Half Price is Nice

I love Big Lots!  A couple months ago, I found out they have a frequent shopper club, so I signed up.  When you spend at least $20 on ten separate occasions, you get 20% off everything you buy the next time.  I was hoping to buy a rocker/recliner for the nursery on my 20% off shopping trip.  Well, yesterday I got an email coupon for 20% off what I buy Jan. 23-21, and I haven't even earned it yet.  We don't have the money to pay for a rocker/recliner right now even at 20% off, but I did get some other things we needed for the baby.  I got a play yard with bassinet and changer, essentially a complete nursery in one box (pictures below).  It sells for $113 at Walmart, but it's $80 at Big Lots and I got another $16 off with my coupon, about half price.  I also got a diaper bag for about $10 instead of the $20 Walmart price.  If you shop at Big Lots, go to www.biglots.com to sign up for their club and to get your coupon.

The changing table is hanging from the front and has to be clipped on the inside every time you use it.  It has a potentially useless canopy.  The control panel on the side controls a vibrator, a light, and music and nature sounds.  The brown thing in the bassinet is the vibrator, which I will install under the mattress after I buy batteries.  There's also a caddy for diapering supplies that can clip to the front of the bassinet.  The bassinet unzips from the rest of the play yard, so we can continue to use the play yard after he gets too big for the bassinet.

While I was shopping, I had someone ask me if I'm pregnant.  That's a first!  Of course, at the store I was in a few minutes before, the saleslady had trouble believing I was pregnant.  It's the black hoodie I wear constantly.  Either it's slimming or it makes everyone look enormous and lumpy.

The other day we picked up some things like wipes, baby wash, diaper rash cream, infant Tylenol, and Mylicon drops at Walmart.  Since Matt and I function only with the help of Tylenol/ibuprofen and Gas-X, I figured we should have pain relief and gas relief ready for the baby.  I was disappointed to learn at childbirth class that the hospital will have no freebies for us because companies aren't allowed to "buy" patients any more.  I found some diaper and wipe coupons online at places like www.coupons.com, so I can start stockpiling.  I'm going to try making receiving blankets out of some of Matt's old t-shirts.  We could still  use some things, like a Diaper Genie and humidifier, but I'm feeling much more prepared for the baby's arrival.  He can be brought home, clothed, changed, bathed, fed, medicated, burped, and now he has somewhere to sleep.  That should get us through the first several weeks so that we have extra time to get the clothes and supplies he'll need for when he's a bit bigger.

Now that I feel better about having the baby's stuff together, I can work on packing my hospital bag and  cleaning and meal planning and job securing.  I'm trying to get every moving box unpacked because it's not going to happen after the baby's born.  We made good progress on the study last night.  I bought some parenting books from www.half.com, a division of ebay with super-low prices and no bidding.  One of the books, about what babies say before they can talk, has come in, and I read it and Matt perused it.  It's led to some good conversations about parenting philosophy.  We've been talking for years, especially after we spent time with people with kids.  Our conversations now make me feel more mentally prepared to bring home the baby, especially since we're in agreement about most things.