Warning, lots of talk of baby gear ahead…you knew I couldn’t make it through the whole pregnancy without talking about pink sweaters, diapers, and slings at least once, right?
I’m now just 5 days from my due date, and though I have been pretty good about keeping myself busy up until the end of pregnancy, my deadlines are mostly all met and now I’m just…waiting. Over at my WEtv blog, I wrote about ways pregnant women can pass the time at the end of pregnancy. Mostly, I’m watching HGTV and griping to myself about its obsession with granite, stainless and cherry kitchens, and catching up on shows I’ve been meaning to watch forever but have just never gotten around to (thanks to Hulu.com, my new favorite website).
I’m also sorting through my stuff to make sure I’ve got everything I need for the new baby. My sister-in-law Jenna gave me a huge box full of hand-me-down clothes, blankets, and diapers, including a supply of Fuzzi Bunz, which I’ve been eyeballing for years but was always too cheap to buy for myself. She also passed on her Maya Wrap and Moby Wrap, and another fabulous friend of mine sent me an ERGO baby carrier. Between those and my Mod Mum pouch, I should be more than set for ways to carry this little one!
Graco sent me a SweetPeace to try out, which I’ve been coveting since I saw one at a Graco-sponsored party for the Chicago Moms Blog over a year ago (I didn’t even have a baby at the time, nor was I pregnant, so it didn’t make much sense to get one then). I’m not usually one to get excited over swings and other battery-operated baby things, but this thing is cool–it’s meant to mimic the natural soothing motions moms make (you know, that swinging side-to-side thing we do?). I’ll report back as soon as I have an actual baby to test it out with.
I’ve already got a Graco Quattro Duo Stroller, which will be great for longer walks with my two youngest, but even though it’s a pared-down version of bigger doubles it’s still a bit heavy and hard to fold up. I’ve been thinking for ages about getting one of those stand-on tandem strollers where the older child can perch on a back jumpseat for shorter trips and travel, but haven’t wanted to invest the money in one. But then my writer’s group sent me a very generous gift certificate to Babies R Us, so I think I’ll be getting the Joovy Caboose Stand-On Tandem Stroller with it.
And the lovely ladies at Blessed Nest sent me an organic Nesting Pillow. I have had many nursing pillows in the past, but this thing beats the Boppy and Breast Friend hands-down. It’s filled with buckwheat hulls, so it conforms to your shape and the baby’s shape. It’s plumper than a lot of nursing pillows, so it raises the baby high enough to nurse without having to round your shoulders forward. My sister-in-law tried it and loved it…I can’t wait until I have a baby to try it out with too, but in the meanwhile it’s making a pretty comfy wedge pillow for my back.
It’s a lot of stuff, but between all the hand-me-downs and a few generous gifts I’ve gotten from friends, I’ve spent very little money on this baby. And honestly, I know that if I had to I could get by with fewer slings, fewer clothes, no fancy baby soother, and just one stroller…but it’s fun to watch the baby things collect and know that it’s not much more time before I’ll be putting an actual, live baby into the various gowns and slings and stroller seats.
I just hope she doesn’t grow too fast. After all, my friend Jill sent me this Pottery Barn Kids sweater with a coordinating pair of jammies (monogrammed GRL) in newborn size:
Wouldn’t it be a shame if she only got to wear something so ridiculously adorable once or twice? I hope she doesn’t grow quite as fast as the boys all have. They’ve been out of their newborn clothes by about two weeks of age, and it’s so sad to pack those things away so quickly.
So now that the supplies have been bought and the Hulu shows have nearly all been watched, I go back to…waiting. Any suggestions for light, yet absorbing reading material one can still get into even when one’s brain has become a little…foggy?
I wrote out my favorite Bible verses to give birth by on a large index card. Encouraging while writing them and sustaining during the difficult parts of labor. I usually wound up starting some household project that I knew I wouldn’t have time for after the baby was born. Of course, always seemed to go into labor with project only half done . . .
Kathy, it would be just my luck that I’d totally empty a closet, start organizing it, go into labor and spend the next 6 months staring at a big mess before I’d have time to tackle it!
I am jealous that you have time to just wait. Either you are incredibly together or having older kids is just that much easier (but times 4 I can’t imagine that’s the case). I remember the end of my last pregnancy being like any other days of my life — dishes and other cleanup work after the kid went to bed, until I dropped into bed exhausted. I guess I did take advantage of the exhaustion a little bit to read a book. Oh yeah, just remembered — I had to listen to an hour or so of hynposis tapes every night to prepare for the birth so maybe that’s why I did’t feel free time weighing on me. There were always a million things I wanted to get done before the arrival that I didn’t quite get to, as well, like making casseroles to freeze and organizing things around the house.
Carrie, I think having older kids makes a TON of difference. I mean, sure, I still have to PARENT them, but I can afford to have a lazy week or two and things won’t totally fall apart, you know? The big boys have taken over dishes and laundry, I have had a cleaning service come in to do the floors and other things I can’t reach for the past couple weeks, and while I’m still definitely busy, I can spend a lot more time just hanging out on the couch than I usually would. Of course, the other thing about the end of pregnancy is it tinges everything I do with the “waiting” feeling. that whole “When is the baby gonna show up?” question is just always lurking around, whether I’m folding laundry or staring off into space!
I gave up on organizing projects a while ago, though, and I’m not bothering with freezing casseroles this time around. I finally learned that I hate casseroles, so what’s the point of having a freezer full of them?
My first was a week early (eating up the “getting ready week”) and my second a bit late and of course, she came just as I was about to take a nap.
Sorta set the course for their lives.
Do stuff that takes both hands now I guess, since you won’t have those back for awhile.
And that sweater is the cutest thing I’ve ever seen.
This is so exciting! I love that SweetPeace thing, what a great invention! I am so happy you are getting your little girl.
The quality of the info is what keeps me on this site, thanks!
Meagan thanks for the nesting pillow link! I was looking for some baby shower gift ideas and another one for a good friend of mines new baby. That will be absolutely perfect for them! I was looking for something rather unique, and I think that this was just the gift.