July 2010: The end is nigh... To antenatal we say goodbye!

[stac14]

We're all nearly at the end so here is our last antenatal thread

marking my spot!

ARRIVED
26th June 8:40pm (Due 29th June) - violetbubbles, 33, Glasgow, #1, GIRL 6lbs 6oz, Iris
29th June 0:50am (Due 28th June) - WickedWitch, 30, Bristol, #2, BOY 7lb 10oz, Edward Davis
29th June 11:15am (Due 29th June) - JoJo, 34, N London, #2, BOY 8lb 13oz, Frank
30th June 1:54am (Due 6th July) - Delta4, 34, Leicestershire, #2, BOY, Isaac Henry
30th June 4:32pm - Randomama, GIRL, 6lb 12oz, Vita.
1st July ? (Due 9th July) - Kapars, 36, E London, #1, GIRL, 8lb 4oz, Yasmin Sophia.
6th July 9.23pm (Due 3rd July) ? MyLifeIsChaotic, 29, North East, #2, BOY, 8lb 4oz, William.
7th July 9.23am (Due 25th July) - Spirael, 28, West Yorkshire, #1, GIRL, 8lb 3oz, Miranda Jane.
7th July 11am (Due 7th July) - Stac14, 30, Glasgow, #2, GIRL, 9lb 12oz, Riliegh.
8th July 1.22am (Due 23rd July) - Firerise, 31, Hampshire, #1, GIRL, 7lb 4oz, Imogen Frances.
9th July 8.57am (Due 18th July) - DesperateHousewife21, 20, Kent, #1, BOY, 7lb 2oz, Dylan James.
10th July 11.35pm (Due 4th July) - Orangefizz, 34, southeast, #2, BOY, 8lb 10oz, Samuel Edward.
12th July 3.39am (Due 18th July) - Kittykat77, 33, Lincolnshire, #3, BOY, Thomas Mathew
12th July 3.39pm (Due 9th July) - Memphis83, Leicester, #1, BOY, 6lb 14.5oz, Lyndon Freddie
12th July 10.15pm (Due 4th July) - kkfairybrains, 25, Ireland, #1, GIRL, Ellie May
13th July 9.51am (Due 13th July) - NorkyButNice, 30, Kent, #2, BOY, 11lb 3oz
17th July (due 16th July) Nixster, 28, Bedford - Girl Dreya, 7lb11.5oz
18th July 12.20am (Due 12th July) - Deelite, 36, sussex, #1, Boy, 8lb 9oz, Sean
18th July 6.37pm (Due 25th July) - Emster30, 29, NE London, #1, Boy, 9lb 4oz, James19th July 9.55am Becky, 28, Glasgow #1 Boy Sam, 7lb 4oz (due 11th July)
19th July 1.40pm (Due 14th July) - MelissaM, 34, hampshire, #2 Boy, 7lb 4.5oz
19th July 3.34pm (Due 4th July) - Irishfairy, 25, Oxfordshire, #1, GIRL, 8lb 5oz, Isla
22nd July 8pm (due 15th July) - Viksam, 35, Somerset #1 - Boy Devon
23rd July 7.36am (due 14th july) - TSC, 37, Manchester #3, Boy Francis James 4kilos
23rd July 8.21am (due date 18th July) - Wonderstuff, boy 8lb1oz
24th July 1.15am (due date 22nd July)- Chulita, 27, Dorset #2 - Boy Samson 8lb 3oz
GlastonburyGoddess, 25, Glastonbury, #3(Due Date12th July) - Girl to be named
July 25th Gracie123, 26, Cumbria, #2 (due date 31st July) - Girl Elisha Beth Gracie 9lb 11oz

GIRLS: 11
BOYS: 17

PENDING

17th July - Grumpypumpkin, 35, Sussex, #1, GIRL
18th July - Amiable, 40, N London, #2, BOY
26th July - Anifersgirl, 33, South Bucks, #1, GIRL
27th July - EmsieRo, 29, S London, #1, GIRL
27th July - Munchkin - Kent #2

Loving the thread title!

