There are lots of baby blogs out there. I guess it's natural to compare. I have thought about baby belly pictures, but... a) I'm lazy and b) I can't find my digital camera. Some blogs have music on them (not a fan). (Other blogs are scary, because you're going along, reading, and then you find out that the person had a miscarriage or something sad happened. And people [real-life people] tell you horrible stories. I'm not sure why, but they do. I heard the absolute worst one the other day, and I swear I will not repeat it to anyone.) Other blogs reveal that the parents have already gone out and bought lots of baby items (at only twenty weeks, sometimes less). Wow! Organized.
I think it will be very strange when we actually own real baby items. At this point, just having baby books seems normal, but to actually own baby clothes or diapers or ... equipment (?) ... seems like saying we're blithely assuming everything will go smoothly. I try not to think about it too much, but I'm almost afraid of tempting fate or the gods. Maybe if you've done it once and it's gone well, you have more security in how things will go. I try to remind myself that most of the people around me were born and have turned out (basically) normal and the mothers were fine afterwards. Mostly I just try not to think about it. It's easier to not think about it as much since I'm not as nauseous as I was in the first trimester and I'm only a bit bigger than I have been at some points in my life. I haven't been "thin" since my freshman year of college, so having put on weight doesn't seem like such a change in general (except that I'm wearing maternity clothes, instead of just larger sizes).
But speaking of baby items -- we'll probably have some by Sunday! Ian's mom has already put together a "baby basket" of things for us, including something(s) in the "Classic Pooh" design, which I do like a lot. She loves to give, so this will be great fun for her (even more fun if it's a girl, as she had three boys and loves to buy girl things). I, of course, appreciate everything she gives us; it will just be weird to bring home baby things. Also, we have nowhere to put anything....
That brings me to another quandary: should we stay or should we go? We are living in a small apartment that is super cheap, but does not get much light and has a musty smell and very, very old appliances (I believe the last two items are related, because I have tried to clean and get that musty smell out and it just does not leave!). We have lots of closet space (and have filled each closet to overflowing), but only two bedrooms. Our bedroom is not big enough for a pack 'n' play (unless we take out our bed!), but we could put it in the office. The office could not be re-done as a nursery (not a big deal), and it's got piles of boxes all around the perimeter of the room. We can barely get into the closets as it is. What will it be like after we have baby things?
Our living room/dining area is also small -- my mom has been talking about getting one of those little indoor swing things (bouncer? what do you call those?), but we'll have to get rid of a couch before we can think about putting anything like that in here. I mean, I don't mind making adjustments, but it already feels crowded. We went through things when we moved and got rid of lots of stuff - we had the Salvation Army come and take furniture and cooking items away....
Oh, the kitchen! So, I got one of those baby bottles (drop-ins, by playtex -- who knew they made baby things? not me!) when I got my maternity clothes. (People do like to give you stuff.) So, I finally tried to put it away. There was one cabinet where I could put it. All the rest are full. It's not like we cook a lot (friends, you can attest to that, I know), so we don't have any fancy items. I used to have a glass collection that I pared down quite a bit to make everything fit, and we don't even have a good set of cookware. I blame our lack of counterspace on the fact that I broke one of my bowls this week. We can't put things on the stove because it's really easy to brush or bump against it and turn on a burner without realizing it. Since there's no dishwasher, we have to have room for a dish drainer next to the sink...
Man, pregnancy has made me whinier than usual!
For now, we've just looked at a couple places around town -- neither has been worthy of packing up and moving, for sure. Even though this place would be a real pain with three of us (plus a cat), it's kind of hard to not want to save money while having all the extra expenses of a newborn.
In other news... I got a haircut! If any of you have seen me lately, you know this is a good thing. I haven't had it cut/colored since June, and I was looking ... well, unfortunate. Luckily I got a good recommendation from a co-worker, and now consider myself to be much happier. It's not super short or anything, just much better than the long mess I've had for the past couple months. What a relief!
Okay, last thing: THANK YOU to everyone who emailed me or posted suggestions -- you have all been very helpful! Feel free to keep making suggestions, they are definitely welcome!
And now I should actually try to clean up the house a bit before we head to the in-laws'....
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3 comments:
Erin--
I don't know what to tell you. We moved house while I was pregnant. You know how small our old place was (~750 sq ft) and how crazy-making it would have been to have added a baby and associated paraphernalia to it. On the other hand, let me tell you now that moving while pregnany is a PAIN. I wasn't supposed to lift things over 20 pounds, so there was a LOT I couldn't help with. Be prepared for that frustration; line up lots of other helpers, if you can.
Also...tempting as all the paraphernalia is, you _can_ minimize what you stock. We're using the bassinet attachment to our pack-n-play in lieu of a crib to start off, for one thing. (We actually have a crib, too, but...for the first weeks/months, we'd like to keep the babe in our room, where we can hear him and he can hear us.) We have a swing/seat thing for him, too, but so far we tend just to let him sit in his carseat on the floor of whatever room we're in. You get the idea, I'm sure. People advised me not to bother getting paraphernalia; we registered for it and received it anyway. But if space is an issue for you...you might be surprised at how little *stuff* you can get away with having. You'll need plenty of onesies and diapers and swaddlers. You may not need loads of furniture.
Karen
Erin, This blog cracks me up everytime I read it. I really wish I would remember to read it more often because I need a good laugh every now and then. We're moving out of our place in May and you're welcome to it :o) Also...I have a beautiful round bassinet(sp?) that fit nicely in our bedroom if you're interested in borrowing it. It's lovely. Also...I'm a big fan of stuff. I love our travel system (GRACO) and Tyler still loves it too! The big stroller is best. He can sit in it at the mall and eat it in instead of a highchair. A bouncy seat is a necessity...especially with the vibrating feature. The babies love that. Sure wish we could talk more at work. Enjoy this time...it is the absolute best time of your life and I miss it!
For Maura, we kept her in the pack-and-play in our room for the first five months or so, but for Lila I got a co-sleeper crib at onestepahead.com (a cool website to check out, by the way, even though you'll be overwhelmed at first...) Anyways the co-sleeper crib is extra narrow so it fit next to our bed, and I guess it would have been good for the first several months also if we hadn't had to move to Philly.
Stuff you definitely need in my opinion: a bouncy seat (so you can shower!) a sling or baby bjorn, a boppy pillow, and a high-quality breastpump if you plan to nurse. Trust me, I've used several kinds of pumps, and the $300 Medela one is worth every penny, especially when you go back to work. The suggestion about setting baby in the carseat is a good one, and you can get clip-on toy bars to make it extra fun :)
I have a Boppy pregnancy pillow and I love it. I named it Taye Diggs cause it spend every night between my legs. I think a snoogle is a good idea if it makes you comfortable. Don't stress too much about not sleeping on your back. I think that when it's important for you not to sleep on your back, it will be too uncomfortable for you anyway. Besides (cheery thought) you'll be waking up all the time so you can monitor yourself. ;)
Oh yeah - about the travel system. Obviously the carseat is a necessity but the big stroller isn't if you're concerned about space. The snap-n-go will work well for all your around-the-town trips, and when baby outgrows it you'll be ready for a nice cheap and portable umbrella stroller. That said, both my girls would rather take long walks in the big stroller because it's more comfortable. That probably doesn't help at all, huh? I think you just have to figure out how you'd use a stroller most of the time - short trips in and out of the car, or long walks around the neighborhood.
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