Halloween: It grows on you!

The sense of expectation increases. Lara is starting to feel more stretching pains as the baby grows bigger than her belly currently allows. Meanwhile, it is now possible to watch Lara's belly pop out with the little guy's kicks--a soccer player to be, no doubt.

As we move in to the 3rd trimester, our thoughts turn from the abstract ("Gee, parenting will be fun, won't it?") to the concrete ("S#@t, we don't know or have anything!"). We are especially thankful to our friends and family who have given us their thoughts on what has been helpful to them and what has not. While some of the advice has been universal ("Get sleep now while there's still time!"), it is interesting to see how different each family's experience is. Some have sworn by baby slings, while others have found them useless. Some baby's have loved vibrating seats, while others have HATED them. But, even this contradictory advice is helpful. It lets us off the hook--a least a little bit. If there were one right path, we'd all follow it. Since there isn't, we have to give ourselves a break, and set out to do what seems right. Every baby and every parent is different, it seems, and in the end, we'll follow the path that's been trod by many before us, bumbling along, trying to find what works after figuring out what doesn't, seeking guidance from those who have gone before. At least, that's what seems wise to us now. Check back in a few months.