Can you believe that? We’ve already gone through the first 6 months of pregnancy, and now we’re already in the home stretch! Amazing… I can’t even imagine how fast life will go once that little booger actually comes out ;)
But now that we’re so dang close to the big day, we’re realizing that we have soooooooo much more to do still. Like clearing out our old guest room (aka the new baby room), painting it, organizing it, and even putting together the only two things we’ve bought so far for the little guy, haha… the dresser and the crib :) $299 each at Target – woop! And we just found out the Mrs.’ mom will be paying for them too as her baby gifts for us, so that’s even sweeter. It also means that we have still yet to pay a dime for any “stuff” we got so far if you were to omit all the doctor visits & tests, etc etc (only about a thousand dollars haha…) …which is pretty much what a lot of y’all have told us already – “don’t buy things cuz people will give you a lot!” So far so true :)
And while it is a bit nerve wracking not knowing *what*, exactly, to pick up and what not to yet (especially in the clothes department considering we had zero as of last week), I AM resting a bit better now knowing we were just offered like 3 trash bags full of brand new and used little boy clothes. And from what the Mrs. says so far (she peered through a lot of it already), we’re apparently set for the first 6 months already, haha… awesome! Of course, who knows how “cool” a lot of these hand-me-downs will be and what not, but since I usually think anything that’s super tiny is cute, I’m sure they’ll be just fine ;) After all, they’ll be throwing up on them all the time anyways, right?
Let’s see here, what else… Well, we’re still going to the doctors every 3-4 weeks which is about to turn into *every* week, and a lot more costs in the near future too… And then we’ll be signing up for baby classes here shortly as well – which I’m kinda looking forward to :) I’m still not sure whether taking a “daddy” class is all that important or not (seems a bit awkward to me?), but I think I’ll start poking around other dad blogs out there in the meantime. For some reason it’s only just NOW hitting me that I haven’t researched a thing about being a dad! Haha… it’s kinda like taking an exam, ya know? You only pay attention when that knowledge is either needed right away, or you’re about to go in for a major test, so you have to cram it all in the night before ;) And apparently that’s how I’m approaching this new baby thing too, haha… Gotta wait till’ do or die time!
That’s pretty much all of it on the baby front right now. I’ll keep ya updated as it gets closer – especially how it’s affecting our finances and all that (like when I start saving for college expenses in the *very* near future, ugh…) – but rest assured I have no idea what I’m getting myself into ;) I figured people have been doing this for thousands of years now though, so it can’t be *too* bad, right? (RIGHT?) Feel free to drop any other nuggets of advice you may have to guide me through this last home stretch here… it may be the only thing I read until the night before his birth ;)
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PS: And if you can find out where that killer bib is for sale up there, you’ll become my new best friend too! That thing cracks me up, haha… love it.
(Awesome photo by Robert Scoble)
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Let me just say, from experience, you don’t need “everything” people tell you that you do. There are some things now that I think were a total waste of money. There are some things that we can’t do without either (bottle warmer!!!)
Wow. Buy nothing is a good strategy! I will have to remember that for when I get ready for kids. I hope you find that bib. I will send a link over if I find it first :) Congrats!
Have Brad Chaffee make you a bib!
You’ll be just fine. Make sure you use coupons to buy those diapers!
This one i love the best, as you probably know if you hang around you wife when people that have had kids. It seems as though everyone always knows someone that was in labor for a month, they pushed out a 45lbs baby everyone has a one up story about how bad their pregnancy was. Really it isnt that bad, I think it is human nature to care for kids atleast that’s what I think. My least favorite part was hanging around while she was in labor waiting for my lil kiddie to pop out to find out she needed a C section. You think you love your wife and everything but knowing that in a few moments she is going to be cut open to take out your child made me break down.
Once the baby comes out you will be like a hawk staring down its prey. You will not let the baby out of your sight.
Oh yah you added the comments subscription back!
