A few weeks ago, we went and registered. I know it sounds crazy – I mean,
shouldn’t we wait until we get word of placement before we do such a crazy
thing?
Well, here’s the thing. We are going to be NEW parents. We have NO idea what we need and what we don’t need. We didn’t even know what all was out
there or where to start. For
example, did you know that there are at least 1,000,000,000,000,000,000 types
of bottles to choose from, all claiming to be the only bottle that will work
for your child? :)
For most things, we’re going to wait until we have word of
placement before we actually go buy them.
But, to save time when that happens, we wanted to at least get some of
our research done and have some decisions made. We don’t want to get word of placement and have to go out
the next day and make all of these decisions. Instead, we want to have most of the decisions made and be
able to just go and purchase stuff off a list.
So, we registered.
Yep, we got to use the cool little scanner thing and go around the store
scanning things we needed or wanted.
It was a two-day process totaling six hours. It was overwhelming.
And exhausting. And
fun. And quite educational.
And we realized just how expensive everything could
be. Even the basics, like a car
seat, stroller, crib, changing table/dresser, and rocking chair were insanely
expensive. Add that to the
already-staggering cost of adoption, and we decided we’d need to start being
smart about this whole endeavor.
Enter Craigslist.
Yep, I’ve been trolling Craigslist every few days to look
for some of the big furniture items – crib, changing table, and rocking chair. We figure that if I can find some of
these major things for a good price on Craigslist, why not go ahead and get
them rather than purchasing everything new? So far, we’ve purchased a glider and ottoman for only $100
and a crib for only $40! The
glider/ottoman is exactly what we picked out new (even the same wood and fabric
colors), but $900 less than what we would have had to pay new. $900! The crib isn’t exactly what I pictured, but for $40, we
figured we couldn’t go wrong. We
just have to make sure that it meets current safety regulations – if not, we’ll
get rid of it and start looking again.
So, are we crazy?
Are we just getting our hopes up too early? Maybe, maybe not.
For those of you who have adopted or had biological children, when did
you start amassing the basic and big “stuff?”
We've been in a very similar position the past couple weeks. I think it's worth it if you can save so much money! But then again, it doesn't bother me to have an empty "nursery" knowing someday (however far away) it will be used. In the meantime, plenty of life to keep busy with and enjoy! :)
ReplyDeleteWhen Clayton and I registered, I actually had a friend who was expecting her second kid come with me to help me figure out what I really needed. Even then, there were things I never used or things that I realized we could have gotten by with a cheaper version. A few thoughts:
ReplyDelete1. You probably need half of what the stores tell you to get.
2. The bazillions of bottles thing is true. Borrow different types of bottles from friends with babies rather than buying different kinds. Some babies are picky. Ours only would drink from Playtex Nursers, but another friend's kid would only use Nuk brand. By borrowing, you can see what works without breaking the bank.
3. I would HIGHLY recommend buying a high chair that straps to your chair rather than a free-standing one. They work great as a booster when the kid gets older and they are generally less expensive. Fisher-Price makes a great basic one that doesn't have a fabric cover (GREAT because you can just wipe it down) You definitely don't need a fancy high chair.
So excited for you guys!
Psychologically, it took until about week 32 of the pregnancy until I could imagine us setting up the nursery. I had a deep fear of "jinxing" things. (We were infertile for a very long time). Even as we drove to the hospital, I was terrified of that completed room being there.
ReplyDeleteWe started working on it in earnest the last two weeks of June, finished it on August 10th, and she arrived the 14th. I only washed the baby clothes the week before she arrived, too. I think it's smart to do the registry as a way of organizing the things you've decided you really want. And buy things as you find them for good prices. But in terms of what needs to be set up (and maybe the case worker's require more...I know if we had to go through a homestudy, we'd be cited for the bazillion stairwars, low windowsills, the cat, etc) you only need a place for baby to sleep, a few outfits, some diapers and wipes, and maybe a few receiving blankets. It's been nice seeing Giovanna surviving quite well wearing the same outfit for 4 days in a row, eating from the same bottle or me, and sleeping in a plastic box. She doesn't care that there isn't a mobile or a refinished floor under our feet (though David did eye the linoleum and commented that "this wouldn't be hard to fix up")!