The Second Time Around
When I was pregnant with Bean, I collected baby paraphernalia. It was a hobby. If someone reviewed something, I’d go buy it so we could try it out, too. If I read about something, I added it to my cart. If I saw someone using it out in public, I hunted it down and made it mine. It wasn’t just a frivolous shopping frenzy. Really. Honest. It was that I was so worried about how hard motherhood would be that I wanted any tool I could get my hands on to make it easier.
But here’s what 18 short months of motherhood has taught me:
It doesn’t take much to care for a newborn. Now, when they get a little bigger? You bet. But when they’re really little, there’s just not that much to ’em.
Because of that, I have been really streamlining what I’m going to need when Miss Gracie arrives. Going through Bean’s old baby things that we saved, I have made a pretty nice pile of gadgets and gizmos that I won’t be using this time around. The nice thing about streamlining is that it means the money I do have to spend on Gracie can be spent on things that I know I’ll actually use and on things that are just plain fun. Like ruffled bloomers. And tutus.
So, here we go…
Things I Can Live Without the Second Time Around:
A baby bottle warmer – I bought this one with the brilliant idea that when Bean woke up in the middle of the night as a newborn, I’d have his bottled already warmed and ready to go waiting right by my bed. I thought it’d make life easier for me in the middle of the night and better for Bean because he’d get to eat sooner. Turns out that the two bottle warmers we tried never heated the bottle completely or never heated it evenly. Even after shaking the bottle up, I’d still find hot patches and cold patches as I fed Bean. We ended up using the bottle warmers a few times, but eventually went back to the old fashioned way of heating them in hot water. Sometimes old methods have lasted a long time for a reason…
A baby mobile – We had three baby mobiles for Bean. Three. It was ridiculous. We ended up taking one to daycare for his crib there and putting one mobile on each end of his crib. Overkill much? And the thing is, Bean didn’t even use them. We paid all this money for expensive, supposedly stimulating mobiles that played brain enlarging music and the kid could have just as easily stared at the ceiling fan. On the mobiles we had, we didn’t use the music because we played classical music CD’s for him when he went to sleep. The CD’s lasted longer and were a lot less annoying than those electronic, short snippets of music on the mobiles. Bean did like having something to look at though. So, for Gracie, we’re going to get one of those artsy-fartsy mobiles that hang from the ceiling. This one flutters and moves around naturally, but there’s nothing fancy and technical about it. Just something engaging for her to look at as she drifts off to sleep. Mobiles might work for a lot of people, but this time around I think we’ll be just as happy using a less complex something to soothe her.
Baby mittens – Bean used to flip out when we tried to keep these little mittens on him. You are supposed to use them so that the baby doesn’t scratch their face accidentally when they’re flailing around. Bean thought we had cut his hands off. And it was hard to keep those suckers on him, too. This time I think we’ll save everyone the hassle and just leave these on the shelves at Target.
Baby bathrobes, towels, and washcloths – I hate giving up these things because they are so darn cute! But the fact is that when Bean was a baby, we grabbed whatever clean towel was closest and it was usually one of ours. And I actually liked those better because they seem to be more absorbent than the baby ones.
Same thing for the washcloths, too. Though it is really cute to have tiny little baby washcloths laying around, the bigger ones work just as good.
Also, we had all these baby bathrobes for Bean that we never used – not once. So, I just saved those for Gracie and if we end up using them more (I thought maybe at the beach or after the pool?), we’ll just use those. Two of them still have the tags on them!
I was sitting in Gracie’s nursery this weekend and started to worry that I wasn’t giving her the same amount of care as I gave Bean because she didn’t have as much stuff as he had. But then I realized that streamlining for the second baby isn’t about cutting corners because they aren’t just as important. It’s just about knowing what works for you this time instead of having to try all these different things. I’m sure we might have to make adjustments for Gracie since she’ll have preferences of her own that might be different than what worked for Bean. But I’m thankful that this time around we at least have a baseline of knowledge to work with.
Besides, streamlining means more money leftover for pink stuffed elephants and yellow Sunday dresses with bumblebees on them…
*****
The winner of the Yookidoo giveaway is Comment Number 94:
Congrats, Emily! Email me at katie@marriageconfessions.com to claim your prize!
17 Comments
Nate's Mom @ Nate is Great
Nate had that same mobile! He was enamored of it when he was 2 weeks old. Good choice!!!
