Preparing for Baby, Nesting

What do I need to prepare for the baby?
As I come closer to my due date (just about 2 months) I am not only having a great time playing around in the "baby room" but thinking about the birth and what things I will need that day and during the immediate days to follow. I have been reading a book that a friend passed on to me at a rapid pace and am already about a quarter of the way through it.
What to Expect the First Year

Many of the things covered in this book helped me cover some of those items I didn't think of.
Get a nursing bra?- My question was whether or not to get one so I can leave the house to get more? Or at least be somewhat covered in case I need to run somewhere...
What I decided to do was get a couple of wireless cami-type bras that are super comfortable as well as easy to whip a boob out of if need be. They are comfortable and I'm wearing them already. My reasoning is that I will never know exactly how big I'm gonna need the bra to be until the "milk comes in." Sounds like a milkman will be showing up. Cute image, but no. Also, from what I've been reading about the frequency of feedings and napping (both by me and the baby), it doesn't sound like I will really be getting dressed all that often. So, on that note...
Sleepwear- I bought myself a pair of pj's that are a button up top and pants. The buttons make for easy access for nursing. Now I can at least look somewhat presentable when I've been in and out of bed all day. The bras I got will give a little support underneath as well. I also made sure that the sleepwear is season-appropriate. It will still be winter when the baby comes, so I bought flannel. I may also get myself something a little lighter when the time comes.
Diapers- This is an obvious one of course, but there are specifics to discuss. We have decided that we would like to try using cloth diapers. I also decided that in the beginning, disposable would be more practical for the learning process, especially with those first few diapers being filled with meconium. I have a friend who gave me a 40 pack of the best diapers you can get as far as bio-degradable/planet-friendly is concerned. I have learned that I will need to take care of as many as 7-10 dirty and wet diapers in the first few days. That being said, I can maybe get through the first week on this pack. So, I am ordering 2 more packs to cover myself for hopefully the first 3 weeks. The ones we're looking at are made by Seventh Generation.

After we get through the majority of those, we will see how big the baby is and re-evaluate. That will be a good time to start getting our cloth diapers and covers together. I must remember to consult my group of knowledgeable mothers on their recommended brands!
Baby Wipes- I am buying a couple of packs of biodegradable wipes from the same company as well as I wanted to make some of my own. I figured that if I am going to be washing cloth diapers, it shouldn't be too much of a big deal to add the wipes to the load. I took some hand me down receiving blankets and cut them to size (to fit in a wipes-warmer I also inherited). Just a few blankets made 4 dozen wipes... which apparently will last only a few days.

For the liquid on the wipes I decided to go with some advice on a website I came across and get a soap foaming pump. I plan to use Dr. Bronner's tea-tree scented soap concentrate. This soap is made with all organic oils and ingredients and the first ingredient is coconut oil, which sounds great to me since I've been using it on myself. It doesn't take much of this stuff added to water to get a nice foam going. I will most likely squirt each wipe as I use it with the foam instead of leaving them all sitting in liquid. We will see when the time comes, if this is a practical method or not.
Must have items registry items- This is just a list of stuff I did not even think to add to my registry until I spoke with a mother of 3 (2 of which only having just arrived in August):
*Nail clippers/scissors
*Shampoo
*Sunscreen (won't need for a little while, but it's good to look into brands)
*Nasal aspirator
*Baby thermometers
*Pacifiers (we don't want to use them regularly but will have an emergency pair)
*Teethers (can be needed within a couple of months)

*Size range clothing - Newborn stuff is very small, so I went back and registered for mostly 0-3 months      and 6-9 months and have a very few hand-me-down newborn items. I was a big baby and therefore expect a big one myself...

*Coconut oil - instead of diaper rash cream, lotion, anything... has anti-bacterial properties

Hello nipples!- Nipple care seems to be a huge deal, which is cool because I've had them all this time and now they are gonna get some use. I've been reading about bleeding, cracking, mastitis, plugged ducts and infections and all kinds of good stuff. I decided to stock up on necessary nipple needs. I am ordering Lasinoh gel pads and lanolin cream. I have a bag full of nursing pads that were leftovers from a mommy friend. So, those are taken care of. The gel pads look really cool because they can be warmed up or put in the fridge for cooling relief. Apparently you're also supposed to let your nipples air-out. "Don't mind me guys.... I'm just letting my nipples air-out." That'll go over well when company's here. Haha.

