Monday, August 23, 2010

Low-budget shopping

So. Our ultrasound is NEXT WEEK. I mean, OK, it's next THURSDAY, which means it's not IN a week, it's really in a week and a half. But still. NEXT WEEK.

Weird as this might sound, since we are planning to find out the sex (assuming Piglet is willing to share that info with us), that little tidbit of information is actually not the number one thing I'm looking forward to about this ultrasound. Mostly it's getting to see Piglet up close and personal and check in on all that development stuff. We haven't really SEEN the baby since the ultrasound at 8.5 weeks (the photo I posted when I announced I was pregnant). And at that time the baby was a bean-shaped blob and we couldn't see much more than the heartbeat.

Then of course we did get a quick glimpse at 12 weeks, when the midwife couldn't find the heartbeat with the Doppler, but that was with the terrible-quality bedside machine. Have I told that little story? Basically we knew that at 12 weeks it really depends on a variety of factors whether the Doppler can pick up the heartbeat or not, so we knew it was a possibility that we wouldn't hear it, but after a few minutes of the midwife poking around my abdomen with the Doppler wand it started to get a little panic-inducing, not hearing anything.

Of course I'd made the mistake of making the appointment for the very end of the day on a Friday, so after a few minutes the midwife, seeing that we were nervous and in need of confirmation that everything was OK, called the ultrasound department to see if they could fit me in real quick. But they were already closed, so she reluctantly pulled out her bedside machine, warning us that it was really not good quality and she hates to use it because it often leaves more questions than answers. And then she poked around for a minute before saying, "Oh, I see the yolk sac," which scared the shit out of me because there shouldn't BE a yolk sac at 12 weeks (at that point the placenta has taken over) so I immediately started thinking that the baby had stopped growing and the yolk sac had never gone away.

And then just as the midwife said, "Oh, that's not the yolk sac, that's the head," Piglet jumped. The whole body seriously leapt, like it had been poked (and maybe it had). And then we got a better angle and saw the head in profile, and the baby kicking its legs and waving its arms, and then we saw the heartbeat, so that was a lovely, reassuring moment. But, as the midwife had warned us, the quality wasn't good. We didn't get to see a whole lot (though we could see that there were basic things, like, you know, legs and arms, and a nose), or even figure out the heart rate, and we certainly didn't get any pictures to print out and take home with us.

(Though I will say that DAMN if that baby didn't look EXACTLY like Torsten. Yes, I know I'm smoking crack and a blurry image of a 12-week-old fetus doesn't look like ANYONE, but I SWEAR. I think it was the shape of the head.)

Anyway! The point is, we haven't had a proper ultrasound since early June, so I am really looking forward to getting a real look at the baby, a good one on a proper ultrasound machine, one that takes a long time with a tech who shows us our baby's face and spine and heart and all the rest. And finding out the sex will definitely be awesome but I am more interested in making sure that Piglet is developing normally.

BUT, as far as planning is concerned, the sex thing? Super important. We've done some shopping already, picking up random cute things that we've found on sale, figuring it's good to get gender-neutral stuff because if there's a second baby down the line that isn't the same sex as Piglet, the stuff will be usable for both. And we're doing our nursery in turquoise, yellow, and white, which we feel is a completely gender-neutral color combination. Speaking of which, the rug I ordered arrived, and we are in love:


But what we've discovered is that it's HARD to find gender-neutral stuff. Even if it's not bright pink or whatever, it often has ruffles, or puffed sleeves, or a very boyish-looking polo-style collar, or whatever. And while I would happily dress a daughter in blue and not care about strangers thinking she was a boy, the sex of the baby will most definitely impact a lot of our baby clothing choices.

SO. The point here is that after the ultrasound, we are totally going shopping. And it's a bit of a struggle because if this were last year when Torsten still had his old job, we would have a decent amount of disposable income and could go crazy with the shopping. But this year, the company is doing great and is ahead of schedule but isn't producing income yet, so we have no real money. We obviously discussed this when we decided to get pregnant, and we've budgeted for a certain amount of necessary baby stuff and a few not-so-necessary-but-still-adorable items. But it's hard to pull the trigger on that stuff.

In fact, I've been checking out sales for weeks. You can get five-packs of onesies at the Carter's outlet for $8 to $10. You can get adorable, high-quality pajamas and other baby stuff at Costco for under $5 apiece. You can stumble into Old Navy on the weekend when they happen to be giving an extra 50% off clearance prices and get a bunch of baby outfits for $2 to $3 apiece. And then you start to feel like anything over $4 is pretty much a completely outrageous price for baby clothing.

