A Baby Registry Done Wrong

When I look back at my registry experience I think I got about half of it right. Those aren’t bad odds with the exception that I wasted other people's money (and my own) and forked over tons of cash for the things that I ended up using the most after Olivia was born. One of my close friends is due in two months and after talking with her, I realized that most moms follow a Target or BabiesRUs checklist about what to register for, but what I could have really used, was a little advice! I’m going to talk more in another post about our favorites and what has been great for us. In this post I want to focus more on the things I shouldn’t have registered for.

Bottles
My number one faux pas was Avent Bottles. Not only are these bottles pricey, but they leak really bad. The nipple was awkward, especially for a preemie. After trying one bottle, I quickly removed the rest from my registry and went on a search for different bottles. We decided to then go with the Playtex Ventaire which looked nice and had the right idea, but the slow nipple was too hard for her to suck and the fast nipple would release so much liquid, it would choke her (even months down the line when she was on stage 2s). Why Playtex doesn't have more than two nipple flows is beyond me and maybe they do now, but not at the time. The nipples were also square shaped, which didn't feel right to my daughter. We ended up being a huge fan of the Dr. Brown line which I will discuss in my next post about my favorites.

Dishwasher Basket and Dry Rack
We’ve gone through two Dishwasher Baskets and both were a waste of money. When you have a newborn you’re going through bottles, their parts and nipples every 2-3 hours a day. The dishwasher baskets are so small that they only hold maybe 2-3 bottles worth of parts. I’d have to run the dishwasher every 6 hours, which is pointless. Instead we soaked and washed (with a bottle brush) the bottles and their parts in steaming hot water in the sink. We then air dried them on a dry rack. We used First Years Modular Spinning Dry Rack and it was sufficient, but not fantastic. It wobbles, but I liked that it was two levels so we could put the smaller stuff on top and the bigger stuff on the bottom. With this dry rack, it has a draining mechanism, but it wasn’t great, so we put a dish towel underneath it.

Sippy Cups
We registered for and received a set of Avent Sippy Training Cups. Olivia was able to pick them up and drink from them easily, but I ended up hating them and tossing them in the trash because they are impossible to clean. The non-spill spouts pop out of the plastic portion, but the clear rubber insert on the bottom of them that keep them from spilling don’t detach. This allows food to get trapped inside and I had to take a tiny little cleaning brush to attempt to get all of the food out. The brush I had wasn’t sufficient enough and I was worried about mold, so I moved on. Our sippy cup adventure didn’t end here and will be its own topic down the line. Most of my mommy friends use Nuby or Playtex but as I’ve learned in this journey and will mention time and time again, every baby prefers different things.

Gear
Selecting the Graco Travel System, Swing and Pack n Play was difficult. The patterns available at the time were not the cutest (I've seen much cuter since then). I ended up choosing a pattern online that I liked at the time, but despise now. I wanted a pattern that wasn't gender specific (even though I knew I was having a girl) because I wanted to save it for future children.
At first I liked the simplicity of the Graco Gear; it's really easy to move your baby from car to stroller or car to shopping cart. We also had a car seat base in each of our cars to make it even easier. My major complaint is with the stroller as the straps are not easy to adjust when your child is in the sitting position. The back part that allows you to tilt the infant downwards for a nap or upwards to sit never stays in place, even though it is locked down. Olivia is constantly strolling at a steep incline. The stroller has horrible alignment and pulls to the left like an old car.

As for the swing, it was pretty noisy and Olivia really didn't like it. We've actually been through two swings and the Fisher Price Starlight Papasan Cradle Swing worked better for her. Our biggest issue was her reflux and that's not typical for most babies. Being on her back isn't comfortable, so she especially didn't like the Graco swing because it wasn't comfortable for her.

The Pack n Play I can't review because I think we've used it all of ten times. As I spoke about above, Olivia could not sleep on her back, so she only slept in the bassinet portion of the Pack N Play for her first few nights at home. The only other time she's been in it is when we traveled to Nana and Papas house; she used the bottom, with a sheet for a bed. I do believe that her personality and how she hates to be restricted (since the day she was born; she was a no-swaddle baby!) is the reason we didn't and don't use it more. I know tons of moms that swear by the Pack n Play.

We used our Chicco Infant Carrier all of maybe 3 times. I preferred a sling due to Olivia’s small preemie size. The infant carrier never seemed to fit her correctly. She was always too small for it and once she was big enough for it, she didn’t want to be strapped down inside of a carrier. I think there are better carriers out there that are more adjustable; my advice is to hold off on registering for it and register for a good sling instead. Once the baby is a little older and can fit into a carrier, then check it out and keep your receipt. All babies are different and some may like it and some may not and designs may vary.

Bedding
Waterproof mattress pads are a must-have and you should always have at least two on hand. We registered for two Carter’s waterproof mattress pads and began using these after she was done co-sleeping with us at about 2.5 - 3 months old. Within a few weeks, one of them had the rubber lining snap making the pad useless as it wouldn’t stay on the mattress. I was furious and refused to buy the same brand again, so this time I took my handy 20% off BabiesRUs coupon and spent the extra two dollars to get a Sealy Mattress Pad instead. It’s much more heavy duty and like a lot of things, you get what you pay for. I have a feeling this will last her for years.

Grooming
When I registered for the The First Years American Red Cross Deluxe Healthcare & Grooming Kit I thought I was smart and had it in the bag. Twenty bucks for an 18 piece kit – wow, what a deal! So far, everything but the hairbrush and the teething toy have been useless. The thermometer takes forever to get a temp and the nail clippers are horrible. The “booger sucker” is not great and we just use the one we got from the hospital when she was born. I haven’t used the medicine dispenser but I hear the free ones from the pharmacy are better. Register for some of these pieces individually and get the rest as you need them.

The bathtub we registered for we did so because it was really cute and not gender specific. It was the Fisher Price Rainforest Bath Center and was great in the beginning. It has a little sling that holds a newborn baby in place while you bathe them. It has a bar that allows you to hook it conveniently on the sink. However, once she had grown out of the newborn sling and was able to just sit in the bathtub, I began to hate this bathtub. The part where they lean their back against has no padding or gripper, so it was uncomfortable for her. As soon as she was able to sit up well on her own, I transitioned her to the Munchkin Inflatable Yellow Duck Tub, which has proved great with the exception that the plug has a hard time staying put and is also really tough to close. But for $14.99 it works just fine.

Toys
I was really excited to register for a baby aquarium for her crib. This was one of my number one choices as one of her very first toys. We registered for the Baby Einstein Neptune Soother. It is really adorable and I love the music and the animals that scroll across the screen. However, Baby Einstein didn’t take into consideration that most modern cribs have thick railing, not the really thin posts like the cribs of our generation. The straps on the back do not fit around her crib railing, so we couldn’t attach it for her to watch. It has a free-standing option, which is great for babies with a nightstand next to their bed, but Olivia doesn’t have room for a nightstand next to her crib, so we never use this product.

Look for more of our dislikes and our favorites in upcoming posts! Stay tuned…