What didn't you need for your baby?

seventeen sheep

What essentials did you buy for your baby that ended up unused?

I thought this might be a handy thread for some mammies-to-be!

I thought I was quite sensible when I was pregnant - I thought I was only buying the absolute essentials - but in hindsight, I wasted some money.

A video baby monitor. We got a brilliant Motorola one, with infrared or whatever you call it that you can see them in the dark. But it's just not needed. Our baby goes to sleep instantly when you lie him down, and if he ever does wake up (rarely!) he'll make himself heard. Maybe it'll be more useful when he's a toddler.

A moses basket. The logic was that it'll take up less space at the end of the bed (and that it looks so adorable!) In fairness, it did look adorable! But he outgrew it before he moved out of our room anyways, so we had to have the cot in there anyways. The moses basket cost €70 including the mattress. Our son ended up having positional plagiocephaly (flathead) - I partly attribute this to the crap mattress in the moses basket - I should really have just put him straight into the cot with the good quality mattress we bought for it! No moses basket will have as good a mattress as a good pocket-sprung cot mattress, so if I was going again, I'd skip that idea altogether (except for perhaps the occasional day nap.) They spend so much time sleeping the first few weeks/months - it's best to put them in a proper cot with a proper mattress.

A sling. Fabulous for some mothers; an absolute lifesaver! But, neither myself nor the baby took to it. It just wasn't for us, after forking out a fortune on a special "sling consultation" and an expensive carrier. There are sling "libraries", which - in hindsight - I should have used.

A room thermometer. One of those fancy gro-egg ones. In fairness, you know yourself if your baby is too hot. If you really want one, go for the cheapest one possible. We bought two expensive ones. First parent syndrome.

Shoes. This is one extravagance that I'll admit is a waste of money, but that I'll continue with regardless. There is nothing cuter than a flailing helpless infant wearing a pair of unnecessary shoes - what does he think he's going to do - walk away somewhere?

Hooded towels. I didn't actually buy these, but got so many as presents, and they're pointless and unnecessary. Handtowels are the perfect size for small babies, and will be used again. Normal towels as they get bigger.

On that point, our baby bath wasn't really necessary. Not a thing wrong with washing a baby in a clean sink, and sure they'll be in the big bath before you know it!

What else?

pwurple

Yup, hooded towels and baby shoes I never used either.

Nappy bin was another. It was just another job to empty the fiddly nappy bin. Easier to just put the nappies in the ordinary bin, and forget about the nappy bin.


Baby cosmetic products. Creams, lotions, shampoos, bath products, powders. Never used any of them really, except for sudocreme for a bit of nappy rash, and some special stuff for excema. Washed them with water. Ended up using the other stuff on myself when I ran out of my normal ones!


Baby girl hair accessories. Clips, hairbands. My baby was a baldie until she was nearly 2 1/2. The clips were all way too small for her by the time she needed them. New baby has more hair, but I'm convinced she will pull out clips and eat them!

Rosy Posy

I was the opposite- never used the pram til they were a year or so but I did borrow an extra sling so I could wash the first one.

Never used a baby monitor.

Baby bath was pointless- just used the sink or got into the big bath with them.

Paper liners for cloth nappies.

Play gym after the first child- way too dangerous with a toddler around.

Most cutesy baby shoes- found two styles that didn't fall off but were given loads which one or both of were immediately lost.

Those fill in the blanks baby books.

Most 'childproofing' stuff- found it easier to just keep an eye/teach them where not to go.

pwurple

Oh yes, the fill in the blanks baby books or baby frames that have "First step" or something on them.

Cripes, I've loads of them around gathering dust, and making me feel guilty for not photographing their every move!

seventeen sheep

Our nappy bin and our changing table were two things I loved - even though they're often scathed as "luxuries".

The nappy bin - I just couldn't be marching down to the back garden bin with every dirty nappy. I just couldn't. Our Anglecare unit is fab and we love it. Never a stink in the room, and minimal maintenance.

The changing table - we searched far and wide while pregnant, but couldn't find one that matched our needs. So we decided we couldn't justify the expense. Then, a relative gave us one. And it's amazing and we would find it hard to do without.

lazygal

Outfits until they were six months old. I only give babygros as baby gifts now.
Blankets. They went into grobags and kicked off blankets.
Moccasin baby shoes, useless gifts.
Lotions and potions for rashes and things, only used water and cloth wipes and coconut oil.
A sling, never liked it at all.

dori_dormer

Baby bath was a waste here, and the incredibly expensive gro bags! I bought 2 per season and h absolutely hates them!

Cot mobile, it just woke him up more.

cyning

On no 1 I didn't need the Moses basket or cot: my cot became an expensive place to throw clothes! Rarely used the buggy preferred the sling. I had far too many baby grows: I used outfits during the day and baby grows were pyjamas.

