Choosing a Natural Birth

This post is a bit more journal entryish, but is something I wanted to write out. Not only just to sort of explain to others where I'm coming from with all this, but also for me. So that I have written down why I made this goal. Just like so many times before, when I wrote down why I was attempting a marathon, or a 50k, or a 50 miler, that didn't quite make sense to most people. So, feel free to skip if you aren't interested in reading my ramblings about our birth goals :).

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We've finally reached this point in the pregnancy that seemed like it would never arrive. Labor could actually happen at any time (though hopefully it'll wait a few more weeks!). All of our classes are wrapping up, our midwife appointments are now weekly and mostly one on one, and we're doing things like writing up a birth plan, and thinking about what it will be like to bring our little one home.

Being at this point in pregnancy, I've been reflecting a lot on how my ideas about pregnancy, childbirth, and baby care has shifted into a realm that I really wasn't planning on entering - referred to a lot as being "crunchy" (the natural birth is sort of the biggest part, but there are lots of other things too that we've decided on. This post is too full to include it here - maybe another day). I sort of wanted to write about it, since it ended up being sort of surprising to me.

I entered this pregnancy planning to do everything conventionally. I honestly didn't understand women who wanted to give birth without drugs, who thought they needed a birth plan. When I read about women with those goals, I always thought they were sort of naive. That they didn't really "get it." Unlike most women who saw "The Business of Being Born," after I saw it, I just thought the whole thing was propaganda and fear mongering and not at all true about how hospital labor would be.

Very newly pregnant and so excited about starting this unknown journey

Then I got pregnant. My change in mindset was honestly fairly gradual. First, we decided to go with midwives, instead of an OB. This was mostly because there were only 5 midwives in our practice, versus 20+ OBs, and I didn't want the person delivering my baby to be someone I hadn't met before. I knew my mom had used midwives, so we decided to go for it. Then, I started attending prenantal yoga around 14 weeks. This was probably one of the biggest influences on my decision to do a natural birth. My instructor is a doula, and her open and reassuring discussions about natural birth (and her own birth experience) started normalizing a world where women birthed without drugs. All the other women in the class were doing natural birth (or had already gone through one) and had nothing but positives to say about the experience. Then we started attending our midwife group and again, were surrounded by couples planning a natural birth and midwives who promised to be supportive of that goal. With all the pregnant women I was interacting with, none were planning to labor with medication.

Our team of midwives:Belinda, Janice, Diane, Laura, and Mina

So, my thoughts about getting an epidural began to change. It started to seem normal to skip meds. I also started to think about labor and delivery as an endurance event, like a marathon or ultramarathon, and felt like my determination and ability to handle exhaustion and pain would be something I could tap into.

And, I thought my ability to handle pain could be a silver lining from suffering from chronic pelvic pain for the last 10 years and chronic leg pain for the last 7. To a certain extent, having had to deal with all this pain has really made me stronger. At so many times during the last decade, I've felt that that pain has been able to overwhelm me. I've tried so many things for both conditions, even considering major surgery, but have reached a point where, for now, I have accepted and learned to live with the pain. But I think because of that, the idea of taking drugs for the pain just isn't that appealing. I've already had 2 epidurals for my leg pain (injected with steroids instead of anesthesia) which did nothing for me. I don't necessarily have confidence that drugs would even work right, because my body is sort of funny with pain medications (i.e. they don't work). I would rather learn how to accept and work with my body than try to keep fighting it.

Through researching natural birth, we've definitely discovered other benefits - less likelihood of "scary" (to me) interventions like pitocin and c-sections, better recovery time for mom and baby, more success with breastfeeding, etc. I still think there is a definitely place for epidurals in childbirth - I know many who found that getting an epidural allowed them to relax enough to dilate fully, or who had to get labor interventions that just made contractions too intense and painful to be successful without an epidural and completely respect those decisions. I haven't personally known anyone whose epidural caused noticeable issues with anything or who regretted their decision, so I still do think that the idea that "an epidural will definitely cause problems" is completely untrue and just playing on fears. Like so many things with being a parent, this is one of those individual choices that's so dependent on your own needs.

