Project Preparation

Blogging is such great motivation! Knowing you have to "report" on your blog keeps you going sometimes, doesn't it? I'm happy to report that Project Preparation for Baby Justus is going well!

Here is what I've done so far off the very large list:
*Food storage/Freezer meals (I have a good start on them, more to follow in a coming post...)
*God provided a Graco carseat (for FREE!) and it's washed and ready
*Our van has made it safely to MN and should be coming out the 3rd week in August with King Jo's parents! We've started paying from our cash stash for it!
*Our diaper supply is slowly growing. We don't have as many as I'd like stocked up but this week I scored a couple of Luvs coupons for $2 and $5 off a package which should help out with this!
*I've bought tons of nursery supplies to stock the church with this Sunday so I won't have to worry about that for a while.
*Though I haven't written down all the clothes my kids' have, I have them organized and sorted enough to know that each of our 3 kids are TOTALLY "covered" for about the next year clothing-wise!
*Baby clothes are sorted, and all the 0-6 month stuff is ready and washed and folded!
*The diaper bag for the hospital is mostly packed!
*Our A/C went into our bedroom last night and our room has been organized to make more room for the bassinet and baby stuff.
*Jer's name letters are painted (and so are Ali's) and hung up on the wall.
*We're stocked up on everything for after-the-birth household-wise except toliet paper


Here is what still needs to be done:
*More freezer meals
*Stock the pantry with snacks and stock toliet paper
*Make a ton of homemade laundry soap
*Make sure I have plenty of thank-you notes on hand
*Buy Ali and Jer a Big Sis and Big Bro gift (this is fun!)
*Put my sewing machine in the closet and use the sewing desk/corner for baby carseat/diaper bag, etc.
*Prep my fall Newsletter
*Pick out baby announcements and have a list of addresses ready as well as stamps
*Work on Justus' scrapbook
*Pack my hospital bag/list of friend's phone numbers
*Convince King Jo that my middle name choice is best =) We're still working on it!
*Wash bassinet linens
*Make a chore chart for Ali and organize her "schooling" drawers/learning projects
*Get b-day cards ready for relatives' having b-days in August and September
*Get family birthday gifts together for those months and pack up anything going to MN that needs to be sent back out with my in-laws for friends/family

One MAJOR disappointment was finding out that my midwife is no longer delivering. So, with only about 6 weeks to go, I have to meet and get acquainted with one of the 2 doctors in town that deliver babies. On the plus side, we have decided to let my Mom watch the birth this time and so she will be there as added moral support, even if my midwife won't!

One other HUGE bummer is that we got a letter saying our Economic Stimulus check is only going to be $1,200. We were hoping for more than that, but I guess that's what you get when you have a lower Federal tax liability. In spite of this set-back, we should still have plenty for the van once we sell one of our other cars.