Week 19 - Overwhelmed
This week... I feel overwhelmed. There are so many things that I feel need to be researched: car seats and their safety ratings, strollers, cribs, co-sleepers, health insurance coverage, pediatricians, breast pumps, baby food recipes, etc. I also have baby shower planning (for 2 showers), what we should register for / when to register / and where to register for them, financial stability postpartum, etc. Not to mention... what vaccinations are safe for the baby? Do all of them have to be done while he's so small? Will that affect how he grows and develops? How safe are the shots and is it worth the supposed benefits? Do they even make the vaccines the same as they did when I was a kid?
I realize that I probably shouldn't be worrying about baby shower planning, but I do need to come up with a guest list, and both lists are getting quite long. It'll be great to see everyone, but I find being the guest of honor in situations like that makes me really anxious. Not to mention that as I write this, I can hear words such as "Don't stress or worry about that" in different people's voices in my head. That, too, adds stress because I'm already worrying about it.
Oh, then I also get asked "have you decorated the baby's room?" Heh. That's a big fat no. And will probably continue to be "No" for a while. I know people don't mean for that question to be stressful, but it is since I've had trouble decorating the rest of my house. Plus, getting a room ready for a newborn that cannot yet see (or appreciate) the decor rates pretty far down on my priority list. I suppose folks mean 'have you created a place to hold all the baby stuff?'... by which the answer is still no. I have no concept of what we're going to have for this baby, so how can I even plan for where to put it all? I tried that already and got a really nice cabinet to hold stuff, though it's too heavy to even move up to the baby's room. For the time being, it's living in the garage and its home will probably be the ex-office / used-to-be-dining room, which will more than likely become the baby's play room since it's on the first floor of the house.
On the bright side, I find myself looking forward to the times when I can feel the baby move. I like the strange flutter or tickle or jab or whatever that originates from within my gut. I never know where I will feel it, but I look forward to just the same. It makes me smile, and I kinda forget all the other things I wanted to lookup. (and they get put off until tomorrow...and the cycle of procrastination begins again.)
Sigh. Tomorrow will be better. I will do research on one thing at a time, so the list isn't so daunting. Good plan, right?
I realize that I probably shouldn't be worrying about baby shower planning, but I do need to come up with a guest list, and both lists are getting quite long. It'll be great to see everyone, but I find being the guest of honor in situations like that makes me really anxious. Not to mention that as I write this, I can hear words such as "Don't stress or worry about that" in different people's voices in my head. That, too, adds stress because I'm already worrying about it.
Oh, then I also get asked "have you decorated the baby's room?" Heh. That's a big fat no. And will probably continue to be "No" for a while. I know people don't mean for that question to be stressful, but it is since I've had trouble decorating the rest of my house. Plus, getting a room ready for a newborn that cannot yet see (or appreciate) the decor rates pretty far down on my priority list. I suppose folks mean 'have you created a place to hold all the baby stuff?'... by which the answer is still no. I have no concept of what we're going to have for this baby, so how can I even plan for where to put it all? I tried that already and got a really nice cabinet to hold stuff, though it's too heavy to even move up to the baby's room. For the time being, it's living in the garage and its home will probably be the ex-office / used-to-be-dining room, which will more than likely become the baby's play room since it's on the first floor of the house.
On the bright side, I find myself looking forward to the times when I can feel the baby move. I like the strange flutter or tickle or jab or whatever that originates from within my gut. I never know where I will feel it, but I look forward to just the same. It makes me smile, and I kinda forget all the other things I wanted to lookup. (and they get put off until tomorrow...and the cycle of procrastination begins again.)
Sigh. Tomorrow will be better. I will do research on one thing at a time, so the list isn't so daunting. Good plan, right?
Hi Mell,
ReplyDeleteI have lots of fun reading your blog! Oh my, so much to think about! I would guess that at some point every pregnant person thinks/worries about all of the above (19weeks). I think top priorities are: health insurance, safe car seat.
Love you, Chris