When does parenting start??

16 days until my due date! But hey whose counting?? So my entire pregnancy I've been reading/ taking classes on all of the "what to expect" kind of things. And even though the baby isn't here yet I think that no amount of reading material will ever truly prepare me for the arrival of our little boy. Do I use vaccinate vs. no vaccinations, disposable vs. cloth diapering, breastfeeding vs. bottle feeding..and well you get my point, the list goes on. I've realized that every family is different and what we choose to do for our family may work for us but not for someone else. I've also learned that sometimes keeping our opinions to ourselves is easier than explaining why we might choose one route vs. another. Not that I don't like having others opinions,  I really do because hearing things from other mothers that have gone through pregnancy/childbirth and the raising of their little ones is a great insight for me...but I feel I never want to be judged by the decisions we make as parents because what we feel is right might not necessarily be someone else's "right".

After much thought, research and talking to other people who have banked their babies cord blood, we decided to go ahead and try to bank our little boys cord blood when he's born. Now of course the cord might not be viable at the time of delivery but we hope that it is. I also hope we never have to use it but to have it as a safety net in case something ever happens. There are so many unneeded items that we spend money on every year that I cannot say it's "too much money" to bank his cord. The initial fee is more than what the annual fee will be but after the first year its only $125 to keep it in storage. I did the math at what $125 would cost over the 12months and it comes out to about $10 and some change a month, thats nothing!! I compare that to the cost of having an extra sense of security for our little boy. I know a lot of people that decided not to bank their babys cord blood, and I completely understand and respect their decision but for us I want to at least try to save it. My family history with cancer is so strong that it really is giving me a little more peace of mind even now before my delivery.

Im not exactly sure of what kind of mom I will be but Id like to think all of the decisions that Adam  & I make as parents will be in the best interest of our little one. And those decision for us started when we found out we were expecting.