On Wednesday we went out to dinner with some friends (Jessie and Jessie visiting from Boston) and their little one (can't remember his name). For the first time, the parents/expetant parents outnumbered the single folks. The main topic of conversation...you guessed it...babies. We're growing up!

Andrea went in for the 24 week checkup and all is well. Healthy blood pressure, baby heartrate, weight. It's all good. (I acutally get to use that phrase literally).

The maternity pants are a big hit. Her only grip is that she doesn't have the butt to fill them out on the other end. Seriously, she said that :) She's looking great and getting along well. Her job is less stressfull these days, mostly because she's not letting all the "next year" stuff bother her. Taking a year off is just what she needs.

My friend Erika, a mother of two girls, sent along some good websites for baby gear.

Baby Care Timer
Another Car Seat Site
Baby Car Seat
A Fun Clothing Store
Mommies with Style

ALSO, Erika suggested that we look into Dutailier's gliders/rockers since she loves hers. While searching online we found their website where you can custom build exactly what you want with the features, finish, and fabric you're looking for. Then you can print out the specs and take it into Babies R Us and they will make that custom order for you! That's awesome! The website is here.

Things are coming along nicely. We reclaimed the babies room from the cutest kittens in the world. (We were Kitty Sitting this weekend). We've looked into some more room decore. Here is a picture we took of the crib and changing table we registered for from Babies R Us. For some reason you can't see a picture of these items on the registry and you can't purchase them online. In store only. So here's a glimpse of what they look like.
WHITE LIFETIME BERKLEY CRIB

WHITE READY TO ASSEMBLE BERKLEY CHANGE TABLE

Our 6 Month checkup is this coming Wed. Andrea is starting to pop. Yesterday she informed me that I will soon be in charge of putting on/tying her shoes since she's starting to have trouble bending over.

Keep the comments coming. We love to hear your thoughts! Also, if you haven't already done so, visit the Name Poll and place your vote.

We've reached the 5 month mark and zoomed right passed it. For those of you screaming at me to get more pictures up, here is one from this past weekend.

Andrea was on Spring break Mon-Wed last week. She used the time to pamper herself and relax.

First things first, Andrea went maternity shopping with her mother. They got tons of cute clothes. Sears had a surprisingly good selection of stylish clothes. They got lots of maternity pants which is really what allowed Andrea to relax. There were Mother/Daughter pedicures, always a favorite for pregnant women (so I hear). There were afternoons at the movies and plenty of time spent just lounging around.

Mother and baby are both healthy and doing well. Andrea has much more energy and is using it to get the baby's room organized (I'm usually providing the labor, but not always). We've also started a more engaged home search. We've got a better idea about what were looking for. Still, the market in our area is tough. Lucky for us, lots of new properties tend to come on the market around this time every year so we'll have a much better selection than we did during the winter months.

We've set up our Birthing Basics classes through the Hospital. We almost didn't sign up in time. Our last class is the first week in August and the baby is due the second week...good thing first babies usually don't come early. Worst case scenario, we can have our instructor give us a crash course while Andrea is in labor. :)

Andrea and I were both a little put off when we went into A Pea in the Pod and saw the prices of maternity cloths. $175 for a pair of jeans...that's hard to stomach for something you can wear for years let alone something you can wear for 3 months!

This fashion season has seen a new trend. The Empire Waist is IN. How convenient for anyone that happens to be pregnant these days. It's the perfect look for all three trimesters. It grows with the mother and is available pretty much everywhere this season. It's available in every color, style, fabric, and price range. How convenient that this year’s trend is maternity friendly. Mothers to be don't have to show until they're ready to show. Even then, they can look fashionable without spending a ton on clothes they’ll only wear for 3 months.

Obviously, we still need to get maternity pants but having those empire-waist shirts and dresses is totally awesome!


Empire-waist at Old Navy.

Ignor the typo...I put this together pretty quick. I meant to PROVE it. :)