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BABY GEAR & OTHER NECESSITIES
After our first babe, I’ve learned every “must have” is not necessary! All of our faves are linked below.
BUYING TIPS:
10 Things I Bought, but Could Do Without:
- You do not to stockpile anything. I read a bunch of articles suggesting this, but it really isn’t necessary. It feels great to get out of the house!
- Amazon will randomly have an item on sale without notice. Refresh the page daily if it’s not on sale. It will eventually be on sale!
- Subscribe & Save on Amazon for Baby essentials like diapers, wipes, shampoo, and body wash..
- We usually buy baby food in store since the quality seems to vary online and we get lucky with sales in store.
- Buy Buy Baby price matches Amazon and other retailers! (But, the 20% off coupon cannot be stacked on top of price match)
- Check Facebook Marketplace for gently used gear. We wanted the Baby Jogger City Select Double Stroller and when we saw it for $700 on Amazon, we said HELL NO! We found a 2016 model for $150 on Facebook Marketplace 🙌🏼! We also got Aria’s IKEA dresser for $60 from there too.
- Resell whatever baby gear/items are not useful for you on Facebook Marketplace. Do not hoard it!
- Wait for Target to offer a $20 gift card with baby purchases of $100+
- If you need formula, sign up on Enfamil and Similac’s website to receive free $$$ vouchers! I’ve tried to use them at Safeway, but the cashier never seems to know how they work. So, I’ve only ever used the vouchers at Target. Tip: go to the customer service desk to check out. Sometimes they let you buy multiple units with multiple vouchers in the same transaction AND you will not make anyone mad waiting behind you in the regular checkout line.
10 Things I Bought, but Could Do Without:
- Clothes without snaps on the bottom! I can’t stress how inconvenient it is to change a diaper when there are no snaps or zipper on a jumpsuit or romper.
- Both a baby swing AND a rock-and-play sleeper. Aria liked both, but preferred the baby swing. We used the other one maybe once or twice.
- Waterproof changing pad liners. They’re definitely not necessary. We use dog pads lol. Not esthetically pleasing to look at, but it works.
- Sterilizer. We used it maybe twice—once for new bottles and when Aria had thrush. Totally not necessary. Most dishwashers have a sterilize option or you can just sterilize everything the old school way in a pot of boiling water.
- Crib liner. We thought it would be super useful when Aria started sticking her legs between the crib slats while she was sleeping, but she HATED it—mainly because she couldn’t see us through the mesh and vice versa.
- Shopping cart cover. I thought it would be super useful, but I only used it once. Aria prefers to sit inside the shopping cart instead of the designated seat in the the cart 🤷🏻♀️.
- Hooded towel. Aria is such a wiggly babe that these didn’t work out for us. We use an apron-like towel and we LOVE it!
- Wash cloths. We got an awesome antibacterial silicone scrub mitt from Amazon that works great. Less to throw in the laundry and “fold” plus it helped with Aria’s mild cradle cap.
- Baby lotion. Aquaphor is the best thing ever created! Aria had baby acne/eczema and it helped so much. Lotion irritated her skin and I’ve never tried it ever since.
- Gripe water. It was on every must have list. We didn’t use it once. I still don’t understand what it’s for 🤷🏻♀️
BOOKS
Keeping a bin filled with books in our family room and in Aria’s room+play room has really helped Aria continue to love them. A plus is that she picks what books she wants us to read to her or what she wants to flip through herself.. AND super plus—she is getting into a good habit of putting the books away herself! Her bookshelf in her room stores more advanced books that she might be interested in as she gets older since they’re more lengthy and wordy. They’re on the bottom 2 shelves so that she can explore them on her own whenever she wants. This works for us so that she can let us know when she’s ready for something new.
Her favorites (that I could find online) are linked above. We actually got more than half of our girls’ book collection from my mother-in-law, who saved all of her kids’ books for her future grandkids. I think I’ll probably keep that tradition going since there are some old books that Aria absolutely loves and are in our daily rotation like Mickey Mouse and Clifford. Our go-to places for books have been Amazon, TJ Maxx, Marshall’s, thrift shops ($1/book!), The Dollar Tree, and the local family-owned bookshops in town.
For photo books or personalized story books, check out Shutterfly*, Paper Culture, and Groovebook, Wonderbly, and Hooray Heroes
BOOKS:
BOOKS:
- Newborn to 2 years old: sensory, lift-the-flap, slide-and-see, pop-up, peek-a-boo, simple rhymes, nursery rhymes, counting, alphabet, featuring a diverse variety of real and animated people and animals, featuring vehicles (Amazon List: Newborn+ Books)* (Amazon List: 1 years old+ Books)*
- 2 years old+: the same as above plus free pet store and travel pamphlets, comics, finger maze, search-and-find, and paperback-back books with longer (but still simple) stories related to school, family, friends, places/persons in the community, adventure, science, and art (Amazon List: 2 years old+ Books).*
TOYS
Aria’s faves are linked below. We’ve also found great gently used toys, that Aria loves, at thrift stores for under $5!
Tips:
Tips:
- Toys are frequently on sale on Amazon and Target.
- Wipe down/disinfect used toys.
CLOTHES
Something I learned is that you don’t need to feel obligated to keep anything someone gave you. Keep it only if you love it!!! Donate or return/exchange the rest.
Half of Aria’s clothes were gifted to us new/gently used. For clothes, we stick to a $10-$15 max per item budget and $20-$30 for shoes and jackets.
We splurge a little more on shoes since Aria only has 1 pair of shoes per shoe size since she’s grows out of them so quick. Our go-to’s are Vans, Nike (outlet), and Zara. Getting $50+ baby Nike’s at the outlets for $15-$20 is sooo satisfying!
For clothes, we’ve found the best deals in Old Navy and GAP’s clearance section. At high traffic stores (during the end of the season), there’s often online returns that are $1-3!!! Such a steal! Pro tip: keep your receipt for price adjustments and wait for the extra 50% off clearance sale. For regular price items, the best time to shop regular price items is when they’re having a 50% off everything sale.
We also shop at H&M and TJ Maxx. At H&M, take advantage of the 20-30% off online-only flash sales and the 15% in-store discount offered when you donate clothes.
Half of Aria’s clothes were gifted to us new/gently used. For clothes, we stick to a $10-$15 max per item budget and $20-$30 for shoes and jackets.
We splurge a little more on shoes since Aria only has 1 pair of shoes per shoe size since she’s grows out of them so quick. Our go-to’s are Vans, Nike (outlet), and Zara. Getting $50+ baby Nike’s at the outlets for $15-$20 is sooo satisfying!
For clothes, we’ve found the best deals in Old Navy and GAP’s clearance section. At high traffic stores (during the end of the season), there’s often online returns that are $1-3!!! Such a steal! Pro tip: keep your receipt for price adjustments and wait for the extra 50% off clearance sale. For regular price items, the best time to shop regular price items is when they’re having a 50% off everything sale.
We also shop at H&M and TJ Maxx. At H&M, take advantage of the 20-30% off online-only flash sales and the 15% in-store discount offered when you donate clothes.
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