Nesting
We have a second room in our apartment which would be the baby's room, but we also need it for guests. So, I haven't really got all of my baby things set up. I do have most of the gifts laying out so I can look at them or pet the especially soft blankets he got. It won't be a full-on nursery until he starts sleeping in his own room. We decided that we will have the baby sleep with us and are ordering a co-sleeper to pull up right next to the bed. Why are we co-sleeping? Well, firstly because I will be breastfeeding and nothing could be more convenient than having the little guy at an arm's length for those late night feedings.
The second reason he is sleeping with us makes me think of when we got our first puppy, Olive. We tried to "crate-train" her at night and lost hours of sleep during that month or so. She would cry and cry and even got her mouth stuck in the metal grid door trying to get out. We brought her into our room, which made it a little bit better. The first night we decided to let her sleep in our bed with us, she slept with no problems and we all woke up late the next morning and it's been that way ever since. The poor little girl just wanted to be near a warm body. She didn't know any different from being with her mom and litter-mates. My point being that this little guy has been with me for 7+ months. Why would I stick him in the other room just because he came out? Imagine how terrifying that must be for a newborn to go from a warm tiny space with a heartbeat to a cold and dark expansive room.
So our guest/baby room will be for play and hanging out on the daybed when we have no one staying with us.

I put some black contact paper with retro-looking yellow flowers on the inside of the hutch for an extra touch. I wasn't worried that it might not look masculine enough. We also have the "Bumbo" seat with removable tray. There was a recall of these because people were putting them on counters and table tops with their baby in it and then walking away. Go figure, some of the babys fell and hurt themselves. I think I will manage to be smarter than that.
The blue thing on the hutch is a baby bath with a robe and sock set on top of it. We've already got a small collection of books for whenever bedtime stories start. Looks like we're on our way to being prepared? Not nearly.
Our bedroom needs a complete overhall. I got a changing station, painted it and papered the shelves with a thick wrapping paper that has a faux birch bark look. This will go in our room. Yes, I am partial to turquoise right now. I was gonna go for black except this will match the color on the armoire I painted (staying out in the hall).

We also have a crib for unattended napping in our room. The co-sleeper is still missing and if I can wedge the glider in there, we are golden. This excludes my mission to find a way to hang a mobile when the ceiling is impenetrable concrete, and the shelving I'd like to put up with other assorted baby eye-candy.
I guess the nesting instinct is me going into the room with the baby clothes and petting the blankets and working on little projects in there. I am enjoying looking at all the stuff we have for him and imagining a little baby laying on the shaggy rug and rolling around. Yes, it is currently my favorite room in the house. My next order of business is making the actual room we will be spending the first month or two in fully equipped with diaper changing, breastfeeding and sleeping necessities. If we could just install a kitchen upstairs, we'd be set.
Note to self: I also need a diaper pail!

My mother-in-law is making me and Ellis a needlepoint masterpiece to hang on his door. I'm so excited to see how it will turn out. This is the inspiration collage I made up for her.

I know some of this decor stuff can be boring, but I'm all over it. So, I tried to limit it all to this post. We will see how our bedroom pans out and possibly go over it's functions and maybe some of the cute little things I wanna do in there. It's blog related, I swear.... Nesting is a "primal" instinct...

On the food side of things, I made this amazingly easy meat sauce which we ate over yam starch noodles called No Oodles. Still primal and going strong! (And seriously looking forward to my first reunion with coffee - decaf while breastfeeding, of course)

To make this: I bought 2lbs. grass-fed beef from Trader Joe's and their package of fresh organic basil. Browned the meat in a giant sauce pan with big splashes of red wine, coffee (one of my cooking secrets), and about 1/2 tbs. sea salt. Then added one can of kirkland brand organic tomato sauce and one can of their organic diced tomatoes (which I put in the bullet with some fresh thyme, garlic powder, onion powder). I poured half of that in with the meat and kept enough liquid in the bullet to mix with the whole bunch of basil minus the big stems. Oh yes, and a little bit of oregano. You can also use straight up italian seasoning. I always taste as I go and add this and that accordingly. 

Dogs and Pregnancy

Well, we made it through our first hurricane. We are very lucky, our little family of 4 and 1/2. Our building is a giant cement block in the center of Staten Island on the top of a hill. This put us out of harms way from the downed trees, flooding, giant waves and other chaos that went on in many unfortunate neighborhoods.
These two furry children (Dexter and Olive) were showing their sensitivity to the weather earlier in the week. I could feel the pressure changes in my head and I'm sure it was doubly so for them!

