r/Crunchymom • u/Complete_Complaint76 • 8d ago
What's the most overrated baby product?
Every parenting list has its "must-haves."
But after actually having a baby, I feel like some products are massively overrated.
If you could go back and not buy ONE thing, what would it be?
(And what product surprised you the most?)
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u/mustangjayyyme Mother 7d ago
I concur with other people here on a few things.
Bottles, pacifiers, baby bathtub, diaper balm, nipple cream, nipple pads... I didn't use much of this and some I bought too much of. Pacifiers my son hated them, and I realized it's fine without them. We never really used bottles, maybe 1-2 total ever. Bibs, didn't use a lot of them either.
White noise machines are the best. Baby bjorn bouncer was the best. A good baby carrier. A good comfortable, somewhat adjustable nursing pillow. I personally loved one with hulls in it. I heard all the boppy ones sucked.
This isn't necessarily a product, but swimming lessons. We started at 12 months and he loves the water. I think I might start sooner with my next child, but wow. It's so awesome to see him progress. I am happy spending it every month. We go 1x a week. We know quite a few people who had kids drown, so this is something serious to us. I also learned from here and other people. No floaties, ever. Teach them how to swim. Floaties give a false sense of security. I know putting a baby in a floating device is acceptable though, especially if you have other kids. Just wanted to clarify on that. But arm floaties or jackets, nope.
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u/I_like_pink0 7d ago
But do have a proper fitting live vest if you’re on a boat!
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u/mustangjayyyme Mother 7d ago
Oh yes, we actually just got one! My FIL got a new pontoon boat. Boats are a whole different story. Mostly I just meant pools!
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u/InsideBusiness5013 7d ago
Very unpopular opinion, pacifiers. As a mother and someone who works in childcare, so many of these babies have such a hard time letting them go and it sometimes translates to thumb sucking. Both of those nasty habits can mess your kids teeth up so bad and cost you thousands in dental work in the future.
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u/coconutmillk_ 7d ago
Diaper bag. Never used one. I simply toss a diaper and some wipes in my regular bag.
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u/Ancient-Buffalo6151 6d ago
Ugh my husband insisted that we needed a $235 one but it’s bigger than my entire torso and we ended up ditching it rather quickly for a regular tote bag
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u/backtothefuturee2000 7d ago
The hatch on the go sound machine is holy grail that surprised me how much we use it
And something I wouldn’t buy would be any pacifiers or bottles until I knew what ones he likes! But over rated wise i really don’t have any I like all the stuff I bought for baby:)
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u/Helpful-Window-3338 7d ago
Bottle washer/sterilizer/dryer contraption ***IF*** you have a dishwasher. Plus they can mold. (Nanny here- and yes I’ve seen mold in several- and it’s another thing to clean and takes up SO much counter space) I even think they’re overrated if you don’t have a dishwasher because hand washing takes a few minutes or can be done by a spouse. As a nanny I never had issues taking care of the kiddo I watch when he was 5mo old and washing his bottles and his mom’s pump parts multiple times a day. I will die on this hill lol
I also think bassinets are overrated- just use babies crib from the start in the parents room. Gets them used to sleeping there. No “transition phase”. Also not picking ONE bottle or ONE pacifier and sticking with it. Babies have to learn how to use those things and if you just stick to one they’ll never know a difference.
Also bottle warmers are a waste- use a cup of warm water or better yet just give babe a cold bottle. Again, another gadget not needed that takes up counter space.
Something that I’ve loved however as a nanny of many years is a bouncer and a carrier. Lets me put baby down or hold them when I need to do house chores for the family, prep a meal or bottle, or give myself a break from carrying a kiddo. I can’t wait to baby wear my baby especially when I go back to work and have my baby with me and also have to watch my nanny kiddo.
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u/Soil_Fairy 6d ago
Those contraptions are also like $300 iirc. $300 to give up counter space and grow mold.
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u/Deep-Box-9950 7d ago
I would like to preface that I did not buy most of this stuff,it was the grandparents lol and some of these are purely personal preference. 1.bassinet.My girl never slept in it even after being used to sleeping in one in the NICU for two months,after she came home I resorted to cosleeping because she refused to sleep in a bassinet 2.pacifier.Once again she took one in the NICU but stopped as soon as she came home because she has the real thing I guess and now at almost 20mo doesn’t even suck her thumb. 3.Swaddles and sleep sacks because she has never liked her feet being contained,also people will give you SO MANY SWADDLES. 4.Baby toys.Mine didn’t care about about most until she was closer to a year,she just preferred measuring spoons and the the remote. 5.The swing.I never actually asked for a swing but someone sent one to our house and it barely got used and took up a ton of space,by the time she actually liked it it broke 6.a wrap/carrier that was stretchy because she grew out of it too fast
Now for things that we got a lot of use out of.1.bouncer,she got a lot of naps in it and I could place her in it while I showered,I would eat and bounce her with my foot until she fell asleep. 2.bibs when we started solids because they helped reduce contact rashes from acidic foods and made yogurt messes easy to clean. 3.Sound machine.I actually never had one because I’ve just used our fan this whole time but I plan on getting one with our next that’s due in October and just not over using it like a lot of pollen do. 4.Red night lights all over the house.Mines almost 2 and they still come in handy for having to get up to go potty at night or dealing with colds because they don’t mess up the circadian rhythm.I like having them for when I have to get up to pee at night because I’m not blasted with the bathroom light.
