registering: the fun, yet arduous process

registering was by far, one of the most confusing processes of my life. while griffin and i did have a blast picking out things for little baird, griffin particularly since he was in charge of the "scanning gun", i can't imagine how someone with no baby experience would ever be able to figure it out. lucky for us, both of griffin's brothers have small kids, ranging from 2 months to 2 years, so we had a general idea of what we needed to get, plus tons of advice on what brands were good, what we had to have, and what things we could go without. but still... it was crazy stressful trying to decide which kind of stroller to get, which kind of bottles to get, which kind of breast-pump to get, and the list goes on and on. while we did call griffin's brother hastings a few times to ask for advice, in the end, we registered for everything we thought we could possibly need. here are a few of the big ticket items we chose:

{the jogger} = {jeep limited all terrain 3 wheel stroller - galaxy}

{everyday stroller} = {combi cosmo ex stroller - wasabi}

{with attachable infant car seat} = {combi shuttle 33 infant car seat - wasabi}

{toddler car seat} = {safety 1st complete air convertible car seat - mckenna}

{with an extra car seat base for griffin's car} = {combi shuttle 33 infant car seat base}

{the jumperoo} = {fisher=price laugh n' learn jumperoo}

{the exersaucer} = {baby einstein entertainer - around the world}

{the activity gym} = {fisher-price rainforest melodies and lights deluxe gym}

{the musical table} = {leapfrog learn and grow musical table}

{the swing} = {graco lovin hug plug-in swing - hamilton}

{the infant seat} = {fisher=price my little lamb infant seat}

{bedside sleeper} = {summer infant rest assured sleeper}

{the pack and play} = {graco pack n' play playard - kensley}

{the breast pump} = {medela pump in style advanced breast pump}

{the monitor} = {summer infant day and night handheld color video monitor}

and last but not least... {the bottles} = {tommee tippee closer to nature bottles)

although the bottles are not necessarily a large purchase, i included them on here because a lot of research went into this choice. my sister-in-laws both used dr. browns their first go around and, although they were great bottles, there are 5 parts to each bottle, which makes cleanup a pain in the tooshie. with her second child reid, my sister-in-law tried these tommee tippee bottles, which are the bestsellers in europe and now in the us. and because she highly recommends them for their ease of use and their ease of cleanup, i decided they were perfect. 

also listed on the registry are, of course, the normal suspects: a bottle drying rack and sterilizer, a diaper genie and tons of diapers, tons of bed linens, bath stuff, toys, and storage options. i know you are probably all wondering, what's with the bland color scheme. for those of you who know me pretty well, you know i am not a fan of bright kid-like colors. for some reason, filling our house with tons of bright, multi-colored toys makes me a little uneasy. of course i love childlike things, i just don't want our house to look like a babies-r-us warehouse. plus, gender neutral can save us money in the long run if we ever have a girl. 

so here are a few tips for the registering process: 

• {research} make sure and take the time to look into the different brands, safety ratings, and functions of each of the big-ticket items you are registering for.
• {time} be sure and give yourself a few hours to register. griffin and i actually ended up doing it in two separate trips. the first we registered for all of the major items and the second trip we registered for all of the fun items.
• {talk} there is no better advice than that from someone who has already been down that road. talk to a family member, friend, or co-worker who has recently had a baby. ask them which things they would recommend and which things they would steer clear of. although all babies are different, chances are, they will have great advice for you.
• {review} i can't even tell you how many pink things griffin and i accidently registered for. because you are simply scanning the barcodes, sometimes the wrong thing can end up on your registry. for this reason, i would recommend reviewing your registry a couple of times once you get home. make sure everything you intended to be on there indeed is, and that there aren't any crazy things you don't want. 

aside from that, have so much fun. it can definitely be overwhelming trying to figure out what you have to have/need to have/want to have, but remember, you can always go back and add it if you realize its a must-have.

love, 

maggie