My List For THIS Time
A couple months ago I wrote What I Wish I’d Known Then – My List For Next Time. I listed the things I like to get for a future child based on my experience with Sara Ellen. It’s true I was hiding this pregnancy at the time but now that it’s known (and passed Christmas), I’ve actually created an Amazon wishlist “For Baby #2″, under my own name, with the “things” I’d like us to have. Aside from the things to buy, there are the things I’d like to do. In some respects these are related.
- Diapering – I am way passed ready for Sara Ellen to be out of diapers. I’m sure some readers would be shocked to know she’s still wearing them. For every transition with her, it’s happened in her time, often influenced by what I really have to do for myself. I’ve tried persuading her, telling her what would be different if she finally made the switch to underpants. She doesn’t seem to care. She often says, “I haven’t learned yet”. There are ways to push it or force it, but most of those are just going to take it’s toll on me. Now and then I’ve had her walk around undressed or with underpants, at times she says she has to go and gets on the toilet, and other times she says she has to go and doesn’t, and still other times it surprises her and I have to clean up.
Aside from toilet-training, I’m also ready to be finished filling landfills with disposable diapers. I’ve gotten recommendations and personal experiences from a friend and have chosen two brands of one-size, all-in-one diapers, Fuzzi Bunz and Bum Genius. I’m not fussed about color. I won’t be trying to get all pink for a girl or all blue for a boy. I’ll be borrowing Kissaluvs from my friend, the kind that are tiny and cut for an infant with a remaining umbilical cord. - Bathing – I’m totally fine with Sara Ellen bathing in the tub, but I would like to get her more comfortable with showering, especially when it comes to washing hair. I’ve also wanted to cover the tub faucet to avoid [any more] injuries. When Sara Ellen was an infant, sink bathing was very acceptable. As she got bigger, I’d have to fill the tub and often bathe with her. I’d rather save some water. Also it’s difficult to handle and towel a slippery baby. With all that in mind I have added the Stay-Dry Towel Apron, faucet cover, mobile shower head, toy scoop/product shelf, and infant-to-toddler tub with sling.
- Furnishing – We’ve never had a true changing table, except that which came on the Pack ‘n Play. Most of the time putting a changing mat or pad on a bed works well. For this time I nearly chose a table that coordinates with the crib we have (Delta Cambridge) but then realized many dressers come with attachments. I’ve been happy with Pottery Barn Kids furniture so I chose the PBK Catalina Dresser & Changing Table Topper Collection in Sun Valley Espresso. Sara Ellen is using a dresser in a similar color given to me years ago by my grandparents. I’d also like a cozy rocking chair and a sturdy stool to use while nursing. I put my feet up a lot on our coffee table in Sara Ellen’s first few months, and that wasn’t the best. For these I’ve chosen PBK’s Dream Rocker with a poly frame and Brushed Blue Twill slipcover and the Medela Nursing Stool.
