The husband and I received a very generous gift from his parents to buy our stroller for the baby. Now, this is something that you would think would be easy as 1-2-3...but it is in fact not! Everyone has their opinion and every friend, family member or new-mother you talk to has an opinion on what's good, what's bad and what you should buy.
At first, my husband was pretty set on the "three wheel" jogger type stroller. He was sure that it would be ideal for our Canadian winters. He had a definite vision, I kept asking which one of us was actually going to jog with this kid, since neither of us jog that much as we speak...but I digress.
Yesterday we finally ventured out to the big bad world of stores and sales people and looked at strollers. Our first stop was Walmart. I really wasn't impressed with the selection or the fact that the strollers were bolted down so we couldn't even take it off the shelf to move around and see how easy it was to collapse and lift and carry. I mean, I'm barely 5ft tall, so it needs to be something that momma-bear can actually handle.
So, we left Walmart behind and moved on to Babies'r Us. This store definitely had more options and we were able to push, collapse, open, yank, pull on, push on, and attach car seats to. This was where we finally got to see what fit "us". Not what fit my friends lives, our families lives, or the random person from the work cafeteria.
It came down to two strollers. One three wheel, and one four wheel. So we took our "notes" an left the store so we could see what better prices the inter-webs could give us. This morning I happened to see our three-wheel stroller on a used website that was 1/2 price and only six months old! We would just need to buy the car seat to go with it. Finally! A decision....
So once again, we ventured out to Babies r' Us to check out the car seats and which one would work.....but, a very knowledgeable salesperson named Iris happened upon us and everything changed. The more I played with the three wheel stroller the more I realized that it was a little bulky for our tiny car and was difficult to lift when it was folded down....so we turned our sights back to the 4 wheel. And friendly Iris shared some information with us that in 9 days that stroller was going to be $150 cheaper! And it would come with the car seat.
Decision made! We have chosen our stroller/car seat and we're both pretty happy with it. I think the husband is most surprised at how much he liked the 4 wheeled stroller. Not to mention that in 9 days the matching swing goes on sale too! With the savings, we can get that as well!
And there you have it, we're ready to roll!
Wednesday, August 31, 2011
Monday, August 22, 2011
Picture Time.....
Here we are, protruding at 22 weeks. That little guy has been kicking me in the bladder for the last little while and here is one moment that the husband captured in which I did not have to pee!
Sunday, August 21, 2011
Gettin' my Dad on...
What... you thought this blog was entirely about her?
I guess it's undeniable that pregnancy is, to a large extent, felt more by the woman than the man. Probably something to do with that whole baby-in-her-belly thing. So, in some respects, it's a bit of a spectator sport for Dad. Oh yes, we try to be helpful and we mean very well, and we'll even occasionally anticipate something that's needed and pull that off (kudos on that day!), but a lot of the time we can be slightly removed from things.
But that's not to say that we don't have our stuff that we're thinking about or that we are emotionally detached from it all.
So we find out it's a boy. Wow. For having spent weeks each silently convinced that we were having a girl, that was a bit of a surprise. However, I've quickly gotten used to the reality that I'm going to have a son. Which is really great. I mean, I have more GI Joe in my parents house than this boy will ever be able to play with, and he already has a ready-built library of original Hardy Boys books to read (even if I have to re-read them myself for any potential 50s-60s racial insensitivity). But then there's the other stuff like doing more than just playing with him and getting him interested in sports. Stuff like raising a man and making sure he understands the value of doing the right thing.
Is it normal to get a bit overwhelmed by that kind of stuff when baby is still months away?
I'm not what I'd consider old (despite what my younger wife says), but in my mid-30s I'm 8 years older than my father was when he had me, his first child. I wonder if he felt the same way about some of these things. I'll have to ask him sometime. My younger brother had his first child last year and he seemingly transformed from a bit of a goof to a kind of super-dad (much to the disbelief of many), so perhaps it sort of just happens when the time comes. I guess we'll find out.
In the meantime, I'll have to start thinking like Dad and not just like my son's play-friend. Thankfully, Jerry is ready and willing to help me out with that. "Settle down!"
I guess it's undeniable that pregnancy is, to a large extent, felt more by the woman than the man. Probably something to do with that whole baby-in-her-belly thing. So, in some respects, it's a bit of a spectator sport for Dad. Oh yes, we try to be helpful and we mean very well, and we'll even occasionally anticipate something that's needed and pull that off (kudos on that day!), but a lot of the time we can be slightly removed from things.
