The Money Mustache Community
Learning, Sharing, and Teaching => Mini Money Mustaches => Topic started by: wordnerd on May 24, 2015, 01:00:56 PM
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DH and I are expecting our first baby in December. We obviously have some time, but we're trying to figure out what we really need and the best way to acquire it. I've been scoping out options, and it seems to me that the obtaining-stuff hierarchy is:
(1) Free--Freecycle and hand-me-downs
(2) Buying used--Consignment, thrift stores, garage sales, Craigslist
(3) Buying new--Carseats and anything else we can't find used
What do you recommend as the best way to acquire stuff, and (perhaps more importantly) what would you say are essential items to have before the baby gets here? For instance, I'm not sure we'll need a stroller, and it seems like we can get one pretty cheaply and easily used, so I don't think we need to get one now. We'll probably end up having a shower or two (I've definitely paid into the baby shower system over the past few years, so feel OK about accepting), but I don't want waste resources or my friends' money by registering for a bunch of useless stuff. Thanks for your help!
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Congratulations! You must be so excited! :)
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The one thing I really recommend and buy for most of my close friends who are expecting is an Ergo baby carrier. They aren't cheap, but my first one lasted 7 years and 4 babies before I, tragically, lost it.
Get a good car seat, and get it new. You'll probably need an infant carseat and then one that will take your kid through about 4 years old. I recommend the Britax. Again, not an item I would ever buy used.
Diapers are a personal call. Did disposables with my first, cloth with my second. Cloth saves a TON but if I were working full time outside of the house I don't know if I'd have the tenacity to stick to it. I used SmartiPants. Very good and cost effective.
Baby clothing is readily available used. Babies grow out of clothes so fast that hardly anything under 12 mo gets much wear. Keep it simple.
Depending on your philosophy with sleeping, you might want to have a crib and mattress set up before the baby arrives. I'm not against used cribs, but do research modern safety standards and avoid vintage cribs that don't meet those standards. Also note that infants can sleep quite well in a sturdy box (http://www.bbc.com/news/magazine-22751415) so don't let this crib thing freak you out.
Breastfeeding, in addition to being the most frugal option, is way simpler than bottle-feeding if you have the ability to be with your baby most of the time. If you want to nurse and are having any difficulty at first, get help. If you and your baby don't take to it right away, there are many resources and experts who can help you make the nursing experience work. A lactation consult is cheaper than several years of formula. :)
Everything else, honestly, is optional and typically readily available if you go fishing in the giant river of used baby gear. Wait until your kid is here and you'll have a better idea what he or she will need and want. For example, my daughter loved this infant rocker swing thing and it was a lifesaver. My son wasn't into it at all. Kids are all different, and they really don't need all that much right away.
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Thanks, Erica! Very helpful recommendations! I definitely want to breastfeed, so most likely will visit a lactation consultant at some point. My work also has a support group for breastfeeding moms, which is nice.
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December for us too. Following this thread!
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December for us too. Following this thread!
Congrats!
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I just had my second child a couple of months ago. Everyone wanted to buy us lots of stuff but we didn't need much. I got rid of most of the stuff from my son who is 5. I kept the cloth diapers and the ergo baby carrier in case I had another. Here is the stuff I bought:
*New* carseat - I splurged and bought a Chicco Nextfit for $220 on sale. It is a convertible that fits newborns well and it fits in my compact car and is good for 8 years. This will last me until she needs just a $20 booster. An additional infant carseat that snaps onto a base is not necessary.
Ergo Baby Performance - $125 with coupon - Again, a big splurge, but something I use almost every day. The first one's buckle broke by being slammed in the car door and was not repairable. I didn't hesitate to replace it because it is key to how I live my life with kids. You don't need a stroller if you use this. It's much more convenient. I can carry my child hands free and push a regular shopping cart at the grocery store. Holds kids up to 40 lbs and I grow them big.
Rock and play sleeper or similar - $50 http://smile.amazon.com/Fisher-Price-Newborn-Rock-Sleeper-Luminosity/dp/B00HWVTY6G/ref=sr_1_2?ie=UTF8&qid=1432503436&sr=8-2&keywords=fisher+price+rock+and+play+sleeper (http://smile.amazon.com/Fisher-Price-Newborn-Rock-Sleeper-Luminosity/dp/B00HWVTY6G/ref=sr_1_2?ie=UTF8&qid=1432503436&sr=8-2&keywords=fisher+price+rock+and+play+sleeper)
This is where my daughter sleeps most of the time. It is easily mobile and I move it from room to room throuout the day. It's next to the bed at night and in the living room during the day. I can even put it outside while I'm doing yard work.
Large blankets for swaddling - $15 http://smile.amazon.com/Hudson-Baby-Muslin-Swaddle-Blanket/dp/B009ZU3XYQ/ref=sr_1_5?ie=UTF8&qid=1432503644&sr=8-5&keywords=muslin+blankets
Newborn diapers (not size 1) $20-40 - Even if you plan on using cloth, I highly recommend newborn disposables. Meconium is nearly impossible to clean and that will take about 5 days to clear. They have a notch for the umbilical cord too. Also, If you don't start cloth until 10+ lbs, you can buy the one size fits most diapers that are much cheaper overall. We use Bumgenius with prefolds, but only after the first couple of months.
Wipes $15 buy the big cases from amazon with amazon mom membership.
Thrift store clothes - $50 - Thrift store clothes for babies are great. A lot of them have never been worn. I have one near me that sells all baby stuff for $1 each. I stocked up on sizes up to 12 months while I was in the mood to shop for baby. I don't have that much time now. Be careful buying too much of one thing. I bought a lot of onesies because that's what I mostly used with my son, but my daughter hates having her legs and feet uncovered, so we never use them and instead rely on footed sleepers.
Bath support - $10 Not strictly needed, but most new parents are not confident enough to hold a slippery newborn.
Lanisoh nipple cream - $7 I couldn't have breastfed without this. Breastfeeding is difficult at first, but gets much easier. It's worth getting help if you need it. If you qualify for WIC, they have lactation consultants for free.
That's all you need for the baby until about 2.5-3 months when they start to be able to grab toys. Remember that if you have a 24hr Walmart near you, you can run out at 2am if you suddenly discover you really need something else. Most of the stuff I got for my first baby I never used. The Lanisoh was my one middle of the night, gotta have it now discovery.
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Congrats! I have two kidlets. The only thing I insisted we buy new was a carseat and crib. In retrospect the crib didn't get used that much, but it was a cheap Ikea buy so I don't feel too guilty:) You can pretty much find anything you need used, and in great (barely used) condition. My favourite used finds: a Chariot Cougar, a Freehand Mei-Tai, and some Bummis pre-folds. As for clothes…..people pretty much give those away in my experience.
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We found a Croozer jogging stroller/bike carrier combo on Craigslist. It was in almost new condition, and we paid about half of what it's worth. If you like to run, bike, or both, keep an eye out for something like that. People buy them and then sometimes don't end up using them as often as they think they will.
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The most helpful thing anyone ever told me..."the store will be open the day after the baby is born too you know". I was wayyyy too into nesting and didn't use a healthy chunk of the stuff we were gifted or bought.
Really, all the kid needs is a car seat to get home, a couple of onesies, a pack of diapers, and a bottle. Don't stock up on a ton on small sizes until after the baby is born; we got a boatload of newborn stuff and our kid was too big from the get go. And you won't know what works for the kid until you get too know him a bit better. For example, my kid wasn't super into the rockers, but that's the only way my nephew would go to sleep.