I’m not a parent yet, so I can only speak from observation, not experience – but I’d say about 90% of the baby stuff out there is more for the parents than the kid. When it comes down to it, all a baby really needs is a full belly, clean clothes, and a comfortable place to sleep. And lots of snuggles. ;-)
Oh, and speaking of things that are really more for the parents than the kids, I’m a big fan of the kids clothes and onesies at ThinkGeek: http://www.thinkgeek.com/tshirts-apparel/kids/
Ha… and I should probably note that “clean clothes” includes clean diapers. :-P
Such a cute bib! You must be so excited. Have you picked out names yet?
After having 2 kids, take the second hand clothes (all of them) and be grateful! With both of mine, we’ve done that, and didn’t actually have to buy much for our son until now (he’s 5!). Our daughter won’t have to have new clothes for a while either – whether they are “in style” or not is irrelevant to the kids, only to the parents. As for other baby things, another commenter is right – 90% of the stuff is not needed. Get 1 good stroller for the baby, a car seat, crib, a rocking chair for you, a diaper bag, and a place to store the clothes (dresser or closet – your choice). Hand-me-downs are fabulous for saving money, and the KIDS DON’T CARE. Neither one of my children have cared that all their stuff wasn’t brand new. We didn’t care either, just so long as we didn’t have to pay for it. We have reused items from one child to the next (again, saving money) and this includes clothes (get some basic onesies or neutral colored outfits and use for boys and girls). I also highly recommend cloth diapers, if your wife or you are up to the cleaning. They save TONS of money in the long run and are usually better for the baby’s rear. :) Just my 2 cents as a mom!
Christopher….funny that a man would say pregnancy and labor isnt that bad!
In all seriousness though, I had a fantastic first pregnancy, labor and delivery. Biggest natural high of my life after my son came out. Pregnant again now, also due in July, and this time its been a little harder. I am chalking it up to being 6 years older this time and having a rambunctious 5 year old to run after.
It is true though, there are so many things I either bought with my first son or was given that were complete wastes of money. I am trying very hard not to fall into that trap again. We are not finding out the gender ahead of time (hoping for a girl), but if its a boy we should never have to buy him clothes—my son was born in June, so since this one is July the sizes and seasons will be right on.
I still have many things from my son’s baby days, but luckily my motherinlaw wants to throw me a shower (its her son’s first baby as my son is with my ex). Thats a good thing too, because some things got damaged or lost during our move. Highchair and swing especially.
For me, the must haves were a baby swing (I would have never survived the first 3 months without it), dishwasher basket for sterilizing nipples, and the premade formula bottles (they are a FORTUNE but in the middle of the night or in a car ride when you cant heat up a bottle, they are wonderful).
I know you’d save money doing cloth diapers, but I could never do it. Laundry is already a constant thing just with burp cloths, diapers and sheets, I can’t imagine that as well. And, of course, breast feeding is a major money saver too (especially if your son ends up with colic and needs special formula to the tune of $300/month). Unfortunately, I am unable to nurse (I am well blessed but apparently God intended mine to be for decoration and fun only), so that is the biggest expense I am getting nervous for….except of course daycare ($1100/month) and college!
Congrats! http://naturalpapa.com/ is a great site for dads! You really don’t need that much for the new baby, and most of the first months will be spent sleeping, eating and more sleeping! :) There is also a site called Thredup, where you can purchase gently used baby clothes, and send in the stuff that you have used for credit. Have you both thought about hiring a Doula? Doulas are a great addition for delivery, studies have shown they assist in a shorter labor, less interventions and greater ease for both mom and dad. They don’t do anything medical, they are there for emotional and physical support and advocacy for the parents. DONA Intl has more information.
@ Nicole – glad you appreciate my humor.
“Unfortunately, I am unable to nurse (I am well blessed but apparently God intended mine to be for decoration and fun only), so that is the biggest expense I am getting nervous for”
Maybe the best line I have read in a while!!! I couldnt wait until ours stopped drinking formula felt like I was going to BJ’s all the time to stock up.
I have to agree w/Becky and Jeff…you don’t NEED everything ‘they’ say you need. You do need, however, a diaper genie. TRUST ME ON THAT!
I’m finishing up some stuff I’ve been working on for you guys and hope to get it in the mail soon…Auntie Trinnie has gone shopping! (and sewing)
I was just getting ready to type Diaper Genie when I saw Trinnie’s comment. Could not agree more.
