On top of looking for a new place to live (my brother-in-law moves out at the end of the lease and we’re looking for a 2B/2B), I am going into high gear with my nesting.
The intellectual side of my brain seems to be shutting down (hence, less thinking, less posts), and my instinctual brain is kicking in (hence, tons of cooking, cleaning, laundry, and otherwise baby prepping). Restless, I can’t stop looking for a place to live and thinking through all the packing and cleaning that remains to be done before the baby is born.
Sunday, Chad and I stopped by at our midwife’s house for a quick prenatal check-in on our way back from Joshua Tree and it suddenly occurred to me that we were not in the least bit prepared for the baby’s arrival and that the baby could be coming at any time. Really. I asked Karen, my midwife, at what point in my pregnancy could I go into labor and still have the baby at home. She said 37 weeks – which is next week for me! So no more big hikes – now the focus is not having the baby for at least another week. Yesterday I spent the entire day in LA seeing lots of art and I had several medium-sized contractions. Braxton Hicks I would still call them, but more intense than they have been.
I’ve got one chicken enchilada casserole already made and a lasagna and bowlful of pesto on their way in terms of filling the freezer for baby’s birthday week.
Most of the baby clothes (I’ve got mountains!) came to me already washed and folded – so now I’m just sorting through the baby shower gifts and getting diapers sorted out. The extra dresser is vacuumed, wiped, and papered, and ready for baby stuff. Now I just need to figure out my organizational principle and get everything in there.
Karen is coming for her first home visit to our house next Friday and we’re supposed to have everything ready by then. I’ve got a laundry basket in the bedroom that I’m using to hold all the supplies I’m gathering. According to Karen, we need:
(1) Birth Kit
(8 ) Receiving blankets
(1-2) Thermometers
(2) Wash cloths, towels, sheets
(1) Heating pad
(1) Package of size 5 disposable diapers (These are supposed to be for me!)
Diapers, diaper wraps, and clothing for the baby
Cotton balls and swabs
(4) Bottles of a sports drink
(2) Bottles of grape juice
Healing disinfectant for the peri-rinse bottle
Food for labor, after the birth, and the week following the birthday
Clothing for me for labor and after the birth
Small “hospital” bag (in case of emergency transport)
List of emergency telephone numbers by the telephone
Which reminds me: I need to make a list of numbers for Chad to call when the labor begins and when the baby is born. He’s not excited about being the caller, so I’m glad his mother made it clear that she doesn’t want to read about the birth.
The baby is sort of overshadowing the fact that I am turning 40 in three short weeks – but that’s okay. I can’t think of anything more engaging and exciting than preparing for a new baby. Having my birthday wrapped up with the baby’s birth is just making everything seem even more momentous. My brother is flying down for the occasion and another friend from the east coast is coming out as well. She happens to be a photographer who specializes in photographing pregnant women. I just can’t help wondering though, will she be taking pictures of a pregnant woman or a new mother?! I wonder if it was like this for my mother – I was her first child and I was born five days after her own birthday.