Final Preps

Okay, so as of tomorrow I'm 39 weeks. Which means if the lil' Bean is at all like Jamie we have exactly ONE week until his/her arrival (jamie HATES to be late, he would rather just not show up than walk in somewhere late; whereas myself....i TRY to be on time, because I think it's rude otherwise...but inevitably I'm running in a min. or two late). So below is our checklist for this weekend to make sure all is done and ready for the lil' Bean.

1.) Pack hospital & delivery bag - DONE.
2.) Compile song list on IPOD for labor
3.) FINISH BOOKCASES - ALMOST...done :(
4.) Install carseat - DONE
5.) Set up bills to be paid via bill pay, just in case we lose track of time - DONE
6.) Put babys room back together
7.) Finish Bean's laundry - DONE
8.) Dust and Vacume the Beans room (after bookcases are done)
9.) Put together phone list for Jamie, so everyone gets their call
10.) Start Beans scrapbook (pre-arrival letter)
11.) Book Airline tickets over to UK for September!! (baby's christening)

Okay, now i have to get my butt in gear, looks like I've got a busy weekend ahead of me. Sad part is just by looking at this list, i'm ready for a nap....(yawn). Ahh well.

March 5th

Okay, apparently I know LOTS of people born on March 5th...so, I've decided to post about it. Mostly, because right now the only other thing going on in our life is building the bookcases in the babys room and until they are done I can't post about them.

Since hitting 36 weeks, i seem to have lost all patients for the bean. I've never been a patient person, until I was 18 I would contantly snoop for christmas presents because i just couldn't wait...so with the baby: I'm ready...I'm beyond ready. To be honest, sometimes I border on grumpy.

I'm 38 weeks today (full term is 36, but your official due date is given at 40 weeks). So, for Meg, Brandy & Trish (and anyone else that I'm forgetting)...I would be MORE than happy to oblige and have the baby a little early and make another great addition to the March 5th club. If you ask Meg, my sister, this is probably all she wants for her birthday!:) Under one condition: IF the baby is born on March 5th....I will have to not follow the one rule that my sister has set that the baby (no matter the sex) must be named Megan. I'm sorry sis....but I think being gifted with your birth date is honor enough. To give the bean your name would just be too kind ;)

Little Miss.Knownothing

With the upcoming baby I'm not too sure for what we are really in for. I mean I've read the books and talked with people, but I think that becoming a parent is like any other "life change" like going off to college or getting married...people will tell you what to expect but it's not until you are actually in that situation that you know what it's like. So, I've been daydreaming about other life changing events that i've gone through...and how sometimes you just "don't know it all". Case & Point:

1.) Nap Time: mom always said I should appreciate this time, because once i grew up you lose this time to relax and sleep. I strongly disagreed...suprise: mom was right! Well, half right...over the past couple months i've been making time for my 2 hour naps, however, i think this too will fade.

2.)You Might just miss us: When I went away to college I couldn't WAIT to get out the door, but once mom and meg shut that dorm room door to leave after helping me move in....I realized that no matter how much my mom and little sister might annoy me, I'll always love them, they will always be there for me and I miss them!

3.) Money isn't everything: So, after my freshmen year of college I applied to work at a wonderful place called "Camp Cayuga". I picked to apply to be a camp counslor for a couple reasons - it sounded like a fun job, i was sick of smelling like pizza (another job i had when home from school), wouldn't have to deal with the humidity of Virginia (yes, this was an ACTUAL reason) and last but not least...i ASSUMED they would have to pay minimum wage, for every hour that i was on camp property....I WAS GOING TO BE RICH!

The last reason in particular really cracks me up! I didn't make much that summer (can't remember how much exactly) but between meeting the friends, my husband, the experiences both while working and on days off and realizing I wasen't horrible with kids all made it worth a million in my mind. I told Jamie this once, and he laughed so hard at me...but once I realized that I wasen't going to make as much as I thought, I was too sold on the other perks of the job. Plus I didn't want to be a loser and just not show up.

4.) You Never Know Who You're Going to Meet: So during that first week of orientation at camp Bealse sat all of us counslors down to have the "talk" about no PDA infront of the kids. He mentioned in this speech that "some of us might meet our future husbands or wives here" I literally remember turning to the girl next to me and saying "Ew, I'm SO not ready for that...lets get through college first..geez!" haha...guess who i met that summer?

