First-time mamas! - Page 14 « Back to Group Discussions

[Waffler]

Thanks Ninetales, definitely all makes sense. And I feel good about our decision to go with the new Radian based on all of that. Now, what color to choose??

Yeah Andaluza, I should have said that the guy who helped us was courteous and seemed informed about the seats. I just feel so overwhelmed when I go into places like that....just so much stuff! Though I was surprised at my husband's enthusiasm, so that's something! He's more of a shopper than I am for sure. I'm mostly just turned off by the marketing of it, the societal attitude that you NEED all this stuff or your're not a good parent. I guess I just tend to be cynical about that part. 

colleen

[LilyTiger]

Originally Posted by Waffler 

was your sister in law the original owner of their seat? so considering all that plus the feedback from Aimee, we're just going to bite the bullet and go with a new seat. 

Waffler, yep and it's a relatively new seat since she got one for the newest baby.  So we're not worried about that.  I would worry about a second-second hand seat though.  I think you're right about that. 

Sol, are you getting a bouncy seat or a swing or anything?  Because then you'd have a place to put baby in another room without having to buy a separate bassinet.  It seems like a lot to me personally, but we also have a small house and we'll have a crib in the centrally located nursery, so we'll have a place for babe in both the bedroom and the central area of the house.  I put a sheepskin rug on my registry so I can sort of plop baby down anywhere.  We have to worry a little about marauding dogs, but I'm not terribly concerned.  My relatives just propped babies up on couches or whatever, but after my mom told me that I managed to roll completely out of bed and onto the floor at 6 weeks, I'm not confident about leaving a babe on a couch.  Hopefully our kid doesn't get my amazing muscle control.  (Another thought is that a boppy would work for just haning out in another room and then you can put baby down for naps in the AR?  It depends on how big your house is in the end.

[Sol_y_Paz]

Andaluza, great you had a good experience there.  We sure could use some help like you experienced.  I have never stepped foot in it but every time I see the name I wonder where is the baby going?  The two bye's in the name throw me off.  I decided to look into a registry again yesterday and am having trouble finding a car seat.  And basically everything else.     Lots of options!  I really want to cloth diaper but the options on those are also a bit much.  I don't know anyone in real life who does cloth so that makes it harder.  

LilyTiger, those are good thoughts.  I am sort of minimalist but I see value in each of the things for different reasons.  A blanket is a cute option on the floor (especially a cute rug like that for a new little baby  ) .  Like you I also have multiple animals in the house so for my comfort level that is not a place to leave baby for even a second unsupervised if I was chopping carrots for dinner or whatever.  One of my dogs, the biggest, is quite young and while a total love, isn't really very careful, especially when a doorbell rings unexpectedly.  

Edited by Sol_y_Paz - 4/12/12 at 12:14pm

[LilyTiger]

There's a sale on Halo sleep sacks on zulilly today!  I just bought two... the price is great for the swaddle/sleep sack combo.  Zulilly stuff sells out quickly though.  Just a heads up.

[keuriweo]

I don't think I've heard of Buy Buy Baby until this thread.  There aren't any stores in Oregon.  (Lots of Bed Bath & Beyonds, though.)  We went to Babies R Us about a week ago and decided on a few things: a carseat, an Arms Reach, a bouncer, a wrap... Plus DH decided that he wants to get a crib/changer combo so we just need to figure out which one.  DH is more insistent on needed a stroller right away so I told him that he needs to pick one out.  I'll probably end up doing the research and narrowing down the choices anyway.

The only thing we actually bought at BRU is a Snoogle, though.  Damn, I'm already in love with it.  I sleep so much better now.  It's kind of pricey (or as they say in PDX, "spendy") but its worth the money, IMHO.

[Veritas Vitae]

I've never heard of Buy Buy Baby either.  I ended up doing all of my registering on Amazon since I can do all the research and read reviews, which I like.  Plus, since my shower will be in Florida, but we're now living in NC, my sister is asking people to just have any gifts mailed to our house, so Amazon will be easier for everyone. 

