When you become a new parent, you are bombarded by ads for stuff. Much of it is hype, some of it is good.

I'm for the most part following the "buy wisely" framework [1]. Here are some of those items from the first 4 years of parenthood:

(a) The yoyo stroller [2]. This is a must if you travel. Every airline, gate agent, airplane crew will know it by name and will let you bring it onboard. It fits in every overhead compartment and you never have to gate-check it. Bonus: keep the stroller for as long as you can, even if your kid doesn't need it. You can pre-board, get ahead in line at passport checks, etc.

(b) Legos (and duplos). A classic for a reason. Endless hours of joint fun and creativity.

(c) Road paper tape [3]. Super light to bring on trips (esp. long flights), paired with a few toy cars. Many hours of fun.

(d) Books. I will never say no to my son asking to buy a book. There is really no downside for having too many books.

(e) Shares of VOO [4]. My kid doesn't know it, but I've been purchasing shares of this S&P ETF (lowest cost, best for buy & hold) in his name almost since birth.

(f) A fun car (a 997.1 cs). Although this was a purchase for myself, we have had an ever growing set of joint memories riding together in my car. I've also gotten personalized nameplates with his name (cheesy!), exactly for this purpose.

[1] https://stephango.com/buy-wisely

[2] https://www.stokke.com/USA/en-us/category/strollers/yoyo-strollers

[3] https://www.amazon.com/PlayTape-Black-Road-Children-Birthday/dp/B071J7W1HQ

[4] https://investor.vanguard.com/investment-products/etfs/profile/voo