5.) True Love Can Survive Just About Anything: Ok, I know Jamie and I have only been together for 7 years (almost 8)...so it's not a lifetime. But I was convinced it wasen't going to work once he got back on that plane to go back over to England. And for the two years that we had the distance between us it did work. Since we've gotten married we've had to deal with life...which as I've learned has it's fair share of ups and downs - getting jobs, losing a job, buying a house, having a baby...but we've never for one minute thought that there was ever anyone else out there for us both. PLUS, I've learned that you actually can love that special someone more as time goes on. I thought I was head over heels when Jamie and I got married...and I'm pretty sure I was, but I love him so much MORE now...it's hard to believe.

I'm sure there is more and even MORE to come...but I'm looking foward to seeing what I'll be happy to learn with the arrival of our new Bean. Whats the one thing that you can now see yourself being Little Miss. (or Mister) Knownothing?

A Room For Bean

Crib & Dresser

Bedding ("Cotton Tail & Friends")

Crib

Okay, so we still have more work to do. I'm thinking of putting something right above the crib. Originally, I was thinking a mural, but can't find one small enough...maybe the babys name... And I still have to find something to hang over the dresser...any ideas? And then Dad and Elizabeth are coming into town in a few weeks to help us build built-ins around the window...AND i have to make a slipcover for the rocker...so I will have updates, but we're getting close. Bad news is the baby is getting close too...but i'm sure we'll make it;)

Baby Land

SO excited! The babys furniture finally got delivered yesterday. And it all looks perfect!! I will post pictures once the hubby gets home (he always steals the camera on his business trips..plus, he hangs pictures a LOT better than myself!). So stay tuned!

People have their opinions

Just a short rant. I, for the most part, love that everyone has an opinion about every part of this pregnancy. Everything from "oh, you're so emotional and big...you're going to deliver early" to "oh, you're having heartburn, your baby will have loads of hair". Most of these comments I laugh or think about for a second and then push aside same as you would a comment about the weather.

But, I am about to scream!Jamie and I have decided to do cloth diapers. Yes, cloth diapers. No, we're not hippies, no, we're not underestimating the facts of parenthood. But yes, I have done a lot of research and to be honest the fact that MY diapers are probably still fully intact in some landfill really bothers me. So, I'm doing my part...because honestly, I'm hoping this will offset my horrible memory to grab my cloth grocery bags EVERY time i go to the grocery store.

I'm sure every parent makes at least one decision that not EVERYONE thinks they will stick with...so this is mine. Let me have it, and stop picking on me for it. Espically, when there are more than one nay-sayers and I'm trying super hard to just be polite and thus not be able to stand up for my decision.

Okay, obviously, everyone who reads this post are NOT the ones that I'm talking about. For the most part, it's random people or people who don't know me that well..but how have you guys handled the "nay-sayers" of parenthood without being too rude yourself?

Baby Birthing Class

So, since we've begun expecting Jamie and I have become avid learners. I have what I refer to as the "baby library" stacked up ontop of my nightstand and will read basically whatever I can. Even Jamie has indulged in a book or two. But a week ago we began the "baby birthing class". We meet with our instructor and probably 6 other couples and learn the ins and outs of how to have a baby.I figured that after all the books that I had read I was going in pretty well prepared...definetly ready to become teachers pet! However, it appears that not all the reading in the world can prepare you for an actual birth...case and point:

Yesterdays class we began with a little excersise; Liz, the teacher, handed out "uteri" (also known as a deflated balloon) with a "baby" (also known as a ping pong ball) inside the uterus. She instructed everyone to blow up their balloon and instead of tying off the mouth bit to instead turn the balloon so the mouth bit is at the bottom and allow the "baby" to plug the hole. Then in an effort to explain how contractions work she started to squeeze the top of the "uterus" so that slowly but surely the "baby" started to move through the "cervix" (also known as the mouth bit of the balloon). One by one my classmates "babies" were born (literally bouncing across the room). Eventually, Jamie had his "baby" at which point I tried to take avantage of this situation and hand off the delivery of my "baby" (something that I won't get the privledge of doing come March). Both he and the instructor insisted that I continue...even though at this point I was the last laboring balloon left. Everyone was watching (no pressure) at which point i mentioned that I was nervous of popping my ballon. Liz insisited that never had she had a ruptured uterus, but that just like in real labor my fear was holding me back. At which point I set aside my fear and pushed on...literally.

One HUGE push....only one more and i was sure that my baby was going to be born...BAM!!!

Apparently, not only did I reputure my uterus but it was then pointed out by Liz that sometimes we do need assistance in birth..all i could do was sheepishly look at my husband and say, well, I hope you're happy with one kid. Oh well for being teachers pet...guess I better go get a new book..something on how to push without popping your uterus..any ideas?