The weather in Boston was miserable--the Northeast heatwave hit Boston hard and the 4 days we were there were hot, humid, and I don't think I've ever sweat so much in my life. It made things a little less enjoyable, but we still managed to have a good time! We went to Quincy Market and Faneuil Hall a few times, the Museum of Science (eh, we weren't too impressed with that), the Aquarium (so incredibly busy since no one wanted to be outside!) the top of the Prudential Center, a tour of Fenway Park, and of course a Red Sox game! Oh, and we also enjoyed a delicious lobster dinner that we treated ourselves to after walking all day in 100 degree temperatures. Mmmm.....
We walked SO MUCH those 4 days and I noticed that if I am on my feet all day and am particularly active, after sitting or laying down at night my sciatic nerve is incredibly painful! It doesn't run down my legs or anything, its just my very lower back/upper butt/tailbone and it feels like someone is jabbing a knife in there and twisting it around. There were a couple nights that were awful and I could barely roll off the bed after laying down. Casey can sympathize because he had sciatic nerve issues when he ruptured a disc in his back a couple years ago--so he definitely felt my pain and knew I wasn't being a big baby!
I'm posting ONE picture of us in Boston and one picture only....this is the only picture that came out halfway decent and we don't completely look like we're about to die of heat stroke. The rest of the pictures of the 2 of us include halfway closed eyes, red faces, and hair matted to my head from sweat.....yeah, not cute....
On the way home today we made a pit-stop at the Babies R Us in Manchester, NH. For some reason I remember that place being way bigger, but I must be thinking of a different one.
Anyway, we tested out some strollers and car seats and made our decision (I think!) We love this one...Chicco Cortina, in "Limonata". It matches the color scheme we're going for, and folds quickly and easily, and we were able to figure it out without swearing so we figured it must be the one for us!
The carseat and stroller are sold separately but fit together as a set. We'd need a 2nd base for our other vehicle, but from what we tested today, it seems really easy to transfer from the base to the stroller and then back again! And it's adorable too!
Here's the part where the planner in me kicks into overdrive and you can tell the things that have been running through my head lately. No, I'm not stressing about the actual birth part (yet), I'm stressing about everything we need to organize before then. I'll be entering week 18 on Tuesday so I'm technically "almost halfway there"...that makes it sound like it's just around the corner! So.....all you moms out there....I need your advice on the following things.
1. When did you start registering for baby items and where did you register? Choices are kind of limited here in VT, and I have a hard time making a decision without seeing and feeling things myself. Oh who am I kidding--I have a hard time making a decision, PERIOD!
2. WHAT do you recommend registering for, and what would you recommend that we buy ourselves? I'm so stumped on this one. I've read that some cribs/sets can take up to 10 weeks to arrive, so I obviously don't want to leave this until the end. The sets I've seen are quite pricey and I don't want people to spend money on us--and would rather make that big purchase ourselves. Is that "normal" practice?
3. What about the carseat/stroller/base? Is this something we should register
for? They were having a sale on the particular one we liked today and I literally had to pry myself away from the store without buying it. I would have bought it today, but Casey is always my voice of reason and told me to hold off.
4. What things did you register for/buy for yourself that you NEVER used? Basically, what were those "must haves" that turned into "never used" items?
5. What things do you look back and wish you had registered for or bought in advance?
6. I'm having major 2nd thoughts about the whole "white" crib/dresser/changing table vision. I still want the gray, yellow, white color scheme...but as far as white furniture....do you think that's way too girly? Every crib set review I read (for white wood) the person says "we bought this for our daughter..." or "this looks so great in our daughters room!" Should I stick to something like dark wood or black? I know this is probably a personal preference, but I always love opinions!
I was so overwhelmed walking through Babies R Us and it wasn't even a huge store! There are just so many little things you never think about but when it's all in front of you it becomes such a daunting task.
In other news, Casey has become the Water Nazi. "How much water did you drink today" has become a daily question in our household. It's usually asked when I get home from work, and if my answer isn't acceptable to him, he will make me sit at the kitchen counter and he'll get me a glass of water and make me drink the whole thing before I go do anything else. It's actually quite funny, and cute, that he is so concerned with my water intake :) It was awful in Boston with the heat, and I don't think I've ever drank so much water! He kept saying "I want you to drink more" and buying me bottle after bottle. In fact, as I'm typing this right now--I have a glass of water to my left--that he just got for me. Makes me smile :)
1 - We started our registry around 25 weeks I believe. We did Babies R US online and also Walmart... not too much to chose from in VT, like you said. I don't know that I would recommend Walmart though, as a lot of people said the registry was extremely hard to use in-store...
ReplyDelete2 - We bought the crib ourselves... I was kind of picky about what I wanted plus it's a really big ticket item and I would feel weird asking someone to get that for me as a gift! If you have a crib set that you have your heart set on, I'd just go ahead and buy that too...as you don't want someone else to make the decision and say "this is close enough..." If you plan on breastfeeding, I would think of maybe buying the pump on your own if you plan to continue nursing once you've gone back to work. There are so many to chose from and it's something that really needs to work for YOU... again one of those things where you don't want to have someone think "it's close enough"
Things I would recommend registering for would be your "gear" like a stroller, infant car seat with an extra base, a convertible car seat for when the baby has outgrown the infant seat. A high chair, pack n' play, bouncer and swing are good things to have and I think are pretty standard on most registries!
3 - YES! Register for the car seat, stroller and extra base! I know at Babies R Us, if you put something on your registry and it's not purchased for you, you can buy it at a 10% discount :) Score what you want and save money!!
4 - ah, the baby gear graveyard... lets see... buried in my basement is a HUGE assortment of snow suits, a cradle (we pretty much just used the pack n' play in our room), Swaddle me's, a shopping cart cover (for where the baby sits.. even though I left it in the car, I always seemed to forget it!)
5 - I wish I had registered for more of the stuff that I might need later on... plastic cups/ bowls/ spoons/ sippy cups etc. I had sooo much stuff for infancy but once Logan got to be about 6 months, had to go out and buy these things. Also (again, another older baby thing) I wish I had registered for a smaller stroller as well as the one that the car seat snapped into. Just an umbrella stroller that was small enough to leave in the car just so that I always had one incase I stopped into somewhere quickly...
6 - I don't think that the white would be too girly. It's pretty gender neutral I think... I mean, you'd dress a boy or a girl in a white shirt, right?? Besides, whose to say you're not cookin' a little girl in there? :-)
I am so excited that you guys are home, lets you, me. Andrew and the water nazi make some plans, soon! :-)