What Not to Buy for a New Baby

If you have taken a stroll through a baby store, or the baby section of a department store lately, you can very well see just how many products are out there for us to buy for our babies. What excited parent doesn’t want the best for their baby? Everything is so colorful and cute – you just feel the need to take them all home! Heck, the Internet and baby books even list the 100 things that are necessary for us to buy so that we can make our babies comfortable and be “good parents”. But… are they all really necessary?

No. Not all of those items that are on the “need to buy for baby” list are necessary at all. I’m going to start with the most notably unnecessary item of all:

Change Tables

Tall, wobbly, and space-consuming, changing tables are not only unnecessary, but they can be unsafe! Buy an inexpensive plastic change matt and change your baby on your bed, on the couch, or even on the floor! I always changed my baby on the floor with a matt so I could be sure that he would not topple or roll off.

Diaper Pails

Who needs a diaper pail when you have a garbage can? Yeah, sure, some of them will help eliminate the “odor” of the diaper. If the diaper odor is such a problem, take the trash out. Do not waste your money on these overpriced garbage bins.

Baby Bath Tubs

There is nothing wrong with bathing your child in the safety of a clean kitchen sink, or even with you and/or your partner in the tub. This can be a cherished bonding time for the whole family. Many parents choose to shower with their little ones each morning to also help save water and heating expenses. I made the mistake of purchasing a baby bath tub, which was used for perhaps 4 months, and now it sits on a shelf in my son’s room, taking up a lot of much-needed space.

“Nursing” Clothes

Though I personally believe that maternity and breastfeeding bras are a necessity, special “nursing” clothing is something that I can pass on. Some women feel more comfortable having a “snap” or a zipper that can allow them to discreetly feed their child; I was more than happy to simply yank up my shirt and unsnap my bra. If you do not feel comfortable doing this in public, buy a couple of different styles of breastfeeding clothing and see what you prefer.

Bottles

Yes, we all have that “cute” image of a baby suckling on a bottle tucked away in the corner of our minds, but if you are staying home and breastfeeding your baby, there is absolutely no need for an army of bottles to clutter up your kitchen. Breastfed babies can easily be switched to a sippy cup as early as 6 months if you want to try to start introducing filtered water to them as an alternative.

photo by Julien Tromeur © www.jt-book.com