The Baby Arsenal

So, I've been doing extensive reading about preparing the baby arsenal. A couple days ago a checked out a library book on "everything you need" and today my mother sent me a book called the "The Baby Gizmo Buying Guide." Nice that we're both in sync in that way.

And here I've been, obsessing over the $500 crib I'm in love with and not much else (we're denying that three hour foray into the online world of baby clothes that cost more than I spend on my own) and now I'm plunging head first into the endless list of gear.

I have to tell you that the idea of testing out and choosing a stroller is completely overwhelming. And the car seat and the baby carrier and the high chair and the list goes on. And for some reason all the tips and guides just make it harder because now I KNOW what I'm supposed to be looking for and can't just go on my instincts.

But I've made one decision (with Daniel's input of course - we're a team like that). We won't be putting any kind of baby bathtub on our registry. There's the sink and the bathtub and both will work fine. One down!

And on another note... I've discovered that I'm kinda freaked out by the possibility of lead paint and chemical-leaching plastics. I imagine myself with a stockpile of home-lead paint testers, inconspicuously swabbing at toys and furniture. Even though it's not really in our (mythical) budget, I'd like to try to go as natural or organic with toys and whatnot as possible.

And that brings me to my last thought, involving registries. It's unlikely that we'll be registering at Babies'R'Us (I could be wrong about this), but what other alternatives are there? I'm very confused about the baby registry thing. Is there an eco-baby registry? Let me rephrase, is there an eco-baby registry that doesn't stone you if you if you put non-organic socks on your kid? Because, I don't want to be THAT hardcore. lol.

Pali's Trieste Forever Crib in Sienna (coverts to a toddler bed, child-size daybed and full-size bed)