- Gear – Not sure what else to call a baby swing, car seat (infant supporter), sling, carrier infant insert, and bags. One thing I firmly believe would have a been a huge help in Sara Ellen’s early life, was a swing or a bouncer. Later on, sometime soon after returning to Maryland, we were given a bouncer and it did help. I’m thinking a standing swing, which would given a little motion of course, would be nice. I’ve chosen the Graco Sweet Peace Soother Swing (a friend has one). It has good reviews and another model is coming out in March with what I think are better toy options. For the carseat, we’re going with convertible again but this time with the Britax Roundabout which has great reviews, one of which is that it’s easier to install. When Sara Ellen was tiny, she slumped down while napping all the time, this time I want to add the Kiddapotamus supporter. We already have an ERGO baby carrier which is awesome for distributing weight, but we didn’t get it until Sara Ellen was a year old so this time we’ll need the infant insert. There is a new one available that keeps the baby upright instead of laying them to one side. I think this will make nursing easier. I’d also like the Dr. Sears Balboa Baby sling for cozy wearing in shorter time increments. When I was pregnant with Sara Ellen, I assumed I’d need some sort of diaper bag. I chose a large tote and rarely used it, partly because it was so much larger than we needed and when full didn’t zip well. It seemed using a larger purse to carry extra clothing, diapers, diaper pad and wipes was fine. After some time it got annoying because those items were mixed in with mine and was harder to extricate. This time I know more of my options. The Ju Ju Be bags are awesome. Even before this pregnancy, I’ve been wanting a pretty backpack with a messenger bag option for taking on day trips. Ju Ju Be has a fantastic one called the Packabe. All their bags have what they call “Mommy pockets” but I would also like to have the Be Mine so I can quickly take out my own belongings. With a baby coming I’m also interested in the Ju Ju Be Mess Shuttle to hold messes, obviously. However, the Packabe is too big for the average day. The one I’ve picked is called the Be All, a messenger bag with several great pockets to separate need items. It’ll be like a large purse. The particular one I’d like is customized under Be Unique, which can use 3 different models. I’ll choose the Be All in brown with the International Breastfeeding Symbol in a yellow circle or blue stripe fabric that I hope Tim will also feel comfortable carrying. This is only available for order by Be Unique Super Custom order form and I’ll be saving for it.
Yay for new babies! Yay for cloth diapering! We have friends who use BGs and love them! (Also, I don’t know if you’ve heard about diaperswappers.com, apparently you can get very good deals there.) Also, not sure if you know about it or not, one of the diaper companies (I think BG) makes a sprayer attachment that you can hook to your toilet water line (apparently easy) for cleaning messes off. Way nicer and more hygenic than using your kitchen sink sprayer (which is what I do, for our occasional messy diapers)!
I don’t know about you, but we found the array of cloth diapering options totally bewildering at first! Fortunately we were able to go to a class called Cloth Diapering 101 at our local eco-store, and that was very helpful for laying out the options and pros/cons. For us, because we wanted to do elimination communication, we chose to go with prefold diapers. They are the thick, flat ones that you fold up to put on the baby (the ones your mother may have used when you were little!). Instead of using pins you can use something called a Snappi which is like an ace bandage clip. Then when you want waterproofing you put a separate cover over the diaper (I like our loveybums fleece cover, but it was too hot in summer, maybe it wouldn’t be good for you in California!). It’s not as easy as an all-in-one diaper like the BG or FuzziBuns, but we liked not having to be waterproof all the time (so that we could tell when he was wet right away, we never wanted him to get used to being wet). We also like how easy they are to wash/dry. The fitted diapers take a lot longer in the dryer because they are bunched up, prefolds are flat and towel-shaped so they finish drying very quickly. And prefolds are *way* cheap. We bought them from our diaper service for 75 cents each when we were ready to be doing our own laundry. (And having diaper service the first 6 months was a godsend, let me tell you!) And I know I’m sort of harping, but if you can find the energy to do EC with #2, even a tiny bit, you will save some diapers and hopefully make toilet learning with the next one easier than with Sara Ellen.
We have the roundabout car seat, too, and we **love** it, it is wonderful and fits even in a small car. And I can change it/move it around myself if necessary, so you know it’s pretty manageable.
I am so excited for you! Congratulations!
I’d like to edit myself.
~I learned about KaWaiidiapers which are just like Bummies but less expensive.
~I wanted the Sweet Peace, until I felt it. The fabric used it supposed to be super soft but for me it actually catches on my fingers, ick. We’ll probably get one with plain cotton fabric.
~I’ve been doing a little research on car seat safety lately, and using accessories that didn’t come with the seat, aren’t proven safe. I’ll be removing the Kiddopatamus support from our list.
~I’m also holding off on getting a Balboa sling as it qualifies as a baby bag, and may be the kind of sling that has too much padding and room that may be unsafe. I’m sad about this because it’s by the Sears family with whom I agree on many baby/child raising ideas.
~I got my PackaBe and I love it!