December 2010:where we await the best Christmas presents ever

[Miffster]

Stats thread here

Have reached 37 weeks, am very happy that baby would no longer be classed as a prem if it comes soon :)

Had a lovely time at my baby shower yesterday. Got some really sweet things, and some little toys and a few clothes. All the girls had things up their tops, so arrived to be greeted by a room full of bumps, was very funny!

I'm sitting in my baby's room now contemplating the walls which have painted a very very pale yellow (B&Q "Baby White") am thinking looks quite plain, and wondering about some sort of decoration or picture to put up. I was thinking of some kind of border, or is that just tacky??

Hello all, it is getting so close now isn't it. Hope everyone has had a good weekend.

CAT how are you today? did you manage to get someone to deal with the dc for you? Hope it is a little easier this week.

C&G great news about the home birth - sounds like much the best answer for you. Hope you are feeling a bit more rested now.

DF I agree about MIL and DH but like someone else said - a lot changes when the baby is actually there. The reality of dealing with a newborn is hard to imagine in advance so DH may well just change his mind about heading out on Christmas day without you needing to say anything.

Button shower sounds lovely, what a nice idea. You could try some of the big wall stickers for kids? That's what we did for DD, they've come off fine now we are moving without damaging the paint or paper underneath.

Kelle I hope things with MIL improve. Mine is lovely but when it comes to babies etc it is all quite tricky. They are staying the night tonight. I'm a little worried about how to turn down offers of help with the move and baby without offending them. I really don't like her husband and the last thing I need is the two of them staying with us after LO arrives "helping". I've spoken to DH about it and he agrees thankfully, but fending them off tactfully will be another matter. Well perhaps I'll leave it to DH, he won't worry about tact

Overdid it a bit today clearing the garden, spent a couple of hours out there and got a lot done but just fell into bed afterwards. Woke up to find that DH had also been nesting and made some lovely mincepies . My sleep also didn't coincide with DD's so I've had a bit more time to myself which is handy and good for her and DH too.

oops sorry about epic post...

oh kellestar sounds like you've got a bit of a nightmare MIL - ikwym about people who seem to go out of their way to do things guaranteed to annoy you when you've already lost all patience.

button sounds like your baby shower was lovely. I think tasteful borders are fine as are nice baby-type pictures

my back's killing me after this morning's activity so I'm planning on spending the rest of the day relaxing (as best as you can with a 4yo ) I might wrap a Christmas present or 2....

Hello all, hope everyone well. notso I'm sorry you had such a dramatic false alarm. df and kellestar , there's no one as potentially irritating as a mil, in my experience. I found that once I got pg with dd, my relationship with mil did change. All of a sudden I was much less willing to put up with any nonsense. Can't really explain why...maybe something to do with being a mother myself and therefore less amenable to being talked down to.

japh are u ok? Or in labour?!

c&g hope bp is behaving itself.

Pg hormones out in force today. Dh made an insensitive comment while we were in town and I burst into tears in the street and cried all the way back to the car. He was very apologetic, poor bloke!

Right, time to order the curry. Too tired to cook.

lauren nightmare sounds awful, I also had one with knives and blood in but I can't remember it fully thankfully! Wasn't a nice feeling to wake up to though.

maxpower bp is still up, sigh. Hope coldsore goes soon, sounds painful :(

kelle Ooh I love cheese, nice strong bit of cheddar yummy. I feel like I have an octopus inside me most of the time! Mil sounds like a right pita. Thanks for the advice on DH's app, hoping he gets on a course next year. You did well with only 4 applications left :)

Button glad your baby shower was so lovely :) You could get some wall stickers from b&q and similar places, you can move them about so should be fine on the walls. We have some in the dcs rooms.

93pjb knackered today after a crap night's sleep but I now have lots of energy, feeling very strange!

Slightly hope you're feeling better now, hormones have a lot to answer for! I've felt similar due to the hormones.

