Baby gear- keep or sell/donate?

[elektra]

DD is 13 months, and we are moving to a new house in 2 weeks. We are trying to get rid of as much of our stuff as possible, but DH wants to put up almost all of our baby gear that DD has outgrown for sale or donate. I have already saved about 1 drawer's full clothes that I either really like or that have resale value, and I thought it would be a good idea to hang on to most of the baby stuff too, as we hope for a DC #2 in the next few years.
We are in purge mode but I still kind of wanted to keep the baby swing, bouncy seat, etc.
DH says there will be some better seat or whatever that comes along but I think he just doesn't want to deal with moving and storing the stuff in his new garage.
Should I just ditch the newborn stuff and start over, or hang on to it?

[gordo]

I saved EVERYTHING and am glad i did since I am having my second DD next month. I am all set on clothes, baby gear, etc. It is so nice not to have to worry about buying anything but diapers and wipes LOL. I am also lucky that the kids are going to be the same gender and born during the same season so all the clothes should be able to be re-used.

[WatchingThemGrow]

If you're planning to have another, it makes sense to save it. You will likely be continually needing new stuff for the big kid, so buying something you just donated could be annoying and rather expensive. Keep in mind that you'd likely be buying this stuff with another child in tow. People, IME, don't "give" for the 2nd the way they did with the 1st.

[TahliasMom]

I would keep the pricer things and anything under maybe $30-40 dollars sell off. also check the date on the car seat. if it will be expiring within a year or so then sell it. I kept, still keeping, lol, the swing, crib, stroller/car seat (good until 2010), high chair and some clothes just in case I have #2. I sold off the bouncer, travel swing, gym mat, diaper dekor, etc, and most of dd's clothes. Just my two cents.

[SnuggleBuggles]

I would save it. Yes, there will be newer, cooler stuff (trust me, with a 5.5y age gap there are lots of new, cool things) but I am really glad that I didn't have to rebuy everything. Could I have rebought everything? Yes. Would it have been practical? No. We had space to store stuff so we did. And even though there are newer things some really are not at all better. I liked having all the basics so I could pick up some new extras. Baby #2 has cost a lot less. It was a bit dull not having much to buy but it made sense and baby #2 could care less! Ds1's carseat expires in August but we will use it till then.

If you have the space then I think it makes the most sense to just keep things. I know I am glad that I did.

Beth

[Piglet]

I would also recommend keeping the bigger ticket items until you are "done". We are totally in purge mode right now, but I am glad I held onto our things until we really didn't need them anymore. The best of both worlds is to find a friend that is expecting and give her all your things, with the understanding that you might need them back one day.

[ThreeofUs]

I'd keep anything you think you might have trouble replacing - either because you really like the items or because you may not have the financial resources to replace with similar quality.

I have older toys and nursery equipment that really work well, for example, that I saved specifically because I wasn't sure I could ever find them again.

Must admit, though, I'd be tempted just to purge everything.

[jacksmomtobe]

Findiing a friend who could use them for now and give the items back as another poster suggested sounds ideal. However if you don't have that option even though it's nice to purge and have less stuff to deal with, if you plan on having another I would hold on all the items except those that you know there is no way that you will use them again. As far as the newer products coming out I found that for some items such as bouncy seat, pack n play, etc it's nice to have more than one especially if you live in a multi-level house so you still might be buying a newer version. It's nice to have the basics covered when you have #2 because you get significantly less baby gifts plus you can spend money on the items that you really want for that new baby rather than buying the same items again.

[vonfirmath]

I am getting rid of swing, bouncer, exersaucer, etc. Even though we know we want more kids. They are too cheap to rebuy on craigslist, etc. Versus the large expense of storing them for however long. And they are not used for that long even after the kid is born. I want to save the stroller/car seat but that may come down to when he grows out of them versus when we make a cross country move. Because they are more expensive/used for longer but also pretty bulky.

I am restricting myself to saving 1 box of clothes at each size and everything else goes.

Things like this helps keep the bulk of storage down, while ensuring I don't have to rebuy everything.

[elliput]

I purged a bunch of baby clothes and gear right before I knew I was PG (figures!) as we wanted to reduce stuff for a move also, however the items I sold and donated were things that I was not really keen on and knew I would want to replace anyway. The items I really liked from first time around, I kept.