Finding someone who will give you hand me downs is AWESOME!!! And surprisingly, the clothes that I love (ESPECIALLY IN THE FIRST TWO YEARS WHEN THEY GROW LIKE CRAZY) is the cute, super cheap, Garanimals line from Walmart! Shirts and pants for as low as $2.88 to $5! And they last surprisingly long.
Remember you want your baby to be comfortable – so buy mostly t-shirts, mini basketball shorts (a God send!), and sweats. He is going to be climbing, crawling, napping, eating and puking. What would you want to be wearing around the house for that?
We got rid of the diaper genie with baby #2 – it just seemed too gross to have a trash can full of poop right in the middle of the house. We just hit the trashcan in the garage and all the dirty diapers go out the door more often.
We did not get a wipes warmer (total waste and to me at least, a fire hazard) and we didn’t warm up our kids bottles. We either used room temp water or actually since its hot here, they preferred them from the fridge! It was so nice to be able to grab a bottle straight from the fridge all ready to go at 3 am.
And if you want REALLY big savings and are doing formula – a) do NOT buy it ahead of time – you don’t know what your baby will want and it is sooooooooo expensive, and b) try the generic stuff first!! Our son used the walmart ‘compare to Enfilmil GentleEase’ type and it was $14 compared to $30!!!! And that is per can! We went through about 6 to 8 per month. That could be as much as a $128 savings per month on formula alone.
And I know generic formula sounds scary – but the majority of the time the formula is literally exactly the same. Some companies will produce a bunch of their stuff with expensive brand labels, then medium brand, then the generic brand – and they are all filled with the exact same stuff!! They totally, totally play on your new parent guilt to try to get you to buy the expensive stuff. They even give it to you for free for the first week at the hospital to get you thinking, “Well my baby already uses this $35 a can brand….”
The one that really ticks me off are the ads that make it look like you are practically abusing your child if you don’t get them the ‘special’ formula for their eyes. They should just get right to the guilt trip and say, “YOU DON’T WANT YOUR BABY TO GO BLIND!? DO YOU!? DO YOU!?” It’s such a total crock of crap.
” I figured people have been doing this for thousands of years now though, so it can’t be *too* bad, right?”
Right. And the vast majority of those people probably weren’t half as smart as you so I think you’ll do fine :)
Congrats on the new addition to your family. We just had our first baby girl two months ago. It is unreal how fast it goes. The best thing someone did for us was they setup a diaper raffle for the baby shower. Basically everyone who comes to the baby shower brings a bag of diapers to be entered into a raffle for a nice prize like a pedicure or massage. This has saved us so much money. We are two months in and still have about 4 months worth of diapers. Like you said, don’t buy a bunch of stuff because people will buy it for you. Especially the grandparents. Good luck!!!
Congrats on the 6 months so far! I am sure that far in I would want the baby out tomorrow lol. No advice on what to buy or what not to buy. Just a simple wish that you can enjoy every second you have today, tomorrow and especially when the baby is born, because time goes by so fast.
One of my friends has a daddy blog that’s pretty great. He’s very funny. You might want to check it out: http://poopdeckcapt.wordpress.com/
Yay! It’s so exciting having a baby on the way. You’ll do fine!
@KimD – Well that was fast! Haha… hello my new best friend :)
@Beckey & Jeff – I think you’re right on that one, only thing is we have to go through it all first to figure out which is the good stuff and which is the unnecessary stuff ;) But I’ll remember that about the bottle warmer!
@Dana – Thanks! KimD up above just found it – she’s quick!
@Jackie Walters – Oh yeah, d’uh! Brad totally could! Perhaps he’ll make one for us as a present ;) (YOU READING THIS BRAD??)
@Christopher @ This That and The MBA – HAH! Great reference there w/ the hawk, I like that :) Though at first I thought you meant something about my kid’s mohawk, haha… which ofcourse he will have at some point ;) And yup! Added back comment notifications cuz I finally fixed the issues I’d been having for like a year — one stupid plugin (that I don’t even use!) was breaking everything!! So frustrating. But a great reminder to keep everything clean and not have stuff tying up your site esp. if you never even use it.
