Calling All Moms - You Gotta Help Me

And I'll put my teacher hat on and say BOOKS! The earlier parents start reading to their babies, the better! My grandma always got us subscriptions to book clubs and we got a new book in the mail every month. I had an entire collection of Dr. Suess books before I could walk.

Congrats, Anne!!

I have no suggestions on what to buy but just wanted to say CONGRATS!!!!!!  You're going to be a fantastical grandmom! 

Anne congratulations!!!   I will have to think about this but off the top of my head;

Baby monitors a must and for a first mom the one with the video for viewing in the crib is nice.  I love the Boopie when Cody couldn't sit yet and I hated the diaper genie it got real heavy and expensive for bags.  I wanted a huge fancy stroller and I love it at first but found it not to be real practical so I down grated to nice medium size so you might want to think about that.  If she is a shopper or someone needs a stroller a lot in and out of cars and small spaces they aren't real convieient.   But if your going to take more walks and planned outling the large ones are very nice too. Both have nice storage for doggie treats.

The might tight was a MUST!  It is a crank that insure the carseat is tightened down firmly.  If they have a new car I don't know if they are still necessary but if the seatbelt tighened is what securly holds the car seat in place then get the mighty tight.  I will think about more things I found useless or practical.

Again congratulations Grandma - Mike must be looking down and smiling ear to ear!

Yes and yes, Megan! I have a Britax car seat and I love it. Well, mostly because I got the one that comes in a cool cow print pattern. And because it had really good safety ratings. But they are very expensive. However we used an infant-style one for the first year because it was nice to be able to pop the whole carseat out of the car rather than taking the baby in and out. And we got two bases so we could use the seat in my car or DH's car. We got the carseat/base/stroller package. The carseat pops into the stroller, and also has a seat under where the carseat pops in for when she outgrew the carseat. If that makes any sense. ( http://www.evenflo.com/product.aspx?id=127&pfid=2055 )

A kid can never have too many books. Especially board books. I read to Willa for about a half hour total every day. We have two baskets full of books, and it seems like we're reading the same ones over and over again.

It's tempting to buy cutesie outfits, but honestly for the first six months it seemed like all Willa wore were sleep-n-plays (one piece, footy jammies.) They're easy on, easy off, warm, and comfy. If you can find some with the fold-out hand covers, that's even better.

One of the must-haves we bought was a glider with padded arms. I used and still use that SO much.

I know people think gift cards aren't personal enough, but they come in really do handy to buy all the "fill-in" items that you didn't receive as gifts, or to buy diapers and wipes.

Oh, and congrats gramma! If I think of more I'll come back and post.

 Congratulations, Anne, you will love your new position in life!  My 3 grandbabies are under 3, and I think we have found the Pack N Play to be a valuable piece of equipment.  It's an easily transported portable playpen, crib, etc. for my out-of-towner...and they have used it at home also, as a crib for parent's room when the baby is a newborn.  Then there is a chair which straps onto a regular chair for meals...also very portable.  And the jumper, which I forget the name of, but I'm sure someone else will come up with.  The nice thing about these is that they can pop them into their trunk and come to visit, and still have the necessities available with little trouble...and you don't have to empty your closets to keep them!

This Grandma would prefer buying cute little girls' clothing...lol!  Hey, they do need that stuff, too!

I'm not a mom, but my mom always says you can never have too many plain white onesies!  She liked those since babies sometimes go through many a day, and the white ones can just be bleached.

My cousin just had a baby and the cool thing she wanted was a baby wipe warmer.

 Not a parent, but I have to chime and say absolutely not the mighty tight. If you need a mighty tight in order to install the car seat, it does not fit the car. Generally, the use of a mighty tight invalidates the warranty on the seat, because you are not supposed to use anything that didn't come with it. So, unless the manufacturer says it's ok, it shouldn't be on there. The mighty tight is not tested or approved by NHTSA, even though it claims to be. 

http://cpsafety.com/articles/SeatBeltTite.aspxTR

To the person who suggested it, if you still have that on your seat, please take it off, and contact a CPST 

http://www.safekids.org/certification/

Depending on your car, what you might need is a locking clip. 

Annie, I would suggest that you have them contact a CPST once they get the seat to help them learn to install it. And for everyone,  if you use a CPST, they should not be installing the seat for you, they should be teaching you how to install it.

Sorry for side tracking things there, but I really did feel that needed to be said. 

 We used a baby seat/rocker type thing for Kali, and then for Kelci too.  It would be the very first thing I would buy now, if I were to become a first time mom now, lol.  If you know what I mean.  It was seriously a lifesaver.  This is the one I had.  It vibrates and rocks, and can be propped back so it doesn't rock.

The next thing I would buy would be the Bumbo.  And if I could pick out a new stroller, I'd get one of the Quinny models.  I love the look of them, and everyone I know that has one, loves it.  They are quite pricey though, but if the parents are anything like me, a good stroller is a must.  And the Quinny is it.  

As with the white onesies, I found recieving blankets to be the item you can never have too many of.  We used them for everything, burp cloths, a blanket to lay on the floor, a light cover on warm nights, swaddling, change pad both at home or in a public restroom, mopping up spitup off the floor if they don't have a dog...ya, the list goes on and on...

We never bothered with a basinet but went straight to a crib.  I would however, not be without a playpen(playyard).  Kelci never actually slept in a crib her, though she does at her dad's.  She sleeps in her playpen and its been great, since I can take it anywhere, even camping and she's comfortable sleeping in it.  

