July 2011 we're entering the second half!

[confuddledDOTcom]

F1rstT1meMummy 25/6/11
Ickle: EDD 29/6 pg#1 age 31
Pesha: EDD 30/6 pg#4, age 32, (dd 10yrs, ds1 7yrs, ds2 3yrs)
Blueberryjam EDD 1/7 PG#5 AGE 27 ( 7,6,4 & 8 months)
Loueytbg EDD 1/7 PG#3 Age 37 (DS1&2 3.6, 1 mc)
Tebbles EDD 1/7 PG#1 Age 29 (No DC yet)
Orchid: EDD 1/7 pg#2 age 31 (DS 2)
WolfcubEm83: EDD 1/7 pg#1 age 27
Phlebas: EDD 2/7 PG#10, age 35 (dd1 10yrs, ds 4yrs, dd2 18mo)
Riddzy: EDD 3/7 PG1, Age 31
MadAboutTheBoys 3/7 PG#3 Age 34 (DS1 3yrs; DS2 17 months)
Emmylou30: EDD4/7 pg#1 age 30
Mitchell81: EDD 4/7 pg#4 age 29(dd 10 yrs,ds1 4yrs, ds2 2yrs)
Eglu: EDD 5/7 pg#3, age 33 (DS 7 & 3) - Girl
Twit: EDD 5/7 pg#6 age 35 (3 ds's 12,9,3 one dd 4)
Countrybunkin: EDD 6/7 pg#14 age 26
Miss Lolita: EDD7/7 pg#1 age 31 - girl
ScarIettOHara: EDD 8/7 pg#1 age 34
Oceanfox: EDD 08/07 pg1 age 37
Smiler80: EDD 08/07 pg#1 age 30
Fiatlux: EDD 08/07 pg#1 age 36
MeesaMum: EDD 9/7 pg#1 age 30
wolfhound, EDD 9 July pg#3 age 40 (DS1 is 3 and DS2 is 16 mths)
Mrsfarge: EDD 9/7, pg#4, age 34 (ds 9, dd 3, ds 2)
Scarthy: EDD 10/7 pg#2 age 35 (DS 3yrs)
SpannerPants: EDD 10/7 age 27 pg#1 - boy
emilyplus1: EDD 10/7 pg#2 age 25 (DD 17 months)
confuddledDOTcom: EDD 11/7/11 girl (expected to last until May, ELCS will be mid-June if I last that long and they get their own way) age 30 (3 girls: 1 angel and two amazing girls age 4 and 2)
Sweetiexxx: EDD 11/7 pg#2 age 32 (DD 17 months)
Highheelsandequations EDD 11/7 pg#2 age 30 (no DC yet)
Rarewelshbit: EDD 11/7 age 33 (no DC yet)
Scrivette: EDD 12/7 pg1, age 30 (no DC yet)
canny77 12/7/11
NNABAIW: EDD 13/7 pg#2 age 33 (DD 15 months)
Stottiecake: EDD 13/7 pg2, age 37 (ds 2)
StormBird: EDD 13/7 pg2, age 28 (no DC yet)
Squirrel007 EDD 13/7 PG#1 Age 29 (No DC yet)
BeatrixRotter: EDD 14/7 pg#2 age 34 (DD 2)
kalp12 14/7/11
Sues1974: EDD 15/7 pg#2 age 36 (DS 21 months)
filey1: EDD 16/7 pg#1 age 28 (no DC yet)
pennyly: EDD 16/7 pg#1 age 32 (no DC yet)
JazzS: EDD 16/7 pg#1 age 29 (no DC yet)
Nicolamumof3: EDD 17/7 pg4 age 33 (DS's aged 11.6, 4.11 and 3.3)
youpie: EDD 17/7 pg#2 age 34 (ds 16 months)
Nitnatnaboo: EDD 17/7 pg#2 age 38 (ds 5 yrs)
Highfibrediet EDD 17/7 pg#4 age 38 (ds1 8y, ds2 6y, ds3 2 1/2y)
Fraochsmum: EDD 17/7 pg2 age 33 (dd 11 months)
Hefner: EDD 17/7 pg#1 age 28
a11J: EDD 18/7 p#1 age 21
Stangirl: EDD 19/7 pg2 age 41 (DD 9 months)
Fab123: EDD 19/7 pg#1 age 29
Zanzicat: EDD 20/7 pg#1 age 30
Pregnant inParis: EDD 20/7 pg#1 age 30
isitreallythattime: EDD 20/07 pg#2 age 32
Dynababy: EDD 21/7 pg#1 age 34
FessaEst: EDD 21/7 pg#3 age 30 (mc & DD 13 months)
cara2244: EDD 21/7 pg#2 age 31 (DS 2 years)
FallingandLaughing: EDD 22/7 pg#1 age 33
Geordiemam4: EDD 23/7 pg#4 age 31 (DD age 13, DS age 11, DS age 8)
Brassicababe: EDD23/7 pg#1 age 37
Brightsideoflife: EDD23/7 pg#3 age 33 (DD 19 months)
PixieOnaLeaf EDD 23/7 pg#6 Age 44 (DD1 16, DD2 12, DS 9, DTD1 8 months, DTD2 8 months)
GruffaloMama EDD 23/7 pg2 age 35 (DS 2.1)
Inbetweener EDD 24/7 pg3 age 36 ( DD 8 DD 6 )
LadyGoneGaga: EDD 24/7 pg#3 age 32 (DS age 2.5, mc)
honeybabymoon EDD 24or 25/7 age 30 (no DCs)
Emmywoo: EDD 26/7. pg## age 33 dd 4 and mc
Chocoflakes: EDD 27/7 pg#3 age 37 (dd15,ds13)
Ivegotmrbitey: EDD27/7 pg#1 age 31
SelenaDoula 27/7/11
Sugargirl1: EDD 28/7 pg#2 age 32 (DD 13months)
Badgerwife: EDD 22/7 pg#1 age 30
Buttonmoon78: EDD 29/7 pg#5 age 32 (DCs 13, 10 & 3)
ddas: EDD 31/7 pg#1 age 26
sunshiney78: EDD 31/7 pg 1 age 31
ZuluWarrior: EDD ?/7 pg#3 age 32 (DS 20 months)
JimmyChoo17: EDD 16/07 P#1 Age 29