@Stephanie – HAH! Those are awesome!! Will try and convince the Mrs. to put them on our registry, haha.. I think you’re right – most stuff IS for the parents ;) And luckily snuggles are free! (And I know for a fact I’ll be giving them out like mad – I can’t wait!!)
@Daisy – Yup! We have a few names, with one of ’em being a huge front runner :) We’re not telling anyone yet though cuz people always judge no matter what! Haha… plus it’s the only surprise we have left ;)
@Laura Brown – Thanks! All good stuff to think about too :) You’re right in that the “trendy” clothes are more for the parents and others than the kids, but I’d still like some pretty killer outfits to take them out in, haha… but I think having 95% of the clothes be free and us only buy 5% of the “cooler” stuff would be totally enough. We’re not sure about the cloth diapers yet, but we’ll probably test out both the options and see what we like best… so many things to think about! :)
@Nicole – OMG hahaa.. “I am well blessed but apparently God intended mine to be for decoration and fun only” you are hilarious!! I love it! haha… thanks for sharing your experiences with us too, this is good stuff :)
@Nancy – Cool! Thanks for the site recommendation, I’ll check it out for sure :) And no, never even heard of a Doula! So I guess that’s a no, there ;) But I’ll ask the Mrs. if she’s heard or thought of it before and go from there. Thanks!
@Trinnie – WOOO!!!! We love Auntie Trinnie! :) And totally hear you on that Diaper Genie too – I think it’s the first thing the Mrs. is adding into our registry, haha… (along w/ some cloth diapers to give it a shot too, though not sure how long that will last)
@Jules – Hah! Great timing.
@Rachel211 – Hahaha… oh man, and I’m a perfect candidate for that marketing stuff too! I already fall for more “quality” stuff now that I’m more financially secure, and if you mix that in with BABY STUFF I’m sure my odds are even higher that I’ll want the “better” stuff! :) So thanks for the tips for sure – I’ll def. keep them in mind as we move along the process here… guess it’ll depend too on whether the wifey can breastfeed okay and all that? I know we really want to try thta first, but we’ll see what happens. Thanks for sharing your experiences with us!
@Dollar D @ The Dollar Disciple – Woohoo! Thanks! :)
@Matthew Doyle – Wowww great idea! I like that! I have no idea how big or not our baby shower will be, but if a ton of people come over that’ll be a ton of diapers! I’m gonna sugggest that to the wife to see if she can pass it along, haha… smart. And CONGRATS on your little one too! Maybe one day we’ll meet up at some park somewhere down the line :)
@LB – Thanks! That’s all I want in the end too – to enjoy it all and BE PRESENT throughout the rest of their lives :) My biggest fear is that I’ll still be a workaholic so I’m doing my best now to set more boundaries up. It’s hard, but I think I can do it in the long run. Thanks for your warm wishes :)
@Jessi – Ahahahaha… that title is already hilarious! Will click over as soon as I add this up – thanks :)
@This Aggie Saves – Thanks so much! I’m crazy excited!
Seriously, between baby showers, and random gifts from friends and family, I don’t know that there was anything that we really, really needed until baby was born. And once baby is born, as long as you have a Target or Walmart within a short drive, you can always make a quick trip to pick up anything you think you might need.
My wife and I took the parenting classes our first time around too, and while parts of it were a bit common sense, there were some valuable lessons in there as well. It’ll help with your “cram session”. ;)
Formula spit-up will stain, breast milk spit-up will not. Breast milk is free (definitely a blessing if the budget is tight like mine was). If you guys decide to do the breast milk in a bottle routine, the isis breast pump is awesome (what I used for baby 2 and 3). For baby 2 and 3, they ended up being in diapers and nothing else more often than not. Also, babies spend more time growing out of their cute little teeny-tiny clothes than actually wearing them. I never used a changing table (because I always ended up just changing the baby on the floor, or the couch, on my lap, on the tailgate, on the back seat, etc etc), never used a diaper genie or anything like that.
I didn’t take any daddy class and baby RB40 is doing just fine.
You’ll learn on the job my man. I agree with the comment above.
Don’t buy too many things. You can always go buy it if you really need it.
We don’t have a changing table, diaper genie, either.
Breast pump didn’t work for the Mrs. I was really glad we rented it first before buying one.
