The Necessary & The Overrated

Spring cleaning has taken new meaning around our house. We have been trying to do quite a few house projects which has taken over most of our free time. So instead of cleaning- I would call it relocating more crap. I find myself going through a closet and instead of cleaning things out, making a donation pile, and reorganizing I simply try to stuff more stuff in the already existing space. Most of the stuff I end up stuffing into the spider webbed corners of our closet is baby stuff. Which got me thinking, what do we have that is necessary and what do we have that we thought was a MUST have when we had children that is slowly becoming very overrated.

I mean I was a paranoid, neurotic mother for the first four months of Ryan's life before I decided to calm down. I felt like I needed to recite the alphabet to Ryan everyday to increase her cognitve abilities. I thought she needed to move from one stimulating toy to the next every second of the day. I just knew if I missed out on mat time for a day I would knock her future IQ down 50 points.

Well, things are a bit different with the ol' Darby. I guess you could say we do the same; however, this time it is Ryan shouting the alphabet at the top of her lungs in Darby's ear while swinging her arms back and forth causing my left eye to twitch from fear of dislocation of her arm. Or putting Darby down for mat time only to be surrounded by every marker Ryan has because Ryan knows that Darby loves to color... interesting.

With all of this taken into consideration I thought I would make a product review list for all the new mommies out there. Please know this list is not meant to offend anyone, this is all personal preference. I now present "The Overrated"

1. Diaper Genie This is a total waste of money. Please tell me what a diaper genie can do that a trashcan cannot. Also, there are many times where I do not always secrure the diaper as tightly as I should, so there may be some spare poo around the edges. Well, that poo is not out of sight out of mind, it immediately becomes pasted on the inside of the genie awaiting your clean up days from then. I'm telling ya people, just use a trashcan.

2. Baby Video Monitor

I could see how some people need this; however, we are not those people. We bought a video monitor kit and a seperate walkie talkie monitor kit. I think these add more anxiety to your life that reassurance. We used the video monitor for one night. I just sat there asking myself, is she breathing? Is she comfortable? Did she just cough? I think I heard a fart, maybe she needs a new diaper. I'm telling ya, just put that precious baby down and keep the confidence and faith that they will sleep all night just like you will without the paranoia of watching your child. We did not even get these things out with Darby. I mean even the walkie talkies. It is just too brings on too many unwanted worries. I think we spent a total of $200 on these items...man what a waste!

3. Designer Bedding This was Ryan's bedding for her nursery. I can still remember the stress I went through to select her bedding. I mean I thought about the variety of color schemes, could she grow into this, are the colors timeless. I mean WAY too much thought went into this process. Now, don't get me wrong, every baby deserves an adorable nursery- Ryan's was the most precious thing ever. BUT, you do not have to spend $180 on the bedding to make it adorable. Bill and I drove to Montgomery to find this bedding, Why? I mean seriously, WHY? New mommies, do yourself a favor, go to Walmart or Target, because they have just as precious of bedding for about 1/8th the price. Not to mention, you have to take the crib liner out of the crib around 5 months, then you are just left with a sheet and a quilt. We never used the bedding quilt once with Ryan, so we were just left with a sheet. I mean talk about overthinking and overspending.

4. Grocery cart cover thingy Okay, I think I used this thing twice with Ryan. I know, I know, I probably am the reason for two or three colds of her childhood, but grocery trips are a production as it is. For the first 6-7 months she is in her car seat, then past that grocery trips with a 8-12 month old are a get in and get out process. I am not trying to postpone the shopping experience by figuring out the 15 straps that go with this thing. I am just trying to keep my child from grabbing every bag of chips off the shelf. Past 12 months, Ryan didn't want to have that silly thing, she wanted to be in the cart out of the cart, in the cart out of the cart. You get the picture. So once again, this item sits comfortably in the back corner of our guest room closet.

6. Swaddlers

This is the lazy man's blanket. I mean there is nothing this product can do that a blanket cannot. If anything I find it a little disturbing, it's a baby straight jacket. Ryan NEVER enjoyed to be swaddled. Darby definitely likes it a bit more, but we just use the good ol' blanket. I know all of you mommies have tons of blankets, it's the go to gift- use it!

Okay, enough of the stuff you don't need. I will give you a couple of things that I find necessary to my existence as a mother. I give you, "The Neccessary"

1. Umbrella stroller

Okay, we own 4 strollers; the travel system Graco stroller, the BOB jogging stroller, and two umbrella strollers (one double). Now I do love all of my strollers and they have all served me well, but the one we could not get along without is this one because it is so easy to just pack up and throw anywhere. Ryan has flown 4 times in her life and everytime, this is our means of transporting her through the airport. It is quick, easy, and does not have to be checked. If you do not have one, get one! We now have the double umbrella, but Darbs is not quite big enough for it yet.

2. Pacifiers

Ryan never took a pacifier, so I never really saw what all of the fuss was about. Cue Darby, this child can suck on a pacifier like it is no one;s business. I did not really want her taking one because I do not want to fight the day we have to get rid of it, but once again SLEEPING trumps REASON. If this plastic device made from heaven gets me an extra 30 minutes of sleep, then suck on Darby, suck on!

3. Baby Bjourn

I've had this since I was pregnant with Ryan. We would use it sparingly with Ryan, but I now find myself using it ALL THE TIME with Darby. I love it. I hate keeping the kids in their car seat for too long, so instead of bringing in the car seat to Target, I just throw this on and put Darby in it. My sister has perfected the art of breastfeeding in this contraption. I have a lot to learn, but it still serves as an amazing baby carrying device. GET ONE! They have these for $19.99 at TJ Maxx.

4. Kodak Gallery I do not have a picture for this particular item, but you can't go wrong with a picture of your precious children. Something I should have added to the Unneccessary list would be a baby book. SO TEN YEARS AGO. Now, you can make virtual books online and print them out like hardcover picture books. Also, who doesn't love a puzzle of your child for Christmas :) I'm just saying, this makes gift time and memorabilia much easier in life.

5. THE BOPPY I saved the best for last. This thing is amazing. The boppy is intended for a "support feeding device" Psha! This thing does it all, it helps with breast feeding, it's a back support for your baby while you talk to her in your lap, it's a mini recliner for your baby, it's the best sleeping device (even though there is a huge tag on it that says NO SLEEP), it's a tummy time mat, it's a Ryan finger blocker (the raised edges make it a bit tougher for Ryan to get to Darby), it's a speed bump for Ryan (if she is running full speed towards Darby shouting at the top of her lungs, this lessens the point of contact between the two). I honestly could not get along without it. I take it everywhere, as should you!

So as another spring comes and goes, I will continue to shove all of the crap we don't use in the back of our closet. Tightly tucked away with my wedding dress and Bill's old school papers (don't even get me started about not throwing those away)! I hope your spring cleaning is more successful than mine!