Material Girl

I have a vague feeling that the next five months are going to fly by quicker than a Nascar pit stop, which scares me because I have almost nothing for this baby!

I had no idea that babies require so much stuff. I thought a crib was a big step, but I'm quickly realizing that it needs a mattress, sheets, blankets, and a bumper-minimum. If my little tyke came out right this minute, he or she could sleep in a crib with no mattress and wear a side-snap white t-shirt with tiny gray socks. That's it. Epic mommy fail.

I'm convinced that the human gestation period is nine months because that's just enough time to get over the first trimester nausea and fatigue, figure out everything you need to have, and finally acquire it all. When you're operating on a budget, purchasing power requires some flexibility and creativity. Don't get me wrong, I'm more than happy to get everything my baby needs, but I would be lying if I said I knew beforehand how much that is.

My strategy is to approach this monster one step at a time. After I have one thing checked off the list, I'll move on to the next one instead of taking on everything at once. My best resource has been consumer reviews. If someone else took the time to praise or condemn an item, I'm going to take the time to read what he or she said.

I spent this evening working on my business journalism class and researching crib mattresses. Some of them look like cardboard strips, while others seem nicer than anything I've ever slept on. For the cheaper ones, reviewers obviously said that you get what you pay for. One woman said that her baby's mattress had a deep and irreparable valley in the middle where the little one had been sleeping. Some of the really expensive ones, however, are too plush and pose a suffocation hazard to the baby.

Why isn't there just one store that carries the perfect mattress, the ideal swing and the safest car seat at reasonable prices? I do know this much: no matter what, my baby will have a mommy who loves him or her more than words can say, and no amount of money can buy that love. In the meantime, stay in there, baby! Mama will figure it out.