There is obviously a lot of planning that goes into having a baby, and a lot of stuff to buy. Not only does the baby need a million things, but I have to keep buying new clothes because none of my old ones fit. This is both a blessing and curse of pregnancy. I love to shop ... but knowing which things the baby will need and making sure I buy the right things is a daunting task. I generally love to shop for clothes for myself as well, but buying clothes to fit my expanding waistline really is a lot less fun than I thought it would be. Anyway, I have a feeling a lot of the discussions on this blog will be about the things I have bought or am thinking about buying for the baby. So far I havent done a whole lot, but lets start at the basics :)Body Pillow
The first thing I did was go out and get a Leachco Back N' Belly pillow. I am a bit of an insomniac and spend my nights tossing and turning. One of the first things I kept seeing during my early pregnancy research is the importance of sleeping on your side and avoiding sleeping on your back (check out this article for a bit more info). As a person with sleep problems I was a bit worried ... I sleep on all sides, but most often wake up on my back or stomach. Its technically ok to sleep on your stomach during pregnancy, but as you keep getting bigger it simply just becomes impossible. Sleeping on your back can actually have negatve consequences and is not advised at all as you get later in pregnancy. I still dont sleep well, and its getting a bit worse...but this pillow does give me a bit more structure and helps me force myself to try to lay on my side. (At least, having this huge thing around me is a constant reminder that I should be laying on my side!)
Furniture
Friends suggested I get on the furniture shopping asap, as occasional delivery delays can create a bit of an issue when you end up with a new baby and an empty nursery. I took their advice and ordered some stuff about a week ago, with an approximate 12 week delivery date. There are 3 pieces, though the pictures show them all in random colors I ordered them in "french vanilla" which is basically cream-colored:
The crib
A dresser/chest (I didnt order the hutch, just the bottom part of this piece)
And a corner bookshelf
Figures a few days after I get the stuff ordered, I notice a new post on the Baby Bargains Book Blog. Morigeau, the maker of all of the wonderful furniture I ordered, has just filed for bankruptcy. I need to call the place where I ordered it from to see whats up ... but hopefully I get my furniture :)
Clothes
I know that newborns dont need any fancy outfits and end up spending much of their time in onesies. But I also know that the kid needs some clothes! I need something to bring this baby home from the hospital in - it cant come home naked. I have a feeling that friends/family will be giving me baby clothes before the baby is born (who can resist buying that tiny stuff) so I doubt baby Schneider will be naked, but I thought I should get myself some minimal odds and ends to have around the house just-in-case. As we arent finding out the gender, I have found this to be a very challenging task. Many of the clothing manufacturers make baby clothes in three options: 1) Pink 2) Blue or 3) Yellow/Green. The assumption is that this yellow and/or green (sometimes alone, but often in combination) is "gender neutral". But how many little boys have you seen in pastel yellow or green? I am going to say not a whole lot. The other day I came across some grey/white stuff at Old Navy. It was on clearance and so I picked it up. It looked pretty neutral to me, and grey goes nice with either pink or blue ... so the pieces should be useful. So in the event the new baby doesnt receive any clothes before its born, its mommy was smart enough to plan ahead just a bit :)
I also grabbed up a couple of organic onesies. I am all for incorporating as much organic materials as possible ... and these are both gender-neutral (in addition to being pretty darn cute)
Miscelaneous
I bought two additional things, a diaper bag and a "miracle blanket".
I wasnt looking for a diaper bag, but walked into a store that is closing and they had a cool one for 25% off. Its a Fleurville, which rarely (if ever) go on sale, so I snapped it up. The one I got is red, grey, turquoise and black...its from last years collection so you cant see it on the site, but the style is the same as the one to the right. Its actually pretty cute. This bag is not huge, so odds are I might need a second (bigger one) but should be ideal for simple trips. In case you are not familiar, Fleurville bags are pretty nice and have lots of benefits. This one: can be carried 3 ways (at a tote, messenger bag, or attached to stroller), has 2 fleece lined & 4 elastic topped pockets, 1 zippered pocket for valuables, an insulated bottle holder or FOB Wrist Bag,changing cloth, see-through wipe case, is Teflon® & PVC free.
I have seen the "miracle blanket" in pretty much every magazine and on every blog. They arent easy to find in stores (though after I got mine Babies R Us apparently has started carrying it), but I found a coupon and got free shipping ... so I ordered it. I want to make sure I can swaddle the heck out of this thing from day one :) The blanket looks really complicated but I am assuming once you get the hang of it its easy. (There is a video on the site that explains the whole thing you might want to check out.)
Maternity Clothes
I was able to wear (most) of my own clothes until 21 weeks. After that point nothing was working so I got some of the fundamentals. Since I am not working, I dont need a whole lot of fancy stuff ... and even when I am working I am a jeans-and-t-shirt-kind-of-girl. I did some research and found out what people thought were the best maternity jeans. Fit Pregnancy had 15 moms-to-be try on 168 pairs of jeans and came up with 9 favorites (1 each in 9 different categories): Paige Premium Denim Benedict Canyon, Momzee button-fly bootleg jean, 7 For All Mankind Ginger jean, Old Navy low-rise surplus pocket jean, Japanese Weekend Ok bootflare jean, Liz Lange Maternity for Target Belly Panel jean, Maternal America Megan trouser jean, Chip & Pepper Pamela Straight Bumpwatch jean and the Juliet Dream Heaven jean. Parents.com did something similar and came up with their own list of 9: Paige Premium Robertson Maternity Jean, Bella Dahl Twill Maternity Pants, Applique Maternity Jeans, Gap No Panel Trouser, Habitual Dark Wash Jean, Motherhood Maternity Secret Fit, Old Navy Roll-Over Jeans, Serfontaine Dark Denim Mezzanine Jean and the Secret Belly 7 for All Mankind Jean.
My favorite jeans are actually Paige denim, so I decided to start there. I found a local store, Krista K Maternity, that carried them and headed on over. I was told that the Paige Laurel Canyon was their most popular. So popular, in fact ... that they were sold out. I really needed some pants (read: none of mine would fit anymore!) so I tried on all of theirs until I found one I liked - a pair by Citizens of Humanity. I also ordered the ones by Paige.
. I have been wearing the Citizens jeans pretty much every day for the past 3 weeks. They were a bit big in the beginning and still are a bit big, but I have learned a bit more about maternity denim since then. There are basically three styles: over-the-belly, mid-belly, and under-the-belly. These Citizens are over-the-belly. They are better for when your belly is huge and holds the suckers up. Right now they are not the best fit for me. The Paige denim came in and are currently getting altered ... those are "mid-belly". And after talking to a few salespeople I got one more, a pair called "Lovestory" by J Brand. The J Brand are actually under-the-belly ... which would have been ideal for the past few weeks. So by the end of today (after I get myself to the cleaners) I will own three pairs of maternity jeans and figure I am not going to need much else for the duration I am in maternity clothing :)
J Brand Page Premium Citizens of Humanity
