Buying things for Baby....

Hey Im just starting to think about what I need to get organised for baby, I was just wondering on what other mums to be or mums bought for the bigger ticket items ie;
Cot, Capsule/CarSeat, Pram, what brand did you buy any reason why how much did you spend and where did you buy it from.

At the moment I am thinking along the line of getting a boori pioneer convertable bed (converts from cot to single bed) about $600
A Safe "n" Sound Capsule which is around $300
Steelcraf jogger around $350.00

I am looking to buy these things only once and use them for and other children I will have so I want to buy good quality items. Living in the NW of Tasmania there are limited places to look for these items so any advice reccomendation on anything would be great as I might be able to find them on the net. Thanks in advance too all

Hey Becky,

Just thought you might like to check out the recommend a product forum as a lot of baby items are discussed there. It might be a good start point for you! HTH!

Thanks Mel shall check it out!

Hi becky23,

Sounds like your planning well ahead already.

First few things we laybyd for DD was a cot, pram and carseat.
Have you checked to see if you have places around you that hire capsules? Baby only in them for a short time, and eventually you will need a good car seat anyway. I know there only cheap to hire (capsules).

This is prob thinking really far ahead, but if your cot converts to a single bed, then your first child will sleep in that - for a long, long time (5- 6 years old ???. When you have another, you will need to buy another cot. Right? Dont get me wrong, i love the practicality that your cot turns into a single bed, but if your considering more than 1 child, then your still going to end up buying a cot for them anyway.....god, its friday arvo, i hope im making sense.

good luck !!!

mbear, you are right about the cot/bead but I am not planning on having my kids to close together prob start trying for 2nd bub when 1st is at least 3 so would be like 4 when had bubs so I would just get 1st bub an actual bed.
I am planning early as I do not want to be doing this stuff when I am heavily pregnant

Becky, good on you getting started early for things for bubs. :)

I agree with mbear, maybe see if you can hire a baby capsule as it is a big outlay to get one esp when they are in it for only a short time.

We bought a 4 wheeler for Nicholas but have decided to get a 3 wheeler this time around. We plan on getting the Valco Rebel (they cost around $500+), we have heard a lot of good recomendations on it.

Also we bought Nicholas a rocker/bouncenette, he used to love it in there and quite often fell asleep in it. Ours was the safe and sound one (I think)

Change table, mum bought us a wooden one from Babyco (Australiana Heirloom Collection). It has 2 shelves underneath it and is very sturdy.

Thats all I can think of atm. Hope that helps.

Becky ...

I have brought a birth-toddler carseat.. I figure it is better than buying a capsule then a car seat...

I have most things already, am getting a cot & 3 wheeler pram form my G/f which was my god sons...

only things I need really are clothes, nappies, wipes & things like that as well as a high chair & sling to carry Goober in....

I have been buying things on sale over the last year LOL

We have ordered the Boori Pioneer cot. Just be aware that depending on the colour you choose and if you change your mind for another model it can take up to 4 months to arrive. We have been estimated 9 weeks for the Pioneer in white.

We have a SafenSound Compaq Deluxe carseat to fit in our Astra which is suitable from bith-18 kgs.

We choose the Valco Runabout Deluxe Special Edition as it was very sturdy, can take a toddler seat (may be needed one day will wait and see though), was a 3 wheeler, fits in our boot (with 1 wheel off) and was a great price.

We organised all of this at 12.5 weeks and have paid for just over half of it already which is great to have such a chunk out of the way so early.

Good on you being so organised. Your plans sound great, but i agree with the other girls about the capsule. We got a convertable carseat also by safensound.

I would recommend a phil and teds three wheeler pram. We got one and it is fantastic. It cost around $500 and can later add a toddler seat. The great advantage of this pram is its lightweight.

Also we got a groyears convertible cot. Have a look at this brand as well as boori as the styles are just gorgeous and they are a little cheaper.

Good luck

Hi - also think about a good high chair - they can cost around $200-$300 if you want one that goes up and down and reclines and stuff.

Also, with the pram, if your second child is more than around 2.5 years old, a toddler seat attached to an existing pram might not be much good, due to their weight restrictions. A skateboardy thing for the back of the pram might be a better idea.

Check that whatever pram you decide on fits in your boot, and try it out on the footpath, not just around inside the shop.