I think I've discovered nesting! Just cleaned the fridge out and did the kitchen and cupboards etc. Also cooked a big roast dinner, did the washing, washing up and sorted the dishwasher twice! Very unlike me lol. I've been feeling really restless as it gets to the evening the past few days. Wonder if that means baby will arrive soon? I keep looking around wondering what I can do next! Trying to rest too just in case and also I don't want to be shattered tomorrow.

ooo excellent news on the show kelle not long now then!

Button im glad you had a lovely baby shower

Wow, it seems like lots of us are getting close now. japh and notso how are you doing?

93 and C&G sounds like the nesting is ramping up. I remember last time I cleaned the front door randomly. I've also been at the fridge, although only got as far as doing all the shelves in the door.

DF sorry to hear about your MIL being a bit of a pain. I'm surprised your DH plans to go off without you on Christmas day. I wouldn't be impressed at all.

It feels like time is ticking away and we still have to finish painting the bathroom (goodness only knows why I decided that was a good idea) and also cleaning out the study as we are turning it into more of a playroom for DD so we can move her toys out of the living room. As DH is currently working a 6 day week and I am huge and useless, there isn't much time for us to get things done before the birth. Would be nice if DH got a Sunday off too as well before baby gets here as we know how intensive the first year will be.

None of this has stopped MIL from demanding DH goes round to her house and lays a laminate floor I've put my foot down and said in the unlikely event we get our own house sorted prior to the baby coming, DH is having a day off. It really annoys me actually, how she just demands he runs round after her when he has his own family to look after. He's also a bit run down and tired so I want him to get some rest, plus it would be nice for us to get a chance to relax with DD before the baby comes. It's not as if MIL does much to help us out. She has babysat DD once in 2.7 years as she isn't confident apparently and after DD was born she just kept coming over, demanding food/drink and overstaying her welcome (like from midday to ten in evening) and saying helpful things to me like 'oh DD isn't hungry' etc.

Can you tell I am pissed off??!! Grrr. I accept this may well be hormones - I just cried hysterically as we were supposed to be getting food shopping delivered but between the supermarket and the bank they buggered up the transaction and it has been cancelled. It had some of my HB stuff in like posh biscuits for MW and shower curtains and I was all excited about getting it. I think DH thought I was a bit mental, sobbing about shower curtains. Can't have this baby at home until Friday anyway as will be 37 weeks then.

Hmmmmm,

thanks for all the sympathy. I am not going to post about all this anymore as DH has obviously beed reading it and I don't want him to think that I am down on his mum. I am just stressed out about wanting a bit of privacy when the baby is here and it's getting me down more and more the closer I get to it. I guess only time will tell if all my anxieties come to pass.

I really really really hope the baby comes early now so that I have a chance to learn how to be a new mum and to recover from the bleeding, possible stitches and the breastfeeding before I have to start dealing with visitors. I find it so much easier to say to my own family that I will need time to ajust to it all and wish that I had more support and sympath in real life RE my fears.

I have tried to talk reasonably about the way I feel but it seems quite futile right now so I am just going to hope that the baby isn't born at the most inconvenient time and try to chill out as best I can.

This place is such a support to me when I have my little moans so I hope to be back to catch up with you soon.

xx

Not really been on because I can't seem to keep up with the thread, but just wanted to say good luck everyone with births! :)

Morning all, early start as the dog decided she wanted to go out at 0500 so woke me by licking my arm, she clearly has an upset tummy as she has just gone again!
Busy weekend -visits from my mum and ILs - my mum in really freaky mood as usual and only stayed an hour then said "see you next year" - she has a few issues as I've mentioned before! ILs stayed at b&b which makes things easier as they tend to take over the sofa and comfy chairs! One bonus of smaller house is there is no where for them to stay!!
Really restless at moment - can't wait to finish work now - am jealous of those of you that already have!!
House etc ready so will be able to put my feet up for a few weeks possibly.
Sorry for those of you having pain and inlaw issues - try and relax when you can!!

Sure thats the last thing you need right now MrsS - poorly dog! :( hope is well again soon. I'm at work again today too, but just trying to wrap it all up now.

