Baby Gear: Around the House

The things in this category are not a requirement for everyone. These items worked best for our situation.

I knew that I wanted BabyL to sleep in our room for at least the first few weeks. He is now 3 months old, and still in our room. Right now, I'm thinking we'll transition him to his nursery around 6 months, but I continue to re-evaluate.

So, BabyL needed a place to sleep, since moving his crib into our room wasn't an option. I didn't want to buy a bassinet that would essentially be useless after a couple of weeks. I opted for a play yard that had a bassinet insert, and chose the Chicco Lullaby LX Play Yard (in Adventure pattern, the same as our car seat). To be honest, I don't remember why I chose the Chicco over the more-popular Graco. I like the bassinet insert (can be used up to 15 pounds), and I thought the mobile was cute (though it made it harder to place BabyL in the play yard, and was also distracting him while I was trying to get him to sleep). I thought the remote control included to operate the vibration, nightlight and music was a bit over the top, but it was convenient in the middle of the night to turn the vibration on with the remote without getting out of bed. However, only three months in, the vibration feature has stopped working. It's not the battery, because the nightlight, and the music still work. I've contacted Chicco, but haven't gotten a response yet.

I purchased a Graco Silhouette used from Craigslist, since our daycare requires we provide one for naps (they don't use mini cribs). It has pretty much all the same features as the Chicco — bassinet insert, music/vibration, and a changing table attachment. No nightlight, no mobile, but it does have a canopy to block the sun if you choose to use the play yard outdoors. 

The Graco Silhouette is a few pounds light than the Chicco, but both fold easily and have wheels on one end.

We also opted to register for a swing. We chose the Fisher Price My Little Snugabunny Swing, primarily because it while it can run on batteries, it also includes an AC adapter. As a bonus, the swing cradle faces three different directions, plays music, and has a mobile. The cover is removable and machine-washable. 

This swing is large, and takes up a lot of room, but it gets a lot of use. BabyL slept in this for the first month — he seemed to be overwhelmed by the bassinet of the play yard. I've seen some complaints that the slowest setting on the swing is too fast (it has six speed settings), but as your baby grows and gets heavier, his weight slows the swing down. It can be used up to 25 pounds. 

We also chose the Fisher Price My Little Snugabunny Bouncer, just because it matched the swing. I wouldn't call it portable. It's easy enough to carry from room to room, but it's not easy to transport to Grandma's, but for us, that wasn't necessary, since Grandma bought a bouncer seat for her house. The bouncer has an overhead bar that has two birds that hang down. BabyL loves to look up at the birds. The seat vibrates, and plays 8 different songs and nature sounds. The cover is removable and machine-washable. The seat can be used up to 25 pounds. 

A diaper pail is not a necessary piece of baby equipment for every household, but it was for us. For one thing, we live in an apartment, and it would be very inconvenient to bag up every dirty diaper and carry it to the dumpster, especially in inclement weather. For another thing, White Dog has a penchant for eating things he should not, and it would be very dangerous for him to eat a disposable diaper, given the absorbent gels they contain. So, the diaper pail contains the stench of the dirty diapers, and keeps them out of White Dog's stomach. A win all around. We chose the Munchkin Arm & Hammer diaper pail. Baby Bargains gives it a "B" rating, saying that Munchkin claims it has a lid that opens with one had when it really doesn't. I don't know if Munchkin has updated the lid since the book was published, but I have no trouble opening the lid with one hand. The diaper pail comes with three refill bags, and a package of 10 refills costs $6.99. You can refill the odor absorber with any baking soda (which we haven't had to do yet). 

A humidifier is recommended because babies' noses become easily congested. It also helps with dry skin. We chose a Crane humidifier. They have twelve adorable animal shapes as well as a teardrop shapes for the adults. We have the penguin. The humidifier is easy to assemble, easy to refill, and easy to clean. 

An activity gym is a mat where baby can look up at lights and shapes, reach for toys, and provides a soft place for Baby's Tummy Time. We have the Fisher Price Rainforest Melodies mat, but really, I don't think there's a bad one on the market. Ours plays 20 minutes' worth of music at two different volumes. There are red and yellow lights that flash at slow intervals. It comes with six toys that hang from the arches, and can be moved around. It also has a "mode" where the music will only come on if Baby moves the mat, which helps baby learn cause and effect, and motivates them to reach for and bat at objects. The mat folds easily for transport. 

Another item that we found useful, especially in the early days BabyL was home, was a baby gate. I actually bought this years before BabyL was born, when I was sure I would never have kids! I bought it for dog containment. It's a Dreambaby Extra Tall baby gate. It comes with side extensions, so it will fit doorways 28 to 42.5 inches wide. And it still is pretty much for dog containment. I can leave BabyL strapped into his bouncy seat, and make a quick bathroom trip, shutting the dogs on the other side of the baby gate (because you never, EVER leave even the best-behaved dogs unattended with babies). 

In hindsight, we are mostly happy with our purchases. If I could go back and do it over again, I wouldn't register for a play yard. Instead, I would register for an Arms Reach Co-Sleeper. Yes, it looks like a bassinet, which I said I didn't want to waste money on. Unlike bassinets though, which are quickly outgrown (and usually poorly constructed), the Co-Sleeper is rated up to 50 pounds. I tend toward the crunchy side, but bed-sharing makes me nervous. I'm a light sleeper, but D is not. Plus, we could never break White Dog of his habit of sleeping on our bed. The Arms Reach Co-Sleeper would keep BabyL next to me, but in his own sleep space. 

Another alternative to the play yard is the Fisher Price Rock n Play Sleeper. The Rock n Play is for use up to 25 pounds (as opposed to the play yard bassinet's 15 pound weight limit). It takes up less room. And it's cheaper. And because the baby sleeps on a slight incline, it's excellent for babies with reflux.