The nursery

The new cot and ever evolving mural and
new lamp shade.

This weekend we thought we'd try and make some advancements on the nursery as it was feeling quite far from completion.  Unfortunately we weren't very happy with the cot that we had as it was quite dirty and hard to clean.  Also with our shallow hats on, we thought it was a bit plain.  We found a second hand cot nearby that was in need of a bit of clean (but is painted, and so a bit easier) and arranged to collect it Saturday night.

Unfortunately we were also not entirely happy with the purple wardrobe that we had bought as it couldn't really sustain the weight of anything on the shelves and there were some rips in the fabric.  We decided that a proper wardrobe was our best bet.  We decided to go where everyone goes to get furniture...Ikea.  If there was ever a place to put you off being a parent, it's Ikea.  Sorry Vega but if we need to go to Ikea, you're not coming.  I'm fairly certain if you took a group of children to a Cadbury factory, they wouldn't get so excited.

The filled wardrobe.

Armed with a new wardrobe, a cot bumper and a quilt we returned home from Lakeside *shudder* about half 7 and night, and went to collect the cot.  Sunday morning we got to cleaning the cot and were really pleased with the results, then assembled the wardrobe and then assembled the cot.  The result is a room that is beginning to look quite a bit more like a nursery, which makes us feel much more prepared.

As well as this we've bought a couple of job lots of baby clothes (less than £1 an item) second hand ranging from 0 to 9 months.  Some of it is a little more girly than we would pick for ourselves but at least we're doing OK for clothes now.

Wardrobe from the outside.

Annie and I filmed ourselves talking about the pregnancy for  the documentary which was quite fun and has been well received by the people making it, so we'll try and get round to doing some more.

Other than that, everything seems to be going well with the pregnancy although Annie is slightly paranoid that her bump isn't as big as other people she's seen around.  I reassure her that they are probably more advanced than her.  One of the women we saw must have been having twins (she was massive).  I've also noticed an increase in the amount of times Annie says "I'm going to have to give birth" to me, so that's clearly hitting her a bit as well.

Last weekend I was reading a few chapters of "Fantastic Mr. Fox" to Vega and she was kicking when I did the voices of Boggis, Bunce and Bean.  I'm kicking myself for not finding the time to do it this weekend, but we have been very busy.  We're definitely going to get some more Roald Dahl  books before her arrival (don't think I could get sick of reading them).

Quite a tiring weekend but at least the Sunday night Chinese takeaway was well earned.

It's really hitting me...

As per usual it's been ages since I managed a post - just seem to be really busy.

In general, at the moment Annie and I are getting very excited about meeting our little girl, as well as feeling a little terrified about not being ready at the moment.  We still need some real essentials like mattress for the cot and moses basket, bedding, pram etc. but I'm trying to tell Annie that we'll get there before she gets here (even if it is only 3 pay-days before the little one is likely to arrive).

Unfortunately today I've been feeling quite angry as I had previously believed that paternity leave was 2 weeks paid at 90% of your wage.  Turns out UK legislation regarding father's rights is actually pretty tight as far as European countries go and that I'm actually only entitled to £135 per week for 2 weeks.  It looks like I will be losing out on 2 weeks I was looking forward to there.  Luckily I've managed to save my holiday so that I have 3 weeks off as well as 3 days for the birth, so at least I get to see my little girl for a little while.  Unfortunately it's just another example of Dad's being left behind.

I was recently contacted about an opportunity to take part in a self-filmed documentary about expecting parents, which is very exciting and Annie and I are hoping to get a start on recording some stuff this weekend.  We thought it sounded like fun as it's aiming to show a different side to younger couples.  I think it'll be nice to see some young parents on TV that aren't on the Jeremy Kyle Show and other such negative coverage.

Every time I think the fact that we're having a baby feels "real" something else happens that makes it seem more "real".  The first time that I saw her on a scan and she was just a tiny little bean I thought "wow that's her...it's really hitting me now".  The next time that we had a scan and I could see her little face, I thought "wow you can see that it's a little person growing in there...it's really hitting me now".  When we had a 3D scan and we found out we were having a girl I thought "now we know the sex and name and everything...it's really hitting me now".  I get the same thought every time she kicks me (I particularly like putting my face on Annie's belly and getting a little kick in the face, for some reason).  Now it's getting to the stage that we're trying to get the baby room a little more in order, we're thinking about all the things we want to do when she's around and we're buying our sling to carry her around and Annie's bump is hard to miss...it's really hitting me now.  I really wonder what the next thing will be that makes me think that thought.  Those moments make me really happy so I hope there's plenty more to come.

For months I've been getting well ahead of myself and worrying about what I'm going to do if Vega has a boyfriend I don't like when she's a teenager or if she even thinks about smoking, things like that.  One step at a time I think.  It seems unwise to count down until her arrival as she could turn up early or late (probably late if she's a Swift) but it's just over 3 months until she's here and I'm very excited.