Here's what we actually ended up using:
4/5 onesies
20-ish cloth diapers of various brands
2 overnight cloth diapers
a boatload of cloth wipes of various brands (we figured in for a penny, in for a pound with the cloth thing)
2 halo sleep wraps (I never got the hang of the swaddle with a blanket, but I hear if you go that route, bigger blankets make it easier)
mittens because my kid was a scratcher
an ergo baby(not sure what kind)
a rocking chair for when the kid would only sleep in his ergo baby and my feet got tired
a pram insert for a stroller that doubled as his bed for the first 3 months
motion stroller by Bob
a crib that'll grow into a toddler, then twin bed as he gets older
a couple bottles; he was picky, would only take certain kinds of nipples/bottles
a breast pump and bottles/ice packs
nipple cream
Yayyyyyyyyyy babies. Congratulations!
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Congrats! I'm expecting in November. Thanks for starting this thread!
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For our first child about 3/4 of the stuff we thought we needed we only used about once or twice and then put in the closet. Advertising is very good at convincing you that you need every item in the baby store to keep your child safe. Other parents also swear by a certain product and while it may work for them it might not work for you or your child.
We just had our third child and we went from a discounted floor model stroller, to used on craigslist and then to free curb side pick-up. Same with the car seats, ergos, and boosters. Unless it is totally unusable most people just don't ruin baby items and they are designed to be durable in the first place. With our third child we have to turn down hand me downs, I know first world problems, because everyone is pretty much done having kids.
So get the essentials used or free preferably. Don't be afraid to try different things on craigslist, worst case you don't like it and sell it back for the same or even more than you got it for.
Congratulations! Again you won't need half the stuff you think you'll need but you'll have to figure out what does and doesn't work for you and your child.
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Thanks, Erica! Very helpful recommendations! I definitely want to breastfeed, so most likely will visit a lactation consultant at some point. My work also has a support group for breastfeeding moms, which is nice.
Breastfeeding and co-sleeping work together; it's hard to get it right unless the baby sleeps more or less with you. A bed rail helped us a lot to sleep comfortably. The Ergo carrier recommendation is great. We got many of the kids clothes from Gumtree and Facebook 2ndhand groups including cloth nappies, and worked out to save a lot of money that way. Avoid jars of baby food that stuff is awful.
Just a tip with breastfeeding... if issues develop around blocked ducts or mastitis, don't be afraid to fix it 'manually'. We literally rescued my wife from an operation that way in the past.
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For lactation help or consultations, many hospitals provide that for free if you gave birth there. I had trouble breastfeeding my first child, and they were great and very helpful. She also arranged for a breast pump through my insurance that cost nothing to me out of pocket.
I agree with most of the other recommendations that have previously be mentioned. I'm having my 3rd child in August and am in the process of getting everything again, as I got ride of all my baby stuff after my second thinking we were done.
So far I have had many wonderful donations from friends. I only need to get a car seat, stroller, and baby carrier now. I used both the stroller and baby carrier often. I'm hoping to get them at a yard sale or off Craigslist as summer continues.
I however, use disposable diapers, but I work the sales and coupons a bit and have already started to pick up some when they are cheap. I wanted to do the cloth diaper route, but was never able to get my husband and MIL to agree to it.
One thing I would recommend having on hand is a stain stick. I had them stashed everywhere (in my diaper bag, in the child's bedroom, and in the bathroom). It saved many a clothing item.
We did use a crib for years. The first 4 months or so the baby will sleep in our room, but not in our bed. For the first two we used a hand me down bassinet. For this one, we have nothing yet, but I'm not apposed to using a sturdy box or something else. My mom told me that I slept n a dresser drawer on the floor when I was a newborn.
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Thanks, everyone for all the great suggestions! We were able to pick up a few of these items today from a friend who's moving out-of-state, so your advice was very timely :)
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Following (due in October). Congratulations to all the expectant parents on here!
Once you share your news with friends and family, free stuff often seems to come out of the woodwork... I have a few coworkers who recently had their last planned kids, so they are looking to free up space and give away things they no longer need; I already have several offers of miscellaneous very nice items. Like you say though, it's a matter of knowing how much and what you actually need, so you don't clutter up your own house with extra stuff you'll never touch!
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An additional infant carseat that snaps onto a base is not necessary.
Do you use an infant carrier, or just babywear or a stroller? It seems like the advantage of the infant seat is not having to move your child from one thing to another- but I'm also wondering, do you have a carrier like what goes into the base for any point in time? So often I see babies sleep in those when at a neighbor's house, for instance, that I am wondering if some people just do not have them at all.
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Great lists, especially Mirwen's! Our first is due in November so we are also in the same boat. We have the added complication of relocating AND downsizing within three months of the birth, so minimalism is at the forefront of my mind when it comes to acquiring baby gear. We plan on skipping the crib until we relocate, and will stick with a bassinet/dresser drawer for the beginning.
I've been to a few baby showers this year, and the latest person registered for almost 200 items. It was kind of mind blowing and so much of it seemed unnecessary.
If you have any sewing skills, I've found sewing baby items very easy and very satisfying. There are so many free tutorials online, so if that's your thing give it a shot. I mean, a swaddling blanket is just a giant 44" square of thin fabric. It ain't rocket science! :)
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I also loved my Ergo so much. I have so many fond memories of toting my son around in it for hikes and around the garden. I found mine very gently used on eBay for $40. I would suggest eBay for other big ticket baby items.
Other things I found really helpful were places to put the baby so you could get things done. An activity mat or rock and play type device is great for the first few months. Around six months I found my Craigslist jumping bouncer thing (not sure the name) very helpful.
For clothing I found some of the local swaps often had entire lots of clothing very cheap. I also had many family members who were more than happy to unload their old clothing.
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To answer a question above, I didn't have an infant car seat with the separate base for my last three babies. I prefer a convertible seat + baby carrier. It's actually quite bad for baby to spend time in those bucket seats, beyond actual driving.
My must haves:
Ergo carrier - will last forever. Our was used, and now on my fourth baby
Wrap carrier, I like one called Bali breeze
Costco scenera NEXT car seat. About $44 new, can rear face to 40lbs. Cheap forward facing seat after that. Or, if you have the money up front, and a big enough car, the basic diono radian. This has lasted each of my babies from newborn to booster (so far). But it's $180 on sale, so more expensive. I buy these new. (Or, rather, the grand parents do. :))
Muslin swaddle blankets, a big 46 or 47 in size, any brand is fine
Cloth diapers: one size pockets are awesome. I like having 18. Newborn size prefolds and covers. I like two dozen diapers and 6 covers. Used is fine. Three dozen wipes, make from thrift store flannel sheets or blankets.
Hospital grade breast pump if working, cheap on eBay, and the small, cheap glass bottles. I like to have 12, but I worked some 18 hour days. They gave me a hugh tube of lanolin at the hospital. Essential for sure!! Lots and lots (and lots) of good for and water for the nursing mom.
We have always co slept, but read up on the safety concerns. We have no risk factors, so felt it was a good choice.
Clothes: a dozen footed sleepers in each size plus a few onsies, for the first six mo or so. Again, lots of gifts and hand me downs here.
And, I think that is it. I love my camera. I consider it one of my baby essentials, but most cell phone cameras now are good enough. Plenty of apps for music or white noise.
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There are some great suggestions here already but I'll throw in my $0.02 and echo some of what others have said.
You REALLY do not need a bunch of baby stuff, certainly in the beginning. My baby came 6 weeks early and the only thing we had was a boppy (breastfeeding pillow) that had arrived as an early gift from a friend. If you have friends with kids they will come out of the woodwork for you with all sorts of support. Many people will jump at the chance to pass off some unused baby/kid stuff as soon as they have the chance. We actually had to ask people to stop randomly dropping by and giving us stuff (really, how many blankets can one kid use?).
