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We loved our Rock and Play! And C *hated* the bouncer in the beginning, until she was big enough to swat at the hanging things, and always hated the swing with a passion. We used the RnP for sleep for a few months, then used it as a place to chill for a while longer after that. Some morning I could put her in it facing the window and she would just lay there and watch the leaves on the tree outside, and I felt she was safely higher than the dog.

I was dead set on getting a stroller with an infant bassinet attachment, for walks, and this baby hated that too. I can't even tell you how many walks we went on that ended with my diaper bag in the stroller that I pushed while wearing her in the moby.

I wanted to love the K'tan, but it just never felt right. I thought I would hate wrapping the Moby, but we loved it.

The Rock n Play and the Mamaroo were lifesavers for us. LO has reflux and I was so glad that I had the RnP for him to sleep in. LO hated the swing and would cry the instant we put him in it but he really loved the Mamaroo from the beginning.

I lived abroad when my son was born and there is much less baby gear available. I had to really think about what I purchased because what was available was usually twice the price, talk about sticker shock.

The thing I had to have was the Bumbo, and it was worthless, really. We used it a few times and we sold it.

We paid twice the retail price for a Fisher Price Jumparoo and it was well worth it. We also sold that and recouped our cost as this item isn't even available for purchase where I lived!

My other most favorite piece of gear was our Chicco Polly high chair. We bought it on a whim when we were actually looking for a Tripp Trapp and no regrets there either!

@Foodnerd81: M hated the bassinet attachment for our stroller too!! It was a total waste.

The jumperoo was a life saver for us!! And the fisher price high chair, we have the one that attaches to as normal chair. I put her in the while I cooked from about 3-4 months on bc it reclined back.

The moby was a waste for us and so was our bebepod (bumbo seat). We only used it a handful of times.

Each one of my babies liked different things. DD hated the swing, both DSs loved it. DD hated the bouncy chair, DS#2 loved it. Everyone has like the jumperoo, but at different levels. DD and DS#1 hated the play mat, DS#2 likes it.

Moral of the story, the more kids you have the odds of using all the baby gear increases hahaha

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I didn't get a swing because I wanted to limit the amount of stuff in our little apartment, but we were offered one secondhand and it has been a lifesaver. Except now I don't know how to get him out of it because he sleeps so well in there I just can't pull the plug and stick him in the crib.

We both hate the Moby so that has been collecting dust.

Love/Hate:
Swing and RnP - She wouldn't sleep on her back for months, so these saved us in the early days. But transitioning to the crib was hard.

Mostly Love(d):
City mini stroller (although I sometimes wish I had bought the GT), with and without carseat attachment
Halo sleepsacks (the velcro swaddler kind)
Play gym (only useful for a very short period of time though)

Ok not not amazing:
Our carseat (Britax b-safe) - It is fine, but she sweats in it.
Pack n Play - We mostly use this to contain her for short periods of time, although she has slept in it on vacation.
Ergo - It doesn't fit me well, so really only DH uses it. We sort of wish we bought one that allows LO to face front b/c she gets antsy in it.

Disappointing:
K'tan - Never felt right even though I had high hopes.
Cloth diapers - These worked for us for the first 3 months, but then she started developing rashes (I think heat rashes).
Grace slim spaces high chair - She hates to be strapped into it for some reason, plus you need to constantly wash the fabric part.

we never had an rnp.

we have a mamaroo but she only likes it when she's already in a good mood, and never sleeps in it. I put her in when she's happy and it gives me a few minutes to eat, pump, make coffee, etc. we also have a bouncer that she only just started to like now that she's interested in toys and i can put her in it with one.

we used the bassinet stroller attachment to our ub cruz a lot the first month to sleep inside and take walks, but she hated it after that.

i don't know if the sleep sheep makes a difference, and it keeps running out of batteries.

i like the ergo but hate the infant insert--it's SO hot! even inside in the a/c lo gets all hot and sweaty

like the moby but it's a pain to put on, especially when lo is crying

i have both the my brest friend pillow and boppy-- mbf is SO much better since lo is so small. bonus points that it's flat on top so easier to balance a plate for me so i can eat while she nurses/after she falls asleep nursing and i'm afraid to move/wake her i think the boppy will be more useful eventually, but i wish i got the mbf earlier!

halo sleep sacks are the best. we got a few off our pbk and giggle registries though and they're higher quality than the ones by halo directly off amazon (zipper doesn't work as well and she gets her arms out faster bc of the material), though those are like half the price.

