What's a baby coordinator?

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A baby coordinator? I first heard the term and was baffled. Is that someone who organizes babies according to height and weight, or maybe zip code? Well, not exactly."When Meredith White was expecting her first son," Sarah Schweitzer recently wrote in the Boston Globe, "nothing terrified her quite like a visit to Babies "R" Us. Aisle after dizzying aisle of baby paraphernalia beckoned, with dozens of varieties of bottles, nipples, wipes (and their warmers), pacifiers, cribs, strollers, and bibs. She did not want to buy anything without first assessing safety, usefulness, and developmental appropriateness. The analysis led the 34-year-old lawyer to a state verging on despair.""'It was overwhelming,'" said White, who lives in Stow, Vt. with her husband. "'I would try to cram all the research in on weekends, but there was never enough time.'"So, enter the Baby Coordinator. As Schweitzer reports, a baby coordinator, a growing rage on both coasts for about two years now, does for an impending birth what the wedding coordinator does for impending nuptials. Makes it all run smoothly. Or tries to.This isn't a nanny, but rather a go-to gal who does for the expectant couple what they (ahem) can't do by themselves when it comes to baby."A baby is so important -- so wouldn't you want someone to assist you with all the research you need to do to get ready?" asked one hard-working baby coordinator.From researching and buying baby products, to coordinating gift registries, to helping get the nursery ready, to arranging bridal shows and getting the thank-you note stationary just right the baby coordinator is increasingly popular. Over and over the moms interviewed said things like "getting ready for the baby takes so much time, and I just didn't have it -- so I hired a baby coordinator!" Or, getting ready for parenthood just seemed so "daunting" -- so, the answer? Hire the baby planner!Um, does anyone see an irony here?I'm not against "hiring out." The guys at the Magic Wok can order for me when I call. I don't try to teach my kids piano myself, and fortunately I have a good friend who takes care of the math homework. Otherwise I' be brining in a tutor out for that. So I'm not worried that some nervous new mom to be is brining someone in to help with the thank-you note stationary. (But just what is "daddy preparation" also on the list of baby planner services, I'd like to know?)But why does the business of parenting have to be so complicated that it takes a business to figure it out? Hundreds of products? Which are the most educational? Oh, what to do?I'm fine with commercialization, but moms and dad have got to lighten up and use some common sense. Note to new expectant parents: decorate a room and get a crib, get some disposable diapers and wipes, "onesies," and clothed diapers for spit-ups. Buy a standard car seat and a stroller (one mom in the Globe piece spent 30 hours investigating strollers before choosing hers.) Pick up some bottles and formula if you are going to go that route. And you've got a really good start. Oh, and think twice about anything that claims to be "educational" for baby (read: unnecessary rip-off), take a deep breath and remember -- this is supposed to be fun!It can get hard, and complicated, and all that stuff no one ever told me. But the baby part of things? Assuming you have a healthy little one, it might never be easier than those first several months and even years, so why make them so much more overwrought than they need to be?On the other hand, bringing a new baby into the home is not like acquiring a pet. As one expectant mom told the Globe, "We wanted to put a lot of thought into adding a new family member, but we didn't have the time ..."That way of thinking about a new baby is not one any baby coordinator can fix.(Betsy Hart hosts the "It Takes a Parent" radio show on WYLL-AM 1160 in Chicago. Reach her through betsysblog.com. for more stories, visit scrippsnews.com.)