If you've never had a baby before, how are you supposed to know which pieces of baby furniture are the most important? Many young families are on slim budgets and can't afford to buy everything that is grouped into a single nursery set up.

After having had two daughters I can tell you which baby furniture pieces have been the most important to my family. Each family, parent and child will be different so you may need additional nursery furniture. Another factor in choosing your baby furniture is the amount of room you have in the nursery. Our two daughters share the same room so the pieces of baby furniture that we chose certainly fill the room.

The most important piece of baby furniture you will need to buy is the babies crib. The crib is important because this is where your baby will spend most of its time in the first few months of life. The baby crib keeps your baby safe and also acts as a great place to allow your baby to play without having to worry about them crawing away. There are many styles and price ranges when it comes to buying your first baby crib.

Choose a baby crib that will fit in your nursery and allow enough room for other important furniture. Higher end baby cribs can convert into toddler beds as your child gets older. These type of baby cribs will save your from having to purchase a kids bed later down the road. You may want to purchase a crib that will last for years to come so you can hand it down to your child for their children.

The next most important piece of baby furniture is the changing table. I greatly suggest that you purchase a changing table. These type of tables allow you to change your baby without having to bend over. They are also great for dressing your baby and for putting on powders and lotions. To save space in the nursery, our family chose a changing table that is actually a dresser with a secure pad on top that acts as the changing area. This type of changing table is very practical because it saves space and it allows you to remove the pad as the kids grow, which makes it a normal style dresser.

If you choose a stand alone changing table, the next piece of baby furniture you will need is a dresser. Baby dressers a must for baby clothes, diapers and all of the baby gear you will accumulate. When purchasing your crib be aware that you might want to buy a matching dresser to complete your nursery.

Another important part of your baby furniture is a rocking chair or glider. These type of chairs are great for rocking your baby to sleep. Since they will be in the nursery, you can easily lay your baby in the crib once they are fast asleep. We recovered an old rocking chair that our grandparent had given us. Our rocking chair has worked great as a place to read stories to our children.

Those are the must haves when it comes to baby furniture. Other furniture that you will most likely need would be a small table with a lamp. Some type of shelving for pictures and knick knacks and a few cute pictures to hang on the wall.

A furniture piece that we did not have room for is a fun toy chest. A large toy chest can hide a huge selection of toys. Toy chests make picking up a breeze because you can throw in an arm load of toys in just seconds. Pick a toy chest that will not lock if your child should crawl in.

All in all, your baby furniture is a very important part of having a baby, so pick the right furniture and you will be happy for many years. Choosing quality baby furniture will also allow you to pass each piece to another child or to your grand children.