By Becky Holland
I have discovered something about baby registries.
They are dangerous.
Not dangerous in the “recall this product immediately” kind of way. Dangerous in the “there goes my budget” kind of way.
My niece is expecting a little boy, who will become great-nephew number nine. That will officially bring my great-aunt tally to an even 10—nine great-nephews and one great-niece.
I did what any excited great-aunt would do.
I opened her baby registry.
That was my first mistake.
Scroll.
“Oh, that’s adorable.”
Scroll.
“Well, surely he needs one of those.”
Scroll.
“I didn’t even know they made that.”
Scroll.
“That is the cutest thing I’ve ever seen.”
Somewhere along the way, I found myself carefully considering every single item. I was mentally decorating the nursery, planning this baby’s future, and then…
Reality tapped me on the shoulder.
“Becky… remember your budget.”
Now, I never had children of my own, so I never got to create a baby registry or spend months preparing a nursery.
Interestingly enough, I’ve been to more baby showers than I can count and have happily bought gifts for friends and family over the years.
But there’s something different about scrolling through a registry. You can’t help but imagine the tiny little person who will one day use all those things.
One thing surprised me.
There wasn’t a teddy bear.
Not one.
There weren’t any books either.
As a lifelong book lover, I briefly wondered if there had been some sort of mistake.
Then I laughed.
Registries aren’t about what Great-Aunt Becky thinks every baby should have. They’re about what the new parents actually need.
So I exercised what may have been the greatest self-control of my adult life.
I picked out a few things, checked out before my willpower disappeared, and closed the registry.
At least for the day.
I make no promises that I won’t accidentally open it again.
You know…
Just to look.
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