Marking my place

marking my spot! just looking at the pending list and we haven't heard form anifers in a long time.really hope everything was ok after her accident

Marking my place too! ;)

Ok, so here is the birth story.

Went to see MW on 23rd as not sure about waters and they said it was infection and gave me antibiotics and a pessary. I thought the pessary might start things, and next day was my birthday, so I didn't use it
had a lovely birthday and waited until midnight to put the pessary in so I wouldn't have to share bday with my LO forevermore!
By 1am contractions were happening about evry 20 mins and by 3am they were down to 11mins apart. Woke DH who rang my mum to come over. Still weren't thinking too much was happening, but she is the closest person we know ATM and still one hour away. We figured she could sleep over and if anything happened we could sneak off to the hospital without waking DS.
By the time mom got here, ctx were every 2.5 mins and bloody painful! We got to the hospital, turned out the same anaesthetist and surgeon who were due to see me on Tuesday were the ones on emergency call out, so they were happy to just go straight ahead with surgery!
I can't praise Bedford hospital highly enough. They have been absolutely amazing. I'm going home tomorrow, but buying them a massive tin of choccies (or two) to share as they really have been great.
DH pointed out that the MWs are some of the people we know best in Bedford so far as they have been the same teams with a specific MW allocated to me each shift for the last 4/5 days! We haven't met anyone else and seen them more than once yet!!!
Elisha is BFed but had a mare last night and after 5 solid hours of feeding (and bleeding nipples) one of the MWs suggested formula. I burst into tears and agreed. She only had 0.5floz and then slept for 6 hours(!) but I was really upset about it. Stupid, but I was so over tired. They kicked all my visitors out for me today, gave me some help getting her to settle and I've had loads of sleep so should be better tonight. In fact, we have both been asleep since 7pm and MW just helped me dream feed, wind and settle her. She seems to be fast asleep again, so hopefully tonight will be much easier!
I'm back on morphine because I slipped in the bathroom (bad hip) and strained my section scar a bit, but they are going to let me take some home, so that I can be discharged tomorrow. DS can't wait. He is so excited about us coming home!!

gracie sounds like you had a good experience in hospital, the MWs at mine were all really lovely too. I had a student MW help me labour aswell as a trained one and she was really nice, on my wavelength as she must have been around the same age as me.

Well Dylan was a BIT better last night, he slept from 7:30-10:30, I fed him when we went to bed. He then slept til about 1:30 so I felt quite rested after that little sleep. It went a bit downhill after that with him waking every hour and a half ish. He then woke at 6 and wouldnt go back down til about 7:30.

Quick question, can stretch marks become itchy? Ive got some on the underside of my boob and they've suddenly become very itchy, to the point where one is bleeding a bit

Dh - I think so with re: to the stretch marks. They made me wear support stockings in hospital, and when they came off I was so itchy on my thighs etc... That I made myself bleed. All the stretch mark scars split open. When I get home I'm going to bathe in calamine, but at the moment just using cold Aquarius cream to take the itch out as much as possible.
Scratching definitely makes it worse though, so really try not to!

Ahh thanks gracie they are really horrendous, Ive got them everywhere! My ENTIRE bum cheeks are covered in the buggers.

marking my place

Afternoon all. just added the new topic to my watch list. Not many LOs left to arrive now!

I'm so impressed at how well some of you are coping with cluster feeding. I cracked early on and decided after Mindy's first huge cluster feed for hours and hours overnight, where I ended up sore and bleeding (for days after too) while she was still bawling in hunger, that I wasn't going to let that happen again.

Now I let her go for a maximum of two goes in fast succession on each breast (Normally about 2 hours of feeding, by which point I've gone all saggy and she's spitting me out!) before I give her a couple of fl oz of formula. Normally this only happens in the evening, though we did have an unusual morning cluster feed today!

I'm not complaining if she eats a lot today though, as it's her next weigh in tomorrow.

Mixed feeding seems to work pretty well for us. Mindy's mostly breast fed so is getting all the goodness from there, while the occasional formula feed means DH gets to give her a bottle, while I get to have some sleep and retain my sanity! Gives a bit more freedom when out and about too, as I can choose whether to make up a bottle or whip out a breast, depending on the circumstance.