Overrated (for us)
-RNP. He never really took to it. We ended up using it for naps in the evening when he was 4+ months old, but anything (like bassinet, pnp, etc.) would've been fine.
-Crib wedge. He never cared about being elevated and he would just slide down off of it.
- PnP changing table. We thought this would be awesome to have in our living room and we HATED it. It killed our backs to use the changing table on the PnP. We ended up buying a regular changing table with a great Black Friday sale and it's been awesome.
-Co-sleeper (the in-bed kind). DS wanted to be held ALL the time, which is why RnP was a no-go too. It just got in the way in our bed and he was unhappy at not being held anyways.
-Snuza. I ended up needing to co-sleep with him because he wouldn't sleep otherwise, so I alway knew he was breathing. Anyone who wants one check the classifieds...

Loved
- His Walker (the kind they sit in). He LOVES being able to wander around the main floor. He hasn't started crawling yet and gets really frustrated that he can't. The walker gives him mobility, but keeps him safe and frustration-free.
-Cloth Wipes. OMG soooo much better for newborn poops than disposable.

Liked
-Snugabunny swing. It wouldn't put him to sleep, but if he was already asleep we could put him in there. But at 4m he was trying to nosedive out of it.

We hated the swing and bouncer. I'm glad we borrowed them
Instead of bought. The swing made her sick every time, and the bouncer just frustrated her. Especially when the toy bar was on. Loved the Boppy, activity gym, jumperoo, and Miracle blanket.

We just bought a RnP because we have no other portable baby-holding devices

Love:
• RNP - The angle was SO crucial for DD with her spit up issues. Laying her flat after night feedings was a nightmare.
• Activity mat - She is obsessed with swatting at the musical mobile. We use this a lot less the past month though (DD is 16 weeks).
• Bath tub with sling/hammock attachment - Not sure I could bathe her alone without it.
• SwaddleMe - DD startles herself awake without it. We tried a sleep sack last night to awful results!

Didn't work:
• PnP (travel size)- I didn't want to get it because I think they're hideous, but we needed a place for the baby to sleep in our room and the price was right. She didn't do well laying flat and outgrew it lengthwise by 10 weeks.
• Boppy - I wanted to like this so much, but I'm tall and it didn't bring DD up high enough to be comfortable. Plus she always fell in the gap between me and the pillow. I did get a My Breast Friend around 10 weeks and while I liked it better, still wasn't impressed.
• K'tan - another one I wanted to like but just didn't work for us. She likes her ring sling much better.
• Sleep Sheep - Not sure if it helped but we use it to block noise more than anything.

The top thing that I had no idea I would love as much as I did was a bath sponge cushion from Babies R Us: http://www.toysrus.com/buy/bath-potty/babies-r-us-turtle-bath-sponge-cushion-1918071h12-12293405

Honestly when I got this at my shower I didn't even understand what it was. But it's awesome for tiny babies! You get it wet with warm water and put it in the bottom of the tub, and then lay your LO down on it for bath time. Comfy for them and they stay nice and warm!

The thing I just HAD to have and then hated was the miracle blanket. I could not get my little wiggle worm swaddled in that thing. Halo sleep sacks with the velcro worked much better for us.

Favorites:
-bouncer (snugabunny is what we have)- could not live without it. Used it around the house, on the porch, garage, etc
-miracle blanket (DD rolled around in the swaddlemes but this kept her arms at her sides)
-baby white noise app
-A&A blankets (use for everything...except swaddling)
-Bob revolution stroller (and car seat)- so far I love it. Use for everyday and jogging (I'm slow)

OK:
swing (snugabunny)- this was helpful only the first few months or so, but it was useful. Not sure it's worth full price, I'd buy used

Not a fan:
boppy- maybe because I'm tall? was pretty useless
bumbo seat- got it out at 3 months and she was too big for it

subscribing to this thread. All these conflicting opinions make it so hard to know what to buy before the baby is born.

I wrote a post about the stuff I wished we hadn't bought...but most people didn't agree with me haha. Apparently we aren't normal.

We loved our swing, stroller, diy moby, A&A blankets, halo swaddle sleep sack, and those kimono t-shirts that snap in the front.

We didn't use/like the bumbo, boppy, sleep n plays, miracle blanket, and probably some other things that I can't think of right now. And of a lot of things that we did like, mostly I just had like 3x as much of everything as we actually used.

Loved:
- Snugabunny Swing
- Boppy
- A&A Blankets
- White Noise machine

Didn't Love:
- Any of the swaddleme or similar items - Xander hated being swaddled
- Ear Thermometer - I could never get an accurate reading
- Clothes other than sleepers, sleep and plays, rompers
- Loveys - Xander didn't take to anything but his blankets