My baby turned two last month. I look at him now, and he is clearly a little boy instead of a baby. He attempts everything his big brother does. He’s fearless, and generally successful in his imitation attempts. Because he will be our last child, as he’s grows, we’re giving away all of our baby things.

It feels bittersweet as we pass them on; the small sadness of knowing we won’t have another baby, coupled with the excitement of moving beyond the baby stage and watching as our boys are ready to begin bigger adventures. As we’re passing items on (mostly to the daughter of a wonderful neighbor-friend who just had her first baby), I’m struck by how many things we were given that we didn’t ever end up using. We were rather minimalist in what we thought we needed, and we asked people to contribute to our boys’ college funds in place of physical gifts (because, again, we didn’t think a baby needed much), but we still ended up with a number of things that went unused.

For example, we just passed on a stroller that we never once used to push our boys. It was given to us as a baby gift when I was pregnant with my first child, and we kept it around thinking that we might use it at some point, but we never did. After my baby was born, I realized that I was not a stroller person. Instead of using a stroller, I wore my babies in a wrap or a carrier everywhere I went. During this time, I looked at women trying to navigate narrow aisles or small spaces or outdoor trails while pushing a stroller, and felt light and free with my little one tucked against me in a carrier. For me, it was simpler and easier to not have a large appliance (is that the correct term for a stroller? Would it be a vehicle?) to contend with.

So with that example in mind, I started to reflect on what I think a baby truly needs. I can sum it up by saying, in spite of what parenting magazines and advertisers may try to sell you, it’s really not much.

Over the next week or two, I plan to run two articles: one listing the few things a baby truly needs, and another listing the things that society generally tells you a baby needs that you really don’t.

Now, I realize that my list will differ from most people’s. And, based on your lifestyle or parenting choices, your own list of what is necessary or desired may vary greatly from my own. This isn’t going to be a definitive list that holds true for every body. I’m sure there are other things that might be nice to have that won’t be included on my list. But this is not meant to be a list of everything that might be nice to have.

Instead, this list is meant to inventory the bare-bones things that you need for a baby. If your budget is tight, if your space is tight, if you’re concerned about the environmental impact of tons of baby gear, if you keep to a minimalist aesthetic, this list will give you an idea of the few things you need to have when a baby comes along. If you decide that something else feels like it would be helpful after the baby arrives, by all means go and get one (parents need all the help that they can get during those early days – or years – when sleep is so scarce). But make a conscious choice about it. Don’t fill up your home with stuff that some marketing expert thinks you need. Alternatively, have the few things ready that you truly need, and then expand beyond that on an as-needed basis.

If you do this, hopefully you won’t end up with a stroller that’s sat unused in your garage for over 6 years. Or then again you might, because you never know what other people will give you as a gift – things that were very helpful or necessary to them, I’m sure.

UPDATE: Here’s the second part: The Only 5 Things a Baby Needs (see HERE) and the third part: 6 Items a Baby Really Doesn’t Need (see HERE).