Purchases you didn't need to make?

[xPH03N1Xx]

Just wondering If you lovely mums can help me...

I'm a bit overwhelmed with all the things people say we need and don't need, so I was just wondering what things you bought, or were given to you, that you havent used much?

And what things did you NOT purchase, but wish you had?

Thanks xox

 

[LittleBoo]

I haven't bought a changing mat and I've never needed one, I bought a pram and I never use that, same with my toddlers stroller, eldest walks/occasionally goes on my shoulders and little one's in a front carrier.

Hmm... I'm sure there's many more. Ah, baby baths, never needed one, the boys bathe together and always have, I simply hold Cas's head up and he kicks and splashes with Jack.

I never needed scratch mits, neither boys scratched their faces...

Will add more as they come to me

 

[rwhite]

A sangenic nappy bin - waste of money when you can just use a push-pedal bin and nappy sacks!

 

[blhanson1]

A baby monitor. The baby slept in our room for the first three months and now I have no trouble hearing her down the hall in her own room. Could have saved myself the $40 had I known!

 

[StarlitHome]

haven't yet needed a changing mat, no stroller (we have a Moby Wrap and an Ergo), no baby bath (used the kitchen sink for the first little while and now she kicks and splashes in the tub whilst I hold her head)... didn't get a baby swing or a moses basket but we co-sleep.

 

[alienbabe4321]

Toys are basically a waste of time until LO starts showing interest in something other than facial expressions.

Never used a changing table and just have a changing area on the floor in the bedroom and the living room. Glad I haven't as now Louis can roll around I wouldn't be able to keep him safe on a changing table.

I second the baby bath. Normal bath tub the whole way!

Barrier creams and baby bubble bath I've found a waste as well. I bath lo in plain water as he still isn't getting grubby enough to warrant soap products and I've simply never used barrier creams. I probably will when or if lo gets nappy rash but so far he hasn't had it, and he's about to cut his first tooth.

Dummies have never been needed. I decided he wasn't going to have one and when I gave in one day because we were given one and lo was being very fussy, it turned out he didn't like it anyway.

 

[supertabby]

Waste of money

Baby bath - We used ours about 3 times. Its too heavy to move around full of water and if you're going to use it inside the bath (leaning can be awkward) then you're better off with a support that goes into your big bath, as its much easier then to position and hold baby. We just took her in the bath or shower with us and now she's over 6 months she has her own seat.

Bottle warmer - basically warms up some water for you to put bottle in, so it does exactly the same thing as a kettle but slower! It doesn't moderate the temperature or tell you its done or anything. The only use I can see for this is if you go to a hotel with no kettle, but then you might as well buy a travel kettle and make yourself a cup of tea too!



Great purchases

Cloth sling to use from birth - newborns often want to be held all the time, a sling comes in very useful here. Hubby spent a lot of evenings wearing her and she would sleep in it, giving me a chance to nap before the night feeds started. He also used it topless sometimes and had daddy skin-to-skin bonding time!

Sangenic nappy bin - really easy disposal and no smells, everything gets compacted too.

Grobag - baby has to be 10lb so you probably can't use from birth but we didn't discover Grobags till about 3 months and really wish we had them all along. They can't be kicked off like blankets, nor go over babys head and are great for night feeds and baby can feed while wearing it and then be all snug and warm going back into the cot (as opposed to waking up from cold sheets)

 

[supertabby]

Can I ask, those who don't use a changing mat - what do you use? I understand not having a changing table especially when babies start rolling, but not using a mat? What about if they are really soiled or if they pee during a change? Just curious.

 

[booda]

Wish i'd researched prams/buggies/strollers more.
Stuck with a Silver Cross travel system, LO now hates the car-seat (has reflux), and up until recently it was car-seat with insert (hes too big for insert now) or sling, but i have a trapped nerve in upper spine and old fracture in lower sling that bugs me in cold weather :/
So we put him in the front-facing buggy, which he loves, but at 11 weeks old i'd still rather see him!

Wish I'd bought: Swaddle blankets. didn't get them til LO was 4 weeks old, had tried with cellular blanket, he just wriggled out, flailed his arms in his sleep, batted himself in the face, woke himself up.....until out of desperation i bought a proper swaddle blanket, now we're getting 6 hours uninterrupted sleep a night

 

[hanelei]

Interesting how different everyone's experiences are! My LO hates slings, has from birth, luckily we were given ours second hand so haven't wasted any money on them. He loves being in the Ergo carrier though so that's been invaluable. At 7 months I still use our inflatable baby bath- first we used it in the kitchen sink, much softer than stainless steel for a newborn, and now we use it in the shower part of our bathroom (next to the tub which is too deep to lean into to wash him if I'm not in there with him)- the whole area is tiled so he can splash as much as he likes.

We didn't use (or use very much) little newborn hats as he was born in late spring and it warms up very quickly to the very hot summer here, and a lot of his newborn-sized clothes which we had way too many of were only worn a couple of times because they grow so quickly! They're in 6 month size for much longer.