Hmmm...and one other thing.  Robeez...oh, the luxury...they look cute, they slip on easy, and they stay on!  And they keep socks on too!  And the leather soles are the best for learning to walk later on.  Much better than a rigid sole.  And they come in many different styles now...***wanders off to search for Robeez online that may ship to Canada***

Anne, congratulations!  I"m so happy for you!

Without going into great detail, I had one of my nieces from the time that she was 2 months old until she was 10 months old.  Her Pack N Play was the greatest thing ever.  It was easy enough to take it with us so that she always had a secure place to be.  (It was kinda like carrying a crate along to keep the dog safe & secure.)  I also loved the swing that we had.  She was a very fussy sleeper.  Even when I couldn't get her to fall asleep, I could put her in the swing & she would fall asleep almost instantly.

My suggestion would be to go to their registry and buy one of the "essentials" (i.e. carset, pack n play, bouncy seat, swing, boppy, monitor, whatever you can afford) from their registry and include a gift receipt with it.  If they already got it, or change their mind (which I did 1000 times even with all the research I did!), they won't have any trouble exchanging it if there is a gift receipt.  Resist the urge to buy clothes, burp cloths, bibs, blankets, towels etc.  They will get tons of those.  It wouldn't hurt to ask the mom as gift giving time gets closer what she really wants/needs as well.  There were only a handfull of things that people bought us that weren't on my registry that I loved!  An overpriced set of socks that I used to their full extent and even generously passed on to my SIL even though I LOVED them (Trumpette was the brand), and some embroidered burp cloths made out of cotton diapers.  I did register for cotton diapers as burp cloths but people gave me "burp cloths" instead which were only about 5 inches wide and NEVER seemed to catch the spit up! 

Otherwise, most of the things I didn't register for and couldn't exchange ended up sitting in a drawer collecting dust.  But I did my research and knew what I needed.  This is why a gift receipt is nice b/c if they get a duplicate or change their mind on something, even once baby is here, it is easy to exchange for something they need. 

Also, for fairly inexpensive buying in the meantime if you are the type that wants to buy something now before they know the sex, board books are great!  I mostly still try to only buy those if they are an option b/c Devin tugs at the pages and chews on the books and they stand up much better and are less of a choking hazard tan paper.  I have gotten some great ones as gifts that I never would have even found.  Our currect favorites are "Corduoroy" (s/p?) and  "I Love you Stinky Face" along with all the classics my mom read to me as a child.  Everytime I go to Sams or Costco I check out the books.  They often have Dr. Seuss collections in board books which I love as well.  

Te very first toy that I got that I loved was a really great mirror with tabs that sang songs.  Babies love mirrors and the music is entertaining as well.  That was one of the main toys we used for months! 

Depending on the parents, if they are the type to wear their baby, I LOVED my Moby wrap for the first 6 or so months and moved to a Mei Tai after that.  ( I found a faulous one that I really love that was also very affordable and is the most comfortable one I own.)  If they are the type to wear their baby, a good, soft carrier is such a wonderful thing to have and is a wonderful bonding experiece for parent and baby. 

When I had Devin, most people bought what they wanted.  I can tell you, I really appreciated the gifts off the registry the most, and actually exchanged as many of the clothes as I could.  I also really appreciated the gift cards as well.  My MIL sent me like 30 "outfits" which was really sweet but total overkill and not even half were worn.  My mom asked me what I really needed and got me my breast pump and that has been used almost everyday since Devin was born.  The fact is, there will always be things that you want with a baby, but more importantly are the things that you need.  We didn't get a bassinet, but instead, Devin slept in the bassinet feature on her Pack N Play for the first 6 months of her life.  We use it now when we travel or will be out somewhere late.  This is also what my mom has at her house instead of a crib b/c it can easily be stored away.   

The best gift I got when my kids were babies was from my mom. Every week when she did her food shopping, she would pick me up some formula and a pack of diapers. I think she knew how much that helped me every week. I know most people breast feed now, but maybe the diapers would be a good idea or diaper service for a year.

You guys are awesome.  Lots of good ideas.  I know a lot of my work friends loved the pack and play, and we pitched in and got one for one of the girls whose hubby had been laid off at the time, so that sounds like one good idea.  They waited a long time to tell us, so they have a lot of stuff already, but I think they'll have the most trouble with the nice incidentals, and the day to day stuff.  They live a bit too far away for me to do the shopping thing, but that doesn't mean I couldn't occasionally do the "shipping thing" - also a great idea.  I remember when my ex and I were stationed a couple hours drive away from home, my mom used to put aside "care packages" for when we did visit.  I loved them - she even put in some cat food (we were temporarily dog-less that year). 

 Another vote for the Pack N Play. :) My friend who just had her first kiddo LOVES her Pack N Play.

dubilpie

The best gift I got when my kids were babies was from my mom. Every week when she did her food shopping, she would pick me up some formula and a pack of diapers. I think she knew how much that helped me every week. I know most people breast feed now, but maybe the diapers would be a good idea or diaper service for a year.

I was going to say the same thing. Young parents can always save and budget (or forgo) for the frills but you always need to buy diapers.

How many Diapers Will your Baby use is the First Year?

*based on an average price of 20 cents per disposable diaper

In a baby s first year, new parents will have brought home an average of 2,788 diapers for a total cost of $557.60