More baby preparation...

A picture of my birthday cake from August 28th... As you can see, in addition to making a lemon cake with chocolate frosting (my favorite), Michael also managed to make the decoration extra special for my 33rd birthday. :-)

So, most of the panic about shopping for baby stuff is over. With a bit of advice from my mother and sister, and huge generosity from our friends, Chasity and Jason, I now have arranged for a crib, a playpen, a vibrating chair, a swing, and an activity center. Brenda, as well, is also going to send me newborn clothes, a playmat (for that all-important "tummy time"), and some other odds and ends for the first few months of the baby's life.

So far, my main big purchase has been a glider-rocker... It was on sale at Sears this past weekend, and Michael and I agreed it would be something we'd want in the house for the next 20 years. So, hopefully, I'll continue to stay relatively practical with baby-prep purchasing. The only other "big purchase" I'm considering is a dresser which would double as a change table.

I'm not planning any huge painting or overhaul for decorating the baby's room. I have a beautiful cross-stitch done by my sister-in-law to hang on the wall, and with a few other pictures, a bookcase full of stuffed animals (which I already have from my childhood), and a bed skirt for the crib, I think it will be perfectly "decorated". Funny enough, Michael seems quite pleased that I don't want to repaint the room...

Here in the next few weeks, I'll be going for the ... diabetes challenge I think it's called. They take my blood, make me drink something sickly sweet, and then take my blood again an hour later. I've got one more appointment with my GP in October, and then my first appointment with the OB at the end of October. I've sent in the application for the prenatal classes at the hospital, have applied for maternity leave, have applied to the campus childcare centre for when the baby is TWO (it's a long waiting list...), and am starting to collect all the information for the EI application, which I'll need to submit (along with the birth certificate) the day the baby is born. Maybe I'll get Michael to submit that one for me...

Everything is feeling prettymuch on schedule.

Till next time!