My Baby Wish List...

I have been AMAZINGLY disciplined with this baby. What do I mean by that? Well, I haven't let the fact that we don't know whether we are having a boy or a girl drive me crazy. I have been really well about coming to grips with the fact that I may very well be having a July baby, even with a June "due date". And so far we have only bought 2 little things for the baby that I said I would give away for a baby shower if it doesn't work out for us (ie-its not a boy, or its not a girl) and we got them both for under $10. So I have been very patient, I feel, with this pregnancy and haven't indulged too much on my whims. I think what people have said about 'waiting to find out' whether you are having a boy or girl has helped out a lot with a lot of my spending habits. :) And obviously the fact that we had to pay double rent for 4 months probably helped too.

But I have to admit I have added up quite a big baby wish list of my own. And the best news? A lot of them you can make on your own for a fraction of the cost. There are so many craft websites out there that have tutorials for these fun things. The down side for me is I don't have a sewing machine, I don't know how to sew, I don't even have a hot glue gun - but One day I will be crafty and learn how to sew and do all these fun things on my own, but for now I just oooo and awww at the beautiful things people have come up with and secretly make plans for my mom to make them for me, or hint to james that maybe they would be good birthday presents... I also think a lot of these things would make good baby shower gifts for a few of my girlfriends that are having baby's soon.

Here are just a few things that I have had an eye on:

Hooter Hider/Bebe au Lait nursing cover:

I never had a nursing cover for Jack. Breastfeeding was hard enough to do, especially when you had to do it in public. I am determined this time around to have a nursing cover and I've heard this is one of the best brands to get. They carry them now in Target stores, so this definitely would be a nice item to put on your baby registry. You can make them yourself too and they are far (FAR) less expensive, or if you really aren't crafty you can find them on different sites, like etsy, for about $15 cheaper.

Diaper Clutch and wipes case:

I think it is so cute to have a little pizazz to go with your diaper wipes case. I don't really think I would need a diaper clutch with the current diaper bag I have, but I do commonly take out just the wipes case with the diaper and I think it would be fun to have it a little snazzed up. Here are a few good tutorials on how to make them if you are crafty, and there are plenty to look through if you just want to buy them on sites like etsy. I think etsy is slowly becoming one of my favorite places to visit.

My Brest Friend Nursing Pillow:

I received a boppy as a present with our first son and I really appreciated the extra help to hold him. James even used it when he would hold him or feed him a bottle. I had a hard time positioning him, however, because I have such a long torso and I never quite could get him from slipping around or under it, so it was a little frustrating - especially the first few months when I was having the really tough time with figuring everything out. So when I read an article explaining that the brestfriend nursing pillow is flatter to help keep the baby situated and made nursing easier I was very interested in trying it out. You can find them in Babies R Us, Target, and even Wal Mart. They even have a convenient little pocket in the front for you to store things in. Again, I've never tried it - but it sounds like if you don't necessarily get along very well with your boppy it is the thing to try. James was pretty adamant when I brought it up that our boppy is good enough, so I doubt we'll be making this purchase - but I thought I would post it on here in case other people wanted to know more about it.

New Boppy Pillow Cover:

I was lucky enough to have a spare boppy cover for all the spills we had with Jack but I haven't been able to find it. Now that we don't have a washer/dryer in our home the idea of getting another boppy pillow cover is becoming more and more likely for us. :) You can find boppy slipcovers at babies r us and target. They make good baby shower gifts as well. Again, as I keep mentioning, you can make this yourself with different tutorials you can find online for a fraction of the cost.

Warm or Cool packs for Nursing:

I wish I would have invested in this with Jack. I was so miserable and sore after I nursed or when my milk came in that this is looking more and more appealing this time around to see if maybe it can help with the added pain that comes with starting up nursing again.

Itzbeen Baby Care Timer:

One of my friends raved about how nice this has been for her! I remember having a hard time keeping track of feedings and when I took my medicine and those kind of things, so this would definitely be something that would be handy to have around to help remind you about you and your baby's new schedule. My friend bought it for her second baby and she was in love with it.

A double stroller:

I have tried to do some research to see what stroller would work best or had the best reviews, but so far they have been a little bit over our price range. I keep looking out for a good deal, and I know sometime I will find that sweet steal and maybe talk James into it. Until then, I guess we shall see. :)

Baby Wrap:

We have a baby carrier from Jack, but to be honest I only used it 2 or 3 times max, because it hurt my back and I always felt like whenever I bent over I still needed to use my hands to hold him because it was so loose and I was afraid he was going to fall out. It also didn't work very well for a younger infant because the material would always cover his face and he would get mad. So I am very interested in finding a good baby wrap. I've heard the moby wrap is a good one, but I was kind of hoping for one that would be easier to use. If anyone has any good ideas or recommendations please let me know!

A Quiet Book:

I'll admit this is more for Jack than the new baby, but I have really thought it would be nice to have a quiet book to keep him entertained during church or when I need him to sit still for a little bit. I've seen some in stores and almost bought one once, and I still kick myself for not getting it because I really think Jack likes those kind of interactive books. There are also plenty of tutorials online, so again - if you are crafty and know how to sew you can definitely make one on your own.

Cute Diaper Burp Cloths:

I had 2 burp cloths my mother in law made for Jack, and then the rest were just cloth diapers. I actually liked the cloth diapers because I thought they did a great job. So when I found these fancy cloth diaper burp cloths, I just fell in love. I know you can buy these online, but there are some nice tutorials you can find online too on how to make them and they seem pretty easy. The best part is if you make it yourself you really are saving yourself a lot of money comparatively. So if you have a sewing machine and know how to use it you should. I think if I had a sewing machine this would be a very cute baby shower gift to gift someone. If only I knew how to sew! :)