Registry talk

[jennistarr1]

So I've said before, I registered at BRU and amazon. Although amazon has WAY better prices, people are really hitting the babies r us registry hard.  I started a while back transferring things from amazon to BRU if they were at least close in price or had the chance of having a sale.  Now, with my shower on Sunday, I'm even transferring things to BRU that are way cheaper on amazon.  For example, the summer infant contoured changing pad is 18.00 at amazon, and 24.99 at babies are us.

Also, people won't touch the cloth diaper stuff at all, not even the things that are only loosely related to cloth diapering like wet bags or cloth diaper safe diaper balm (mean while it appears I'm getting several butt pastes)

Just a word to the wise to people that have yet to register!

[christy082]

I had an Amazon, BRU and Target registry (I only did Target because I know how much everyone else seems to love it, even though I hate Target). I was shocked how few people used the Amazon registry and ended up adding more to the Target registry!

[pooh8402]

I have a giant Amazon registry right now, but knowing my family and friends, they won't touch it. It's mostly to keep track of things until a) DH and I are able to go to a big store in Houston and try stuff out, and b) we know boy/girl. I plan to transfer a lot to BRU eventually.

[nextbigthing]

I registered at BuyBuyBaby and BRU, about 40 things on each, almost everything on the BRU registry was purchased, and I'm not even kidding, 4 things from BuyBuyBaby. Everyone loves Babies R Us

I'm with you, it kills me because stuff is cheaper at Amazon and Target, but oh well. I try not to think about it!

[hbomdiggity]

I wouldn't worry about the price of stuff. Some people just aren't online shoppers.

I've started Amazon and will also do BRU and I'm pretty sure I'm just going to duplicate most items at BRU. I just don't see many of my hometown people using Amazon, but it's been easy for me to plan and start my list and will hopefully limit my time in BRU.

[stephlove]

I have a Target and BRU registry. My shower was last Saturday and I had over 70 things purchased off my Target registry. Only SEVEN from BRU. Once I noticed the Target stuff getting purchased like crazy, I started adding things I had on BRU to Target. Many things I had to find a different brand/version because they weren't the same at the two stores.

I also did not have a single person buy anything cloth diaper related.

[pinkroses]

I've seen the same trend.  Purchases are about 50/50 Amazon and BRU, but my family is all shopping at BRU and telling me they "don't do Amazon".  LOL, okay?  I ended up putting a lot of similarly priced things on both BRU and Amazon so people can choose where to shop, and will transfer more to BRU next week once free Amazon shipping won't get things to people in time for the shower.  Then once even Prime won't be fast enough, I'll add more stuff to BRU and hope that it's available in a local store.  I worry that I'm obsessing too much over it, but I'm just trying to give people options.  My mom was complaining to me the other night that my BRU registry didn't have enough "big stuff" on it, and I was like what do you want me to do?  A baby only needs so many things.  I don't want to fill my house with crap just because it's available.

[centralsquare]

I had both Amazon and BBB. About half the gifts on each have been purchased. No one has complained about amazon.

[estrellita]

I only went with Target because I'm not a huge online shopper, although I've bought more online lately and will probably do it more now when baby is here. I like going to the store and physically getting the gift personally. Plus I think there are a lot of people that don't understand Amazon (I'm thinking older relatives) so it's weird that it doesn't come from a "store". Even though a lot of times it does, it's just not Target or BRU.

[hbomdiggity]

Jan 30, 2015 10:16:55 GMT -5 stephlove said:

I have a Target and BRU registry. My shower was last Saturday and I had over 70 things purchased off my Target registry. Only SEVEN from BRU. Once I noticed the Target stuff getting purchased like crazy, I started adding things I had on BRU to Target. Many things I had to find a different brand/version because they weren't the same at the two stores.

I also did not have a single person buy anything cloth diaper related.

Do you know if the target stuff purchased in store or online?

I was thinking I'd register at target since that is the only store within a 20min drive to my family. BRU is 45mins. But I went to 2 local targets (I live 3000 miles away in a major city) and the in store selection was piddly. There is no way I'd find 70 items. But maybe that's just my targets?

[stephlove]

Jan 30, 2015 12:53:50 GMT -5 hbomdiggity said:

Jan 30, 2015 10:16:55 GMT -5 stephlove said:

I have a Target and BRU registry. My shower was last Saturday and I had over 70 things purchased off my Target registry. Only SEVEN from BRU. Once I noticed the Target stuff getting purchased like crazy, I started adding things I had on BRU to Target. Many things I had to find a different brand/version because they weren't the same at the two stores.

I also did not have a single person buy anything cloth diaper related.

Do you know if the target stuff purchased in store or online?

