Archive for July, 2006
Well, I’m another week closer to meeting this little life that has been growing inside me. It’s also another day in which I have yet one more rant I’d like to share.
Like most new moms I started a baby registry. Although, I know I’m not having a shower, I did the whole registry thing anyway so that in case anyone asked us what we needed I could just point them in that direction and my dear husband and I could pick what we wanted and buy at our own leisure without forgetting what it was we chose.
Without naming the store, let’s just say I chose a very well known “we sell everything for baby” store. This store also has an online registry feature. So, one would think this was perfect and convenient. You have two options - go to store and buy what is needed or go online and order it and have it delivered right to your door.
Well, so much for convenience. In the last month every time I go to my online registry more than half the items are listed as not available. As I mentioned I know several other pregnant women so I checked their registries to see if it’s just the stuff I wanted that’s not available. Nope, almost everything on everyone’s registry is not available. What is up with that? How are all we moms supposed to get what we need at this “we sell everything for baby” store if they don’t have anything we need?
Fortunately, my husband and I already have the essentials. Of course, accomplishing this involved me making numerous shopping trips to said store because not everything would fit in my car. It would have been a lot easier and less time consuming if I could have gone online and clicked a few buttons and had it all delivered to my door.
So, here’s a message to that “we sell everything baby” store …“Get your online act together! Life while pregnant is exhausting enough without the added inconvenience of making extra trips to your store!”
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[Editor’s Note:] Stephanie is a stay at home mommy-to-be who will become a stay at home mom. She has been my friend since junior high and we have been through many of our own milestones in life together. She likes to say that she is the spicy to my sweet. She will be writing a weekly rant if she can think of that many things to rant about…and take my word for it, she can!
July 19th, 2006
After much agony (on the part of Aiden) and many cries during the night (sometimes by both of us), the molars have finally broken their way through the swollen gums. Aiden has two molars now, one on the top right and one on the lower left. Intersting configuration if you ask me! I am hoping that the other two are not far behind so that he can chew without irritating the sensitive gums under or above. All in all, he seems pretty pleasant about the whole thing. He hasn’t been eating much at each meal and I’m sure this is why.
July 8th, 2006
I’ve really been thinking about all the preparation it takes to be a mommy. I can’t tell you how many days I agonized over whether I should wash all the baby’s clothes and blankets before he wears them and if so, what kind of laundry products should I use to do all this extra wash. I mean, what if I wash it in some kind of detergent that gives him a hideous rash. Will someone call DYFS and will they take him away from me? What if I choose the wrong bottles and nipples and he ends up with latching issues and nipple confusion all because I wanted to go get my hair done and I needed daddy to give him a bottle so I could look beautiful again? Will he starve to death?
And what about all these classes the hospital recommends in order to prepare for the arrival of this miraculous human being? Okay, so I agreed to take the Breastfeeding and the Childbirth class, but I decided to forego the Newborn Care class all because my husband’s work/travel schedule just made scheduling too painful. I gave my nephew plenty of baths when he was a baby. He’s almost 10 now and he seems to be thriving just fine. But will others think I’m a terrible mother because I had the audacity to think I could bathe and swaddle my newborn without the advice of a special class? And here I just thought I’d be really careful and learn as I went along and if all else failed I’d call my mother. Sigh, this child is not even born yet and already I feel like a failure.
And why are there no fathers logging on to message boards worrying about these issues? Is it only mothers that get all this guilt-ridden anxiety? My husband doesn’t lose sleep over these issues. He’s confident that we are intelligent enough to handle this responsibility. This is not to say he doesn’t have some worries about becoming a new father, but it just seems like all the minute issues are weighing on my shoulders and the shoulders of all those other moms on the message boards.
Am I crazy to feel this way? Am I the only woman brave enough to say, “Enough is enough!”? If our mothers and grandmothers could raise children into adulthood without all these new fangled anxieties and rules than why oh why can’t I?
So, is this just third trimester cynicism coming out or do other people have these thoughts as well?
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[Editor’s Note:] Stephanie is a stay at home mommy-to-be who will become a stay at home mom. She has been my friend since junior high and we have been through many of our own milestones in life together. She likes to say that she is the spicy to my sweet. She will be writing a weekly rant if she can think of that many things to rant about…and take my word for it, she can!
July 7th, 2006
Happy 4th of July everyone! Here is a recap of our weekend…
Friday - Went to see the fireworks at the local high school with Shelia, Chris and Skylar. Just as the fireworks were starting, it began to rain. We stayed to watch them anyway and Aiden and Skylar were not phased in the least.
Sunday - Enjoyed a nice bbq at home with the company of Tara, Drew and Hamlet. Aiden had a ball playing “I’m Gonna Get You” with Hamlet until Hamlet would bark, which made Aiden cry. They were super cute playing together though.
Monday - Tara and Drew joined us for fireworks at the college where Chris works. There was a local band providing music and everyone (including Aiden) was dancing. The display was nice but much later than Friday night, so Aiden went to bed super late. I have to say he is not drastically affected by the changes in his routine and actually was pleasant to be around.
Tuesday - Attended a picnic at a friend’s house. We actually had four invites and chose this particular party because there was a pool. Yes, I even blew off seeing family, but since we don’t have a pool and Aiden loves the water, we just couldn’t pass this up. It rained on the way there and apparently all those who were on time to the picnic had to take cover. Our tardiness paid off this time! Chris, Aiden and I joined the kids in the pool and had a great time. I think we chose wisely.
Hope everyone had a wonderful time celebrating our independence, while we still have it that is.
July 4th, 2006