We have been slowly shedding our outgrown baby gear, though I simply cannot bring myself to sell or donate the bassinet. I look at it in the corner of our master bedroom and think back to the endless wait in anticipation of mini’s arrival and how her little bassinet sat under our window for months before her expected due date. I can still remember what it felt like to glance over at it in the morning and wonder what she might be like. Sigh. I’m just not ready to let that go!
I have shared a full registry of all my favorite baby gear here, and a brief post on baby gear I really loved the second time around (and wish I’d known about earlier). Below, I thought I’d share some items I’ve discovered that I wish I’d had for my children when they were infants…
1 // Baby Bjorn Bouncer. Especially with a second child, having multiple places to “stow” the baby is essential. We made heavy use of our 4Moms Swing and Boppy lounger, but I wish we’d had one more spot to stow baby — I can imagine this being useful in the kitchen, or on the floor of the bathroom while I was showering, etc. I often have moms reach out to ask whether a swing and bouncer are necessary. The truth is — no. And some babies in fact hate the swing or the bouncer or vice versa or both. But I can speak from experience that any tool that gives you an extra stretch of hands-free time is probably worth the investment.
2 // Foam Play Tiles. Would have been so nice to set this up in mini’s room for micro to roll around on / enjoy tummy time on. I felt like I was forever repositioning quilts in our apartment and they don’t really provide that much padding. I like that you can just wipe these down, configure them to your room, and even add a raised railing to corral the little one in.
3 // Lovery Play Kits. People love this educational toy subscription service: they send you beautiful (mainly wooden / Montessori-style) age appropriate toys as your baby grows. I’ve seen several I wish I’d had for micro! Plus, takes some of the guesswork out of finding the right toys for the right age.
4 // Thule Double Running Stroller. Frankly, this would never work in our current living situation as we barely have enough space to park our Bugaboo in the foyer and we are resolute in our determination not to clutter the shared hallways with our baby gear — we don’t want to be inconsiderate of our neighbors, who are much older and well beyond baby years. But I did daydream about getting this top-of-the-line Thule running stroller to push the children in while getting back into shape after micro’s arrival.
5 // Trip Trapp High Chair. The design is polarizing, and I remember being a little put off by the price, but I really wish I’d made the investment. I love the style and love the way it invites baby to eat at the table from day one and how it grows with baby. Don’t go me wrong: I have nothing but positive things to say about the Phil & Ted we’ve used with both children, but I always wish I’d had the one I personally aesthetically preferred, especially since it has been a staple in our dining room for three years now. (P.S. – My only functional gripe with the Phil and Ted is that the legs splay out and are easy to trip over. Conversely, one of my unexpected favorite features of the Phil and Ted is that you can remove and break down the legs so it’s fairly easy to travel with, and we’ve needed it on multiple recent vacations.)
6 // Fisher Price Sit-Me-Up Floor Seat. A brilliant seat for babies that are able to hold their head up a bit more but not yet ready for an activity center (we loved the one by Skip Hop). Again, the more spots to contain (and entertain) your growing baby, the better.
7 // Bibs pacifiers. Simply much more attractive than the Soothies we always used with our children.
8 // Artipoppe carrier. Totally extravagant and unnecessary, but I always wanted one of these ultra-chic carriers. I was too practical to invest in one, especially because I was absolutely in love with the Baby Bjorn mini for micro — it is seriously the easiest and most comfortable carrier ever.
What other new baby gear are you obsessing over? I know there are a lot of pregnant magpies reading the blog these days. Share your additions in the comments!
P.S. Chic maternity clothes and chic nursing-friendly items.
P.P.S. Adventures in nursing.
P.P.P.S. On going from 0-1 vs 1-2 children.