Mothering Forum banner

Baby stuff - what do you love, what do you need, what don't you need?

4K views 39 replies 9 participants last post by  JuliaDensels 
#1 ·
Things are very different the second time around regarding stuff - we already have so much that there's very little we'll be getting for #2 .

I'm currently researching car seat options - trying to decide if I want to get a new seat for the baby or a new seat for DS (one he can continue to grow into). Other than that, the only thing I'd like to get is a nice ring sling - we had a cheap used Maya ring sling for DS, and I never got into using it, but have heard that a sling can be really useful for breastfeeding newborn while chasing after a toddler. I'm hoping to trade or sell one or more of my other carriers to get a nicer ring sling. Oh and on the boring side, I need to buy some new pump parts. I'm also going to try these "milk catcher" things I've heard about that catch milk while you're nursing on the other side if you have oversupply (which i definitely did last time...)

There are also a few Montessori-type items I want to make, but mostly they are DIY - making a black and white mobile, setting up a little floor bed with a mirror (stuff we already have from DS).

My favorite things that I'm looking forward to using again: all our teeny tiny cloth diapers and covers, our stretchy moby wrap (so cuddly!) and my woven wrap, and I can't wait to bust out DS's tiny newborn clothes. I'll probably do that sometime in March, we have this awesome semi-annual kids rummage sale in town, and once I have a chance to look over the clothes we have, I might want to get a few second-hand items just to supplement because the baby will be different sizes for different seasons this time around.

How about you?
 
See less See more
#2 ·
I've been thinking about newborn clothes too and the teeny tiny cloth diapers, so cute! I am excited about bringing those out. :)

I love my maya wrap. I think the newer ones are really good quality. It's so worth getting familiar with when there is a toddler running around. Being able to nurse with the wrap, comfortably, was life changing! It took me a couple weeks to find the right ways to tighten and adjust the fabric, but once I did, it was super fast and efficient. Maybe going to a babywearing international meeting could help? I also love my woven wrap, but I was looking around at different brands and thinking about getting one that wasn't so thick and heavy. Which one do you have/recommend?
 
#3 ·
Thats good to know that newer Mayas are maybe a bit nicer. The complaint I have is that its just sooo stiff, that its next to impossible to smoothly tighten the fabric between the rings. Its like a hard almost canvas-like material. I'm hoping if I find a woven ring sling, it will still be "firm" and super safe, but just a bit smoother to pull between the rings. We have a great local babywearing chapter with ladies I love - sometimes its hard to get to meetings (we missed one on Friday!) but I'm sure I'll make it to one in the next few months.

My woven wrap is also on the thicker side, its a Didymos, 100% cotton. But I think it will actually be perfect for fall into winter this time -- last time DS was born at the beginning of summer and it was definitely too warm for that time of year! I have a thinner one, I can't remember the brand (breeze something?), but it is a little scratchy, so I wouldn't recommend anyway...its one I'm going to hopefully trade or sell.

The lightest wraps I've seen/tried are the Solly Baby wraps, very similar to Moby (stretchy) but even lighter and thinner. I think linen and linen blend wraps are also supposed to be pretty lightweight and breathable, but I don't have one of those, so no personal experience. I have a wrap-conversion Mei Tai that is made from a Girasol wrap, and it seems like it is a little bit thinner and lighter than my Didymos...that might be a good brand to look into!
 
#4 ·
@FyerFly -- I have Tekhni delta RS conversion that I absolutely love. I got it around DS's first birthday, but I have a feeling it'll be great with a squishy baby during warmer months. (I *may* be a bit of a wrap geek...) I plan to use our moby wraps at first with the tiny one though -- they wash so easily and I had nursing with DS down to a science. I'm trying to unload a couple of my excess wraps right now so I can make way for this baby's legacy wraps -- originally DS had one, but then he took a firm liking to a second.

Aside form that, I'd like a new boppy cover, some Solly swaddles, and possibly a double stroller that will work with the Graco pumpkin seat we have. I started a babylist site last night and included a bunch of things like "Walk the Dog" and restaurant suggestions for family from out of town to give us a hand.

The total pie in the sky want with this new baby is a family bike -- the kind that Dutch moms use with the kid bucket up front. We'll be moving into a house mid-August that is RIGHT off of one of the major trails through town and it goes straight to the grocery store.
 
  • Like
Reactions: FyerFly
#5 ·
The total pie in the sky want with this new baby is a family bike -- the kind that Dutch moms use with the kid bucket up front. We'll be moving into a house mid-August that is RIGHT off of one of the major trails through town and it goes straight to the grocery store.
oooooh @justlizzy that would be amazing!!! DH's best friend bought us a burley bee trailer to hook behind our bikes that conveniently has two seats :) but I am enamored of those dutch bikes too. Both for kids and cargo!!
 
