Our Bubba turns one next week, so I am trying to share what we have learned in this time before I have forgotten it due to sleep deprivation.

1. Onesies

 Grown ups wear shirts, because gravity is mostly on our side, keeping our mid-drift out of sight. Babies do not have this luxury, so when you put them in regular shirts, you are looking at a lot of belly. A lot. Like Santa Claus in a Miley Cyrus outfit. Worse yet, once they are crawling around, you can get a bit of plumbers butt, which seems a whole lot worse when you are in a diaper situation. You want to close off all the exits.


And Now? Yep, still holds true. Keep any poop paths blocked off! And you don't have to pay a lot for a good onesie- secondhand stores have TONS of them, and you can get them for so cheap.

2. Get it Used

I know I bring this up a lot, but you basically should get about 90% of Baby's clothes per size used. Everything in these outfits, we got used. Because he or she will only need it a month or two. And in that time, it will be puked and shat on. Before The Bub was born, we had a couple of Gap shopping sprees, where we bought a bunch of really cute stuff. But you know, some of it didn't really work (hello, regular shirts) and some of it only came out a few times. And that stuff is pretty expensive (sometimes 30 or 40 dollars a shirt) when you consider how little it will be used.

On the other hand, we started buying clothes at consignment, and we can get essentially the same baby button up onesies for 6 dollars. Also from the Gap, also adorable. Not only is it more ethical and Earth-friendly to buy used, you also save a ton of money. In the last 6 months, once I figured out what we were doing, I have bought 2-4 pieces new per size (mostly Made in America). Everything else our baby wears is a hand me down from a cousin or bought at Goodwill/ baby consignment stores. We have saved so much money, and he still looks so cute!




And Now? Yep, still the same, but more so. The Bear gets a couple of things a size new, everything else is hand-me-down or secondhand. We save a ton of money, and he always looks cute. I will push secondhand for kid stuff FOREVER, because it just makes more sense. If you don't have good local consignment stores, check Thred Up.

3. Dress them like America's Next Top Model

 You know that episode of Top Model, usually around the weepy makeovers, where one of the models gets in trouble for her clothes? They basically have her strip down to a tank top, heels, and jeans- all accessories come off. The wisdom there is that these superhumanly gorgeous girls don't need any rigamaroll, because it only takes away from their face.

It's exactly the same in how you dress your baby. Maybe slightly less smizing. Otherwise, exactly the same.

Baby clothes are cute. Some of them are really freaking cute. None of them will be as cute as your baby. There is nothing that doesn't quite work like a baby with 47 things going on- ruffles, hats, bibs, bright socks, etc. When you are shopping, you want to buy all cutesy stuff- I know, I am totally guilty of this, but what you really need are basics. Simple shirts, pants, and tops like you can buy at from simple brands like City Threads (or used! I'm so serious about the used thing). I currently LOVE Pact socks, which are stretchy enough to work for a long time, and they come in cute, but not overstated designs.

Then, when you dress them, they can have one really cute detail on at a time, and much like Tyra's ladies, the focus can be on the baby's supercuteness.


And now? Yep, basically holds true. My instinct is to get the cutest thing with lots of patterns and colors, but you know what I actually use? Dark colors and low key onesies. Simple works just fine. And dark colors hide all sorts of nonsense.

4. If You have One Focal Point, Let it be Bear Ears

 Nothing in the world is cuter than tiny ears. Basically the best reason to have children.


And now? Well, the second one's nickname is Bear. So I basically took this to the next level.

5. Your Baby Can't Read

 Take it easy on the words. It's never as cute as it seems like it should be. You would never see one of those Top Models in a word tank, would you? You don't need a shirt that says "fierce" to tell those girls are fierce, and you don't need one that says "Mommy loves you" to prove that your child is loved. We get it, you love your baby.

And now? I still do it from time to time, but it is rare. The Bear has two shirts that say something, one from one of my favorite stores Strawberry Moth. The other, from one of my favorite people, Dorothy Greene. I get that sometimes it is just pretty cute and you have to lean in to the obnoxiousness. But not all the time, for goodness sakes!

6. Velcro on Shoes, Just Ignore Anything Without Them

We bought so many pairs of shoes that got almost no use, either because the Bub could immediately get them off or because they never fit quite right. We had a pair of velcro high top boots when he was really teeny, and it's still the best pair of shoes he has ever worn. This is him still at the hospital with them on. Neutral colors, velcro, and you only need a pair. In the summer, you don't need any as long as baby isn't walking.

And now? Why do baby shoes with shoelaces even exist??? Would never do it now. But, the Bear is on a 3 month summer stretch with no shoes at all. Buy one pair of shoes with velcro per size. 2 tops. That's all you need.

7. When It's Cold, Just Use Sleepers

We had The Bub in November, and I think we basically kept him in sleepers until March. They are cozy, they don't leave feet or ankles exposed, and your life is basically a giant pajama party anyway. Also, zippers over snaps. Snaps get pretty difficult at 3 in the morning while sleep-deprived.

The other beauty of sleepers is that ANY of them work. It's pajamas, so if it covered in words, or turtles kissing, or Shakespeare sonnets, it doesn't matter! When you see a sleeper used, just go for it. I also highly recommend the ones with animals on the butt. Every baby needs at least one.



