re: To Buy, or Not to buy...that is the question.

The best advice I can give is go to craig's list and look for your local area.  Under baby items.  If you are on a budget and want a great deal, you can find all sorts of stuff.  This has been great for us.  We got a pack n play for $40 bucks in great condition and it has the bassinet & changing station items with it.  I even got a toddler bed w/bedding (finding nemo), wall decals and clock for $60.  I've seen glider rockers in great condition for $40-$100 depending on the type.  You can even negotiate prices.  But this is a great money saver if you have multiples, have a tight budget, or if you rather use your money for more important things like starting a college fund! 

I have a sling carrier and love it I wished I had known about it sooner (10 years ago to be exact when I had my 1st).  Great website for this is slinglings.com.  Lots of different fabrics and patterns to choose from.

Travel stroller/car seat sytems are nice to have, but again if you get an infant car seat you can always buy one of those stroller systems that just works with most car seats.

Just know there are so many products on the market and most of them are just icing on the cake but are really not necessary.  And if you aren't sure how much use you may get out of it, why not go second hand!! 

rule #1 about strollers!  Make sure they fit in your car!!!!  Some are ADORABLE and look so comfortable for baby and then you fold them up and they are still HUGE! Lol.... not fun

also, there are TONS of things that look really convienent.... they may not be!  One item that would be excellent to buy used as you will not use it for long is one of those shopping cart adapters so your baby that isn't quite stable stitting up but does not want to lay down can sit up.  You can also just tuck blankets around them, but it's a pain to pack blankets just for that.  But you will only use it for like two months. 

There's alot of things like that.  If you have a friend that has things you won't need for long (bassinets!) borrow them!  or buy used.  We have a really great baby/childrens resale shop in our town that checks for recalls on all items and everything is clean and in great condition.  Like new cribs for $80 with matress, carseats for $20, clothes at all prices(lots still have tags), ect.  Some stuff (cribs that change to toddler beds) you can buy new with no bad feelings cause you will use them for a year or more.  Other things are just a waste of money to buy new, but handy enough it's still worth buying.

De

whatsername80 wrote: Hehe (: Thought it might be helpful...especially since I have a question already!! Whats everyones opinions ... [snip!] ... I've heard that they're really good from some people, and then from other people that they're a waste of time and money...

my mom had one for my sister and it does help keep the stink away, but when you are up every hours of the night you just wanna toss it and not worry about pushing it in and twisting lol, so its really up to you. but it does work for the most part.

lindsayandkenny wrote: I thought about getting one of those where the older child sits or stands in the back, but the more i ... [snip!] ... seen something he liked or just for the fun of it...id probably be chsing him around trying to get him to get on all the time.

yea that my problem i need a double stroller for my son who willbe 3 next month and this baby, and this sit and stand ones are nice but he would never just stay there atleast in a double stroller he stays and cant get out so easy

My list of must haves !!

Crib with drop down railing. I skipped the changing table and change Hailey in her crib.

Diaper Pail that takes regular trash liners (I use the scented trash bags in it)

Bouncer

Portable swing . I moved mine from room to room, then take her swing outside for her to play in. When not in use it folds up and sits up against a wall.

Walker-I know some parents are against these, but Hailey uses it to stand up in. She can't walk yet, but loves standing up in it and being able to look around. It entertains for for awhile.

Travel System-Hailey is quickly out growing her seat, but it has really come in handy. When we go out to eat, she's not big enough to sit in a chair so she has a "chair" of her own, same thing when grocery shopping. By christmas she will have outgrown her infant seat and will be big enough to sit in a chair by herself so she will get a convertible seat.

Stroller - Her travel system stroller we use ALOT !! We took her to the fair in the stroller, we walk to P.O. a couple of days a week, etc. I love the it has a sunshade, cup holders, basket underneath, etc.

Umbrella Stroller-I recently bought one of these for the trips to the dr's office. Its hard to carry a baby, diaper bag and all the paperwork from one end of the hospital to the other. For $15.00 I figure the dr office trips alone will be perfect for this cheapy stroller. I wish I would of remembered it on Halloween cause it sure would of saved my sore arms that night.

Hailey hates her pack n play but I got one for when she stays at her grandparents house, then when she gets older it can be used as to put her in when I take a shower. Plus its just light weigh enough I could drag out into the yard .

I bought Hailey a jumperoo but she won't get it until christmas.

WELL...I'm a bit of a shopaholic when it comes to the little ones, a friend of mine got me a gift certificate to custom-kingdom.com for my shower...and I wound up spending 3 times more than what the gift certificate was worth!