#6 ·
I have Didyomos woven wrap to; I have tried soooo many wraps and carriers and this one is definitely my fave. It does get less stiff the more you wear and break I think in, I sometimes tie it around the table and use it as a swing for the other kids. I keep my kinderpack in the car all the time so it's handy for grocery shopping and what not.

I haven't even packed my newborn/small cloth diapers away yet lol my one year old can still fit into most of them; he is a tiny babe. But it's coming down to the last few times he will be able to wear them.

I pretty much need nothing for this baby. We gave away our bassinet that I had been carrying around for the last ten years when we moved when the youngest was 5 months, so I will probably grab another bassinet, but other than that I'm probably set. Unless I do have a little girl then I will
definitely be splurging on some baby girl outfits. Oooh and maybe some soothers, my other three have refused soothers and used me as a human pacifier, so maybe babe 4 will take to one when I'm busy tending to everyone else.... I won't hold my breath though lol
 
#8 ·
@mrsbonjangles -- we love the KP too! I misplaced ours a couple weeks ago and had to use the ergo360 with DS and he's most certainly NOT as comfortable in it. We'll probably upgrade him to a toddler size around his second birthday or this summer -- really whenever Kindercarry comes out with a print DH likes.
@~Chava~ -- thanks, I'll have to look into it :)
 
  • Like
Reactions: mrsbonjangles
#9 ·
We have a standard KP that I love, but I'm not sure if I want to get a toddler sized one, because we wear DS so infrequently now. He also seems to have grown to love strollers (used to HATE them) - we bought a wheel so the burley bee can be used as a stroller, and he lounges in that thing!! Its great on our bumpy/craggy sidewalks. Nice that it is a two-seater, too -- we're ready for next spring when this LO can sit up, haha.
 
#10 ·
We mainly want a toddler size for hiking -- we have LOTS of state parks in the area, and LOVE the longer (2 mile+) trails. DS does ok for about the first 1/4 then cries to go up ;)

Do any of you other wrappers have "legacy" wraps for your babies? DS has a Tekhni Delta Cinder and Bijou Nor'Easter (he refers to both as "my wap", though he's not a fan of going up anymore). I'm waiting to see which sex we're having before I decide, but I'm leaning towards another Delta grad for this baby.
 
#11 ·
Such a great point re: hiking. I hadn't thought about that! We also have some great hiking areas near us.

I've never heard of a "legacy" wrap. What does that mean? I looked up the Tekhni Delta Cinder -- soooo pretty!!
Save
 
#12 ·
To most legacy wraps are a wrap that was released on baby's birthdate -- you can look up the released on Slingofest -- or in the case of a friend she has a custom handwoven. For me it's just a wrap of significance, delta since it was our first woven and the bijou because he fell in love with it.
 
  • Like
Reactions: FyerFly
#14 ·
@aliciahorsley I would be happy to share links! Anything in particular you're interested in?

Here are some of my favorite things to start --

One of the Montessori bloggers I follow just had a new baby, and she's going week by week showing cool DIY stuff you can do during the newborn stage. Here's the first post in that series: http://www.thekavanaughreport.com/2016/12/montessori-baby-week-1.html

My favorite cloth diapering site that has lots of great photos and options is Green Mountain Diaper Company: http://www.greenmountaindiapers.com/

And here's the Moby Wrap (https://mobywrap.com/) and the Kinderpack (https://mykinderpack.com/) two of my favorite types of carriers.
 
#16 ·
Got to go to our rummage sale yesterday. It was such a treat! I found 5 cloth-eez snap-closure workhorse fitteds in great condition for $10 (which was one of the only things on my diaper wish list!) as well as a few tiny sleepers and a few things for DS. One thing that was so interesting -- I looked at the girls' clothing first (NONE of which is remotely gender neutral) and had this weird almost uncomfortable feeling looking through the clothes -- it just didn't feel right! Then I switched to the baby boy clothes and immediately felt a sense of almost relief, and got overly excited and picked out a bunch of (mostly gender neutral) options. I don't know if it was just all the pink and ruffles throwing me off, but part of me is wondering if I intuitively know this baby is a boy!!!! We'll see...
 
