As we welcomed our fourth son this past April (in the peak of the pandemic, yikes!). I was once again plunged into the world of baby gear. Now I’m gonna tell y’all a secret. I am a total stress shopper. Retail therapy, anyone? So believe me when I say it took all my might not to buy every cute thing on Amazon. However I did pick up some stuff and realized a lot of it were things I had bought in the past. Things I knew we were going to use. And in this rough time, if you’re trying to save a buck or, like us, are limited in space, you don’t want to be buying things you might never need! So here it goes my top baby buys for 2020!
First, some tips:
- Be frugal not cheap! There is a difference.
- Consider your lifestyle and space.
- Is this your first baby or last?
- Buy less and add more later.
I will start with the big ticket items…
A car seat. We have gone through many brands; most of them were hand me downs from friends. The car seat we used for our third baby expired and for the first time we had to buy one. We decided to go with the Uppababy Mesa mostly because it came with our stroller. We love it. When it comes time for a new one we are definitely going with that brand again. It is the lightest car seat we’ve owned and the sleek look and functionality were also a plus.
A good quality double stroller. Trust me in this one we have four kids and have gone through about four strollers before we finally bought the one we really wanted but was more expensive. Big item to be frugal but not cheap with. We were cheap and it actually cost us more in the long run. The stroller I recommend and own is the Uppababy Vista. My second and third choice would be the City Mini Select and the Contours Options Elite.
A good quality woven wrap. I will admit I am a little bit of a baby wearing hoarder but if I have to pick just one baby wearing item it would be a woven wrap. This is the one I own and have been loving.
A good quality diaper bag that YOU like.
Make sure whatever you get is of good quality and your style. You will wear it all the time. I did not consider this when we had our first baby and was not happy with my purchase. I have since then owned several and my top picks are Skip Hop Forma or Skip Hop Mainframe Wide Open. They are a little lacking in style for my taste but the quality for the price is there.
A pack and play. This is actually a budget buy if you don’t have a lot of room. They are cheaper than a crib and very versatile. Most come with a bassinet part and they grow with your baby. All in all we have gotten a lot of use out of ours. This is the one I have and after six years and 4 kids it’s still going strong.
A baby rocker instead of bouncer. I found that my babies prefer the rocker. It is easier for them to get it to move. We also prefer one that doesn’t make noise; our house is loud enough. Here is one similar to the one we own.
Cloth diapers. Yes everyone will tell you they will save you money and they will. However they are an up front investment much like the other items in this list. Do your research so you don’t buy excess and just be aware that the cute factor can be addicting and you will want to buy them all! So make an informed decision and stick to it. Here are some of my tried and true ones.
Baby buys under $50
Now for your smaller buys.
I live in Florida and we still love our wipe warmer. It makes sure that your sleepy newborn doesn’t completely wake up in the middle of the night diaper changes.
- Muslin blankets inexpensive and versatile what else could you ask for. Here is my favorite brand
- The NoseFrida yes sounds gross but it’s a life saver when your baby gets their first cold.
- Cloth-diaper-safe rash cream that works. After trying several this does the trick for us.
- Car seat/ nursing cover scarf. This thing is awesome. It does it all and it was truly inexpensive.
- Clothes. *Word of advice: don’t buy any clothes until after your baby shower. Then take inventory and fill in the gaps. My top newborn clothing items are sleeping sacks, rompers, and onesies. Everything else is extra.
- Dr. Bronners baby mild Castile soap. This is our favorite baby wash and we use it in all our kids.
There you have it. It is a super straight forward list. It is minimal and it might be lacking for some but after four babies I know what I like/need and having limited space these are the items that I choose.
Hope this helps and remember to shop frugally not cheaply!
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