[RandiN]

Our homestudy should be approved by the end of the month and then the wait begins. I'm wondering when it is appropriate to register.

Randi

[maviskat]

We did not register until we brought our daughter home and TPR was signed. We bought the basics ourselves beforehand (carseat, onesies, a few outfits) and were given a shower when DD was 3 weeks old. You really don't need much at all those first few weeks. When to register or decorate is really a personal choice... I was too afraid to do it earlier, afraid to get my hopes I guess!
Good luck...hope you have a short wait.

[lovemy2boys]

We were the same as mavis...

We registered after TPR, which was when AJ was 6 weeks...

[mommamarci]

We registered as soon as we got home study approval. I had my shower about a month after we got approved. I knew we would have a child eventually and I wanted to be prepared. I am glad we did it that way because our son was already born when we got the call.

[mdesi]

We're waiting until we bring the baby home. We have a lot from my SIL, so we have the basics - car seat, bouncer, etc. We are most likely buying a crib tomorrow - good deal on Craigslist. We want to have an open house/meet the baby rather than the traditional shower.

[Amber76]

We waited until after our son was born. We might have had one after being matched and befor the baby was born, but we couldn't since DS was already born when we were matched! Also, I'm not sure if I would have felt comfortable with that anyway because I would have been nervous about having to return everything if things fell through and never feeling comfortable using anything we received for another baby because those things felt like they "belonged" to the first match. I know I felt like that about some of our DD's things after she died before we could bring her home-and she never used them, but they still seemed somehow hers since that's who we bought them for. I think it really is something that you have to decide based on your own personality, situation, etc.

[midnighttang]

My husband and I are doing exactly what I said we wouldn't do. I had planned to wait until we had our baby, but we've already mostly furnished the room, bought a pack and play, a travel system, and various little things. We registered as well and we won't be homestudy approved until the end of the month. When we registered we used a pseudonym (I have friends who have probably been keeping an eye out for my registry)and we haven't told family and friends about all our purchases. We don't want them to know how baby crazy we've gone I'm a little worried about the reaction we'll recieve from our SW when she sees "the nursery." Oh, well. We got amazing deals before Christmas and the agency has been so slow getting our homestudy done that we needed to do something to keep ourselves occupied

[karla-k]

There is probably no right or wrong. We have friends giving us a diaper shower after our baby comes home from Kyrgyzstan. I will probably register when we have a for sure travel date and thus a shower date

[ml2waiting]

We were matched with a bmom who was only 6 months along and our families chose to throw us a shower about a month before she was due... so we registered early so people could shop for that...

However, after the baby was born, the bmom changed her mind and decided to parent... So there I was with gifts galore -- everything I needed for a baby girl... but no baby!

It just so happened we were lucky enough to be have a different baby girl placed with us just weeks later... so same sex and same season for clothes, so it worked out in the end.... but it could have been disastrous!!

[SupaModel]

I did mine right away too. Also I told them at Babies R Us that I was adoption so I didnt have a "date". They said that was ok and the info stays in the system for a year.

[aclee]

I registered when our home study was almost complete. We knew we could have a really short wait. I made it clear I wanted the shower after I was home with a baby and it was "secure". So I was ready to go whenever. I put a date that was about 6 or 8 months out, and then when we got Ty I changed the date to his birthday. You do have to put something in when you register at Babies R Us, so that part I didn't like. I thought about contacting Babies R Us so they could put some thought into being more adoption friendly...

[minibus]

We registered once we were officially "waiting". We didn't tell people about the registry until after the kids came home, though (they were not newborns). I don't know how Supa did it, but we also had to have a "due date" at BRU, which I hated, because we received our "completion coupon" before the kids were even placed with us.

[finallyamom0310]

I lucked out, I didn't want to register or anything till we were matched. Then we got matched as DD was born, so my SIL who had a 1 yr old registered for me and put the nursery together.