#17 ·
While I would love to have a little girl, the thought of the pink and ruffles IS intimidating to me -- I am NOT a girly girl by any means, and if we have a girl my MIL is sure to go crazy again (she had three boys), just like she did with DS - the Christmas I was pregnant (all of 16 weeks) with him she dropped $600 at BuyBuyBaby on the MOST random assortment of things, including a bumbo and wabbanubbas which both went back. (I lean towards the German thoughts on those two items - bumbo bad for the hips, also in Germany you don't sit a baby up before they can pull them self up, and the latter item is considered a SIDS risk.) DH said he'd back me with the NO glitter or sequins thing, and said if I truly dislike something we can donate it to our local Women's Care Center baby shop. Also, we're moving right before the baby is born (get the keys to the new place Aug 10, EDD is Sept 3) and the place has limited storage, which means purging a LOT and not wanting a lot to come in. Who knows, maybe I'll luck out and I can convince her that the baby item we need the most is the fancy double stroller I really want?
 
#19 ·
While I would love to have a little girl, the thought of the pink and ruffles IS intimidating to me -- I am NOT a girly girl by any means, and if we have a girl my MIL is sure to go crazy again
I'm ok with pink in moderation (especially soft pinks) but the pink + ruffles + bows + + + ....I'm also not a girly girl, but the good thing for us is my MIL already went crazy for our niece, so hopefully if this LO is a girl, we can just pick and choose what to borrow from her baby stash. I would be comfortable putting a girl in most of what DS wore, and my personal taste tends to be very plain (solid colors, shades of gray, things like that). My vision for things we might supplement with for a girl are clothes in a range of purples, yellows, maybe some rainbow (multi-colored) things (but we would totally put DS in rainbow stuff too!)
@justlizzy congrats on the move! That must be exciting (and maybe a little intimidating?)
@Turner58800 thats so cool that you DIY'ed a ring sling from a Target curtain!! I'm very impressed!!! We didn't have our wrap mei tai when DS was tiny; I'm very curious to see how it works with a wee one (my guess is it will be great!) I'm also hoping to experiment more with back wrapping from early on this time - a local babywearing leader tried to show me how with DS, but I was too intimidated and most of the time just ended up doing the good old standby FWCC. I have some funny pictures of when I would try to do a new wrapping style, and it would just end up looking like a bunch of knots in weird places and DS kind of hanging on by a thread!!!
 
#18 ·
I LOVE babywearing too! Although I didnt' really get into wrapping much. I might try that this time around! My favorite ring slings I DIY'd. I have a favorite one for the toddler that is really supportive made from a target curtain! It is linen/cotton blend so not too hot either! I also have one made from a tablecloth that is really cushy.
Other than ring slings I have a a lillebaby and a lenny lamb SSC as well as a Soul Sling Onbuhimo I just got! I would love to get or make a wrap style mei tai/dai and possibly a Solly or Happy wrap.

As for other items for baby #2 , I need new pump accessories (possibly new pump if covered by insurance), new bottle nipples, a new high chair (we were given one that was soo bulky once we moved him to a booster seat, I got rid of it!), and a new/bigger diaper bag for two in daycare.
I was thinking about a play yard so that DS can play with smaller toys at times without worrying about #2 getting ahold of them. Haven't decided if I would need it.

We have a platform bed and I would like a bassinet to go in our room too. We used the rock-n-play with DS but the legs kept it from being next to the bed and it was hard to lift baby from their into our bed since its so low.
 
#20 ·
@Turner58800 -- I have several friends who LOVE their DIY tablecloth/curtain RSs and one who made a stunning tablecloth mei tai/dai.
@FyerFly -- moving is intimidating. I convinced DH that instead of going the cheap route and having friends help that we are hiring movers. If you look at it in terms of time and having to buy pizza/beer for everyone on top of renting a truck the cost comes out to be about the same, and the move will only take a couple of hours vs all day. We do have a three week overlap, so we'll probably start by taking a couple car loads over after we get the keys, and my mom offered to come up to help us clean the apartment if she doesn't have to teach in the fall. Also very lucky about the niece coming first! No luck here on that front -- we're 10 years older than my BIL and his wife, and while she keeps pushing to have a baby, they really DO need to wait for a variety of reasons. I mean, if a baby happens for them great, but they got married very very young and there are some hard feelings having to do with education choices.

I loved back wrapping DS -- I could never get the hang of more than a basic rucksack carry, but it worked out with other finishes to make it more supportive. He actually asked me to wrap him last night, but the OB wants me to limit carrying/lifting things over 15lbs (heh, hard with a big toddler) due to the round ligament pain. I keep thinking about making or getting a buckle-Onbuhimo since there isn't a waist band and SSCs from what I hear are not super comfortable later on in pregnancy (well, if I get the lifting limitations removed).
 
