Getting Ready for Baby

We are slowly getting everything ready for the arrival of our second son. Unfortunately the name selection is still going poorly, but we are taking care of other things.

Heirloom Cradle
Oom Hans and Tante Jop have loaned us their family cradle. Many many of the Hekking clan have slept there over 2 generations. Their generosity makes us feel like honorary Hekkings. We will be keeping the cradle in our room- 1) out of necessity in that it won't fit anywhere else, and 2) b/c I both want him nearby for night nursings and don't want him to wake up Zachary. We hope that we have positioned the cradle in such a way that the canopy will block out any light if we want to read in bed some. Art's only complaint is that the linens on the cradle are all pink stripes. I am trying to convince him that they are really red stripes that have just faded over the years! :) Luckily noone will know or care that our son is sleeping in pink. And honestly, so is Zach. His borrowed heirloom crib (hosting 3 generations of babies including Art's Mom) has outer walls that are blue and inner walls that are pink.

New (to us) Kinderwagen (stroller)
Yea!! After a year and a half of pining for a specific stroller- a Hartan Skater - we finally have one. Out of sheer conincidence, Art's co-worker had the exact model I've been wanting. Their youngest is now nearly 3, and they are not planning on another, so they agreed to sell us the stroller. Unbelievably for just 75 Euro. The stroller costs around 400 Euro new, which is exactly why we did not buy one. Plus, they also gave us the newborn attachment (like a Moses basket) as well, which generally you have to buy separately for over 100 Euro. We are very happy with it. It is quite big of course, but the ease of rolling it is wonderful. The downside is that it is difficult to carry if you have to (up and down stairs), but we are making due. Zach has already napped in it a few times, which is great b/c we can lie him completely flat and the foot rest raises to a horizontal position as well. Now all we need is to get a kiddy board for Zach to be able to stand on while the newborn is in the stroller.

Hospital
We have toured and registered at the EVK - our hospital of choice. I had to make an appointment with the Hebamme (midwife) to give her all our info, and ask questions. I was there a little over an hour, bombarding her with questions. Several things are the same here as they are in the US, but so many things are different. One good thing, is that we finally learned what the deal is with our insurance. We have private insurance in the sense that it is not government funded, but we do NOT have private insurance in the sense that the Germans talk about it. When they say "private insurance" they mean a higher caliber of insurance that pays for things like single rooms, the Chief of Medicine to deliver the baby, etc. Our insurance has the coverage of government funded insurance, which is says right there on the card (though we never read it - it's in German of course). So that explains some of the inconsistencies we've had. It also means that I can look forward to sharing a room, after delivery, with 1 or 2 other women and their babies. Sigh. The other thing that was odd was the lack of paperwork. From what I have seen, the Germans are sticklers for paperwork, and every single thing has to be recorded and printed out. Not so with the hospital. There was no paperwork, and the midwife took down all my info on an oversize index card. Clearly, she had a place in mind where info when on the card, b/c she would skip areas, and such, but still - very odd for Germans. She said that when I come to the hospital, they will pull my card and have all the info right there. So this large index card is effectively my chart. I am relieved though, b/c it does have my history on there as well - the bleeding I had after Zach was born is noted (she said b/c of this, they will be sure to have a Dr. as well as a midwife in during delivery, just in case), as is, oddly enough my hernia surgery I had when I was five. I had to ty and remember what side the repair was on - hopefully I was right.

Clothes
We brought back all the newborn clothes we had stored in ABQ, so that is a huge relief. We also have borrowed some long-sleeve and warmer clothes from some friends here...just in case it isn't quite as hot here as it was in ABQ. Now we just need to get the clothes organized and ready for him to come. I have been doing a lot of reorganizing, trying to get everything in order.

Let's see, what else....my hospital bag is loaded, but not closed yet - I keep adding things. I will probably be there 3 days, though I can stay for 5 if I'd like. We also borrowed a baby swing, which has been put together and is in place. We also have borrowed a Moses basket, but I don't really know if we'll use it. The owners are in the US until mid-June though, so we'll have a few weeks to see if we like it and use it.

I think that's it. Now if he'll just stay in for the full 40 weeks, that would be great...even though I am tired and getting increasingly uncomfortable...and pitiful. I now sit down to brush my teeth b/c standing is taxing! :)

Now all we need to really work on is a name for him!!! So difficult.