Tuesday, March 23, 2010

The Baby Registry. Part Three - Likes.

There are quite a few baby items we were given as gifts that were very nice to have, but we probably could have survived without.  However, I know for a fact that some people would view some of these items as "essentials".  (Babies R Us would also lead you to this belief.)

1. Pack n Play
    The pattern that we have (Catalina) isn't available anymore.  This is really nice for us because of camp.  While she didn't sleep in it (Tillie slept in her carseat for 3 months.  I know,  She's weird, but it worked), I loved having the changing table.  Now, we've used it at my mom's house, at our friends' when we go to a party, and now I have it set up in the basement for her to play in when I'm working down there.  The new style, which I linked to, has a "newborn napper".  I think that would have been useful to me because she would have slept in that like she did in the carseat.  Really, this is probably a must have for me because of camp in the summers.  Moving a crib for a month would be ridiculous.  But for short trips, I'm sure I would have been able to borrow one.

2. Bouncy Seat
    I have a no-frills bouncy seat.  Maybe if I had a "sweet" one, she would have liked it more.  It was very nice to have a place to set her down once and a while, but she never loved it.  I'm glad I had it, but I probably could have lived without it.  We used it from 2 weeks to 5 months.
This was just to take a picture of her dress.  I did buckle her in usually.

3. Excersaucer
    This isn't the one we have, because ours was a hand-me-down from Tim's sister.  I see these for a good price on Craigslist.  They're so expensive new.  Tillie used hers A LOT from 4-8 months.  They take up a lot of space in a room, but she would play there happily for 30 minutes sometimes.

4. Jumperoo
    We got this one hand-me-down from someone my dad works with.  They have some that act more like a mix of the jumperoo and the excersaucer.  Tillie really liked both of them, so I'm glad I had them.  But, I wouldn't have paid $100 for this.  She used this one from 4.5 months - 8.5 months.  She would probably still use it now, but I was sick of having it in my living room.  Some kids like to jump more than others. One like this would take up half the room, but could do the same job as both things.  I would probably recommend just one, but you should definitely look on Craiglist or ask friends and family.

Do you have any of these items?  Could you have lived without them?

4 comments:

Miranda said...

For Dakotah & Kaelyn I could not have lived without the Fisher Price Deluxe Take-Along Swing. I bought it at a grage sale for $10 and we have used it with all 3 girls. Zoey didn't get to use it much due to her hospital stay and what not. Kaelyn was so small she fit in it until almost 20 months old.

I am a fan of he grow with me toys. So for an exersaucer/walker we bought he Step N Play Piano. The girls got so much use out of it.

Another love is my BumGenius cloth diapers!

Cara said...

At day care/babysitting, I can't live without the pack and play, just to put a mobile kiddo somewhere so I can get lunch ready and not have them crawling up the stairs. I would imagine that since I have a two story house, the pack and play might be more handy for me, since I could set it up downstairs all the time for the changing table, etc. Also, for the record, the Rainforest jumperoo isn't any bigger than the jumperoo you have, its just taller. I think the base on the precious planet one is actually smaller. But I agree that I wouldn't pay full price. I found one on Craigslist in excellent condition for $10.

Rebecca: said...

Both my girls loved their bouncy seat (and we have a no frills), plus it was so portable, I could take it in the bathroom when I showered, take it upstairs, etc.

Laura Ingalls wannabe said...

Margaret is 7 months old and still sleeps in the bassinet portion of the Pack 'n' Play exclusively. I intended to move her out of our room at 3 months or so, but she still wakes up every 4 hours to eat. I'm so not trekking all the way across the hall 4 times a night.

We have the same bouncy seat and my husband gets a lot of use out of it when he's watching Meg in the mornings. I'm never down in the basement, so I've never used it.

The Exersaucer lives in our kitchen and I'd never get dishes done without it. I love that thing. Meg likes it for 15-minute spurts.