Cor blimey Pesha!
Nice to know you are well though :)

Scarthy I bought a Medela Swing on ebay too! How much did you manage yours for? Mine is 2nd hand (only used for a few weeks as baby was prem) and had a few extra membranes and two bottles thrown in too for £55. Considering the cheapest I found new was Amazon for £88.90 (not inc postage) I think I got a deal :)

Quite a warm one here, hoping it's not the start of this heatwave :(

Just rushed all the way home on the bus from Foklestone as my friend was coming over for dinner, only to get a text as I get to my front door to say she has cancelled. Narked and want to do something with the rest of my day now. Bah-humbug!

Pesha have you tried a mattress topper? I got lots of hip pain last time as the fluid pocket on my hip became inflamed but this time am using a 4.5 tog duvet as a topper and it has helped enormously. Also, don't lift your legs by hand - you'll be twisting your pelvis. Ask the MW to do it for you! And tell them before they measure that if they touch your pelvic joint you're liable to scream. They stopped measuring me altogether last time and sent me for a scan instead!

how funny fraoch i've also had cramp in my right calf the last 2 nights running - wasn't quite the same setting as yours though - I had to wake dh as it was hurting that much lol.

fab123 I paid £70 for mine but it is new. Sounds like you got a good deal as well, I considered 2nd hand but couldn't quite get my head round another woman's breastmilk - I know thats silly once you've washed and steralised but i'm a little strange like that. Also bought 6 closer to nature bottles from Amazaon for £14, which I think is a good buy too! I'm looking forward to trying an electric pump as had a manual one last time, which was a bloody nightmare!

Forgot to say - had a physio appt today. Bit of a mammoth really, lasted 1.5hrs!

V useful though. She put my pelvis back together after Monday's door/umbrella debacle and massaged me quite a lot (though of course, after all that manipulation I'm even more sore now!) She gave me some exercises and confirmed the research I've been doing re breech babies, ecv and malpositioning etc. Also came away with tubigrip to use with my serola. Takes me hours to get dressed in the mornings with all these contraptions! 2.5 wks til next appt.

