Monday, January 25, 2010

The Incubator

At Home Depot two nights ago a nice lady stopped us to ask when the baby was due. I told her May 13th. She thought about that for a second and then her eyebrows shot up and she said "you are gonna be HUGE!" Yeah, I'm kind of realizing that too.



Anyway, it was a good trip. We got a programmable thermostat, some paint for the nursery ("water sprout"), wood putty for the crack in the front door, and some random painting tools.

Ross also bought some sandpaper. He told me he wants to sand and paint the front door. I hope he doesn't mean now, in the dead of winter, but one of the first things I learned about marriage is that trying to have these conversations in the middle of Home Depot is a bad idea.

I called the hospital today to ask about classes. There were three I was interested in - a birthing class, a breastfeeding class, and a baby care class. The breastfeeding class is the cheapest, even cheaper than meeting with a lactation nurse, so I will probably do that one. But the others...I don't know. Can't I just learn everything I need to know from TLC's Baby Story and the internet?

6 comments:

Steph said...

also they make you watch videos on baby care before you leave the hospital. AND hello, you basically took care of Mal the first week or two of his life.

I would take the birthing class though. Because even though you probably know everything or could learn it on the internet I think in those "oh my goodness" moments when you are in labor you will feel a little more in control and prepared if you had taken a class. And whatever you can to do to make that easier you should!

Lauren said...

I second Steph's motion for you to take the birthing class. I thought it was helpful.

Also... YOUR HOSPITAL CHARGES FOR CLASSES? I wonder if you called around if you could find one that doesn't charge for that. The only classes there was a fee for were the ones that required individual equipment (we paid $5 for our Infant CPR class but we got to take home the whole kit with DVD instructions and mannequin for practice at home too). All the others were free and also we have a free Lactation Clinic that operates 365 days a year and is on call 24 hrs a day. They do it as a public service too so you don't have to have your baby at that hospital or even live in the town to take advantage of the classes and clinic. Also, the videos that the encourage you to watch before going home with baby, they give you a DVD to take home too.

If you can't find free classes up there and don't want to pay baby care and cpr fees, you are welcome to borrow our DVD and our CPR kit.

Kimberly Cangelosi said...

Really? That would be sweet. The hospital charges $110 for the birthing class and $40 for the baby care class. And they don't teach infant CPR! Grrrr. Doctor recommended another class but it's not free either. I'll have to look around.

I really think I'd be fine without infant care but I don't know about Ross...

Lauren said...

Noah and I missed our infant care class because we both had colds and didn't want to share that with other pregnant ladies. You can probably teach Ross anything he needs to know and the videos will help -- next time I come up I'll bring the "All About Baby" DVD for you to borrow along with the Infant CPR kit. Some helpful stuff in there.

I can't believe how much they are charging for the classes. Shoot, you'd save money driving down and going to the class at our hospital down here. There must be a hospital up there that offers them for free too... I know the Carle hospital (ours) is ahead of the curve in a lot of areas but they can't be alone in their services for moms and moms-to-be. (They also offer mommy&me type classes that I believe are free too.)

Lauren said...

and just to brag, my insurance company sent me "Your Pregnancy Week-by-Week" and "Your Baby Week-by-Week" for free. Pretty sweet deal.

Kimberly Cangelosi said...

Thanks Lauren! Ross and I watched "The Business of Being Born" yesterday. It was definitely biased toward home birth but still really informative.

I did a search for birthing classes in DuPage county and they all were around $100. Your hospital (and your insurance!) sound great!