My lovely DH came to rescue me at lunchtime today. As Mindy's having a hungry day, he drove home from work during his break and sat with her while he ate his lunch, so I could grab a shower and get dressed! Yay!

For stretch marks, I used to be bigger than I am now, so escaped with only getting new stretch marks on my stomach below my belly button. However they did itch a lot towards the end of pregnancy, and are still itching a bit now. I find putting a bit of moisturiser on helps ease the itch.

By the way, I meant to write aqueous cream, not Aquarius cream!

Still a little high on morphine I guess

Gave the paediatrician all my grandparents details instead of Elles grandparents yesterday by mistake, and this morning had a debate with one of the nurses over what an appointment had been for only to realise that I was talking about a completely different dr whose name happened to start with the same letter, then signed my maiden name on a consent form for Elle's vaccinations!!

DH says I should never be allowed to speak to anyone alone!!

gracie sounds like you had a great labour and hospital experience. How was your first night home?

spireal that was so lovely of dh, bet that breaks up your day

dh i just moisturise my stretch marks but to be honest i already had loads from first pregnancy so not sure if any are new

Had posted on the old thread that rileigh got weighed yesterday and she is up to 10lb 8 which is nearly 1lb from 9days ago. She has to go to the doctor today as they think she has reflux, has anyone had experience of this? Also don't want to jinx it but she slept from 10.30 to 3.30 and then till 7am so much better than the night before. We took her to the park last night and brought her out in the fresh air and i think that helped tire her out.

Hows everyone today? X

Morning all,

Another similar night for us last night, he slept from 10:30 til 1:30 and from then on just wouldnt sleep unless he was on me, tried to put him in his basket and although he wouldnt wake up he wouldnt sleep either, he just lays there tossing and turning and grunting and straining. Its so loud I really cant sleep through it so have no choice but to get him out.

Hes sleeping peacefully in his bouncy chair now though

Has anyone elses DPs/DHs broached the subject of having sex again?
DP asked me last night when would I be up for it again, not at the mo I told him!
Just wondering are people waiting til their 6 week check or just when they feel ready?

First night home wasn't too bad. She went to bed at 7 with DS and woke to feed at 11, but kept feeding until just after 1(!) then still woke for another feed at 5!

She wasn't happy about being woken up at 7, but I wasn't happy abouv being woken up at 5, so I guess we're even!!

So far naps/feeding are ontrack with what I'd planned, so hopefully tonight will just be 7, 12, 7 feeds. Wish me luck!!

DS is a bit wobbly, he's really acting strange and I'm not sure he is coping very well. I want DH to be a bit more sensitive to it, but he thinks it will best if he gets into his normal routine ASAP

he's probably right.

spireal u said what u said about mixed feeding exactly at the right time. i havent posted for a while because i have found things quite difficult with the feeding and my emotions have been all over the place too but mostly regarding feeding. i really wanted to breast feed Devon and have so far but im really fair skinned and my nipples have broken down in a big way. i feel very gutted and dissapointed in myself but im thinking of changing over.
What i dont understsanf about formula feeding is, i have a microwave steralizerwhich keeps the bottles sterile for 24hrs but only if u dont open the tub????well u gota open the ub to get the bottles out so does that mean u have contaminated them?? Also u have to make the feed up with boiled water so u have to wait for the formula to cool, thats gona take ages surley........i dont get it please can someone help me and my simple brain.
I have cried sooo much over the last 7 days, cried oz i love him so much, cried coz my dh loves him so much, cried every time we get a card or a gift.....etc etc, i cried in tesco when when brought the formula, thats not normal!!!
Devon did what i think was his first cluster feed last night, he fed from 8 till around 12 with a few 20 breaks in between, thank christ i have discovered nipple shields because i never would have been able to tolerate that on slaught. He went down in the end at about 12.30 and was up at about 4 but only for a nappy change then he slept through till about 9.30. He has fed today for 2x half hours but only and hour apart.
Any advice or thoughts on mixed feeding/ BF or switching from BF to bottle would be more than welcome. I feel a bit more able to manage my emotions today, i really hope nothing sets me off i want to start getting back to normal as best as i can. We are making some thank you cards today for the fertility nurse who did the IUI implant and the sperm man?? who DH had to hand his sperm in to at the hospital. If it wasnt fot those people baby Devon wouldnt be here, i feel we owe them massivly!
Sorry a very indulgent post, but i know u guys wont mind offering my some advice.
xx

