No babymoon for us - it's all about the future

While some couples take a holiday before the birth of their baby, my husband has been more focused on investing in our future.

A friend of mine recently delivered her first baby – it was a scheduled C-section, so she already knew she was delivering on a Wednesday. And she already knew exactly how she and her husband would be spending their last weekend together, before the pair of them would become a threesome.

They went out for a fancy dinner at a five-star restaurant that doesn’t allow children below the age of 2, they watched a foreign film with some good friends, they scheduled a couple’s massage at a local spa – they went all out with activities other parents told them would have to temporarily be put on hold once a baby was in the picture.

I know another couple who booked themselves on a “babymoon” just a few weeks before the arrival of their baby. A babymoon, as I understand it, used to originally refer to the period of time that new parents spend bonding with their recently arrived child, cut off from the rest of the world, just basking in the beauty of this new life they’ve created.

Well, that’s changed. A babymoon now refers to the last holiday a couple take together before the arrival of their newborn, a sort of final trip (usually at a resort that provides pregnancy massages and lots of yummy treats for the expectant mother).

Mr T and I loved chatting about all the things we’d like to do in those final days before Baby A would decide to join the outside world. A fancy dinner and a great movie were always high on the list, but so were things such as hosting a fun dinner party for friends, or spending a night at an extravagant Dubai hotel, overdoing it on room service.

Those plans never saw the light of day. I am four days away from my due date and I still haven’t found all the items that need to go into my hospital bag. I’m still washing Baby A’s new clothes, still trying to figure out exactly how to install that car seat and I’m still undecided on the right colour of nail polish to pick for my final manicure and pedicure.

As for how Mr T is spending what may be his last weekend before becoming a father (considering Baby A shows up on time and doesn’t put us through the agony of waiting for days, or worse, weeks past the due date), he’s certainly surprised me with his decision. He’s signed up for a Dubai course that teaches participants how to make the most out of the property market.

For two full days, Mr T learnt all about how to become a landlord and invest in property in order to ensure a secondary cash flow that does not rely on a salary. He networked with like-minded individuals, understood the merits of interviewing a prospective tenant and was taught how to read property listings.

Mr T, it seems, is hellbent on arming himself with everything necessary to ensure his family's future, thanks to the impending arrival of our Baby A. And much as I would have enjoyed a babymoon – I hear the expectant mother is often presented with a gift basket of exciting beauty products and delicious snacks upon checkout – I don't mind making sure those hospital bags are packed while my husband works on solidifying our future.

Hala and Mr T welcomed a healthy baby girl to the world yesterday morning