Looking back – what should've been on my baby register list? 🤔

Before having my son, my biggest decisions were what outfit to wear, did I need that cute pair of shoes, and if I was drinking wine or cocktails in the weekend. I wish I could say I went into research mode and started planning, but honestly, I was working full-time and thought I had plenty of time since pregnancy lasts nine months... right? Boy was I wrong!

To be honest I didn't have a baby register list, I was just thankful that my friends could see that I was clueless, and they organised a baby shower for me. Bless them, but it was like the blind leading the blind, as most of them, were also living a glamorous childless lifestyle. So, this resulted in a non-traditional event and Elijah being generously gifted with gorgeous outfits that could grace any baby catwalk in New York, London or Paris! So fabulous... but just not practical for the really early years! 🙄 🫣

This is me excitedly unwrapping fabulous gifts (yet not necessarily practical) 🤗

Non-traditional baby shower...yeah it does look like a party. I love my friends! 😍

If I could have done it all again, gosh I would have been more strategic, and based my list on my lifestyle and values. We all know and understand how we want to live, but how does values influence what baby gear we want to buy? I wanted to create a loving, nurturing & safe environment for Elijah. Also, one that allowed me to be able to engage and educate him, in the different developmental stages of his life. When you include your values, then you can cut through the noise of numerous products and focus on the features you need a product to have. Doing this would have meant that I would've been able to adapt&survive™ my new parenting life right from the get-go!

Back then, I loved and thrived in urban and inner city living. Restaurants, cafes, art, culture and farmers markets - this was my vibe. So, I lived in apartments that allowed me to be amongst it and this was also the world that my wee man was born into. My other major love was travelling to visit family & friends at least 4 times a year. What became really apparent really quickly, is when I became a parent, my living situation and what I loved to do pre-mama days was just not going to magically work because I now had a baby. 🪄

In retrospect, the tip that I can give you and wish someone had told me is, to make a registry list based on your lifestyle pre-bubs days. Humans are creatures of habit; we like to do what we like to do, and we suffer from serious FOMO! 😮‍We are at our best and perform at our optimum when we're in an environment that works for us and makes us feel comfortable. If I could do it all again and having thought about my lifestyle, I would have made an ‘at home & away’ baby list. Because for me as a single parent travelling regularly and living in inner-city urban environments, I should have chosen space saving and multifunctional products. It would of honestly saved me from looking and feeling like a human pack horse, unsuccessfully navigating 2 ladened trollies through airports. And it would've stopped me from drowning in oversized baby gear more suited for a mansion rather that my 1-bedroom haven!

Honestly if someone had told me this piece of advice it would have saved me so much stress, and money! 🤑When buying baby gear, don't make it a competition of what your friends have, sorry to tell you it's time to be self-centred and practical. This is about giving YOU the ability to navigate your life as seamlessly as possible with your little one in tow, in the world that only you know.

So now I see so many wonderful products before me, I'm gonna share with you my baby wish list – V2!

I have 3 categories, products that are specifically for home, products that I would use at home & when traveling, & the lastly the one that I would only use when I am away.

At Home

sport verso™​ I LOVE how the seat goes both ways so I could face my bub! & the fact that I could use it from newborn up to toddler years saves you SO MUCH MONEY! I also love that it has a standup fold to protect the materials – WINNING!	lazyted™​ Now this is clever! I would've loved this as you can pop the sport verso™ seat onto this, and voila - I have a secure bouncer at home or at friend's! I can easily fit it in the buggy parcel tray! 😎

poppy™🤩​ What a multifunctional space saver! You know how there's always a gaps around the house, for example in your kitchen near your fridge and the wall! I had the perfect spot where I could've stored poppy™. What's also cool with this chair is that it can adapt to an activity chair for when bub got older - fabulous!!

traveller™​ This truly would've been THE game changer for me, because I was a huge believer in co-sleeping! So, the fact I could have used this as a bed next to me safely to keep him close as an anxious new mum, then as a standalone bed as he got older, creating more space between us; would have been magic! & Elijah was a real tutu bug (got his mitts on everything!) being able to convert into a safe play pen...wow!😍 Living in an apartment, this would've given me all the options I needed from newborn to toddler. It's super lightweight which is great for c-section mums like me, & with the easy assembly, it's perfect for the trips away too! So cool for apartment living cos it comes in its own bag and can be easily stored under your bed!👏

go™ This is like having a compact stroller on steroids! It's not only super compact, but you can also use it from newborn right up! This is great for those trips away, 'cos it's so tiny - the fact that I could fold it down to fit in a draw or top shelf in a wardrobe... it's amazing! 🥂

lobster™​ I don't know if you're like me, but when I became a mum, my OCD with germs just went into overdrive 😷 I loved the café scene but didn't love waiting on a highchair. So, this clip-on highchair would've been awesome when I was out & about locally, & when I was away!	parade™​ Would have been a life saver🤭 Every Sunday I use to take Elijah to our local farmer's market. That's where I taught him about fruits & vege's & the value of money. And as a treat before we left, I use to give him my loose change. He used to line up at the food trucks to order his treats a wonton stick & Chinese fried bread. Such wonderful memories 😍

igloo inline® storage​ Oh boy, I would've loved this one! This is a unit that attaches onto the back of the buggy (phil&teds®!). Not only would it have been useful for weekends, but during the week, I used to drop off bubs at daycare. The plastic caddy would've allowed me to organise his food & milk the night before, slip into the fridge & next day, pop on to my buggy and off we'd go!🤗 This also comes with another storage caddy to hang on the buggy handle bars!

caddy inline® storage This convenient bag can be purchased on its own OR comes with the igloo™ storage unit! Gosh, I needed this on our plane trips for snacks, nappies & wipes... make that lots of wipes 'cos for some reason every time we flew my bubs always gifted me with diarrhoea - sad but true story! 💩​

& Away

travel bag​ This travel bag would've made me look less like a pack horse & more a unicorn at the airport! 🤣 & the reason? Everything in my 'home & away' list fits ​in this travel bag.😉

So hopefully you can see what a difference some thought into your baby registry list can make! What’s going to keep you turning up as the best version of you, is looking after yourself & making choices that take the stress out of your everyday life – this benefits both you & kiddo! Having the right products that suit your lifestyle & values from day dot will prove to be the stress relief that you need! If you're a traveller, you don't deserve to look like a pack horse & as for your home, it's your sanctuary, so it shouldn't need to look like a combo of a laundrette & baby store! 🤪

Next week's post is about 'Did I retain my sense of self as a mum?' Like most parents, my focus immediately shifted to my new lil bubble of joy, & I was bursting with emotion, having truly discovered what unconditional love was! But through this shift, I forgot about my self-love, & self-care. I lost this, and I'll share how & what I did to find it again. 🤗

Sofia 🩷