We're really appreciating the information and practice from our Bradley class. If nothing else, it has been an excellent bonding experience for Ed and I and has taught us so much about good positions for labor and strategies for dealing with the pain. It's kept me focused on eating good quality foods throughout my pregnancy, doing exercises that keep my body in a little less pain, and supports what I'm learning in yoga.

Our Hospital - Mercy Gilbert

We've even written a "birth plan" (though we titled it "Birth Wishes" instead, since obviously you can't plan a labor). We kept it short and sweet, and tried to include things that are important to us, but shouldn't at all be in conflict with our hospital policies. I was honestly super against birth plans before it came time for me to make one, so I still have a bit of a hard time having one. However, there are important things for us to communicate. With my pelvic pain, there are certain things that I only want done in a medical necessity, rather than routinely. Also, Ed is going to "catch" Evan when he's born and cut the cord, which is something our midwives really encourage but is something that we have to decide and let them know about before the moment arrives.

I'm honestly really curious about how this whole birth will play out. I'm trying to keep low expectations because who knows what will happen, but I feel very positive about everything going into this. Regardless of what happens, we'll get to meet our son at the end of it all, which is just the most unbelievably wonderful thought possible.

35 Weeks/35 Days Left!

(Decided to make the transition this week from Friday to Tuesday posts, so that I'm posting on my "real" due date, not the one I was first given. April 29th, here we come!)

("You should dress him up in a tiny school uniform so that he can come be in class all day and you can teach us!" - 5th grade problem solving when I told them that if I did visit the last week of school, it wouldn't be for a super long time)

Thankfulness: I am thankful that we have made it this far and are almost at the end. Definitely starting to reach that done phase, though baby kicks are still the highlight of my life. 

How Far Along? 35 weeks. That means 35 days left! It's really mind-boggling to me that I was born at this point in my mom's pregnancy. Makes it much more real that our little guy could arrive at any time, though hopefully he'll wait until he's bigger and stronger :). 

Size of the Baby? A coconut. Going by my birth weight, he should be at least 5 1/2 pounds and almost 19 inches long (I was 5 lbs 12 oz when I was born). So happy he's getting to that "real" baby weight.  

Sleep: Sucky. I keep waking up at 4:30 and am unable to get back to sleep. I know that insomnia is a super common symptom at this point, so I'm trying to roll with it. Makes for very long teaching days, though. Can't say I'm not fantasizing about maternity leave, when I can just nap whenever I feel like it! Naps are definitely part of my weekend routine, now. 

Eating? Much better with eating salads this week, and had some really yummy, healthy dinners. Also had way too many sweets. Motivation to eat completely healthy seems to have left with my sleep. On the plus side, we decided to splurge on a new, much nicer blender, so I am back to my fantastic daily smoothies! 

Exercise: Besides our Saturday hike and yoga in Sedona, I only really got in yoga on Wednesday - struggling to do more when I am so exhausted. I am proud that I still went to yoga, since it definitely crossed my mind to skip. Just got to celebrate the little victories, now. 

Best Moment? Hmm...this is a bit hard, since it was such an uneventful week. There were a few great things though. 

The biggest highlight was probably having Ed join me at pre-natal yoga on Saturday. It was so special to have him there, and our yoga teacher gave us a few different positions to try during labor, as well as some suggestions. The best part was the savasana at the end. She set it up so that Ed was leaning back in a reclined position and I was leaning against his chest. So very peaceful and relaxing. 

We also finally decided to go cloth for the newborn phase. We were torn, since our current diapers won't quite fit in the beginning, from what we hear, and we weren't sure whether to invest in little cloth diapers or just do disposable. After looking at cost (and thinking about health), we decided to take the plunge and order up some pre-folds and covers (the least expensive option). I'm pretty excited, and have been watching some videos so I will sort of know what I'm doing and can teach Ed. 