Rachel @ Dreaming of the Country
Thanks for sharing. I feel like this will be important information in a year or two!
Streamlining can never be a bad thing 🙂
kk
my nephew does use the mittens cause he relaly does scratch himself. but one pair is all you need. 🙂
Heather Ben
For the bottle? We just used room tempature. Made life so much easier. There is no real reason to have to warm up the bottle except for preference. Start from the beginning and they will never know the difference. You might have to stir a little more to get the formula to mix, but so much easier than warming the bottle.
and if you need mittens? (bc we did – my K had excema and would literrally scratch her face till bleeding) just use socks! it actually works better bc they go further up the arm and less likely to come off!
Sara @ embrylovescookies
I totally agree with you on the mobile. We were given 2 mobile for our first baby and she didn’t like either one of them. We tried to put one up on our second child’s crib and he didn’t like it either. For both kids we use sound machines. Many more choices in sounds, a timer, and they’re very portable.
About the bottle warmer, I’ve heard that none of them work as well as regular old hot water. And I know you chose not to breast feed, but for anyone else reading who is curious…one of the many benefits of nursing is that you never have to worry about getting the milk to the right temp, any time day or night. And your baby never has to wait to be fed. No bottles, no expensive formula. Milk ready all the time, any time your baby needs it (free and pre-warmed).
Also, we never once used our baby bathrobe either. But they are ridiculously cute!
Ann G-B
I hear you sister! I was more on the other end of things…….. I didn’t want all the baby crap, and my MIL insisted on the huge shower! And the bathrobes……… 4 of them! And he never wore one! But I had a boy first time around too…… If we are lucky enough to do this again and get a girl………. oh the pink tutus that will abound! But I have already told my husband – if we do have another baby – it is pink frilly dresses all the way – no matter what!
Sarah H.
Awesome! Thank you. I had an idea that the bottle warmer is unnecessary–but the other things I had no clue. I do think the hooded towels and wash clothes are super cute! Oh well. Thanks! We’re going to the store to start our registry on Thursday–eek!
Julie
Katie, my daughter is only 2 1/2 months old but I already know what we will be using the next time around! Plus, shopping for girls clothes is so much fun. Do you have a Crazy *8 store? If not, check them out online. Their summer tutus and clothes are so cute! Plus you can earn reward bucks.
Mindee@ourfrontdoor
We had to cover Faith’s hand because she was forever trying to suck her fingers and since she was such a content baby and didn’t need the soothing we wanted to nip that habit in the bud. Turns out that baby socks stay on better and serve two purposes.
Lindsay (YoungMarriedMom)
I love the tip about socks as mittens–our little guy is a scratcher, but recently became a thumb/hand sucker, too. He’ll chew on his hand through a mitten and it makes them just gross. Maybe socks will hold up better. . . .
Also, if you find a yellow dress with bumblebees, please post a photo ASAP–I love my little boy, but girl clothes make my heart skip a beat!
Jody
Wow, and we loved our bottle warmer! Not having the option of nursing because he was adopted, the bottle warmer was so great for us and worked very well!
Amazing what we think we need when first having kids. The bouncy seat was a waste for us, as were the towels. I too found they didn’t soak up enough water getting the little shnookums cold before we could get them dressed.
Amy @ Serve At Once
The thought of shopping for little girl clothes makes my ovaries swoon. And thanks for the info, Katie. I’m going to be SuperMom when the time comes, thanks to you.
Paige
Thanks for the heads up. We are expecting our first child in April so I will take all the help I can get. How about list of things Gracie can’t live without?
I found your blog through a friend around the time you announced your second pregnancy. I have enjoyed getting to know you and your family. I love hearing about Bean and your pregnancy.
Jen c
We have the same mobile. Sullivan hasn’t had a chance to use it yet though. I agree about the bottle warmer, I think we’ve used ours maybe 5 times and he could care less. One thing I love that people told was worthless is our wipe warmer. It makes those night diaper changes a bit easier in the middle of January
Michelle @ Mambo Gook
I think saving money for tutus is a GREAT decision!!
Casper
I am with you. This one will be my first but I am really not buying too much stuff. Newborns just need the basics. I don’t want to waste money on things I will never use and I figure if I find that I need something I can always run to the store and get it. Plus I hate clutter so I don’t want a lot of things sitting around that I am not using.
Beanie's Nana
Great 🙁 I just bought Gracie Girl a new mobile similar to the one in the pic, except pink. Ugh.