Would you spend $24 on a burp rag? Eighty bucks on an infant sundress? Eight hundred dollars on a stroller?

Are you gasping yet?

These days, some parents hardly bat an eye before dropping wads of cash on big-ticket items for their little ones, from designer fashions to one-of-a-kind cribs with custom bedding.

“Sometimes it’s just fun,” says Lawrence mother Jean Anderson, who has two sons. “People always want their children to have more than they had in every aspect – clothes or love or whatever.

“It’s enjoyment for you. I don’t know if they truly appreciate it – I don’t think they do – but if it makes you happy and you can afford it, I don’t have a problem with it.”

Anderson and her husband, Justin, have tried not to go overboard with 2 1/2-year-old Joshua and 5-year-old Jack.

But sometimes they splurge.

Josh gets strapped into a top-of-the-line Britax car seat ($280), cruises in a super cool Maclaren umbrella stroller ($150) and sleeps in a room decked out in Pottery Barn Kids gear while mom carries a trendy Fleurville diaper backpack ($130).

“I wanted an updated style and something that wasn’t dirty and well-worn,” says Jean Anderson, 31, of the bag. “I think just because you’re a mom doesn’t mean you have to lose your cool.”

Retail sales of gear for infants, toddlers and preschoolers topped $8 billion last year, an increase of more than $500 million in five years, according to a report released in February by research firm Packaged Facts. The growing demand for upscale brands and high-tech baby gadgets has forecasters predicting that number will rise to $9.5 billion in 2010.

“I think people just wait longer to have children and they don’t have very many, so they have the money to buy nicer things,” says Meredith Rothrock, co-owner of Blue Dandelion, 841 Mass. “And it’s fun. It kind of gives another dimension to the excitement of having a baby, especially the first time.”

‘A little more special’

Rothrock and her partner, Kris Bailey, opened the Blue Dandelion in October to capitalize on the growing demand for unique children’s furniture, fashion and gifts. They try to offer products in a wide range of prices.

You can special-order a crib at the shop for anywhere from $400 to more than $5,000. They offer Bumbleride and EasyWalker strollers, which sell for up to $400 and $600, respectively. But they also carry outfits, shoes, toys and trinkets for less than $50.

Grandparents spend a lot of money at the store, Bailey says.

“They love to come in,” she says. “I just had a woman in this morning whose mom bought her a really nice stroller they had looked at the other day and came back to get.”

Sheila Immel, who has four grandchildren she loves to indulge, says her spending philosophy hasn’t changed much over time.

“I think even as a mother that I wound up getting fewer things but nicer things because those are the things I wanted for my kids,” says Immel, of Lawrence. “I’d rather spend my money on one really nice thing than a lot of cheaper things. It’s just a little more special.”

For instance, she might buy a children’s rocking chair instead of yet another outfit. Or she might spend $24 on a B Bliss burp rag, made in Lawrence by Jen Catlin and Kirsten Bieri.

“That’s a lot of money for a burp rag,” Immel says. “But they’re just adorable.”

Standing out in a crowd

B Bliss has found success by catering to hip mommies. Catlin and Bieri pair contemporary geometric and floral fabrics with cuddly materials like chenille to create blankets and burp rags with names like “The Cruiser,” “The Cuddler” and “The Drooler” that range in price from $10 to $58.

“I really kind of see it as something that would be more of a keepsake,” Catlin says of the handmade items.

The memento factor may motivate Carolynn Deeds’ baby purchases. The 28-year-old Overland Park mom-to-be laments the fact that her mother borrowed and then returned her crib, and her husband gave away the bed he slept in as an infant, so the couple don’t have a family heirloom for their first child.

“I think I really want to buy one because I think it would be kind of neat to have that more as a memory and something to pass down,” Deeds says.

Deeds browsed Blue Dandelion last week, looking for Bumbleride strollers, a brand that her aunt and cousin recommended. The $400 price tag may be worth it, she says.

“I really like the wheels,” she says. “They’re just more rubber, and they just feel better when you push them.”

Indeed, even area parents prepared to dish out a lot of dough for their children seem to be driven, at least in part, by practicality and quality considerations. Justin Anderson, 33, says his son has a Britax car seat because it’s rated highest for safety. And he and his wife spring for organic food for their boys because it’s healthier.

Because of advances in science and technology, Anderson says, “I think parents today are probably more knowledgeable about the health and safety of their children.”

But it sure doesn’t hurt that some of the priciest gear looks the coolest.

“I think a lot of the high-end baby stuff, especially strollers and diaper bags and things that maybe aren’t necessarily associated with the child’s overall health, safety and comfort,” Anderson says, “those are ways for people to set themselves apart from the crowd.”

Super splurges from top designers

From Kate Spade:

Bottle holder: $55

Brag books: $65-$95

Fleece blanket: $79

Cotton twill dress: $115

Cashmere blanket: $145

Diaper bags: $180-$325

From Marc Jacobs:

Cashmere thermal baby hoodie: $395

Cashmere thermal baby long johns: $295

From Baby Dior:

Heart dress with bloomers: $129

Large feeding bottle: $40

Sleeping bag: $209

Terry towel: $139

Dior logo teddy bear: $265

From Gucci:

Baby Mary Janes: $220

Baby photo frames in sterling silver: $445-$515

Diaper bag: $870

Baby carrier: $790