The baby registry. A bit of a beast to tackle, but once I got into it, I had a lot of fun. The most frequent questions I get asked these days center around 1) how I plan to tackle the influx of stuff, 2) what to do when given items that I don't want. So let's get real about all that right here, right now.

It's a delicate but worthy balance - not wanting excess yet welcoming the abundance from loved ones. We have several showers for this little one - so instead of keeping my list short and sweet, I asked for it all: the necessities (I'm looking at you, car seat & wipes), the items that make life a bit more livable (like a car seat cover that'll keep our wintertime baby warm) , and the non-necessities (decor & toys). From board books to big ticket items -- I created a list of needs and wants specific to our family unit. If people are going to give gifts I might as well show them my preferences. This is my logic. As long as a registry has items at every different price point, build away.

To tackle the influx, I use the same methods I use with all that I purchase, The Power of Pause and the Art of Conscious Consumption. I research on my own but I also go to the source. For example, when overwhelmed by stroller options, I listened to a mommy friend who walks everywhere. (She met her husband while we were in college, and when we spent a semester in London, I’m not sure they ever used the Tube. They just walked. Now that he’s a fighter pilot and they live all over the world, they are literally walking around the world.) I trusted her recommendation, and I stopped researching strollers. Period.

As I move from one shower to the next, I stay flexible. I cull, curate and hone that list as I get new tips. Or I realize that there are items on there that I do not absolutely love and/ need… so I eliminate. OR, someone gifts me something that is a WAY better option than what I’d registered for - so I delete my item of lesser value and write my thank you note. (I’m looking at you, forehead thermometer… You, my friend, are a gamechanger.) Recently, several friends with 4-6 month olds (who now are done with having babies) gifted us clothes by the bag full. Do you know how many items of baby clothes you can fit into one brown bag?! A lot. So as we got these hand-me-downs, I eliminated clothes from the registry.

That's what I'm doing on this, the front end of the influx (cull, curate, hone). On the back end, I'll declutter as items become unnecessary - just like our friends did who gave us the hand-me-downs.

But what do you do when you receive things you don't want, Maura? Great question. Keep them coming. But if I'm being real with you all, I have to say this hasn't been an issue for me. Friends and family alike are really setting this child up – and doing so based on my registry choices. Sometimes they’ve even been so good as to give a gift card – for use once the showers are over and we still have items on the list. Perhaps these loved ones are atune to my lifestyle choices because of this here blog. But I also get the sense that moms tend to purchase the items that they found as their saving grace. (“That bobby pillow saved my back during the nursing years.” “A good car seat that is easy to carry is worth its weight in gold.” “Kimono style sleepers are crucial for middle of the night changes with a newborn.” Etc.) In case you missed last week’s blog, there’s a lot of thankfulness going on in our household right now.

Choosing where to register? I built the list from a variety of different stores so I went with My Registry. This site allows its members to list an item from anywhere in the world, basically (and it also syncs registries from a wide array of stores). I sought to find simple, stylish items that: