Kieran is born!

Arriving into this world at a small but potent 5 lbs 10 oz, Kieran (originally spelled Kiran) arrived on Planet Earth at 11:43am December 2, 2007! As you can tell, this update is way late but we've been busy. For history's sake, here is how it unfolded:

11:50 pm 12/1/07 - Nisha says to Faz just as they were going to bed after a long day of shopping and setting up christmas decorations, "uh, I think my water just broke"

12:45 am 12/2/07 - We (Nisha, her mom, and I) checked in at Shady Grove hospital and were admitted. Nisha's labor pains were non-existent.

2 am - We're moved to the delivery room and made comfortable... well, at least Nisha was. Her mom and I shared a bench for the next few hours.

4:30 am - Nisha's pains begin in but still are relatively light. She's given a little medicine to help calm her and help her relax. Nisha's mom goes out to the waiting room so that Faz can get some sleep on the padded bench. Sorry aunty!

7:00 am - Nisha's pain are now full steam ahead and she's about 3-4 cm dilated. Where is the epidural??!

7:30 am - Epidural guy (anesthesiologist) arrives and relieves Nish. ahhh....

8:45 am - First signs of problem occur when the fetal heart rate, which had been galloping along between 130-160, drops for a few seconds to around 100. The nurse pulls out the oxygen for her. Fetal heart comes back up.

9:30 am - She's still not dilating too much, it's now only about 4 cm.

10:30 am - The baby is still "high" and has not really dropped. Fetal heart rate drops again for about 20-25 seconds, the oxygen mask is pulled out again. At this point, these things begin to get a little nerve racking. Another nurse comes in here to check where the baby is and confirms what the first nurse said. The Dr. finally shows up... and to our dismay (we already knew though) it's not Dr. Tran. Dr. Gierdian puts in an internal fetal heart rate monitor to make sure they pick up the baby's heart rate and not Nisha's.

11:35 am - All of a sudden, the fetal rate drops from 140 to 120 to 110... the nurse moves Nisha to her side to see if that helps.. the rate continues to drop down to 100.... other nurses arrive and help her reposition Nish... heart rate doesn't come back up.... Dr. Gierdian briskly walks in and checks... the looks of worry on everyone's face sends some chills up my spine and MY heart rate rapidly increases... Dr. Gierdian utters, "this baby has to come out NOW..." nurses rush to start unplug various electrical connectors and tubes... Nish looks over to me with a look of fear and tears in her eyes... I was no help because there were tears in my eyes; it was that scary... Molly, one of the nurses tells me that I can go into the room in a minute, as soon as I am "prepped".. "she's going in for a c-section"... "everything is going to be ok.." - yeah right, that's what they all say and why do you look so scared?? But I played and changed into the scrubs..

11:44 am - I walk into the operating room and hear the wonderful cries of a newborn! I'm told to avert my eyes and look at only Nisha's face... oh, what a relief!

12:10 pm - So now I head up with the baby to the 'newborn baby' check up. Kieran is doing great and super alert. He's looking around and happy.. until they poke him with a needle to give him his Vitamin K shot! Ouch!

So that's the play by play.. what a day it was! And everything was great... until about 6 hours later when they took Kieran away to the NICU! Oh man.. another stress filled 12 hours! To make a long story short, he had a PDA (which means one of his baby arteries that's supposed to close right after birth, didn't fully close) so his blood-oxygen level was a little low in the lower half of his body. But after a few days at the NICU, we brought Kieran home! Ok, that's enough for now...

Thanksgiving Dinner 2007

I know this isn't really Baby1.0, but here are some pictures of our Thanksgiving dinner. I thought I took more picts, but looks like I didn't so here are a few of family:






If you want to see more pics and videos, go here: Faz's Online Picture Album

So the Baby1.0 should be here any day now. Mom is doing pretty well now. For the past month, we've been able to sleep pretty well which is a big relief from waking up 2-3 times a night like she was a month ago. Went out to dinner yesterday and then dessert at Cheesecake Factory, so things are like they've always been.. might as well live it up while we can, right? The nursery is almost done... I will take some pics and some videos and post them tomorrow. Grandma (nisha's mom) has been staying with us for the past week and will be here until mid December. Because of her, we've been enjoying good food and a clean house and Nisha now has plenty of time to watch more of her General Hospital...

