Sorry for the long rant in advance. DH and I have been together for 10 years. He’s a very laid back guy except from when it comes to his family. He’s protective and when making a decision will consider every single possibility with such effort before making a decision.
I’m 34 weeks pregnant and with each passing week, DH is really getting on my nerves. I almost can’t stand him and I feel so guilty.
DH has got three (yes, three) baby proofing companies to assess our flat. We’re living in a first floor split level flat at the moment so there are two flights of stairs. Baby proofers have come in confused because the flat’s already baby proofed. He’s hoping someone else might notice something that the other has missed.
We have three baby gates (as there are two steps in the flat plus another 2 flights of stairs). This is a big issue for DH. He’s not happy because he’s read that babies eventually learn to climb over the gate. Of course they do, you just have to not leave the baby unsupervised. He wants a taller gate. He even wanted to install a door to block off one flight of stairs.
DH has got separate notebooks to track feeds, wee/poo, sleep and one to write weekly updates as a keepsake. He researched deeply into baby carriers, finally bought one, and now he regularly puts it on and puts a lot of strain on it to check that it’s really secure. He does this in the mirror to check that his posture is ok in relation to the baby…but how can you do this when there is currently no baby in the bloody carrier??
Everyday it’s a new thing. What kind of mattress? What kind of pram? How to stop baby rolling off the bed or changing table? What bottle? What position to hold the baby in when he gets to feed? How will we know what the room temperature is if we don’t have a thermometer in every single room? He’s even asked me what position I’d like to be in when I deliver - how will I know?!?!
The question this morning is when he should start shielding (i.e. only going out for shopping in off peak hours) in case he gets covid or a cold and cannot be in the delivery room? This afternoon, it’s morphed into worrying that he’ll get a cold and not be able to be near the baby. He’s called the in-laws today to confirm with them that they’re not to visit if unwell and not to kiss the baby at all (fair enough, but it’s the random nature of this, like can’t you just tell them when the baby’s arrived?). He’s gone out to buy multivitamins now to support his immune system. In the pouring rain mind you.
Honestly, I could go on but I won’t. He even bought a new phone so that he can take macro photos of the baby’s hands and feet to remember how small s/he is. No, really.
I personally feel like a lot of these things are common sense, surely? You supervise your baby all the time. He’s got books, he reads them and he also reads a parenting forum on Reddit but they generate even more questions. I’m tired. I could ignore him but he’ll engage me in every single question and will then immediately agree with whatever I say. Why ask me then? I’m finding him so annoying suddenly and I’ve loved him so much for so many years!