Thanks everyone for picture advice for room. Think will go and have a look at some decorating shops (if I have the energy!) later..

Hope everyone has a good Monday

I can hear dogs tummy burbling from other side of room

Just marking my place. I thought we might have a few more early arrivals by now. DF I was really stressing out about visitors and imagined myself wanting to stab anyone who wanted to hold my babies! Inm just do proud of them I am completely the opposite and just want to show them off. I also spent far too much time worrying that I'd be completely useless, but it really does come naturally. Try not to worry, you will love it and will cope just fine. But should definitely not be cooking xmas dinner! Unless you do everything now and freeze it sms give DH instructions.
My DP had completely surprised me too as he's been brilliant, and he is usually not much help at all!

Sorry in bed on my phone, spelling & grammar = terrible!

Morning all, still here having the odd twinge but nothing more.
Trying to get stuff sorted here, I now have my bag packed, or rather three bags,
one for not sure admission like the one on friday with no baby stuff in,
one for in-labour admission,
and one for Hooray we finally have a DC ante-natal ward!

kelle you MIL sounds like a loon! Hope you had a better nights sleep.

button yay for 37 weeks. I think your LO's room sounds lovely, you can always add more decoration later on.
Our DC's Godparents spent ages and £££ on decorating their baby's nursery in neutral only to change it all to pink when their DD was just 6 months old, she never slept in the neutral cot bedding it was just for show!

93pjb I would love for DH to make me mince pies, he did provide a chippy tea on saturday night though! I think it is easy to do too much at this stage, your brain is keen to get everything sorted but our poor old preggo bodies can't keep up! Take care.

maxpower hope you back is better today, and you got some wrapping done. I will wrap at least ten things today!

C&G I have been washing like a maniac and hoovering everything, DH keeps telling me off for lugging the hoover upstairs.

WLL Hope you managed to get your shopping sorted. MIL's are a tricky breed aren't they, mine is fantastic one minute, she has been doing my ironing for weeks now and bought us a big hamper of baby stuff after DH told her I was paniced about no being prepared, the next she's trying to persuade DH to go away with them this weekend to see his brother knowing that would leave me with no-one here if labour started again because my parents are away too.

DF I think maybe your DH will change his mind about Christmas day once the baby is born. Dads to be seem to have a knack for being in denial that anything will change when they become a father.
Even though this is our third, DH said it was only hearing the newborns crying in hospital that brought home the fact we are actually having another baby!
MrsSL How long until you finish work? I hope you get some relaxation time soon.

lavita hello, hows the feeding going? I am still in awe of twins, I think it's a good job I don't have them as I would probably end up just staring in wonder at them

Waves to lauren and mumnerves and everyone else.

Sorry for the novel I have just written

Notso I do spend the vast majority of my day staring at them but I think I'd do that even if there was only one. Feeding is going ok, midwife here later so I can see if they are back to their birth weight yet. I feed them every three hours and usually have to wake them up to do it. I feed one at a time though, and have been completely breast feeding for over a week now, DP does the 11 pm feed every night with expressed milk to give me a little sleep. I am in awe of anyone who already has kids, how can you look after toddlers and a newborn?

Lavita I remember doing that with newborn DD, I would put her down for a nap and then look at her until she woke up
Didn't have as much staring time for DS but I did carry him constantly when we were in the house to make up for it.
Glad feeding is going so well, I really hope I can manage it this time, DD fed perfectly from day one, but DS really didn't take to it which was difficult.

Morning all. lavita lovely to hear how well you are getting on. I'll let you know about the toddler/newborn question in a couple of weeks

notso woo-hoo, well done for getting your bags packed! I'm still missing bits and pieces like strawds - definitely could have done with those last time - but I have most things I'd need. I'm packing a bag for me and a bag for baby in case of hospital transfer. If I stay at home then it will be useful to have everything on hand.