A Yellow Room

So we've finally finished painting, putting the crib together, and getting our dresser. Three big steps... about 30 more to go. We're thinking blue accents around the room, pictures, and other 'stuff'. "Stuff" is like the big giraffe we ordered for a corner which should be here on Tuesday. Yes, we have a ton of stuff to do.. but in the meantime, here's something to give you an idea on the room:

Video of the little yellow room

(unfortunately, the video is more than 100mb, so I couldn't put it directly into this page.) Stay tuned for the latest update to the cost of Baby1.0.. I was going to update it now, but it's late and I'll get to it tomorrow..

Wow, it's been a while!

Sorry everyone for not keeping up. It's now down to 4 weeks! December 3rd is right around the corner and we have tons to do. We've done some shopping and I will be updating the total costs of baby1.0 in the next day or so, but the main things remaining are the dresser and the glider/recliner/rocking chair (whatever you want to call it). Omar and I put the crib together yesterday and Jean and Joe put the closet together last week. Here are some pics:

More shopping...

So we finally picked out our crib. It is a Natart drop down crib, pecan color. We decided on a drop down crib instead of the rapidly increasing popularity of the convertible cribs. Our decision was based on the fact that Mom3.o is not the tallest woman on the planet and she was having problems reaching across and into the convertible cribs. Plus, they looked a bit too bulky for us and we didn't really see ourselves keeping the furniture for more than a few years. You know our tastes and you know that we are never satisfied with what we have.. case in point our sofa, which we wanted to get rid of and replace with a sectional 6 months after we bought it.

Mom3.0 has also been having problems sleeping, so we bought a body pillow. However, sleeping with it is worse than without it, so it's going back. There are different kinds and I think she's going to go try the full size pillow that takes up 1/2 of our queen size bed. Oh well... Whatever makes Mom3.0 more comfortable so she can stop waking me up 4 times a night is fine with me! There are plenty of th0se nights coming!

Crib - $493

Cost of Baby1.0 = $795

Baby shopping begins in earnest

Hey everyone! It's been a while since I've visited, sorry for being out of touch. Anyway, things are moving along well. We've really started narrowing down baby names.. it's a secret for now, but maybe we'll reveal it one of these days. We've also been visiting Buy Buy Baby a bunch of times to figure out our registry and all that good stuff. A great baby book resource is Baby Bargains by Denise and Alan Fields. It's more of a reference book and as we look at different items, it's a great way to get reviews and more information on everything. (Cost of the book $12). I will be writing more in the next few days with all the stuff we're thinking of... right now I'm tired and going to bed..

Cost of Baby1.0 - $302

Back from vacation and Mom3.0 feels the baby kicking!

Hi everyone. We just got back from our Mediterrerean cruise the other day and it was an awesome trip. We visited Venice, Dubrovnik (Croatia), Athens, Santorini, Rome, Naples, Florence, Nice and ended in Barcelona. Some of the sample pics are below but there are way too many to add (600+). During the trip, Mom3.0 was amazing! We were getting up at 7am, going out to all the touristy spots, and not getting back to the ship until after 6pm on most days. We climbed ancient walls and dusty hills, we shopped for hours, and stood in lines for subways, trains, taxis, and gondolas. Through all that, Nish didn't complain once even though she was 5 1/2 - 6 months pregnant. Even with 100 degree Athens heat, she climbed to the top of the Acropolis! And sometime during those two weeks, she finally started feeling Baby1.0 start to move! We were getting a bit worried since she wasn't feeling anything (even though the last ultrasound showed baby1.0 jumping and tumbling around all over the place) but now she feels him move around every day. Very cool.