I also had my work shower yesterday, which was very special and lovely! One more very small shower this weekend (with book club) and then we can complete those registries and finish getting ready. 

Milestones: Reaching my own birth week is a pretty cool milestone. It also makes me feel  more confident that if Evan were to be born now, he'd probably be pretty darn okay. I also started getting my maternity leave plans put together, which feels exciting in a way. I am looking forward to everything being ready so that I can take off without any guilt about my students' last weeks of school. 

In prepping milestones, we got all the clothes washed and hanging (with pants/shorts/swaddles up above):

I'm super excited by how my clothes dividers turned out and feel like Evan has plenty of little onsies to wear, at least until he hits 6 months. After that, he only has 3 outfits, so we'll have to go shopping. Since he'll be in our room for the beginning, I gave up part of my closet for his clothes. It makes me so happy to see these hanging there every time I go in to get something!

I also finished one of my big crafts this weekend - a growth chart! I saw this on pinterest and really wanted to make one for Evan's room, especially since it's something we can take with us and use for a long time. I'm so happy with how it turned out!

Mommy Update: At 35 weeks pregnant, I am definitely feeling it. It was really hard to be back at work last week and this week - walking at all gives me some pretty serious pelvic pain and that, plus those lovely, ever present contractions, the need to go to the bathroom once an hour, foot swelling (the least glamorous and creepiest, to me, symptom so far) and sheer exhaustion, make it a bit tricky to give teaching my all. It's extra hard since this is the final push before state testing (2 weeks left now!), so I feel extra pressure to be present as a teacher. I'm so torn between wanting to be on my leave now, since I'm so uncomfortable, and sad that I will be missing all of the end of the year activities with my students - especially since some of them have been with me for almost 2 years now. 

Baby Update: Evan should be basically fully developed at this point and have reached close to his final heights. Now, he's just really focusing on gaining weight. His hearing should be fully developed - which makes sense. At yoga, Wednesday, he had been super quiet the whole time (which is a little unusual). One of my teachers often finishes class by hitting a small gong while walking around the room. As soon as she did that, Evan started going crazy! I think he got startled by the noise. It was super cute. 

Looking forward to checking a lot more off our list this weekend - we are getting close!

34 Weeks

(Spring Break in Sedona Edition! Best comments of the trip? "You look beautiful!" from a woman staying at our inn and "Now, we don't do deliveries here!"  from one of the park rangers at Bell Rock)

Thankfulness: I am so, so thankful that we were able to take full advantage of spring break. We spent the first 5 days working on the baby room (Ed did have to work for a lot of this, but still helped when he could), and then the last 4 relaxing. We got so much done off of our checklist, and feel much more ready for a little baby to come into our lives. And, our trip to Sedona really refreshed and revitalized us. I was able to read one and a half books (I finished "The Picture of Dorian Gray" and read all of "Go Tell it on the Mountain.") That is definitely a sign of a fantastic trip :). I'm also just so thankful that crazy contractions have kept away for two weeks now (knock on wood) and I'm getting very close to the point where it wouldn't be so scary if I actually went into labor. 

Just very, very thankful for our life and it's many blessings. We are so incredibly fortunate in so many ways. 

How Far Along? 34 weeks. It's officially less than a month and a half until our due date! 

Size of the Baby? Butternut squash. Our little guy should be over 5 lbs and over 18 inches. He's actually getting to be regular baby sized! It's really felt like he's grown a lot this week, if my stomach is any indication :). 

Sleep: Not bad! It's funny how much I used to love to sleep in, and now if I can make it to 7am, I am thrilled. My normal "good" sleep in time has been 6:30am, and I've actually really gotten used to it. I took full advantage of spring break, with plenty of naps, which was fantastic. I'm definitely a bit sad to be heading back to work and be so much more tired. 