Have just read back over my little rant from yesterday and feel a bit ashamed of myself really for being so unreasonable. Poor MIL, she is generally really nice and way nicer than most MILs from all the stories. I think I am just feeling hyper-sensitive about everything atm.

DD is in nursery today so I am getting some sleep and going to go to the shops for things like raspberry leaf tea. Hope everyone has a good day.

WLL lol I've not done the front door yet but I'm itching to be doing something again this morning. Your poor dh, laying a floor for his mum is the last thing he needs! Don't blame you for wanting him to get some rest. Don't think you're being unreasonable btw.

DF I'd be really annoyed at your dh, he should be supporting you and not worrying about his bloody mum and family! Sod them, it's about you and your family, ie you dh and dc. Really cannot believe he is putting you through this! He is the one at fault and not you. Why is his mum more important than you and your child? My dh is quite shocked actually and was stunned hearing that he planned on leaving you on Christmas day! Your dh needs to get his priorities straight, sorry if that sounds harsh but the last thing you need is stress and to be second fiddle to mummy. He's married to you, not his mum...

MrsS how are things? Still niggling?

Button morning :)

Lavita glad feeding is going well, can't wait to meet my little girl!

notso yay bags packed :o I felt so much better after packing mine and now I've booked a homebirth they feel a little redundant lol, I know I may need to transfer in anyway though so I guess at least they're ready.

Morning all, heartburn again now, going to try and eat some breakfast and have a decaff tea to see if that helps. Amazing have a sale on starting this week btw, every hour they have special deals on but they're first come, first served and go really fast! Might be worth a look though as they have lots of discounts on other things too.

I'm okay - thanks for all the input on the BH! They've eased off again, so I think it's just "practice".

Sorry for those struggling with mothers and mils. Agree that partners probably don't have a clue what'll hit them after baby is born and they'll probably find they don't want to leave anyway. DF and notso - don't let your OH leave you on your own though! That's totally not on.

I told my parents yesterday that we'd like to tell them when I go into labour, partly to give them warning (they're coming up to look after our dog while we're in hospital), but that we don't want them to actually leave till we call again to say we're at the hospital and are staying. My Mum was still a bit iffy, but I think my Dad can rein her in!

Is anyone else really struggling with either neck pain or sleep?

My neck is killing me, I think partly because of having to lie on my side in one position and partly because of the huge boobs. I think I need to get re-measured but it seems pointless to buy new maternity bras now.

What with that, the peeing, the OC itching, the BH and baby kicking me (BH seem to set her off) I'm getting hardly any sleep and am getting exhausted. Trying to rest during the day but it's still hard. I'm definitely going to mention it to the docs tomorrow - I reckon the lack of sleep is a big contributor to why my bp now goes up at the least stress. Plus, if I can't get some sleep, there's only so long I can go on like this before I'll really struggle with labour.

c&g yep still niggling - less bh and baby moves more period type pains, not getting overly excited as no point until I have a show or waters go. Trying to relax and go with the flow, having 2 baths a day to help with the discomfort so I will be the sweetest smelling mum to be!
Don't any of you let mothers or MILs bully you it will make you miserable both ours know this time they are not welcome until invited which sounds harsh but I learnt my lesson last time!

Just back from the midwife and saw a new one from outside the area. She advised LO is lying Right Occiput Transverse. Back of head is grinding on my pubic bone, which is why it's been so painful lately. I thought this was the position LO was in anyway, but my normal midwife who's a bit airy fairy has never really confirmed more than head down. Bit freaked out as this new MW seemed to be really good and informative, but it's scared me a little. It can be hard for LO to engage and being on the right can mean they go OP and a long labour. Recommended I think about what pain relief was on my birth plan, she was shocked other MW's hadn't yet talked it through and added it to my notes so we did a little of that. So a quick check up turned into an hour. I think I'm now going to be overdue. Back is lying along my right hand side, legs and hands scrabbling away on my left. Chin is tucked into chest, but as it's presenting the back of the head it's an awkward slide into the pelvis. I'm going back in two weeks for a check up and I'm booked in with the specialist the week after.