Also, Mom3.0 has been updating her wardrobe to fit her expanding waist (in this case, that's not a bad thing! :) ). So it's finally time to update what baby1.0 is costing us.

Maternity clothes - $200 7/15/07 - 8/15/07

Total Baby1.0 - $289

If you want to see more pics of our cruise, go here: Faz's Albums

It's a.......... BOY!!

Sorry for taking forever to get the word out, but it's a BOY! After 20 short weeks (time is flying by) we now know we'll be having MiniDad3.0 in 16 more! Dad3.0 is definitely psych'd and Mom3.0 is, well, happy to finally know what it is! She was hoping for a girl so that she can dress her up in cute stuff, but hey, overalls are just as cute! So now the hard part - coming up with a little boy's name... we had some good girls names lined up (sorry Suraiya, you'll have to keep waiting.. :) but we won't need them until the next round.

Mom3.0 and I celebrating my last MBA class EVER! (Thanks Amy for taking the pic).

Another pic of us after finding out it's a BOY! (Thanks Nikhil)

(Why does Dad3.0 look like he's already been up all night with the baby??)

Girl or Boy? Tomorrow is the big day!

Stay tuned... tomorrow the waiting is over and the question will be answered, is it a boy or girl??!

A growing baby

Not so much a "bump" anymore! Almost 20 weeks, so here is a pic:

July 4th!

It's been a while, hello folks! Spring has warped into summer and it's already July 5th. Baby1.0 is now 19 weeks, so 21 more to go! We really need to get moving on the nursery and come up with our theme. We're thinking jungle theme and something girly for a girl. We haven't come up with anything yet. I think when we find out if it's a boy or girl, we'll get the kick to really start figuring things out and that big day is July 19th! Keep that day on your calendars! Here are some pictures from last night. They were taken on my iPhone without a flash in a relatively dark room, so they're not too bad.





I don't know how to rotate this pic...(sorry Rana)

Buy Buy Baby

We visited Buy Buy Baby for the first time the other day. Actually we've been there before, but it was the first time we've been there for ourselves. I actually felt like an idiot when I went in! Usually I know all about the things I'm looking for... well, most of those items are things you PLUG in, but anyway... in this case, I felt clueless. Apparently they have these new type of convertible crib-beds where they are higher quality pieces of furniture that you can use for years even after the baby grows up. We need to decide on one of those types or just the traditional cribs... I'll post some pictures of each of them soon.

We also visited Dr. Tran for our monthly checkup. It was a good time because Mom3.0 has recently been feeling some stomach discomfort. In fact the other day, there there was some stomach pain and "pinching" sensations. Good news though, Baby1.0 is fine. The pinching and stretching sensations are from ligaments and muscles being stretched as the baby grows. What a relief!

Baby1.0 is now 17 weeks!

Books, Books and more Books

People have been giving us baby books so we (ok, mom3.0) has been reading more. Right now Nish is reading The Girlfriends' Guide to Pregrancy by Vicki Iovine which she is really enjoying since it validates a lot of the stuff she's thinking and feeling. Thank God because how many times can I tell her that the red dots on her face will go away!?? For me, finding time to read all this stuff is hard... although we always seem to have spare time to do other stuff... like watch movies. Last night we watched Rambo and Superman (the original from 1978) until 2am. Yes, GUY night... with mom3.0 and myself! Can you believe she's never seen either movie??! "They were such boy movies when we were growing up" True...

An expanding bump*

Picture of Mom3.0 - and she's growing! ... which is a good thing in this case - I would suggest that most guys refrain from such comments in any other situation! :)

*bump = as described by Mom3.0's work friends..


[Mom3.0 has requested this picture to be removed]

Baby1.0's first gift and a Feature Update!

Baby1.0 received his or her first gift recently, courtesy of my friend Monica from work! Attached is the little monkey as he hangs from our fridge door! Thanks Monica!



