New vehicle buying

Yesterday, my 1994 Ford Explorer didn't pass inspection. June is the month we need to renew our registrations, so all three vehicles are up for inspections and renewals. Tim has talked about us trading in my Exporer and our 1996 BMW convertible for a new "mommy" vehicle for me. Well, when I was told it would cost $600 to repair the damaged ball bearing in the front left axle, I realized that yes, it probably is time. But I haven't been happy about it. I love my old truck. Its great for hauling tall Christmas trees (inside!), furniture, plants, lumber, garbage, etc.

So I asked a message board of other women who are expecting babies in November: "If buying a new vehicle, what kind?" The replies were great, and reading them, I actually got excited about shopping for a new vehicle.

Here were their suggestions, and helpfully, many of them posted their gasoline MPG consumption! Something that will definitely be on our minds when making a purchase this year.

• 2006 Mitsubishi Lancer Ralliart
  
• 2004 Toyota RAV 4
  
• Honda Odyssey
  
• Subaru WRX
  
• Hyundai Santa Fe
  
• Toyota Prius
  
• 2007 Mazda Sport 6
  
• Taurus X
  
• 2007 Ford Escape Hybrid
  
• 2008 Toyota Highlander Hybrid
  
• Saturn Vue
  
• 2003 Honda CRV with AWD

We will probably need to buy a car seat next, then bring it around with us when we go vehicle shopping to make sure it fits.

If any of you have suggestions, I'd be happy to hear them!

Baby Bassinet

On my way to my prenatal yoga class last week, I drove through the back roads to get there. A house I went past had a bunch of furniture and junk in front, including a lovely, modern baby bassinet! I was running late, so all I could do was stop and back up and take a quick look at it. It looked like it was in great shape, plus the colors were green and cream.

I told the ladies in the class, and they all said I should definitely take it, if it was still there on my way home. So I did!

I brought it home, and examined it. The bassinet had only a little soiling under the mattress and was missing the soft animals that hang from the mobile. I saw that it was made by Simplicity and googled it. It retails at Babies 'R Us for $99.99! It is the Simplicity Providence Bassinet. I washed all the bedding with bleach and detergent, and washed down the frame with a bleach spray, rinsed with soapy water, then hosed it down. I added new batteries for the mobile system, which controls a night light, music, rotating mobile, vibrating pad, and strobe lights. They all work great.

After putting it all back together, it looked brand new. Even Tim was impressed, after being somewhat sceptical about my "dumpster dive" prize! The only things missing are a remote control (for the lights etc.), the three mobile animals, and a harness to put under the parents' mattress, to hug the bassinet in close at night, for co-sleeping. All these parts are available from Simplicity, at fairly cheap prices. Their customer service department even emailed me the instruction manual.

The bassinet has about 9" of height options (it is shown in lowest position above), a side that drops down, so you can use it for changing diapers or for co-sleeping, a three-pocket "basket" on the bottom to hold diapers or other items, and a cloth pocket along the front for a bottle or toys. The hood is collapsable and removable, as is the mobile arm. It comes on wheels, so it is easy to roll from room to room. And the wheels pop up to turn it into a rocker.

So now we've saved about $100 and have a piece of baby furniture in our home! It made me smile every time I walked in the bedroom and saw it there against the window. But now we've moved it downstairs and covered it up in a sheet, to wait for until it is needed!

First baby gift! (Nursery theme?)

When "Ama and Papa" Daily were here to visit us in May, Mary Anne (Ama) and I went to the Antique Mall downtown. There she found a hardcover copy of The Classic Tales of Beatrix Potter - The Complete Adventures of Peter Rabbit and Friends. She asked me if she could buy it as a gift for the baby, and I enthusiastically said, "Yes!"

When my first nephew was born, I used to purchase the individual little books from the adventures and give them as gifts. I loved looking at the brightly colored watercolors showing little animals in their homes and gardens. So I was very happy to have the stories to read to my little one someday.

I actually started reading the book that night, and I've read most of it now. But I have to say, some of the stories are really unusual. They don't "protect the sensibilities" of young children! Take the Tale of Jemima Puddle-Duck, for example. Here is a duck that wants to set on her own eggs, so goes off and lays them in the shed that a fox lets her use. A dog hears about this, and knows that the future ducklings are at risk from the fox, so rounds up two of his canine pals to run the fox off. But one of the pals eats the eggs himself! Yikes!!

If you look at the wallpaper borders posted previously, you will see how the little rabbits wear waistcoats or ribbons, just like the Cottontail family. I think the bunnies are very cute! So now the theme is coming together: a rabbit chandelier, maybe some bunny wallpaper, a Beatrix Potter book...

With all this in mind, I did a search for Beatrix Potter bedding and have found a maker of quilts online at Swedish Baby Quilts, located in Arkansas. I asked them to send me some fabric swatches which I received on Friday. I taped them to a piece of paper and taped the paper up on the wall beside our paint swatch. So this is how our nursery wall is looking today! (Click on pic to zoom in.)

Week 15 ultrasound

I went in for my monthly prenatal appointment today and was pleasantly surprised when the student intern nurse practioner offered to do a quick "peek" by sonogram of the baby. They have these little portable sonograms in the exam rooms, and that is what she used, rather than the large one the ultrasound technician used last time.

So I got to see the little baby. His head (pictured on the right on screen) is actually to the left of and below my belly button, his feet to the right. He was lying peacefully sidweways. (I use "he" not "it" when talking about the baby, but don't know if the baby is a boy or girl.) She showed me his spine, so his bones are definitely forming now. We could see the heartbeat, but more faintly since this ultrasound is from above, on top of my belly, not from inside. I saw the face, but that wasn't too clear either. The little toes were touching each other, so baby looks like he is pigeon-toed like me!

I asked her if we could use a doppler to listen to the baby's heartbeat. She pulled out what looks like a little hand held radio (you can Google "stork radio" to see what it looks like) and squirted more goo on my pelvis. We heard my heartbeat, which is the echo of the flow of blood as it rushes through the arteries. It took some time for her to locate the baby's heartbeat ("well at least we saw it beating a minute ago, so we don't need to panic" she said lightly). She had to push down hard to locate it. It was so wonderful to hear for the first time! It is just so neat to hear something from the baby, not just see the pictures.

I lost a little weight from last time, but I am up and down every day. Tuesday, I weighed two-and-a-half more pounds than I do today. And today I weigh just four-and-a-half pounds more than the day we found out I was pregnant. This is all good. (You tend to gain weight if you don't drink enough water, because your body starts to retain it, and you bloat!! I'm not always good about drinking my 60 or 80 ounces.)

I'm also religiously using something called "BioOil" on my torso to help prevent stretch marks. If it helps even a little bit, that is good enough. So far, I have heard only one physical benefit to becoming pregnant after 40 years: older women don't get as many stretch marks as younger women!

My next OB appointment is July 10th, at 20 weeks, since I will be out of town and couldn't make an earlier appointment. But the main nurse practioner said that is good, they can see more developed at that time, anyway.