On no 2 I needed the cot to tilt the mattress to try help reflux, couldn't have lived without double buggy despite having a plethora of slings. Never used the baby swing and rarely used the bouncer.

So Moses basket was a waste of money. Used everything else between the two of them.

galah

Those rigid breastfeeding pillows (breastfriend). Absolutely hated it (me that is).

All the other stuff depends on the baby, a lot of unused stuff we got for the first one got used on our second child and the other way round.

Sling/babycarrier was a godsend on number 1, but number 2 detests it. Same with the changing table, great for the first one, unused for the second.

Scratch mittens - never needed for 1, but permanently on number 2.

Bottles/steriliser &all that jazz needed for our first one but not for our second.

Have about 4 of those baby books as well, all not filled.:pac:

seamus

Baby Bjorn. Nice idea in theory and some people seem to rock them, but I only used ours a few times and I found it awkward and uncomfortable.

Baby Books - "what to expect..." and the like. All useless. Listen to your family and friends and listen to yourself rather than trying to do what the book says.

bean14

All the 0-6 month clothes we got as presents. Babygros all the way.
I researched a monitor with a movement sensor which 10 months on has never been used.

iguana

pwurple wrote: »

Baby cosmetic products. Creams, lotions, shampoos, bath products, powders. Never used any of them really, except for sudocreme for a bit of nappy rash, and some special stuff for excema. Washed them with water. Ended up using the other stuff on myself when I ran out of my normal ones!

This. Shortly before he was born Waitrose had a really cheap special on organic baby products, so I stocked up with 2 bottles/tubes of everything. We are still using the first bottles of shampoo and body wash, we'll have it until he's 6 at this rate. And I've never used the lotion or nappy rash cream as he never needed either. I was the same with Lanisoh. I got two tubes of that but 2 years of breastfeeding later, I've never had a cracked nipple. These things are best to buy as you need them rather than in advance.

The opposite to everyone else though, 2 years on I do still use the baby bath. I think it's great for a quick (emergency) bath as you only need a small amount of water so it's quicker and uses less water and energy to fill.

IvyTheTerrible

Baby monitor.

Sling - I found this really uncomfortable on my back, and my baby didn't really like it either.

Hooded towels, very awkward to use and my baby hated having things on his head.

Until he ate solids, bibs were a waste of time, he never ever spat up (I know, I'm so lucky!).

pwurple

IvyTheTerrible wrote: »

Until he ate solids, bibs were a waste of time, he never ever spat up (I know, I'm so lucky!).

Oh my goodness, did he never drool either? Mine has only just learned to keep her saliva in at 8 months! We went though 10+ bibs a day with drool.

lazygal

Another thing, muslin clothes.
I bought two 12 packs of them, as everyone recommended them online and raved about how handy they were. Used about three of them on my first. I used more on my second as he rubbed them on his face to get to sleep and still does, but most of them are still folded away and never used.
Ours loved the hooded towels and they were a hand me down so no loss there. I found the baby bath very handy, we used it until 15 months on our first to save filling the bath. It was a loaner so again didn't cost anything.
Never really used bibs either, even though I was given lots of cute bandana ones.

IvyTheTerrible

pwurple wrote: »

Oh my goodness, did he never drool either? Mine has only just learned to keep her saliva in at 8 months! We went though 10+ bibs a day with drool.

No, he hardly ever drooled, he started teething very late so that started late too (first tooth was a month before his first birthday).

Neyite

Those stupid soothers that dispense medicine.

And while pregnant, those belt expander things from mothercare at €17 for 2. Yer wan tried to make out I'd be lost without them. A hairband or elastic band did the job for me instead.

Breastfeeding pillows.

And people giving you gifts of clothes based on age but for the wrong seasons. I got a newborn snow suit for a May baby and heaps of shorts and t-shirts for a six month old. He was 6m in December.

IvyTheTerrible

Neyite wrote: »

Those stupid soothers that dispense medicine.

And while pregnant, those belt expander things from mothercare at €17 for 2. Yer wan tried to make out I'd be lost without them. A hairband or elastic band did the job for me instead.

Breastfeeding pillows.

And people giving you gifts of clothes based on age but for the wrong seasons. I got a newborn snow suit for a May baby and heaps of shorts and t-shirts for a six month old. He was 6m in December.

That clothes thing was a big one for me, we get very hot summers, we wouldn't be wearing long sleeved tops, let alone jackets from the month of May til the end of September, L has loads of clothes he's never worn.

iguana

IvyTheTerrible wrote: »

No, he hardly ever drooled, he started teething very late so that started late too (first tooth was a month before his first birthday).

S was a big spewer until he started solids. I used to need to use 2 plastic backed bibs at all times. 1 between his vest and top and another over his top. It was the only way to keep his chest dry.