#21 ·
@ Justlizzy I did make a wrap-tie mei tai/dai, however, I made it for a friend. It was my trial, I hope to make another before baby comes, but we will have to see! I think the Soul Sling Onbuhimo I got for the same reason you mentioned it well worth the cost! Although a lot of people love 2Lambies as well.
 
#22 ·
I've gotten to try on some by Cute Awakening and Tallulah Baby, but didn't find either overly comfortable, but I have a friend who RAVES about her 2Lambies all the time! I bought the SewToot pattern a while back, but the question is when would I have time to sit down to sew the darn thing, let alone if I'd want to attempt a wrap conversion.
 
#23 ·
Onbuhimos definitely use different muscles! It takes a bit of getting used to, we are still adjusting ourselves. However, they fold up small, are great for pregnant bellies, and quick ups. So we are continuing to work on it! If I make one, I would want to try a reverse with rings I think...
 
#24 ·
@justlizzy GOOD CALL on hiring movers!!! DS has also been asking to be worn more recently - its funny, during the first trimester I just didn't feel physically up to wearing him, but now I think its OK in short stints. I think we've both missed it! He actually cried a lot when I took him out of a wrap today, and at first I didn't understand why, then realized he didn't want to get down :( Maybe just an extra snuggly phase?? I'm going to try wearing him a bit more often and see how it feels. Its so cute that he can pick out what carrier he wants now!!

on wearing later in pregnancy (assuming we even want to/assuming you can) - I just remembered this video about doing a high back carry with a Kinderpack:


Looks pretty cool. I want to try it.
 
#25 ·
@Turner58800 We predominately used a Mei Tai carrier with DD and we loved it. Comfy and easy to use.

I have a wrap (similar to a moby but off brand) that was nice, but more complicated. Plus, with DD being a August baby too, I was often too hot to wear her in the warm stretchy wrap. We bought an Ergo when she was over a year old, and we still use it now at 2.5! It's great, super easy to use, and she loves it. She still falls asleep in it, if we let her. It was expensive, but totally worth it. They are pretty popular in my town, and you are more likely to see a woman using an Ergo over a stroller!

For this baby, we don't really need anything. Babe is going to wear their sister's clothes, assuming they fit. We tried to buy gender neutral stuff so I feel like we are prepared for either a boy or girl.

Honestly, biggest things I'm thinking about getting are some quite toys for my DD to amuse herself with, like perhaps buy some more puzzles and things like it. I'm also trying to decide if buying the Ergo newborn insert will be worth it, or if we will just get buy with the wrap until the baby is big enough for the Ergo.
 
#26 ·
@Fembot did you use the Mei Tai when your DD was really tiny? Did you have to do anything special to use with a newborn?

Quiet toys for the older one sounds like such a great plan - I've got a few puzzles on DS's 2nd bday list :)

I've heard the Ergo infant insert can be quite hot, but that might not matter depending on what the weather might be when your little one is born?
 
#27 ·
I totally ordered some Usborne books last night for after the baby arrives to keep DS occupied -- I was torn about the idea of giving him gifts after the baby arrives, but realized that pulling something new and exciting out occasionally will help.

I love our Ergo with smaller kid and have this insert on the registry: http://www.target.com/p/-/A-1686078...=81938&afid=BabyList Inc&ref=tgt_adv_xasd0002 I lived in the moby with DS, but it would have been SO nice to have the ability to pop something on quickly. Though, keep in mind this is coming from the woman with a fairly decent carrier collection :innocent
 
  • Like
Reactions: Fembot
#28 ·
@FyerFly I can't quite remember when we started using the Mei Tai. My DD was a good size a birth, and it wasn't long before we felt she was big enough for it. In the very early days I just carried her in my arms, experimented with a ring sling that I ultimately hated, or used the wrap. We used the Mei Tai for a long time, until we tried an Ergo which was similar but more comfortable.

I worry that we won't get too much use out of the Ergo insert. I need to look into them a bit more and decide if it's really worth it. This might be our last baby, so I want to limit how many new baby items we buy.
 
#29 ·
@Fembot I found this link about using a Mei Tai with a newborn - she also has a cool link to a video of back carrying a small infant w/ a mei tai, which is also something I'm hoping to explore too.

http://www.becomingmamas.com/mei-tai-101-using-a-mei-tai-with-your-newborn/

The thought of being completely hands free to chase after and help DS is very appealing to me! But of course I won't be doing too much "chasing" in the very early newborn weeks while I'm healing anyway, ha!
 
This is an older thread, you may not receive a response, and could be reviving an old thread. Please consider creating a new thread.
Top