Eating? Still really missing our blender. We had super yummy food on our trip, and have probably been indulging too much. I am aiming to eat less dessert this week, but certainly enjoyed the white chocolate, berries, and whipped cream Ed bought to treat me while we were in Sedona. I also am going to try to be better about actually recording my diet and making sure I'm hitting the goals of the Brewer's diet that I'm supposed to be following. Mostly, I need to work on getting in those leafy greens and yellow/orange veggies and fruits. 

Exercise: I got in some nice yoga, especially in Sedona. We also did two short "walks" (can't quite call them hikes any more) on our trip. However, I'm am totally counting assembling a crib, dresser, nightstand, and storage unit, and installing shelving and curtains. Definitely got in my workout!

(Ed caught an action shot of me using the power drill to install our curtains)

                     (After hiking up to the first level of Bell Rock, with Courthouse Rock behind me)

Best Moment? It would be impossible to chose. Putting together the baby room and our "babymoon" definitely top the list! Evan has also been kicking a bit strong this week, and those moments of feeling him move around may be the highlights of my life. 

Milestones: So much this week. We took our hospital tour, got the baby room close to done, and got to the end of spring break. While it's sad it's over, it's exciting, too, in a way, since that was the last big event between us and our due date. Just 4 weeks of work left!

Mommy Update:  As I've already mentioned a lot, this was a great week. I felt so relaxed and indulged on our babymoon. Between spending many, many hours reading with fantastic views, a pre-natal massage, amazing meals, and tons of time outside, I am a very happy mom-to-be.

Baby Update: Evan is now gaining around an ounce a day. He is apparently listening into everything, and he should be able to remember songs he hears now after he's born. He's starting to lose the lugano (the hair covering his body) and of course gaining more and more fat. He may be dropping (which seems possible given how low I seem to be carrying), which *fingers crossed* will make this heartburn calm down. I am pretty sure I've been feeling hiccups this week, which reassure me that he's still head down. Can't wait to meet this little boy. 

Contented Life

Ed and I just got back from three wonderful days and two nights in Sedona to celebrate the upcoming arrival of our little boy. This may have been one of the best vacations we have taken, to date, and was an absolutely perfect way to celebrate this transition in our lives. I'll try to share the full trip soon, but for now, here's a picture from our fantastic meal at L'Auberge, one of the most picturesque restaurants anywhere. 

Baby's First Library

While I am loving all of our nursery, and will share more once we finish up a few more details, this has to be one of my favorite projects (and it shows off our pretty new walls!). It needs a few more books to fill it up, but I love, love, love Evan's book wall. Once I had all the right materials, it was a pretty quick installation (and who doesn't love getting to use the electric drill?).  I used anchors that can each hold 75 lbs, so theoretically each shelf can hold upwards of 150 lbs without an issue, though hopefully we won't have any wall climbing :). 

The bottom shelf is just a bit off the ground, with the idea that it makes it easy for little hands to grab a book to read/play with. Also hanging on the shelves is a little "friend" from my niece, Amelia, to Evan. 

I've been super productive over the break, assembling the crib, dresser, storage unit, side table (currently in the master with the glider), and curtains. Now I just have some fun tasks, like hanging the rest of the wall art, and creating a mobile and a growth chart. 

So much fun decorating!

33 Weeks

("Can't you just get a babysitter?!?" One of my students after I reminded them that I would be leaving in a month to have my baby)

Thankfulness: I am so, so thankful that I've reached Spring Break! This break has been looming in the future almost since this pregnancy began. Once we hit the other side, we'll be in the final stretch. 4 more weeks of work and 6 weeks until the due date. 

How Far Along? 33 Weeks - I was born 2 weeks from this point. Seems like the end is getting a lot closer. 

Size of the Baby? Durian fruit (an apparently incredibly foul smelling fruit - lovely). On the plus size, he should be nearing the 5 lb marker and is well over 17 inches long. Can't believe he's getting so big!