Dogs and Pregnancy
I was very curious to see when and how my dogs would understand that I am pregnant. Sometimes I think they absolutely know and other times, I'm not so sure. They definitely are in the process of learning not to jump up on me when they say hello.
In the beginning I thought that if they smelled my pee, their magical noses would pick up on my chemical changes. Not sure if that worked. Then I figured they must just smell the new hormones I am producing anyway. I wondered if they could hear anything with their head close to my growing belly. Perhaps I overestimate that sense just a little.
The first thing I really noticed was when I am at the gym (our business), Olive (the bigger, older one) barks at everyone who walks in the door. She knows pretty much every single member by now and at some point had become totally un-phased by the constant people coming and going. When I am there, it is different. Next, I realized this was going to make it impossible for me to walk with her outside off-leash because she runs up barking at anyone she sees. It doesn't help that she does not consider me to be the "pack leader" as the Dog Whisperer would say. This is partly my husband's fault for "barking" over my orders when I try to command the dogs.
I will say that they are both a little extra clingy to me lately. Who wouldn't like the extra love! When we are out walking in the woods, Olive likes to be by my side more than usual. She also wants to sit behind me on the couch when we eat dinner and curl around me. It's cute until I want to lean back and be comfortable.
There was one instance when I was sitting and Olive went to jump up and put her paws on my lap but moved them out to the sides so as not to hit my belly. I thought for sure this was a sign she knew! But now it seems like she forgot entirely that my lap is disappearing.
I've read about a couple of similar behavior changes in online articles here and here.
I am only 5 1/2 months along, starting to really look pregnant and am very curious to see how this progresses with the two dogs. Dexter, the littler one, has such a laid back attitude and wants to cuddle with anyone and everyone at all times. So, I haven't really noticed any changes in that behavior. He may be a little bummed when I start calling someone else "my little baby."
As for the birthing process, since they will both be here when it happens in the house, it should be interesting. I think Olive's tendency to be over anxious in certain situations may take over and she may end up in the corner shaking. I hope not, but we have yet to see.
I can't wait for them to meet their new pack member!

Notes to the Little One

Hello Little One!

"Yes Mommy? I'm listening."

Notes to the Little One
I had the great joy of seeing you again on Tuesday. I saw your feet and hands. I saw your fingers and a "thumbs up." I saw more of your backside than the sonographer wanted and we tried and tried to get you to roll over to show us your profile. I got to see your heart with all four chambers pumping away. Your Daddy was there too. We saw the placenta that looked like a pillow. You were cold I think, and am guessing that is why you wouldn't turn around. Maybe it's because it was past lunch time by the time they got us into the room for the exam. By that time I was already pretty annoyed with the lady at the front desk and the weirdos we had to sit in the waiting room with. Sorry about that. I'm sure it didn't help your mood either.
Nonetheless, there you were. I am truly not alone. Your head was on my right side and your feet on my left. I feel like that is the way you stay most of the time because the majority of your movement comes from where I assume your feet are. I feel little movements by your hands and head. Seeing you move on the screen and feeling it at the same time made me realize all those little feelings were really you tapping away. Now that I know that you are there, I am hyper-aware of everything you do. It's you and me now, hanging out in the apartment when everyone else is gone.
Let's make breakfast!

We are having 2 pieces of TJ's bacon, 2 pastured eggs, red onion, spicy peppers and spinach topped with a half of an avocado. I hope you like it. You must like a little bit of spice because I didn't start adding that to my breakfast until you came along. First it was an addiction to Cholula, which now I couldn't care less about, and now with the spicy peppers that your Dad pickled. We also take our vitamins every morning.

I'm pretty sure I felt you hiccuping the other night. It was a repeating movement that felt like a strong heartbeat coming from where I think your head and chest are. It says in my Sprout app that you are doing this from time to time to learn how to breathe and swallow. In another week and a half you will start to develop tastebuds but you wont really taste the food for some months after that. You can expect us to be eating plenty of veggies and weird things that I will want you to like when you are a growing child. I read it in my book: Do Chocolate Lovers Have Sweeter Babies?: The Surprising Science of Pregnancy by Jena Pincott. The foods I eat when you are in the womb and tasting them, will be foods you eat without protest when you come out. You will be a primal baby from the beginning!

By the way, there is supposed to be a hurricane coming tomorrow and Tuesday. We were supposed to go to the doctor and talk about your development but they called and cancelled all appointments due to the storm. I have never been in a hurricane before, and it's going to be an interesting Halloween this year (Wed. night) if it continues until then. Some people are worried but I am a little excited to see what happens and don't mind the prospect of sitting in candle-light watching the wind strip the trees of their red and yellow leaves. We have to pull the remainders of our vegetable garden inside since it could all blow away. Your dad says that we might not be able to go outside to even let Olive and Dexter go to the bathroom. I won't understand until I see the storm in action. Poor doggies. Olive is an anxious girl and Dexter was always afraid of thunder, so they will probably be a mess through the whole thing. I can't wait for you to meet them. They will be your biggest fans, I am sure.