Sol, I was super daunted by the cloth diapering options and so it helped me to decide what type of cloth diapers I wanted to use. I chose covers and prefolds because 1. it means the least amount of laundry and 2. it is the cheapest option.  The other least amount of laundry options is covers and fitteds, but fitteds cost more than prefolds.  My sister is a huge fan of fitteds, but she just made her own from flannel fabric and old jersey knit t-shirts, so for her, that was a super cheap option.  Pocket diapers or all-in-ones seem like the easiest since it is all once piece (or two pieces as in the pocket diapers, but you can prestuff), but for every diaper change you'd have to do a whole new diaper. plus I heard they can take a lot longer to dry.  Once you decide what type would work best for you, then it is easier to do the research on brands, etc.  

[LilyTiger]

Sol, (I can't remember if I've said this 8 times or what, so sorry) we're going with a diaper service for the first few weeks so we can get a handle on what kinds of things we prefer.  I'm worried about buying tons of diapers because babies are all different and I've had friends with skinny-legged babies who needed completely different diapers from fat babies and so on.  I don't want to spend a bajillion dollars on diapers that may not work for us.  I did put a starter kit on our registry so we can play around when the baby arrives and that in combination with the diaper service stuff will give us an idea of what we prefer.  Just a thought if you're trying to buy time or avoid making a decision (like me!).

[ilovetchotchkes]

Sol- I have a variety of pretty much every kind of diaper on the market, pockets AIO's YOU NAME IT! 


I have them all for different reasons. the pockets and AIOS go with him to Grandma's house because she can't be arsed to play around with a prefold and cover. We do prefolds and covers when out and about because then we can put them straight into the diaper service bag no fuss no muss. My favorites though are goodmamas..... We use those for nightime. :D And reenacting. (less chance he'll besmirch his outfits that I spent HOURS sewing ! ) 

[LeAnn A Doula]

Sol - I decided to start w prefolds and covers as well, mostly for cost and simplicity. We're just going to have a basic supply and add to it as we see what works best for LO. I think the diaper service is a great idea if you're having trouble deciding on what will work best for you. Plus you don't have to worry about the laundry right away!

Still no registry or shopping for us yet. I think I have a mental block...

[iixivboots]

Am I totally crazy for inventorying baby clothes on google docs? My MIL just sent us like 25 onesies and I swear we might be pushing 30 for the 0-3 month size. And all of this without knowing the baby's sex!

[eleuthia]

Boots, I think that's actually a great idea... especially if you can share the document with the people sending you things! 

I think I might start my own google spreadsheet - maybe it'll keep me from succumbing to all the cute things on zulily. 

[lakeruby]

Originally Posted by eleuthia 

Boots, I think that's actually a great idea... especially if you can share the document with the people sending you things! 

I think I might start my own google spreadsheet - maybe it'll keep me from succumbing to all the cute things on zulily. 

Totally!  Good idea. I am on restrictions from Zulily-- We aren't finding out the sex, but even still I've spent a couple hundred dollars recently on organic baby clothes-- yikes!  Somehow I just can't resist that Kate Quinn and Plum Bunny stuff :)

[eleuthia]

I might need to make another spreadsheet just to keep track of zulily/ecobabybuys/babysteals/fab orders.   I got a shipment notification today for things I ordered over a week ago... that I'd kinda forgotten about already! 

[NewMumJoy]

My MIL gave us a baby shower last weekend while we were visiting, so I updated/inventoried my overall baby items list with the # of specific things rec'd - especially since we got a lot of onesies and sleepers in various sizes.  Despite the fact that we're trying to be as "minimal" as possible (since we're moving cross country this fall), there are still quite a few important items that remain on our list, after having been "gifted".  Next month will be our time to make those purchases - unfortunately I haven't found many good stores to shop here locally - and Amazon, Zulily, Babies R Us, etc. have ridiculous shipping rates to Canada.....grrrrrr.

During my visit last week with family, some had reminded me that I'm reaching "viability" which was a new thought to entertain.... and sort of really drove home the reality of getting ready for this baby:   What if he came that soon?  What would I need, who would I need nearby?  I have so many books left to read!  I haven't signed up for birth class yet!  What if DH is out of town?  He is literally booked through July....  Oh my.....