I got a custom made baby blanket, diaper and wipes sack, and a few of the most adorable onesies-my favorite is the Bruce Lee one!!! I guess these aren't necessities, but it's really fun to have your baby in something that no one else has!!!

one thing iv found is that travel systems can be a pain in the ass lol

we bought the urban detour because i walk alot and its basicly off road lol BUT after we spent £300 on it, the guy said oh yaea.. your baby can only be in the car seat for 1 1/2 hours a day, and that really didnt suit me, by the time i was in town, id have to go home again!!!

soo another £400 later i have a quinny and i love love love it!!!!! its so light and easy to fold up into the car which the urban detour really wasnt lol

ohh yea, and if you end up having a bigger baby like Leo (10 lbs +) the infant carrier that comes on the travel system, doewsnt last very long!

Quoting Boku ga Kira da:“ one thing iv found is that travel systems can be a pain in the ass lol we bought the urban detour because ... [snip!] ... you end up having a bigger baby like Leo (10 lbs +) the infant carrier that comes on the travel system, doewsnt last very long!”

the baby can only be in the carseat 1 1/2 hours a day??? thats insane. ive never heard that before???

Quoting lindsayandkenny:“ the baby can only be in the carseat 1 1/2 hours a day??? thats insane. ive never heard that before???”

yep, my health visitor says it, the hospital said it when they asked what pram i had, the pram shop says it and the manual says it, if a baby is in one for more that 1 1/2 hours it starts to cramp their bodyand wreck their bones somehow

this might have been mentioned already....but i didn't want to read through the pages just yet cause my head and back is killing me..it's quitting time at work so just wanted to make one last post.

what about a breast pump? i am not sure if i am even going to be able to do it (no reason why i shouldn't be able to..but u never know) i just hate to spend 100+ on a breast pump that i might not even be able to use. guessing that i probably should wait til i see how he nurses?

For the breast pump, I bought the medela pump-n-style. It was $250.00. I went back to work when my baby was 6 weeks old. I didn't buy the pump before she was born because I wasn't sure how breast feeding would go... I waited until she was 4 weeks old to buy it. I ended up breast feeding her until she was 11 mos, 3weeks old. For me, I pumped 3 times a day at work. Therefore, the pump paid for itself (in what I would have spent on formula) in 6 months.

Evaluate how you think you will use the pump. If you plan to use it everyday, buy a more expensive one. You won't really know until your baby is a few weeks old. But it never hurts to do some homework.

To ensure breast feeding success, I recommend taking a class. I took tons of classes to prepare for the birth of my first child. The only one that was worth my time was the breastfeeding one. Also, after giving birth make sure you request to see a breast feeding specialist. They always have helpful tips. So that you know, the first3 weeks of breast feeding are very hard on mom. To make it through I had to set short term goals for myself. For example, I would tell myself that I am going to keep doing it, for just one more week, then re-evaluate. That helped me make it past the 3 week mark. After that, for the next 10 months, it was incredibly rewarding. It is a great way to bond with your child (aside from the great nutrition it provides).

Hope this helps!  

Sorry, I forgot to mention that I love the Medela pump-n-style. I plan to use it with my second baby, too. I lent it to my SNL for a couple of months. (Even though they say not to do that... It is not unsanitary... anyone who has used one knows that your milk doesn't touch the motor).

Although $250.00 seems like a lot, if you add up formula costs,it is much more. A friend of mine bought a cheaper pump. She said it hurt her boobs and shecouldn't take it back. Breast pumps are non-returnable. Also, you can rent one from the hospital. I forget the cost, but it added up to more than I spent.

I bought a breast pump online, tho the night before it should have been sent to me it was stolenn out of the post office!!!!, unfortunatly i didnt get my money baxck, the post office didnt count it as important enough for me to get a refund

in the end i couldnt breastfeed ( Leo had some sort of problem breathing properly, he latched on straight away, but just coulnt breathe.. weird!) so id reccommend not buying one till you can see if you can breastfeed, the bubs can always take straight from the breast untill you get one, you wont be going anywhere for a while so its not a rush to get one  

Hi there I was wondering what everyones opinion was on using things you have previously used for another of your children? I know the advice is to buy everything new, not to accept second hand from people, but what about things you for example bought new for your first and kept for your second only a few years later? my first is nearly 3 years oldim now 12 weeks pregnant and i have a small buget so I kept most of my sons things like the car seat, cot, crib etc some people say its fine to use cos its mine and its all still in good condition others say i should buy everything new but i dont know if ican really afford to do that.

I don't have as much time between my kids. My first baby is 14 months and I am 16 weeks preggo. I plan to use everything again (except her furniture because she is still using it!) We plan to use one diaper genie for both of them.

Since there is more time in between for you, the only thing I would worry about is the car seat. It is probably o.k., though. I would just take a few minutes and check it. Do you still have the original box? There may be an expiration date on it. If not, look the product up on line. I do not believe safety regulations for cribs have changed that much in the last 3 years, but you could also check that on line if you are concerned. Car seats are constantly being updated, though.

I can afford to buy new stuff, but I don't see the point. I would rather spend money on something else!