Panic Attack #1: This is happening

Current Emotions: Pumped, panicked

As we roll into month number 9, things are starting to get real. I'm not going to pretend that I haven't woken up in a cold sweat about the responsibility we're undertaking. "What makes me think I'm worthy of being responsible for feeding, clothing, and raising a small human being?" " What were we thinking?" "What if I'm terrible at parenting and am prosecuted and thrown in prison?" "What if the kid turns into an asshole?"  Please tell me these are normal thoughts.

We've had two awesome baby showers over the past month, and now things are really really real. We have some semblance of a nursery coming together. We baby clothes scattered throughout the house. There is an empty pack n' play next to our bed. It's very strange to consider that soon a human baby will occupy the space.

 I'm trying to go into this not being naive as to how much my life is going to change. I'm trying to savor my last child-free month, but also trying to break old habits that will make life with a newborn next to impossible. For example, Chelsea tells me I can no longer leave nails and loose Excedrin laying around the house. I can no longer roll out of bed 10 minutes before I have to leave.  Right now I can (and do)  basically sleep as late as I want, sit out on the patio and drink a beer, binge on Netflix, sit down when I eat, take a 40 minute shower, travel, read, watch sports, go to sporting events, go out with friends, etc. Make no mistake, I'm excited as hell to be a parent and can't wait to experience life with the baby. But I'd be lying if I said I'm going to miss being able to do all those things when I want.

So with a small Benham arriving within the next month (or less) (or more), here is what I'm trying to accomplish:

-Finish nursery. If they say "nesting" only affects women, then what explains my very real desire to have every detail of the nursery done with time to spare? We still need to put together a changing table, hang things on wall, get bookshelf, clean, etc. (ohmyGodohmyGodohmyGod)

-Get caught up on every television show I haven't finished: Better Call Saul, Love, House of Cards, The People vs OJ Simpson, Baskets, Fargo, Togetherness, Vinyl, Louie, The Walking Dead, Silicon Valley

-Develop parenting philosophy

-Figure out how to deal with a newborn

-Read every Mister Rogers parenting book

-Watch sports guilt-free. Lots of basketball coming up in the next few weeks, lots of baseball too.

-De-clutter basement- This is an unexplainable nesting thing.

Any other tips from the parenting force?