Baby Registry: Bigger Items

I've been meaning to post a little series on baby items - things we needed, things we never used, toys we love. I know that when I was expecting, I devoured as many of these lists as I could so that I could put together a comprehensive registry (and find quality toys as he grows). First, I'm going to start with the "big" things we needed and used (or still use):

rocking chair / glider

We purchased our glider online from Best Buy (this one is similar). I love it! It's very comfortable, which was key since I was sitting in it for long periods of time (Marc was a very slow breastfeeder). It's still in Marc's room - we use it for morning bottles, bedtime stories and I'll sit in it while he plays in his room. We'll eventually move it out, but for now it's perfect.

play pen with bassinet

This Eddie Bauer pack and play is what we used as a bassinet in our room until Marc was around 6 months and we transitioned him to his crib. Now it's his bed when we travel to visit our family. Once we figured it out, it was very easy to assemble and dissemble. The nightlight/vibrator that came with it was a lifesaver: those vibrations plus a white noise app on my phone were key when teaching Marc to put himself to sleep. I originally liked this pack and play because it came with a shade (we could bring him outside in the summer!) but we've honestly never used it or the change table that came with it.

play mat / "jungle gym"

I chose this play mat because it could be converted into a ball pit and that sounded like a lot of fun! Marc loved it (especially the elephant that played music and flashed colourful lights)! It was great for him to stretch and wiggle and explore the dangling toys. Since this one is in his room, we purchased a second, smaller one for downstairs. We used both until he became mobile; then we put away the small one and converted the one upstairs into the ball pit which he still uses today.

bath

I loved this sling bath! It was small enough to tuck away in his closet and we didn't have to figure out where we would use a tiny bathtub (our bathroom isn't big enough to put it on the floor or counter to wash Marc). It made washing Marc very easy until he could sit up on his own.

change pad

I'm so glad we didn't waste money on an actual change table. This pad fits perfectly on Marc's dresser. We're still using it.

diaper pail

I chose this Ubbi diaper pail (you can see it in the background of this photo) mostly because it uses regular garbage bags. I use it for both disposable and cloth diapers (depending what I'm using that day.. or both, I just can't use the little hatch for both at the same time). It holds in the smell very well and cleans up easily.

stroller with car seat

We went with this Eddie Bauer stroller and car seat. I chose it because of how sturdy it is (it has 3 big wheels). It is big though, which makes navigating smaller stores a bit tricky, if not impossible. But for the most part, it's perfect. I like that the shade for the stroller fits over the car seat so that I can completely cover Marc if needed (awesome when the sun is in his face or when he would nap during our long walks in the spring). The car seat is easy to pop on and off the base and stroller and seems comfortable for our long trips to visit family. I have yet to use the stroller without the car seat, but once Marc is bigger I'm sure we'll get a lot of use out of that as well.

high chair

We have this Graco high chair. I had no special reason for choosing it; it just does the job well. The seat cover and tray are easy to clean, although the cover is a little stained now. The straps are harder to clean and stained as well (though I don't see any way around that). It's sturdy and doesn't take up too much space in our dining room. The seat does fit onto a chair, with or without the tray - we haven't tried this yet, but I likely will once he's a bit bigger and eating at the table.

Things We Didn't Need

Now here are the big ticket items that we didn't end up using... I'm not saying you won't need them, but they just didn't work for our very active little boy:

swing

Marc did not like the swing. Not sure if it was because he was stuck on his back with little to entertain him (which he still dislikes) or what, but we didn't use our swing more than a couple of times.

Bumbo seat

Again, Marc doesn't like this seat. It isn't good to use before they're developmentally ready to sit on their own (since it forces their little back into an unsafe curve), and once he knew how to sit on his own, he didn't want to be restrained. Marc is a mover and definitely does not like to be contained.

Jumper

Which brings us to the Jumper. I don't regret buying this because Marc does enjoy playing with it - just a lot more now that he can stand around it instead of being stuck inside it. He was content to play for 10 or so minutes, but after that he just wants to move.

Anyway, this is what did and did not work for us - what are some big ticket items you needed or ended up not needing?