Purchasing things for baby

[Tarnished]

As I mentioned in another post looking through the list of things that are needed for an upcoming baby can be overwhelming, especially when you think about the cost involved. It makes me want to spread out the damage to our finances. Which brings me to my question: What are your thoughts on when is the best time to purchase things?

Stuff like car seats, cribs, strollers, bottles, burp rags, diapers, etc. I am currently still in my first trimester, I will be hitting week 11 this Saturday which means I am almost to my second trimester. What things did you find best to buy during which trimester? Which things did you buy after the baby was born? What did you wish you had bought earlier?

My sister mentioned beginning to buy diapers early on, and sort of stockpile them (this is if we choose to go with disposable, I am still going back and forth on the cloth vs disposable), then when you have the baby you have diapers already. She also mentioned getting extra diapers each time you have to go out and buy some, just so that the diapers last longer. Thoughts, recommendations?

[Suzie]

I bought everything after I hit the fourth month. I think the best choice is to wait after the first trimester is over.

DIAPERS, stock lots and lots and lots and lots! Newborns use so many! Use disposables, you can always change your mind later on when the baby is older otherwise you will be like a zombie washing and drying diapers and up all night with a newborn. Take it easy! :)

[crazypotato]

Babies are sooo expensive! But there are lots of things that you think you need to buy that you really don't. I am all for borrowing baby stuff from other people, like swings and high chairs and cribs.

Do you have any relatives or close friends that you can borrow things from? You will want your own diapers. I like cribs that convert into toddler beds so you don't have to buy both.

I wouldn't spend a lot of money on toys. Babies have such short attention spans and get sick of their toys really fast.

I think first buy a car seat. I like the kind that can snap into a stroller. Borrow a cradle if you want to use one for the early stages. Buy the size 1-2 diapers. Don't buy any bottles yet because babies are very picky about the nipple on bottles or binkies and they might not take what you bought, so buy those after the baby is born and then you can return them if the baby hates them. Don't waste your money on Dreft laundry detergent. Just buy any brand that is dye and perfume free to launder clothes in. Don't buy a changing table because you will never use it. Don't buy any formula because they expire and your baby might not like it.

You can get used little baby clothes for pretty cheap if you need to. They are so little that they don't really wear out those little clothes unless they have stained them. And of course you wouldn't buy the stained ones. People, especially Grandmas, usually love to buy cute outfits for your baby.

Get a used baby bathtub.

That's my 2 cents.

[applepansy]

Tarmished are you expecting? If so, when are you due?

[applepansy]

I have done cloth diapers. I'd never go back to cloth. To much laundry. Too many rashes.

We have my grandson now and disposable are the best.

[Tarnished]

I have realtives that I can borrow things from. My sister's baby will be turning two (I think) this year, and my sister in law just had a baby in April of this year. She and my brother are staying the Summer with my parents while my brother decides on where to go for graduate school. By the time they leave their baby will be a few months old and they may end up leaving some things behind. My mom has actually bought a crib for their house so that when their infant grandkids come by they have a place to sleep.

I am seriously considering convertable items, like convertable carseat, convertable stroller and convertable crib. I figure if those things can last into toddlerhood then they will be worth the extra money spent on them. I am planning on setting up a money fund for relatives and friends who want to give a gift but don't want to go out and buy something and use that fund for buying the big money items like car seat, stroller and crib. I appreciate the recommendations because it helps me make up my mind when I am thinking through everything.

[Tarnished]

Tarmished are you expecting? If so, when are you due?

January 28th, 2011. Our attempt with In Vetro worked!

[Wingnut]

If you do disposable diapers, I actually disagree with the stockpiling idea, for a couple of reasons:

(1) The newborn size diapers are so tiny. My daughter was 4 weeks premature and she only wore them for about 4 weeks.

(2) They grow so fast that it's hard to predict what sizes they'll need and how many.

(3) You'll likely get some as a baby shower gift.

Wipes, however, is something that I would definitely stock up on -- there are less versatility issues with wipes. And if you do go with disposable diapers, I only use Target's brand. I used Huggies for a year or so, but then I noticed that they were $28 (I think) for a box of 104, and Target's brand was $14 (ish) for a box of 96. Huge savings. The Target ones actually leak a lot less, too.

