I have a theory that people go back for more kids to average out the cost per child. 😛  There is also a lot of marketing out there that’s sole purpose is to make you feel guilty if you’ve not purchased the best (read: expensive) and many, many items for your darling new arrival and it’s a crock!  I put the baby industry in the same bucket as the wedding industry with over-inflated pricing and heaps of hype to keep you paying just to keep up with the Jonses.

Let me come clean first: I’m a Marie Condo convert, budding minimalist and have de-cluttered my wardrobe and most of the house (as I’m definitely a believer that external clutter clutters my brain!)  I’m also an avid budgeter and planner (aka addicted to spreadsheets), and I like to think I’m thrifty where possible (although some things are worth investing in).  Obviously all babies are different and your lifestyle will differ to mine so adapt or ignore as you please.

I also call myself a hippie parent, which may mean you do some things differently to me and that’s fine.  I don’t want this text to spark a debate on parenting styles – this is what I believe and what works for me so as above – adapt or ignore as required.

Buyer’s remorse…

My biggest baby buying regret was getting things early.  And it hurts to type that, as I’m always proud of my research and preparedness skills and my Boy Scout style.  Plus the nesting instinct was strong in this one.  I had my Love to Dream swaddles sitting there ready to go in a range of sizes and weights for different weather conditions ready to swaddle baby Riley and so ensure our uninterrupted sleep and then Bam! Riley arrives and hates being swaddled…  so the first thing you do not have to buy for a new baby is:

You don’t have to buy one of everything in every style

Wait until you’ve found an item that works for you and then go out and buy a bazillion of them.  It took me a while to comprehend that life continues after the baby, and that you can shop after the baby arrives, (admittedly you now pack more stuff for even the shortest trip and are at the mercy of the mood of said new baby but there is this new fangled thang called the interwebz if exiting the abode is not an option).  From this lesson flows thing what I learnt the hard way number two:

Leave the tags on and keep the receipts

which is very hard when the nester in you demands you wash and fold all the new things and put them in the cupboard in size order (ignoring the tags, but comparing the physical sizes of items).

You don’t have to buy new

Think op shops, op shops and second hand places.  So much cute, so little cost.  Babies are small for such a short time, there is so little wear and tear on most baby clothes, they really are the perfect item for recycling.  If you pick the wrong size or season, tis not an issue if you didn’t spend a heap on them.  If you can, wait until after the baby shower to shop and do you don’t duplicate any gifts received (if you’re having one).  And you don’t have to limit yourself to clothes – prams, car seats, play mats, bath seats etc are all out there. It’s a buyer’s market on second hand baby gear with super low resale prices so grab those hand me downs from the cousins, checkout ebay and join the local facebook baby buy, swap and sell group.

You also don’t need…

…anything that has buttons or requires turning the baby over to get it on!

Go with zips or press studs.  Not many new babies are cheery about being dressed or undressed (the process, not the state).  You’re asleep, sleep deprived, its dark, the baby is crying and the suit needs an emergency change – just go the zip!

…hooded baby towels
You don’t actually need baby towels with hoods – any old towel will do.  Do invest in a packet of terry towel nappies, for burping, putting down under baby who may vom or drool at any time (meaning less sheet changes), using on change tables when you’re out and about etc. etc.  These are an essential.

…expensive cot blankets

Head to spotlight. Buy polar fleece. Cut to size. It doesn’t fray so no sewing required. I made so many (read: too many) cute patterned blankets on the cheap.

…baby food
About six months down the track check out baby led weaning.

…a bazillion skin care products
Babies can be pretty much cleaned with water.  Yes to nappy cream, anything else is optional.

…a fancy change table
we use a trestle table and a cardboard box.  Yes, it’s as cheap as it sounds!  You can check it out here.  We understand nappies are a temporary thing and having a dedicated piece of furniture wasn’t for us.  Adding a mat to chest of drawers or existing piece of furniture you own is a great option, if our shabby chic industrial look ain’t for you.