Which, really, is a GOOD way to feel. Going crazy with disposable income on all sorts of unnecessary baby stuff would be fun, for sure, but it doesn't have to be this way. Having a very limited income means that we have to be much more discerning in our choices, and really at the end of the day that will probably work out for the best.

However, in anticipation of finding out Piglet's sex, I've been thinking about this shopping thing. I have an Old Navy gift card burning a hole in my wallet, and I invested in that 50% off Gap Groupon the other day with plans of blowing the whole thing at Baby Gap once we know boy or girl (Gap clothes tend to be highly gendered, from what I've noticed in my browsing there). The Groupon requires spending a full $50 at once, so my hope/plan is to get a bunch of cheap stuff off the clearance rack and maybe round out the purchase with one splurge on something adorable that isn't on sale. But I'm not even GOING to Baby Gap until we know the sex. Unless the baby keeps its legs crossed at the ultrasound. (Note to Piglet: PLEASE don't do that. Thank you.)

Oh! AND this past week the price of the crib we want dropped again, to $50 below the price it was listed at when we first selected it, so after some dithering, we bought it. And it's on its way to our house right now. A crib. For a BABY to sleep in. OMG.

24 comments:

  1. SOOOOOO exciting!!! I will never forget how thrilling it was the first time I washed a load of teeny tiy baby clothes. Folding teeny clothes made me giddy with anticipation.

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  2. The nursery colors are gorgeous with that rug. Have fun shopping ... but remember, the first baby always is showered with gifts. You might not need to buy as much as you think. And if you do, it's usually the older clothes -- 12-18 months and up -- that people don't buy for showers.

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  3. Loooove the rug and the room colors!

    As for clothes, check out consignment stores! Our area has several baby-only consignment stores, and a giant sale that comes twice a year. Baby clothes don't really get a lot of dirt, stain and wear like older kid's clothes do, so you can find a lot of great, new-looking clothes at a fraction of the cost. I found things from a brand I know goes for $44 brand new (for a NEWBORN - can you believe it!?) that I paid $7 for.

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  4. YARD SALES YARD SALES YARD SALES YARD SALES!!!!!!!!!!! I know you know our obsession with yard sales, but let me tell you, this weekend I found multiple yard sales that had "stuff a grocery bag as full as you can of baby clothes for $5 - and one of them had a TON of gender neutral little bitty onesies, bibs, etc. I haven't counted yet, but that bag was overflowing (it was later in the morning, so I didn't even feel bad!) with at least 25 items - making them like 20 cents each!! YARD SALES!!!! (too bad I can't increase font size on this comment, because it would be size 102). Seriously, get out of bed and go, it's so worth it! ESPECIALLY once you know gender - the stuff is so cheap I am half tempted to just buy a crapload of gendered items for both genders and see what pans out...!! come to think of it, why did I not do that?? oh well, there's always next weekend...

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  5. I love the nursery and am so excited for your u/s!!! YAY!
    Yard sales, consignment sales and end of season sales! Lots of stores have their summer stuff on sale right now, though it can be hard to shop ahead when you're not sure if your baby will be of the bigger or smaller variety.

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  6. Isn't it ridiculous how much baby clothes cost? I've had lots of luck with Target for cheap clothes. We did get a bit for our shower, but not as much as everyone said we would get.

    I'm so excited to hear the results of your ultrasound!!! The growth scan is so cool. It's really amazing what they can show you.

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  7. Oh, the CRIB! The crib is so exciting! I remember when we set it up and I kept going into the room to look at it. It felt like this must mean we were, like, having a BABY or something.

    I like finding out the sex because then I can check Target clearance. I got a lot of baby stuff for, like, $1.74 and $3.24 and so forth, and that is FUN.

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  8. Also, I think maybe people have heard so many times about getting so many clothes at showers, they no longer DO give clothes for showers. And they've heard so much about "things the baby outgrows in 10 minutes," they're all giving bigger sizes. Or at least, our experience with four new-baby gift-receiving events is that we got very few clothes, and had a number of failures because someone gave us clothes in 12 or 18 months that didn't fit in the right season.

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  9. I'm so excited for all the things going on in your life. The ultrasound and decorating the baby room and buying clothes for the wee one. All of this is really so darn exciting - it's been a blast following your journey.

    Mind if I offer a few words to Piglet?

