HELP-Need baby item recommendations

[hbdeise]

Hello friends! I was on bed rest for 3 months and so we didn't get to have a shower. My angel is here now and I need to register. Please list any recommendations (or brands/styles to stay away from) of the following items. It would really help me a lot!! THANK YOU!
*Play yard
*Highchair
*Stroller (everyday use and for exercise)
*Baby Carrier
*Crib Mattress
*Video Monitor
*Diaper Bag
*Any other must haves you can help me with

[boltfam]

Welcome, and congratulations on your baby! You might get a better response if you post in the individual forums and list the specifics of what you are looking for. If you post in the stroller forum with some of the features you are looking for, the mamas in the stroller forum will give you GREAT advice. They know their stuff.

For a play yard, I really like our Graco Pack n play.

[jam224]

*Play yard
We got a Graco Pack n Play (the link is to an updated version). I loved the newborn napper and changing table when DD was a newborn. My favorite sheets are the Eddie Bauer ones; very plush for that thin mattress board.
*Highchair
We went with the Fisher Price Healthy Care Booster Seat. Super cheap, durable, portable, and straps onto a regular dining chair. To go along with that, I love the Bumkins Superbibs.
*Stroller (everyday use and for exercise)
Definitely ask the ladies on the stroller forum. Strollers are such a personal choice depending on your lifestyle and budget. FWIW, we have the Baby Jogger City Mini and I'm very happy with it. We splurged and got the bassinet kit to go with it, so we could use it from birth. If I had to buy a stroller now though, I'd go with the GT version for better wheels.
*Baby Carrier
This one is also personal preference. I started out with the K'tan (a cloth wrap, like the Moby, but doesn't requiring wrapping) and now use the Boba. Another nice wrap option is the Boba Wrap. Another popular soft-structured buckle carrier is the Ergo. Frogmama has some good babywearing info: Babywearing 101.
*Crib Mattress
Love my Little Dreamer Mattress by Moonlight Slumber. Love how lightweight the foam is and how snugly it fits into DD's crib.
*Video Monitor
I'm on the hunt for a good video monitor too, but I think I'm going to go with something from Summer Infant. As of now, we use the AngelCare Baby Monitor. The motion sensor pad was awesome for DD's first few months and now that we don't need that part, it still functions as a very good baby monitor. No interference and excellent battery life. No complaints!
*Diaper Bag
This is also another personal preference choice. I bought a couple of large totes at first, thinking that was the way to go, but then quickly realized I preferred the messenger style bags. The one I ended up with is discontinued, but there are some great brands out there: Skip Hop, Petunia Pickle Bottom, Ju Ju Be, and Diaper Dude.
*Any other must haves you can help me with
-- Love, love, love aden + anais swaddle blankets. If you can splurge on the "boutique" version, I would, as they're a few inches larger (47" square).
-- Love the Sleep Sheep (white noise machine for baby).
-- Loved the My Brest Friend nursing pillow. The Boppy was a bust for me.

Hope that helps! Good luck!

[boltfam]

I will second jam's recommendation of the Fisher Price booster high chair. We love ours, and it looks perfect even though it's on it's third kid.

For baby carriers, I think it's personal preference. For the newborn stage, my kids loved the Moby wrap. For a more structured carrier and for when your DC is a little older, DH and I both love the Ergo. I know a lot of people love the Beco, too.

[123LuckyMom]

*Play yard
The standard is a pack n play. If you're going to get a co sleeper, I believe the full-size one converts to a play yard, but I'd go with the pack n play

*Highchair
I like the Fisher Price Healthy Care booster and/or high chair. Its nice to have a high chair on wheels so you can move it around. Someone on this board recommended the Blossom, though, and that's what I passed on to my friend who's about to have a baby. It looks great!
http://amzn.com/B005XJ2VGE

*Stroller (everyday use and for exercise)
I love my Uppababy Vista. It's got a huge basket and a good push, and it comes with everything you could ever want in a stroller, IMO. I like a BOB for running, but remember that you can't take a baby running until they are a year old.

*Baby Carrier
I used an Ergo

*Crib Mattress
I just got one at the same place I got my crib. I don't know the brand.

*Video Monitor
I have a non-video monitor, a Philips with DECT. I needed this because of all the wireless systems in my house. Every other monitor interfered with them.

*Diaper Bag
I had a Skip Hop Dash for my first diaper bag. Now I have a Versa. I really like the Versa!

*Any other must haves you can help me with
I like the Euro Primo for a baby tub (though I just use a sling over the sink for a newborn). It's huge, but it will serve you well until your baby is a toddler!

I love the swaddleme swaddles that close with velcro for swaddles. If you haven't read or seen _The Happiest Baby On The Block_ yet, I recommend it. Halo sleepers are good for warmth and for transitioning out of a swaddle.

If you're Breastfeeding, I recommend the Medela pump over the Ameda. I like Dr. Brown's and Playtex Drop Ins for bottles.

I agree the Bumkins bibs are great. I particularly like the one with sleeves. Also good are JJ Cole ones that snap. The snap closure was a lifesaver for me.

If you need a car seat cover for winter, be sure to get a shower cap style one like this:
http://amzn.com/B003ZUXQXU
You don't want anything bulky between the baby and the car seat back or straps, including a snowsuit or jacket. A great site to look at for carseat information is carseat.org. They have a great FAQ on keeping your child rearfacing for as long as possible, too.