We went to formula pretty quickly.
Send me any daddy questions you have. Enjoy the last 3 months! :)
Trying to get prego, and when I do, I told the hubby the only thing we should register for, if we do even get a baby registry, is diapers and formula. I read somewhere that yes, babies need so much less than what this commercialized society make it seem. I will be perfectly happy to accept hand-me-downs.
Congrats on being in the home stretch!! You’re getting good advice not to buy tons of baby stuff – you will find out what you REALLY need once he’s here, and better not to have all the rest taking up space. I recommend lots of onsies and those super thin baby blankets (so you can always lay him down on something clean without having to super clean everything in the house.)
My other recommendation – read some of those baby books. From my experience one of the scariest things about being a new mom is feeling like you’re entirely responsible for this tiny new little person who suddenly matters about a million times more than everything else on the planet combined. Even with a super enthusiastic dad (which you are bigtime! nice work!) by your side it’s still easy for mom to feel like the weight of the responsibility is on her shoulders. The more prepared you can be on paper, the more she’ll feel like you’re facing it as a team. (I obviously say this without knowing your wife at all, but this is just how a lot of my friends and family members and I felt as new moms, but were too hormonal to clearly explain to our husbands. :))
Time is only going to fly by from here! I’m only slightly ahead of you on preparedness, only because we didn’t have to paint the baby’s room (it was already yellow). Also, you think it is hard to figure out what clothes you want to buy? Try doing it when you don’t know the sex (of course that was our choice).
My only recommendation before the little guy gets here is to do some of the simply things you won’t be able to do; go to a movie, go out to dinner and take a quick weekend getaway. Enjoy the ride it is only going to get better from here!
Just had baby number 2…baby one is 14 years old. The only thing i can add to everyones list is baby gas drops and a sling to wear baby to get stuff done. I never thought I would use one but its been great with this baby!
Oh and also a Nosefrida for stuffy noses. LOL google it…creepy but been a lifesaver :)
Our son is the first grandkid on both sides, so we were spoiled with gifts of clothing, bottles, diapers, furniture, toys, etc. I’d say 90% of it went unused! When I was doing a local kids consignment sale, almost all my baby clothing was new with tags! Stock up on diapers, bibs and a good bottle warmer if you’re going that route. Oh and get some Shout for all the stains! Keep the clothing looking nicer longer for #2 or to resell down the road. :) Congrats to you guys, it’s going to be exhausting, but a blast. My son is 20 months now and every day there’s a new discovery, it’s amazing to watch!
We didn’t finish the nursery until 5 days before my son was born. We cut it really close and it was a bit stressful but kept us busy so we didn’t get impatient for his arrival. And by ‘finish’ I mean it wasn’t even habitable up until then as there was no carpet and the drywall wasn’t even completely finished until then. I blogged about our nursery here: http://preservingpennies.com/baby-on-a-budget-furnishing-the-nursery/
Great to see you took everyone’s advice and are still only out of pocket the medical stuff! My wife had everything set up 3 weeks before the due date (and then our son came two days later… turns out we just made it, haha!)
This is my favorite bib ever: http://designer.inktastic.com/details.php?product=858050
As for being a dad, Salon just published this piece on parenting (dad) lessons from Game of Thrones. http://www.salon.com/2012/03/30/game_of_thrones_parenting_lessons/singleton/
Wow! Time does fly indeed, doesn’t it? I would be freaking out big time right about now. But I tend to get somewhat neurotic. :) Huge changes are coming your way. Stay put! :)
Ah! So exciting. Hope you post pictures of the nursery once it’s all set up. Going to do a theme?
Also, not exactly the same one but you can pick your own color: http://www.cafepress.com/hotmommatees.208704849
@Beating Broke – Haha, good! I’ll need all the help I cna get at that point ;) Soon I’ll be a daddy like you!
@Miriam – Hah! That’s next on our list to get actually – the baby changer table, but that’s something to consider. A lot of moms I know do the same thing on the floor and what not, haha… I’ll run it by the Mrs. and see what she says ;) Also good to know about staining and breast milk – we’re def. gonna give that one a shot if it works out. Thanks!
