Blogging Baby Size Six: Things I would buy for baby #2

by Nadine Silverthorne (Subscribe to Nadine Silverthorne's posts) Dec 31st 2006 6:07PM

Categories: Newborns, Babies, Pregnancy & Birth, Baby Essentials

With my first child, there were a lot of things I didn't buy because I passed them off as unnecessary or just plain stupid. The truth of the matter was I was scared, broke and inexperienced. Now that I have most of the essentials in house, I think that this time (when that time arrives -- no news yet!) I could afford to be a bit more frivolous.

1. A sling: I know, I know. Your child lived in the sling. Why would I turn my nose up at the sling? Now I see the merits of the sling, like being able to nurse comfortably and privately in public, or having your hands free to wrestle down a highly mobile toddler.

2. A really good all-in-one pack n' play: With a two bedroom house, the new baby will have to sleep with us for a few months. With our new pillow-top mattress, co-sleeping is out of the question to due SIDS safety concerns. So it's time for something that can go right beside the bed as a bassinet, change table and ~~cage~~ play area all in one shot.

3. The Bumbo chair: These chairs were just coming on the market when Nate was small. They help prop up small infants into a seated position. At the time, I thought they were largely unnecessary, but recently I read an article in Today's Parent that mentioned putting the baby in this chair while the older child entertains him or her gives you time to prepare dinner. I guess a bouncy chair would also do the trick.

4. A car seat carrier stroller: The stroller that my infant car seat came with was stolen off my porch last Christmas, so I need something lightweight to replace it. I love how light these are and the amount of storage they have underneath.

5. An exersaucer: I never had one for Nate, but always loved their ability to keep him entertained while we were visiting friends who had one.

6. The Brest Friend: I had a nursing pillow, but this thing is the Cadillac of nursing pillows. It has a place for drinks and magazines and the phone. It supports your back

What about you? Anything you'd get for the next time around?

Comments (15)

Reader Comments (Page 1 of 1)

mamaloo, the doula 12-31-2006 @ 7:25PM

Honestly, this time around I've learned that I can forego all of those things except the sling (though I don't do ring slings anymore - I'm a convert to the more back friendly and easier to use Asian Baby Carrier/ Mei Tai).

Frankly, this time, I'm going to put baby on the floor with toys more often then strapping them into saucers and bouncy seats. And I absolutely hate pack and plays.

But, that's just me.

Mayo 1-02-2007 @ 12:08AM

Well, my second is nine months old and I have:

A sling (2 to be precise)
An excersaucer (I really like the Baby Einstein one)
A johnny jump up
A medela breast pump, which after two kids and difficulty nursing both after six months, I have decided to buried with!)
A wonderful swing
A bumbo, which is great for feeding baby food -- toss it in the shower and viola! it's clean!

LB 12-31-2006 @ 8:31PM

Please consider skipping number 4-
http://www.forbes.com/forbeslife/health/feeds/hscout/2006/12/08/hscout536515.html

The goal is to keep time in the seat to the bare minimum. Maybe, maybe get a stroller that will also take the seat for when you know the baby will only be in it for a super short time.

Good Luck

Cheryl 1-02-2007 @ 12:07AM

I was just thinking about this topic the other day. I wish I had gotten a baby Bjorn and a Fisher Price baby papasan. When my daughter was under three months, the latter item would have been perfect to soothe her during the day-- our bouncy seat was too upright and wasn't relaxing.

I bought the sling a little too far along in the game, at around 4-5 months. She is now 8 months and it's just too heavy for me to carry her this way (although I am sure there are some super moms out there who still do it). I bought a Bumbo and I am sort of mixed on it... it did seem to help her sit up sooner independently but that window of time between when they can sit assisted and then don't need support isn't very big. However there were times when it bought some peace.

Exersaucer was a totally great purchase, I got tons of use out of it for little bursts every day. My baby loved the independence and mobility it gave her and couldn't have cared less about me while she was in it which was great for getting dinner on the table.

