MEGO

MEGO = "my eyes glaze over"

This handy little acronym was first introduced by a ruthless journalism professor and it's stuck with me ever since.  I can't help but get a total case of the MEGO whenever I start looking at baby registry items online or in stores.  Yes, shopping for miniature clothing and squishy, brightly colored toys is supposed to make your ovaries throb with longing but honestly?  It gives me a migraine.  So many choices!  So many things that look exactly the same!  Which brand is safest?  Which one isn't made in China?

It's compounded by the fact that in-person, you're bombarded with rows of the same product in 42 different colors but it's still just plastic and fabric.  There are seriously three shades of "red" for one brand of infant carrier and they all look the same to me.  You would think the fabric designers might try to make the merchandize visually appealing, as well as structurally sound but that seems to be an afterthought for many of the leading brands.  Bet you can't guess how many shades of taupe and putty are used for bouncers/baby swings!

Rhett and I laugh hysterically whenever we try to fold and unfold some of those damn strollers.  We feel like baby boneheads and immediately chose the smallest, most compact infant system out there because neither one of us wants to be "those people" lugging the monstrosity of a stroller around.   Don't get me started on the search for the perfect daddy diaper bag...ha!  That was a comedy of errors.  ("This looks like a purse."  "This still looks like a giant purse."  "I'm not wearing anything over my shoulder.")  Eventually, it was Eddie Bauer to the rescue.  Mine absolutely looks like a teacher bag so huzzah for multipurpose.   

I have a vision in my mind of what I want in terms of furnishings.  We're on the same page with aesthetics (gender neutral oranges, greens, grays and modern lines) but it's shocking to me how easy it is to get swept up in the "it's our first baby!" Mr. Moneybags mentality.  It's even tougher because of what we went through to get to this point so I have a frequent reality check with myself when it comes to what I think is "reasonable" to spend.   The bottom line is it's a 12x11 room and there's only so much you can cram in there. 

Why does my dream crib cost as much as our new carpeting?!  I really couldn't say.  They're all the same when you strip it down: wood, non-toxic paint, bolts, adjustable levels of baby height.  A crib is not going to be used forever.   So no, this nursery is not going to be a designer baby boudoir and that's ok.  PB will be safe and comfortable and probably overstimulated by the choice of paint hue but what matters is the thought and planning, not the price tag or the brand status.

We have learned some valuable lessons in our browsing: Anything Scandinavian is going to be outrageously expensive and sometimes even downright fugs.  It's a fact.  Anything and everything, it seems, can be labeled "organic" but what does that even mean?  A mattress made from coconut fiber is superior because...why, exactly? And yes, I did spring for the Baby Bjorn cradle but that's because it has the lowest SIDS rating and you can see through the mesh sides.  It's honestly not that attractive but it's also not a hideous beige like so many alternatives.  The size and safety features are the selling point.  I didn't want some giant, hulking bassinet taking up the entire floor space on my side of the bed.  And that brings us to another issue: space. 

Where will all of this baby swag go? 

There's a creeping anxiety I start to feel whenever I'm momentarily satisfied by my informed shopping and that is "where on earth are we going to fit all this stuff?"  Forget the cost of raising a child - how about the square footage required for having even just ONE?