Let's just say it was not a fruitful shopping experience.
I just couldn't understand why newborn stuff was nowhere to be found, why everything was pretty much 3 months and up. I just want one of those simple packs of onesies you can get at Target and pretty much anywhere else for under a million dollars!
Our adventures at HomePlus on Sunday led us to the baby section so I could get some answers. The lady proceeded to show us how it's done here in Korea. Holy crimineys, it's way different in my opinion. Let me try to give you a photo tutorial.
Step 1
You get a little cardigan-type thing like this. There are usually two ties on the side. Put it on baby.
Step 2
Remember this gift I received for Teacher's Day? I don't think it's a bath towel anymore. After dressing baby in the cardigan, wrap baby snuggly in this. Voila! This is how you keep your newborn dressed at home.
Step 3--Going Out!
You must be wondering, "But what if you need to take your baby out? Surely, you must have some cute little fancy pants for going out!"
No cute fancy pants, but...
Take the term "bundle of joy" to a whole new level with this incredibly thick baby-size hooded comforter!
As Baby Grows
Just buy everything in really big sizes so that even though your baby will be swimming in cotton for about the first half of his/her life, you won't have to keep buying new clothes!
Yup.
I am, at least, at peace with why I can't find any of the clothing items I want. I should have guessed all of this, considering the whole traditional 100-day stay-away-from-civilization tradition and knowing how Koreans like to keep their babies ridiculously warm (maybe THAT'S why they don't sweat like pigs like many foreigners do in the summer time here!), but alas, I made no such rational connections.
Insert: I will add that I think swaddling is a perfectly fine thing to do and plan to get a couple of swaddles, but not as an all-day affair!
And truly, there are some absurdly adorable things once baby starts wearing clothing sized three months and up. I can't complain there.
But seriously. I just want some onesies and sleepers for a newborn. Is that so much to ask for? I know babies grow quickly. I am just asking for the basics here, not for an entire closet full of newborn clothing. Is that really so much to ask for, Korea?
To those of you who might have made some newborn clothing purchases for us, THANK YOU. I know I shouldn't be spazzing about getting this stuff, but it's just one simple thing that I didn't think would end up being so complicated. It all ties into my issues with wanting to know I'm able to get a task done a certain way and just getting it done, which is proving difficult right now. Korea just has a very different shopping culture as well, and while it is super amazing and fantastic most of the time, it drives me to insanity others.
And this is totally not a post begging for anything. I am just typing up my findings and inserting a few rants in-between. We will figure it out. It will be fine. We have some time still. Now I am consoling myself.
Anyway, just thought I'd share! Welcome to Parenting in Korea 101.
6 comments:
There are newborn onesies and sleepers to be found on gmarket. I bought some before Grace was born. If you have free time this month, come over and we'll go gmarket surfing.
Grace did both. I got some onesies and sleepers, and those Korean wrap-style sweaters. The wrap things are cheap both online and in Namdaemun (2 for 10,000 won packs) and you can get different weights for different seasons. I found the Korean style great for around the house...easy to get on and off and diaper changes are sooo easy....just unwrap the blanket and there you go. You don't have to keep the full swaddle all the time. Just wrapped around the legs is fine. But for going out, the onesies and sleepers and good for warmth and cute.
We did find some newborn onesies there, but I just wasn't satisfied compared to what we can get back in the states. I am sure we'll end up trying the Korean style stuff, especially since it might be more convenient while cloth diapering, but the familiar stuff is sort of like a security blanket, lol! There are so many unknowns when you become a parent that any comfort a simple onesie or sleeper can provide is worth it. ^o^
That's how my brain works at least!
Costco my dear! We bought most of Thomas's Carter's onesies there.If Costco doesn't have them, check in every so often, because they come and go fast.
He HATED being swaddled, so while it is good in theory, your wee one may disagree. He still hates even having blankets on his legs at night and will kick them off and cry in his sleep if he can't get it off.
Our Costco does have some, but I thought they were a bit bigger...I'll have to double check when we got there again. My friend just laid the smackdown on me because she's bringing a ton of stuff over for us (including some onesies), and I know some others have gotten some. We just might be set, actually, but as it's not right in front of me, I spaz. -.-;
I've heard babies either love or hate swaddling. We'll just have to wait and see!
Dexter liked swaddling for the first week or two, but after that he would have none of it! He is so random sometimes...
I believe I have one or two sleep sacks that I'm bringing along for you to use. I remember that my homestay family kept their apartment ridiculously warm in the winter time, and I wasn't sure if you had any control over that or not, but I assumed that apartments might be kept warmer in the winter than they are here in the States.
Maybe I'll send you pictures of what I have so you can decide how much you will want/need to buy. The last thing you want in a tiny apartment is a full wall of boxes of baby clothes - this is kind of what happened to us. People will give you so much stuff that you might not need to buy much at all. You might consider saving some of what you'd spend on onesies for larger purchases, like carriers or carseats or a bouncer or what-have-you.
The Ilsan branch had NB(Newborn), 3 month, 6 month and 12 month when we were there last week. We only bought 1 NB for Thomas and he barely fit it. 3 months give space for baby to grow and will satisfy the Korean family that you are not "wasting" money on clothes the baby will out grow! Hehehe..we bought a LOT of baby POLO online and had family send it over, but hubby got a talking to about buying in small sizes! ^.^
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