And Now? Yep, still true. The big difference now is that we STAY AWAY from the fuzzy pajamas. They are made of synthetic fabrics, so they shed tons of microfibers in the wash. Now we stick to cotton when we need new ones. Our favorite are Leveret. Those people know their cutesy jammies!

8. Miniature Grown Up Outfits are Always a Homerun

The Boy has worn a lot of henleys this year. So has the Bub. Referencing adult trends or looks worked really well for us, and I think that's how he looked the cutest.

And Now? Gah, yes. I still like tiny miniature adult clothes as a staple. Super cute every time.

9. Stay Organized

 Change is going to come. And fast. The Bub's dresser has three drawers- the top has socks, hats, and other practical stuff. The middle drawer has what he is wearing now. The bottom drawer is the next two sizes, closest on the left. This way, I always have a sense of what he have coming down the line, and I know what to ask for when people ask what we need. When it is time to retire a size, I split the clothes between sizes first (because there is usually a short time where they overlap). Then, I split it between keep (maybe a third?) and donate. Then I post it on Buy Nothing or take it to Goodwill almost immediately. There are enough tiny baby things floating around, and someone else can use those clothes.

And now? Oh Boy! We have so much more to go through now, but the system definitely worked for me! We can quickly go through our library and see what we need. Now we can cut the clothes to even a smaller number when we are finished too.

10. Accept All Gifts with Gratitude

Your baby is a person, and as a person, they will immediately develop relationships with other people that are independent of you. When they gift things to your child, just use them. Even if it's not your style, take it as a challenge and make it work. My cousin Shelly is a master of this- not only does she use things gifted to her, she also will put her babies in those clothes when the gifter comes around.

We received this green velour sleeper as a gift from a friend, who basically supplied all of our newborn clothes from her garage sale stash (thank you Mindy!). We thought this number was so funny and dated at the time (especially compared to everything else she gave us), but in the end, we loved that thing. Loved it. By far, our favorite newborn clothes. My husband had us keep it for sentimental reasons! The fuzzy was nice to cuddle with, and the velour we thought was so dorky at first, just made us love it that much more.

You are blessed to have people gift things to you, and it's important to look out for your baby and take care of those relationships. Put him in the green velour sleeper. I guarantee you will fall in love with it.

And Now? Yep, still true. People gift you a lot less the second time around (especially when you write a blog about not wanting stuff) but those gifts are important, and I always use them.

11. You Can't Go Wrong with Overalls

 I love them. I love babies in them. The baby has looked super cute every time he has them on. I also love hats, but they are harder to recommend, because mean babies will take them off! Where is the appreciation for the cuteness? Much like the cute animals on the butt, baby overalls only get use for a short window. Use the window, no matter the gender of your Bub.



And now? Yep! Still true. You will get compliments every time.



12. Don't Trip on Gender- Yes, yes. Boys wear blue etc etc. I just think these kind of hang ups at this age is pretty ridiculous. Especially in sleepers. They are pajamas. The baby doesn't know the difference. Be free.

And now? We worry about this even less. It just doesn't matter until it matters one way or the other to your child. If I had a girl, we would get boy stuff as well.



13. Just have a Back Up- If the moment really matters and you will be devastated to have the bub looking janky, make sure you have a back up plan. I would say, never leave the house without a change of clothes in your bag, because if you test fate, it will burn you. Or something. For Christmas, we had 2 pairs of pajamas lined up. He grossed up both of them and ended up in something else. Still, we have some pictures in Christmas pajamas, on Christmas, despite having to be immediately changed first thing Christmas morning.

Also, I highly recommend having back up clothes for parents in the trunk of your car. Because, puking.

And now? Backups in the car is essential for all happiness. Someone will puke on something. Fact of life.



14. Feel Good About it- The stakes here are pretty low. If your baby looks a little bit crazy now and then, it probably doesn't ruin his or her chances for college.

That being said, the way I think and approach our baby's clothing has changed dramatically in his little year of life. Looking at him and knowing that I am just borrowing this world from him has made me realize how important it is to try to make the world a little better than when I got here. It made me understand my role as a steward on a deeper level, and that whatever I do for good or not, my son will have to grapple with in the future.

 I can no longer stand the thought that another child or another mother has worked in unsafe and cruel conditions so he can have those cute little ears on. I can't do it.

I realized every single piece of clothing we buy can either do good (reducing waste, empowering workers, using less fuel) or genuine evil. We have become so alienated from where and how our clothing is made, it is easy to not even think about all the greed and mistreatment we empower with our money. I know this is a bummer, and in general, I try to keep things positive here, but I truly believe there is no neutral clothing purchase. You are either telling clothing companies they have to do better or you are endorsing these choices which are really awful! What a bummer!

So I am doing my best to only buy myself and the Bub used or American-made clothing. Yeah, that pair of Etsy leggings is more than the ones at Old Navy, but if I buy most of his wardrobe used, I think it comes out about the same.

We aren't going to do perfectly, and we aren't even granola enough to take it to that level, but I am going to try. I want to feel excited about what the Bub wears not only because it's super cute (and that still matters to me, so there), but because I feel like it's a little vote for good and for his future world.