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What should/should not be bought when it comes to baby items?

From your experience what baby thing and gadgets should be bought and what should be left at the store? Here is my list: Nasal Clear nasal aspirator $39.95 at http://www.onestepahead.com has no suction and makes allot of noise. Can’t be returned once opened. Breastbottle® Nurser $14.95 the bottle is too soft making it hard for the baby to latch on to the nipple. Also it leaks allot. Evenflo Deluxe Splash with Me tub $19.99. Leaks if filled about half way. The spray hose does not fit any of our faucets. Rainforest Jumperoo $79.99 +$10 off at Burlington coat factory. Great toy, lots of fun, my baby loves it, but does not play with any of the attached toys. Exchanged for Bouncing Tigger Seat $19.99 just as much fun and loves it just as much. The problem is attaching it to the door. Diaper Genie II Advanced Disposal System $29.99 +refills $5.99 Stinky and messy. Replaced by a cute garbage can that’s lined with used, clean, plastic grocery bags. Baby Wipes Warmer $19.99 Well worth it, especially when changing diapers at night. Fresh Food Feeder (2-Pack) mesh bag $6.99 Great invention. Can’t say anything bad about it. Please share what you think is worth the buy and what is not. Thank you. Oh yeas, the diaper warmer does dry up diaper wipes. But by adding a half cup of water into the warmer once the wipes start to dry up helps with that issue. I still like the mesh bags. I put pieces of apple or carrots and my baby enjoys them. When she is done she just drops the bag and when wants more she makes a clicking sound with her tongue. I don’t think that they eat everything you put in there. She does not like peaches and if I put a peach in there she spits it out and throws the bag away. It’s better than worrying that she might choke on something.