Now I am off to the gym. We gotta keep this body in shape!

Working Out
Today's WOD:

100 double-unders  (I scaled to 25-30 and at most linked 7)

5 snatches 95 lbs.  (I did 65)

***5 rounds for time***  my time - 20:54

*work-out side-note: Too much jumping makes me pee or feel like I'm peeing or just have a little extra wetness in the baby-exit area. It sometimes, like today, is necessary to make a quick bathroom break to pee or just wipe-down. Yes, too much info. but info. nonetheless.

The last time I worked out was last Sunday. I know these wods are getting few and far-between but I will continue to fight the urge to be lazy. I did row sprints. That's row your ass off for 250 meters, record your time, rest for 2 minutes and try to row faster the next time, for 8 rounds. It felt good. I didn't really warm-up so my first round was the worst.
The rounds looked something like this:
1:03
0:56
0:57
0:58
0:59
0:58
0:58
0:58

Not too shabby. I did end up sucking down some huge gasps of air afterward... but since I have learned that my baby gets it's oxygen from the placenta and not from what I am breathing in, I wasn't worried for the little one. I feel that we're both strong enough to take a little extra physical exertion. After all, many a cavewoman probably had to make quick escapes from more dangerous predators than a gym while pregnant, right? And man has survived obviously.
I don't think the little one minded the workout then or today. There didn't seem to be a whole lot of racket going on in there until we got super hungry for lunch.

For lunch we had nooodles. No, that is no typo. It is actually No Oodles. I used leftover meat sauce from the other night and had spaghetti bolognese. It wasn't as fancy as it sounds but I LOVE NOOODLES! Followed this up with some apple-pear pie I made and was in heaven.

Notes to the Little One (cont'd)
I started to buy things for you, little baby. It makes me super happy already. I brought it all home and made your dad come and look at each and every thing. I don't think he got the same fulfillment that I did out of it, but he was happy that I was. I can't wait for you to see all the little wonders that I am going to put together in your room. I bought knobs for the armoire that I rescued from the street. I'm going to start painting it if we get stuck in the house tomorrow because of the wind. I bought little things to hang from a mobile for you and little friends to say hello to when you look in the mirror. I bet you are excited too and that's why you are kicking around now. You are going to be my favorite project! I am off to start hanging your new curtains and play with the other things I bought you. Daddy is napping on the couch and the doggies are in their beds waiting to see what this storm will bring. I love you little one!
-Your Mommy

Ready for Parenthood?

I thought this was pretty funny, so I decided to share:

HOW TO KNOW WHETHER OR NOT YOU ARE READY TO HAVE A BABY

MESS TEST

-Smear peanut butter on the sofa and curtains. Now rub your hands in the wet flower bed and rub on thewalls.

-Place a fish stick behind the couch and leave it there all summer.

-Obtain a 55-gallon box of Legos. (If Legos are not available, you may substitute roofing tacks or broken bottles.) Have a friend spread them all over the house. Put on a blindfold. Try to walk to the bathroomor kitchen. Do not scream (this could wake a child at night).

GROCERY STORE TEST

-Borrow one or two small animals (goats are best) and take them with you as you shop at the grocery store. Always keep them in sight and pay for anything they eat or damage.

DRESSING TEST

-Obtain one large, unhappy, live octopus. Stuff into a small net bag making sure that all arms stay inside.

FEEDING TEST

-Obtain a large plastic milk jug. Fill halfway with water. Suspend from the ceiling with a stout cord. Start the jug swinging. Try to insert spoonfuls of soggy cereal (such as Fruit Loops or Cheerios) into the mouth of the jug while pretending to be an airplane. Now dump the contents of the jug on the floor.

NIGHT TEST

-Prepare by obtaining a small cloth bag and fill it with 8 to 12 pounds of sand. Soak it thoroughly in water. At 8:00 PM begin to waltz and hum with the bag until 9:00 PM. Lay down your bag and set your alarm for 10:00 PM.Get up, pick up your bag, and sing every song you have ever heard. Make up about a dozen more and sing these too until 4:00 AM. Set alarm for 5:00 AM. Get up and make breakfast. Keep this up for 5 years. Look cheerful.

PHYSICAL TEST

-Obtain a large bean-bag chair and attach it to the front of your clothes. Leave it there for 9 months. Now remove 10% of the beans. Purchase a newspaper. Go home and read it quietly for the last time.

FINAL ASSIGNMENT

-Find a couple who already have a small child. Lecture them on how they can improve their child's discipline, patience, tolerance, toilet training, and table manners. Suggest many ways they can improve. Emphasize to them that they should never allow their children to run wild.


Enjoy this experience. It will be the last time you will have all the answers.