Baby FAQ

[thanate]

...which is to say, the sort of things that get asked, not all stuff I've been pestered about.

*Due Feb 13, so if all proceeds normally arriving sometime late January or after.

*Yes, we're going to find out if it's a boy or a girl in advance; it's not as if it's going to change between now and February. We don't know yet; in the mean time, we're taking predictions. (see next post...)

*No, we're not doing pink or blue pastels; we're planning to do our best to stick to the bright crayon-box sorts of colors that are easier for developing eyes to see, anyway.

*If anybody has baby stuff you were thinking about clearing out of the attic soon, hand-me-downs are great. (but totally not necessary.)

*If anybody feels the need to give gifts (also totally not necessary), we strongly prefer handmade to store-bought.

*We have a couple name options more-or-less picked out, but nothing final yet.

*Um... ok, are there other things people desperately want to know? And people with recent experience on the eco-friendliness of diapering options, or anything else potentially useful to the small child experience, thoughts are appreciated, though I imagine I'll ask things elsewhere as they occur to me, too.

(Also, to clarify from the last post, for those who want to leave a squeeful comment about babies-- that's just fine, so long as you're not offended when I fail to try to reproduce the vaguely embarrassed "um, thanks" that I do in person in the comments.)

Comments

[blairmacg.livejournal.com]

Enjoy this time. That may seem like ridiculous advice at times (I mean, no one enjoys nausea!), but there is a low key anticipation that will hum in the background of life for the next few months. It's pretty cool.

Most will feel compelled to tell you their own birth and pregnancy tales. It can be annoying, but I've come to think of it as a sort of primal instinct to pass on information that may be relevant to you. I found it worth listening to, even if the stories were boring or frightening, just in case I encountered something similar.

Based on the research I've read, it's worth taking a fish oil supplement during pregnancy. It helps the development of baby's nervous system and vision, decreases the risk of preterm labor, and decreases the risk of all sorts of health issues for the mother--all without the potential toxicity that can come from eating fish. (Most fish oil supplements tested by the FDA had been purified enough to remove mercury and other toxins.) And I pass that along for educational purposes only, not as specific medical advice, and will gladly pass along anything else you may be interested in. :)

[thanate.livejournal.com]

I've been around for other people getting the weird & slightly disturbing advice; thus far the prize winner was the woman who earnestly assured my 8-months-along co-worker that it was ok if she didn't really bond with her baby right away, because giving birth was such an *interesting* experience. On the whole, I'm interested in the story/perspectives aspect of this a lot more than the anecdotes about other people's hair that I get on a semi-regular basis; as long as I don't run into any of the strangers who think it's ok to pet my belly I should be fine.

Random trivia of the actually researched sort is good to have-- particularly if it's about developing healthy vision. (I lucked out & only got a little of the nearsightedness from my side of the family, but grauwulf only has one properly functioning optic nerve, and it's pretty high-prescription near-sighted too. So if we can avoid passing that bit on, that would be great.)