Public Comments

I agree...if you love your baby, you will warm their wipes. We have a diaper genie...and I am getting so nauseated by the gross smells that come from it. Those little activity tables by fisher price are useless. They are so lightweight that it won't support a standing baby, and will get pulled over on top of the baby when they DO fall. Terrible toys. Jacuzzi baby tubs.
I don't think I have tried any of those things. I found that I never used a nasal aspirator at all. I didn't like having a baby monitor - it picked up other babies' in the neighborhood, I heard every little squeak and just didn't need to hear that. If the baby was really crying, I'd hear them easily. Diaper Genie is a nasty idea anyway. I always took stinky diapers right out, and wet ones every couple of changes - I didn't want dirty dipes in my house for long. Things I really liked were: Cloth diapers to use for burp cloths - they're absorbent and cover a lot of area and you can bleach them. Some babies love a swing, and if your baby does, it can be a lifesaver! The battery operated kind are such an improvement over the old crank kind. A rattle sort of toy that suction cupped to the high chair tray and provided endless entertainment. A Johnny Jumper seat you hung in the doorway. I could put baby in that and work nearby and talk to it.
I wouldn't advise no one to buy the baby WIPE warmer. It dries out the baby wipes and I get Huggies..
Aspirator - get the $2 one from Safety First. Breastbottle nurser? Is that a bottle? Get the Avent ones. $5 each. Bathtub- get the simple one. I had one with a shower and its a waste of money. The water pressure is lighter than if you used a cup of water. Jumperoo - no experience. Bouncy seat is needed!! Any one, but you need one! Diaper genie. I have the original and I love it. Once the kid starts crawling it is even better - no little hands in the trash. And when they eat real food ...whoa. It holds in the stink.
I was able to save the 35 on a Boppy by just using a regular pillow. I was able to use it for much longer, and now my daughter still uses it as her pillow. I never got a bottle sterlizer and neither of my kids died from an infection. I never used a diaper genie, grocery bags worked better. Also, the $300 that I spent on a three wheeled double jogging stroller was the best thing that I ever got. I was able to get great exercise, and I was able to take the kids. It was better than a gym membership.
Here is what I would buy: 1. The baby wipe warmer - great idea, very sweet gift. 2. Fresh Feeder - another great idea. Honestly I wouldn't buy her anything she can't take back, or that is annoying. ( such as things that leak or make noise) Check her registry, and also buy diapers. You can never go wrong with diapers. Trust me on this. diapers are a great gift, maybe throw in wipes, lotion, shampoo, bubble bath, baby rash ointment, powder, and maybe wash cloth, and a baby robe. Hope this helps. Good Luck!
Don't buy: formula (about $1500) -- smelly, messy, dangerous, and useless. Don't waste your money.
Don't buy a walker, as they are useless and dangerous.
I would not recommend anyone get a bottle warmer. We used ours maybe three times. Its easier and cheaper to warm up the bottle in a cup of warm water. I've rarely used my daughters comforter. Even at 15 mos all she does is wiggle out of it. I loved my diaper genie. I have the original and its great. The main thing I would recommend to all parents to be is a travel formula holder. Its holds 3 8oz servings of powder formula. Just add water. Unless of course baby is stricktly breastfead. I supplemented with formula once my daughter was four months old. And I never could get used to breastfeeding in public. This was a big help. I would also say get at least one nipple and ring holder for the dishwasher. And once baby is off bottles get one for sippy cups lids and valves its much bigger. The one thing I am determined to get for my next baby is a baby moses basket. My daughter would wake up as soon as we went to move her to bed. This way we can just move the whole bed. The best bottles in the world are playtex vent air. I tried evanflo, avent, playtex nursers, the only one my daughter did well with were the vent airs. She rarely spit up once we started using those. I've gotten all my friends with babies to use them and they all agree.
I agree the diaper genie is just a waste of money! I also thaught the wipie warmer was a waste. I over bought on 0-3 month clothes and sz 1 diapers. And all the cheap bottles drive me insane! I have found to like Dr. Brown's and soothie the rest are a waste of time.
I have 2 babies of my own and watch 4 other babies under the age of one since they were 6 weeks old and these are the things I swear by: -Medela Quick Steam Sterilizing bags -Fisher Price Papasan Swing -Boppy -Fisher Price Kick and Play Vibrations Bouncy Chair -Any cool looking exersaucer -Steal the green nasal suction bulbs from the hospital or doctors office they are the best ones, the ones at the stores don't compare- don't feel bad you won't after you get your $5,000 a day hospital bill. -Dr.Brown's bottles - for the gassy babies -Costco wipees -Mylicon -Summer Infant baby Monitors - if anything happens to them you can send them back and they will send you the newest monitor they have even if it is more expensive. I reccomend the video montior you can turn the volume down and still make sure baby is okay if you don't want to hear every whine. -Medela Pump in style if you breastfeed -Arrowhead Water Service if you don't - The stand comes with hot and cold button half and half don't have to warm bottles up. -Huggies Diapers - I tried every brand and those are the best! Not so fond of.... -Bottles warmers waste of money- I used it for a week -Diaper Genie - used for a month. My husband takes out the trash but always forgets the diaper genie. -Walkers - something always happens and the exersaucers stay put while still stregthing their leg muscles -I used the wipee warmer for about six months with my daughter and about 3 months with my son they both seemed fine the minute I used a cold one on them.
HUGE FAN of the original diaper genie, wipe warmer, battery opperated swing, bouncer, I-Pod chairs (foam ish ones from wal-mart), space saver high chair (it's small and uses on of your dinner chairs from target), and the travel formula dispenser----> however, I put rice cereal in mine due to only breastfeeding. I also LOVE: highchair and grocery cart covers, mylicon for gas relief, gerber bottles, sacks or pea pods or gowns (whatever they are really called), and a funky colored mobile for the crib. Fan of the: massaging star teether, aveeno body wash and lotion for babies, baby sunglasses, tub side bath seat, Cuddle-U, froggy activity gym (from walmart), LUV diapers, baby powder smelling disposable baby garbage bags (they hold the dirty diapers or messy clothes when your on the road) and cradle cap (be gone stuff).... NOT A FAN OF: baby shoes (their feet don't grow right and they can't grasp anything with their toes and baby's are still learning with their toes until they are two years old), baby booties (don't stay on feet), huggies diapers or soaps or wipes (reactions to ALL HUGGIES brand things), regular highchairs (too big/bulky), "peek-a-boo" black breast feeding cover (doesn't work for "oversize" woman ..... either that or I just can't figure it out, a blanket works just as well), "bottle warmer" (from target, too much hassle, it's faster to use a glass with warm water to warm up your food or bottles), and baby ezcema cream (From walmart the brand with baby winnie the pooh----> left my son feeling very oily even when using a tiny bit). So far, with my 7 month old, I have found alot of things that he likes playing with. He has sensitive skin so we found that aveeno products work best with that. Good Luck!
The mesh food feeders are a horribly dangerous product that shouldn't be on the market at all. Babies have a natural sucking instinct, you put a mesh feeder in their mouth and they suck food out of it straight to the back of their throat where they are forced to swallow it -ready or not. Assuming that this doesn't cause them to gag, it overrides the baby's natural safeguards to prevent them from eating food before their intestines are ready. Almost ALL babies do not master the ability to chew, move food to the back of their tongue, and then swallow until their intestines are developed enough to handle food. This generally happens between 6-9 months, not 4-6 months as was believed for a few decades. Giving the baby less ability to spit out food also gives them less chance to spit out food that they are potentially allergic too. One of the first signs of many allergies is an itchy or numb tongue. Using the suckling instinct to take in non-breastmilk foods which are much less nutrient and fat dense can cause a baby to take in less milk. Suckling is for BREASTMILK, and chewing is for food. Why do we keep insisting on screwing up a perfectly designed system?