How Many People Love This Baby?

I had a conversation with Mr. Belvedere this morning about how many people are so excited to meet him or her.  It's been rather quiet as far as its movement goes these past few days, and I thought maybe it was lonely, so I gave it a pep talk.  It's got to be awfully cramped in my uterus right now because all it does is roll back and forth, kind of like how I feel when trying to sleep at night.  I mentioned that it could come out any time it wants to; we're ready for it!  I think it felt better after our talk, because then it got the hiccups.

My dear mother threw a baby shower for us yesterday afternoon at Sheridan's in Cudahy, and I am still overwhelmed at my family's generosity.  Everyone who came lives somewhere else besides the Milwaukee area, and many people drove several hours to come and celebrate this little fetus.  It was so fun to see the women that are in some way related to Mr. Belvedere.

Our apartment has completely exploded after yesterday's shower:

I cannot wrap my head around how much stuff a baby allegedly needs.  I'm sitting next to the car seat and stroller that my mom, sister-in-laws and sister got us, and it's really intimidating!  I feel like I have no clue what we're about to get ourselves into, despite the fact that I've spent a decent chunk of my life baby-sitting, working in day care centers, teaching, and being around babies.  But it's way scarier when it's my own, and no one's coming here to relieve me of my duties at the end of the day.  I feel like I did right before our bike trip last summer--nervous because I didn't really know how it was all going to unfold.  I'd never ridden my bike for 60 days straight, nor had I ever been in the wilderness that long.  I had an idea of what it might be like, but it's impossible to know what it is that I don't know.

Registry Fun Times

The other night, after hearing for the umpteenth time from my mother, "You need to add more to your registry," my two cousins (who are both moms themselves), offered to register items for me.  Because the biggest problem with figuring out what I need for this baby lies in the fact that I simply don't know what I need, I jumped on the offer and quickly logged them in.  In a matter of thirty minutes, Cindy and Angie had gone through almost every category at BuyBuy Baby, asking me questions along the way, and filled up the registry.
"Get as many receiving blankets as you can from the hospital.  Those swaddle the best."
"Don't register for any more newborn sizes."
"You'll be doing laundry all the time, so get as many burping cloths as you can."

It was way less stressful than the hours I had spent thinking about what I needed and agonizing over of the fact that I simply had no idea what I needed.

April Showers

Last weekend, my "family" from the elementary school I worked at for three years (before I was unexpectedly and involuntarily transferred last August) threw me a baby shower.  It was still March, so the title of this post is a bit misleading...

Anyway, it was so much fun to see the many amazing teachers that I spent most of the past three years of my life with.  They all took time out of their weekend to celebrate the fact that I'm having a baby--a baby that no one's even met yet, but is truly excited about.  Being the emotional person I am these days, I came home from the shower exhausted and weepy.

Nate: "Honey, why are you crying?"  This seems to be a standard question from him these days.


We were surrounded by onesies, toys, receiving blankets, leftover cake, and mounds of tissue paper, and I was sitting there with tears pouring down my face.  I blubbered, "This past year has been stressful being in a new building and away from the work family that I had come to know and depend upon.  I miss them!"

Sure, it's sad being away from them, but I think I just had this tremendous feeling of gratitude for the fact that even though I don't work with them anymore, they all chose to be a part of such an amazing time in my life.  Thanks, Pershing.