[Veritas Vitae]

It's crazy to think about, NewMum... I'm, also getting more to the point of, okay, I need to be getting ready... but I still have to study for and retake the last section of the CPA exam (by the end of May, where has the time gone?) before I get all into crazy prep for the baby mode, but it is hard to focus on something like studying for an exam when I'd rather be getting things ready for the baby.  B is out of town during the week for the next month, so I figure that will be a good time to buckle down and study.  

[LeAnn A Doula]

I'm definitely there as well. Time to start the preparations. I've actually started to think about getting my hospital bag list together, not necessarily packing but just so I know what I have and what I need to get. It's starting to get very real. I'm not just pregnant, I'm actually going to have a baby. Breath...

I'm so glad that you had a good time on your visits, NewMum! It's great that you got to share this time w some family and friends!

VV, good luck on your CPA exam!

[LilyTiger]

Ahh!  It really is creeping up!  I have four more weeks of teaching and then I can totally turn my attention to nesting and getting the house in order.  We haven't even planned a shower yet and I have no idea what it will be like or when it will be.  My MIL wants to throw one for us (which technically she's not really supposed to do, I guess) and my best friend wants to throw a co-ed shower, which we'll do as a big BBQ.  But DH doesn't want to buy anything until we know what we're getting from other people (I've already snuck around him a bit on that one), so we'll probably be doing all the shopping when I'm 8 months pregnant and cranky. 

[NewMumJoy]

We made our first baby item purchase this past weekend!  We found a perfect maple cradle/bassinet on craigslist for $40 - which we'll keep on our first floor for daytime naps, etc (that way we can be on the same floor and not need a baby monitor).  Hopefully Baby will get 3 months' use out it before we move this fall (the seller's 'large' 8wk old had already outgrown it - eek!) and then we'll leave it behind (or resell it) when we move.  I feel like I've broken the seal now, and next up on my "used treasure hunt" is a glider/rocker (which we'll also leave behind when we move).

DH and I also found a local BabiesRUs here in Winnipeg where we looked over our "next" purchases:  packnplays, carseats, and strollers.  Their prices are higher than in the US, and the store had a very limited selection, hardly any of the specifics that were on my registry list.  So this week, I'm back on Amazon (both Canadian and US) trying to figure out the best/most cost effective way to get the bigger items and gear that we need.  DH might even pick up some things during his biweekly US travel and then check them on his return flight (since he gets free baggage check w/some airlines)....

[iixivboots]

We just went over everything ninetales posted about carseats and decided we need to go put them in our car (Kia Rio)  I think we'll try Buy Buy Baby even though it's kind of a drive for us.

[monkeyscience]

So my newest baby research thing is EC. I read all of Diaper Free: The Gentle Wisdom of Natural Infant Hygiene by Ingrid Bauer. It was good info, but way too preachy for my taste. Especially since I'm already onboard with many AP ideas, I got tired of her repeatedly talking about babywearing, breastfeeding, etc. I didn't read this book to get talked in to that. Maybe that's just my personality, though - I very often bridle at "there's one right way to do things, and it's the way I do it." ANYWAY... I read about 1/4 of The Diaper-Free Baby: The Natural Toilet Training Alternative by Christine Gross-Loh, and I liked it a lot better. I'm buying as soon as I finish writing this post, actually. It's a lot less preachy, a lot more focused on EC, and tries to introduce a wide variety of ways of practicing EC - full-time, part-time, occasionally, late-start, no diapers, all diapers, etc. Also, after what little I've told him, and after reading the back of the second book, dh is WAY more on board with trying EC than with cloth diapers. Which surprises me a little, but is fine by me. So I think we're going to plan on trying EC with cloth diapers for back-up. I'm still not really sure if we'll try to start on EC from day one, but I'm kind of figuring that I'll sort of wait and see how things go and decide based on how overwhelmed I'm feeling.

Also, yesterday was my viability mark - yay!! I definitely want this little guy to bake for longer, but it's a relief knowing he at least has a chance from here on out.