necessities

While I was pregnant, I researched baby gear and supplies religiously.
I like to keep my house simple and hate hate hate to see money go to waste so I didn't want to buy items that weren't necessities.

We were generously gifted a lot of items like a pack n play, bouncer chair, a bumbo, ergo carrier with infant insert, a play mat, a mobile, etc.  I was determined to use what we had and not buy more stuff.

But......little did I know all babies are different and what works for one doesn't work for another.

For example, my cousin who has 3 little ones including twins swore by the bouncer chair.  "My firstborn lived in the chair and would fall asleep in it all the time.  And once they grow older, they would still sit in in and play in it!" she said.  So she bought me one and Emily hates it.  At first, I thought it was because she was kind of young, but even at 5 months, if I put her in the bouncer, she'll roll her body around and cry out.

Another mommy gifted me the pack n play bc we have a two story house.  "The baby will play in here while you cook and get work done," she said.  "And you can use it as a place downstairs to put her in for a nap."  Yea..not so much.  It's now used as a big storage area.

However, there are things we've received as gifts or I bought out of desperation, and for some reason, it worked!

Things we cannot live without

I bought this out of desperation during the 2nd month, because she refused to sleep anywhere besides my arms and I was going crazy.  She's fallen asleep in it a couple times as a newborn.  Now, I put her in here when I cook or by the table when we eat and she allows me to eat.  Although similar to the bouncer, I think she likes this better because it's at a higher height

I bought the Sophie baby because it was so cute.  But Emily loves loves this.  It will keep her occupied for hours!  She just sits there gnawing on it.  My mom calls this her "galbi" (meat) because she sits there chewing on it so yummy.

One of my students gifted me the glow worm toy and I thought it was kind of freaky looking.  If you press the worm's chest, the face lights up and music plays.  Again, out of desperation of when I was trying to put her to sleep, I pressed play.  She loved it and fell asleep immediately.  It has made my life mucho easier.  The music plays for 10 minutes and then dims out softly.  The only bad thing is that it has the world's shortest battery life and it always seems to go out when we're trying to put her to bed.

 Emily has had some congestion problems recently and nosefrida is essential to get all her mucus out for a restful night.

The Jumperoo was an investment piece.  More than lying down, I noticed she liked being upright.  We put her in this at around 4 months even before she could reach the ground. Now, she can reach and bounce properly but it's another lifesaver for me to put her in here and get some work done.