We never bought a cradle or bassinet. We borrowed a cradle from a friend, and kept it on the first floor of our home for the first 4-5 months. Our daughter napped in there during the daytime. It took us forever to select a crib we wanted, and by the time we bought it, it was backordered. It didn't even arrive until my daughter was two months old. We had already bought the mattress. For the first two months, my daughter slept on the mattress alone. Maybe that's really irresponsible of me, but she was fine. Like I said, she was 4 weeks early, so the first month of life, she did a lot of sleeping (almost all day when she wasn't eating). My husband said it was because she was still gestating. :) We pushed the mattress up against the wall and put her on it, close to the wall, but with a rolled-up blanket bumper around the edge. By the time we set the crib up, she slept in it fine. I didn't want to co-sleep for a couple of reasons: I toss and turn a lot, and I was worried about rolling over her; and with her being tinier than average, and my breasts being so engorged (and already being a D before that!), I was worried about smothering her, since each breast was bigger than her head. I would maybe try to borrow a cradle or bassinet instead of spending the whole extra $100 or whatever on one.

[hordak]

Buy used

If it isn't diapers ( and i would be reluctant to stock up as i have gotten boxes of them from others who tried to but the child grew faster then expected) or a car seat (due to recalls you may miss) get it used.

Don't buy much clothing, because regardless of what you register for baby shower wise you will be drowned in "cute outfits" your friends had to get. Just took 5 trash bags full of baby clothes to goodwill most of which was worn once, if at all.

[Maureen]

It's been many years since my kids were babies. I recommend when purchasing sleepers that you buy no less than 80% to 100% cotton sleepers, and buy lots, you can never have too many sleepers (3rd trimester). And babies don't like to be lying down all the time, so find a baby chair or seat to carry the baby in around the house. I think you could use the car seat but I'm sure they still make baby chairs/seats for house use. My daughter preferred sleeping in her chair than the crib.

M.

Edited July 9, 2010 by Maureen

[Jenamarie]

I actually WOULD get a changing table. I use mine all the time. I was especially glad to have it with my first baby who was delivered via c-section. Having to bend over to change her on the couch or on the floor would have been torture! Plus, they often come with shelves and/or drawers for storage which is priceless when you have dozens of tiny baby socks and wash clothes and itty bitty finger nail clippers, etc.

Deffinately buy used when you can. Used changing table, used exersaucer, used bouncy seat, used baby swing, etc. Consignment shops almost always have these things on hand. (however, I would NEVER EVER buy a used carseat)

I also would buy used baby clothes, and count on your shower to provide your baby with never-before-worn clothing. They outgrown newborn and 0-3 clothes *so* fast.

DO NOT buy those expensive bedding sets! Buy some nice sheets and a matching dust-ruffle and call it good. Quilts are a suffocation hazard for babies, and the bumpers make changing the sheets a pain in the posterior. And I have never seen a set that was SO adorable that I was willing to pay $150+ for it (which seems to be the going rate nowadays)

[applepansy]

January 28th, 2011. Our attempt with In Vetro worked!

Congratulations!!! I'm excited for you both!

[Elgama]

ultimately you don't need a lot, if you are planning to breastfeed you don't need bottles, you can use a sling instead of a stroller, ask around see what people have, baby can always sleep in with you or a laundry basket to start off with.

All you really need to start is:

Carseat

nappies (diapers) - I used cloth they have come a long way and so have washing machines since applepansy had her first lot lol:) - sorry ap

three outfits

some blankets

anything else is extra, we had that and a sling when I had my first

[Wingnut]

three outfits

per day

[Maureen]

...three outfits...

Yes, at least 3 outfits/sleepers per day, probably more. There's the pooping, the spitting up and some babies (like my daughter) do the projectile vomiting (only inches away). Your washing machine will be in constant use. :)

M.

[Elgama]

Yes, at least 3 outfits/sleepers per day, probably more. There's the pooping, the spitting up and some babies (like my daughter) do the projectile vomiting (only inches away). Your washing machine will be in constant use. :)

M.

you can quickly handwash when you take them off much quicker:) and because I used cloth nappies there were no poo clothes.

I have had three babies one that was constantly sick, managed with three outfits, I actually regret having more because its more work with all the washing. Even with three kids, a dog and a husband my washing machine only does 4 loads a week and UK washing machines are generally smaller than US ones

Edited July 9, 2010 by Elgama

[Tyler90AZ]

Thank you for all your advice it helped me so much!

