Almost Half Way

Well, the whole baby thing is gaining steam. There's only so much you can do early in your pregnancy--for example, they discourage you from taking classes that early (might forget everything), and the ultrasound isn't until the halfway point (20 weeks), preventing you from spending too much time at the paint counter at Home Depot or Lowe's, unless you're just gonna go with the gender-neutral stuff.

Saturday, we started our Target registry, which was pretty fun (look for links here and on homepage soon). The multi-store registry does present an interesting dilemma. Here's why: we register for a Diaper Genie at Babies R Us. No prob. But in Memphis, for example, there is exactly ONE Babies R Us, and it may not be all that convenient for somebody or they simply refuse to drive that far. So they go to Target. Now, if we register for a Diaper Genie at Target, then there's the potential for getting more than one, and the giver's self-inflicted disappointment for giving a duplicate gift. And of course, the standard, "But it was on your registry!!" Of course, in the day of gift receipts, this becomes a lot less hassle, but things can get quite ugly and complicated without them. Although we didn't register for many "double" things, there were a few. We made that decision and we'll just have to deal with it. We're trying to make it easy for folks--not forcing them to feel bad for buying a duplicate item (that we can exchange for more great and wonderful items!!). But for now, we've got all the bases covered......From travel system to humidifier to burp cloths to Baby Einstein, we've got it down!

If you're paying attention to the "Quick Facts" box over on the home page, you'll notice we are on week 18, and that our next appointment is next Thursday. Wow--the ultrasound. We actually get to find out if it's boy or girl. Pink or blue. When my friend Michelle had hers back in 2002, she made the comment that the ultrasound day is almost as big a deal as the actual birth itself. Now that I'm here, I would have to agree with that. It's so much more than what color to paint the nursery. I realize that the possibility exists that we won't find out (i.e, if the baby isn't cooperating), but we'll just think optimistically. We are going to Nashville next weekend, so we'll most likely be visiting the Carter's outlet at Opry Mills. I'm hoping we'll have a clearly defined color choice by then.