dh rileigh's a grunter too. Hv said i have to put her in bed semi awake so she realises thats were shes to be. I'm using a dummy though and it calmed the noise down. Regarding sex dp and i have discussed it. As i had a c-s i'm not worried of the pain but i think its advised to wait to 6wks, but think its individual choice x

thanks mlic she is sick a fair bit but is still gaining weight so its more distressing for her than anything else. Great weight gain for william. X

stac yeah I still feel quite bruised so will prob give it another week and see how I feel. I want it too though so its me who is suffering not DP!
The only thing concering me is contraception, obv I can go to the docs and get something sorted before 6 weeks but I would rather have something firmly in place as we dont use condoms as neither of us like them.

mlic LOL Im exactly the same! Dylan is only 3 weeks old and Im still not feeling back to my normal self but I just cant help it!

Also, re: sex. Totally wait until you are ready.
Last time we did it a few times too early cos we felt we 'should' but both knackered and it seemed like a bit of a chore. I think it put me off for longer than if we had just waited.

Little but gutted because FiL has bought and used metal scouring pads on my beautiful non stick pans. obviously I'd never say anything as he did us a massive favour looking after DS, but I am sad as they were a wedding present that cost over £500 and I'll never be able to replace them :-(

At least I got a good 4 years use out if them.

viksam we use a microwave steriliser too. Far as I know once it's opened it is contaminated, so you need to sterilise it again if you're going to need something out of it later.

What DH and I tend to do is take out what we need, then try and immediately reset it (we have 4 sets of bottles and teats - as well as the parts for the breast pump) and put it back in to re-sterilise. We work on the understanding that if it's in the microwave with the lid on, then it's sterile. If it's out on the side then one of us has nabbed something and it needs to be reset.

For the first week or so we used a carton of formula and then used the bottle warmer to get it to temperature. As mixed feeding seems to have become a regular thing, we now have powder (with a carton or two kept in for when out and about or emergencies).

For making the formula, I tend to reset and boil the kettle every mealtime, so I know there's always fresh boiled water available that's at most a few hours old. DH and I don't often have hot drinks, so the kettle is rarely needed for anything aside from formula! Some people get a second kettle though if theirs is in constant use.

Normally it's still too warm to drink when first made up, in which case standing the made up bottle in a bowl of cold water for five minutes cools it down. If I'm in a hurry, adding ice to the water or running it under a tap cools the bottle quicker.

All the MWs and the HV I've spoken to about feeding seem happy enough with my mixed feeding method. And Mindy is now 8lbs 10oz, having gained 1oz per day for the past week, so they're happy with that too!

Mindy has had a few fl oz of formula before bed and the occasional bottle of expressed milk since she was 3 days old and hasn't had any confusion between bottle and nipple. She grabs whatever is offered with gusto.

She still however absolutely refuses a dummy. We've tried various sorts. Oh well!

Hope that helps a bit.

viksam hope you are OK, I felt exactly the same with DD1 and finally gave in to mixed feeding.
Not sure about microwave steralisers,but I used to boil a whole keetle in the morning, and keep the cooled water in a steralsed jug so that I could just use as and when I needed. then just add formula and heat in boiling water when needed.
I only needed 2 bottles a day and used to BF the rest of the time - the amount of pressure it relieved was unbelievable - and DD1 seemed happier too.
hope this helps a little for you.

As you can all see, I am still here :-( getting such sharp crippling stabbing pains in my fanjo, but nothing really in the way of proper contractions.

Gracie123 it's my birthday on Monday too, so I bet the little one will come then, and I'll spend my brithday in labour!!