I was thinking I'd register at target since that is the only store within a 20min drive to my family. BRU is 45mins. But I went to 2 local targets (I live 3000 miles away in a major city) and the in store selection was piddly. There is no way I'd find 70 items. But maybe that's just my targets?

I'd say about 90% of the stuff was purchased in store. Many of my 'online only' items were not purchased. 

I did the whole registry online. I made sure when picking stuff out, I checked that it had store availability. I had a ton of stuff on the registry, but much of it was little things (spoons, socks, small toys etc.) that people bundled together. Where I live, our Target is TINY and has a small selection. Where my shower is/family is, there are larger Targets with much more offered in store. 

[noodleoo]

How do you guys have so much stuff on your registry? I need to add more small stuff to mine but I don't know what we want yet regarding bottles, breastfeeding supplies, clothes, etc. We only have a few big things on my registry (car seat, stroller frame, PNP) but that's just for us to get the discount later. It probably doesn't matter since I doubt anyone will use it anyway (based on past experience). I feel so unprepared.

[Deleted]

Everyone bought stuff from Amazon vs BBB for mine.

And actually a lot of stuff was more expensive in Amazon. I did like to a couple of things at Wal-Mart that were way cheaper there than Amazon.

Though weirdly even people who bought from BBB, almost no one marked stuff off the registry.

[kate1482]

I only registered at Amazon. Maybe it's a seattle thing but everyone I know has prime and does a lot of shopping via Amazon. Plus babies r us can overwhelming! Before I was pregnant I dreaded having to go there to pick something up for a registery. (Now I kind of love it lol)

[pinkroses]

Jan 30, 2015 13:05:53 GMT -5 noodleoo said:

How do you guys have so much stuff on your registry? I need to add more small stuff to mine but I don't know what we want yet regarding bottles, breastfeeding supplies, clothes, etc. We only have a few big things on my registry (car seat, stroller frame, PNP) but that's just for us to get the discount later. It probably doesn't matter since I doubt anyone will use it anyway (based on past experience). I feel so unprepared.

My friend made a fake registry for me to look at, of stuff that she would register for if she were doing it again right now.  It was really helpful!  I copied a lot of her small stuff that she recommended like burp cloths, bowls, spoons, towels, wash cloths.  Other smaller items were a changing pad and a bunch of covers (you want extras to avoid laundry), bottle drying rack (I love the boon grass one), and a bunch of swaddle blankets and swaddleme/sleep sacks.  For breastfeeding supplies, call your insurance company and find out which pump they will cover for you.  I'm getting a Medela PISA through insurance, so I registered for some Medela bottles and other spare things I might need.  I'm going to start with those and see how my baby likes them/how breastfeeding and pumping go before I decide to buy any more.

I wouldn't bother adding clothes, people love to buy little girl clothes and I'm sure you will get plenty.

[5oclocksomewhere]

Probably a stupid question, but if you have a registry through Amazon, is shipping free for those items, or do people still have to pay shipping?

[estrellita]

noodleoo we had books, some bigger things we don't need yet (high chair, exersaucer), things like spoons and bowls, bath toys/towels/washcloths (didn't put soap on there but you could), bottles and milk storage, lots of random things. We added to it many times, haha. Check out Lucie's List. I didn't pick all of her choices, but it gave me a good idea of what to put on the registry!

[jennistarr1]

As far as I know people have to pay shipping, though orders over 35$ are free shipping and I think 35$ is actually a pretty average shower gift so I don't think shipping held people back as much as the online vs in store generational difference we've mentioned here

No the wrench in the theory is all the online babies r us orders!

[Velar Fricative]

People might also have coupons for places like BRU and Target, or their might be decent sales around the time that they're buying the gifts.

Also, I have found that there are two things people won't touch on registries - cloth diaper supplies (we didn't CD but some friends did) and nursing supplies. I tend to be the "nursing supply gift-giver" at showers because no one else wants to buy that stuff and I like to include both registry and non-registry supplies that I found really helpful. I think that's what it comes down to; most people don't CD and many people (most among older generations) don't have experience with breastfeeding so I think people naturally gravitate towards items that are more familiar to them and/or that they know would work well.

[Deleted]

I did have a few friends but cloth diapers--including a non-parent friend.

My BFF bought me some nursing stuff.

But I agree, people didn't buy a ton of it.

[estrellita]

I got some milk storage containers from a non mom friend. And one mom friend of mine gave me a 900 pack of wipes, lol. Hey, they will get used!

[cheeseandcrackers]

I don't have many things on my registries, maybe 25 each for babies r us and target. We aren't having a big baby shower either though. Hardly any of them got purchased. I expect a shit ton of baby outfits lol.

[krystee]

If any of you are registering at Buy Buy Baby, I am happy to give you my name for a referral! I could use a $25 gift card toward a car seat.