A Sample Baby Registry

Setting up a baby registry can be a daunting endeavor. I know I cringed every time I thought about it. First, of all I despise department stores. Second, I was a new mom. What did I know what I would need?  Third, we lived in an 800 square foot condo that was already cluttered with our stuff. My head hurt thinking about adding all the baby stuff.

Than a friend who is a minimalist and a mom sent me a link to this blog post of an easy earth-friendly baby registry. I basically copied and set it up on Amazon. The beauty of Amazon is you can link other sites such as Babies R’ Us to your Amazon account AND you don’t even need to leave your house.

So I figured I’d share a simple registry that can be a good starting place for any new mom.

1.       Convertible play yard with bassinet & changing table(3 in 1). This is a wonderful thing for a home where space is a premium. The play yard can become a crib later down the road and it easy to move from room to room if necessary.

2.       Sheets & waterproof pads for play yard. At least 2 of each. 3 is the perfect number.

3.       Bottles. Glass is better, especially for heating. Whether your breastfeeding or not, bottles are essential if you plan on ever going anywhere in the first year without your baby.

4.       Diapers. Whether you are planning on doing disposable or cloth, be prepared to go through 12-15 a day the first few weeks. For cloth figure out how often you want to do laundry and go from there. If you are doing cloth you’ll need at least 5 liners, 6 - 8 is better.

5.       Diaper pail. For either cloth or disposable. It doesn’t have to be ginormous. For cloth think of how often you want to wash them; disposable, how often you’ll want to take the garbage out. 2-3 days is usually good, more than that the bin will get really stinky. I found a five gallon bucket with a lid works just fine for cloth diapers and a small-lidded trash can for disposables.

6.       Clothes. Most likely people are going to give you bags of hammy downs or loads of new outfits for your little one. If you do put cloths on your registry, make sure it’s a bigger size from 3 months on. Newborn clothes last a month if you’re lucky and during that first month sleepers are the easiest. I found that sleepers with a zipper worked best for me because I couldn’t never figure out the snaps. 4-5 newborn sleepers are plenty.  If you’re swaddling, 4-5 swaddlers are great.

7.       Car seat. You can’t take your baby home from the hospital unless you have a car seat. The kind that detaches from a base is the most convenient for newborns. Plus the seat becomes a great place to have your baby hangout. I used to put my daughter in hers and bring it in the bathroom so I could shower. They also rock nicely for soothing.

8.       A couple of toys. People love to buy toys for babies & children. Here’s a chance for you to choose what kind of toys you would like your child to have. Babies don’t really need many toys. A little rattle or wire ball will provide plenty of entertainment for them.

9.       Humidifier. Especially for newborns in the winter. Their respiratory tract is so delicate and they need the extra moisture when the heater is running.

10.   Baby carrier or sling. If you want to get anything done in that first month, you’ll discover wearing you baby is the key, unless you have one of those easy babies that will sleep anywhere you place them. I found Moby wraps were the best for my daughter in the first month. Baby Bjorn and Ergo Baby are also great.

11.   Burp cloths and bibs. You can never have too many, but at least 10 of each is necessary.

12.   Teething rings.  Those will come in handy in the future.

13.   Blankets. 2 for the home, 2 for travel, and 2 for spares.

And that’s about it. Simple and basic.