Sleep? Not the greatest. A few insomnia nights plus a few nights waking up early. However, last night I only woke up twice and didn't get up until 6:30. That's awesome in my book. 

Eating?  Lots of enchiladas :). I made them Tuesday and have been eating lots of leftovers since. In very sad news, our blender broke (literally - the plastic part where the blade is attached has, I think been cracked for a while. I could never figure out why it was leaking. In any event, on Monday, a huge hunk came off and it's no longer usable. I miss my smoothies). 

Exercise: Yoga 3 times this week (regular class plus the two mornings I woke up early). I'm adjusting, but I am hoping that we can go for a walk this weekend :). Want to enjoy the wildflowers!

Best Moment? So many - we have been blessed by our loved ones (and very sweet students). 

Clothing and Baby book from students, sandals from a fellow teacher, and Eric Carle Prints from Christine

And our crib arrived from my parents!

In a "silver linings" kind of way, it was wonderful to see and hear that our little baby was doing fine in there when I went to get checked out on Monday. 

Milestones: We've gotten so much done off of our "to-do" list in the past week. Here are some of the things we've accomplished!

Our baby room has been completely cleared out to get it ready for painting. I also took down two shelves. 

Plus, we got paint samples and chose our color. It's going to be "china silk" which is the bottom right color. The other ones were a bit too gray and similar to our living room, and we liked the warmness and prettiness of the one we chose. Plan is to paint tomorrow!

Ed also got the car seat installed! According to him, it took two very strong firemen about 20 minutes of substantial effort to get it in our Prius, so that base is not going to come out any time soon. Thankfully, we have two, so the other one can be the one we take out to move into other vehicles if necessary. 

We also used a gift card from my sister, Ashley, to buy Evan his first swimming outfit. Since we'll be in town this summer, we'll get to take Evan in the pool! Still need to figure out how that will work, but I'm excited to dress him up. 

Mommy Update:  Another roller coaster week, but this time because of contractions. I ended up with contractions 5 minutes apart from when I woke up until I went to bed on Sunday, which was obviously concerning. I did go in, and of course everything is fine, but it's still hard to deal with. On the plus side, work has been increasingly accommodating (they don't want me to leave early), so I've appreciated that. 

I did have conferences this week, so it was definitely a long and tiring one, but now I have plenty of time to rest, thank goodness. 

Otherwise, I'm doing well. Normal symptoms for this point in pregnancy, and I really, really cannot wear non-maternity shirts any more, so I need to do some shopping. I also need some shorter skirts now that the weather has turned (and my internal thermostat is set for hot). 

Baby Update: Evan may grow up to an inch this week! He's keeping his eyes open when he's awake and he's going through major brain development (reminding me I need to focus on lots of healthy foods this week :) ). He's definitely starting to run out of room and is very entertaining to watch when he's going crazy in there. He's still active around 5 in the morning if I'm awake then, and it's very special to be laying in bed and feeling him kick my hand. 

Looking Up

(Sunset from the soon-to-be nursery)

As predicted, everything is fine. I'm fine, Evan's fine, I'm just lucky enough to have a body that likes to have a ridiculous amount of contractions for no discernible reason. They are back to normal now, though it's renewed my efforts, especially at work, to take it easy. Luckily, work has been great, which is especially appreciated considering that conferences are this week, which means very long days. 

The silver lining of conferences is that it's leading to spring break! I cannot wait to take lots of naps, make substantial progress on the baby room, and check some important things off of our to-do list. 

For now, though, I am just relieved that everything is still okay. As my principal reminded me, this parenting stuff never really gets easier or more convenient. There is definitely a learning curve. 

Venting on Uncertainty

You all can feel free to skip this, but I really need to just vent about today to the world at large, and this seemed like the best place :).

