Things

Here's a post we wish we'd read on the internet sometime in the last 9 months. So we'll just write it for someone else to find.

Garage sales and hand-me-downs
The way to go!

Gymboree
Really nice baby clothes that are pretty expensive. Nice thick cottons that wash well and last a long time.

Nota bene: Gymboree sometimes has great sales on their website, as was pointed out to us by Whitney. I won't pay $26 for any garment for my baby, no matter how cute and clever the monkey embroidered on the front. However, $6.99 is another matter entirely.

There's a sale on right now, in fact, though it's pretty picked over.

Baby Gap
Mixed feelings about Baby Gap. We've only been in the store a few times, and we don't entirely like it. So many of the clothes seem to be based around the idea that it's really super fun to dress a baby like an adult. (Put them in jeans, for example. Tease their hair. Who knows.) In any case, we don't happen to share this idea. We like our baby to look like a baby.

That said, some of our all-time favorite baby clothes have come from Baby Gap -- things he has worn many, many times. Things that are cute and sturdy.

Old Navy
The cheaper version of Baby Gap, and the quality is not as good -- the fabric is thinner, and quicker to fade. Nonetheless, a couple of our favorite long-sleeve long-pant one-pieces are from Old Navy.

Zutano
The prints come in fun colors, but the quality is questionable and not nearly worth the money. We've seen the fabric fade after only a few washings, and heard reports of same from others. The fit of the clothes can be weird. Even the snaps can be strange. (Yes, we have developed opinions on snaps.)

There's one caveat about Zutano: the socks are excellent. We toast their socks! All through the winter, Elliot constantly wore -- as you might imagine -- socks. And they were almost always Zutano socks, because they stay on. Simple!

Babies R Us
They have a lot of "outfits". We are scared of "outfits". We have mostly used them for buying onesies and basics. (Sleeping gowns, for example.)

The kindness of others
It might sound like we buy Elliot a lot of clothes, but it's not so -- there's just a lot of turnover. And a lot of washing. Plus, there's a whole team of people who always make sure that Elliot has enough -- of everything. Food, clothes, attention, entertainment, wishes, smiles. Our friends and family are good to us, and good to our boy.