Third Trimester here we come!!

Here's Trish: 6 months down, 3 to go!



So this past week, we started our Child Birth Class. We decided for the simple Third Trimester class that gives 6, 2-hour classes on all the basics of pregnancy, labor, birthing, and taking care of an infant. We decided not to take the Lamaze class. Will we regret it? Did any of you out there in reader land have Lamaze training and found it worthwhile?

Anyway, so at our first class we got to meet about 8 other couples that are all having their first baby. There was quite a variety of people in the class, some a bit older than us, some about our age, several people from other countries, etc. We were excited, but not sure what to expect.

It turned out to be kinda fun. We learned a little bit about nutrition and the benefits of certain vitamins (like DHA and Omega 3 fatty acids!). Our teacher also talked a little bit about what kind of things help a woman feel like she had a positive experience with her pregnancy. The number one factor wasn't the amount of pain involved in the pregnancy, but rather most women who felt like they didn't have control over what was going on during the whole process were more likely to say that their experience was negative. The teacher said that one of the goals of the class was to come to a better understanding of the process so that we could have some control of the situation, especially by being more educated and prepared.

We are looking forward to the rest of our classes and hope to learn a lot more. We have officially entered the third trimester and are getting closer and closer. In fact, one book that we have been reading (Pregnancy: Week by Week) said that babies born as early as week 26 actually have a chance of survival. We are 29 weeks tomorrow, and so that means that if something happened and we had to deliver the baby early (even as early as right now!) that our little guy could survive. That means it could happen at any moment and we have to be ready (which we're not yet....).

Things we still need to do to get ready for this lil' guy:

• Get a crib or cradle for him to sleep in
• Get a stroller
• Get a carseat
• Buy more diapers, wipes, and little things like that
• Decorate the baby room (probably in Jungle theme, since that is what most of you voted on)
• Clean and sterilize/disinfect the rest of the house
• Go to the movies while we still can
• Buy more lil' sporty outfits

We'd also like to hear from you, the reader, about your experiences with shopping for baby items. Things like, where did you find good deals? What diapers were the best (see the new poll)? What items are a waste of money? What should we do to get ready in our last couple of months? What should a clueless husband know in order to not be clueless?

Please let us know what you have learned with your babies.