I went to the Sydney Baby Show a few months ago. Very hard to spend the amount of time you’d like at all the stalls when you have a toddler in tow who appears to have developed an allergy to sitting in a pram.

But nonetheless it was nice to look at baby stuff and at least have a little bit of an idea about what I could use second time around, instead of being completely clueless and buying a whole heap of ridiculous things that I never used.

1. The Baby Hammock

I would love to use a baby hammock instead of a bassinet or cradle. The one that I liked the most was the Hushamok. I love the idea that their own motion will sooth them back to sleep. Shut Up! I’m clinging on to the dream.

2. The Baby Sling

I had a sling with Riley, but love that Hug-a-Bub is more of a wrap than a sling, and goes across both shoulders. Plus it just looks so cute and snuggly. And I definitely think a good sling/wrap is going to be priceless when there’s a toddler running around as well.

3. A Nice Pram

I put no thought into this purchase the first time round, and I still curse the pram we bought, also known as a cumbersome beast. I love the prams at Phil and Teds because they are very maneuverable, have space for a baby and a toddler, and for the baby you can have a lift out cocoon so you don’t have to wake them to get them out.

4. A Rocking Chair

I didn’t get one of these the first time round, and believe me, by the time I got to 12 months of rocking, I wished I had! I love this one from NurseryWorks because it’s a rocking chair, it’s not an eyesore, and there’s plenty of room for storytime with the toddler.

5. Bouncer/Rocker

Amazingly, this item also escaped my notice – or I put it into the non-essential list. I have no idea why. I found these invaluable when Riley was little, but the ones I had were a little poorly designed. This one from Fisher Price is so cute, it makes my ovaries hurt