All the crazy safety issues and recalls are making my head spin (not to mention making my wallet empty.)  It seems like every other day there’s some new announcement on what is or is not safe for the kiddos.

To be totally honest, except for clothes and some toys, everything we have for our imminent arrival is new. For one thing, most of my cousins just had #2 and need their cribs, etc. for their own house. I also won’t buy used stuff for baby from people I don’t know.

Anyway, if you’re not a paranoid nutjob like me, here are some tips for buying used or secondhand for baby.

• Look for new items first. You’d be surprised how many people get stuck with extra items from their registry that they can’t return. A savvy haggler can get a ton of brand new items for pennies on the dollar.
• Breast pumps should not be bought used unless they are hospital grade and you can replace all the tubing. Even though the pump may look clean, bacteria can makes it way through the tubing and valves.
• Don’t buy any car seat or baby furniture if the seller doesn’t know the model make and serial number. If there is yet another recall (and there were several in the past months) you need to be able to identify what you have.
• Washing the straps of a cars eat can weaken them. Be sure to ask if the seat has been washed before you purchase it.
• Keep abreast of the safety recommendations for baby furniture. Many heirloom pieces are beautiful, but can be hazards for infants. Don’t buy any furniture unseen because you should be checking the space between slats, drop sides, etc.
• Vintage toys can be awesome, but be wary of painted pieces and plastic. Many classic toys used lead paint (and were made with lead parts) and older plastic toys can have additives that are now forbidden. Since infants put everything in their mouths, you don’t want to find out junior has been sucking on hazardous chemicals. Stick to toys made in the last 10 years or so and sanitize them thoroughly.
• Double check infant clothes for strings and ribbons, loose buttons or other potential choking hazards. They may be cute, but they’re also hazardous. (Same thing goes for used maternity/nursing clothes.)

There are tons of incredible deals out there if you’re willing to take the time to research and look.

Have you hit the jackpot at a garage sale or Craigslist?

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I got this idea from a catalog, where the silly thing was close to $60. I took one look at it and said ‘I can do that’.

Baby Onesie Bouquet

This project requires no artistic or crafting ability. If you can fold your own clothes, you can make this.

The whole project cost me about $22, although I did go whole hog and buy fancy flower stems at full price. If you wait until they go on sale (usually 50% off every few weeks) or until you have a coupon, I’m sure you could do this for under $20.

Ingredients:

Pack of onesies – I actually chose 8-12 month size because everyone gets newborn sizes.
Pack of baby washcloths – You can also use socks, burp cloths, etc. the cloths just happened to be on sale.
Artificial Flowers/Greenery – I used baby breath, whatever those blue things are (never claimed to be a florist) and fern leaves.
Floral Wire
Ribbon – I bought the $1 a roll grosgrain. You only need maybe 8 inches so scraps are fine.
Clear adhesive tape.

Step one: Roll your onesies. The goal is to get them into a nice spiral/rosebud shape so you might need to rearrange a few times to get it right. Use a little piece of tape to secure the roll. Reserve one washcloth/burpcloth for the outside wrap or find a nice piece of scrap cloth.
Step two: Arrange the onesies in bouquet. Use the floral wire to wrap around and secure them.
Step three: Add in floral pieces. Try to avoid putting dark flowers next to white or light fabric because the dye could rub off. Use floral wire as necessary to secure.
Step four: Surround bouquet with greens. I had to chop off a lot of stem to get the fullness I wanted. Secure with more floral wire.
Step five: Wrap base with reserved cloth. This just hides the stems. You could also just wrap the stems in ribbon. Use tape to secure.
Step six: Add ribbon band/bow. Secure with more tape.

The whole thing took me an hour, and that’s because I kept rearranging things. It’s simple, easy and pretty inexpensive, especially if you know the shower is coming and can shop sales ahead of time.

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I apologize for today’s post. I’ve got babies on the brain (if you are a regular reader, you know why) and my messed up hormones have been giving me all sorts of crazy brainstorms. Anyway, put on your tin foil hat, it’s time for Auntie Katie’s crazy theory show.

The decision to have a baby is, of course, not to be taken lightly. Ask anyone who has children and they will tell you that kids are expensive, even when you are doing everything in your power to do things frugally.

But when does biology trump your financial situation?

More and more evidence shows that women over the age of 35 having a higher risk of everything from miscarriage to Down Syndrome. Scientists are also starting to prove that the age of dad matters as well. We like to blame the rise of autism, allergies and other problems on all sorts of environmental factors, but sometimes I wonder if it has more to do with aging genetic material.

Please note that I’m not trying to attack older parents here. My own parents married late and then waited until they had purchased a house and got their finances in order. Mama Urbanite turned 37 two months after she had me. Having a kid later in life doesn’t mean it’s the end of the world.

It’s just that I’ve watched many of my cousins struggle with age and children. One spent hundreds of thousands of dollars on fertility treatments after she turned 40 in order to have her twins. I’m sure she’d happily give away all she had for those little girls, but it was a very long, very draining, and very expensive journey for her to give birth. On the other hand, she and her husband are more than financially settled (even with those huge medical bills) so there is no danger that those little ones will go hungry.

I don’t know. Sometimes I think that Mr. and I should wait until we’ve got a bigger emergency fund socked away or until we pay off his studen loans or until the car is paid off or until my business takes off. But then I wonder if we’re going to be that couple taking thousands of dollars of hormones so we can have a baby. I’ve already proven that miscarriages can happen to anyone, and I don’t want to find out that my ‘last chance’ pregnancy ended at week 10.

Ugh. Not an easy choice at all. No one wants to pop out a baby at 18 that they can’t support and no one wants to be filthy rich and find out it’s too late for them to have a healthy baby.

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