Marcia 1-02-2007 @ 12:07AM

I will definately get the sling next time. I didn't want one for my first because I had originally thought them to be unsafe. Now there are times when she wants nursed and I have a million things to do but have to just sit down and feed her.

I don't think I'd get an exersaucer. The walker we have for her has 2 attaching playstations for her to play with. This way she can scoot around and play too. I like that she can work on learning to walk as well as play with her toys.

Bee 1-02-2007 @ 12:07AM

I had everything on your list for our baby, except the travel system (car seat/stroller thingy) Boy I wish I had one! What a pain to take her out of the car seat and put her in the stroller in the winter. I've seen that article about the oxygen drop associated with too much car seat time, but our baby is awake 99% of the time in the car seat & I watch her like a hawk anyway.

jj 1-02-2007 @ 12:07AM

Number two is almost 10 months old. I haven't found much other than the sling/carrier indispensible. If I had to limit it, I'd go with a fleece pouch sling for the newborn days/weeks/months, and then an Ergo or Becopack type carrier for 3-4 months on. There are definitely nights where we wouldn't be eating dinner if I couldn't carry the baby on my back in the Ergo/Beco while cooking. FWIW, we still use the Ergo with our 3-1/2 year old at times, and I regularly used a pouch sling to carry him on my hip until he was 2-1/4. So I'd say we've definitely gotten our money's worth out of those purchases.

Still haven't found the need for a pack'n'play. We've got a pillow-top mattress, but it isn't that pillowy I guess and co-sleeping has never been a problem. I rarely use the changing table as it is, as he's too wriggly, so we usually just change the diapers on the bed or floor.

The Bumbo is pretty nifty. A friend gave us one, I would've never gotten one on my own. However, it didn't take long before he learned to launch himself out of it backwards by arching back and pushing with his feet. So we don't really use it anymore. I don't think it's a necessity by any stretch of the imagination. And it's not for chubby babies - at least I can't fathom any baby much chunkier than my skinny boy fitting in there! It's a pretty snug fit!

I bought a used Exersaucer at a consigment shop and it was quickly relegated to the basement. He never liked it though my first son did. Definitely something worth borrowing or buying used! Or at least get one at a discount store like Big Lots 'cos those things are expensive! Same goes for swings. Some babies love 'em, others have no interest, and they're expensive and take up a lot of room.

And while I have a Boppy, I rarely if ever used it. I have never really found the need to use pillows or other things to prop up the baby while nursing. But I know others who can't live without theirs. The Breast Friend does look like a great pillow.

I did love the Jolly Jumper/Johnny Jump Up with our first. And I think baby #2 would also love it, but it doesn't work with the moldings on the doors in our current house unfortunately.

Kim 1-02-2007 @ 12:06AM

My Brest Friend didn't work for me. (Mine was used twice, is still in the original box...I'd be very willing to sell it.) I think I'm just not the right "size" for it. I either used a boppy or no pillow at all.

I had a Baby Bjorn and loved it but I am thinking about a sling for the baby I'm expecting in April. I'm taking a slightly longer maternity leave and will have more opportunities to use it.

Didn't have a Bumbo but found the remaining items on your list extremely useful and helpful.

The main thing I'm planning to add this time, besides a sling, is a co-sleeper. We didn't have a bassinet, and my husband is too sound a sleeper to get the baby and bring her to me for night time nursing.

Jenny 1-02-2007 @ 12:06AM

The one thing I bought for the second that I didn't have for the first was a swing that held her well off the floor. We used a loaner portable swing with the first (rarely) and a buzzy chair. With the second, we quickly found that if we left her on the floor or in the buzzy chair then her sister would start crawling on her in what can only be described as a body-slam kind of love. The only way to get anything done was to have a place to put the baby where her sister couldn't crawl in.

I'd get a sit-n-stand rather than a single stroller system, unless you really think your toddler can keep up with you walking at all times. When we started out I actually always put the baby in the bjorn and the toddler in a single stroller, then moved on to a double umbrella stroller, but I have a friend with a sit-n-stand and I covet it.