@retirebyforty – I might take you up on that good sir! Had no idea you could RENT breast pumps either – good to know :)
@Cecil – Not a bad plan at all, my friend. I wish you nothing but luck and success making that first baby! It took us 2 years and right as we were gonna get started w/ doing tests to see what was wrong, we were blessed :) I hope you find out a lot sooner than that.
@Good Cents Savings – Ahahahah… I like the way you think though ;) Def. true – maybe I’ll even “appear” to be reading and learning and put a magazine in there intead or something, haha… I def. have to remember to support the wife and that she’ll need me a lot just like the baby! It’s def. scary taking care of a whole entire person, but I’m ready to give it a shot :)
@Brian – Yayyyyy!! And oddly enough we JUST did dinner and a movie last night ;) And was saying how this may be one of our last times w/out a kid on our mind, haha… I’m excited for you too bro – it’s gonna be good times for sure!
@diane – Haha okay, it’s going on my list to research :) I bet it’s totally different from 14 years ago too!
@Angella – Awesome!! Congrats on your 20 month old, that’s wonderful :) Can’t wait to make new memories as a nice family now, only 3 months out!
@Marianne – No dry wall??? HAH! That is close! And now I feel a ton more better, thank you ;)
@Nick – Woahhh super close! And heck yeah, I pay attention to everything y’all say – how do you think I learn so much all the time? ;)
@Heather – Hahahaha… omg that Game of Thrones one is awesome! I just skimmed it real quick, but I’m gonna go back and finish it after posting this ;) One of my favorite shows!
@Aloysa @ My Broken Coin – Thanks friend! Was nice chatting with you earlier – let’s do again some time :)
@Jenna, Adaptu Community Manager – HeY! Haven’t seen your pretty face on here lately, you doing well? :) I totally missed out on SXSW this year, but def. hoping to go to the next one. Have a great Easter weekend!
AHHHHH!!! How exciting! Not sure if anyone has told you but… in the Chinese culture this year is the year of the dragon, and to have a baby esp. being a boy is one of the best luck to have. Here’s the kicker and the best part. It’s not just any luck but luck in fortune :-)
Congrats.
AWESOME! I’ll take that any day! (And I love dragons too, haha… woohoo!)
So close! Must be super exciting for you! When your baby is born you should post videos of him laughing! I love those videos, they make me smile :). Then you would definitely go viral!!!
I would kill for a trash bag full of hand-me-downs! Baby clothes don’t really go out of style the way adult clothes do. Of course, we did get some baby clothes from my husband’s aunt that had stuff from the 70’s! It was awesomely bad…
You’re absolutely right to wait until the munchkin is born, if not shortly before! My niece has more clothes than she could possibly wear, most of which were gifts. If you just pick up the “OMG I HAVE to get that for my kid” items like the bib above, you’ll probably be covered on the rest for at least the first year :)
Make your baby money stretch as far as you can!
Breastfeeding: No mixing, no bottles, no cleanup, instantly ready whenever and where ever! Get a decent pump for $200ish.
Cloth Diaper: You can diaper a child birth to potty learning for less than $500 and sell them when you’re done for 60-70% of what you originally spent. It’s not that gross and the laundry isn’t that bad! ;o)
Sleeping: Baby doesn’t NEED a bed! Nursing moms can safely co-sleep or at least room share. Trust me, you’re not going to want to wake up and walk to another room multiple times in the night. Pack and Play in your bedroom is a must at first! <3
Car seat: There are some seats that will work for 5# up to 70# that are awesome, but plan on spending $250.
Sling: Who needs a stroller? Get a nice comfortable sling and if you have somewhere that has a babywearing group attend a few meetings and try something out. It's hard to engage a child from a stroller when their main POV is not even 3' off the ground.
Once Mrs.Money is up to it, get out of the house after baby is here! You'll be hitting up the "kids eat free" days at restaurants before you know it!
I didn’t read through all the comments (supposed to be working, here!) so forgive me if I say anything redundant.
You will be a wonderful father. You have a good heart, and you WANT to be a good Daddy, and that is a great start. In the “olden days” people didn’t read books to learn how to parent, and I’m sure that 99.9% of your instincts will be spot on. As a “seasoned” mother of 6, this is my one piece of advice: The most important thing you can do for your child is love his mother well. That’s it.
