What to Register for at Baby Shower

Congrats on the baby!

When registering for my baby shower my sister-in-law suggested we register for everything because you dont normally get showers with your other children. So that is what we did.

Cloth bibs, you can never have too many, and some kind of "plastic" ones for when your child starts solids, its easier to clean than the cloth ones.

We got a wipe warmer and promptly returned it. It took up too much space on the dresser and also sooner or later you are going to be out and not have the warm wipes and your child is going to freak. Weather it be at someone elses house or daycare.

The changing pad is a great idea, I would get at least 3 covers, you don't want to keep washing the same one over and over when you have "accidents" and there will be.

Big items like the stroller, highchair, pack-n-play, read and reread the reviews. Go to the store and open and close them. Make sure it is easy for you to do.

We had the peg perego prima papa. It is a bit expensive but for us the best one.

We also registered for a booster seat for when he out grew his high chair, it also folds so you can take it with you.
I believe it was by fisher price.

We didn't have a lot of room in our bathroom so we got the safety first space saver tub. Worked great and I stored it under his crib.

For soap I would recommend California Baby, which you can now get at Target. It is natural and wish I had known about it when my son was an infant. Now I won't use anything else.

If I think of anything else Ill pass it along.

Good Luck to you!
M.

My best advice would be to recruit a recent Mommy and have her go with you to register. I did with my first and it saved so much time and money. She knew what worked and what the baby would like already and there was not issue with wondering what to put on the list. I have done it for friends too!! So much easier and less stressful. You are sure to get everything you need that way. Congrats and best of luck!!

Don't register for all the blankets, towels, wash cloths, etc. Everybody buys you that stuff anyway. You'll have more than you know what to do with.

I love California Baby shampoo and body wash.

A Bumbo seat is a must.

The Around-we-go Entertainer has been awesome. My daughter started in that around 4 months and still plays with it at 25 months. It's one of the few toys that gets you from infancy to toddlerhood.

Pack-n-plays are overrated personally. Unless you are really going to be doing some travelling I don't see a point.

I love my co-sleeper. It's been a lifesaver for the last 3 months with my new baby.

I never had the big bathtub. I have a little "raft" like thing for them that is small and like $6.99 or something. We don't have a master bath so I didn't want a huge tub thing in our main bath. It's just one more thing that needed washing and drying.

Just get a snap and go until the baby is out of the infant seat and then decide on a good stroller. YOu don't need the whole travel system.

If you are travelling alot or have a very compact car I would definitely get a Maclaren. Love it. Couldn't live without it.

I also adore my Ergo baby carrier. Also couldn't live without it. Cheaper than a Bjorn and much better for the baby and far more comfortable for me. It's so easy to run errands and not lug around a carseat. I just put him in the Ergo and we are off and hands-free.

Pre-swaddled blankets. I think they are by kiddopatamus and are $9.99. I have a couple and just had to buy the next size up now. Great invention.

Medela Pump n style. It's a great pump. I don't have to pump because I'm at home but when I do it's awesome. too bad my kid won't take a bottle.....

Lily Padz, if you are going to nurse. so much better than the paper breast pads and way more discreet. And reusable.

I'm sure I'll think of more stuff to add soon. i look forward to reading other responses. Congratulations.

I think the best thing I could tell a new mom or dad at this point is hold and cuddle as much as you want with your new baby. You can't spoil them with too much love and kisses and cuddles. No matter what people tell you. If you go on to have more kids, you'll wish you had the time to do that so enjoy the first baby as much as you possibly can and take lots of pictures!!! Also, keep a good baby book. Hallmark makes some great ones and it's so great to look back at them.

Congratulations and have fun.

I forgot to mention carseats. Definitely regisgter for them. THey are incredibly expensive so people like to go in on them together. I registered for 2 of them and got them both which was awesome. So we need to buy new ones for the second baby but didn't need to for our first. Do your research though. A 5 point harness is really important even past 40 lbs so make sure you have one that goes past that. I don't :(

Definitely go and get the book "Baby Bargains" (you can find it at Borders/Barnes and Noble). They review EVERYTHING and also have good registry creating tips. I'm 3 days overdue with my first and that book was the best prenatal book we bought. Don't have much advice as to what I can't live without yet though - hopefully I will soon :-)

So far I do have to second the Snap n' Go over a gigantic travel system - so much easier! If you live in the city though and do a lot of walking I'd definitely invest in a good stroller made for city streets. Congratulations and good luck!

The "Diaper Champ" diaper pail, it's much better than a diaper Genie because you only need one hand to use it and it uses kitchen garbage bags as liners instead of expensive refills. Available and Target and Babies R Us

Diapers (we like pampers)

Wipes (sensitive)

Desitin diaper rash ointment

Medela Pump in Style breast pump

Changing pad for top of dresser

The book What to Expect, the First Year

The book The Womanly Art of Breastfeeding, available from La Leche League

infant tylenol

High quality digital anal thermometer

co-sleeper

"Swaddle Designs" swaddling blanket * (couldn't have lived without it, I really could have used more than one) Available at Nordsstrom, or do a Google search to find online.

Side snap t-shirts for before baby's umbilical cord falls off (they won't rub it)

infant car seat (after much research we chose the Graco Snugrider)

stroller frame for Snugrider (snap-n-go or Graco)

Maclaren Volo stroller for when the baby's older

Carter brand sleep-n-play pj's with snaps in the front, not Target brand, try Babies R Us

Warm blanket sleepers (we used to call them footie pajamas) at Babies R Us, not Target brand, hard to find in summer but important for cold nights. We liked the ones that snap in front. Clothes than button and snap in the back are hard to use and might be uncomfortable for newborns

Just to add to the list:

-a bouncy seat or swing (our baby practically lived in the bouncy seat during his colicky moments)

-"Healthy Sleep Habits, Happy Child" by Dr. Marc Weissbluth. Read it now before you're sleep deprived. Trust me.

-"The Happiest Baby on the Block" by Dr. Harvey Karp. Again, read it now before the baby comes. You'll be grateful.

-Buy items for your 'baby medicine cabinet': Triple Paste diaper cream, Tylenol AND Motrin, Mylicon gas drops, Vaseline, nail clippers, nasal aspirator, thermometer. When the baby is screaming at 4 am you don't want to make that dash to CVS.

Oh and, Baby Bargains (the book mentioned by others) is FANTASTIC! Read it cover to cover to help decipher what is needed and what is junk (like a wipes warmer or a walker).