My list of absolutely fabulous baby products is:
1)Boppy breastfeeding pillow: fantastic for middle-of-the-night feedings if your baby doesn't cosleep because you can nurse without supporting the baby's weight in your arms
2)Baby wrap/carrier: I use the Moby and the Rhapsody breeze but there are other good ones out there including the Ergo. Avoid the "crotch danglers" like Bjorn which are bad for the baby's ergonomics and don't keep the baby close enough to your body. These wraps were absolute life savers for us. Not only can you go anywhere with your baby (hiking!), do things hands-free like dishes and picking up around the house, but there were some nights when we absolutely could not get her to stop screaming and the only way she would sleep is in the wrap on one of our chests.
3) Pamper's swaddlers disposable diapers: I know lots of people in this forum like cloth and I wanted to go cloth. We did that for about the first 6 weeks and after that period of time our attitude had changed from "cool, help the environment" to "screw that S*&%!". Disposable is SO much easier and I was surprised at how little they end up costing, especially after you get past the newborn poop-every-three-hours stage.
Really, that is about it. On a side note, I want to point out that the lactation consultant was an absolute must for us and the only reason my baby nurses today. In that process the consultant pointed out that my nipples were really red and tender. It turns out that I am allergic to lanolin and had to switch to an olive oil-based nipple cream. If wool sweaters make you itch, I seriously recommend you try using plain old olive oil instead of lanolin. Just watch out for the oil stains on your nursing tanks/bras!
Good luck and congratulations.
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replying to follow. We're due with our first in December too!
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I don't have any babies, and I'm not sure when I will, but my sister in law had 2 girls and then donated everything to me!! I have clothes, toys, high chairs ect. I've just stored it in a spare bedroom I have, that will eventually be my baby's room. Maybe a family member who had children can donate to you also?!? Good luck and congrats!!!
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An additional infant carseat that snaps onto a base is not necessary.
Do you use an infant carrier, or just babywear or a stroller? It seems like the advantage of the infant seat is not having to move your child from one thing to another- but I'm also wondering, do you have a carrier like what goes into the base for any point in time? So often I see babies sleep in those when at a neighbor's house, for instance, that I am wondering if some people just do not have them at all.
I only have the convertible carseat and an ergo baby carrier. I do have to lift the baby out of the carseat and put her on my chest, but she became familiar with this routine and settles back down easily. I can't express how quiet and contented both of my kids are when they are being carried in the ergo baby. A sleepy baby will go right back to sleep when snuggled this way. They only time I miss having a infant seat is when I'm at a place like the doctor's office when I need to set the baby down for a minute while I am examined. I've never had a nurse or office worker turn down holding the baby for a moment. : )
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I also do not have an infant car seat and have read the same things about it being bad for baby posture to sit in car seats for long periods of time. They are designed to protect and infant in a crash, not be a longer term storage device. Occasionally it has been a pain to not be able to take her out of the car with the seat, but for the majority of cases it is just fine. Especially when they are young they do settle down nicely when snuggled up against a parent's chest. On a personal note, I find it just lovely to have my baby close like that.
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I also do not have an infant car seat and have read the same things about it being bad for baby posture to sit in car seats for long periods of time. They are designed to protect and infant in a crash, not be a longer term storage device. Occasionally it has been a pain to not be able to take her out of the car with the seat, but for the majority of cases it is just fine. Especially when they are young they do settle down nicely when snuggled up against a parent's chest. On a personal note, I find it just lovely to have my baby close like that.
I hated carrying the detachable carseat thing, it's ergonomically very bad for my posture never mind the baby. You have to sling your hip to move forward. Baby carriers are ftw when they're out of the car.
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Congrats! We're expecting in January, definitely a bit overwhelmed with all the possible stuff to buy and wondering what is actually necessary; this thread has already been very helpful.
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Congrats!
I second "the shops will always be open on e baby is here"
I bought the car seats second hand. They were used maybe 8 trips altogether.ditto the ergo. I bought the stroller new, because we were having twins so its harder to find the specific stroller for our needs plus the warranty. We did buy one of the bassinets for the stroller second hand.
I like me money moustaches advice on using Craigslist. Buy stuff second hand and you can resell it later for a similar price. For kid stuff I find Facebook swaps are better, the quality is generally better and so are the prices. The only things new I suggest would be the mattress, there is some research that indicates a higher risk of SIDS with old mattresses. For the baby shower I would ask for a first aid kit and baby proofing supplies. For bedding all you need is three fitted sheets and appropriately sized sleeping bags.
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appropriately sized sleeping bags.
This are awesome and supppppppppper easy to make from remnants once the kid is a bit older. No pattern really needed, but she has a really good explanation here. http://onelittleproject.com/make-your-own-sleep-sack/
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We're expecting our first in January. Between my husband's brother and his wife, and my step sisters, we already have a whole basement full of baby stuff. We've already got (completely free):
-Crib (we need a new mattress, my niece literally jumped a hole in the mattress)
-High end glider rocker that locks, with a foot stool (my MIL bought this for BIL/SIL when they had their first 11 years ago, and it's still in great shape)
-Pack'n'play complete with the newborn basket (we'll use this on the main level for diaper changes)
-Jolly Jumper (currently on loan to friends who have a 6 month old)
-Bouncy chair
-Baby swing
-Every clothing item imaginable for a girl from newborn to 2 years (here's hoping ours is a girl, lol!)
-2 baby gates
-Jogging stroller
-Activity mat
-Play centre gizmo
-Bumbo chair
And likely a whole bunch more stuff I haven't even thought of (I need to go through everything in the crawlspace, and make a master list!)
We also still have my childhood fancy dresser that my parents paid an arm and a leg for (again, fairly girly, so hopefully we have a girl).
And for everything we can't find used on Kijiji/don't get as hand-me-downs, I'll be shopping at Once Upon a Child. They have locations across Canada and the US:
http://www.onceuponachild.com/Locations
We are also going to give cloth diapering a go, once it gets past the first week. I'm all for buying used, but DH can't get past the yuck-factor of buying used diapers, so we are going to get new ones. I found a local-ish business that sells diapers, so we'll start with a newborn set of 36 or so, and see where that gets us. (Should run about $250 for a full set of newborn pocket diapers/inserts/cloth wipes/wet bags)
http://pickapeck.ca
And of coarse the grandparents want to buy some gifts. We're going to 'splurge' on a compact travel stroller system (or rather my Dad will), that should last us from birth to 50 pounds. I've picked it out specifically because of the fast close feature, and it's compact size and weight, since our car is a 2006 Yaris. It's currently $599 at ToysRUs, but they periodically put them on sale as well, or if someone is going to the US, I might get them to pick one up for us there (since they are much cheaper south of the boarder). I'm all for buying a used one, if a clean and functional one can be found, but with carseats expiring after 7 years (or something like that) I want to make sure that whatever we get, will do us for both kids that we'd like to have.
http://www.toysrus.ca/product/index.jsp?productId=51874186
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We are expecting our first in October, and have not purchased anything yet. My sister and cousins suggested waiting to buy anything until after the baby showers. We are blessed with very generous extended family and friends, so all the new mamas in our family ended up having almost everything purchased for them.
To maximize the benefit of the shower registries, we have focused on all gender neutral items as we plan on having more than 1 child and want to reuse the cloth diaper covers, blankets, onesies, etc if we can. I'm also including critical but sometimes expensive must-haves that fellow moms have told me they really love (ergo carrier, pack n play, bouncer). Will also be getting gently used items like a baby swing and additional cloth diaper covers from cousins whose babies are just growing out of these items. My awesome sister gave me her medela breast pump.