Here I am, thinking of more advice now……
I would wait on the breast pump. I nursed all my kids, and went back to work, and never needed one. I believe they are available to rent/borrow from some hospitals, also, if you find you do need one. And if for whatever reason your wife is unable to nurse, don’t feel bad about it. Millions of us baby boomers did ok on formula (and formula is better now.) But do sign yourself up at all the baby sites, because you will get cans of free formula, and good coupons for more. Even if you do nurse, it’s good to have some around.
Of course, the one thing you must have is a car seat. Get a new one, and then plan on getting another new one in a few months, depending on how fast your Jr. grows. My youngest son outgrew his first car seat in just a couple of months. We nicknamed that first car seat “the nutcracker.” (He was 10 1/2 lbs at birth, an anomaly you shouldn’t worry about.)
Wow, time flies doesn’t it? Can’t wait till you give us the good news about Little J$ when he finally makes his entry into this world. I’d say if you can help it, wait until after the baby shower to buy things for the baby, but definitely have a list ready to check off so you’re not left without basics when it’s show time.
And as far as that bib goes, I’ll do you one better. Here’s a whole line of ‘My entire life is being blogged’ clothing:
http://www.cafepress.com/totrocket/1139314
I especially love the little onesie..so cute!
The clothes! It’s so easy to get overwhelmed and not know what to buy and end up with too many things of one size and nothing in the next size. Check out my handy spreadsheet listing all the clothes you really NEED for your new baby:
http://momeinstein.com/blog/parenting/what-baby-clothes-you-really-need-spreadsheet-download/
I’m due around the same time as your wife, and I’m feeling the pressure to get things done as well. At least I have most of what I need for this baby as it’s my second. :-)
@SavvyFinancialLatina – Haha, okay – I’ll keep that in mind ;) Def. can’t wait!
@Michelle – Oh man, baby bell bottoms! That would be hot! :)
@Cassie – Yeah, I’m thinking the same thing. Def. not buying much more in that department, except for the bib of course :)
@Stephanie – Oh yeahhh!! I always see “kids eat free” signs all over, that would be great! Haha… good one. And thanks for all the other advice too, the Mrs. is reading all these so it’s hitting both of us – thanks!
@Cathie – Haha, all good things to think about, thanks! So cool you have 6 too – that’s amazing :) You guys are blessed! And I will most def. love our son’s mother as much as I physically can forever and ever – that’s the easiest part! :)
@Azra, ReadyForZero – Yayyyy those are awesome! Good find, my friend – hope you had a great weekend over there :)
@MomEinstein – Very cool, congrats! Maybe they’ll be born on the same day :) Going over to check out your spreadsheet now, thx!
Whoa, haven’t been here in a while! Congratulations on the baby! There’s a cool Zine on Microcosm Publishing called Rad Dad (punk plus parenting) that might be of interest, I think he blogs, too. Here’s the Zine link: http://microcosmpublishing.com/catalog/artist/tom_moniz
cheers! Jane
Cool! I like the sound of him, that’s for sure :) Thanks for stopping by – we’ve missed ya over here!
Congratulations! At about 6 months is when I started to panic that the nursery wasn’t set up and we didn’t have everything done. At 34 weeks we had a pretty big scare and that is when my husband had his panic about not having everything done :) You will be fine.
Side note: I think diaper genies are a waste of money. I have a small foot pedal trash can that I use grocery store bags to line and take it out every other day. I don’t need a huge thing of gross diapers stinking up his room, even if they swear they won’t stink. We also do some cloth diapering to cut costs and live a little greener. So, figure out works for you and ignore all the “must haves” until you figure out you must have it. . . we went out to buy a baby swing when he was about 3 weeks old because it turned out that is was necessary with our son :)
hah! we literally JUST started cleaning up our nursery room last week :) The wife was REALLY freaking out so we took all the junk out, repainted, and just put the crib together last night… we’re getting closer! And the wife is feeling a LOT better about it too – as am I :) Appreciate the heads up on the diaper genie thing too – we’re doing our best to lay low until we figure things out, but all this helps!