Here is some child-rearing equipment that we only began using the fourth time around:
Glass bottles, like Philips Avent. We used Playtex disposable liners before and now regret it: what we got in convenience was not worth the cost in money, raw materials, and potential plastics exposure. Our biggest fear going into it was having glass shards all over the house from my sleepily mishandling a bottle at 3am. But no breakages yet! These Avent bottles are quite sturdy — I would expect them to chip the kitchen counter sooner than crack — yet not as heavy as you’d expect for something so robust.
One-piece silicone pacifiers, like these from NUK. We have progressively used them less for each of our children — one gets more used to an occasional nocturnal gasp or scream as time goes on, though of course here I speak solely for myself as I know that a certain someone in our house would violently disagree — so I suspect our infant will soon stop needing his, but as he has the nasty habit of trying to put the entire thing in his mouth not having sharp plastic edges is much appreciated; not have any plastic there at all even more so.
Zip-up onesies, like you can now find practically everywhere. In years past most zippers were too uncomfortable and the risk of accident too high so we opted for snap-ons, which could be found in about equal proportion at a Babies"R"Us. Not any more: in the zipper versus snap-on wars, the zipper won handily. Thankfully, they seem a lot more comfortable, with cushioning, double zipping and what not. They are also faster to put on than snap-ons, which required figuring out the sometimes bewildering pairing of snaps.
And here are some old favorites which remain in use:
OXO bottle cleaners, like these here. They used to come in fun colors like seaweed green and teal. Alas, now that it’s mostly millennials who are parenting it only comes in gray. As a geriatric millennial, I condemn this bias against color.
The 360° sippy cups, mostly from Munchkin. Sucking liquids through a straw is for people with lockjaw or those recovering from dental surgery and most other sippy cups are elaborate ways of hiding that straw. Not these beauties, which unlike the OXO brushes above come in a million color combinations.
A large, rickety stroller, like those from Baby Trend or Graco. They are big, robust, and able to carry much more weight than those sleek metal and faux-leather vehicles I usually see around DC. They also come at one third of the price. Yes, this may have to do with the fact that it’s not our first rodeo and have long ago crossed into the zone of no fear, no embarrassment, nothing to prove.
And then there are things that are popular now but you just know will disappear in the blink of an eye. Looking at you, Snoo, you subscription-peddling, FDA-defrauding sack of technofeudalist grift.