Crib, Stroller, and 32-week update

Kevin:

The nursery is really coming together now. We have the crib, a glider and ottoman, a four-shelf bookcase, a six-drawer dresser, and a three-drawer dresser that will double as a changing table. The furniture is all dark wood; although the pieces don't all match exactly, they all have a reddish hue and go well together.

Crib

The crib was fairly easy to assemble, but I had to walk away from it when I tried to attach the front side. It's a drop-side crib, which means the front part of the crib can be lowered to make it easier to pick up and put down the baby. This is done by lifting up the crib rail while simultaneously pushing in the bottom rail with one's leg; the side can be dropped with only one hand, so you can hold the baby with the other. The directions weren't very clear, so I couldn't tell which way the gate went or how the spring mechanism was to be engaged. I decided to walk away and figure it out later rather than try to force the thing and end up breaking it.

Dan B., a math instructor at HFCC, told me a crib story when I related my frustration to him. Some relative of his -- I don't remember the connection -- was expecting a granddaughter and put together a crib in his garage. When this fellow loaded it into the back of his pickup, he failed to notice that the top of the crib was higher than the garage opening. When Grandpa backed out of the garage ...

Anyway, the crib is assembled and just needs a mattress to be fully completed. Tiffany's mom and dad purchased the mattress for us (thanks!), but it's still at their house at the moment.

Stroller

My mom and dad purchased the stroller/carseat (thanks!), which Tiffany and I were able to pick up from our local Walmart. They took advantage of Walmart's Site-to-Store feature, which enables out-of-state family to purchase gift registry items without having to worry about shipping. As long as Tiffany or I are listed during the ordering process, along with our e-mail addresses, items purchased this way are shipped to our nearest Walmart location. One of us can then pick it up free of charge. (If anyone is thinking about this, I should mention that our closest Walmart is store #2631, located at 29555 Plymouth Rd, Livonia, MI 48150.)

The stroller was very easy to assemble. We are excited about it; the matching carseat locks on top of the stroller while Allison is an infant; it has locking wheels, a storage bin, and a retractable cover; and it features an attractive black, white, and brown pattern. Best of all -- get this! -- it has cupholders! (Insert manly Tim Allen grunts.)

We still have to read the directions for the carseat to make sure we understand its features and how to properly buckle it into the car, but we're having fun in the mean time with our "practice baby," an infant-sized stuffed bunny rabbit Tiffany made with her mom at the Build-A-Bear store this past May.

As it turns out, our practice baby is evidently a Notre Dame fan. Imagine that! Interestingly, I am posting this blog entry on the day of the Notre Dame-Michigan State game, the one day a year Tiffany does not root for ND ... Our long-standing tradition is that the fan of the losing team buys dinner for the fan of the winning team. I'm sad to say it, but I've purchased her more dinners over the course of our relationship than she has for me. In recent history, the visiting team has come out the victor, which perhaps bodes well for ND since the game takes place in East Lansing this year. But, I digress ...

32-week update

On Wednesday, Tiffany and I took a tour of the Miracle of Life Birthing Center at St. Mary Mercy Hospital in Livonia, MI. It was great to be able to see where we plan to deliver and get a sense of what to expect on "game day" (sorry, I guess I still have football on the brain). We plan to attend a breastfeeding class next Thursday, too.

Tiffany is definitely getting to the uncomfortable phase of pregnancy. She's been having back and hip pain ("Pelvic girdle pain," I'm told) and difficulty sleeping, too. According to Babycenter.com, our little girl is the size of a jicama, whatever that is. Tiffany is convinced that there is a produce-industry conspiracy to educate expectant mothers about different fruits and vegetables by comparing baby size to oddball edibles. The web site claims that "[Our] baby is taking up more and more space in [Tiffany's] uterus and weighs as much as a large jicama -- about 3 3/4 pounds. (Length: about 16 3/4 inches, head to heel.)"

At any rate, we are both very excited as the due date draws ever nearer. We're still some eight weeks out, but we both definitely feel more like expectant parents and are giddy with anticipation. I just hope I can tell my baby girl someday that Notre Dame beat both Michigan and Michigan State the year she was born ...