…a ginormous nappy bag
I’m going to be hated by trendy mum’s everywhere.  We use a regular sized Star Wars tote bag and a lot of the time it doesn’t leave the car.  In the early days I did have an emergency stash in both our cars which included a towel, change of clothes, spare nappies, bib, hat, sunscreen and dummy.  This means my mobile kit was just the wetbag containing a couple of nappies, wipes and cream, plus a muslin cloth for blanket slash change mat slash picnic rug slash shopping trolley liner and a small toy.  As she’s grown we’ve added her cup and a snack.  That’s it.  I can feel the glares.

And you might not need….

My other big f**, I mean stuff up involved where the baby would sleep… Riley’s resting place did not go to plan.  I fell in love with the Finnish baby box many moons ago.  The concept appealed as did the SIDS reduction statistics so I ordered one as soon as we’d passed the 12 week mark.  Although pricey, mine came filled with over 50 gorgeous baby essentials (some we have used a lot, others like the snowsuit that fit her in summer, we did not) and more importantly the box is where baby sleeps initially.  I was excited as it was easily moved around the house for naps or nighttime  and I busily sewed more mattress protectors and sheets for it.  Riley loved being in the clear plastic box in the hospital so I was optimistic about the box at home.  When I got her home however, I realized she loved the perspex box because she could see out of it, and putting her in the clean white cardboard box was worse than baby prison (aka a cot) and was more like baby mental asylum.  Suffice to say the two sleeps she had in the box cost me as much per night as a luxury hotel.  We found a great little co-sleeper with net sides that could sit in between us in bed that became her permanent home until her elbows touched the sides but when searching for the box replacement I stupidly purchase a bassinet sized baby prison because the maternal health nurse does an initial home visit and I wanted to keep up the appearance that we were following the western world baby rearing norm.  Again, a very high price for two naps and a maternal health nurse lookover.  It did however take the same size sheets I made for the box and was excellent storage for toys and crap you usually throw on the floor of the bedroom.  After doing my research on safe bedsharing practices and dropping the mummy guilt associated with it, Riley joined us in the king size bed with arms outstretched and smiles all around.  (I blogged here about our bed sharing.) We also never needed a baby monitor, cos y’know, proximity.

So you might not need a cot or a cardboard box. You definitely don’t need baby cutlery marketed at three month age intervals and yet I still have them in the drawer even though they are basically the same product! Sighs…  So what did you buy in preparation for your new baby but never used?

[dropcap type=”square”] M [/dropcap]iranda

The post What not to buy for your new baby appeared first on Miranda Mayle Photography.

We’ve gone with cloth nappies.  I just hate the idea of wrapping raw sewage in plastic and sticking it in landfill.  Who actually reads the side of the pack and empties waste into the toilet first?  But I also wanted to be realistic and didn’t want to overload the workload when Riley first arrived home.  So we started with a bit of a hybrid, gradually increasing the amount of time per day Riley spends in cloth to the point where she’s a daytime cloth and nighttime sposie wearer.  We find the disposables at night keep her drier so we don’t have to change her and risk waking her overnight.   (Did you know you can also buy compostable disposable nappies?) Cloth nappies make financial sense over time and we’ve not had any issues doing a load of wash each day – quick pre-rinse for the nappies only then add in the regular stuff and wash as usual (warm not cold).  It’s all the rage to dry pail now (just a container with holes for ventilation) – no drowning hazards, no bacteria soup, no extra wear and tear on the elastics and believe it or none of the stench I expected.  The ‘fun’ ones get a rinse in the laundry sink and then stay there until the nightly wash.

Most cloth nappies nowadays are shaped just like a disposable and close with snaps or velcro and do not take a degree to assemble even if they come in a few pieces.  I initially invested in sized all-in-one nappies though because I was scared of all the options.  As my baby was born part heffalump, she outgrew the smalls within 6 weeks and was pushing out of the mediums at 6 months.  I’ve subsequently purchased multifit pocket nappies that I adore.  They change sizes with four easy snaps so suit from itty bitty bubby to toilet training toddler and the outers can be dried super quick (read: overnight) on the clotheshorse whilst the inserts are in the drier.  I sold on the sized nappies to finance my larger stash of the multifits.  I stuck with a single brand (Baby Beehinds) as they worked for me but found some of their styles fit her body shape better so do grab/borrow one or two of each format or brand you’re interested in and try them first then ramp up to them full time as you find the type that suits.  Cloth nappies make the most adorable fluffy butts and come in a delightful array of colors and patterns such that we’ve totally ditched pants in warmer weather.  On a moderate day long socks suffice because who’s got time for pants on and off all the time with the amount of nappy changes?  Although when it is pant’s weather you’ll usually need a size larger than expected, or to be selective style wise, to accommodate that extra cushioned butt  (And why do you have to change a nappy more often when the baby is young and you’re least experienced at it? Mother nature has a wicked sense of humor…)

