It’s easy to get wrapped up in the registry creating when you find out you are expecting. I know I got wrapped up in the registry making. I admit to watching hours of YouTube mama’s “MUST HAVE ITEMS!” While lots of the items the YouTube gals mention are probably needed for baby, the items can be found secondhand. In the cover photo Rory is measured by candy and at the time of Halloween he was 7 pieces long and in 0-3 month clothes. At the time I write this (November 19) my house is emptied of Halloween candy but I’d predict he is 9 pieces long and is wearing 3-6 month clothes. That’s less than a month!!! THEY GROW FAST and grow out of items so quickly.
As long as you don’t care about the latest and greatest in baby gadgets, keep reading! It will save you money. I found lots of our baby items on Facebook Marketplace. If you’ve never used marketplace or an online second garage sale, I highly encourage you to try it. You are saving the earth by re-using plus saving money. What’s not to love? You can read my tips for using Facebook Marketplace here.
- Crib. This is going to be one of the most expensive items you will need for your baby. You can absolutely get this second hand. I would recommend making sure it meets the safety requirements but as long as it does that…why not? People are constantly getting rid of cribs. Ours was free but if you prefer a nicer model you could find one for a steal of a deal. I was sure to clean it really well, along with everything else we got used when making the nursery.
2. Basinet. It depends on your family’s and baby’s needs, but a bassinet is an item that most people use for the first few months. These items can get extremely spendy when you look at them new. Again new ones have all the bells and whistles like a fold-down side and wheels but you are getting up to feed baby anyways so is reaching a few more inches to get baby really worth $160? We found a used bassient for $20 on marketplace and added wheels to it ourselves. The wheels are awesome to have because you can roll it our to the main room during the day and use as a space to safely lay baby (this was very important for us with a dog!) These are on marketplace for free or very cheap by the dozens daily!
3. Clothes. Babies grow at an increasingly quick rate so spending money on clothes that they will wear a few times is not worth it. If your baby is 9 lbs at birth, they won’t even fit newborn clothes! So why spend money on something your baby will never wear? There’s a never-ending supply of free and used clothes online. When the baby grows out of them, pass them on to a friend or someone in need.
4. Bottles. I had no idea how expensive bottles were until we had a baby. Spending money on bottles, especially before your baby is born might not be the best idea because babies can be particular about the nipples size, bottle flow, etc. If you aren’t comfortable getting used bottles from a stranger, consider asking family or friends to borrow bottles to try out on your baby. We got bottles used and sanitized them really well. If you still aren’t comfortable with used bottles, another thing you could do is get free bottles and just replace the nipples. This will be much cheaper than buying all new bottles. Our baby needed preemie only nipples (these are recommended for breastfeeding babies, and we’ve had great success.)
5. Bottle warmer. This was an item we weren’t even sure we wanted. We really didn’t know if it was necessary so we didn’t even consider getting one. One day while browsing marketplace we found it free so trying it wouldn’t hurt the bank. It’s bee useful to warm milk to match the temperature of breastmilk. But again, this is one of those items that people just want GONE once the baby is out of the bottle phase…so watch for free! In my opinion, wait until you learn your baby’s needs because all babies are different and not all babies need their milk warmed….even if marketing says so.
6. Baby swing. The amount of money you can spend on a baby swing is wild. All the features, bells, and whistles that marketing tells us we need. Babies really just want to be rocked. A baby does not need a Bluetooth enabled swing. All your baby needs is a swing that rocks, I promise. I found one on the end of a driveway for free. In fact, we found two. One for the upstairs and one for downstairs. Excessive? Probably, but I’m all over the place in our house on a daily basis. Being all over the place has caused us not to have as tidy of a home, but it’s okay. Even though we now have baby items all over, it’s nice to have the convencie of two swings and it didn’t cost a thing. I see swings free on marketplace on daily basis, I am not kidding.
7. Jumper. Our baby is not even in the jumper phase yet, but we are ready when he is. New jumpers can range from $50 and up. To be honest I was hesitant about this item because it can delay babies’ development but only if left in it for an extended period of time. The one we got for free retails at $104. That’s wild for something your baby will use for a very short period of time. Is it in perfect condition? No. There’s pieces missing, some things had been chewed, but I cleaned it up, cut the chewed pieces off and it’s in working condition. It’s missing fine motor manipulatives but that’s alright, jumping is a large motor time. Baby will get fine motor when they are done jumping. We can also add toys to the tray for him. There’s always a solution. Not to mention a lot of those jumpers are much too over-stimulating for a baby. Most adults don’t like being over-whelmed with choices and neither does your baby!
8. Stroller. At the rate we go on walks, a good stroller was needed but strollers get very expensive. We were able to find a jogging stroller for free on a local facebook group. All we had to do was buy the car seat that matched up with it. Buying a new carseat was a for sure thing for us anyway for safety regulations. Keep this tip in mind though if you do find a stroller you love for free, just buy the car seat to go with it!
9. Playmat. These can be a spendy thing too when it comes to all the bells and whistles. Again, they can quickly become too overstimlating for baby. The one we got for free had no fine motor, lights, or rattles on it, but that was 100% ok. I was able to add a few teethers/rattles to it and that is simply enough. I change them out as needed and he is so happy on when it’s “gym time” as I like to call it!
10. Breast pump. Many insurance companies will cover the cost of a breast pump, but some do not. Ours only covered a manual breast pump 100%. I wanted electric but to avoid paying the part insurance didn’t cover, we got one-second hand from a friend so didn’t pay anything. I was sure to sterilize it well, and it’s been a fabulous item. Ask around to family/friends before you buy one…it’s likely you can find a used one! I do not recommend a used pumping bra because bras wear out quickly and you use this daily if you are pumping. I love this pumping bra and it was a very fair price. Read the end of this article on why you should purchase a pumping bra (because I thought it wasn’t necessary at first!)