japh I am not sleeping well either, mainly due to SPD pain re-emerging and heartburn plus restless legs, weeing, baby doing the tango etc. I often put on the relaxation session of the natal hypnotherapy which helps me go off for a bit. Also, don't be afraid to take lots of little naps in the day. It will prepare you for doing that with newborn in any case. FWIW I slept terribly for the last 6 weeks or so last time, had 36 hr labour and yes I was tired, but still managed to push her out ok. I think the adrenaline kicks in for labour.

kelle wow, I am impressed MW managed to tell all that detail about your baby's position. I've not got much out of mine other than, yes head down. Try not to panic as the baby can still wriggle a bit and position itself better right up to and during labour.

MrsS how's the dog? I've bought some spot on for the cat as he is overdue but going to make DH chase him round the house with it tonight. It's a two person job at least as he hates it, the poor thing.

C&G glad you are ok. How did you get rid of the heartburn? :)

Hi everyone, sounds like a few of you are certainly getting close. Japh I bet you'll be very pleased indeed to get LO here.

I'm having what I still presume to be BH, quite a lot of back pain & a bit extra discharge so back to changing knickers about 4 times a day (pads were causing me so much discomfort & I think were bringing on a bout of thrush, luckily didn't come to anything as soon as I stopped using them ). Baby is very much engaged, I felt it drop last week walking back from school adn felt it drop again yesterday. Find it very difficult to sit and walk due to the head being in the way! But lots and lots of movement the last couple of days so I'm not expecting anything anytime soon.

Sorry to hear those of you still having worries about MIL and not wanting to offend. Unfortunately I found in my experience that you have to be very blunt and risk peeing her off. But if your MILs are any kind of decent person she'll get over it and having had children herself should understand.

DS2 hasn't been too well, tonsils are massive and so giving him a load of grief so I think that may explain his behaviour this last week. DP seems to have got whatever he has too as he's been feeling off for a couple of days and topped off with no sleep last night, lots of dry heaving, dehydration (has always suffered with that) and a big panic attack, so baby really better wait a bit!

Other than DP being ill we are all ready. I have my box with HB bits, a bag just in case we need to go to hospital, that comes with us if we go out too far from home, and the car all sorted with the base in ready and waiting. It's such a relief to actually be able to get 3 car seats into the car in a position that we feel is safe.

Lavita congrats on getting the feeding going really well, sounds like you're absolutely smitten with your little girls .

Hello everyone on the last leg, I have not been on for a while but hope you don't mind me popping in again. Am 37 weeks this week and could have another 6 weeks to go!

I don't want to just moan but I am bloody enormous and can only walk at a snails pace, it is so annoying that everyone feels the need to point that out to me whenever they can.

I have still got things to organise (like christmas!) that I have been meaning to do since August but now have no energy. Midwife making me feel like a naughty child for not taking ferrous sulphate when I know I don't like it and Floradix always kept up my iron levels in the past. So hopefully I will take the tablets and get enough energy to finish the jobs by next week,as the doula says I will not be ready to go into labour until my list is all ticked off.

Baby is also ROA so midwife is preparing me for the possibility of a back to back labour.

On the positive side I am trying to rest up and enjoy what I can of this pregnancy as it is going to be the last one and I know I will miss The Bump. My DP has been reasonably impressive in the cooking and organising dept. and managed not to embarrass me too much in front of the doula with his inappropriate jokes. After talking to her realised wanted the birth pool in our bedroom, but it doesn't fit so he has uncomplainingly helped move all the baby furniture back out until after the birth.And he is not even getting any. I hope he can keep up the good work in the face of my grumpy, hormone-ridden, tired and moany current persona.

Hope everyone else is coping well with the various aches and pains (and worries) of late pregnancy. And a MASSIVE congratulations to those who have already pupped, WELL DONE! my mushy hormones are making me well up thinking of all those newborn cuddles and milky smells.

Think I am going to have to go and wash some baby clothes now ...

Hope to check back a bit sooner this time and see how everyone is doing.