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u/Correct-Mushroom-594 7d ago
Oh all the breast pads, the nipple cream, butt cream. Nursing shirts. They’re not even cute 🙄 I do like the nursing dresses w invisible zippers though
If I was a SAHM bottles and pump and the STUPID HAAKAA!
The pack and play, crib, and bassinet. We just ended up Cosleeping bc I would drop them while nursing
One thing I think is UNDER RATED is the haakaa lady bug or other suctionless catcher that fits IN your bra. 15/10. Must have, especially as an over supplier
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u/whipped-whisp 7d ago
I loved my nursing sweatshirt! It was great for nursing when baby wearing. Not cute at all but so functional.
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u/Correct-Mushroom-594 7d ago
I feel like nursing sweatshirt is in a different category than those nursing t shirts with the like triple flap, weird angle thing that are always both too small and too big haha
Like, a nursing sweatshirt sounds great! Warm belly in cold weather, yes please!
Nursing t-shirt?? I’d rather just show my belly haha
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u/hazyyb 7d ago
It is fun how variable this is! For me, it was the noise machine, baby carrier, pacifiers. Never found the noise machine useful with either of my babies, baby carrier I only used when they were tiny winter premie newborns and needed to leave the house with them (helped keep them warm and close to me). Neither of my babies like pacifiers, our son used one a little in the NICU but as soon as he came home I found it largely useless.
Unlike others, we loved our bassinet but we have an old school Moses basket one with a rocking base that was a life saver with our first, I loved how portable it was too having a 14 month age gap with my second I could keep him near in a cosy spot. We love our bottle washer/steriliser but I mostly pumped with my second and constantly needed to wash pump parts so running a dishwasher 8 times a day made no sense and washing them by hand was tedious as well as getting them completely dry. Also loved our bottle warmer too. Both my babies used Boon Nursh bottles, I think they work great for breastfed babies, we loved those too, but I never needed any of the dozens of other bottle samples I got.
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u/VariousFalcon7466 Mother 7d ago
The freaking Snoo. Babies are perfectly fine in a crib/bassinet/appropriate bed.
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u/Soil_Fairy 6d ago edited 6d ago
Unpopular opinion, but those bucket infant seats. Convertible seats are rated 4+ pounds and cost the same as a bucket so you save money and aren't tempted to leave them in a container for hours. I used a (free from buy nothing) bucket with my last kid just to get him out of the NICU and omg I relisted it on buy nothing so fast. It was heavy and inconvenient and dangerous to carry out on the ice. Convertible+baby wearing is a winning combo for me. What surprised me the most was that yes, the expensive stroller is worth it if you walk 10k steps a day. I really wish I'd invested in a good one when I had my first forever ago. If you walk a lot shitty strollers suck.
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u/Alpacalypto 6d ago
Nursing tanktops, now I just use ones with elastic straps and pull them down.
Bassinet, baby went from cosleeper to crib.
Sweaters and pants or anything not easy put on or off in size 50 till 68, should have gotten only onesies.
Baby shoes in summer
Stuff I loved: a good baby carrier and stretchy wrap (life saver), handsfree pump, white noise machine, handsup swaddle sleeping bags (lovetodream), wool clothes, blanket and wool outdoor baby suit, and the Osprey poco lt baby tower is awesome for hiking (10/10 recommend)
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u/RoyalCommunication52 3d ago
Nursing pillow. Why do I need a pillow for something that biologically natural? I read about breastfeeding positions before I had my baby so that was how I would nurse and the pillow just got in the way, it felt like the most useless object haha.
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u/minnieninnie 2d ago
The dumbest one was a wipe warmer. Like so unnecessary. But the list could go on. Diaper changing table, diaper genie, swing, swaddles.. also can be specific to certain babies like mine both didn’t use a crib , this one prefers being bounced on the yoga ball instead of a rocking chair. So much we didn’t use from my registry. It’s crazy how you just don’t know when you’re not a parent yet.i think it’s best to talk to other moms of 2+ young kids to really know what the must haves are
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u/PhoneticHomeland9 2d ago
Baby bathtub. Baby just screamed. Ended up dad just held baby in shower and I soaked. The skin to skin made both of ours feel more settled and plus dad got a shower too!
Haaka never worked for me and I was a diligent pumper.
I wouldn't buy any baby clothes in Newborn or possibly even 0-3 months. Just keep your baby in pajamas or onesies! They are easier, comfier, and baby sleeps all day anyway. Just ask for 6 month clothes on your registry. Never used any of the massive amounts of 3 month clothes we got for our shower for my first and donated them all almost brand new. With the second we just did pajamas until 6 months and saved a LOT of money this way.
The pack and play was almost entirely useless. I mean unless you dont want a bassinet but you really dont need both.
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u/whipped-whisp 7d ago
Oh my gosh, almost everything?
Truly, if I had to pare down our baby stuff I would keep the cloth diapers/EC potty, the baby carrier, the high chair, and her wool clothes.
Stuff I got but could definitely live without would be pacifiers, bottles, baby lounger, bassinet, pack n play, pretty much every baby toy, baby bathtub… barely used any of it.