I have learned sooo much from the folks on this board, so some of the above is just passing on acquired wisdom! Congratulations on your pregnancy!

[mikala]

I will second jam's recommendation of the Fisher Price booster high chair. We love ours, and it looks perfect even though it's on it's third kid.

For baby carriers, I think it's personal preference. For the newborn stage, my kids loved the Moby wrap. For a more structured carrier and for when your DC is a little older, DH and I both love the Ergo. I know a lot of people love the Beco, too.

Congrats on the baby!

I'll third this highchair rec. Even if you don't use it as your primary it's awesome for outings and baby dinner guests.

I loved the moby for the newborn stage and the Beco Gemini for about 4 months and up. The Ergo is fantastic too.

The Bob is a great jogging stroller. REI has a members sale right now, might be worth checking to see if the coupon applies to Bob. Fyi, they don't recommend jogging with baby for awhile (9 months? Can't remember) so this purchase can also wait.

For sleep sacks I really like Grobags.

[indigo99]

Hello friends! I was on bed rest for 3 months and so we didn't get to have a shower. My angel is here now and I need to register. Please list any recommendations (or brands/styles to stay away from) of the following items. It would really help me a lot!! THANK YOU!
*Play yard
*Highchair
*Stroller (everyday use and for exercise)
*Baby Carrier
*Crib Mattress
*Video Monitor
*Diaper Bag
*Any other must haves you can help me with

We used the graco pack-n-play (silhouette series with the higher changing station that folds out of the way) in our room for DS to sleep in until around 4 months. We never used ours as a play yard so if you have a sleeping solution then you may not need one at all.

We didn't start solids until around 6 months and went straight to the Tripp Trapp chairs (no infant set). They could sit up by then, and the 5 point harness helped hold them up so it worked fine. I did add a tray to the chair though.

There's a whole forum for strollers because that's a tough one. For the beginning, I'd just get a snap-n-go frame that lets you put the infant seat in. It's lightweight and easy. Do not get a big, heavy graco.

I love my Beco butterfly carrier. My sister liked the Ergo better than the Beco gemini that I gave her though.

I have two naturepedic mattresses that I got to avoid some gassing issues. We prefer the lightweight one.

We also used the EuroTub with our boys, but we had to put it in our garden tub. It will not fit in our smaller tubs.

I second the Aden and Anais swaddle blankets. The cheaper ones are fine, but the larger ones can be used longer (DS1 uses one still).

We used bumkins bibs happily until I got a BabyBjorn bib, and now that's all we use. It's great at catching dropped food, but the curved part may get in the way of a tray depending on what highchair you have.

I love the Avent bottles and Playtex dropins. Just don't screw the lids on too tightly with the Avent.

eta: Not all babies like swings, but DS1 loved our Fisher Price rainforest swing. I went with it because it plugs in so you don't have to go through a ton of batteries. We also had the rainforest bouncer (good for setting baby down once in a while to shower, cook, eat, potty etc), and they loved watching the lights and movement on it.

[larig]

*Play yard--agree, pack-n-play without bells and whistles-- the extra stuff doesn't work for too long weight-wise.
*Highchair--another FP booster fan here.
*Stroller (everyday use and for exercise)--we had one we used most of the time, a Bob Revolution--got the carseat adapter, and it was our one-and-only for a while. our second stroller was a maclaren, but I didn't love it.
*Baby Carrier--ERGO! I used it until DS was THREE! I used my ergo for shopping more than I did a stroller (which I bought the maclaren for).
*Crib Mattress--we just had ikea crib and mattress
*Video Monitor --I'm not sure what's good anymore.
*Diaper Bag--this is personal. Any bag will work, but I loved having a wet bag and changing pad, which you can buy separately. I kind of think you can treat yourself to a nice bag that you'd use later on post-baby
*Any other must haves you can help me with
I'd agree on the aiden and anais swaddling blankets--we still have ours, and yes, get the bigger ones.
we also had these velcro swaddling blankets, which were a great help during night-time changing
ETA: we also had a swing that was almost essential for DS, who had reflux and another breathing issue that made sleeping with his head up helpful. They make ones that plug-in, which I'd recommend, because that thing ATE batteries. ETA2: just saw that PP said same thing I did!

[indigo99]

Just to show that nothing works for everyone, we hated the velcro swaddle blankets. We couldn't get them off/on without waking DS, and not all babies do well with swaddling (DS1 wouldn't sleep any other way for months, but DS2 wasn't swaddled after the first few weeks). I'd start with the blankets and try something else if you need it later.

[bigpassport]

High chair--I also recommend the FP booster.

Other must haves, IMHO

Ultimate Crib Sheet (or two)--You put it over your crib sheet. It attaches to the crib bars. If you have a mess during the night, you just take the ultimate crib sheet off. You don't have to struggle with lifting up the mattress to put another sheet on. Even better, if you have two Ultimate Crib Sheets, put two on and when you take the first off you already have one in place underneath. Messes take 30 seconds to clean up and baby back in bed

Miracle Blanket--Everyone has her own opinion on swaddling blankets, but the Miracle Blanket was a godsend for us.