Playing Catch-up

There are a couple of fun things to report.  


First of all, last night, Jeremy got to feel the baby hiccuping!  At first I was scared that he wouldn't be able to feel them at all, because I put his hand right where she was, and he said he didn't feel anything. After I gave him a little more explanation as to what he was feeling for and telling him exactly on his hand where he should feel it, he did!  


THEN, as she was wrapping up her hiccups, she got super feisty and was kicking and thrashing around quite a bit, right where Jeremy's hand was resting.  Normally, whenever I rest my hand on my belly, she will kick right where my hand is, but until very recently, she would not do that for anyone else.  Any time I put Jeremy's hand where she was kicking, she would stop immediately.  It's nice that she will now perform for her father.


Today my mom and younger sister and I went to visit my friend/my brother's girlfriend at the Detroit Institute of Arts, where she is interning. We had a lot of fun walking around the galleries.  I'm pretty sure the baby really liked the Contemporary Art, because in those galleries she would kick me so hard that it almost brought me to my knees, and I had to sit a few times.  She probably just wanted me to have more time to appreciate the art.  Our baby is such a genius.

Finally, since my shower is tomorrow (!!!), I thought I should finally post pictures of some of the things we have already received.  


First, we got our awesome travel system (stroller and car seat combo) from Kevin and Ashley (Jeremy's cousin and his wife).  

Jeremy keeps asking if he can try it out by putting the cat in and pushing him around.  For some reason, I don't think MoJo would appreciate that.


Next, we got our high-tech bathtub that gives you a temperature read out and has a reservoir that holds the water until it is the correct temperature.  We received that from Jeremy's older brother Christopher and his wife Molly.  They also sent along a hilarious personalized card.

Yup, that's Jeremy's head on a baby in the tub they got us.  I laughed so hard when I opened this card!!


We also got our pack and play from two of my mom's friends, Sue and Sue (cute, right?).

We were awfully proud that Jeremy got this thing together!  Well done!


We are really looking forward to seeing lots of friends and family at the shower tomorrow.  Any bets on whether or not I will cry while opening presents?

A Decision. Finally.

Nothing that exciting, but ... we decided what to do about the stroller/car seat debacle.  Jeremy and I were seriously confused about what to do.  Travel system and then upgrade the car seat later or big convertible car seat and "regular" stroller?  We had heard so many opinions we couldn't keep it all straight in our heads.

We realized there were pros and cons to each, but we couldn't figure out which would be better for us in the long run when it comes to both finances and practicality.  We want our baby to be safe, but we have like ... no dollars to spend, so every product decision counts.  Also, we know we will get a lot of stuff from the shower, and we are SOOOO grateful for that, but we can't just count on getting all the important things from the shower.

So, anyway, we had a lovely little investigative trip to Babies R' Us yesterday, since it is the only place in our area that has more than like five display models out and they don't get mad when you play with them (and bash them into things) for hours.

We picked out our "favorites" of all the pieces and then looked at the combinations.  Based on what we picked out, we would be spending about the same money either way we decided to go, so we decided to go for the travel system and then getting a bigger car seat when the munchkin outgrows the infant seat.  That way, we get the bonus of popping the kid in and out of the car and the stroller very easily, and we can bring a sleeping kid places more easily.  I am actually hoping to be a "baby wearer" and use my sling as much as possible, but it will also be nice to have a small seat to take places, like when we are visiting someone or I am going to the grocery store.

I think what really sold us was how much we liked this travel system:

It was lighter, easier to use, more agile, had more bells and whistles AND was about $90 cheaper than any of the other nice systems.  It even has a spot to store WIPES up near the "mommy" cup holders!!  Wipes! 

I know this is not a huge decisions in the grand scheme of having a child, but it was a big decision for us, and we worked like a team to get there.  We were like pros, I have to say. :)

So here's to more big decisions to come!  I know we can do it!