New Furniture

On Sunday we tried to go to the Calico Museum. It's a museum for textiles (Gujarat is known for it's textiles) and is world renowned. Getting there was a little tricky but we finally found it and were in time for the tour. Then I pulled Anna out of the car and the guard said that children were not allowed in. We had checked their web site which said that no children under 10 are allowed on the tour but the people at work said it was just the scholars tour with the age restriction (the formatting on the website was tricky). Apparently that wasn't the case after all. Our driver was more than willing to watch her for us but we decided against it as the tour is two hours and we weren't really prepared to leave her with anyone (she would need a nap and food before we would be done). We'll have to try again armed with this new knowledge.

Our new crib complete with mobile. This was before I put on the sheet.

With that not working and as we still had the car, we decided to try to get a crib. We tried on Saturday by looking at this little hole in the wall store that had a lot of cool toys but no cribs. The people there recommended we try a mall but we didn't have time on Saturday to look. So we went on Sunday. When we went to the mall, it must have recently opened (it was before noon) because not many people were there and a number of the stores weren't opened at all. We tried the directory but of course we didn't recognize any of the stores.

We found a big store that looked like a department store and we figured if they didn't have any cribs, maybe they could tell us where we could fine a store that did. As it turned out, they have a large baby department complete with cribs. After ascertaining that they accept international credit cards and deliver, we chose a bed. Then we had to find sheets and the sales people talked me into a mobile.

While I was deciding which mobile I liked, the sales people checked in the back to get the crib we chose and discovered they were out and could only offer us the display. Jason checked it out and saw that other than a little bit of worn off lettering on the chew guard, it was is good shape so we agreed. Then while we were paying for it, they took it apart and boxed it up.

Here is a close up of the sheet we got. This is just a small design at the end of the bed, most of it is the floral pattern you can see at the top.

To deliver it, they said they would follow us. The mattress (which is really just a cloth covered foam pad) fit in our car but the box would not so they would have to transport it. Interestingly enough, they had a motorcycle with which to do that. So we were followed by a motorcycle with the driver and a guy behind him with a very tall box on his lap. It was easy to spot but we were a little bit concerned about the safety of the guy holding the box. They made it just fine and we even all fit in the elevator (which is not very big). Then they set it up for us in Anna's room. Oddly enough, the bed that was already in her room was built in so I was a mite worried about the crib fitting but it does so shwewsh.

When we first put Anna down for her nap in it, I think she was a little bit freaked. It was totally new and like nowhere she had ever slept before. It even smelled funny (like the store). To help ease her into the transition, we put a blanket along the side that she was used to sleeping next to. That seemed to help. Of course they always say not to put blankets in the bed with babies but we figure this one is so lacy (crocheted) that it wouldn't be likely to suffocate her. Of course, it can be distractingly fun to play with and the other day it was stuck over her face at nap time so I had to move it before she would go to sleep.

Here is what the mattress looked like without the sheet. I noticed that not everything was new to her in sleeping here, the last bed she slept on was orange and red too.

So now she is sleeping in a safe, confined place and I feel so much better. The first night she slept in the crib, I was able to not feed her and while she did wake up a couple of times, simply putting her binkie back in her mouth put her back to sleep. I found that I do much better with not picking her up when she cries if she is in a crib. There is something about that line of bars that is a really good barrier, at least mentally. Then there is the peace of mind in knowing that she is not going to roll off or push off a pillow and then roll off or anything like that. She is down to one wake-up, no feedings a night and I have high hopes that those too will cease.

Ironically, now that I am getting more sleep, I sometimes have a hard time sleeping in the mornings. One day, she woke up at 5:30 and I couldn't go back to sleep. I tried but after laying in bed for an hour I decided to get up. Also, the past couple of nights, I have dreamed that she is awake and crying. This is really disorienting because then I wake up thinking I need to get her but she is sound asleep. All in all, I'm really glad she is now safe and in her crib.