With car seats and other items - they seem to change cloth patterns and add things each year to make them look new and improved. Don't get sucked in by that - velour is going to get as cruddy as regular fabric. For car seats, as long as you get a good brand that is standard approved, you cant go wrong. ANd with so long to go, you have time to shop around and compare prices.

Also, if you're going to get them all at the one place - see if you can haggle a discount.

AND - our cot was from friends, so $0, new mattress cost about $80, car seat, birth to 18kgs safe n sound teddy biscuit, under $200, and i just bought a Bruin three wheeler for $160 - last one, old colours (navy & beige) no booklet, marked down from about $350. I thought those Boori cots cost about $1000 ?

Good luck,
Barb.

Hi Becky,

There is certainly something to be said for being organised early!! I think I got most things put on laybuy by about 19 weeks?? It made it much easier to just go and get them all later.
I love the Boori cots - they look great. We actually got a Sunbury cot, and I think they are of a similar quality to the Boori, but a bit cheaper. Definitly spend a bit on the things that you aer going to have to live with ecery day - change table, cot, car seat. If I had to do it again (which I will be ;) ) I would hire a capsule for the first 6months or so. You can get them for about $10/month, and I was very jealous of all the woman just carrying their sleeping babies into mothers group! As opposed to getting her out of the seat and carrying in, then trying to resettle.

The other thing you may want to thinkabout is nappies? If you are going disposables, start buying them now on special - you may go through 10 a day!!! And the relly useful size of HUggies dont come in boxes (Infant). If you are considering cloth, nows a great time to have a play on the internet and see all the fabulous products available out there. Its lots and lots of fun!

Fiona

hi bec, i got in early too, also fun to do it then cause you are so excited but not so uncomfortable!!

we got a cot for around $350, a steelcraft pram for about $300 and a carseat (cant remember the brand) on sale for about $150. it passed all the safety standards tests, and looks really comfy too.

good luck,

Linda

Hi Becky,
Though it's cheaper to buy an infant-to-toddler carseat than to have to get both capsule and carseat, I wanted to put in my 2 cents for the value of the capsule. Nothing beats not waking baby if you have to run errands. DS would fall asleep in the car, and I could pop him in and out at four or 5 shops, bank, post office, etc., and he'd get his whole nap uninterrupted while I did errands. In winter, especially, this was nice because all I had to do was tuck an extra blanket over him when I popped capsule out of car, and he never got chilled. Much easier than the dragging him in and out of carseat that I now have to do, which invariably wakes him and is so much more hassle. And if you go to a friend's for dinner, baby can sleep in capsule, etc. Also, if you are planning on having more kids eventually, you can have #2 in capsule while #1 is in carseat. This is also so much easier to manage when you have one who wants to walk -- at least you know baby is safe and snug.

We also got an inexpensive frame with wheels (Kolcraft makes the one we got, but I know there are other brands) designed just to hold the capsule. There was no bulky pram to manage in the car, and this was inexpensive enough that the convenience was worth it. By the time DS was big and strong enough for the carseat, he also was stable enough for an umbrella stroller. Even buying an expensive one (Maclaren brand, has high handles and other niceties) plus the frame with wheels for the capsule was only US$150 total -- so less expensive than the big prams and far more convenient, imo, because less bulky. Of course, if you need a 3-wheel for walks in the neighborhood, etc, your situation might not be best suited with this pair.

Anyway, just thought it might be good to have options. Have fun!
Annie

P.S. If you want convenience AND a really nice pram for walks, you could also consider telling your mum/sister/close friend what pram you would love to have as a group shower gift, if anyone is throwing you a shower. Everyone could contribute, and then you could buy the less expensive transporting-in-and-out-of-the-car type wheels for yourself. Just a thought...

You guys are making me want to put the reversible car seat away for 6 months and hire a capsule from the ambulance!

Hi all,
We are buying for this baby the Babylove Pioneer 2 Jogger Travel system. Total cost for car seat (birth - 9mths), jogger pram and car base is $649.95 , you can also get a 4 wheel stroller typer system that costs $529.95. I already have a car seat 8kg plus. I figured that with 3 other kids it would be easier to get this out of the car (sorry I'll need a people mover when the time comes) than waking the baby to put in stroller. It clips onto the pram (reversed) which is also great especially to keep sun & wind off baby, you can pull both hoods over (Babylove primo comes with a hood). I think this is a great system, if anyone has heard bad reports let me know.