Tuesday, January 19, 2010

The Final Countdown


The last few weeks have been a whirlwind of activity in our home as we make final preparations for Baby Kubo’s welcome into the world. We’ve washed loads and loads of diapers, blankets and other baby-related laundry, taking special care not to go overboard in case we have a closet full of clothes that the baby will never have a chance to wear.

I have completed my newborn diaper stash with a selection of fitteds, diaper wraps, some homemade soakers from a local woman and a variety of cloth diaper wipes. We also have some prefolds and all-in-ones for future use. I’m still waiting on some custom-made pail deodorizer and wipe solution/bum cleaner to arrive in the mail. My rapid research and foray into the world of cloth diapering is worthy of its own post one day, but today isn’t that day.

We have the co-sleeper set up in our room, and the crib was picked up and assembled today. Brian is a great expectant dad, knowing exactly what to do and when. He even made sure the car seat was properly installed today, which is not nearly as easy as it sounds. Luckily, our brother-in-law is a firefighter and father, and therefore, well educated and experienced in that sort of thing.

There’s a misconception among some couples that it’s better to be the parents of the first grandchild, but I have to say that we have benefitted greatly from the fact that Brian’s sister was the first on his side to have children. We’ve been so blessed to learn from them and their experiences over the past few months. We’ve not had to reinvent the wheel, and that’s made for a stress-free pregnancy in so many ways.

I’ve enjoyed practicing swaddle and babywearing techniques on the stuffed animals I’ve kept since childhood. Brian says I’m getting pretty good at it. Of course, we’re both aware that it’s easy to be good on inanimate objects. But at least I’m getting the basics mastered. Next step: Add squirmy newborn.

I’m just beginning my 40th week of pregnancy and am eagerly anticipating signs of labor. As I’ve said before, I’m in no rush to end the experience but I am ready to meet the baby now. We’ve waited a long time to get to this point and it’s exciting to see the end in sight, even if that end is merely the beginning to a whole new experience.

2 comments:

9to5to9 said...

Love, love, love the crib! What a great way to go gender-neutral without defaulting to yellow and mint, plus the high contrast helps early vision development!

Good for you, too, for doing a trial run on the car seat closer to your date. We did it too early with our oldest, which meant we'd fumbled when we were leaving the hospital. The nurses were a little mean about it, standing there with their arms crossed as we struggled - "Nope. Can't help you. The law says you have to do it." Funny thing, though. Two years later, nurses at the same hospital were practically jumping in the car offering to help.

Tonya said...

Isn't it amazing how hospital protocol can change so quickly?