There's a new trend among parents anxiously awaiting their bundles of joy. Instead of relying on gut instinct, new moms are now depending on baby planners to help them prepare for baby. What's a baby planner, you ask? It's a lot like a midwife or a doula, except that a baby planner will help a mom with her registry, map out the nursery, and will even find you a nanny or install your carseat.   Sounds great, except... doesn't it undermine a mother's natural instinct when it comes to parenting her child?

On MSNBC there is an article about baby planners and their increasing popularity. One baby planner said that parents are stressed and overworked, leaving little time to research baby items such as strollers or determine which bottles are phthalate-free. According to Melissa Moog, the goal of a baby planner is "to basically reduce the overwhelming feelings of stress and save time so you can spend quality time on what matters to you. If what's important to you is going to birthing classes instead of doing research on car seats, I can do that for you." The cost? It ranges from $50 to $150 an hour.

A mom interviewed for the story said that she appreciated the help, citing her inability to make a decision on a stroller as the reason why she signed one up. "It was overwhelming. I was looking at strollers. Everybody has different opinions. Then you ask your friends and they have different opinions," says Stacey Blackmar.

Not everyone, however, is a fan of baby planners. Some feel that the stress of having the "right" baby gear stems from our society's tendency to have high expectations and people attempting to meet those expectations. A developmental psychologist, Kerrie Smedley, says: "We have an expert society or an expert culture where we really don't trust we can do anything without researching it and getting help. You can't really trust any of your own instincts, you need an expert." Now, sure, it's convenient to have a baby planner. There are certainly a lot of tedious tasks that need to get done prior to a baby's arrival and if someone else can go out and buy your baby bedding, why not? The main issue that can certainly pop up from using a baby planner is that it appears to prevent a mother, as well as a father, the opportunity to develop the natural instinct of parenting. There can be a danger to relying on someone else to prepare for your child: Will you be ready when the baby arrives? Will you trust your own decisions that you might have to make at 3 in the morning when baby is crying and you don't know what to do? Of course, that's a worst-case scenario, but there are little issues that pop up hundreds of times a day that baby planners can't help mom and dad prepare for!

What do you think about baby planners? Would you use one to help out, or do you think they aren't necessary?