Thursday, June 25, 2015

Baby #2, what shopping shall we do for you?


It's funny to look back and realize how completely unprepared we were when Oswin was born. She arrived ten days early, and we had yet to buy diapers, wipes, postpartum after care goods, a diaper pail...the list goes on. 

I remember in between contractions, watching Dan with his cup of freshly made espresso in the delivery room, using the hospital's wifi to order things we hadn't had the chance to yet. I remember going through my hospital bag during our almost six day hospital stay, (praise be to the Swiss health care system!), and seeing that I had in fact not packed appropriately for the baby. I blame this on french baby clothes sizing, which tend to be smaller than the equivalent American size by a good 3-6 months, and the belief that our child was going to be just gargantuan (a belief implanted in our brains by our doctor's reaction to our late pregnancy ultrasounds). A six month sweater sized Petit Beateau sweater, Ugg boots that only just fit Oswin this past fall...it was all just, wrong. 

 So what now? With #2 on the way this reflection has made me realize that despite not knowing anything, despite having no local support network, no one to bounce ideas off of, we were totally 100% fine. We made it work with what we had. I did however make a list of things I would do differently in my pre-baby shopping for our next go round, but there really isn't much extra we need in preparation for Nighttrain's arrival. (Don't worry, Nighttrain is just this baby's womb name, we've already got their actual name sorted.) In fact, if the baby arrived today, we would be more prepared than we were when Oswin first showed up on the scene.

 Curious about what we will be purchasing to help welcome Nighttrain into our little family? Well here is a list of some of my wish list items, because at this point, the only thing we really need is clothing in one particular size. That's it. That sure makes shopping a hell of a lot more fun, don't you think?

Pic via here

My heart will always skip a beat for Briar Handmade bonnets. I've been purchasing bonnets for Oswin from this lovely little company since very soon after they opened shop, and it's been fun and heart warming to see the success that has been achieved in a relatively short period of time. I'm not a huge fan of most hats for newborns, but these bonnets just make me so happy. Simple, well made, and work for both boys and girls in my opinion. These gender neutral and go with everything bonnets are definitely on our "buy for baby" list. 

Pic via here

We never did much in the way of swaddling, but we have a ton of swaddles. They've been indispensable to us for a variety of reasons that do not include swaddling, and we usually keep one on hand in the diaper bag during the colder months, as well as in the car. I've always been an Aden + Anais girl, but these poppy cotton muslin swaddles from Little Unicorn have really caught my eye. 
(The matching quilt isn't too shabby either.)  

Pic via here. 

In the Duggan household you can never, ever, EVER go wrong with a good buffalo plaid, especially in red. Nighttrain is due early September, when the temperatures will mostly still be scorching here in SwitzerFrance. These 100% cotton plaid bloomers from Billie Blooms will be the perfect transition from late summer heat to early fall cooling temperatures...because let's face it, I start dreaming of plaid by late July anyways.

Pic via here.

Humblehouse Handmade is another small, handmade, work at home mama shop that will always have my heart. Her work is amazing, and I can't help but swoon over someone who still includes handwritten notes and hand-stamped prints in their packages, all while running after three kiddos of her own. We've bought several of her Kismet dolls which Oswin loves, as well as donut rattles, but now that she has begun making pretzel crochet rattles, well, another order is in our near future. If there is one thing that neither Dan nor I can resist, it's a good soft pretzel...even if it happens to be blue or pink.

Pic via here.

I need this light for the nursery. I just need it. Wouldn't it look amazing in what will become the shared "Marie Antoinette Goes for a Hike in the Swiss Alps" themed nursery? 

Pic via here.

I'm not gonna lie, I'm a bit over graphic t-shirts and onesies. Aside from a few designs that either have personal meaning or a reminder of a special time, such as a CERN t-shirt or a touristy t-shirt from a family vacation, well, I'm just not into it. I've become far more drawn towards simple, traditional, well made clothing, for both myself and the kiddos (it's so weird to say that as a plural!), with a healthy dabbling of my bohemian-punk hybrid roots just to keep it amusing and confusing. Oswin was 50 cm at birth, which essentially meant she was a 1 month clothing sized babe at the start, and that happened to be the one size of clothing we avoided buying. Whoops. As we're in the market for one month sized clothes, I'll be looking for great deals at our go-to shop, Petit Bateau, but I'm also really interested in trying clothes from Gray Label. I'm really leaning towards white,grey, navy, muted pastels and the like for baby's first days/weeks, and they really fit the bill.  

Pic via here

It's definitely not something we need, but I certainly wouldn't kick this adorable overall set out of Nighttrain's closet.

Pic via here.

I've been drooling over Little Wife Powerhouse's Swiss Cross quilts for what has probably been years now, and I'm determined to snag one or two this year for the kiddos. As we don't know if we're having a boy or a girl, I love the neutrality of the Cru quilt, and think it will fit in nicely with the color scheme and theme that is already existent in the nursery.


Pic via here.

When it comes to baby shoes, yes, they're all adorable because they are oh so teeny tiny, but practical? Well we've only found one brand that meets both requirements so far: Freshly Picked Moccasins. These are the only shoes we've tried on Oswin that are easy for us to get on her feet, and nearly impossible for her to figure out how to take them off. They are comfy, they are cozy, they are adorable, and now that we're at the stage where we're taking on the playground like a little wild dragon, we've found that they can take a beating as well. They clean easily, they wear well, and we are repeat customers. So obviously a pair of their crib moccs are on my list for the new babe. 


Pic via here. 

You all know I'd be remiss to not mention our number one brand when it comes to baby carriers: Sakura Bloom. Babywearing is something that we are really passionate about, for it has been not only a really meaningful experience for us with Oswin, but it has also, on numerous occasions, saved our sanity. Whether it's traveling across an ocean, deftly maneuvering through crowds in Geneva, perusing our weekly French market, or simply comforting a little girl with a massive case of the crankies, Sakura Bloom ring slings have been our go to. I cannot imagine that it will be any different once the number of children in our home doubles. I'm loving the Black Currant linen chambray, Caramel linen chambray, and Maize Classic Linen for fall, but I'm sitting on pins and needles to see what beauties they come out with for this coming season. (Fingers crossed for a nice pumpkin-y orange silk!)


How about you? What were some of your go-to buys for your second babe? I'd love to hear them!

A la prochaine friends...

Honey 

Sidenote: This is NOT a sponsored post. I have not received any compensation for the above. These are all goods I really dig, and thought you might too. All opinions are my own.