Future Baby Gifts

I've been quite busy today! Not only did I make homemade granola from my new Smitten Kitchen cookbook, I made homemade frozen Greek yogurt! It is delicious, especially with the granola on top. Speaking of delicious, I am loving this quilt. Working on it has done wonders for my outlook. I've felt so much more positive about the whole trying to conceive process with just one project. Before this project, my idle mind was plagued with thoughts such as:

What's my BBT? (basal body temperature)

Am I getting a cyst again? 

What does that ___insert any symptom here___ mean?

Am I ovulating?

Why am I not ovulating yet?

Should I call my doctor again to ask her opinion?

I better Google that.

I better Google that again.

Should I read about this on a forum?

...I should not have read that forum.

Should I eat that? Let me check the label.

Is that organic?

I ought to be making that myself. It will be so much healthier. I should Google a recipe.

What am I doing wrong?

I better check my chart again.

Google really can be a blessing and a curse. If you've been TTC, you know what I mean. There's even more I could talk about, but honestly...we don't know each other well enough to share information that in depth. 

If you're TTC, and your mind is also plagued with thoughts that are making you feel more insane by the day, I urge you to start your own Future Baby gift. Not only will it busy your mind and body, it will (hopefully) give you a positive association with a process that has become difficult and stressful. It will refocus your mind on the original goal: being a mom! Not to mention, once you become pregnant, you may not have the energy to complete these projects for a while! Here are some of my ideas.

1. A quilt! ;)
2. A photo album of the things you've been doing while on your journey to motherhood.  
3. Letters to your baby that they can read when they get older. Write what your hopes are for them as they grow.
4. A piece of artwork that can hang in the nursery.
5. A cookbook of baby/toddler recipes to try when the time comes.
6. A photo book depicting you and your partner before starting a family. How did you meet? What did you like to do together? Vacations? Marriage/commitment ceremonies? I plan on doing this :)
7. Homemade toys
8. Baby clothing/cloth diapers

Good luck, and Baby Dust to all you future Mommies!