Remember, remember, the month of November (2010), babies all over the shop!

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How are you today, 4madboys? Hope all went well last night.

(Stretches to hold Baljay's hand and pass comfort doughnuts) If it's any consolation, my friend had induction 4 months ago and she had a very positive birth experience.

Thanks lainey. Eviction notices all round, I think!

Is it wrong of me to really, really want the baby to come today as we're meant to be going to dinner tonight with people I really don't want to spend time with right now? The kind of people where the husband (much older) calls me "mummy' despite requests to the contrary - eurgh. And they say "oh we say your stomach coming round the corner five minutes before we saw you." (Comtessa has sense of humour breakdown )
Come on baby, come on baby!

PS 39+4 today.

I thought I had better attempt my birth story before it all becomes (more of) a blur :)

Tuesday (16th) night I was awake with painful regular contractions and was on the verge of getting up when they started to get less sore, then went away and I managed to get back to sleep.

Wednesday morning nothing happening so I went to my Piyo class. Wednesday afternoon was getting strong BH all afternoon, and decided to get a few things done that really needed to be done before baby!

Was very tired in the evening to had a nice bath and went to bed about 8.30. Woke up about 12.30 with what could have been strong BH but after a while I was beginning to think they were contractions.

But only during them - in between I kept thinking "only BH, must get back to sleep"

I got up and went downstairs about 2.30. I sat on the birthing ball and went on MN. I was timing the contractions but was ignoring the fact they were less than 5 mins apart and very painful

They got very intense very quickly and I woke dh up around 3.30 by which time I was in a lot of pain. He phoned his mum to come and look after the kids and I phoned the hospital.

After the quickest 25 miles ever we arrived at the hospital at 4.15, and asked them to start running the pool. By this time I was having 4 contractions every 10 minutes.

The midwifes faffed around with paper work when they should have been getting the gas and air ready! What a releif whn I finally got that gas and air. When they examined me I was 8cm dilated.

I didn't get in the pool til 5.10am cos they faffed about with that too - they started running it and another midwife turned it off then the temp wasn't right. My dh said he got the feeling that they didn't really want me to have a waterbirth.

Anyway, by the time I got in the pool my contractions were very strong and I had been feeling like I could push but I think my body had been waiting til I got in the pool because 16 minutes and a couple of big pushes later ds3 was born at 5.26am on thursday 18th Nov.

The midwives (there were 3 of them standing chatting at that point) didn't even notice he was born and I scooped him out from the bottom of the pool. :)

I tried for a natural third stage but needed the injection after an hour - ds3 didn't really latch on and feed properly until not long before that so maybe if they had given me a bit longer it would have worked.

We are over the moon with ds3 - Hamish. He was 7lb 3oz which was almost a pound lighter than ds2. He is very very beautiful :)

I got out of hospital Thursday evening and did the school run Friday morning

Sorry if that was too long!

at the attitude of your MWs! But sounds like a lovely straightforward birth otherwise. Thanks Wallace and welcome to Hamish.

V glad you got the waterbirth in the end, Wallace! (Are you up to making a complaint about those midwives??)

Good luck for tomorrow, balijay! Why induction at only 41+1? Will they try prostaglandin on cervix before syntociwotsit drip? I got my (otherwise fluffy, homebirth, birthpool) birthplan out yesterday and added "No syntoci drip without working epidural first" in big letters with underlining. (I did look up the spelling of syntocithingy first.) But friend had synto augmentation without epidural at the end of her 2nd labour this summer and says it wasn't nearly as bad as the first time.

Comtessa, wow, they sound annoying! Thanks for that apple cake, btw! Can only offer mince pies, if anyone fancies a bite.

...and raspberry leaf tea. Off to drink a coupla gallons. No more of this pansying around with 2 cups a day.

Right, off to do serious housework to help things along. Will nip back for mince pie later, thanks Umf.

Hi all

congratulations to all the new mummies! finally got a few minutes to post my birth saga....

My plan was to have a home birth, and a waterbirth. My due date was 13th November. My waters broke at 5pm on 4th November, i called the hospital about 6pm, midwife phoned at 6.30, she then came out a bit later,i think about 8.30-9, and without checking me told me i wasn't in active labour and at 10.30 told me she was going to go home and get some sleep and we should do the same as the baby wasn't coming anytime soon. This was despite me having regular contractions, and needing to use my tens machine to provide pain relief from about 7.30 onwards. Contractions continued and by 1.46am i insisted DP phone hospital to get midwife out as i didn't have many levels left to go up on the tens machine and wanted her here so i could have gas/air. She turned up at 2.30am, and thought i was 9cm dialated so DP and my mom then rushed to try and blow up/fill the birthing pool (as we'd been told not to do this earlier as i was supposedly not in active labour!). The other midwife turned up and thought i was ready to push so the pool never got used. Meanwhile the gas/air ran out and the midwives had trouble connecting the second cannister so DP had to step in and change it over..... but it didn't work as it was already empty! the other midwife went out to her car to bring another 2 cannisters in, but much to my anger, one of hers was also empty and her other one was only half-full...so we ran out of gas/air and the second midwife had to go to the hospital to get some more. But she only came back with one cannister which i could tell from the first midwifes reaction wasn't enough. We ran out of gas/air again so they gave me an injection, but they then decided to transfer me into hospital as they were v concerned about the baby's heartbeat and his position and the first midwife didn't think he would be able to come out as she said the lip of my cervix was in the way and so every time i pushed he was bashing against me and his heart rate dropped and his head was swelling...she said there was a chance the cervix could break away, so after we were rushed to hospital in an ambulance (midwife 2 actually asked midwife 1 what number she should use to phone for an ambulance, as if they had some special hotline and i did smile when she told her 999 in a pissed off tone of voice!) When we got to hospital they still tried to monitor us and try to see if he could be born vaginally but things didn't improve and Daniel was eventually born by emergency c section at 7.49am. He was floppy, needed oxygen and took about 10 minutes to pink up and cry, and he and i had a few problems which meant we were in hospital until about 8pm on the 9th November when we were finally allowed home. He is doing well now, feeding well, putting on weight and sleeping fairly well but having major wind which wakes him up screaming sometimes. Hated how i felt after the c section, but nearly 3 weeks later i'm feeling a lot more human, even if i am missing being able to drive/do other things, but DP has been amazing over doing the housework/cooking meals/running errands. But he was worth it all...and already wondering how long to leave it before we go for number 2 :)

Lovely story Wallace but at your midwives and also at you doing the school run the next day!!

