Parenting "Decisions" and Lists

I am an avid (read: obsessive) list maker.  I think I've even made a list of lists to make.  I love crossing things off lists probably more than I like making lists.  I have a daily to-do list, a bi-weekly budget/money list, an on-going grocery list, a list of dinners for the week.  And those lists are just my usual lists.  Right now, I also have a hospital bag list and a to-do-before-baby-almost-gets-here list. 

The hospital bag is an interesting thing.  I can't quite pack it yet because I want to wear my slippers and pj pants between now and the time I go to the hospital.  I obviously can't pack my makeup either for this reason.  So, when/if I go into labor, will I be scrambling around my house, yelling at Sparky to find my slippers while I pack my travel makeup bag? And, if I go into labor at work (as one of my students asked yesterday), does the hospital bag get rendered useless?  AND truthfully, labor takes a while, so even if I do go into labor at home, won't I still have time to put my makeup bag together?  What is the other option--travel sized everything in a separate makeup bag? That sounds rather expensive and unnecessary.  (YES, I will be one of those women with makeup on in the delivery room--if you know me in real life, you know this is true).

About that to-do-before-baby-almost-gets-here list...I don't know when Daniel will make his appearance.  My goal is to have everything done by the week of Jan. 21. So what does this list encompass? Oil change, windshield wipers, carwash, boil pacifiers--is that what you do to sterilize them?--wash bottles and their million little parts, buy changing pad, buy pads and lotion for boobs, buy breast pump stuff, talk to boss about maternity leave again, lesson plans for maternity leave, clean house, get wax, get hair done, buy cheap underwear for hospital bag, finish hospital bag, oh and install carseat base in my car.  Seriously, this list makes me tired. And the kicker--how much of this is really necessary?! 

Being this far in pregnancy is interesting.  I finished my first baby book (Happiest Baby on the Block) and I'm reading What to Expect the First Year.  Thanks to Kathleen @ Boring Blog, I just purchased another book on my N.ook to read on the treadmill.  I feel like parenting is a combination of other people's good ideas with what works for your child, and this is the approach I'm taking.  There are a few things that I will be adamant about (like no pacifier at the hospital), but other than that, I feel like I just want a whole bunch of ideas, tips, and strategies in my head that I can mentally flip through once we meet Daniel.  I was stressing out for a while about all of this, but I feel much calmer now.  Sparky and I are still on the bunny slopes of parenting, so I'm sure we will look back on some of our attempts at scheduling/baby calming and laugh (or cry), but I think this approach will work for us at first.

Speaking of baby calming, Sparky and I are babysitting our niece this Friday!  We gave SIL and BIL a night of babysitting and a restaurant giftcard for Christmas; Sparky is a little nervous, but I think we'll be fine.  Trial by fire I guess!  She's 14 weeks old this week, and my MIL is only five minutes away if things get way out control, but I don't foresee that happening. 

I've learned over the past weeks that Sparky will be the more, well, cautious parent.  We set up our baby swing and turned it on and he immediately said "it's too fast! we can't put the baby in that! he'll fly out!"  Oh man.  And so it begins...