When we moved in May, I began to give away the baby items (high chair, ride on toys etc) that had been taking up space for too long. I became sentimental and even put all the baby clothes back in storage because I just wasn't ready to part with them yet. Who knew 3 months later, that I would be glad that I didn't give any other items away because number 3 is on the way!

I just gave away the basinet to whoever was nice enough to take it off my curb..goodbye useless contraption that I used for 6 wks!
my advice to expectant mom's....leave the bassinet at the baby store...u don't need it

The "Bissy" was a soft pink quilt when new, the gift of a distant family friend, who'd ordered it from Marshal Field in Chicago, which sent it to our long awaited new baby girl, all the way to Australia where we were living at the time. We returned to the U.S. where 2 sons were later born, each also loving the the "Bissy* which got dragged around the house, for several years, even tho' it was still pinkish, and they were boys.Someone threw it out, but didn't tell us. We'd just found out as the rubbish truck was coming down the st. The collectors found it, just before it went up into the truck and we still have a piece left. . rwew the barrle . still have it. .

What a sweet story, thanks for sharing! - EN .

I saw this really cool movie once about a mother who continued to baby her son into adulthood. He still slept in his crib. It was called "The Baby." So hang onto it if you want.

Thanks for this, Erica. Although I was pretty unsentimental about getting rid of the baby stuff (couldn't wait, really!), I was surprised to find that when my Craigslist buyer finally loaded the crib into her minivan, it was a little hard to say goodbye. I think the crib is just such a symbol of babyhood and is imbued with a sentimentality that a pack n play, booster, or other things cannot match. The only thing I've been as sad to see go have been a couple of items of clothing that really brought back memories of certain happy moments or were reminders that yes, they really were that small once.

One word to the wise.. keep you little one in the crib as long as possible.. my first came out too early as brother was on the way. You pay the price for this as he is 4 and still wanders into our room at night. Experts say that you should keep a child in the crib until at least 3. There is a sense of security that comes with the crib. Two year olds have such a vivid imagination. The smallest things can blow up in their mind. Ask them what they dream of, 9 times out of 10 it will be animals. I am keeping number 2 in his crib until he is too big for it :)

"The only thing I've been as sad to see go have been a couple of items of clothing that really brought back memories of certain happy moments or were reminders that yes, they really were that small once."

Yeah, keep the best outfits for reminders that "yes, you really were that small once." ;) My mom did! It was fun when she unpacked them and showed them to me again after I started towering over her. :)

The crib is the one item that I kept from my son's baby days. Right now a friend has it, but when she is done, it will be put into storage until my grandchildren are ready for it. (My son is 4.) I could not part with it.

I have never had much baby/child stuff and I've not felt the worse for it. We used a family heirloom for a basinette. From there, it was a borrowed crib, which was returned after just a few months - my girl is a climber. At roughly a year of age, she had to be in a standard twin bed where she can now stay until she moves out. Umpteen changes of clothes, no thank you. Toys scattered all over the house? What a hazard! Who wants to have to wash all those things? I keep none of it after it has moved beyond its life. Why would I need to cart around a box of clothing or toys that no longer have purpose? Rag pile or Goodwill with all of it.

Eight changes of clothes, one pair of shoes, one fuzzy animal, a library card, and some blocks is all a kid really needs.

I dragged all my baby things 1/2 way across the country when we moved only to put them into a storage facility. Two years later I am still paying that monthly fee because I might still have another and need MY crib and MY baby clothes. I could probably have bought all new instead of paying the storage charge.

This sounds more and more irrational as I type it out...

maybe so QMLB, but you are in pretty good company here :-) - EN

Oh Erica! I am a grandmother, but had been stubbornly hanging on to my own two daughters' crib for 34 years! It had made 4 moves with us, though it had been decades since a baby had last nestled on its mattress and spun the pink and blue balls at its head and foot. I don't even know if it would've passed safety codes with its rusty frame and chipped paint.Finally, I told my husband to put it out in front of the house or donate it-but he'd HAVE to be the one to do it. I couldn't bear to look. It disappeared quickly...only to show up in my daughter's garage! My son-in-law knew what it meant and resued it for my grandsons!

The awful What To Expect series?
I found them very helpful!

What to expect? More like what to fear!

I'm sorry, those of you saying keep the baby in the crib for as long as possible...do you mean until their 16, or will you be sending it to college with them, complete with the video monitor?

If you want to stop nighttime wandering, it's called a gate. Or a locked door.

i had a disturbing night sleep when we placed our kids crib out on the curb for collection. I always thought that odd but, my husband disagreed. Someone picked it up before the collectors came. I hope they where as blessed as us.

I hope they were too, it's very moving how symbollic a crib -- a collection of wood and springs, really -- can be - EN

what to expect was a little disturbing, especially the better for you carrot cake the authors advised that you make for your kids 1st bday party - as if a little chocolate will kill them. My girfriend told me she made that cake for her first two son's bdays, I laughed at her.. Of course, by the 3rd son, she was back on earth with the rest of moms and got a regular old sheet cake.

Stories like these are exactly why I started a grass roots non-profit organization called Community Giving Tree. I too left my crib at the local dump for lack of a place to donate it. I grew tired of seeing perfectly good highchairs on the curb for trash day. Now my organization collects and distributes excellent quality baby equipment and infant clothing to 1000s of new mothers in low income towns only minutes from my affluent community. We have 25 women on our wait list for cribs...without them the babies sleep in boxes, drawers, and on the floor. Too many times we hear of the stored crib that was damaged by water in the basement, the mattress infested with mice in the attic, and the daughter who refuses to use her 25 year old crib that her mom saved for her grandchild. Keep your babies in their crib as long as possible, but when you're done, pass it along so another mom can experience the joy and security it provided to you and your child. www.CommunityGivingTree.org