Feature Update! I've also added Meebo to this blog (upper left corner). So next time you see me online, drop me a line and say "howdy"!

It's been a while

It's been a while since we've posted anything here.. again, I must blame all the school work I have for this crazy summer class! But it's only about 8 more weeks left and then I'm free! Well at least free from papers, group presentations or 3 chapters to read in one night type obligations. Either way, I need to find some time for more exciting things, like new cribs or new strollers! Actually, it might sound lame to all of you who have never had kids - or have had kids before and have already been through this - but we're kind of excited. I'm going to start writing about these thoughts and maybe even come up with some polls so all of you can help us decide on what to get! Now that sounds cool.. at least to me, don't know what Mom3.0 would say about that..

Special Appearance from Mom3.0!

Hi everyone! I can't believe it's already 3 1/2 months into the pregnancy! I just went 'walking' today....man, this work out thing, what you can and can't do, is really driving me bonkers! And the eating thing too....I'm just not used to eating sooo much! But I have gotten to the point where I'm excited to decorate the nursery and fun stuff like that. So stay tuned for more tid-bits!

A Surprise 60th Birthday

I've been meaning to upload some of the pictures from my mom's 60th birthday party, but didn't get around to it. Anyway, here's a sample of the party.. it went great! This was one of the first weekends that all of our friends found out about baby1.0 so it was an extra special weekend.

The Nuchal Translucency Screening Test

Living in a large metropolitan area, we have easy access to technology so we decided to go ahead with the test. It's non invasive and very reliable so why not, especially since it's covered under insurance. With any test like this, mom and I talked about the chances, however small, that we may get unexpected or unwanted results. As you can imagine, it's not a fun topic so we'll rely on the fact that Down Syndrome doesn't exist in our family history... at least as far as we know. $10 copay.

But the best part of the test, more baby pictures! Wow, the baby1.0 is growing incredibly fast! Mom and I just got back from a run which is now down to a fast walk (for me) and a very slow run for mom. She probably only has a couple more weeks of running left and is now moving towards more lower impact exercises. (Mom just disagreed, so we'll look into how far along you can be and still find it comfortable to run). Also, we're a bit further along than originally predicted - 13 weeks and 2 days as of today, a full week difference from the first "estimate". Our new delivery date is November 26th - Turkey Day!!

Total Baby1.0 cost as of 5/23/07: $89.60
Baby 1.0 is now 13 weeks and 2 days!

For The Nerdy Parents (including me) - An Interesting Science Article

An interesting Science Magazine magazine article was recently published that discusses how young kids see the world and how these early impressions impact the ability to learn about scientific theories later in life. Young kids know that things fall down - apples roll of a table and hit the ground or a spoon that is thrown from a highchair falls with a bang on the floor - long before they're taught the about the science of gravitational attraction. These intuitions may hinder the ease of accepting science facts, such as the world is round and isn't flat. Here's a link to the article, but you need a subscription to read the entire thing. If you're at the local library, check out the physical article. Childhood Origins of Adult Resistance to Science

Total Baby1.0 cost as of 5/16/07: $79.60

Our 2nd Dr.'s Visit

Actually, it was just mom3.0 who went to see Dr. Tran, but it was another successful visit. The baby is healthy and coming along fine! The heartbeat is strong and he/she is alive and kicking... well, not kicking yet. Here are the latest updates...
Dr. visit copay - $10
Prenatal vitamin prescription - $25
Can you believe those vitamins are $25 for only 30 capsules??! Apparently, they're really good and contain Omega-3 fatty acids (DHA and EPA). Anyway, we only want the best for baby1.0.

Total Baby1.0 cost as of 5/16/07: $79.60

Discounted flowers for Mother's Day

ProFlowers has two dozen assorted roses for just $19.99 after a $10.00 discount that appears automatically at checkout. Select no vase to avoid an additional charge of $11.99. Shipping adds $9.99 for a total of $29.98 delivered. If you're ordering for Mom, you can choose a flexible May 10 or 11 delivery date at the same shipping fee.

