I worked it out once a few months ago and our last baby cost us exactly $33!!! (faceclothes and a few new receiving blankets)

What I use/d all the time and couldn’t live without: receiving blankets, use them for EVERYTHING!, cloth diapers and breastpads and facecloths for wipes, all my carriers…. yes, Hi, my name is Dani and I have a serious baby carrier problem!! several types of slings, wraps, meitais- honestly could NOT survive motherhood without them! all of my babies clothing came through a recycle program I use to run- the “lending library” for babies. A bucket car seat to start off….. oh and a small potty as we are an EC family! ummmmmmm, yea, that’s about it.

the most useless things I even had/was given: crib, change table, swing (all my kids HATED the thing!),Every stroller I’ve ever owned has been more struggle than it was worth (when they get older, wagons are MUCH better!),bottles and all the paraphenalia that goes with them, diaper bags, baby bathtubs, oh and those huge honking highchairs that they make now days!!! come on! who the heck really has enough room for a highchair that takes up 9 square feet of floor room!!!

and not to start anysort of argument between commenters- this is just my opinion: but my partner Helen and I buy up every copy of Babywise we find in second hand shops and tear them up into little pieces so that no new mother might be tempted to read it.

2) What did you think you needed that you never used and wasn’t worth getting? The receiving blankets sold in most stores are too small, my first baby was never swaddled because of that. I love the Swaddle Designs ultimate Receiving Blanket, I had that with my second and it makes swaddling so much easier. Also, I never had a carrier of any kind, so I’m glad I never bought one. I don’t think I would have used it much, I like just holding baby and I use the stroller when I’m out of the house.

3) Recommendations for breast pumps? Bottles? Strollers? Car seats? Baby carriers (slings vs. bjorns vs. whatever else)? If you don’t work and only need milk for occasional dates with your hubby or the church nursery (like I do), the Avent Isis is a great pump. I would just pump one breast and feed baby the other every morning, and keep the milk in the freezer for when I needed a bottle…I also used the milk in baby cereal and baby foods as well. I love having a Graco Travel System…I love the basket for my shopping and the cup holders. I also loved being able to transfer my newborn to the stroller without waking her/him. I now have a Graco Quattro Duo, which I love for mall shopping. For traveling, I have a double MacClaren, which is the BEST umbrella stroller in the world. My DH can actually push it without hunching over, it is well built, and it can seat a 4 year old on one side and a newborn on the other without tipping. The only drawbacks is the basket (basically nothing), and no cup holder…so it’s no good for the mall. It also comes with a great rain cover, which came VERY much in handy at Disney World:)

4) Any opinions on cloth vs. disposable diapers? I use disposable diapers, I’m a fan of Pampers.

5) If you don’t like changing baby on the floor, a changing pad on top of the dresser saves space and works great. I’m also a big fan of lasholin for the early breastfeeding days, and I love Avent washable bra pads. Even after the leaking stops, nursing bras are too thin LOL! For the more traditional parent (as I am), Babywise and The Baby Whisperer are great resources which helped me a ton.

2) What did you think you needed that you never used and wasn’t worth getting? We wanted a “cool” looking trash can for Katies diaper pail and opted for a regular stainless steal bathroom type trashcan. BIG mistake! Her room smelled horrible because the trash can did not contain the odor! We broke down and had to get a diaper genie. I am SO thankful that we did! It works! We had a bottle warmer that was useless. It didn’t work! A formula mixer is also useless. TOO MANY TOYS!!!! It truly is amazing that kids want to play with the simplest things! Katie’s favorites are books, music, a $1.99 bouncy ball from Wal-Mart and the tv remote!

