Crib!

We got the crib yesterday! It looks like this, except in the darker "pecan" color shown in the second picture:


We're very excited - but Bob's out of town until Thursday night so I have to wait until then to put it together. At least I can go in the baby's room and look at the pieces. For the dresser, we are going to try to find a matching (or at least coordinating) dresser that is more full-sized that can be used for a longer period of time. So we need to get on finding that. If anyone has one that they are trying to get rid of, please let us know!

We also got 2 sheets, a window valance, some fuzzy blocks (to take when we go places to match colors with, plus a future toy), a night light, and a mattress pad. It's starting to feel more real now that we have some stuff!

RIP

In an effort to make our current vehicle situation more family-friendly, we decided to sell our mustang. A young naval officer bought the car on last Thursday night, so while it's nice to have the car sold so we can move on, I must now begin my grieving process.



You were a great car... so much fun... I will miss you mustang.

If you're wondering what we replaced the mustang with, it is a light green 2003 Ford Taurus, similar to the one pictured below.

Green dog

We can't tell if Bella is going green to be more eco-friendly or if she's green with envy over the baby coming:



Can't you tell how much she loves to have her picture taken? At least she doesn't move very fast so it's easy to catch her with the camera!

Doctor's visit

Today was our monthly checkup at the doctor's and it went fine. We were there over an hour for about 10 minutes' worth of actual time with the midwife, but I guess that's how it goes. We met Debbie the midwife who seemed nice - we didn't talk with her very long. We did get to hear the baby's heartbeat, which was exciting! The heart rate was 150, and if you have any ideas on what that means it will be (boy/girl), don't tell me! I have a sneaky feeling Bob is looking it up right now, but I don't want to know! She said everything sounded good. Our next visit on May 20th will be the fun ultrasound where they scan for any problems and would tell us what it is...but we will stay strong and not find out.

Otherwise, not much else is new. We picked out a theme for the baby's room, "Alphabet Soup". It's on the registry, if you want to check it out. I don't think they have the pattern in the stores, so we'll have to order it online. We also have a crib contender, one that we saw at Babies R Us last weekend, but we want to go back and check it out again.

Dr. Bob

Here's a sneak preview of Bob in his graduation getup. I asked him if it was worth all the work to get to wear the goofy outfit and he said "yes". Must be some awesome outfit!

Classes, clothes, and registry

We were allowed to call and register for baby-related classes offered through WakeMed hospital during the 14th week, which started today (happy 2nd trimester to me!). Naturally, I was on the phone this morning to sign up. We wanted to go with the "weekend intensive" option, a.k.a. getting it over with quickly, but sadly they're only offered when we're going to be in Chicago and at the beach. So...we're on for a 5-week class that meets for 2-1/2 hours every Tuesday night, starting July 29th, 2 days after my graduation! Our neighbors just took a similar class at Rex and said they really enjoyed it and got a lot out of it. In addition to that class, we also are taking a "how to care for your newborn" class that meets for 3 hours on a Saturday morning in August and a breastfeeding class that's one evening in July. So now, we'll be prepared for whatever comes our way...right? Right?

Also, I have been hitting the streets for maternity clothes. Clothes shopping (and shopping in general) is NOT my favorite activity, but I realize that it is necessary, so my goal was to get it done as quickly as possible. I scored some deals at a consignment store (Kid to Kid in Apex and Cary) and got a couple of things at Old Navy this weekend. Today, I hit the motherload (get it?) of maternity cuteness at Kohls. So I think I'm pretty much set, minus a dressy outfit and a swimsuit. I'm hoping to avoid both of those if possible, but actually will probably need a dressy outfit for graduation and a wedding in July. I think I need to take a shopping break for now, though!

We also started our registry at Target, which was super fun. I expect that we will tweak it periodically, but I just couldn't wait any longer to set it up. Crib shopping is still in progress, but we're working on it.

Stroller and names

Bob is doing a really good job of keeping me from doing everything now and then sitting around waiting for the next 6 months...but I have managed to do a few small things! We went to Target on Monday night armed with our library copy of Baby Bargains. Our neighbors had recommended the book, and it seems to do a good job of rating things in a Consumer Reports-type fashion and also helps explain what some things are and what we really need vs. what isn't necessary. So, we were on a mission to check out strollers. Our top contender at this point is the Graco Glider/Lite Rider. It isn't a travel system per se, but we can get the matching infant seat that will fit in it or use another compatible infant seat when the baby is small. It is a little lighter than some of the others and had a good height for Bob. The print is called "Jungle Adventure", though you can't really see it here. It comes in this print and two others, but we think Target mostly carries this one. Good thing we like it!We have also been starting to throw around some names. It turns out that naming a baby is NOT an easy thing to do! Good thing we have lots more time to narrow it down. I think our lists put together totals over 20 names for boys and another 15-20 for girls. So, unless we want our kid to have a really long name, we had better start eliminating some of them!

Otherwise, not much else is new. I am feeling better now than I had been, which is nice. We are also looking at cribs, but are slightly overwhelmed at all the options out there. We're working on it though!