peelosophy

I’m not pregnant. But my friend Katy is with her 1st baby. And it’s a girl! She asked all her friends to come up with a list of the things they loved or wouldn’t get again to help her compile her baby registry.

So Katy, a little overdue, this post is for you.

Furniture/Nursery Stuff

Must haves:

• Crib
• Crib Mattress
• Dresser
• Humidifier
• Baby Monitor

Nice to have, but I borrowed:

• Bassinet

Wish I had:

• Rocker or Glider – I never found one I liked, but we wouldn’t have had room for it for very long either.
• Moses Basket – I totally wish had picked one of these up . Especially when they are little, it would’ve been great to move the babe w/o actually moving him.

Linens

Must haves:

• 3 fitted sheets (you’ll thank me one night)
• 2 waterproof mattress protectors

Optional:

• Crib Bumper/matching quilt: I didn’t get a bumper till later b/c I didn’t know the sex

Wish I had:

• I’ve hard those Neat Sheets are pretty great; I would have liked to try ‘em.

Baby Proofing Stuff

So we totally didn’t baby proof till JJ was older, but it would have been nice to have had some of this stuff bought for us, instead us buying it.

Some ideas may be:

• Baby Gate: We loved this hands free baby gate from First Years.
• Outlet Covers
• Drawer and Cabinet Latches

Feeding

I don’t know what your plans are for this or if you know yet. So either way you want:

• Boppy
• Boppy covers

• bottles – we did Dr.Browns and I wouldn’t do them again b/c I don’t think they really did anything special and they were a pain to clean. I would go for the simpler the better, and I would only register for about 3 of the kind you decide on because sometimes the baby will make the ultimate decision and then you don’t have to take a bunch back. If I had to do it over again, I might try glass bottles too, just a thought.
• Bottle rack – we love the Skip Hop one here.
• 2 bottle brushes
• 6-12 burp cloths
• Nursing Bra

So this is totally only my opinion about breastfeeding stuff on the registry. Although I was successful with breastfeeding, I would hate to get all this stuff for breastfeeding and not to be able to ultimately breastfeed for whatever reason. So maybe that’s what the Gift Cards you get can go towards, etc. . For breastfeeding I recommend:

• The Medela Pump n Style breast pump; BUT I would not get one till you know everything is going to work out w/breastfeeding. You can borrow one of these too, that’s what I did.
• Nursing bras, I like these at Kangaroo Kids; I recommend these tanks, which you buy at Kangaroo Kids.
• Nursing Cover/Hooter Hiders
• Breast Milk Storage Bags. I like these Gerber ones.

Solid Food Eating

Must haves:

• Highchair – I gave my first one away b/c it didn’t have these features: one that looks easy to clean, that folds up skinny and has a removable tray. Ones that I would buy now would be: the Boon HighChair or the Svan I really think the latter would be worth the price.
• Floor protector – I wish I had one of these for  under the highchair, esp. if you have carpet.
• Plastic Bibs
• Bowls
• Utensils

Would be nice to have:

A basic book on how to make baby food, It’s so easy once you get going and it’s way cheaper.

Diapering

Must haves:

• Diapers
• Wipes
• Dr.Smiths Diaper Ointment
• Changing Pad
• 2-3 Changing Pad covers
• 4-5 rectangular pads for under baby’s bottom to protect the changing pad it’s easier than changing the whole pad

Wouldn’t do it again:

• Diaper Genie – Other brands may be better, I feel like it still always stunk. For me it’s easier to take a poopy outside. The I just throw away the others. It’s cheaper too, life w/o refills.

Bathing/Grooming/For the sickies

Must haves:

• 2 hooded towels
• 4 washcloths
• Baby bathtub
• Baby bath wash
• Baby shampoo
• Grooming Kit
• Temporal Artery Thermometer; it’s what the Ped ER uses, we have one and LOVE it. SO EASY.
• Pacifiers (just a couple; she may prefer another kind)
• Infant Tylenol
• Eucerin Aquaphor
• Johnson and Johnson Vapor Cream
• Johnson and Johnson Vapor Bath

I wish registered for these:

• Bath toys
• Mesh bag to hold bath toys
• Faucet guard – like this one from Boon

Clothing Stuff

These are some of my all time faves.

• I love zipper sleepers, they are much easier than the snaps at 2am
• I also like the sleep sacks for when they are newborns; they are easy to change
• Socks – register for some in lots of sizes; I don’t think you can ever have too many they get lost way too often in my house
• 2-3 Swaddleme blankets

Going Out

Must haves:

• Newborn Car Seat we likes this Graco one.
• SkipHop Diaper Bags this one.
• Baby Bjorn
• Sling (although you can borrow mine to see if you like it)
• Sunshades for the car window -you need them, but really, just get your car tinted, it’s way cooler.
• Stroller(s) – we never did a “travel system”. We bought the Jeep Stroller, loved the big wheels for sidewalks and power walking; an umbrella stroller, love having it in my car for whatever; and with #2 we got a Sit ‘n Stand. Really I wouldn’t do it differently, this is what worked for us.

Fun Stuff

• Activity Gym/Playmat
• Jumparoo (if you don’t get it, its’ easy to borrow, don’t go out and buy it yourself)
• Swing (if you don’t get it, its’ easy to borrow, don’t go out and buy it yourself)
• Pack’n'Play