Gear: Prepping for Baby

Williamsburg, 2012

I haven't done a gear post in some time, mainly because we are feeling quite well-equipped. Our shower was fantastic, and thanks to our many generous friends, we've ticked a lot off the list. We snagged some newborn onsies at Carter's and my sister-in-law has a big box of baby clothes coming our way later this summer. A neighbor who is moving to Burma even gave us a nursing pillow and all sorts of nursing supplies (like umpteen boxes of nursing pads.)

We're considering cloth diapering once we get past the few first months (perhaps using a service like Diaper Kind) but we will use disposables for the newborn period. Aside from those diapers (which I may just wait on until we know how big bambino is...Diapers.com delivers in 24 hours and we live in range of 5 million 24-hour bodegas), there are just a few items left to acquire. I've also been advised that it's best to wait on bottles and pacifiers as babies tend to have strong opinions on the matter.

1) Baby Bjorn Babysitter Balance at Miniluu
We have a credit at Miniluu and I've had my eye on this bouncer for some time. I've heard it (and similar contraptions) are critical for entertaining/containing baby while you shower and the like. And though some people swear by a mechanical swing, for now they kind of creep me out. If I get a colic-y baby, I reserve the right to run screaming to the nearest Buy Buy Baby and give up on all of my aesthetic ideals.

2) An infant car seat cover
One of Will's colleagues very kindly passed along his infant car seat. The only hitch is that it's powder pink. Now, I'm not one to waste a perfectly good hand me down over some silly notion that pink of for girls, but Will likes to joke that he was scarred for life because he had to wear his sister's long johns for skiing (a terribly traumatic incident, no doubt). Luckily I found a few sites like Hip n Cozy that make cute, simple covers and canopy replacements. I like this one or that one. Some people note that these aren't recommended by car seat manufacturers for actual driving. But they slip on and off (for washing) and we'll primarily be using this for trips to restaurants around the neighborhood or with our stroller.

3) A Sakura Bloom sling
I don't know that these are necessities unless you live in a city and do a ton of walking. Our Brooklyn friends swear by theirs, and I recently tried one on at Caribou. To me, it seems much more intuitive than the traditional wraps you tie yourself. They are also a bit better for newborns, as carriers like the Baby Bjorn are supposedly not great for their hips, and if you use an Ergo (which we may get later), you need an infant insert that would make it all too unbearably hot in August. I'd like to get one that's relatively gender neutral so Will can use it as well.

4) Nursing bras and tank tops
I will be heading to Caribou for these once we get a little closer to delivery day.

Aside from everything being in boxes, I'm feeling pretty organized.