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Ooh, that's a lucky score, those things are expensive!
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yup I definitely lucked out! but apparently many insurance companies will cover a significant portion of the cost for the pump, so it is worth looking into. also, for those mamas who are planning on returning to work, some workplaces have pumps on site in their lactation rooms (hospitals in particular) which may eliminate the need for your own expensive one.
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First, spend the summer stalking yard sales and Freecycle for bargains. If you want cloth diapers, you can get them second hand on the BabyCenter cloth diaper swap. As a bonus, cotton diapers have to be "prepped"--washed and tumble dried many times before use--but if you buy them used, they are ready to go! (Well, after a good bleaching and double rinse.)
Then, many areas have semi-annual consignment sales, with ones for fall starting in August and September. As a general rule, if you VOLUNTEER at one of these, you get in early to shop. You can go in early the first day and look for bigger items, like strollers and bouncers, that tend to get snapped up.
Then go back on the last day, when most things are half-price. That's the time to get clothes--there is generally still a good selection of clothes left.
Congrats!
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Congratulations and hope you have a smooth and safe pregnancy and delivery!
We recently had our first at the end of December and it's been a lot of fun so far (I am lucky to have an easy baby). I think a lot of people have given you great advice and places to go for all your baby necessities. We did not buy too many things - babies really don't need much! We also don't live near our family and friends, and we did not have a baby registry - so we did not get any gifts (with the exception of one outfit from my parents and (really nice) blankets from a friend).
I thought I would post what our actual expenses (I keep a spreadsheet of our baby expenses), where I bought them from, and notes on which ones were not that useful. Our son isn't very mobile yet, and doesn't need too much to amuse himself with, so this has kept our expenses low to date. I'm sure that will change once he starts walking and moving about. Hopefully this helps for you and others who are baby shopping!
Digital thermometer $0.00 From hospital. Our son was a month early, so this was useful in ensuring he was maintaining his temperature
Diaper rash ointment $0.00 Received samples
Cloth diaper lot $175.00 Prefolds + proraps, 4 pocket diapers G-Diapers, liners. We've also been practicing Elimination Communication which reduced the use of diapers recently
Disposable diapers $0.00 For when we travel out of town; found them on freecycle
Baby wipes $1.99 Cloth homemade wipes + Consignment store
Changing pad $2.00 Consignment sale
Diaper pail $5.50 Consignment sale
Diaper bag (wet bag) $11.00 2 washable bags from consignment sale; GDiaper wet bag and Kissa's Antibacterial pail liner
Bath towels $5.00 Towel with hoodie
Baby washcloths $0.00 3 washcloth came with the towel from consignment sale; rest homemade
Baby shampoo $0.00 Sample
Baby soap $0.00 Sample
Baby lotion $0.00 Sample
Baby bath tub $0.00 Craigslist
Baby oil $0.00 Substitute with coconut oil
Bottles (5) $0.00 2 come with breastpump + 1 was a sample
Bottle brush $0.00 Free from neighbor
Burp cloths $0.00 Use receiving blankets or washcloths
Breast pads $0.00 Samples from Medela
Breast pump $0.00 Employer provided free breastpump
Pacifiers $5.00 samples and amazon (pacifiers really worked on our son to calm him down when he was really fussy or tired)
Nursing cover $5.00 Craigslist purchase - you can do without and use a blanket, but I did find the loop that goes over your neck helpful
Nipple cream $1.25 Received free at hospital - did not need to buy more
Bobby pillow $0.00 Craigslist Free
Receiving blankets $4.00 2 from consignment sale
Crib sheets $0.00 Use blankets when necessary
Crib/Bassinet $10.00 Bassinet; Use mattress on floor afterwards
Waterproof pads $0.00 Medical bed pads free from Craigslist (helpful during EC when baby was diaper free during the day)
Blankets $3.00 consignment store and gift from friend
Swaddle blankets $8.99 Swaddle Me (3) from consignment sale;
Car seat + base $10.00 Used - we don't take our baby in the car often, so we were comfortable with a used car seat that had not been any accidents
Neck & Head Pillow $5.00 Craigslist - was handy for our preterm baby as he was quite tiny! (4lbs 14 oz), however didn't use it for more than one month
Baby Carrier $10.25 Sling (for around the house), Evenflo carrier, & Baby Bjorn carrier from consignment sale
Stroller $0.00 Came with car seat - only used twice to take the little one to doctor's appointment with me
Baby bouncer $0.00 Our son didn't care for this much - he prefers being on the ground on a blanket where he an move freely
Clothes $55.00 Craigslist, freecycle, consignment sale - some of these clothes were from 0-18M, so these will last me awhile!
Books $0.00 My local library and freecycle
Grand Total of ~$320.00
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Congratulations and hope you have a smooth and safe pregnancy and delivery!
We recently had our first at the end of December and it's been a lot of fun so far (I am lucky to have an easy baby). I think a lot of people have given you great advice and places to go for all your baby necessities. We did not buy too many things - babies really don't need much! We also don't live near our family and friends, and we did not have a baby registry - so we did not get any gifts (with the exception of one outfit from my parents and (really nice) blankets from a friend).
I thought I would post what our actual expenses (I keep a spreadsheet of our baby expenses), where I bought them from, and notes on which ones were not that useful. Our son isn't very mobile yet, and doesn't need too much to amuse himself with, so this has kept our expenses low to date. I'm sure that will change once he starts walking and moving about. Hopefully this helps for you and others who are baby shopping!
Digital thermometer $0.00 From hospital. Our son was a month early, so this was useful in ensuring he was maintaining his temperature
Diaper rash ointment $0.00 Received samples
Cloth diaper lot $175.00 Prefolds + proraps, 4 pocket diapers G-Diapers, liners. We've also been practicing Elimination Communication which reduced the use of diapers recently
Disposable diapers $0.00 For when we travel out of town; found them on freecycle
Baby wipes $1.99 Cloth homemade wipes + Consignment store
Changing pad $2.00 Consignment sale
Diaper pail $5.50 Consignment sale
Diaper bag (wet bag) $11.00 2 washable bags from consignment sale; GDiaper wet bag and Kissa's Antibacterial pail liner
Bath towels $5.00 Towel with hoodie
Baby washcloths $0.00 3 washcloth came with the towel from consignment sale; rest homemade
Baby shampoo $0.00 Sample
Baby soap $0.00 Sample
Baby lotion $0.00 Sample
Baby bath tub $0.00 Craigslist
Baby oil $0.00 Substitute with coconut oil
Bottles (5) $0.00 2 come with breastpump + 1 was a sample
Bottle brush $0.00 Free from neighbor
Burp cloths $0.00 Use receiving blankets or washcloths
Breast pads $0.00 Samples from Medela
Breast pump $0.00 Employer provided free breastpump
Pacifiers $5.00 samples and amazon (pacifiers really worked on our son to calm him down when he was really fussy or tired)
Nursing cover $5.00 Craigslist purchase - you can do without and use a blanket, but I did find the loop that goes over your neck helpful
Nipple cream $1.25 Received free at hospital - did not need to buy more
Bobby pillow $0.00 Craigslist Free
Receiving blankets $4.00 2 from consignment sale
Crib sheets $0.00 Use blankets when necessary
Crib/Bassinet $10.00 Bassinet; Use mattress on floor afterwards
Waterproof pads $0.00 Medical bed pads free from Craigslist (helpful during EC when baby was diaper free during the day)
Blankets $3.00 consignment store and gift from friend
Swaddle blankets $8.99 Swaddle Me (3) from consignment sale;
Car seat + base $10.00 Used - we don't take our baby in the car often, so we were comfortable with a used car seat that had not been any accidents
Neck & Head Pillow $5.00 Craigslist - was handy for our preterm baby as he was quite tiny! (4lbs 14 oz), however didn't use it for more than one month
Baby Carrier $10.25 Sling (for around the house), Evenflo carrier, & Baby Bjorn carrier from consignment sale
Stroller $0.00 Came with car seat - only used twice to take the little one to doctor's appointment with me
Baby bouncer $0.00 Our son didn't care for this much - he prefers being on the ground on a blanket where he an move freely
Clothes $55.00 Craigslist, freecycle, consignment sale - some of these clothes were from 0-18M, so these will last me awhile!
