"do I really need this?"

I never realized how much stuff you need for your baby! As my time is dwindling down and I am attempting to organize everything I have vs. what else I need, I realize just as in everything out there they will try to sell you every gadget and gizmo. However now they haven’t added “new” things that you need, no they just make the old standby more “nifty”. When I was little I had a play pen. I loved my play pen. I would sit in there for hours sometimes and I would play or nap and it was just my little space. It had a floor (which I had long ago peeled the covering off of and played with the cardboard floor), and mesh walls. I’m pretty sure it had Raggedy Ann and Andy on it and mom put some stacky toys in there and I was happy as a clam. Now… there is no such thing as a Play pen. NO it’s a pack-‘n- play! Complete with bassinet attachment, changing table attachment, sun screen, Music noise maker and let us not forget the accompanying remote control. And let us not forget that it that this highly convenient new system doesn’t fit through most doors… So why does it have wheels if it’s just meant to sit in your living room. Don’t even get me started on the high chairs! They now have toys that attach to the tray. Who needs food when you have a 6’’ palm tree one hand and an ugly elephant on the other? What is the purpose of this? Do people really leave their kids in the highchair to play; like a baby sitter… Isn’t that what the supper nifty pack-‘n-play is for? I will admit the one new cool thing I like is the jogger! It’s a jeep! Every young mom’s left over fantasy from when she was 14 and just knew that one day she would be cruising around town with her hair blowing in the wind; radio blaring some cheesy girl breakup song. Most likely you never did get hat jeep but here you can have this one, complete with hand break a place for you baby wipes, two cup holders, a storage basket with more trunk space than a real jeep and lets not forget the important element of a Jeep… The radio! Yep it has an Ipod jack and speakers ( I have to admit, that was a big selling point for me) So nothing is simple anymore, even the babies are high tech.