Total Baby1.0 cost as of 5/8/07: $44.60

A Healthy Breakfast

Something easy and healthy that mom used to make - Cream of Wheat "Pudding".

We used to call it Cream of Wheat Pudding, but it's really cream of wheat done in a slightly different way than what's called for on the box. These modifications make it MUCH more tasty than how you're 'supposed' to cook it. First, take a teaspoon of Smart Balance margarine and melt it in a small pan over medium heat. Add 3 tbsp of cream of wheat (the 2 1/2 minute cook time one in the red box) and saute for about 1-1 1/2 minutes. Add 1 1/2 cups of 1% milk and quickly whisk around the mixture to prevent lumps and then add about 2 tbps of sugar (or Splenda, but we have held back on the splenda since mom3.0 got pregnant). After it comes to a very slow bowl, cook for about 30 more seconds and then add a cap of vanilla extract. Cool slightly and Enjoy!

Total Baby1.0 cost as of 5/8/07: $44.60

New Amazon Coupon - Save 25%

For all of those people a lot closer than we are to the big day, Amazon has a new promotion when creating a Baby registry. Click here for the details:

25% off Amazon

Not a bad deal, plus you get free shipping on orders over $25 and don't have to pay tax. At least living here in MD, I don't have to pay taxes. Our friends in SF, CA say that Amazon charges them 8% tax no matter what. Don't know why, especially since Amazon.com is based out of Seattle, WA.

Total Baby1.0 cost as of 5/3/07: $44.60

In SF for the Week

I've been MIA for a couple of days. A huge presentation for my Strategy class last Thursday and a trip to SF for the Interwoven GearUp conference are the reasons. The presentation went well without me (it was a group one) and the conference was fine. SF was exceptionally warm and beautiful for this time of year and we enjoyed it by shopping all day and taking trips to the beach. Again, no issues with the pregnancy except what to eat.
For ease of reference I've created this cheatsheet*:

Avoid: Shark, Tilefish, King Mackerel, Swordfish
Because: Potentially high mercury levels

Avoid: Unpasteurized juice
Because: May contain bacteria

Avoid: Raw meat, raw fish, and raw shellfish
Specific foods: Sashimi, ceviche, raw oysters, and carpaccio
Because: May contain bacteria or parasites

Avoid: Soft cheeses
Specific foods: Brie, feta, blue, goat, camembert, gorgonzola, and Mexican soft cheeses
Because: May contain bacteria

Avoid: Some deli meats
Specific foods: Salami, liverwurst, and hotdogs. (Hotdogs should be well cooked)
Because: May contain bacteria or parasites

What to Limit

Limit: Caffeine
Because: Reduces the calcium that is available for the baby

Limit: Artificial sweeteners
Because: Not enough is known. Some consumption is ok


* Obtained from Mayo Clinic, Guide to Healthy Pregnancy and Blue Orchid Guide to Pregnancy

Total Baby1.0 cost as of 4/22/07: $44.60

Exercising and Snacking

20 miles.. that was the length of our ride but we're only at the 8 week mark, so it wasn't a problem. Before we left, we got to thinking about what would be the best snacks to take with us so I posted the question at babycenter.com. By the way, if you haven't been there yet, it's a great site. It's broken down into tons of discussion forums and you can get input on any question you have there. So some of the things that caught my eye - apples or bananas with peanut butter, peanut butter, and more peanut butter. That seemed to be a common theme. Check it out:

Best snacks to eat at Babycenter.com

Total Baby1.0 cost as of 4/22/07: $44.60

Our First Doctor's Visit

So I've been crazy busy (I put in a quick post yesterday because I wanted to take a break from writing my Strategy paper.. gotta keep my "A") and haven't been able to dedicate a few minutes to talk about the first amazing meeting we had with our OBGYN, Dr. Tran! After waiting for about 45 minutes, we were finally taken into a room for the appointment. Mom went through the standard blood test and other standard tests without problems. As opposed to our dermatologist whom I just saw for all of about 30 seconds, Dr. Tran was super nice and spent plenty of time with us. Many questions were answered, such as:

