hate to have them plop down on the baby in the middle of the night. And training really isn't an option for the dogs. Our female has been very resistant to certain things we have tried to train her on and staying off the bed when we tell her to get off is one of those things. She is like the camel in the story of the sandstorm and the camel. She sneaks one bit of herself on the bed until she is completely there pushing you into unnatural shapes.

(for those unfamiliar with the story: A man was traveling in the desert with his camel and sees a sandstorm coming so he sets up his tent to shelter him through the sandstorm. The storm starts and the camel says to him, "Master, the sand is hurting me so, can I come into the tent to shelter from the storm?" And the man says, "But if I let you in the tent there will be no room for me and I will die in the storm." So the camel says, "Well at least let me put in just my nose." So the man agrees, the camel repeats with with his eyes, then his ears then his whole head and so on until the camel has put his entire body in the tent and has pushed the man out where the man ends up dying in the storm.)

This is all very good advice though, so thank you for it all. And when it comes to all the extras my parents have been slowly but surely filling their home with little fun baby toys and exersaucers, and mobiles, and baby play areas, so that when their grandbabies come by they can play with the toys. And as we will be moving to a place about 5 minutes from them I figure we can always go over there if we feel like the baby needs to play on something like that.

I know exactly what you mean about the camel. We had 2 dobermans, 2 cats, and a big parrot when the baby was born. The thing with dogs is, they were there first, so the baby is the "intruder". It was easy to introduce the dog to the cat (the cats were there first) because the cat would just sit at the edge of the table and when the dog tries to poke his nose at the cat, the cat would give it a good swipe with his claws making the dog bleed. The dog learned his lesson fast and they fell naturally in their own heirarchy. The bird came last but he had wings and a very strong beak. The cat tried to shoo off the bird once and got a good pecking an the cat learned quick, so they naturally fell on their own heirarchy. The baby was a different story because the pets figured out he was special so they were more jumpy around him. By the way, do not put a big parrot close to the baby no matter how docile the bird.

Anyway, we really didn't change anything with the dogs/cats. No special training at all. But then, our dogs are not allowed on the couch/bed and the cat doesn't want to be on the couch/bed - they have their condo they stay in a lot. They weren't put in the kennel just because the baby is out (except for the bird), etc. We introduced them to the baby like we introduced the pets to each other but we were extra vigilant. After a while, the pets just fall in their natural hierarchy... they know the baby is higher up than them. The dobermans, especially, were extra protective with the baby, but even so, we never leave them together in the same room even with the baby in the play gym while we're not watching.

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I know exactly what you mean about the camel. We had 2 dobermans, 2 cats, and a big parrot when the baby was born. The thing with dogs is, they were there first, so the baby is the "intruder". It was easy to introduce the dog to the cat (the cats were there first) because the cat would just sit at the edge of the table and when the dog tries to poke his nose at the cat, the cat would give it a good swipe with his claws making the dog bleed. The dog learned his lesson fast and they fell naturally in their own heirarchy. The bird came last but he had wings and a very strong beak. The cat tried to shoo off the bird once and got a good pecking an the cat learned quick, so they naturally fell on their own heirarchy. The baby was a different story because the pets figured out he was special so they were more jumpy around him. By the way, do not put a big parrot close to the baby no matter how docile the bird.

Anyway, we really didn't change anything with the dogs/cats. No special training at all. But then, our dogs are not allowed on the couch/bed and the cat doesn't want to be on the couch/bed - they have their condo they stay in a lot. They weren't put in the kennel just because the baby is out (except for the bird), etc. We introduced them to the baby like we introduced the pets to each other but we were extra vigilant. After a while, the pets just fall in their natural hierarchy... they know the baby is higher up than them. The dobermans, especially, were extra protective with the baby, but even so, we never leave them together in the same room even with the baby in the play gym while we're not watching.

Yes. As much as I love my dogs and as good as they have been with my nieces and other babies that have been around them I still have decided that I never want to leave them alone with the baby. If I put the baby down for a nap I will probably close the door to its room and use baby monitors. I don't want something to happen that would not be good. I do plan to do different things to get them prepared for the baby, and I think the interaction they have had with my nieces has been good for them, it gets them used to the idea of having a baby around and how they are to act around a baby. Still my current baby niece is going away next week and they will have about 6 months to forget her before our little one comes.

Which is why I am seriously thinking about using a babydoll and the baby carrier and possibly some other baby things to get the dogs used to the idea of having certain items around and how they should act when those items are around.

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