The last few weeks have generally been great for my physically. I've been doing a lot less, but have had few instances where contractions have dropped into that 10 minute apart range, and really haven't needed to stress. Yesterday, in particular, I felt great. Still took it pretty easy, but did a couple short shopping trips for baby things, which was fun. I felt so relaxed and was probably getting overconfident about the fact that pregnancy wise, things were going well. I'd starting using a support band at work, which seemed to be really helping.

Then came today.

Since I woke up at 6am, I've been having contractions, on average, every 5 minutes. Sometimes they've spread to as far apart as 20 minutes, but usually for only one or two, just enough to get my hopes up, before they jumped down to 3-4 minutes apart, just to mess with me even more. If my math is right, that means I've had between 90 and 150 contractions today. And I swear, I haven't done anything crazy lately. No hikes, no hot days in the sun. It hasn't even been hot lately! I've been getting good nights of sleep the last few nights, staying hydrated, taking warm baths, you name it. As a "rule follower," it's so frustrating to be following the pregnancy "rules" and still feel like my body isn't behaving. It's not even just that the contractions are fairly uncomfortable, but that they have me constantly asking if I might actually be in labor and missing it. And that fear that by not reading the signs, I will somehow hurt our baby.

I've called the midwife line twice today to check in, and will likely be going in tomorrow for the 3rd time this pregnancy to get checked out in person, but Ed and I just feel like we are in this limbo. Should we be worried? Is this just going to be normal for the rest of this pregnancy? What does this mean for work? Will they stop slow down by tomorrow? I feel like a broken record, complaining about these, calling the help line about them, complaining to poor Ed and making him do everything around the house when I get put out of commission.

For now, I'm just sitting, watching the Oscars and the clock, and praying that these things will go away slow down enough that I'm not in the "danger zone." Please, just 15 minutes apart. That would make me so happy.

I am sure that everything is, in all likelihood, just fine. But for now, I'm not going to blame myself for being worried. But I am going to trust that this will pass and tomorrow will be better.

32 Weeks

("Any day now, right?" A well meaning, but obviously very off coworker. On the plus side - our due date is two months from today!)

Thankfulness: I am so, so thankful that our life seems to be working out exactly the way it should. Things have been tumultuous for the last few months, and especially the last few weeks, but we now know what our future holds, and can relax and adjust. More to come on this, probably in the next few weeks, but for now, I'll just say that our new life plan certainly wasn't one we envisioned as a possibility, but seems like it will work out really well. 

How Far Along? 32 Weeks - two months left!

Size of the Baby? Squash. He should be getting near 4 lbs and 17+ inches long

Sleep? This has been a rough week for sleep. Thursday night I literally got about 3 hours, and was up from 1:30 until about 6am. Hopefully now that life has calmed down, the insomnia will take a break. I am getting used to getting up so much, but not being able to fall back asleep is torture. 

Eating?  Last week was definitely better. Stress and food don't mix well for me (or at least not in a healthy way). Next week will be better.

Exercise: Exercise was also horrible. I did do my Bradley exercises most days, but otherwise, just a few short walks and yoga once. 

Best Moment? There were definitely a few that I'm going to wait on sharing, but one that was very special was when I received this from a student on Thursday:

Getting baby clothes from a student, without a doubt, warms my heart and makes me feel so excited about my baby and about what wonderful kids I get to teach (and hopefully what a wonderful child my baby will become). 

Milestones: Paperwork has been turned in to HR, so I am officially all set for short term disability and FMLA! Hitting the two months out mark also feels like a huge deal. Like we should actually finish getting ready for the baby. I may go out shopping this weekend and pick up a few things that we need. It's crazy to think that I was born 3 weeks from where I am now in my pregnancy. 

I've also started (finally) planning the nursery! I did post this yesterday with the "to do" list, but so far, this is what I have:

I'm pretty proud of myself for making one of these inspiration boards, even though it was just putting images into the Pages program and then taking a screen shot. All of these are sourced on my pinterest page. If you can't tell, the theme is reading :). 

