Wednesday, January 19, 2011

So Daniel and I spent about 3 hours and Babies R Us on Monday and afterwards, came home to heal by taking a nap.

The baby industry is like the bridal industry, capitalizing on suckers out there like me Daniel who are willing to shell out good money for things like an organic mattress. We're still hoping a $400 baby mattress can do something phenomenal like strengthen brain cell development, report on the baby's body temp and breathing rate, or at the very least, levitate.

The long and the short of it is - I am caught, like I'm sure many parents are, between all of the conflicting interests guiding this massive procurement of plastic stuff made in China that my ancestors did not even imagine. I want my baby to be safe and comfortable (e.g. the aforementioned mattress) . I want things that are cute (e.g. Boon grass). I want to minimize this baby's environmental impact (e.g. Seventh Gen diapers). I want things that are convenient. I want things that my husband will actually use (e.g. bugaboo stroller) and I want things that aren't ridiculously expensive.

But how does one know when to draw the line? Do I actually need three bathtubs? (newborn, infant, AND a normal adult bath tub?) Do I actually need low/hi-flow nipples? So here are some questions I'd like to pose for all the mommies (and daddies) out there. I know some of you lurkers are dying to contribute!

  • Diaper bag - do I really need one if all my purses are huge anyways?
  • Do I need a separate newborn (puj) and infant (4moms cleanwater) bath tubs or can I use the one that's already in my house?
  • Are Seventh Gen or Nature Babycare diapers worth trying? Seems like everyone uses Pampers or Huggies.
  • What did you do with diaper disposal? And do I *really* need a diaper pail?
  • Do I need to buy newborn clothes or should I jump straight to 3 months?
  • How do you get your husband to sell his two-seater and buy a more family friendly car?
Finally,
  • Does anyone want to sell/lend me your unneeded baby gear in good condition, for the sake of the environment and our collective pocketbooks?
I think that's all for now. More questions when I think of them!

4 comments:

Laura said...

Not as a mom, but as a former nanny, I can attest that yes, you do need the hi-low flow options (some babies will choke themselves on the hi, others won't get enough on the low), you do NOT need a special thing to dispose of diapers in (use a grocery bag, plastic or paper, that you can throw out daily), and YES on the diaper bag. In fact, some families I worked for had two, which was brilliant, 'cause then you always have one full of stuff ready to go on the fly. Packing a fresh diaper bag takes some time, so rotating was super helpful.

I am not so confident in my answers for the other things.

But, good for you for thinking these things out!

skf said...

Call me! I have answers! Disclaimer: And sometimes strong opinions. :)

Emalee said...

Congrats on the baby news! I think a large purse with pouch for diapers/wipes and another for bottle/passy/etc works. I keep a small bag with diapers and wipes in the car for when I walk out without remembering the essentials.
We like the infant/toddler tub and then moved to our tub when Alice started sitting. Alice recently started eating solids and we just got a diaper pale because of the new, terrible stench :).
Get ready for a lot of fun times ahead! We've really enjoyed the transition to parenthood and look past the sleepless nights in the beginning. Craigslist has been a great resource for nice, used baby gear.

euniceoh said...

hey pauline!

no, you do not need a diaper bag! i bought a cute and very expensive diaper bag (while byoung kept talking about just using a backpack) and a lot of times i wish we just listened to byoung. (but please never tell him that)

i've used the 4 moms cleanwater bathtub for megan since we brought her home and still use it now(@10 mos).

in regards to diapers, we used pampers early on and then once she hit size 3's moved on to the 7th gen diapers. the smaller size 7th gen are a lot rougher on their skin...so u might want to try something different when they're younger.

can you borrow some newborn clothes? they really don't wear them for too long....but i did buy some newborn clothes and my favorites were the ones that snapped on. i hated putting clothes over her head when she was that little

good luck with the car.

=)