But that's not to say that we don't have our stuff that we're thinking about or that we are emotionally detached from it all.
So we find out it's a boy. Wow. For having spent weeks each silently convinced that we were having a girl, that was a bit of a surprise. However, I've quickly gotten used to the reality that I'm going to have a son. Which is really great. I mean, I have more GI Joe in my parents house than this boy will ever be able to play with, and he already has a ready-built library of original Hardy Boys books to read (even if I have to re-read them myself for any potential 50s-60s racial insensitivity). But then there's the other stuff like doing more than just playing with him and getting him interested in sports. Stuff like raising a man and making sure he understands the value of doing the right thing.
Is it normal to get a bit overwhelmed by that kind of stuff when baby is still months away?
I'm not what I'd consider old (despite what my younger wife says), but in my mid-30s I'm 8 years older than my father was when he had me, his first child. I wonder if he felt the same way about some of these things. I'll have to ask him sometime. My younger brother had his first child last year and he seemingly transformed from a bit of a goof to a kind of super-dad (much to the disbelief of many), so perhaps it sort of just happens when the time comes. I guess we'll find out.
In the meantime, I'll have to start thinking like Dad and not just like my son's play-friend. Thankfully, Jerry is ready and willing to help me out with that. "Settle down!"
Saturday, August 20, 2011
The husband and I went to our first baby stores last night. It was quite the experience. I think it was a little overwhelming for the husband because he wasn't as well-informed on the needs of a baby. We headed over to Babies'r Us and set up a registry.
Babies needs tons of stuff! But we managed to add a few things to the registry that we felt were important. I'm sure there are lots of things we aren't even thinking of, but as it stands now, we've at least started moving in the right direction.
We picked up a few very, very adorable outfits that I just can't wait to get the little guy in....
We definitely need to do another picture soon - I feel like we're getting lazy on creating these "memories"!
Babies needs tons of stuff! But we managed to add a few things to the registry that we felt were important. I'm sure there are lots of things we aren't even thinking of, but as it stands now, we've at least started moving in the right direction.
We picked up a few very, very adorable outfits that I just can't wait to get the little guy in....
We definitely need to do another picture soon - I feel like we're getting lazy on creating these "memories"!
Thursday, August 18, 2011
Getting ourselves well-informed!
The husband and I have been attending a pre-natal class that has given us some information that has been less-than stellar only because some of it is pretty common knowledge (e.g., don`t smoke, don`t drink, don't do drugs etc...) the past two weeks we've gotten to the good stuff.
Videos!
We got to see a couple live births and I have to say they must have picked the quietest women around because those births looked like a walk in the park! The women barely grunted let alone looked like they were in pain and these were natural births!
And our most recent class had us focusing on: boobies! More importantly, breastfeeding. I have to say it was quite the informed movie. I am not exactly "on board" with the breastfeeding until the tyke is 24 months old, (because if he can say "boobie time", I'm a little freaked out) but I certainly understand and agree that breastfeeding is the best option for our little guy. We got to learn technique, tips, latching and all the other fun stuff. I was surprised by how "into it" the husbands in the group seemed. They all had questions and seemed quite interested in the process.
As for me - I hope that I am able to breastfeed. I certainly appreciate its benefits, its convenience and its cost-effectiveness and most importantly I feel it is the best option for our family. Of course I think that each woman is entitled to her opinion and shouldn't feel guilty if she prefers to use formula, to each their own. Every mother does what they feel is best and I respect that and will expect the same courtesy given to me.
This also means that that I won't be embarrassed to breastfeed my child when he's hungry, if that's in my living room while friends and family are over visiting - then so be it. I'm not afraid to show the boob! It's a natural process, no one gets offended if a dog feeds her puppies and people see it, so they shouldn't be weirded out seeing a "human" doing it. I feel we learned a lot of valuable information that will be a definite asset to the process of mastering breastfeeding.
Hopefully our little squirt takes to it.
Videos!
We got to see a couple live births and I have to say they must have picked the quietest women around because those births looked like a walk in the park! The women barely grunted let alone looked like they were in pain and these were natural births!