3) Recommendations for breast pumps? Bottles? Strollers? Car seats? Baby carriers (slings vs. bjorns vs. whatever else)? We chose to bottle feed and used the Playtex nursers with the drop-in liners. They were great- very quick to use and easy to clean up. We went through 4-5 styles before we settled on the Playtex ones. We purchased two strollers- one is a Baby Trend travel system. It came with one car seat base, an infant carrier and a jogging stroller. We sold the infant carrier and car seat base at a consignment sale and still use the jogging stroller around town, on trails and to walk around the neighborhood. We liked the Baby Trend jogging stroller because it had 16″ rubber tires on aluminum rims, so they would hold up to heavier use. We also opted for a small umbrella stroller for other everyday uses. We got the McLaren which is awesome! When Katie outgrew the infant carrier we got the Graco Nautilus car seat (bought two- one for each car because these stay put). We have been using it since January and love it. I had an Infantino sling that I loved! Katie loved it, too! She would just snuggle up in there when she was tiny! It was great to have to put her in and walk around the house, town, etc. However, she outgrew it after about 2 months. I also opted for the less expensive Snugli brand baby carrier. You wear the baby in the front- the baby faces in when they are little and can be turned to face out when they are a little older. We looked at the Bjorn and some other brands, but just couldn’t see spending that much money. We were very pleased with the Snugli one.

4) Any opinions on cloth vs. disposable diapers? We use disposable diapers. If you choose disposables, I would recommend that you try each brand and find the one that you like. We primarily use Parent’s Choice (Wal-Mart brand) but also like Huggies. Luvs are ok. I don’t like Pampers. Same goes with wipes- the only wipes I’ve found that I really like are Huggies- they are thick and work well. Cloth diapers do make great burp cloths, too!

5) We got three sizes of diaper bags- small, medium and large- which was helpful. Another suggestion- get at least one diaper bag that your husband will feel comfortable carrying around. I was looking at pretty pink/floral/paisley ones for Katie, but Mark’s comment was “That’s pretty, but I won’t carry it!”. A hamper for the baby’s room is handy.

Good luck! Can’t wait to meet your little guy!

1) Aden & Anais swaddle blankets are THE BEST! They are useful for so many things other than just swaddling. Everyone I know who has used them is totally hooked on them. You won’t want to use any other blankets! The bouncy seat and exersaucer were big hits at our house. I have to say, that I couldn’t have gone without a crib. I’m a great sleeper, but tried out the cosleeping thing and I couldn’t sleep at all with V in bed with me.

2) We had a swing, but V wasn’t a big fan of it. I would suggest trying to borrow one from someone. I hear some babies love them though, you never know. We also got a pack n play from my neighbor who had only used it a couple of times. I wouldn’t spend too much money on one. I’m glad we have one and we’ve used it more than I thought we would, but most people end up not using it all that much.

3) Medela Pump In Style. I couldn’t have made it without my pump. We had some nursing problems in the begging, so I really needed the pump in the beginning and really thoughout the time I was nursing to create a stash. On the bottles, I would suggest purchasing a few different ones and trying them out. Some babies are pickier than others. We had to go through a few different ones to find what worked for us. V never became attached to a bottle though. If you’re going to be walking outside much (and I know you’re neighborhood is a good walking one!) I’d recommend a good jogging stroller. They work so much better on the roads than regular strollers. I have the BOB and love it.

4) Cloth diapers all the way! We use Fuzzi Bunz and love them. My sister-in-law and I started selling them in our baby store after I started using them since we love them so much. They just came out with a one size that’s great!

5) I had a really hard time with breastfeeding for the first few weeks and thought I wasn’t going to make it. I had a lot of support around me with the breastfeeding which helped me figure it all out and we ended up nursing for 14 months. I definitely recommend having some good breasfeeding guides, consultants, friends, etc around to help you figure it out. It wasn’t easy for me a first, but I’m so glad I stuck with it! Oh yeah, try to read as many parenting / baby care books as you can before the baby gets here. I read tons of pregnancy books and not enough of “what should you do when the baby is actually here” type books!

Sleepywrap (awkward at first, but its really awesome way of wearing baby)
Boppy
Medela Pump In Style
Bed Rails for co-sleeping

Items we never used that were a waste for our family…
Crib, swing (although most babies do like them), bottles, pacifiers, changing table, bibs, bottle warmer, wipes warmer, baby shoes, etc.

We use disposable diapers but I do make my own wipes which I love doing and is cheaper! Don’t fall for all the little baby items that stores promote and make you think you need..you won’t. Babies don’t require a lot, we just think they do! My daughter won’t use bouncers, or swings or any of that fancy baby gear. She’d rather play on the floor or interact with Mommy & Daddy!

Oh one more thing, skip the travel system. Get a good safe reliable reversible car seat and then buy a separate stroller down the road when you need one. I never should have bought an infant car seat, she used it like 2 months, total waste!