Baby Clothes

Baby clothes...who doesn't love them!  They are, of course, so cute and fun to buy as gifts.  I have, in the past, avoided buying clothes as baby gifts because the wisdom says that "everyone else" gives them because they can't resist either and the baby just outgrows them right away anyway and they only end up getting worn a few times.  As the recipient of many gifts over the past few months (on behalf of Ben) I have to admit that I have loved getting lots of baby clothes.  No big surprise, I guess, since I love clothes myself so I love my child having a diverse wardrobe that allows him to be ready for any occasion!  Too bad he doesn't have a closet since the closet in his room is full of my clothes!  Don't worry...he has two dressers that can accomodate everything. 

On the always entertaining Babycenter message boards there is lots of confusion about baby clothing sizes.  Moms fixate on the difference between Newborn (NB) and 0-3 months and if there is a difference between 0-3 months and 3 months and if their baby is "freakish" because he or she wears 6 months clothes as a 2 month old and I have seen a few people say that their 2 month old already wears 9 and 12 month outfits (I think they might be lying but who knows!).  Instead of getting confused about this my game plan is just to have the baby wear whatever fits and not care about the sizes. 

My observations about baby clothes have been that my baby is pretty true to size but with some variations just like any human.  He will be three months old in a little over a week and has almost outgrown most of the 0-3 months outfits but I keep having him wear them because they make me nostalgic!  He has transitioned into some 3-6 month onesies and sleepers and pants which are really loose around the waist because he is skinny but the three months pants look like clown pants because they are getting short.  I saw some pictures of other babies Ben's age on Babycenter that looked really rolly polly and I was kind of jealous because I always imagined having a fat baby but I guess there is plenty of time for him to get fat in the next few months! 

In the world of baby clothes there are a few major brands...here are my observations...if you don't have had a baby you probably won't give a rat's you know what about this but if you do you will probably be interested so read on if you want...

-The most popular brand that you can find everywhere is Carters.  Some malls even have a Carters store.  The original Carters has excellent quality and very cute designs.  I love the unique color combinations and themes they have that step away from the usual pastel teddy bear/duck themes.  For example, Ben just got a cute outfit with a smiling shark on it and they have a safari themed layette that we have may peices from that is pretty cute.  It is good quality and doesn't get faded and stretched and the crotch snaps are reinforced.  It seems to pretty true to size...maybe a bit on the small side but nothing major.  Carters also has brands called "Just One You"  and "Precious Firsts" that are made just for Target and also "Child of Mine" which is sold at Walmart.  And also I just learned that OshKosh is part of the Carters company as well.  I wish I worked for Carters!  They seem to own the baby clothes market!  I could design baby clothes!  Update...I just looked and they only have offices in Connecticut, Georgia and New York...dang! 

-Of course, there is also Gerber.  If you think of baby products you probably thing of Gerber right away.  Clothing doesn't seem to be the major focus of Gerber but they have some.  The main Gerber styles I have seen are the multi-packs of onesies and similar basics.  They are perfectly fine and good quality except they run very small.  This is one brand where Ben does wear the 9 month size already.  So, if you are gifting anything Gerber don't even bother with the small stuff unless it is for a preemie or something.

-Circo is sold at Target and is the biggest and roomiest brand I have seen.  The garments are very wide.  Ben will be able to wear the 3 month sizes for probably another month or two in this brand.  The styles are very fun and bright. 

-First Moments is sold at Kohls.  The sleepers are nice because Ben's feet stay in the "footies".  They must have a narrow ankle opening.  In the Carters fleece sleepers he always gets his feet tangled when kicking.  They also have cute color combos and themes and the "boy" ones are not so boyish that a future sister couldn't wear them. 

-Gap and Old Navy have alot of cute merchandise but we don't have much from there.  They seem true to size and have lots of sporty styles like polo shirts.  Ben just got a cute summer outfit that is brown and yellow that is really adorable for a "dressy" occasion! In the future when we are no longer showered with gifts I can see myself shopping at these places for kids clothes. 

-The Children's Place has many cute outfits that don't have as many of the over the top themes and slogans (sports, farm animals, jungle, "Daddy's/Mommy's  Princess/Rookie") that many lines have.  The clothes there are like mini big kid clothes which is fun.  Also, I always imagined that it was expensive but I walked through there for the first time recently and it seemed pretty cheap to me!  I will probably shop there in the future as well. 

-I haven't had much experience with Gymboree because we don't have one here.  It looks cute though.  There are a few other brands that I have obtained, such as Bon Bebe, Garanimals and the oddball name brands (Calvin Klein, Puma) from TJ Maxx.  My family members are, as the commercials say, Maxxinistas!  I can't think of anything specific about these brands except, of course, that they are cute! 

OK, Ben is away so that means computer time is over for now!  Sigh...