    Piglet, one day you will meet my Grasshopper and you will become fast friends the way I did with your mom. But, until then, please cooperate with your mother during the ultrasound - you don't want to start with the heartbreaking at such a young age. =)

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  10. OMG I'm just going to be honest - I'm a little jealous of you right now! How fun!! You must be so excited. I know I would be tempted to just throw money at every adorable thing that I laid eyes on, so you have a very good plan. Oh and you know I totally have to throw in a little plug - you should totally check out Goodwill. ;)

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  11. Sign up on Carter's website. They will send coupons for 20% off your purchase. I just used one yesterday on pajamas, though that will probably be my last Carter's purchase - they only go up to kid's size 7, and that's where my son is.

    Also, Ebay.

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  12. A CRIB! Eeek, I just about passed out when ours was set up. I couldn't get over the fact that there was going to be a CRIB! IN OUR HOUSE! WITH A BABY!

    I love, love, love, the colors in your nursery. It's going to be gorgeous. Can't wait to learn if Piglet is a boy or girl!

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  13. Might I suggest something? I wouldn't buy to many clothing items, especially for a newborn baby. They grow so fast and in my expierence people tend to give you newborn clothes and forget about 6 month clothing and older. I'd get a few pieces for the newborn stage and then wait to see what you get from family and friends. Also, check out second hand stores, they've usually got some great kids stuff at a great price.

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  14. SQUEEE!! Can't wait to find out what you're having!! And to see the teensy clothes!!

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  15. Oh, and check out consignment sales. I'm going to a huge one this weekend!! Can't wait!!

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  16. so i know it may sound weird, considering all you have are walls and a rug, but i LOVE your nursery! :)

    dear piglet: please be a good baby and cooperate with your parents next week. and may that be the first of many times you do what your parents ask of you ;-)

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  17. I only had a few items of clothing for my first (we opted not to find out the sex at the u/s), but I just loved opening the closet and seeing those wee little sleepers and sweaters. You're right that there aren't many gender-neutral options. I had some white sleepers and sweaters that did for both, but everything else seemed really gender-specific.

    Some good splurges would be the snowsuit/bunting set and the "going home" outfit.

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  18. Even for second baby, we have SO MANY CLOTHES, because that's what people buy you as gifts. Seriously, buy diapers or baby wash or furniture or a breast pump, but really, don't buy clothes, unless you see super cute stuff you want that you are worried you won't get. Onesies and such though? You'll be swimming in them, I promise. And if you aren't, I'll send you some! We have more than quadruplets could ever wear.
    PS I also bought that Gap groupon, and am ridiculously excited to use it, so you can see, EVEN WITH MORE CLOTHES than four children could ever wear, I can't stop buying stuff. (this is just to show I am bad at listening to my own advice and I get how fun it is to shop for baby clothes!)

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  19. I totally know what you mean about sale shopping. I'll see a dress at Target for $6 and think "too much!" when really, $6?!

    Also, no matter what people say about people buying you clothes, you never know what's going to happen. In all likelihood you WILL get a lot of clothes for gifts and can probably hold off and doing so super major clothes shopping. That being said, it's impossible to not shop for your own baby, despite what my mother-in-law might think.

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  20. I love a good sale and a coupon. Have fun shopping!

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  21. Baby shopping is SO much fun! Enjoy it! And while it's always great to get a good deal on stuff, one thing to consider is how stuff holds up when you wash them. Some brands wash better than others. I find that Carter's always washes well and holds up well in general. Baby Gap is also great, although I go crazy there, so good thing you have the Groupon! Other less expensive brands like Old Navy and others don't always hold up well, I've found. As my daughter's gotten older, I've started buying her more stuff from Gymboree, which is definitely more expensive, but the clothes are well made and hold up really well when washed, which becomes more important as your kid starts being more active (read: finding new ways to get dirty or stain-prone LOL). And luckily, they have a rewards program, Gymbucks, and coupons to help you save some money. Love the nursery pictures! Hope Piglet is cooperative at the ultrasound!!

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  22. Lol, I still haven't gone shopping for baby clothes. Once. He's wearing a lot of gifts, and since we didn't know he was a he, I didn't shop. (B loved the not finding out for budget reasons on top of the surprise element). So we don't have a TON of clothes, but he's not going naked (okay, he is occasionally, but only because of the heat).

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  23. I've already said it but I LOVE the colours of your nursery. Though I may be biased because growing up? My bedroom was in shades of blue and yellow. Yep. :)

    I hope Piglet will let you know his/her gender.. how great it will be to finally get to go mad with shopping. Yay!

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