IvyTheTerrible

iguana wrote: »

S was a big spewer until he started solids. I used to need to use 2 plastic backed bibs at all times. 1 between his vest and top and another over his top. It was the only way to keep his chest dry.

He never spewed much, but once he was able to feed himself, the normal bibs were too small, he just wouldn't spill food on the area covered by the bib, so I made him a sort of towel-backed bib apron: https://craftysorcha.wordpress.com/2014/01/06/baby-smock/

seventeen sheep

IvyTheTerrible wrote: »

He never spewed much, but once he was able to feed himself, the normal bibs were too small, he just wouldn't spill food on the area covered by the bib, so I made him a sort of towel-backed bib apron:

Do you not find, though, that it's just as easy to wash a Tshirt as something like that?

I've a spitty pukey drooly baby, and while his creche seem to go through a million gazillion bibs a day, I find it much easier to just change Tshirt as required, and put up with the additional laundry!

IvyTheTerrible

seventeen sheep wrote: »

Do you not find, though, that it's just as easy to wash a Tshirt as something like that?

I've a spitty pukey drooly baby, and while his creche seem to go through a million gazillion bibs a day, I find it much easier to just change Tshirt as required, and put up with the additional laundry!

Well he eats 3 meals a day, unless it's a complete catastrophe, I'd keep the bib for the full day, whereas as before that, we were have to change t-shirt, trousers and sometimes socks!

seventeen sheep

IvyTheTerrible wrote: »

Well he eats 3 meals a day, unless it's a complete catastrophe, I'd keep the bib for the full day, whereas as before that, we were have to change t-shirt, trousers and sometimes socks!

You see with my boy, every feed is a complete catastrophe. With several "reprisals" of the feed in between. Not a hope the one smock would do for a full three meals!

It is very cute though!!

LegacyUser

Posting as an attachment-parent:

Never needed:

Formula
Bottles
Steriliser
Dummies
Cot
Moses Basket
Co-sleeper
Baby mobiles
Video monitors
Childcare
"Dream feeds"

Very Handy:

Non-slip bath mats
Potty
Sudocrem


Indispensable:

Raised changing table
Bubble bath
Vests
All-in-one sleep outfits with feet
Baby sound monitors
Bed guards/rails

Rosy Posy

seventeen sheep wrote: »

You see with my boy, every feed is a complete catastrophe. With several "reprisals" of the feed in between. Not a hope the one smock would do for a full three meals!

It is very cute though!!

I'm so glad you have the same experience- I could not conceive of reusing a bib- my babies have all been absolute muck savages. I do about ten loads of laundry a week- and we have a big machine!

ariana`

Rosy Posy wrote: »

I'm so glad you have the same experience- I could not conceive of reusing a bib- my babies have all been absolute muck savages. I do about ten loads of laundry a week- and we have a big machine!

Have you tried the Ikea long sleeve bibs? I find them great cos you can just rinse them under the tap after a meal before the food has dried in and they're ready to go for the next meal. Thankfully mine are nearly out of bibs now but we did BLW so it was a messy affair for a while and these bibs were the business.

ariana`

Most thing i bought that i didn't need was a breast pump. I was very engorged leaving the hospital with the first so i rushed out and bought it without even shopping around, it was €165 and i didn't use it again, i wish i'd know about hand expressing a little off. I didn't use it at all on the next baby. Thankfully i've lent it to a few people since so it has gotten some use.

Mink

Didn't need the following;

Baby toiletries
Those net things that you put fruit into and they suck on them
Teething rings (everything else was used)
Shoes for non-walkers

Couldn't live without (and a lot was 2nd hand);

Baby monitor with temp reading
Changing table
Sleeping bags
Truck loads of bibs
Baby bath with foam insert
Door bouncer
Sophie the giraffe
Dodies

pwurple

Thought of more. The changing table. Never used one of those either. I put a mat on a chest of drawers.

Baby weaning stuff. Special spoons or bowls etc. Never used it. Mainly eats off my plate. Porridge or squidgey things with a teaspoon.

galah

Mink wrote: »

Didn't need the following;
Those net things that you put fruit into and they suck on them

Oh yes, we have one of those as well, so useless! Typical first time parent purchase

The ikea bibs are brilliant, so annoying that they dont fit our three year old anymore though - they're also handy for all sorts of art work.

Bumbo seat was another completely useless and pointless thing, both our kids sat down once, and instantly arched their backs so much the whole thing would have toppled (obvs i was right there to stop that). Never used it again since.

dori_dormer

My fella hates the net fruit holder but for some reason can't get enough of the plastic one. So one was a waste of money and the other we can't live without lol! Also teething rings are crap, he just chews his toys, but he loves the Sophie thing. Also have loads of unused muslins.

We have 3 sets of those 'first teeth and curl' jars. Child has poker straight hair and keeping teeth is gross. Will be regifting those!

Also didn't use smellies on him ever. Just plain water and he's now 9 months.