Bringing Baby Home: Room

R is for Room. No, not the baby's room since that is not necessary. R is for room for all the baby's stuff. Diapers. Bouncing chairs. Clothes. Toys. Bath supplies. Medical supplies. Bassinet. Crib. Boppy.

Yes, you can change a baby on the floor, but considering the number of blowouts my son has had while changing his diaper, no way am I changing him on the floor without an acre of padding around him.

No, a bassinet is not necessary and neither is a crib. Some parents chose to co-sleep. Others get the crib and end up co-sleeping, meaning the crib is an expensive storage unit. Nevertheless, even if co-sleeping, baby needs space (room) to sleep.

Yes, a person can bathe a baby in the kitchen sink. Mine is never that clean. And bath supplies are not necessary. I find them nice to have--towels, cloths, soap--and they take up a small amount of space.

Clothes. I guess we could have 1/3 of the clothes we have and be OK. And I am amazed at how quickly he grows out of them--it seems something is too small every day. Even if I had less clothes, they would still be piling up in my laundry room.

Chairs, etc. Not necessary, until he is screaming at 9 at night and I am drained of energy and desperate for him to stop.

Toys, not necessary, but people give them to you, so you need a place to put them.

My Boppy goes everywhere. It took over my cat's favorite place to sleep on the couch. Now my cat needs more room.