Books $0.00 My local library and freecycle
Grand Total of ~$320.00
Whoa that's super cheap. We were also pretty frugal with it, probably comparable to that, except we did get a nice Maclaren pram which I'd recommend because cheap strollers are hell.
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Gotta be the safety Nazi here:
You really shouldn't put blankets in the crib!
Use a fitted crib sheets. Blankets are a suffocation hazard. Crib sheets are cheap.
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Congratulations and hope you have a smooth and safe pregnancy and delivery!
We recently had our first at the end of December and it's been a lot of fun so far (I am lucky to have an easy baby). I think a lot of people have given you great advice and places to go for all your baby necessities. We did not buy too many things - babies really don't need much! We also don't live near our family and friends, and we did not have a baby registry - so we did not get any gifts (with the exception of one outfit from my parents and (really nice) blankets from a friend).
I thought I would post what our actual expenses (I keep a spreadsheet of our baby expenses), where I bought them from, and notes on which ones were not that useful. Our son isn't very mobile yet, and doesn't need too much to amuse himself with, so this has kept our expenses low to date. I'm sure that will change once he starts walking and moving about. Hopefully this helps for you and others who are baby shopping!
Digital thermometer $0.00 From hospital. Our son was a month early, so this was useful in ensuring he was maintaining his temperature
Diaper rash ointment $0.00 Received samples
Cloth diaper lot $175.00 Prefolds + proraps, 4 pocket diapers G-Diapers, liners. We've also been practicing Elimination Communication which reduced the use of diapers recently
Disposable diapers $0.00 For when we travel out of town; found them on freecycle
Baby wipes $1.99 Cloth homemade wipes + Consignment store
Changing pad $2.00 Consignment sale
Diaper pail $5.50 Consignment sale
Diaper bag (wet bag) $11.00 2 washable bags from consignment sale; GDiaper wet bag and Kissa's Antibacterial pail liner
Bath towels $5.00 Towel with hoodie
Baby washcloths $0.00 3 washcloth came with the towel from consignment sale; rest homemade
Baby shampoo $0.00 Sample
Baby soap $0.00 Sample
Baby lotion $0.00 Sample
Baby bath tub $0.00 Craigslist
Baby oil $0.00 Substitute with coconut oil
Bottles (5) $0.00 2 come with breastpump + 1 was a sample
Bottle brush $0.00 Free from neighbor
Burp cloths $0.00 Use receiving blankets or washcloths
Breast pads $0.00 Samples from Medela
Breast pump $0.00 Employer provided free breastpump
Pacifiers $5.00 samples and amazon (pacifiers really worked on our son to calm him down when he was really fussy or tired)
Nursing cover $5.00 Craigslist purchase - you can do without and use a blanket, but I did find the loop that goes over your neck helpful
Nipple cream $1.25 Received free at hospital - did not need to buy more
Bobby pillow $0.00 Craigslist Free
Receiving blankets $4.00 2 from consignment sale
Crib sheets $0.00 Use blankets when necessary
Crib/Bassinet $10.00 Bassinet; Use mattress on floor afterwards
Waterproof pads $0.00 Medical bed pads free from Craigslist (helpful during EC when baby was diaper free during the day)
Blankets $3.00 consignment store and gift from friend
Swaddle blankets $8.99 Swaddle Me (3) from consignment sale;
Car seat + base $10.00 Used - we don't take our baby in the car often, so we were comfortable with a used car seat that had not been any accidents
Neck & Head Pillow $5.00 Craigslist - was handy for our preterm baby as he was quite tiny! (4lbs 14 oz), however didn't use it for more than one month
Baby Carrier $10.25 Sling (for around the house), Evenflo carrier, & Baby Bjorn carrier from consignment sale
Stroller $0.00 Came with car seat - only used twice to take the little one to doctor's appointment with me
Baby bouncer $0.00 Our son didn't care for this much - he prefers being on the ground on a blanket where he an move freely
Clothes $55.00 Craigslist, freecycle, consignment sale - some of these clothes were from 0-18M, so these will last me awhile!
Books $0.00 My local library and freecycle
Grand Total of ~$320.00
Impressive! And also helpful for me. I like seeing how many free samples you were able to obtain here.
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yup I definitely lucked out! but apparently many insurance companies will cover a significant portion of the cost for the pump, so it is worth looking into. also, for those mamas who are planning on returning to work, some workplaces have pumps on site in their lactation rooms (hospitals in particular) which may eliminate the need for your own expensive one.
With ACA insurers are required to cover a breast pump. But it must be purchased from a durable medical goods supplier, and generally they only cover a small number of kinds, which may or may not actually work for you.
Edit because pump and bump aren't the same word....
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yup I definitely lucked out! but apparently many insurance companies will cover a significant portion of the cost for the pump, so it is worth looking into. also, for those mamas who are planning on returning to work, some workplaces have pumps on site in their lactation rooms (hospitals in particular) which may eliminate the need for your own expensive one.
With ACA insurers are required to cover a breast bump. But it must be purchased from a durable medical goods supplier, and generally they only cover a small number of kinds, which may or may not actually work for you.
Definitely worth a call to your insurance company on the breast pump. I found out that I could get one from the hospital after I delivered. The lactation consultant, first visit also covered, actually brought it and showed me how to use it. Super awesome.
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My son is 18 months old, and I am sooo glad I didn't buy/acquire more.
We were given an excellent car seat that was only used for a two week vacation, which helped considerably with costs.
I spent about $100 on very basic clothes, thermometer, etc. including one dozen very basic white washcloths and a laundry bag to put all those tiny socks in.
The best money I spent was on a great stroller, and on disposable bed pads- in the early weeks, I used these on the bed, and folded in thirds for a changing pad. Cut way down on laundry, and after it was soiled, the pad could be refolded two more times. Those early blow outs were amazing. I remember thinking, how did I get baby poo on my shoe?
Congratulations!
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Our son is 5, our daughter is two. What I've learned through both of them is you don't need much.
1) don't buy clothing- everyone buys you too much
2) baby wrap like the moby or make one yourself until 6ish months old, then the ergo
3) strollers are not needed in our family, we have one but rarely use it
4) good RF convertible car seat- we love the Donio radians
5) love love love modern cloth diapers- our favorites are pocket diapers. You can get them cheap on diaperswappers, register for them, even make them if you are crafty. If you're going cloth might as well use cloth wipes too :)
6) don't buy toys or book unless there is something specific you want- everyone buys kiddos too much stuff anyways.
7) we co-slept with DS, and are co-sleeping with DD YMMV and I would recommend a decent (can be bought used though) bassinet for any new baby then see how things shake our once they are home- you may buy a crib or not. A bassinet will do for the first 2+ months anyhow.
8) Digital thermometer worth it's weight in gold, as is a good snot sucker :) otherwise you don't need any baby specific toiletries/medicine cabinet stuff. Use little nail clippers or your teeth (though I never got the hang of that) you can use normal washcloths and towels, no need for baby specific ones.
