Experience Level: Expert

Haha, no, don’t let that title fool you—I’m no expert in the parenting game. But having three kiddos under my belt does give me an edge when it comes to the baby gear game. And here’s the big secret—all that shiny new baby stuff? With very few exceptions, you don’t need any of it! And not only do you not need it, it’s just going to take up space until you finally remember to take it to Goodwill or stick it in a gift bag for someone’s shower, which is totally kosher because you never even opened it.
Are you bummed now? I know, I love this kind of thing too, but I have to be real here and that means telling you that we probably used about a quarter of all the wonderful, totally essential things we bought or were given for our first baby. And most of that stuff rolled right on for babies number two and three, and that’s through babies of both gender.
Here’s a very incomplete list of the baby stuff that seemed so smart or logical or necessary but really ended up being a complete waste of space:
Teeny tiny baby shoes. Cute but dumb. Babies who aren’t walking don’t need shoes. And trying to stuff their soft little feet into shoes is terrible, plus it makes their feet look huge. Seriously, you’re going to have enough trouble keeping their socks on.
Peepee teepees. And I so wanted these to work! They’re these cute little fabric teepees that are supposed to cover that little pistol your baby boy is packing when you’re changing his diaper. But the first time we used one, it immediately become this sodden wad of fabric and wasn’t half as cute anymore because it was dripping fresh pee everywhere. Fail. 
Stuffed animals and coordinated crib sheet sets. After falling in love with some appallingly priced crib sheet set, I realized we would never use the included bumpers and fluffy blanket should our baby actually sleep in his crib (spoiler – he didn’t and neither did the other two, ever). So we’d be spending hundreds on a fitted sheet, basically. Don’t do that. Also, stuffed animals are cute but don’t buy them yourself. Trust me, you’ll have no shortage of those things.
I could go on and on, but I’ll spare you. And don’t worry—there’s plenty of cute, functional stuff out there that really will make life easier for you and your baby, and you’re going to feel like the world’s most experienced parent when you find it.