First Time Father To Be: 3rd Trimester

Ok, admittedly I haven't written much of anything in a while and I need to make up for it here. If you have been following along you know that my wife, Sandi, and I are expecting our first child in September. If you are a new reader you should go back and read the other related Hubs.

Well, Sandi is into her 29th week and I can report she is getting excited. I can't say for sure if its excitement stemming from becoming a mom and meeting the little creature (sex still unknown!), or if she is just very ready to have the alien pod ejected from within her. I don't know. But what I do know is how I feel and I hope to convey that here today.

Because we have had a very unusal realtionship these past few months (remember, she's in Florida and I'm not) we have been doing lots of phone calls and emails.  But in May during Memorial Day weekend Sandi bought two tape recorders so that I could record stuff and she could play it for the kid.  I was a bit hesitant at first because it actually made me sad that I was recording my voice instead of just being there, but once reality reminded me that we made the decision together I just started talking, and singing, filling up the tapes in no time.  We mailed them back and forth, and Sandi played the rambling musings to her stomach and finally the baby started to react.  According to Sandi, the kid gets animated when it hears my voice.  I also read recently that the unborn child will start to recognize voices in the 28th week and beyond, so hopefully this experiement is working.

Besides Memorial Day, I got  to see Sandi two weeks ago where we spent a weekend hanging out, old school.  We saw two movies, drove around with no intention of going anywhere, and even played Putt-Putt.  It was great just to be with her and see how she and her body are reacting to the pregnancy.  I had to listen to her tales of woe: "I'm fat."  "I'm a house."  "I'm clumbsy."  And I just kept reminding her she wasn't any of those things.  She looks great, and that isn't just me saying it.  There are actually people who don't even know she is pregnant when they talk to her, but those who do have all said she looks gorgeous.  I think so, too.  But I sympathize with her and just let her know that if she feels fat that is because the baby needs those nutrients and unfortunatley she has to be the vessel for them.  Though I know she is getting more and more giddy each day (and tired), I know she is looking forward to shedding the weight after the baby is born.  At that time I'll shed my sympathy weight, too. 

And as far as the rest of the pregnancy goes, I will be seeing her in about two more weeks in Florida.  We intend to do a day course concentrating on the birthing process.  I've scene all the movies with the huffing and breathing, the mega-hold hand grip, father's passing out, cigars and lollipops, expectant freinds and families in the waiting room...and I can't wait for that day in September when I get to be a part of all that.  I just want to make sure I am doing all the support stuff as well as I can,

Yesterday I found myself looking in the diaper and baby aisle at the store.  Did you know that a box of Huggies cost over 20 bucks?  I also found out that I could save money on all the baby goods by shopping online, which I'll be doing.  The cost of raising a child will hopefully keep me a little more grounded when it comes to spending money on junk for myself.  I'm actually looking forward to practicing better consumerism, though not terribly thrilled about dropping hundreds of dollars on crap catchers. 

Sandi reports that everything is going great with the baby and the doctors have said the health of both mother and child are as expected.  I find myself starting to workout more and more, as a good example to the child of course, but also because with each day closer to the birth I get millions of thoughs about my child's future screaming through my head.  The workouts and running help me to stay sane and examine each concern one at a time.  I don't even know all the questions I am supposed to ask myself, but we have a great family and friend support structure around us with plenty of experience to lean on.  And I am thankful for that. 

Lastly, for now, is a question I keep getting asked:  "Are you ready to be a dad?"  No.  I don't know.  Yes.  None of those answers matter.  What really matters is that I may not be ready, (is anyone?), but I am excited and willing.  I have wanted to be a dad for a long time.  I'll make plenty of mistakes, maybe even hit oil once and while and shock even myself at what a good job I'm doing.  I'm up for this task that will last me the rest of my life and I just hope to never let the kid down.  I kind of wish the day was already upon us but we have just under two months left to worry and think and game plan, then the real fun begins.