I started the month with PARP activities at school, including a kick off event, author visit, and story contest. The PARP craziness is continuing through the month....I'm looking forward to March 30 when it's over.
March weekends have been filled with judging OM tournaments, running errands, and best of all, Sarah's Baby Shower! It was adorable, and I can't wait to meet her little peanut super soon.
This past weekend, we made our first significant baby purchase: the crib!
I'm so in love with the one we found, but it wasn't without some blood, sweat, tears, and serious power shopping. Originally, we had our hearts set on the Westwood Meadowdale. Westwood is one of the top rated companies by Baby Bargains (my personal baby gear bible), so we were pretty pumped to find a crib by that company at Baby Depot. I also researched it extensively, and was happy to see it exceeded safety regulations, was NOT made in China, and was constructed from 100% poplar hardwood--no fiberboard. Not to mention, it was adorable and would match the antique furniture we're planning to use in the nursery. My awesome MIL offered to get the crib for us, so we waited a few weeks after deciding on the crib to meet up with her and make the purchase. Big mistake. On Saturday, we went to Baby Depot, 15% off coupon in hand, ready to get down to business. The missing floor model should have been my first clue that things were not about to work out in our favor, but I optimistically found a salesperson and asked about the crib. Well...not only was it no longer available in the store, but was also unavailable EVERYWHERE. Apparently, it had been discontinued and sold out in a matter of 2 weeks. The crib was g-o-n-e and it was not coming back. Ever.
So, back to the drawing board. I sucked up my preggers hormones, stifled a freak out, and went home to commence MORE research to find another crib that met my over the top standards. Lo and behold, a quick trip to the Baby Depot site yielded a perfect substitute. This crib was by Suite Bebe, a division of Munire, which happens to be another high rated company. Google reassured me that this particular crib met the same safety standards as our original choice, was also not made in China,and was constructed from mahogany. YES. We were back on track.
We called the JC store and....no crib. Not order-able. Ugh.
We were directed to call Elmira.
No crib. Order could take up to 6 months.
DOUBLE UGH.
We decided to try Scranton and....
THEY HAD ONE CRIB IN STOCK!
We begged them to hold it for us, jumped in the car, and drove like maniacs to my parents' house. We borrowed the van, hit the road, and arrived in Scranton an hour later to collect our hard won crib.
Success!....almost.
Once the crib was purchased, the store luckily had it right in their warehouse, so we could take it right then and there. Except...the box didn't fit in the van. So, we busted out our Swiss Army knives that my mom got us as a gag gift this Christmas (no joke) and ripped open the box. After some serious pushing, shoving, pleading, begging, coercing and a 15 minute fight with the rear seat release, the crib was in the van, and we were on our way. Here's our guy's beautiful little bed: http://www1.burlingtoncoatfactory.com/babydepot/Barcelona-Crib-Cherry-381129683.aspx
In the end, everything worked out in our favor. I actually like this crib better than the original, and the color matches our existing dressers perfectly. The price was unbeatable (especially with an extra 15% off!), we paid no shipping, and we already have it in our possession. I went today and ordered the bed rails and toddler guard, and our local Baby Depot honored two 20% off coupons I had, so we saved even more.
This week, our handyman is finishing up the walls (and painting!) so next weekend, we should be able to move things back into the basement, paint the nursery, and possibly even set up the crib! Saturday marks the beginning of the 3rd trimester, so I'm starting to feel the pressure of getting things done.
Today, we were able get our pediatrician in order (just waiting for final confirmation that we "got in" with the doctor of our choice) so we're really starting to check things off the list! Kaycee and Sarah are just a few short days away from becoming mamas....I can't wait to join them in 3 months!