I also found a boppy better than a breast friend, and a bjorn worked better for us than a sling as my kids had lots of reflux and always wanted to be upright.

MamaChristy 1-02-2007 @ 12:05AM

I will totally suck it up and spend the couple hundred bucks on a video monitor for my next child. Since I have everything else for a baby from when my 2 1/2 year old was a baby, I think I will be able to justify the expense. I have wished countless times that I had a video monitor and will get one for sure the next time around.

I had a used exersaucer for my boy and he didn't care. The seat and toys come off and was pretty easy to clean enough for me to feel comfotable using it.

I hope you get your good news soon and get all of the "additionals" you want for a new little love!

Tara 1-02-2007 @ 12:05AM

I had a baby bjorn and used it a whopping two times. Although I also had twins, so I typically went mobile while they were in the stroller since I couldn't carry both of them. I don't think a sling would be for me.

What I would buy is the Medela Pump In Style (or whatever else is top of the line at the time) I bought a poor excuse for a breast pump the first time around. Not only that, but it was a single breast pump. I hated it. I would also spend the big bucks and get the twin nursing pillow if I had to do it all over again.

We didn't have the johnny jump up, rather the fisher price jumperoo. I had one baby that loved it and one that didn't care for it one way or the other. I couldn't live without our swings. Though having two swings in the house was a bit crowded, it was worth all the stubbed toes! We also had two bouncers and bottle feeding twins at the same time is priceless, so bouncers are good to prop them up in. Especially once they can hold the bottle on their own.

One thing I might do different to save space is high chairs. We have two standard high chairs, but I'm thinking a booster type seat with a tray that fits to a regular chair would be more convenient. Especially at the toddler stage when all they want to do is sit at the "big table" anyway.

Lex 1-02-2007 @ 10:19AM

Cheryl, have you tried the Baby Bjorn? You might want to check out the Ergo, as well. I have both, and believe me, the Ergo is waaaaay more versatile. it carries much bigger babies, for starters, and is a lot easier on your body. It doesn't even cost much more than the Bjorn. Frankly, I was so excited about the Bjorn and ended up cursing its very existence by the time my daughter was 3 months old.

There's a great organization called Nine In, Nine Out (www.nineinnineout.com -- I think) where you can go to meetings and actually try out a variety of slings. You can even check them out for a week or so and really get a sense of how they work.

hp 1-02-2007 @ 9:40AM

Hmmm . . .

I'd definitely get a better sling if I was to do this all again. I have the pouch sling they sell at Target and it's okay, but I like the hotslings and such better.

The Bumbo: my daycare provider is starting to warn people about these. She says that she's heard about too many injuries as a result of (a) babies being put into them when their back muscles are still too weak, or (b) babies launching themselves backwards out of them once their leg muscles get stronger. (The daycare doesn't use any type of infant seat/restraints other than cribs for sleeping.) Le babe has such strong legs that he probably would have been able to launch himself out before it was even safe to put him in!

I love the car seat stroller, but he doesn't sleep in there (for those doing the airway issues warnings). He loves it, because he can keep me in view AND watch what's going on around him--with him sitting backwards in the stroller, we can do stuff for hours. He doesn't like sitting forward in the stroller. Are there any backwards sitting strollers without the car seat attachment?

Ginny 1-02-2007 @ 4:52PM

I won't be having anymore babies, thank goodness, but the one thing I couldn't live without with my second baby is the vibrating bouncy seat. When she would get gassy, I'd sit her in there and soon enough she'd have a big ole messy diaper and no more gas stuck in her little tummy.

HC 1-07-2007 @ 10:52PM

My son Will is nearly 7 months old I own nearly everything on your list. I tried slings, the ergo, babybjorn. Will hated them all. Bumbo? he launches himself out of it. Jumperoo? Ehhh, he's okay with it but he only tolerates it. My Brest Friend? He decided that he preferred to look around while eating rather than staring at my chest to nurse for an hour. I guess that's what breast pumps are for...