Crazy consumerism

So on the one hand, you have these people who say: "All you really need for the baby is a few outfits and a dresser drawer for it to sleep in!"

Then you have the people who want you to buy everything and the kitchen sink, and spend a lot of time convincing you of the need to own one knick-knack or another.

In the middle, you have confused parents-to-be trying to gauge what, exactly, they DO need. It's hard, because what might work for one family, won't for another, and vice versa. Then there's the mild guilt trip you get from seeing all those expensive organic items and wondering if you should try and tweak the budget to include those somehow. Like, seriously, baby wipes made from tea tree oil and pure completely edible ingredients. Slings made from organic cotton or fleece or what-have-you.

It's all very confusing. And potentially quite expensive.

We've decided to close our ears, go LALALA, and try and save as much money as possible. So far we've gotten a crib (one of the travel kind with soft-mesh sides) on sale, and 20 cloth diapers (reusable nappies as they call them here). Hopefully we can find other things at the English equivalent of garage sales or off Freecycle. Here's to looking!

Though I suppose we might also pick up an outfit or two once we find out the flavor at the gender scan on Friday...!