Contemplating What We'll Need

So... this weekend I finally started going through all the books that Brenda gave me. (Thank you, Brenda!)

The one I concentrated on was "Baby Bargains" where they give you advice on what you'll actually need the first year or so of the baby's life, and how much it should cost... It's that second part that started my heart beating faster!

Crib, mattress, rocker, bedding, clothes, breastfeeding stuff, swing, portable crib, playpen, baby monitor, infant car seat, convertible car seat, baby sling/carrier, and what about diapers?... It didn't sound like that much at first, but then I started looking into the details of the different choices you could make. Seems like it would be awfully easy to get caught up in the "but I want the best for my baby" attitude. And then it's not just a matter of buying the most economical item, because cheap might also sometimes mean "unsafe". Yikes!

OK. So blowing it a little out of proportion. And then, of course, there will be a baby shower. The women in my office seem to be already planning. :-) I guess it's just another side effect of Michael and I were so busy thinking about _getting_ pregnant, we didn't actually think that much about what it means to _be_ pregnant. We've still got a little over 4 months to figure it out, I guess.

I got some EXCELLENT news today: Our friends, Steve and Anita, just had their first baby! So for now, it's joy all around.

And as for our baby, he/she is still very active. At the first sonogram in July (and again in August come to think of it) it took awhile for the doctor to find the hearbeat, and then when the baby finally decided to cooperate and be still long enough to measure the heartbeat... each time there was a little "thock" of the baby kicking, "Hey! Quick poking at me!" Needless to say, the ultrasound was very exciting as the technician had to chase the baby all over my stomach!

And the past week, we finally both felt the baby move. Yeah!!!

The long weekend is coming up. We're heading to Trinity on Friday with our friends, Sue and Doug. Our friends Paul and Carlotta and their children are planning to come out for part of the weekend as well. Should be nice and relaxing.

And then next week the students are back and it's straight into "Library Instruction season" for me.

Hopefully I'll get a bit of a break to update you further, and maybe get a picture of my tummy up for comparison over the next few months.