9) swaddling was a Godsend for our son, a miracle blanket (or the like) will probably be very useful - and some muslin swaddling blankets which are multi purpose.
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+1 for the ergo baby recommendation. Be sure to not get a fake one, I hear fake ones are being sold at a huge discount on some sites. If it's too cheap to be true, it's probably not true...
Purchase it from a trusted place, or used from a trusted friend (this is how we got ours)
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Yea you don't need much. What really costs is medical stuff. Just the past couple of months we've been properly whacked with medical bills from left right and center, even with a medical aid. Doesn't matter what you do to prevent it, they're still going to get sick and sometimes it can be scary. And there's no way of mustachianising your way out of childhood illnesses. So point being, just be sure you're prepared to handle those when they pop up.
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A few things that we did:
- Show friends/family that you are ok with used items by taking them to a thrift store when you buy baby stuff. Most people will spend a $ amount, so if they pay less per item you get more
- Apply for all the free samples you can get. you never know what you will end up liking and using.
- Even if you plan to BF, get some free formula samples just incase. We had to supplement with formula for 4-5 days until supply caught up to demand.
- If you plan to BF and go back to work, get a STRONG, double pump. Will cost $300, but worth it since the free ones from insurance take longer (weaker and single) which is hard to use at work. Start building a freezer stash as soon as you can (like week 2 or 3)
- Take EVERYTHING from the hospital they let you. We seriously cleaned out all the diapers they left, and the nurse saw there was none left and gave us a pack 'to get started'. Also got 2 pacifiers, a thermometer and a bunch of gauze pads/baby wipes.
- If people ask what you need, ask for "6-12 month clothes" as you will get too much newborn stuff and not enough of bigger sizes.
- Crib isn't needed until they are 2+ months, so you can take time to look for a good price (like free). Don't feel like you need to rush into getting one before the birth
- Get/make a strong cleaning wipe (like the Lysol or bleach ones) as you will end up with poop on stuff and it's nice to just have that near by rather than going to get a rag and the spray bottle
also, for those mamas who are planning on returning to work, some workplaces have pumps on site in their lactation rooms (hospitals in particular) which may eliminate the need for your own expensive one.
You should check on this before hand. Most places don't even has dedicated rooms, much less equipment for you to use. This would also be a good time to ask HR where the PPACA required lactation room is as you need to know for once you return. And no, a bathroom with a lock is not acceptable; in fact that is expressly stated as not acceptable in the law.
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We're expecting baby #1 (due November), so I'm following along :).
Thus far, we've been super lucky to receive a ton of hand-me-downs from friends, family, and co-workers. Once we announced our pregnancy, hand-me-downs started coming out of the woodwork! The key is that we've told people we'll take anything and everything they want to give us (and then we figure we'll just give away whatever we don't need). And, even though we're expecting a girl, we've gladly taken "boy" stuff. Our crib and nursery sheets (all hand-me-downs) are technically for boys, but we couldn't care less. And, we're saving money by not painting the nursery or buying decorations, etc.
Another awesome resource for us is been the Buy Nothing Project--our city has a very active chapter via Facebook and we've gotten a bunch of free baby things and maternity clothes through that. Garage sales are great too--we've found that they're even cheaper than the thrift store. I recently bought a bag of 53 baby outfits, 3 hats, and 2 blankets for $10 at a garage sale (I think baby is set for clothes)!
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+1 for the ergo baby recommendation. Be sure to not get a fake one, I hear fake ones are being sold at a huge discount on some sites. If it's too cheap to be true, it's probably not true...
Purchase it from a trusted place, or used from a trusted friend (this is how we got ours)
There are other brands besides Ergo that are similar "soft structured carriers." We had an Action Baby Carrier and a Boba 3G (the latter is great for toddlers because it is taller in back, but it also sort of folds down to hold newborns without an insert like the Ergo needs); Beco is another. (Actually, we're selling our gender-neutral ABC, so if anyone needs one...)
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We're expecting baby #1 (due November), so I'm following along :).
Thus far, we've been super lucky to receive a ton of hand-me-downs from friends, family, and co-workers. Once we announced our pregnancy, hand-me-downs started coming out of the woodwork! The key is that we've told people we'll take anything and everything they want to give us (and then we figure we'll just give away whatever we don't need). And, even though we're expecting a girl, we've gladly taken "boy" stuff. Our crib and nursery sheets (all hand-me-downs) are technically for boys, but we couldn't care less. And, we're saving money by not painting the nursery or buying decorations, etc.
Another awesome resource for us is been the Buy Nothing Project--our city has a very active chapter via Facebook and we've gotten a bunch of free baby things and maternity clothes through that. Garage sales are great too--we've found that they're even cheaper than the thrift store. I recently bought a bag of 53 baby outfits, 3 hats, and 2 blankets for $10 at a garage sale (I think baby is set for clothes)!
I saw that on your blog. Congratulations!
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From mom to a two-year-old, I think there are some excellent responses here. I love the idea of the Finnish baby box (http://www.bbc.com/news/magazine-22751415), and it lists of all you need to start.
Also, I follow your 1,2,3 in your original post and just wanted to offer a few of my thoughts:
- You can calculate the number of outfits you need by how often you want to do your laundry. If you are willing to do laundry more frequently, you can get by with fewer outfits. I do our son's laundry once a week so I try to have 10 bottoms and 12 shirts in rotation. (We did laundry a bit more frequently when he was smaller and had more accidents.)
- There is no need to have items in every size. I had my 6 month old in 18 month pants and it was just fine since he wasn't walking anyway. Also pants with elastic cuffs can last longer than those without because the elastic cuffs prevent long pants from dragging on the ground.
- We liked having the infant car seat (got this used since we were only going to be using it for about a year), and it really helped to not have to wake the baby to transfer between car and where we needed to go. There were many good condition infant car seats available used precisely because they are only useful for a short time. We got a new carseat when our son got older, but we opted for a streamlined <$100 version. As far as I know, they all have to pass the same rigorous safety tests. It works perfectly and is lightweight for travel.
All the best!
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We're expecting baby #1 (due November), so I'm following along :).
Thus far, we've been super lucky to receive a ton of hand-me-downs from friends, family, and co-workers. Once we announced our pregnancy, hand-me-downs started coming out of the woodwork! The key is that we've told people we'll take anything and everything they want to give us (and then we figure we'll just give away whatever we don't need). And, even though we're expecting a girl, we've gladly taken "boy" stuff. Our crib and nursery sheets (all hand-me-downs) are technically for boys, but we couldn't care less. And, we're saving money by not painting the nursery or buying decorations, etc.
Another awesome resource for us is been the Buy Nothing Project--our city has a very active chapter via Facebook and we've gotten a bunch of free baby things and maternity clothes through that. Garage sales are great too--we've found that they're even cheaper than the thrift store. I recently bought a bag of 53 baby outfits, 3 hats, and 2 blankets for $10 at a garage sale (I think baby is set for clothes)!
I saw that on your blog. Congratulations!
Many thanks! We're pretty excited :)
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Don't buy anything except maybe one cute dress for the first few pictures. For the rest just let it be known in your circles that you are looking for baby stuff. You have no idea how many woman can't bear to throw away any of their kid's baby stuff and would love for it to find a nice home. Plus ofcourse all the friends and family who will give clothes will fill their wardrobe for the first year at least. I have some things still unworn which are already too small.
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Because everyone around me has school aged children, i'm not expecting much in the way of hand me downs.
So I hit the garage sales.