 

[sailing_girl]

It's funny cause many of what others have said they don't use, I LOVE and use all the time!

Stroller - LOVE IT! We go for walks daily in it. I have a baby carrier as well but she's getting so heavy that it hurt my back. I WISH that there were prams in Canada...

Baby Monitor - again, love it! It's been a huge lifesaver as we moved K to her own room at 6 weeks and it gives us peace of mind that she's ok as it has a movement sensor on it.

Baby bath - K loves this and I find it so much easier to leave it on the bathroom counter and fill it using a juice container. Ours has a little drain with a plug so it's easy to empty when we're finished.

Change pad - I really like having a change pad in her room where everything is set up and i can take her change her. We also have one that comes with our pack and play so if we're downstairs we can change her too.

Don't buy a really busy play mat....babies are amused with small and simple things. K loved to look at faces on stuffed animals and other items too for hours when she was younger.

Oh and if you're breastfeeding, I love my breastfeeding pillow, especially when I feed her in the glider. It really saves your arms!

Good luck - in the end you just have to choose what you want...everyone is different and uses things differently. My hubby and I are outdoorsy people and thus we got a stroller that could go with us when we go hiking etc.....

 

[xcharx]

Scratch mittens - never used!!
Baby bibs - rarely used but my LO was never really sick & prefer muslin clothes.
Changing table - never used, my aunt gave it to me & I couldn't fit it in my room so its in the loft.
Swaddle blanket - LO didn't like to be Swaddled & it was soo small.

One thing I do absolutely love that was brought for me is a tommee tippee dummy holder - saves you loosing loads of dummies & keeps them sterile
X

 

[hanelei]

Oh yeah, I was wondering about the changing mat thing too! We don't have a changing table, but our rug would be in a terrible state if we didn't have changing mats! I'm also curious to know where those who don't have them change their LOs?

 

[xPH03N1Xx]

Great lists, very helpful!
Keep them commin!

 

[Sideways 8]

For me, the biggest waste has been a microwave bottle sterilizer. We don't use it. Bottles get washed in the top rack of the dishwasher and that water gets hot enough to sterilize them. Speaking of dishwashers, the little basket thingie that holds nipples and other small parts like pacifiers is a tremendous time saver.

I love our wearable blanket. Someone got it as a shower gift for us, and its the best solution to keep her nice and warm, instead of blankets which she can kick off. This has definitely made our LO's nighttime routine muuuuch easier for us.

We never bought a diaper pail, just toss her diapers in with the regular trash. No problems with smell, although our trash can has a popup lid that stays closed.

 

[StarlitHome]

Oh yeah, I was wondering about the changing mat thing too! We don't have a changing table, but our rug would be in a terrible state if we didn't have changing mats! I'm also curious to know where those who don't have them change their LOs?

I have a changing table that I use at home, and when we're out I just use a blanket or a flat cloth diaper under her butt.

 

[LauraLu]

Never used:

baby wipes warmer

the itty bitty hats for newborns - find one, b/c you'll end up with too many

socks in different colors - get all white b/c they're a pain to match up after doing laundry

hooded baby towels - they're too thin and regular adult sized towels work better for us

Used:

baby nail clippers

aspirator (my daughter calls it the "boogie sucker")

plenty of sleepers (also known as footy pajamas)

pacifiers (we're always losing them!)

 

[xPH03N1Xx]

Never used:

baby wipes warmer

the itty bitty hats for newborns - find one, b/c you'll end up with too many

socks in different colors - get all white b/c they're a pain to match up after doing laundry

hooded baby towels - they're too thin and regular adult sized towels work better for us

Used:

baby nail clippers

aspirator (my daughter calls it the "boogie sucker")

plenty of sleepers (also known as footy pajamas)

pacifiers (we're always losing them!)

I never thought about the socks! I can see that would be a pain! Great advice about the baby towels too! Thank you

 

[Evies_mommy]

a bouncer seat (we just used a swing), she doesn't care for her gym, she'd rather have her boppy pillow & a blanket, I have never used my rocking chair, & I can't see us using the stoller much if at all.

 

[SiberianLover]

I use my baby bath every day...love it. I also prefer the hooded towels because they are thinner and smaller and I can toss them in the wash with her clothes.

I didn't use my crib until she was around 3 months old, so I didn't need that right away. She slept in either her bassinet or in bed with me.

I can't imagine not using my changing pad.

One thing I didn't have enough of were the all in one onesies with the snap crotch. Everyone got me cute little outfits and when you are getting used to a moving wiggling crying baby, you want what is easiest!! Plus, you go through a lot of them.

I wish I had gotten a few more nice, soft bibs, since LO has reflux and spits up so often.

Toys....LO is 4 months old and is only just now showing an interest in them.

Socks...I actually didn't have enough socks and had to go buy some.