Claire

First things first. I think we've settled on Claire as the baby's first name. The middle name is still up in the air but I promise we'll decide before she's born (and probably a lot sooner, like by next week). But it would be OK if you wanted to start getting attached to the idea of an adorable new human named Claire Kirby.

We like Claire because (in our opinion) it's pretty and classic -- I can imagine a grandmother named Claire just as easily as a baby Claire. It's feminine but not girly, simple but not plain. And as the 66th-most-common name of 2008, it's a level of popularity that we like: not weird or unusual -- everyone will recognize it and spell it right -- but she also won't be one of four Claires in her kindergarten class.

Not that Matt (No. 6 for 1978) and I (No. 1 for 1979) have any lingering resentments about that. :)

Saturday we ventured to Babys 'R' Us for the first time and it was, in a word, overwhelming. The average baby probably actually needs less than 10 percent of what is sold in there, but whatever. We didn't plan to buy anything on that trip, we just wanted to start getting an idea of what's out there for the few big-ticketish items we probably are going to buy before she's born: crib, "play yard" (Pack 'n' Play), stroller and glider/rocking chair/recliner.

I think this is the crib we're going to get: It doesn't convert to a toddler bed, which is the current rage, but that's actually our preference because we hope to have a few more kids in fairly quick succession and therefore will probably just keep a nursery set up in our house for the next decade. The kids can all use the same crib and other nursery furniture and after outgrowing the crib they'll probably go straight to a full-size bed.

We were thrilled when Terry told us this weekend that Matt's baby furniture was still around somewhere, and yesterday we found and claimed it. The dresser was in Stephen's guest room and the chest of drawers was in his old room at Ron's house. We brought both of them home and I'm going to beg Terry to help me faux-finish them for the nursery. I want something gender-neutral, maybe a good green. One of these pieces will double as the changing table with a changing table topper similar to this:

OK, that is all ... for now.