I got 12 newborn outfits (mostly jammies) and 12 3-month outfits, as well as 5 different types of name brand swaddles and sleep sacks, 5 pairs of legwarmers, and 5 hats. All of this cost me $45. Retail the sleepsacks alone would have cost $100; and since a lot of the outfits are licensed collegiate- they would be like $15 a piece.
I was SHOCKED at how much sold at garage sales was "like new" quality. Often I suspect it IS still new.
I know I still need a lot of "stuff"; but for clothes, based on the lists given to me by friends, I only need an outfit for photos, and for that I need to wait to see if it is a boy or a girl. I also couldn't find used socks, so I need to buy those new. They told me 12, and I may end up buying more, but I didn't want to overbuy before the baby gets here. I have laundry in my house, so I can run small, low water loads whenever I want.
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I've been pretty excited about how we haven't spent anything so far. I think we'll get a carseat and stroller from a baby shower too. So really just diapers (and daycare--ouch!). We have a bunch of friends with new/recent babies, so clothes should be available for borrowing as well.
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I've been pretty excited about how we haven't spent anything so far. I think we'll get a carseat and stroller from a baby shower too. So really just diapers (and daycare--ouch!). We have a bunch of friends with new/recent babies, so clothes should be available for borrowing as well.
If it's just one baby, and your friends are also having just one, maybe you could save big money on daycare if you babysit each other's baby one day a week.
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I've been pretty excited about how we haven't spent anything so far. I think we'll get a carseat and stroller from a baby shower too. So really just diapers (and daycare--ouch!). We have a bunch of friends with new/recent babies, so clothes should be available for borrowing as well.
If it's just one baby, and your friends are also having just one, maybe you could save big money on daycare if you babysit each other's baby one day a week.
I was actually thinking about this. The problem is we'd all have to take a vacation day each week. And we don't get 52 vacation days. So we'd have to take unpaid leave, and I'm not sure the other spendy people would go for that. In the end, maybe a 20% pay cut is similar to what daycare costs here anyway.
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5. If you have any control over what people give you for the baby, ZIP UP SLEEPERS, NOT SNAP UP. You do not want to be doing up 17,000 doll sized snaps at every diaper change.
I so wish someone had told me this before I owned 20 of these in various sizes. Lesson learned.
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Great advice here! We've got a 4 month old, so here's my take.
Consignment sales were GREAT for clothes. We have several largescale ones each year. Also, living in FL, we didn't really need much in the 0-3 sizes -- she was mostly in a diaper / swaddle in those first few months.
We use cloth diapers -- prefolds with covers (various brands) but we've got some pockets, too. We got all of them used, mostly through a cloth diapering facebook group. Speaking of which, my wife swears by Fluff Love University (http://www.fluffloveuniversity.com/) for diaper laundering tips.
We have a Britax stroller, but we mostly wear -- a woven wrap was the easiest, now we mostly use a Maya ring sling (gotten as a gift), and we have an ergo for when she's a bit bigger.
Swaddles are good, and I strongly recommend "The Happiest Baby on the Block" for soothing techniques. Really worked well in those first few months.
Breastfeeding (for us) wasn't super easy, so getting lactation support is a great idea. We also got a pump from ACA which has been very useful. And (as was said) be gentle with yourself if it doesn't go according to plan. Our daughter was still @ birthweight after 1 month (of very frequent breastfeeding) so we ended up supplementing. At first, my wife was very distraught about this, but everyone is now doing great.
Our hospital gave us an infant carseat for free, so you might look into that.
For a crib, I wanted to go low toxicity, and we went with Davinci (which isn't crazy expensive). We also got a naturepedic mattress.
I also want to echo communicating what you want to your friends/family. I've been really impressed by how thoughtful grandparents have been with their gifts -- both in terms of thrifting stuff and in terms of getting stuff that is non-toxic.
Best of luck!
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I have had great luck getting secondhand kids clothes. I sort them by size and gender, catalog them in a spreadsheet, and put away larger ones for future. My kids are now 4 and 1 1/2. Next month I will go to rummage sales and get 24 month and 2T clothes for my younger one to grow into. He has a limited number of hand-me-downs from his older sister but a lot of her stuff is/was pretty girly. My daughter has a friend who is 3 years older and we have boxes of her hand-me-downs sitting in the basement waiting for my daughter to grow into them, so she doesn't need much. I'll also check the rummage sales for the spendier stuff like snow boots, coats, and so on. I buy shoes new mostly (they have wide feet and shoes are something they wear all the time and I don't want to skimp; I'll buy them secondhand if I find a good-condition pair but usually I can't), along with stuff like socks and underwear.
We went straight to a convertible seat with our older one, but I realized that convertible seats may not fit newborns well, depending on their size. Our daughter was just barely big enough for the convertible and she was average sized. So in advance of our son's birth we bought an infant seat off a friend of a friend, just in case he came out small and wouldn't fit in the convertible. Having the seat to cart around was nice (he was born in February, and it was nice to be able to get him bundled up in the house and then take him out and snap him in) but we would have adjusted if not. My best-case scenario would be to borrow an infant seat for the first month and buy a convertible.
We got an IKEA crib. Bought cloth diapers when on sale/seconds.
I wouldn't buy a carrier or a stroller ahead of time. If someone gave me one I'd take it. You don't know what you'll end up liking or finding comfortable. We bought 2 carriers before having our daughter, barely used one and pretty much never used the other. I took her to a store eventually and tried on multiple carriers and bought the one I liked best. It was fairly spendy but I have used the heck out of it. We didn't buy a stroller until she was 8 months old because we just didn't feel the need for one.
I got a double electric breast pump for free on my insurance with my second kid (post-ACA). It never hurts to see what is available.
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The one thing I really recommend and buy for most of my close friends who are expecting is an Ergo baby carrier. They aren't cheap, but my first one lasted 7 years and 4 babies before I, tragically, lost it.
1. I would not go out and buy an Ergo. Try to get every free or very cheap baby carrier you can, and go to a babywearing meetup or clinic once your baby is born and THEN buy a baby carrier. I found the Ergo too big for both me and Babytooth and wound up with a Beco Gemini. I think I tried out 4 or 5 different carriers before I found one I liked. That said, the Ergo is a very nice carrier.
I want to second what sepants tooth said. Check if you have a local chapter (http://babywearinginternational.org/about-bwi/chapters/) of Babywearing International (http://babywearinginternational.org/). That might sound silly and like something I made up, but it is a real organization. Our local chapter had some really helpful and informative people, let me try out different carriers, and let me learn how to wear the random free sling we got better.
We had ended up using some small no-name structured carrier from a consignment sale when he was very young, switched to a Baby Bjorn carrier from a consignment sale when he was a bit bigger, and just recently upgraded to an Ergo we found on Craigslist for cheap. The ergo is a good carrier, but I don't think it's needed when the child is very small, and this saved us the trouble of having to find the newborn/infant insert. Because I went to the meetings, I realized the Beco might have been a slightly better carrier for us, but I happened to find the Ergo extremely cheap ($20) on Craigslist, so couldn't turn it down.
But ya, like Serpant said, baby wearing is awesome: Our son loves it, it calms him down, gets him to sleep and it lets me get work done at the same time. Also, if you are used to wearing him around regularly, when you need to do it for a hike you are already used to it :)
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Since today is my due date (though BabyNerd has not graced us with his presence yet), I thought I would update how we did.
