Baby Gear: Shopping Fun with Mom

I had quite the day with my mom last week. We made a big trip to Lexington for a major baby consignment sale put on by one of the churches and to hit up a few of the baby/child consignment stores.

I learned about the sale, Lil' Lamb's Closet, through my aunt. Several years ago my cousin KK and I attended one in Richmond, Ky. Obviously not for me--and no not for her--but for our aunt and uncle who were adopting. I remembered how big the sale was--how much stuff they had available and all in good shape. Even better was the organization of it. The famous 127 Yardsale took place this past weekend, which has its pros and cons. If you have the time, it can be fun and beneficial to check out some of the sales--especially living so close. If you're not up for it, it's just a hassle to deal with the extra traffic of cars trying to make turn-offs at obscure locations, etc. These sales can have great deals on baby stuff, but the problem is finding the ones that have stuff you can utilize. It's hit and miss. These large consignment sales are great because everything is organized. If you're just looking for girls clothes size 2T, you get a whole rack of nothing but that and it's all in one place. Same goes for all clothes, any size, gear, furniture, toys, bedding, and on and on. 

Remembering this sale in Richmond earlier in the summer, I inquired with my aunt, if she knew if it was something they still did. As it turns out, it is still an event they put on (I think twice a year) but she discovered one in Lexington as well. Their "fall" sales happened to be taking place the same weekend and I opted for Lexington's only so I could also hit up several consignment shops also that day. 

Lil Lambs Closet

I considered going up on Thursday to volunteer with set up. Had I done this I could have shopped early on Thursday night, but since my Mom agreed to come we decided instead to just get there right at 8 a.m. when it started. It was indeed overwhelming and the traffic of people only grew while we were there. Items were moving quickly but they had a multitude of everything. 

With a couple of showers still on the agenda over the next couple of months I knew I shouldn't overdo the shopping; at the same time, I don't want to wait until the last minute to get so many of the things I need, especially because when you're scrambling you can't exactly bank on finding a good deal on things. I think I did a good job of balancing what was worth springing for and what could just wait. There are so many things that it will be good to have more than one of anyway. Mom was also able to stock up on some things she had been looking for. 

However, the big item I did want to look for and they had ZERO of was a crib! So after stocking up at the consignment sale, we stopped by a few stores to see if they happened to have any good cribs. I knew I could order one online that I liked through wayfair.com for anywhere between $140 to $180 (not including tax or shipping). So I knew getting a used one for about that price wasn't necessarily worth it. 

Lil' Lambs Closet

 We had no luck at Re-Kid, but then my sister told me about Kid 2 Kid, which had several cribs. After some contemplation and a phone call to Mingus, we opted for a great deal on a dark wood crib they were selling with the mattress and a changing table. We weren't really looking for a changing table, as there is one in the Loft where we live that we were told we could have; however, it needs some repair as it's not the most stable piece of furniture. For the price of getting all three and having a nice looking table--with drawers--we spent the $140 to get all three pieces. Mingus and I had to make a second trip to Lexington later that evening in order get it all home in the truck bed. 

While it was along day with a lot of time in the car, I was super excited by the time I was home. I've not done a lot with the room we are putting the crib, aside from moving out other furniture we no longer need, but after having had a shower and now collecting more gear at the sale, I really want to get it all organized. Mingus says the "nesting" is setting in. Maybe he's right :)

Mingus & I spent Saturday with Jo & MJ at the lake!
We had a great time just relaxing at the pool!
Bellies sure are growing - Woo, 3rd trimester!!

Baby Growth: Weeks 22, 23, 24 & 25

I can't decide if time is moving quickly or slowly... Here we are, halfway through summer...yet, at the same time, 18 weeks seems forever ago and I still have awhile to reach 40! Either way my tum-tum is growing, but the best news is the Peangling is very active with all sorts of movement going on in there on a daily basis. We're continuing to slowly acquire the things we need. We're grateful for a bassinet from Mingus's parents. His sister Cassie is also letting us use two of her carriers--including the large, metal framed back pack (at least until she needs them again!) 

We've also gotten some of our first cloth diapers. Thanks to Cassie's mommy experience (and cloth diapering) she and her mom introduced me to Cottonbabies.com and their random "seconds sales"--a great way to get some of the best brands at a low cost simply due to minor defects like a flawed stitch. If you're a cloth diapering parent, sign up for their email announcements to be the first to know when one of these sales takes place.

We are partway through our birthing classes offered through our hospital. I'm really enjoying it so far. There are about 10 couples in the class and the instructor is a labor hall nurse at the hospital. I learn and retain so much more this way--hearing it from someone--than if I were to read a lot of these things online or in a book. I appreciate that the hospital offers this. This week was the second of three classes and we also got to tour the women's care unit at the hospital and see the rooms we'd be in and even how the monitors work. It definitely adds a level of comfort for what's ahead.

