What are you doing with baby stuff if you’re unsure?

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dog_nurse

New member
I have a 6 month old who is aging out of a lot of baby gear- her swing, bouncer, tub, bassinet, newborn car seat, etc. We put an investment into some of these items for sure. We’re not sure if we want another due to multiple factors including birth trauma, some really rough health impacts for me, space, time, money, etc. If we do decide to do this again, we’re looking at a four year timeline minimum so we don’t have to worry about childcare costs for two young babies.
Anyway, what do we save? What do we sell or donate? How much of her clothing? We have a basement that has some storage space available but I don’t want to just hold on to a bunch of stuff for no reason, especially since I’d like to move before we have another. Any thoughts?
 
@dog_nurse Packed it up as tightly as we could and stored it all. Clothes, crib etc…. Just had our second and it’s amazing to open a box and pull out the bottle warmer the minute you need it. Saves money but also saves the hassle of having to choose what product to buy. It took a decent amount of large garbage bags for some of the awkward items though. Good luck!
 
@dog_nurse We were unsure about having another one but saved every little thing. Now our first kid is 3,5 and I’m pregnant again. Very happy that we saved everything and hauled it with us through a move, when prices are rising and we need to budget our money it feels good to already have everything covered. But our new little girl will be wearing mostly boy clothes 😁
 
@dog_nurse As a parent of 2 who have a 4-year age gap, and who is going back and forth about wanting another, I feel like this question was written specifically for me!

After our first we weren't sure we weren't sure if we wanted a second, so we kept everything "just in case". And by everything I mean everything. Do not do this. We had a whole basement to use for storage, but 4 years worth of stuff really piles up.

What I'm doing this time (and am going to extend to the 4-year pile of stuff) is only keeping things I'd really want another child to have, either my own or that of a good friend or sibling. So I'm planning to sell the swing, get rid of the infant car seat (not sure if it would still be good 4 years from now anyway), and give away toys and clothes as the baby grows out of them, but save the handmade booties and a couple of my favorite outfits in each size and her favorite book we read before bed every night. My goal is 1 tote of baby-related items.

I'm also a big thrifter (how I came into possession of most of this stuff in the first place) so I know that almost everything is replaceable, and in fact I like shopping for secondhand kids stuff! So I'll be getting rid of a lot of stuff that is perfectly serviceable, especially clothing, but I know it can be replaced for little cost if I do end up needing it in the future.
 
@grave This is great advice! I’ve done something similar though after reading your comment I’m sure I could go through the clothes I’ve kept to get it down to just a couple in each size that I really like. I kept the ones that my LO wore a lot because they feel sentimental to me but now that time has passed it feels less necessary to keep them. I’m also a thrifter and have spent very little money on clothes.
 
@dog_nurse I think this largely depends on your financial resources. Like if you have a household income of $200k then just give away or sell most of it and keep the stuff you really love. If you have a household income of $40k keep everything just in case. I guess what I mean is if you can easily afford to replace it I would, since you’re looking at a 4 year minimum timeline and will likely be moving… but I also hate to hold on to stuff for no reason!
 
@dog_nurse Idk if this is a practical solution, but we have a very small house so this is my strategy: if it was preowned/gifted when I got it and easily replaceable, I pass it on. Also true for bulky items (I loved that fisher price dome thing but it took up so much space!) I can usually find a replacement on fb marketplace. Other items I didn’t like (halo bassinet!) sold it for basically what I paid. Most newer clothes/ones I especially liked or things that are tough to get rid of we are keeping for now. That includes car seat, fancier baby carrier, woolino sack, nostalgic gifts, cloth diapers. Those are all getting packed away for now. Some toys I keep but any annoying ones are out.
 
@dog_nurse If you have the option, you could lend it to someone who's having a baby soon, then if you do decide to have another, you can get it back, otherwise the person can pass it on :)
 
@dog_nurse Everyone here has very practical advice but I am struggling with this anyway. We have 2 kids and are leaning against having a 3rd. I saved everything from my first because we knew we wanted one more. And now I feel a little more ok giving stuff away on a mental level (financially it’s all replaceable in the event of an unexpected third) BUT it feels even more sad and sentimental this time on an emotional level. So I haven’t been able to do it.
 
@dog_nurse I saved everything. Vacuum packed all the clothes and cloth things, storage bins for the toys, wrapped and stores the furniture. We didn’t decide to have a second until our first was 4y. I’m so glad I saved everything. If we’d gone the other way and decided OAD I’d have donated, sold and shared the items I’d saved.
 
@dog_nurse I’m really on the fence about this. So torn between having another or sticking with our family of 3. I think we will save everything until we figure out what our plan is.
 
@dog_nurse I think it depends on how much you like the stuff and if you have space for storing it that doesnt stress you out. I am due in a few weeks with #2 and a 3 year age gap and don't regret anything I got rid of. I saved favorite outfits and bigger items we really liked, but definitely not the baby swing or every single item of clothing. I feel much more confident being on the minimal side for #2, also.
 
@dog_nurse I have a one year old and I am fairly certain that I am done, but still keeping lots.

I have donated or sold things that we used but didn’t super love. Some of it has been passed along to friends who’ve had babies. I’ve kept the clothes, and figure I can continue to pass those along to friends. If we choose to have another, I know I will be taken care of in the same way. I also know that I’ll probably get more second hand because all of this stuff is SO much waste.
 
@dog_nurse I’ve just lent all our big items to my sis in law and brother, I feel so good doing it as they struggle for $.

Clothes are also going to them, I’ll get the newborn stuff back as they’re only used for a short time and the rest I won’t mind buying again if/when we decide to have another!
 
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