Kristy Pepping

When Registering, Keep The Receipts For These

You're pregnant and now a friend or relative wants to throw you a baby shower, but what do you register for? There are so many baby products out there and different variations of each product that it can be a bit overwhelming. I strongly recommend bringing a friend with you to help in the registering process. Make sure you pick someone with a similar personality to yours. With that said, what you think will work for you when you are pregnant versus what actually works for you once the baby arrives, may be two different products. And, what works best for another parent may not be what works best for you. Here is my list of baby items to register for, but keep the receipts in case you need to exchange them for products that better suit your baby needs:

Strollers: There are so many strollers out there that it can be hard to pick the best one for you. Talk to your friends, read reviews and take them for a test drive in the store. Once you baby arrives, you may find you need a different model. For me personally, my stroller was too bulky and I couldn't fold and unfold it easily when I was out running errands.

Bassinets/Co-Sleepers: There seem to be three schools of thought when it comes to infant sleeping. Either you put the baby in the crib right away, start off with a bassinet or buy a co-sleeper that attaches to your bed. I was convinced my baby would sleep in her crib right away so I bought a special bumper and a sleep positioner thinking this would help her snuggle in, but this didn't work for us. So I returned these items and went out and bought a bassinet. It was tiny so fit her body well, tilted at an angle so helped with digestion and we could wheel it around easily for feedings.

Changing Tables: There are changing tables that attach to furniture and ones that are free-standing that simply sit on a dresser. One of my friends had a surprise c-section and quickly learned it was hard to bend over the one attached to the dresser. So she returned this model and bought a free-standing one she could put on the ground to make it easier while she was healing.

Infant Clothes: You always imagine your baby will be an average size when they are born, but you may have a preemie or a 10-pound baby. For me, my baby was barely six pounds and couldn't fit into newborn clothes we I exchanged these for preemie size. My sister-in-law had over a nine-pound baby who was very long and needed some three-month size clothes versus newborn size.

Swings: There are some swings that go back and fourth and some go side to side and some oscillate in a circular motion. Your baby may not prefer a swing at all, one that goes in a particular direction or you may find the one you purchased was not the right fit size-wise for your baby. In my situation, our baby really didn't like the swing and preferred to be in one of those baby papasan chairs.

Burp Clothes and Pacifiers: The burp cloths we registered for were super thin. For us, we preferred cloth diapers that could double as burp clothes. For pacifiers, we returned these because we didn't realize the hospital would give these to us while we were there. Or I had a friend whose baby never even took a pacifier at all.

Diaper Pails: There are several different variations of these and different ways to change them out. The one we registered for was too cumbersome to change so we switched to a different model.

Bottles: Whether you are breastfeeding, bottle feeding or a combination, chances are you will be registering for some bottles. This is another item where there are so many choices. For me, I registered for too many infant bottles and didn't have any in the larger size when my baby moved on to larger feedings. Also, we exchanged some of the regular nipples for some that helped with indigestion since the doctor felt this would help.

Infant Carriers: This is another area where there are so many different versions to choose from. Trying on one of these carriers in the store without your baby, may work a lot differently once you baby is in it. Personally, it was too hard to figure out the different straps to put my baby in so I preferred the car seat infant carrier in the stroller frame instead of a wearable version. But I had friends that loved their wearable baby carriers.

Swaddling Blankets: These are great for certain baby personalities and may not work as well for others. We registered for several blankets and ended up returning a few in exchange for sleep sacks. Again, we didn't realize the hospital would be providing some to us and after the first week, our daughter preferred her arms to be loose. The sleep sacks worked well for us since her feet were contained, but could move her arms freely.

What are some of the items you registered for, but found didn't fit your needs? Comment below and let me know your thoughts.