Prep

We have 8 days left until Ms. Baby is expected to arrive, in theory. Looking ahead to what might amount to chaos (or at least total exhaustion), C is in the middle of preparing 4 casseroles to freeze. Last week she made a large lasagna and froze all that we didn't eat. It's pretty awesome, 'cause C is a good cook and has some impressive instincts when it comes to personalizing a recipe to make it even better.
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Meanwhile, working on the last of the baby laundry which is mostly flannel receiving blankets, sheets, and miscellaneous fitted covers for stuff... Need to finish up some art and might even go to a nearby antique store for extra decor... I promise, nursery photos will be up soon.

She's here!

Our baby has arrived! April Fool's, I keed, I keed.

But April has arrived; the month of the birth of Ms. Baby. C is getting anxious and I don't blame her. Sleep has become hard to keep straight for her. The doctor keeps saying she's not yet dilated. What the d? But things are great though. Slowly but surely the nursery is getting finished up. On this beautiful, sunny, 79-degree day I unwrapped our crib mattress and have it propped up outside to air-out per the recommendations of others. Just need to finish up some art projects for the room and we'll be rollin.

Lots of love

Gift + End of Showers

We found this in the mail today - a gift from a far away friend from college; this awesome pink skull beanie from Anitra with this note:
Congratulations on your future daughter! She will be totally awesome and badass. Best of luck! Anitra

How cool is that?!
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This weekend was the second baby shower and it was great. Lots of fun to celebrate the next member to be initiated into our crazy big family, especially when you get to share that with those who will be Baby Girl's Great Grandmas and Great Great Aunts.

Today we've spent the afternoon sorting out all the stuff we received from both of our baby showers; moved the futon out of and moved a new Ikea dresser into the nursery; started a monster sized laundry load of all clothes that should fit a baby between 0 and 6 months; and packed up all the stuff that Baby Girl won't need for after then. Things around the house are starting to finally take shape and I don't feel like we're behind in any way. At the very least we can tell people that we do have space for Baby Girl.

Getting overly excited now!

36 week ultrasound + Nursery + Daycare

We went for our last ultrasound this morning and were relieved to once again hear all is well. Baby Girl is only measuring slightly ahead--an estimated 6 pounds 6 ounces--which will put her at about 8 pounds at term.  The best news is that she's low and head-down, and shouldn't be able to sneak her way into a breech position between now and whenever.

We have also been setting up some of our gear. This week, in the mail, we received two gifts from our registries: a bouncer and a travel system. I figure this has two benefits: 1) our dog Alden can get used to a new family member crowding into our space and start learning what he's not allowed to chew on; and 2) that stuff will be together and usable when we have better things to worry about.

A dresser (which will double as a changing table) is on its way, and I've decided we should get a rug and some sort of book shelf too. With that, the nursery will be nearly complete. I've been getting frustrated as people have asked increasingly if we're done with the nursery. They ask it almost rhetorically, expecting my answer to be an exasperated "Yessss! Months ago!" and give me a disgusted look when I huff out a "Nope." Plus, all the pregnant women C works with are proud to announce the completion of the nurseries in month 3. Well Eff that.

Oh yeah, and I've started into searching for infant daycare, and that sucks. Lots of responses, which is encouraging. I just wish it was more straightforward. And cheaper. I wish we could figure out some sort of trade-off system with three of four other people, to rotate stay-home days. Probably not going to happen. I never thought it would be so smart to live nearby our parents for this reason.

March is here! (a.k.a. 34 weeks) (a.k.a. T-minus-6 weeks!)

I can't believe we are at 34 weeks already. The uncertain amount of time left is presumed to be an even month-and-a-half and we're starting to bite our nails. The suspense is getting heavy. At my job, I've got a project looming over my head which promises to take me out of town for three three-day trips. We haven't "won" the job yet and the more I think about it, the more I get sick thinking about being so far from home and C going into labor. Anyway, I'm trying to be optimistic that luck will guide us through this month. I mean, I have two four-leaf clovers that I've been saving for some time now and figured I could cash one in for March in the spirit of Saint Patrick's Day. Sure, I can't be too certain that I have any Irish blood in me, but I suspect that in this case "it's the thought that counts."

