What did you buy for your baby that you DIDN'T need?

SBM13

Wed, Aug 27 2014, 8:02 am

My baby's 2 months and I registered for a bottle sterilizer which someone bought me. I thought I had to use it each time I washed the bottles but my doctor said as long as you clean them really well you don't need it. So I'm planning on returning it.
Like everyone said every baby is really different. A lot of people are into using a snap and go for the first few months bit I personally don't like keeping DD in the car seat for too long. She gets hot and sweaty and if ur due in December mayb think about how bundling baby up in car seat will affect her/him. However it is useful to just snap the car seat into a base when ur in and out of the car sometimes. My carseat snaps into my strollers frame. GL

amother

Wed, Aug 27 2014, 10:24 am

[quote="MaBelleVie"]Clothing in size "newborn." Yeah, it was nice to have stuff that fit well right from birth, but they outgrew it in about two minutes! Note that my kids are born pretty average size. I actually received one European outfit in size newborn that didn't even fit at a week old- that was a shame.[/quote]
Depends on the size of your babies. Mine are tiny and it's nice to have a few outfits that fit for the first month (longer for my smallest, the 5 1/2 pounder). Otherwise they're swimming in 0-3 month outfits for a while.

amother

Wed, Aug 27 2014, 10:37 am

Changing table - it was a pain to always have to go to the baby’s room to change the baby. I never really used it.
Diaper Genie - a newborn baby’s diaper doesn’t smell that much - I just ended up throwing them into the regular garbage which got thrown out every night, and when the baby got older, since the diapers got bigger, the genie filled up so fast it wasn’t worth it.
Swing that hangs on the door – total waste. Baby did not like it. But my brothers kids did – I suggest if you want something’s like that, wait till the baby is up to that sage and trying it out by someone else before buying.

In general though I think most things just depend on you and your baby. For example even though people posted that they did not need the following things, for me they were a big convenience but I can totally see why they managed fine without them – it all depends on you & your baby’s needs

Strollers - I actually had three of them. One snap in go for the car - its really convenient when we go away - you don’t have to keep unstrapping the baby. - One good one that I take shopping with me and ect - I use it a lot. This way I could just leave the snap in go in the car, and I enjoy having a good stroller go walking with/shopping.... in either case the baby will outgrow the snap in go, so why not get a good stroller to begin with and enjoy it earlier? I also have a lightweight stroller - but that’s really only need if you travel a lot by bus/train although it can come in handy when you want to travel by car and the baby’s to big for the snap in go - it takes up way less room in the car then a regular stroller. Also that’s not needed till the baby’s 5-6 months since their not meant for really little baby’s.

Pack in play - Since it comes out to be the same level as my bed (with the bassinet) - that was a life saver for me when she was little and nursing- I didn’t have to get out of bed to take her out. And now that she’s older and is in a crib in the other room - I still use it - once in a while she'll still get up to nurse and this way I can nurse her in bed and just put her down next to me after (with the bassinet out now that she’s older) & also if she gets up early sometimes she'll play nicely next to me in it and let me sleep a little longer.

My baby loved the swig & the bouncer was great since I could move it around the house - like when I was eating supper I was able to move her to the kitchen.

As you can see alot depends on you and your baby - chances are you wont need a lot of what I needed. Everyone’s different.

suzyq

Wed, Aug 27 2014, 11:14 am

It's really personal and each baby is different. My first hated the swing (that I borrowed). My second LOVED it and slept in it for his first three months. I see some people saying they didn't need a changing table - I love mine and don't change my kids anywhere else. Other people love their nursing pillows - I found that mine didn't fit me well and I never used it, I just put a regular pillow in my lap at the beginning. Borrow whatever you can. If you find you like something, you can always buy one. But that way, you won't end up with stuff you don't use.

Buy a car seat. A few clothes. Somewhere your baby can sleep. That's all you really need to start with.

amother

Wed, Aug 27 2014, 11:15 am

It's really individual because many of the things listed here as not necessary have been great for me. Swing- lifesaver. Can't imagine not having a crib and changing table. We have the pack n play for travel and a place to play downstairs. We also have a bouncer jumperoo and play mat. You need at least some baby toys. I also love my snap and go. I feel like borrowing can be helpful but if it's your first isn't all this stuff an investment?

I'm kind of grappling with that question since now I'm going to need a convertible car seat, umbrella and jogging stoller- it does seem to never end.

amother

Wed, Aug 27 2014, 2:19 pm

strollers- recognizing that everyone's budget is different, we asked for a fancier stroller as a gift and got the UppaBaby, as well as the carseat attachment. I loved having the bassinett for when DD was really little and we walked on Shabbos, and I used the carseat attachment when we went out in the car. I was able to fit my entire food shopping in the stroller basket. When she got older, we bought a cheap umbrella stroller that I keep in the car.

Its worth noting that putting a carseat on top of shopping carts is considered unsafe bc they aren't at all secure (its unavoidable at Costco, for example, but something to think about)