We've been hard at work getting things ready for the baby. Last week was marathon cooking weekend, and this one has been about preparing the house physically. T.J. dismantled most of our entertainment center (we're not taking it with, and it's a big task we didn't want to save until the last minute). We now have a manageable TV stand to dispose of on moving day.
He also took down the ceiling fan he'd installed when we moved in, and put up a cheap light fixture in its place so we can still see (we lost all of our ambient lighting to baby-proofing efforts long ago). He'll still have to take down the light and other 2 ceiling fans before we leave (we aren't moving them), but it shouldn't be too difficult of a task for him and his dad.
While he was hammering away in the living room, I was hard at work in our room. I cleared out a bunch of moving stuff, moved a dresser, and set up the co-sleeper. I also put together the pack'n'play and baby swing. I realized that we now have FIVE baby holders (infant carseat, bouncer, swing, cosleeper, pack'n'play. How did that happen???
I guess it's not SUCH a stretch - we had three with Joseph in the end - and we used them all a little bit. I'm interested to see things go with a second.
- The pack'n'play will be a "safe" place (away from Joseph) to put the baby downstairs at our new house. It has a handy changing table, too, which might be nice on my back!
- The cosleeper obviously will live in our bedroom. Joseph refused to sleep in it at all, but who knows... maybe this baby will be more amenable. If not, she's welcome with us just like her big brother was.
- The bouncer was a favorite last time with Joseph. He hung out in it in the bathroom when I took a shower, and when I was cooking or making dinner before he was old enough to put on my back. I might look into a woven wrap this time in order to do some newborn back carries... we'll see how she feels about being away from me.
- The swing was also useful last time; one time we even got a 4-hour stretch with Joseph in it! Hahaha. He must have been less than 6 weeks, because we were still at the old apartment, and T.J. was so concerned that 1) he was still asleep and 2) was he "safe" in the swing. This from the guy who was terrified of our cosleeping at first due to safety concerns! Still makes me chuckle.
- The car seat is one I'm most curious about - since we started with Joseph in a newborn-appropriate convertible seat, we never used his car seat outside of the car. This time we need an infant seat logistically, because we have a 2-door car. In order for Joseph to get to his seat, we need to be able to remove baby's seat first! This will allow us to keep Joseph rear facing longer. We're buying a 4-door car after we move, but we this will be a good way to get us through that first month or two. I figure it'll also be nice to have the seat inside the house and warm when we go to put baby in, since you can't bundle a baby up under their seat straps. Who wants to get in a cold car seat with no jacket??? Not me.
So far the swing and bouncer are both big hits with Joseph! Hopefully having them out for a few weeks will help them blend into the background so he's not messing with them so much when Baby Girl is in them (fat chance, right?)!
On the bright side of all this accumulation, we picked up all of these items second hand! Not only saving us a bundle, but keeping baby crap out of the landfill for (at least) one more use. I was able to make a trade with one of my mom friends for the car seat, so I know it's safe to use.