* Exercise is OK! We already knew that, but after a couple of intensive aerobic classes with twisting and turning, we need confirmation. Since Mom has been exercising regularly up until now, continuing the exercise regimen is no problem. The only thing to consider is not doing too much - when running or doing any other aerobic activity, you should be able to hold a normal conversation. If you're breathing too hard, then you're working out too hard. 140 BPS is a good pace if you want to measure. Another good piece of info, Dr. Tran says that people who exercise throughout the pregnancy tend to have faster, less difficult births, so keep working out!
* We were planning a trip to Europe later this summer and weren't sure about traveling when six or seven months pregnant. This is ok, but if you look really pregnant, then you will probably need a doctor's note indicating that you can fly.

We then were taken to another room for a sonogram. The picture below is a baby that's only 7 weeks old! Can you believe that?? The heart was beating rapidly and it was amazing to see it (him/her) on the screen! Our due date is now December 3rd!


Copay was $10

Total Baby1.0 cost as of 4/19/07: $44.60

Dad3.0 turns 37!

Wow, I'm 37... I was going to put an exclamation mark there but I don't know how excited I am to enter my "late" 30s. Is 37 your late 30's?? I don't know, but like I told a friend "I feel no older than when I turned 35 and only slightly older than 25". It's all up here (I'm pointing to my head) and if you're going to think you're old, you'll feel old.

Guess what?? We had our first trip to the OB yesterday! It was amazing... but... I'll have to keep you guys in suspense. I gotta finish a paper for my Strategy class tomorrow. You don't know how happy I'm going to be when I finish my MBA this summer, which is before the baby arrives. I don't think I could do school, work and baby all at the same time!

Total Baby1.0 cost as of 4/18/07: $34.60

Changing Moods

Obviously this was going to come up sometime and in fact has been out there for the past few weeks. In almost all cases during life2.0, my wife is (don't forget, we're still in life2.0 for the next 7 1/2 months) a very happy and jovial person - she's always laughing, talking, smiling, and laughing again during for almost any reason. However, the thought of moving to life3.0 is a bit daunting and frankly, scary sometimes. So when you consider all the life changing events we're about to face and the fact that life3.0 will be so different than life1.0 and 2.0, it's bound to hit you at some point. I think for us, that 'sometime' has been over the past couple of weeks. Mom3.0 is nervous about all the changes that she'll be facing with her body and all the changes that we'll go through as a family. Of course, that's normal and from all the bits and pieces we've been reading, a lot of people go through that same initial nervousness. In fact, we got a call the other night from close friends of ours that have been married for 3 years... and, they're pregnant! What a surprise and what timing! Another close couple going through the same thing as we are!

I'll let Mom3.0 talk about that... yes, Mom3.0 will be making special guest appearances and today will be her first!

Mom3.0 says:

Wow...my first post! So, daddy, I am still a jovial, happy-go-lucky person....just an extremely nervous happy-go-lucky person! My whole world is going to turn upside down and I guess it hasn't hit me yet. Daddy, you don't have to endure 9 months of your body doing all sorts of interesting things! That's about it for my first post... I have a feeling I will be writing more soon, I have more than 7 months of writing time ahead of me!

Total Baby1.0 cost as of 4/16/07: $34.60

From D.C. to Savannah and back

So we just got back from our trip to Savannah, Georgia last night and it brought up a question. How long is too long to be in the car when you're pregnant? We originally estimated the drive to be 8 hours, but it took 11 hours instead! And it's just a 4 door sedan, not some big minivan or SUV that allows you to stretch out in. So is it bad for someone who's 6 weeks pregnant?