We ended up buying practically nothing, and we're generally overwhelmed by offers of hand-me-downs that people wanted out of their houses. From this alone we got:
Two types of high chair
A very expensive bassinet (the Halo), which we never would've purchased or registered for, but may end up liking
2 rock-n-plays
Crib mattress
Daybed (for when the kid's a toddler)
2 large totes of clothes for up until the baby is 12 months (probably more outfits than I own for myself)
Training toilet
Playmat
Swaddle
Sleep sacks
And from gifts we got a bunch of other things (two baby carriers, pack-n-play, diapers, wipes), though we're returning a few things that we either don't need it or already got a used version of for free. We got a breast pump for free through insurance (thanks, ACA!). Some of the hand-me-downs may end up being excessive, but we can always pay them forward, return them to their owners (if they have more kids), or donate the excess.
The only baby items we ended up buying for ourselves were two car seats (we got a Black Friday deal on Amazon) and a few odds and ends, but between gift cards and returning items to Target, we're still coming out ahead.
I also ended up spending a grand total of $12 on maternity clothes. I got a few hand-me-downs, used a Schoola deal that was posted on the forum earlier this year, and managed to continue to use a fair amount of my regular wardrobe until the last few weeks.
We'll see what we need after the baby comes, but so far, it's been extremely Mustachian.
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Since today is my due date (though BabyNerd has not graced us with his presence yet), I thought I would update how we did.
We ended up buying practically nothing, and we're generally overwhelmed by offers of hand-me-downs that people wanted out of their houses. From this alone we got:
Two types of high chair
A very expensive bassinet (the Halo), which we never would've purchased or registered for, but may end up liking
2 rock-n-plays
Crib mattress
Daybed (for when the kid's a toddler)
2 large totes of clothes for up until the baby is 12 months (probably more outfits than I own for myself)
Training toilet
Playmat
Swaddle
Sleep sacks
And from gifts we got a bunch of other things (two baby carriers, pack-n-play, diapers, wipes), though we're returning a few things that we either don't need it or already got a used version of for free. We got a breast pump for free through insurance (thanks, ACA!). Some of the hand-me-downs may end up being excessive, but we can always pay them forward, return them to their owners (if they have more kids), or donate the excess.
The only baby items we ended up buying for ourselves were two car seats (we got a Black Friday deal on Amazon) and a few odds and ends, but between gift cards and returning items to Target, we're still coming out ahead.
I also ended up spending a grand total of $12 on maternity clothes. I got a few hand-me-downs, used a Schoola deal that was posted on the forum earlier this year, and managed to continue to use a fair amount of my regular wardrobe until the last few weeks.
We'll see what we need after the baby comes, but so far, it's been extremely Mustachian.
Ah, great. You didn't fall for the overbuying trap. From my experience, the free stuff will keep coming for at least the first year, and that's good because they grow out of their things every 3 months or so. After that the kids grow slower and play harder, so the hand me downs are not as much and more worn out.
One thing I got new which has been a great investment is a big play pen. When your kid starts crawling that will give your house a safe play area where you can leave him without worrying. In retrospect I should have got this earlier instead of the small one, which became useless after about 2 months of use.
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One thing I got new which has been a great investment is a big play pen. When your kid starts crawling that will give your house a safe play area where you can leave him without worrying. In retrospect I should have got this earlier instead of the small one, which became useless after about 2 months of use.
Would put a gate on the door and have a completely child-proofed baby bedroom work? Or do you need a different installation?
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Two reco's; one not quite mustachian
1) Look for give aways or contests. Reddit has a thread for active sweepstakes. Many times there will Baby Items like Wipes, etc.
https://www.reddit.com/r/sweepstakes/search?q=baby&restrict_sr=on&sort=relevance&t=all (https://www.reddit.com/r/sweepstakes/search?q=baby&restrict_sr=on&sort=relevance&t=all)
*The majority of the sweepstakes are not baby / parent related.
2) Go Private label; Kirkland Diapers are actually Huggies Diapers. Kimberly Clark even makes them for Costco (Kirkland is Costco's private label)
3) More for consumables, but Jet.com is often way cheaper than Amazon for household goods. Jet is like an online Costco but no annual fee. If you're willing to buy bulk quantities of wipes, diapers, etc. you can save a pretty penny with Jet.
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One thing I got new which has been a great investment is a big play pen. When your kid starts crawling that will give your house a safe play area where you can leave him without worrying. In retrospect I should have got this earlier instead of the small one, which became useless after about 2 months of use.
Would put a gate on the door and have a completely child-proofed baby bedroom work? Or do you need a different installation?
Baby may want to be where you are, so it depends on the floor plan of your house. We had a childproofed dining room gated at both sides and kids could see me in the kitchen. They did not like to be on their own in a different part of the house.
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We never used a play pen all that much and instead had everything about 98% childproofed (still spent a lot of time pulling my son out from behind the entertainment unit since I couldn't figure out how to childproof that).
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We had a "playroom" that was completely baby proof. That way you could sit in there and relax while the LO roamed all over, falling down and grabbing anything in site. It was also a "saferoom", where we could put her for a moment if we needed to do something. We only needed it for maybe a year, and then I turned back into an office. But during the early walking months, it was invaluable to have someplace with a soft landing(we had hard tile in most of the house).
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2) baby wrap like the moby or make one yourself until 6ish months old, then the ergo
5) love love love modern cloth diapers- our favorites are pocket diapers. You can get them cheap on diaperswappers, register for them, even make them if you are crafty. If you're going cloth might as well use cloth wipes too :)
+1 We are expecting our first baby in May and we just bought an Ergo and cloth diapers from Craigslist. They were so much cheaper than buying them new. We got the Ergo for $20 (retails $120) and the 23 barely used bumgenius and rumparoos both with inserts for $50. (Each bumgenius retails for just under $20 each.)
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We never used a play pen all that much and instead had everything about 98% childproofed (still spent a lot of time pulling my son out from behind the entertainment unit since I couldn't figure out how to childproof that).
If one really, really wants to childproof the entertainment center, I have heard of people using fireplace surrounds or extendable gates. I just said "no" and moved the baby.
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Where I am most people hire a capsule car seat to start with. Once baby outgrows that they buy a car seat. The capsules are safest for new babies but they do outgrow them very quickly.
Also bear in mind that all car seats have an expiry date. As a general rule the more expensive ones last longer, worth considering if you're likely to have multiple children. Also always check the expiry date when purchasing, some of them can use a good portion of their lifespan sitting on a shelf before being bought.
My daughters car seat is one of very few items that we have purchased new, everything else has been second hand. Good quality baby products are designed to last for multiple children and can be picked up second hand for a fraction of the retail price.
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Sorry for disturbing...just my 2 cents
As the father of a 3 year old girl and a 17 month boy I can speak from recent experience.
Clothes, don't bother, we got so many I forget who got what. Of course a full football kit of his dad's team wouldn't go amiss if they follow one. If you must, get them for at least 6 months plus so they have something for the future.
Sophie la girafe is a must have, but someone may have already got one of those. A soothing night light/lullaby machine is good, they don't work for all kids but can be a real help when they do work.
Silver is a great idea, though we got more of that at christenings. I like the idea of a wine for putting down, or even shares or premium bonds.
Someone has already mentioned personalised items, and the best ones we got for the boy where a really nice blanket and a neckerchief/bib with his name on them.
My favourite though was a baby blanket a friend of mine when our daughter was born. My wife is Greek Cypriot and my friend made us a blanket with a Union Jack on it, but in the colours of the Cypriot flag. It's awesome because its unique.
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The capsules are safest for new babies but they do outgrow them very quickly.
Do you have a citation?
At least in the US, all carseats have to meet the same standard, and there are no strong studies (just very limited ones) ranking relatively safety of different models.
Capsules are generally considered better for convienece, but really they are easier because people leave baby sleeping in them, and you shouldn't do that.