And our most recent class had us focusing on: boobies! More importantly, breastfeeding. I have to say it was quite the informed movie. I am not exactly "on board" with the breastfeeding until the tyke is 24 months old, (because if he can say "boobie time", I'm a little freaked out) but I certainly understand and agree that breastfeeding is the best option for our little guy. We got to learn technique, tips, latching and all the other fun stuff. I was surprised by how "into it" the husbands in the group seemed. They all had questions and seemed quite interested in the process.
As for me - I hope that I am able to breastfeed. I certainly appreciate its benefits, its convenience and its cost-effectiveness and most importantly I feel it is the best option for our family. Of course I think that each woman is entitled to her opinion and shouldn't feel guilty if she prefers to use formula, to each their own. Every mother does what they feel is best and I respect that and will expect the same courtesy given to me.
This also means that that I won't be embarrassed to breastfeed my child when he's hungry, if that's in my living room while friends and family are over visiting - then so be it. I'm not afraid to show the boob! It's a natural process, no one gets offended if a dog feeds her puppies and people see it, so they shouldn't be weirded out seeing a "human" doing it. I feel we learned a lot of valuable information that will be a definite asset to the process of mastering breastfeeding.
Hopefully our little squirt takes to it.
Tuesday, August 16, 2011
home on rest
I'm home under doc's orders for a couple of days for some much needed rest. The past two/three days I've had some sharp pain in the right side of my abdomen and then I had some spotting. It's my first baby so at times I dont' know what to feel. Am I being overly cautious and thinking the worst over everything? Or is it better to be safe than sorry?
The spotting immediately steered me into "better safe than sorry" mode. This morning I got myself to our mother-baby unit and checked myself in. The staff was great. They took me pretty quickly, hooked me up to some monitors and did some tests.
The baby looks good, lots of fluid and he's moving around a lot...the placenta is high but there may be some signs of stress.
So a few days home to rest is what it is. I feel better having gone....and one silver lining: the nausea is totally subsiding (no puking!) so that's a definite bonus.
The spotting immediately steered me into "better safe than sorry" mode. This morning I got myself to our mother-baby unit and checked myself in. The staff was great. They took me pretty quickly, hooked me up to some monitors and did some tests.
The baby looks good, lots of fluid and he's moving around a lot...the placenta is high but there may be some signs of stress.
So a few days home to rest is what it is. I feel better having gone....and one silver lining: the nausea is totally subsiding (no puking!) so that's a definite bonus.
Thursday, August 11, 2011
Halfway There!
Some days it feels like this pregnancy is taking forever and other days it seems to be flying by. We are now at week 20, the halfway point. I can't believe it. Only 20 weeks remain.
I just had a doctors appointment today who informed me that so far so good! Our ultrasound looked great, our other testing was good and everything was a-okay! This was quite the relief as it felt like our last ultrasound took forever and the technician kept taking pictures of the heart and it started to freak me out. And of course the technician can't tell you anything so I was worried for the last two weeks! But it's all good. The little guy is doing well.
On that note, here are some highlights (and lowlights) of the 1st half of my 1st pregnancy:
I just had a doctors appointment today who informed me that so far so good! Our ultrasound looked great, our other testing was good and everything was a-okay! This was quite the relief as it felt like our last ultrasound took forever and the technician kept taking pictures of the heart and it started to freak me out. And of course the technician can't tell you anything so I was worried for the last two weeks! But it's all good. The little guy is doing well.
On that note, here are some highlights (and lowlights) of the 1st half of my 1st pregnancy:
- I still remember the day that the husband and I realized we were pregnant, it might have taken 6 (or 8) tests for me to believe it - but I did, and we were super excited and very grateful that we were able to conceive in a relatively short period of time.
- Sharing the news with our families that we were pregnant was a definite highlight.
- Those first 8 weeks gave me the impression that pregnancy was a breeze. I thought, gee, I don't even feel pregnant - what are women complaining about?
- Then I started to complain.
- Nausea became my biggest foe - and it still is a problem in week twenty, but I am going to listen to all the wives tales that tell me the more nausea equals a healthier, stronger baby!
- Next came heartburn and restless legs/sleep.
- But those tiny flutters that let me know your there is a wonderful experience.
- Then we found out our wee little baby was a wee little boy
- Now it seems our son is making himself known more and more as the flutters have turned into little kicks and punches and elbows.
- Names are hard!
- One of the hardest lowlights is not the nausea or the heartburn, in fact, it's the constant exhaustion. I am tired all the time.
- Tired, but happy.
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