We also use cloth wipes – cos its no extra effort if you’re already washing nappies.  They hold a lot more mess and for any dried on grime we’ve a water spray bottle to moisten them first.  A few packets of cheap flannels from a big chain store (we use the 12 for $5 from Baby Bunting) and you’re set.  For going out, we’ve a wet bag (waterproof bag) (with monkeys on it) (from Planet Wise) to bring home used nappies. Its got a pocket for clean nappies, wipes and cream, and a lined main bit for the not so clean nappies.

We have 17 nappies and wash every day, but could wash every second day and survive with that number now she’s a bit older.   We got a great wash routine from the facebook group Clean Cloth Nappies Down Under and have had no issues with staining, smells or washing out our nappy creams (MooGoo Nappy Balm and Grovia Magic Stick).  Beware the temptation to get all the patterns and colors though, as that’ll ruin their cost effectiveness (and yep – there is a heap of info out there that you still save when including water, electricity and washing powder costs).

The whole using cloth nappies process really hasn’t been the grueling ordeal I originally dreaded plus I get the enviro warm fuzzies and to look at a super cute tooshie.  And a final benefit: Its therapeutic folding them… well almost…  when you getting ‘help’ 🙂

The post Clean up in aisle two… cloth nappies appeared first on Miranda Mayle Photography.

Resusable Bags

I keep a folded shopping bag in my handbag – a whole $2 from Kmart and it stops me using plastic on those unscheduled, quick, couple of items pickups.  They come in a number of patterns from old lady to hipster.  I also have Onyalife produce bags – I adore them!  For a lot of items I just let them free-ball (mandarins for example) but beans were always a plastic culprit.  These guys are lightweight and made from recycled plastic themselves.

https://www.instagram.com/p/BYewug2Dxh-/

Reusable Food Wrap

Any food that used to leave my house in glad wrap or a sandwich bag now goes out in a food pouch or wrap.  These guys velcro shut and do keep the bread fresh til lunchtime.  I’ve tried a couple of brands and find the 4myearth range functional, flexible and fits the food best.

https://www.instagram.com/p/BYfQk81Dk7E/

Reusable Cup

I went with the Keep Cup mainly because I could spend an afternoon picking different colors on the website, although I was tempted by their Star Wars range… Remember if you do leave it at home (or lets admit it – forget it was in your hand bag all along) then at least ask them to leave the lid off your take away cup.

https://www.instagram.com/p/BYfrIcjDbJb/

Decent cleaning cloths

Grabbing some good quality microfibre has let me ditch the paper towel.  Find some that rinse well so that its not a chore to use them and you’ll stop reaching for the paper towel when the high chair is covered in the mealtime carnage…  I’m using Norwex with success.

https://www.instagram.com/p/BYiaVe_jacg/

Buy second hand

For some, the thought of trawling through vast quantities of someone else’s leftovers is cringe worthy whilst others cannot wait to dance through aisles of pre-loved treasures for a unique find.  As both a budget and eco conscious option, op shops are hard to go past.  The last couple of times I’ve gone in with a mission I’ve been successful walking out with the item required with minimal browsing and from a single store (ie. I need jeans, I need black pants, I need a little black dress).  I admit I hate op shop smell, which is thankfully removed by putting items through a single wash.  We’re also super lucky to have a second hand kids clothing warehouse in the area which is where 90% of Riley’s clothes come from.  Its not just limited to clothes, they’ve got most things baby related and they also sell kid’s clothes you bring back in on consignment for store credit!

Don’t limit yourself to just clothes, from hard rubbish to Gumtree, upcycling can get you a unique piece and/or a craft project.  The chair I’m typing in comes from a second hand office furniture store. Its not worn out, functional and way comfier than my budget would have allowed buying new.

So how are you saving the world?

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