Mommy Update:  It has been such a roller coaster of a week, but things are finally feeling good and settled. Definitely feeling big (and hearing about it almost every day), and Evan's movements are actually starting to cross into the "uncomfortable" territory. I still love feeling them so much, though, and sometimes they make me laugh out loud with how strong they are. 

We had a good time at our Family Circle this week, watching birthing videos. It was super helpful - the videos were more "how to" style, in terms of laboring and birthing positions, and both Ed and I thought they were clear and well done. In yoga, we always are told to visualize our ideal birth, and now I have a better idea of what that might look like. 

Baby Update:  Evan looked great at the check up with his heart rate around 150 and still hanging out head down! We were relieved for our midwife to share that if they have been staying head down, they are unlikely to flip at this point into breech. We so want to try for a natural birth, and so this is very important. He's theoretically practicing a lot for the skills he'll need in the outside world, like swallowing, sucking, and breathing. This is a big milestone in terms of baby development, since all of his major organs are fully functioning, except his lungs, which need a bit more time. While we think and expect him to keep baking a while longer, if he arrived now he would be incredibly likely to grow up into a normal, healthy child. 

Our Baby is Due Next Month!

It's officially March. Our due date is in April. Let that sink in for a second....

Granted, our due date is the 29th of April, so we still have a long time yet, but oh my gosh! Next month we could have a baby!

With that said, suddenly it has sunk in that we actually need to get ready for the baby and, you know, make some kind of list of everything that needs to get done. So, I thought I'd make one on here. If anyone (especially those who already have kids) sees any glaring absences, let me know! Some of these aren't specifically baby related, but need to be done before Evan arrives. Plan is to come back here and cross out things when they get done :).


General House Work

• Painting the outside planter
• Investigating pool fence
• Schedule pool fence installation
• Installing a pool fence
• Get door fixed (we have one that isn't shutting correctly)
• Window updates
• Light bulb replacements
• Possibly replacing fan upstairs
• Call about sunscreens
• Install window sunscreens
• Call about pest spray
• Get house sprayed for pests
• Deep house cleaning (hire)
• Buy carbon Monoxide detectors 

Nursery

Goal is to go from this:

To this:

• Choose paint color We've chosen "China Silk" - a grayish, purple-y, blue
• Clear out room 
• Paint walls and trim (we ended up deciding that the trim was fine how it was. So, we're done!)
• Buy furniture (crib: thanks mom and dad! and dresser)
• Assemble crib and dresser (break)
• Buy accessories: rug, shelving, wall art thanks Christine!, diaper pail, decal (no longer getting for now)
• Make growth chart (weekend)
• Hang wall art
• Hang curtains
• Make mobile

Baby Clothes/Diapers

• Wash clothes (break)
• Hang clothes by month (in master closet) (break)
• Finish clothing dividers
• Cut tags off of clothes and prep for washing
• Prep diapers and wipes 
• Buy detergent for diapers
• Find wipe solution/recipe  (apparently water is fine and the go to for most people)
• Get squirt bottle (?) for wipe solution
• Figure out newborn diaper plan (prefolds or disposables) and buy needed diapers (break)
• Buy remaining cloth diapers needed
• Buy accessories: detergent, diaper creams, one more wet bag

Other

• Complete registry
• Pack hospital bag for me (weekend)
• Pack bag for Ed(weekend)
• Pack diaper bag for Evan (possibly everything in one bag...)(weekend)
• Get car seat installed in Prius
• Schedule car seat appt for Camry (break)
• Get car seat base installed in Camry
• Sign up for a breastfeeding class
• Find out how to get baby on insurance
• Hospital Tour (break)
• Write birth plan
• Choose a pediatrician (weekend)
• Register at the hospital (break)
• Make freezer meals
• Research Ed's paternity leave
• Get Ed's paternity leave approved
• Get TDap shots

Whew! And I'm positive I missed a whole lot on this list. But, this will give us a good start. I have a feeling my Spring Break will be a great time to deal with a lot of this :)