[Maureen]

you can quickly handwash when you take them off much quicker:) and because I used cloth nappies there were no poo clothes....

It really depends on the baby. My daughter's projectile vomit was always a mess, and especially if you or any furniture was in the vicinity it was double the cleaning. My son was jaundice for a long time and when his liver finally kicked in, his diapers were awful; he would need to be put in the sink and washed with each diaper change. Although you can get liners to put in the diapers to help limit the mess. :)

M.

[Elgama]

It really depends on the baby. My daughter's projectile vomit was always a mess, and especially if you or any furniture was in the vicinity it was double the cleaning. My son was jaundice for a long time and when his liver finally kicked in, his diapers were awful; he would need to be put in the sink and washed with each diaper change. Although you can get liners to put in the diapers to help limit the mess. :)

M.

I've also had both, my third child had serious acid reflux, and my eldest had the jaundice because she was early, and its always just personal but I personally found over a week I had less work with cloth nappies and fewer clothes, it never seemed like a huge pile of washing that way, I regret not sticking to fewer clothes. I would need sometimes to use the dryer but I just whipped them off and rubbed them through in the sink. I have had times without a washing machine so it was easier that way

[JThimm88]

Woo hoo. I'm so glad you posted this as I too feel overwhelmed with everything the baby needs. To make matters worse, my dear husband probably isn't even interested in helping me... which would be awesome if he was, because then it wouldn't make me as stressed.

Personally we probably won't buy much until we find out what we're having. I'd like to make sure that if I end up buying gender specific things, I know which one to buy for... so, probably after the 20th week is when we'll start going real crazy on shopping.

[pam]

Ditto to what Maureen said about sleepers. You can never have too many. Also even if you do choose disposable diapers buy some clothes ones too. They make great burp cloths etc.

[Tarnished]

Woo hoo. I'm so glad you posted this as I too feel overwhelmed with everything the baby needs. To make matters worse, my dear husband probably isn't even interested in helping me... which would be awesome if he was, because then it wouldn't make me as stressed.

Personally we probably won't buy much until we find out what we're having. I'd like to make sure that if I end up buying gender specific things, I know which one to buy for... so, probably after the 20th week is when we'll start going real crazy on shopping.

Yea, I make it sound better than it is. I actually drop the baby topic on my hubby while we are in the car driving somewhere, usually when we are making the two hour drive to visit my parents. Otherwise I know he wouldn't talk to me about it as getting the "baby stuff" doesn't interest him right now. His view is that once we find out what we are having then we can focus on what to get. But there are many things that can be purchased before finding out the gender. Such as the car seat and stroller. But yes, it is nice to get some advice for us first timers, so often with this pregnancy I feel like I am blind and fumbling around to figure out what is going on.

[JThimm88]

Yea, I make it sound better than it is. I actually drop the baby topic on my hubby while we are in the car driving somewhere, usually when we are making the two hour drive to visit my parents. Otherwise I know he wouldn't talk to me about it as getting the "baby stuff" doesn't interest him right now. His view is that once we find out what we are having then we can focus on what to get. But there are many things that can be purchased before finding out the gender. Such as the car seat and stroller. But yes, it is nice to get some advice for us first timers, so often with this pregnancy I feel like I am blind and fumbling around to figure out what is going on.

Couldn't agree more, Tarnished -- on feeling like being blind and fumbling. It can get pretty insane.

On a side note: my question regarding baby stuff would be ... what car seat will fit well in the back of a Jeep Grand Cherokee? My middle seat is incredibly short and narrow, so I think the car seat will have to go on one of the side seats, which I'm not a huge fan of...

[Jenamarie]

Couldn't agree more, Tarnished -- on feeling like being blind and fumbling. It can get pretty insane.

On a side note: my question regarding baby stuff would be ... what car seat will fit well in the back of a Jeep Grand Cherokee? My middle seat is incredibly short and narrow, so I think the car seat will have to go on one of the side seats, which I'm not a huge fan of...

See if you have a Babies R Us near you. Most locations will let you take a floor-model carseat out to your car to try it out to see if it fits. :)

[Wingnut]

My daughter's projectile vomit was always a mess, and especially if you or any furniture was in the vicinity it was double the cleaning.

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

Personally we probably won't buy much until we find out what we're having. I'd like to make sure that if I end up buying gender specific things, I know which one to buy for...

His view is that once we find out what we are having then we can focus on what to get.

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.