Adventures at Babies R Us

For months, I looked forward to the day we got to register for baby gifts.   I even looked forward to being able to park in the "expectant mothers" spot right in front of the store!   I thought the whole process would be just as easy and just as fun as registering for wedding gifts.  Not the case.  If you register for the wrong spatula, no big deal, return it.   If you don't use some fancy vase, no big deal, save it for a special occasion.  But baby stuff?  This is on an entirely different level.

I knew I would need to do some research on the safety ratings, friends favorite things, etc.  I asked around to many of my friends who are mothers and got some great information.  I went in thinking I was totally prepared with all of my lists.   I even prepared Eric for the long haul by telling him this could take a few hours...never really expecting it would.  Within two minutes, it was obvious, I was not prepared.

I, along with about 20 other couples chose one Sunday afternoon (when the Bears weren't playing) to register.  In addition to my list, Babies R Us also gave us one of their own.  Obviously trying to sell us on superfluous items, but it confused me none the less.  The first aisle we attempted was safety kits (booger suckers, nail clippers, etc.)...and it turns out, they don't even sell neutral safety kits.  After ten minutes of standing there, I gave up and decided to come back to that aisle later.   We basically ended up just walking up and down the aisles and scanning things, all the while I was thinking I would have to go back and change it when I got home. 

Eric was quite the trooper.  Every time he saw me getting frustrated (which was often), he would tell me to relax, take my time, and not get worked up.  Then we would get back on track and start again.  I was surprised at how easy the big items were to pick out.  I thought we would stand there playing with a ton of high chairs, car seats, and strollers for long periods of time, but it turns out, those were the easy decisions. 

When I realized that all the couples who started out their registries at the same time as us, were all LONG gone, I started to give up too.   I left feeling like I didn't register for all the things I wanted because a) i ran out of patience or b) because it was all blue or pink.  Luckily, the internet saved the day and I was able to go on later and research and take the time out to really pick some things I wanted.  

I laugh now and what a spaz I was about the whole thing, but then again, I am like that with most big decisions.