Short answer, no, especially when it's only been 6 weeks. BUT, the safest period to travel is during the 2nd trimester, or 18-24 weeks. The 'no travel' period begins around 28-30 weeks. But like any travel, use common sense and get out and walk after a couple of hours.
Two good articles:

Medicinenet and UPMC

Total spent on Baby1.0: $34.60

Waiting to see the Doc

So our OB is finally letting us see her on April 16th. Apparently waiting 6 weeks after the beginning of the pregnancy (which is two weeks after your last regular cycle) is normal. Like any new couple, we really just want to go see our doctor, but too bad, we need to wait. The good thing is that both my brother and my wife's sister are pediatricians! How's that for easy access to medical advice. I do pity them because my wife will easily be calling them once a day after the baby arrives. Oh, one new baby expense. My wife has been feeling so good, like nothing at all is going on inside of her, that she wasn't sure she was pregnant. A quick visit to Safeway and $8.99 later, Baby1.0 is still on it's way.

Total: $34.60

The first purchases for Baby1.0

As you can see, I've already named the baby. Mom3.0 won't like that... Oh, you guys don't know my wife yet. Well, that's her name (for now)

So lets see, I need to catch up a bit. The first thing to be itemized is the pregnancy test, purchased March 24, 2007, Safeway brand, nothing special - they're all 99% accurate so no point spending twice as much for the same tester repackaged in some fancy box. Cost - $12.59 for a pack of 2.

Oh, the ground rules for me. I promise at least 2 posts a week, some weeks there may be 7, other weeks it might be 2, but I'll work to keep it updated.

And since I'm catching up, I want to add the only other baby purchase up to this point. After some research on the best baby reference book, we decided on the "Mayo Clinic Guide to a Healthy Pregnancy". We narrowed the choice down to that one or "Your Pregnancy Week by Week". We went with the Mayo Clinic book because of the Mayo name and based on the reviews already posted on Amazon. Purchased on March 28, total cost $12.57.

Total Baby1.0 cost as of 4/4/07 - $25.16

So what's this blog all about

Why would you want to keep coming back day after day? Well, this is what I want out of this blog, which is hopefully the same thing that future parents will want also:

• Most importantly, my thoughts and memories of life during pregnancy! You know, a 21st Century diary and all that good stuff
  
• I am going to keep track of everything that we do for the baby. Doctor visits? Documented. Cost for a crib? Documented. We need a stroller and I will inevitably be researching for the best ones and the best prices, so why not share that information with all of you? We only want the best for our child and I know everyone reading this feels the same way. So why not bring it all together for everyone?
• Questions and answers. As we have questions and get answers, I will post them for everyone to see and use. By the time 9 months roll around, this blog will have tons of information for expecting parents.

But let me also clarify the audience here. It's really for any voyeuristic person interested in finding out how a young couple, used to late nights of partying, dinner at nice DC restaurants with ambiance, and spur of the moment trips to Europe, adapt to life at stage 3.0! So enjoy!

In the beginning

As far as I'm concerned, life has three stages (versions in computer parlance) -

Version 1 - You're a kid and you grow up. Ohhh to go back to those days....
Version 2 - You get married. Life changes completely when you enter this stage
Version 3 - One day, you hear or say two words that you'll never forget "I'm pregnant". Again, life changes completely...

That's about it, that's life in a nutshell. I recently reached version 3 and heard those two words the other day, and guess what? I have no problem moving onto this new branch of the tree of life.

So why am I telling you all this? Well, because I had this idea. The idea is to document and share all these new changes my wife and I are about to experience with YOU - the rest of the world. Everyone who is going through or will be going through version 3 of life can read along and join us in this new adventure. Not only the experiences, but everything associated with having a new baby - finances, the ups & downs, everything. I plan to inform you guys about all the new and exciting things from babyland - cribs, toys, formula. Plus, I'm one of those people who researches to the Nth degree to make sure I have all the necessary information to make the correct decisions. When it comes to a new baby, believe me... the more the research the better. Why not share it with all of you?