Thanks for the hand-holding. Umf I have v low fluid levels around the babe so they would prefer I went in sooner rather than later. Won't need the prostin as I am already at least 2cms dilated, so it will be break my waters then hope to god that my contractions start without needing the drip! Can't make up my mind whether to ask for an epi 1st or not (mainly because I want to come home as quickly as possible afterwards)

And yes to a mince pie, ta.

Congrats to you too Loopy, sorry you ended up in hospital and at your midwives too - what were they playing at with the G & A?!? I bet little Daniel is lovely tho x

Great birth story, wallace, am very jealous of anyone with the option of a waterbirth. Loooopy, what a nightmare with the g&a. And what's this about a chance of the cervix breaking away? Not heard about this particular horrific complication before!

lainey - no such thing as tmi (am I the only one who automatically reads any thread with tmi in the title?) My sweep results very similar to yours - I got 60% in Effacement and 1cm in Dilation and head fully engaged ready for blast off. None of the lovely bloody mucus yet though. Dr. said I'd be very easy to induce due to head so low so guess that means just the gel to get the cervix going.

Also had scan which showed a 9 pounder so comtessa, am joining you on the healthy option apple cake. And also relying on these things being notoriously inaccurate.

Good luck today, balijay, hope you don't need the drip in the end.

Wow, some dramatic birth stories there! I think both of you could do with giving complaints feedback to the MW/labour ward. Not on to leave you without pain relief or stand around gabbing.

Umf, you reminded me that I need to put that very statement on my birth plan. Although I don't think the will give me syntocin during labour with a prior CS, I want to make sure there are no surprises with intervention.

Loooopy thanks for telling us about it! More midwives who need complaints??

balijay sounds like you're all ready to go with the induction - good luck! Looking forward to hearing of the safe arrival of your poppet v soon! actually at least 2, cos they're only mini ones.

sancerrre do you have a date for induction? I've lost track, sorry.

comtessa, housework? Really, is that what I need to do? I was so hoping it was sofa and daytime tv that would get things going.

Umf only allegedly. Working on the theory of gravity and movement to help things along. Have been having contractions all day now, but not getting too excited as uncomfortable rather than painful and not nearly close enough. Hoping that if I don't think about them too much they'll keep coming and eventually turn into labour. Think they're shy little things that will run away as soon as I start noticing them properly. However they have prompted me to finally put the pram together.

comtessa how did the pram thing go? some of them are... a little complex. also think of the early contractions as shy. but they won't be later... hope these are the real thing! good luck!

umf - it'll be next weds if nothings happened by then. Seems a bit early but I don't mind if the gel is going to do the trick, seems like things can progress naturally after that. In the meantime, Dr has prescribed lots of rodgerings! (that may not have been the term he used)

40+2

sancerrre, yeah, I wouldn't mind trying the gel from mid next week either, if nothing by then. Head not really engaged, but this is 2nd pg. 2cm dilated, 'parently. Also 40+2.

Pram's good thanks Umf. It took me about an hour, taking things slowly, but it was all quite logical. It's a Bugaboo cameleon. And thanks for cx wishes!

ooh comtessa hope you're contractions get over their shyness soon.

thanks for sharing your birth stories wallace & looopy congrats again on your LOs

well in the spirit of you all giving me free reign with the TMI, I had a somewhat huge clump of mucus fall from god knows where earlier, and still got horrible almost constant period pain.

I've been baking tea cakes and just about to get them out of the oven, will have to be disciplined and not eat any as have already had my lunch - smell yummy though.

off for a long walk when DP gets home, and if that doesn't work I have another sweep booked in for tomorrow - apparently I can't get enough of strangers being up to their elbows in my bits. who knew?

As for prams, we put ours together a few weeks ago and is all set up in the bedroommocking me winking at me. Haven't really got a clue how to work it but think have got it ready for first use, it's a bugaboo bee and I can't wait to use it.

right off to the kitchen to save the tea cakes from ruin

Can't believe I am actually jealous of you guys who have had sweeps :)
I want to know what my cervix is doing

Got sweep booked for Saturday when i will be 41 weeks then they mentioned induction on the Tuesday but that seems too early to me, would ideally wait til much closer to 42 weeks

clearly I meant your not you're*

I give up - you know what I mean

well i got home from hospital about midnight last night, all was fine, madame a bit quiet but woke up enough for them to be happy. i had a sweep and am already 1-2cm dilated with a short soft cervix and have since had a show and baby feels very low, her head is engaged and there is lots of pressure down there now!

thankfully my fluey bug feels to be on its way out, dp stayed home today and i have been in bed most of the day :) its snowing loads here, so hoping to go into labour naturally and get home birth, dont fancy another trip to the hospital in the snow!

congrats on new babies and for sharing the lovely birth stories.

good luck everyone :)

Great news 4mad! Hope you're as comfortable as can be expected and all goes well.

That's great 4! Things sounding hopeful for lainey and comtessa too...