I'm actually into week 26 but I'll post that picture with the next batch. I'm looking forward to my first shower this weekend. It will be a joint shower for myself, Michelle and Jo thrown by the family during our Hurray Day family festivities. I'm MOST excited about getting to see the both of them. I got so used to seeing Michelle EVERY week when I was traveling to Louisville for work and staying at their house, but now it's been over a month since I saw her and her growing belly! I have not gotten to see Jo since the celebration at her parent's house in early June; however, we touch base at least weekly. I'm pretty sure the three of us did a lot of registry comparison when we got those set up a few weeks back. It's nice to compare notes. Having each other has been very helpful. I'm currently registered at Babies 'R' Us, Walmart and Amazon.

My previous 4 weeks of growth: click here.

Baby Fun & Freebies!

I know I would be excited about this venture of parenthood regardless of whether I was the first of my friends or not, but there is no denying that going through it for the first time with so many of my closest friends is icing on the cake. It is great to have friends with experience but there is something comforting in hearing the same concerns and questions from others going through it for the first time. It also means we are also all going through the same process of prep work!

Working partially in Louisville and staying at Nic & Michelle's house when I do means lots of baby talk for Michelle and I--which is very nice! I love sharing news and updates and ideas with Michelle because she is so excited about everything. When my belly first really started to grow--and I felt like all of my clothes just made me look fat because it was too early for it to be a clear "baby bump"--Michelle squealed with excitement over the "cuteness" of a belly. She also likes to use me as somewhat of a timer for herself. Since her due date is two weeks behind mine, when I experience something for the first time, she knows she can expect something similar in the next two weeks or so--of course that is not an exact science.

19 Weeks for me & 17 for Michelle

I have been to two baby fairs so far--both were random luck that Mingus and I were in town for them. (Casey County is way too small to host such events!) We'd already planned a trip to Lexington on a Saturday when I just so happened to catch up with Jo the Friday before. When discussing our weekend plans she mentioned going to an event being put on by the hospital, Baptist Health, called "Expect Great Things." I have to say this was a fabulous event. The only drawback for us, of course, is that we are not Lexington residents so many of the vendors were showcasing services we weren't likely to take advantage of because of the distance. (Photographers, fitness classes, pediatricians, etc) At the same time, you never know when we might need a specialist or have trouble finding someone that fits our needs closer than Lexington. 

 The event had probably 30-50 vendors, all with free information to pass out and helpful friendly faces. Most of them were offering drawings for free prizes. The event itself had TONS of door prizes including a grand prize of a full nursery set--and it was BEAUTIFUL! There was also a spread of delicious food--everything from fruit and hummus dips to mini slider burgers and tacos! I cannot find where there is a standing page on their website about this event, but I highly encourage any preggers ladies in the Lexington area to look for this event in the future.

While we did not win the grand prize, all of us had a little luck. Jo was an early door prize winner and received a super cute, neon green and yellow diaper bag--great for either sex and perfect for monogramming! Later, through one of the booth drawings, I won a Bumbo seat--something I know I would have purchased eventually or had on a shower list so I was pretty stoked. 

Mingus and I actually got extra lucky... Since seeing the table of door prizes we had both been in awe over the beautiful wooden high chair. LONG before getting pregnant we'd talked about wanting a wooden high chair. We once saw one at a Peddler's Mall that Mingus wanted to buy, but me and my tight-wad ways (and the fact we'd just gotten married and had no plans for kids anytime soon) said no. A local store in the Mennonite community sells them but, being hand crafted, they are pretty costly. We know we won't need one too soon but it is the one thing we KNOW exactly what we want. 

Well, when the event wrapped up and the four of us were talking I could not help but notice that the chair was still sitting at the door prize table and pointed the fact out to Mingus. I told him he might go let the ladies at the table know that we were very interested in the chair if it hadn't been claimed.... Mingus took me up on this and let them know that if no one claimed the chair we would even buy it. They told him that since people were still wandering about they were going to wait and see if it was claimed. Fair enough.

About five minutes later--when we still had no left--a lady came up to Jon and asked, "Do you still have your ticket?" "Yes." "Well, I think you are the luck winner of a beautiful new wooden high chair!!" !!!!! And just like that it was ours!! I felt a little bad telling the nurse who was giving it to us that we were not local and would not be delivering at Baptist Health (unless it was an emergency) but she understood. We are SO excited! And I'm so grateful Mingus put in a word to them because there is no doubt we would NOT be the owners of that chair had he not. Thank you also to Nursery Time for being the donators of the chair--we are absolutely thrilled!

While in Lexington that day I also picked up my first few items of maternity clothes. Since then my cousin Jerusha has shared all of her clothes she's had in storage the last few years since ending her baby run. So far I'm still fitting in my regular clothes but only select ones of course!

Earlier this month we lucked upon another hospital sponsored baby event. During our latest trip to Indiana to visit Mingus's family, we were able to attend a similar event. Now this one did not have the amazing food spread or numerous door prizes--and many of the vendors were even less relevant to us (being that we live four hours away) but there was still lots of free information and freebies. You can never turn that stuff down! We also happened to show up at the exact same time as Mingus's cousin Jessica who we recently found out is expecting a month after us!