I feel like as soon as April 1st hits, our baby will be on its way, arriving any minute thereon.

Meanwhile, I'm looking into other career options and wish that looked a little brighter. It seems like there are only a few doors available to me, and most of them lead back to school. Dammit!
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In other news, we picked up and assembled our crib this weekend! Woohoo! We also added a few more splashes of paint to the nursery.

Also, we're preparing for the first of TWO baby showers which will be this weekend and next.

Names, Art, More Prep

This weekend: finished a little bit more art that will go in your room, Baby. Also, added more items to the registry at Babies "R" Us; and started looking at Italian and Polish girl names (and found a bunch I like!)...

Also, your Aunt Amanda and Uncle Andy came up to visit from Cincy. We gave them our bed and Mommy and I "slept" on the futon in what will be your room. It was probably because of all the white snow reflecting light, but it was bright as day all night long. Today I installed some nice white blinds in your room and am pretty proud of how they turned out.

Lots of love!

Crazy + Gear + Diaper bag hack

Ok, ok, ok. So, after reading my last post, C more or less implied I was insane for thinking the baby was going to come so early. She is convinced we are right on time--no less--with our scheduled schedule. So week 28 it remains.

I guess I'm just getting a little freaked out about the stuff we intend to do before Miss Baby is born--add plumbing in the basement, finish the basement, organize our art room, and, finally, finish the nursery. I live by the "expect the worst, hope for the best scenerio"--not that the baby coming early is in anyway the "worst" of anything, but it shortens a schedule to complete things I mostly don't know how to do...

In the meantime, we're bracing ourselves for a couple baby showers--not even thinking about for what we will register--and figuring out what else we need. Speaking of gear, I'm fixated on getting a dope (bicycle-) messenger style bag and hacking it into a hipster-friendly diaper bag. I don't want to say man-friendly, because that's not what I mean. I mean cool and legit, and something that could be used well beyond the diaper years, especially when I ride my bike. The front-running brand seems to be Timbuk 2 and its relatively low cost-to-pockets ratio. A local company, Seagull Bags, is a bit more expensive but offers stuff like custom pockets and organizers. It would be great if C liked it too--I may be able to tempt her with a nice color palette... Probably not. This idea would cost us around $100 more than those "man-friendly" diaper bags.

Nursery Inspiration

I can't convince these pictures to line up in pretty ways, but here is some stuff I like:

amy coe Westport Combo Changer

amy coe Stamford Combo Changer

 Carter's Sleep Haven Single Crib

 Monte Design - Luca Glider

 Andrea Rund (Ikea)
  

 Hampen (Ikea)

 Ikea PS Maskros

Week 26

For a long while now, C has tuned into the FitPregnancy online pregnancy calendar for weekly updates on the growth of Miss Baby Girl. This is what they say for Week 26, which started yesterday:

Your baby weighs about 1 1/2 pounds and has undergone a growth spurt in the past few weeks... [She] would be about a foot tall if she could stand. This week marks a major milestone in your baby's hearing and sight. Your baby's hearing system (cochlea and peripheral sensory end organs)... is now completely formed, and over the next few weeks, she'll become increasingly sensitive to sound. In about a month, you'll feel her jump if she hears a sudden loud noise. Sound passes easily into your uterus, which helps her ears develop. Her eyes are almost fully formed. ...The air sacs of the lungs, called alveoli, will be developed by the end of this week and will begin to secrete a substance called surfactant that keeps the lung tissue from sticking together.

Pretty dope. Sounds like we should be talking, reading, and singing to Miss Baby Girl...

2010 is here and just like I anticipated I feel the pressure to get the house prepared for B.G.'s arrival. We found a crib we both really like, and maybe even a dresser. Over the weekend we organized a bunch of hand-me-down clothes and even bought some kid-sized hangers. I'm also a proud owner of a Babies-R-Us rewards card. All that is left to find is a comfy chair, an overhead lamp, a large rug, curtain fabric, and some wall art... Piece of cake, right?