Kids- Keep it Simple.

I am looking at all of the toys in my closet that I have to wrap for my 9 month old son's first Christmas! I admit, I went a little overboard... which brings me to the point of this. A very dear family friend is having her first baby soon, and my step-brother had his first last month. Naturally, because I have a 9 month old, people think I have a plethora of knowledge and wisdom on what to do, what not to do, buy, ect. Well, newsflash, I figured it out the hard way. I prioritized what I thought was going to be really important... and bought more INVALUABLE things later. So, since I spend so much time on Pintrest anyway trying to figure out how to entertain my son, I looked there. What a crock of crap! I can NOT believe some of the things new parents are DYING over... that are totally not important to have. I have found, that honestly, no matter what I think my son will like or need, I am wrong. So here is the list of misc. items I find totally over the top, with what I bought/did instead.

1.) Sophie the Giraffe: Whoever invented this little plastic/rubber animal is a genius. Not because it is revolutionary, but they know how to sucker people out of money. When my son was teething I looked at this little thing. It is natural rubber (whatever that means?) and natural paint and whatever. I'm all for green toys and whatnot, but it is a teething toy... a "revolutionary" teething toy that "babies go crazy for". Guess how much this little rubber animal is? $22 for the "standard model". No. Freaking. Way. Nothing is too good for my child, except maybe this. I have a VERY hard time believing this is any better then any other thing to chew on. I had little wooden beaded ring things to chew on as a baby and plastic keys. I bought my son a few $3 teething toys.. and after a few, guess what his favorite thing to chew on ended up being? The TV remote. YUP, an extra TV remote he found in a drawer. Buy whatever you want, but most likely, your kid will chew on you or some other random item they prefer. 

2.) Baby Bottle Keurig, or BabyNes: OK! How freaking lazy do you have to be (even in the middle of the night) to not warm up some breast milk or some water and measure out formula. Dropping like $200 (roughly) into one of these things is just asking for your Mother in Law to criticize you. Not to mention that $200 is roughly 10 cases of Huggies. I never would have bought one of these, my son didnt even LIKE warm milk after I stopped breastfeeding. (see number 3)

3.) Baby Bottle Warmers: Like number 2, why on EARTH would you spend $60 for one of these things? It takes 30 seconds to a minute to warm up some water from the tap (see number 4). Plus, you can check it on your wrist before you even mix your formula. Breastfeed? Run the bottle under hot tap water and check the milk temp. 

4.) Nursery Water: Now I really do love people's reaction to my using tap water for baby formula. It is usually along the lines of "eww chemicals and blah blah blah".. yet they are buying water that comes in plastic bottles, that you cant refill with more nursery water. Not only do these come with a large price tag (about $1.25 a gallon, it adds up fast once you child is drinking 6 oz at a time), but pediatricians actually advise AGAINST using it. Tap water has natural vitamins and minerals that get taken out of nursery water, fluoride, and the plastic bottles could have BPA in them.

5.) Dr. Brown's Baby Bottles: Probably the biggest waste of money I have seen. The have rave reviews and are highly recommended by parenting magazines, but guess what? Not only are they expensive, they are misleading and impractical. Here is why: 1. They have a GAZILLION parts, any mom on the go will easily lose a piece and not be able to feed a baby in the middle of a crowded mall. 2. Not all babies have colic- this is IMPORTANT. They are acclaimed as reducing colic significantly, but not all bottles are created equal or even "better" to treat colic. Some babies do GREAT with less expensive, more simple bottles after parents have dropped hundreds on more complicated ones. Another issue about colic- it is not always simply colic that can be fixed by using expensive bottles. Milk sensitivities are a big factor also if you are formula feeding, and there are MANY formula options: soy, alimentum, sensitive, advance, pro.. the list goes on and varies by brand. 3.) part of having a million parts to these bottles, is cleaning them all. I'd rather spend that time with my child (who has no history of colic). 

Take note of the 5 million parts.

6.) The Baby Bullet: Super popular at showers! It IS a great idea, but it isn't a "must have" item. If you have never heard of The Baby Bullet, it is used to make home made baby food. Here is the issue I have with it- it is not that helpful in the long run. It is pretty much a food processor that comes with Tupperware. You still have to cook the food, dump it in, blend it, and put it in the little containers. At about $65 retail, if you already have a blender or a food processor, then pick up some little Rubbermaid containers for about $2 for 2. 

7.) Sleep Sacks: Basically, another super expensive baby item used for cutting corners. Two things to consider here- 1. Not all babies like being swaddled, after the first week of life, my son hated it. So did my sister's son, and my brother's daughter and so on. 2. You are spending $22 on 2 sleep sacks. A package of receiving blankets is $10 for 5, and can be used for LOTS of other things- my sister STILL HAS some of hers, and her son is 5. Learn to swaddle in the hospital, they will teach you, and thank me later. 

8.) Water temperature Rubber Ducks: I am 100% guilty of this. It was so cute, and seemed so practical I HAD to have it. Here is the problem, it was expensive (for a rubber duck) and does not even do it's job, but made me paranoid. These are the little rubber ducks that say HOT on the bottom. When the water is "too hot" the writing turns white. After 3 baths of my son shivering (because even though the water felt too cool to me the duck said HOT) I put it away until he was old enough to actually play with it. 

Now, what IS invaluable? Here is a quick rundown:

1.) Onesies: You can never have too many. Regular, plain, printed, colored onesies. They get poopy, pukey, and stained, and will be changed several times a day. 

2.) All Free and Clear: Babies have sensitive skin, Dreft is expensive, and you are going to be doing a LOT of laundry. 

3.) A GOOD thermometer that you can use well into older years: Splurge here. Buy a good one. Not a pacifier or rectal... try using THAT on a 7 year old and tel me how it work out. When in doubt, in ear is best.

4.) INEXPENSIVE teething toys: These will be taken everywhere. They will get dropped, lost, abused, and well chewed on. Don't go TOO cheap though, they need to be safe too. A good price range is $3-$5.