Babies R Us Registry Review and Other Stuff

Today was probably the hardest day I've had in a loooong time. Liam went to bed almost 2 hours late last night, and thanks to the birds chirping at the tops of their lungs outside our house this morning, he woke up earlier than usual. He was basically crying all morning and so overtired that he didn't get a decent nap. This is not his normal happy-go-lucky self. I have absolutely no energy. I feel like I need a day of strict bedrest with absolutely no responsibility. Being 33 weeks pregnant and simultaneously trying to be a mom to a toddler is HARD, and today it was downright impossible (and this is with the full support of Andy). Luckily our daylight saving time transition is done and he was in bed quietly by 5 after 7. I didn't have another minute left in me.

I came to the realization that the fact that I love Liam after this day is a true testament to the unconditional nature of a mom's love for her child!

Anyways. Babies R Us. When I was pregnant with Liam, registering was a simple process. We went in store with the wand and scanned all the items we wanted to include. We could then go online and view and update the registry, and BRU's online stock pretty much mirrored their in-store inventory. I found the stroller and car seat that I wanted, for example, in-store, and it was available for purchase in-store or to order online.

In the 2+ years since my initial registry experience, it's become a completely different situation. It's like they've moved most of their inventory online, and what's available in-store is completely separate from what is available online. I think it'd be one thing if what was available in-store was also accessible online, only with more choices online, but that doesn't seem to be the case. It seems as if what is available online is only available online, and what's available in-store is only available in-store, by and large. There is some overlap, but, at least for the larger things, not much.

So, say I see something in the store that I want to include on the registry. I can't then go home and add it online. I'd have to go through the hassle of getting the wand and registering for it there. If someone saw that item online and wanted to purchase it, they'd have to go into the store. If I see something online and register for it there, someone who likes to shop in-store can't go in and get it; they'd have to order online (this would be true of the Duo Glide stroller and car seat I got, the Moby Wrap, and the side-by-side stroller, for instance).

My personal preference for purchasing gifts for others who are expecting (and I am confronting this A LOT these days, as everyone in my life is having babies right now!) is to view the registry online, decide what I want to get, and then go in-store to buy it. Can't do that, for the most part, under the current system. It's so frustrating because if there's something that a friend really needs, her likelihood of receiving it from me is decreased according to my shopping preferences.

I'd had my big stroller dilemma that I had blogged about towards the beginning of the pregnancy. The reason it was such a dilemma was that I was trying to figure out how to do it while still working around Liam's infant car seat. I was trying to decide between a side-by-side and a tandem without doing both; what would have been ideal was if I could find a side-by-side that would accept the Graco Snugride car seat. Anyways, I had thrown a few choices up on the registry. By the time my mom went in-store to get me something, my choices were available neither online nor in-store. Had I known she was planning on getting me a stroller AND a car seat, I could have given her more direction. She had only a couple choices when she physically went to BRU and ended up getting me a set in-store that I really hadn't liked (of course, if their online and in-store inventory coincided, this might not have been a problem). I never liked Liam's stroller/car seat combo, so I was determined to have a double that I loved.

I ended up returning it and taking the credit online and ordering the exact same thing but with a different pattern. Here's what we got, and I LOVE it (registry frustrations aside):





Another qualm I have is that most of their coupons are available for in-store use only. It just seems to me that, if it's the same store at the physical location as it is in its online version, you should be able to view the same things and use the same coupons either way. If they're trying to push people to shop online more, then they're not giving them much incentive. I'm completely frustrated with it, and I'm glad I don't have to deal with it much longer.

In other news, we are starting to think our son has serious OCD issues. I don't know if it's a phase or not, but it's been going on awhile and seems to be worsening. We go through about 5 napkins per meal. Each time he picks something up with his hands, he starts whining for a napkin. If he spills something on the table, he immediately wipes it up. If he spills something on his shirt, he wipes it up and continues wiping it up because the wetness doesn't go away. He was distraught the other day because he skinned his knee and couldn't completely wipe away the "boo-boo" after 5 minutes of scrubbing it with a baby wipe, try as he might.

He has also developed a habit of sticking his entire hand in his mouth when he cries real hard. This annoys me so badly because the drool just pours out of his mouth all over everything. When he pulls his hand out of his mouth, it is absolutely coated in slime. Then he gets distraught because his hand is covered in slime, but I don't give him a napkin at that point; I tell him that if he sticks his hand in his mouth when he cries then he has to figure out a way to take care of it himself.

I am having a lot of fun with this whole verbal development thing. I think it's been the most fun part of parenting so far. I was so sad at each passing month the first year, and then the second year (not really my favorite part of a child's life, but still fun) I spent missing the first year. Now that we're in the third year and the communication has picked up, I don't miss the first year nearly as much; I realize how amazingly better this year is (days like today aside). Yesterday, as we passed his school, he said "bye school! Yia going to Grandma's house!" One day we were on our way to the playground, and I was wearing flip-flops and shorts. He was distraught, saying "Mommy need socks! Mommy need pants!" It's just surreal that my little man can actually tell me what's on his mind now...and little by little, I'm understanding more and more. Still definitely many things I don't understand, but I love watching him develop.

Anyways, congrats to you if you have made it this far. I think I am going to run and get my well-deserved rest for the night.