Not news really

It's been a while since we've posted anything so here you are. There's not much to post news-wise, but there's always something more to talk about.

As some of you know, we've decided to forgo monthly prenatal appointments. At this point, nearly half way through the pregnancy, we would be paying them to say "yep! There's a baby in there, it looks good, and you're gaining weight." :) We will of course go see someone if we have any questions or problems, but in the meantime we are just going to monitor our health from home.

Our scale has just recently broken, but I will fill you in on my weight asap. :) I don't think I've gained much - 7 pounds maybe?

My blood pressure last was 116/75 which is high-ish for me (average pre-pregnancy was sometimes as low as 90/60), but still fine. I had been walking around quite a bit before that, though my heart rate was only slightly faster than normal at 86bpm.

I had a urinalysis and blood test done last week (for life insurance - good timing, free testing!) and am waiting for the results. The tests I took at the beginning of August looked good though.

And the exciting part - we ordered a fetoscope and urine test strips online yesterday and they should be getting here soon. We'll be able to regularly monitor baby's heart and make sure I don't have an excess of sugar or protein in my urine.

I hope that sets minds at ease. And for those who are wondering, we want to pin down which OBGYN we'll be using (or which alternative) by December and start meeting with them to build a relationship. So we're basically just saving time and money throughout the second trimester.

Speaking of saving money, I came across a few good articles at Baby Center about how much having a baby costs. The average family spends $10,000 on baby in the first year!!!! We're pretty much going to avoid that like the Plague. I think that we have plans to implement almost all of the suggestions they have - cloth diapers, breastfeeding, me working from home, forgoing toys and the like - and it was nice to read someone with the same ideas. Articles are below, and btw if anyone reading is in the Kansas City area, there are some great children's and maternity consignment sales going on around town (buy some stuff cheap, or get rid of some unused stuff for money) that you should check out. The one in the northland is this week. The website is http://www.jbfsale.com

The articles:

The Real Cost of Raising a Baby

Top 7 Baby Costs and How to Save

14 Ways to Trim the Fat from Your Food Bills