If I’m being honest, when we found out we were having another girl I had a ton of mixed emotions. Most of those emotions were because of our unique journey into parenthood, and our experience losing Olivia. Having another girl so shortly after losing our first daughter complicated things in my mind. But from a practicality standpoint, boy oh boy did it lighten our load in terms of preparation. We had a beautiful nursery designed for a little girl. We had feminine decor, and a closet full of pink, and everything from our car seat covers to burp clothes were bought with a sweet little gal in mind.
So to have another girl on the way simply meant less to buy. Big time.
But once we brought Gemma home, things changed. We had a newborn in our home for the first time. We were experiencing the all nighters and early mornings and endless cycles of sleeping, feeding, burping, cleaning, rocking, sleeping, repeat.
Pretty quickly we figured which baby products we needed most, and those we could live without. We bought new items, borrowed others, and eventually made due with the mix of baby products we had accumulated in our home.
In hindsight however, there are two baby products I regret not buying. And I mean, I really regret it. So here are the products I will absolutely be buying next time around.
DockATot Deluxe
Gemma is a great sleeper. She’s slept in her crib since night 2, and began napping in her crib quite early as well. Perhaps this all worked out in our favor, but man I wish I had purchased a DockATot Deluxe to provide us with a comfy spot for daytime naps downstairs. Because DockATots are not technically ‘safe sleep spaces’ I’m not sure we would use it for nighttime sleep, but Gemma didn’t like the Rock n Play or Pack n Play for naps, nor did she like the Boppy Lounger, nor did she like being in a wrap or carrier. This meant there were many, many days I wound up stuck under a sleeping baby for hours.
Truthfully I have not yet met a mom who bought a DockATot and didn’t love it. I haven’t even met someone who was just ‘meh’ about this product. Every single mom I know who has a DockATot absolutely loves it. If we’re so lucky to welcome another child into our family, I’m pretty sure the only two things I’ll ask for are a double stroller and a DockATot.
Given my distain for color, I’d probably choose the original DockATot Deluxe in pristine white or a modern pattern in a simple neutral color but if you’re feeling bold they also sell this product with some pretty amazing patterns like this mint color trellis and even a coral trellis.
Traditional Video Monitor
The second product I regret not buying is a traditional, high quality video monitor. When first pregnant with Olivia, we purchased a Nest Cam. We love our Nest thermostats, and were really into the idea of having as many smart home devices as we could that worked together. We tried the camera out in our living room and around our home, and the camera quality is hands down amazing.
But soon after we brought Gemma home I realized that the Nest Cam and Nest app are not the best to use as baby monitors. It’s difficult to keep a live stream of the camera, because then you lose functionality of your phone, and drain battery quickly. And if you’re not on the live stream, it’s difficult to separate Nest camera alerts for movement and sound from other push notifications on your phone.
Our solution has been to set up the Nest app on an iPad mini. We turn this device on when we want a live stream. For example, when she’s sick, or when she was learning to roll. More often than not though, we realize we don’t need the live stream. So we simply check in on occasion, using our phones. We did purchase an inexpensive sound monitor to use in conjunction with our Nest camera, so sometimes we’ll have the sound monitor on when she naps, or at night, so we’re aware of when she’s up or fussing even without the live stream video.
Although we’ve made this combination work for us, it’s still not perfect for all scenarios. And in hindsight I wish we had purchased a more traditional, high quality video monitor. The one that I have my eye on is the Infant Optics DXR-8 Video Baby Monitor with Interchangeable Optical Lens. It’s ratings and reviews on Amazon, plus the price point are hard to beat. 4.5 stars on nearly 18,000 reviews? That’s insane. And while it’s not the cheapest baby video monitor on the market, it’s reasonable. Especially for a product that you’ll use multiple times a day, every day, for multiple years. Plus. there are plenty out there for between $300-$500 now a days, so rest assured you’re not getting completely robbed.
That’s it, friends. The only two baby products I regret not buying. If there’s something you’re still kicking yourself for not buying, let us know in the comments!
