Practically all pregnant women have heard of the birth plan. It is a document that tells your healthcare provider what you want during and after your labor and delivery. Most healthcare professionals do not like this “plan” because it puts in writing what most women want, but cannot have certain times. Making the woman all the more upset.

Gone are those days of the dredded birth plan. (more…)

Four minutes or less of child safety guidelines is what most parents are getting these days from healthcare professionals. It seems that in a study where 140 people were surveyed what they were trained on at Pediatric Primary Care Center at Cincinnati Children’s Hospital, 75% say that childseat safety was discussed. However less than 25% of parents were told about baby gates and bath thermometers.
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I have seen so many celebrity Moms in the news lately. I have to say that I think one of the cutest is Maggie Gyllenhaal. She always looks happiliy pregnant and very comfortable!

*courtesy of Teddy and Moo*

Another very hip mama right now is Gwen Stefani. I think that her flowing dresses make her look like a natural mother. I know that we don’t all look like that, and even these people don’t look like that most of the time. It is nice to see cute, happy pregnant women sometime, though. It makes you realize that there are women that are truly enjoying every moment and trying to take it all in!

*courtesy of Teddy and Moo*

Choosing people to become the godparent, guardian or both for your child is a difficult task. How do you qualify a person to take care of your most prized possession? How do you tell a person they are in charge of something like that? I find it odd that there aren’t more discussions and books about that very topic. There are birth plans out there that give you an itemized list and you check items off that are/aren’t important. Where is this tool for guardianship?

After attending a workshop on wills, trusts, and related topics, we decided to talk it through. It is a decision that we want to make before the baby is here. As first time parents we don’t even know what is truly needed to care for a child of your own. It may take us a little longer to make our minds up and put it in writing. After talking it over in great detail, and being open about our possibilities, we are feeling a little better now about making a decision. I do recommend it to all new parents, it gives you an even deeper feeling of the responsibility need to care for a child.

Before I became pregnant I did not realize how difficult it is to “time” the baby’s arrival. Most mothers would be angry at me for even using the “timing” terminology. I guess that with 28 years of planning my life I went into all of this thinking I would have certain week in which to expect the baby to come. I have heard of the 37 week baby quite often, in fact, my friend just had her baby at that time. But my due date is a full 3 weeks away from that mark. The baby could also easily wait in there until 42 weeks. There is an 8 week gap in the time the doctor tells you that the baby is heathly and “ready” until they check you daily waiting for the sign that it is time.

After pondering this topic of when to expect my baby, I do realized that it is family life’s first little joke. Teaching us all that we can’t plan every little thing, especially the arrival of a brand new human being. There will be bumps and brusies, crayon on the floor and walls, and even spit up on Dad as he is going out the door. That is all more of the comedy that comes with raising kids. Guess I’m up for it. If I wasn’t, I wouldn’t find all of that humor in life.