Baby Weekend!

So I intended to give an update earlier this week here in Cleveland, but the internet was down at my hotel. I'm here in Cleveland for some work training, but will return home tomorrow evening. The weather here is perfect this week and I'm enjoying the class for the most part!

Well James and I had a weekend FULL of baby-related stuff!

Saturday was our Childbirth Education class, which lasted all day (which was fine since it was raining outside!) James and I both enjoyed the class. The instructor was GREAT, laid back and quirky and shared a lot of personal experiences (she is pregnant now with her fourth child and has experienced nearly all types of births, including a couple preterm labors and an emergency c-section when her girl had the umbilical cord wrapped around her neck). She gave a lot of great tips about parenting, including what not to waste our money on! She also covered specific things about how the St. Cloud Hospital deliveries go. I thought this was so helpful, because pregnancy/birthing books and websites are so overwhelming with information, when not all hospitals offer or allow certain things!

Sunday was our baby shower with James' family, my mom and sister and nieces, and with our friends! It turned out great and I thank everyone that had a part in making it come together for a good time and I thank everyone who traveled to attend the shower! The gifts were all so great and we will enjoy getting to use everything when the baby is here! Thank you!

We also watched a couple baby videos that I picked up at the library. This included the Dunstan Baby Language video, which teaches universal sounds that babies make when they cry to help us decipher what each cry means (ex: hunger, burp, tired, gas, and discomfort). We also watched a video called "The Happiest Baby on the Block", which discussed certain ways to sooth a crying baby --> The 5 S's: Swaddle, Side/Stomach Position, Shushing Sounds, Swinging, and Sucking. Supposedly these five things will automatically "turn on the baby's calming reflex" and make the baby stop crying almost immediately. They sure make it look easy in the videos, but we will have to see how it all works for us!

I have my next doctor appointment next Tuesday, so I will probably have another update for you all then!