Can't believe I'm 30wks today. I keep saying to myself, it's ok, I've got another 2 months, but then when I think of it as 8 wks it's a bit more scary! I know that sounds like lots to some of you though - to the early July birds.

That's another thing I meant to ask you all - how many bottles do you need if you are hoping to breastfeed? I think I should be fine with just the two, so that if I express I can give her those in case of chapped nips/not being there (unlikely) but a friend gave me a plug in steriliser and a load of boots own bottles...should I give them all a good clean and use them on standby? I'm a little confused as to whether every pump fits with every bottle and what else I might need re: bottles. Also (although I have some Milton I haven't read the back yet) how do I go about sterilising things like a breast pump? I have visions of a bucket and boiling water but not 100% sure?

If you plan to bf then 2 should be ample. Your breast pump will prob only fit the brand of bottle it is, but I had an electric Avent steriliser and used Avent bottles but a Medela pump last time. It just meant I had to tip the milk into the Avent bottle.

To sterilise the pump I simply broke it down into it's component parts (shouldn't be too fiddly, esp with Medelas) and put the bits that could be washed into the steriliser, after washing first obv.

If you decided bf isn't for you, or it doesn't work out, 6 bottles lasted me fine though there were occasions where I could've done with a couple of extras, but not often enough to make me buy any more! And let's face it, in that eventuality, you can get someone to pop to Tesco or wherever and fetch you some extras.

Make sure you get new teats and that the bottles themselves are in good condition with no scratches etc.

I must confess, I have never used Milton in my life!

Thanks Button - I'd never heard of Milton but have a friend (with OCD) who went a bit mental with it after her DD was born and almost forced me to buy some last time I was out with her...

Oh and great news - the friend who was coming to stay with her family over the b.hol weekend isn't now :) Feel so relieved!

Hi All, am really struggling to keep up with this thread as it is movving pretty fast and sitting at the computer is uncomfortable.

Confuddled good luck, as it sounds like things are happening for you now. You did tell us to expect a May baby.

I have only next week at work and can't wait as I'm increasingly uncomfortable with feet in my ribs etc. Fortunately I don't have GD, blood test came back clear. Heartburn is gettin increasingly worse though. I am definitely in the can't wait for this to be over camp. I've never enjoyed my previous pregnancies but this one has been miserable.

Want2be it really does amaze me how crap holidays and ML is in USA. I worked in NY for 18 months, but don't think I could live there permanently.

Jimmy that sounds like a really awful NCT group. It is such a shame because meeting other parents is so helpful especially to first time parents. THe judging thing is just awful.

fab123 I found the easiest way to sterilise everything is with a bucket and sterilising solution. Taught to me by a mum of twins who was excellent at practical solutions to everything. Most people already have a bucket and the sterilising solution is about 99p from Boots or Superdrug or Poundland for loads. If you become a super-expressor you should buy some milk storage bags to bung in the freezer.

morning stan another early bird? Or do you live in a different place and I just haven't noticed?
I found a microwave steriliser the best (and quickest) after trying milton and a steam one.

Have been reading back over some posts and am shocked by the terribly judgey experiences some of you have had at NCT and elsewhere. I never went to NCT because I thought it would be a bit too worthy for me - I'm a highly medicalised birther all the way and also couldn't give a stuff about reuseable nappies. I totally support women who do want natural births and bugger about with nappies but i just didn't think it'd be my type of crowd. Luckily I threw myself into every mother and baby group going once DD was born and met loads of nice women that way. We tend to try and out-do one another with tales of our appalling parenting - which is very nice and supportive. I think it helps that I live in a very urban part of central London that is very mixed socially.

Had a growth scan this week (31 wks) and all seems well. Baby is transverse but it doesn't matter as my ELCS will happen at 39weeks and they pull 'em out whatever way round they are turned.

Yeah I agree, they just all came across as 'this is how we do it' WRT age, circumstance, and choices. They assumed I was going to be doing whatever they thought was the wrong way. And most MW's were the same TBH.
The only reason (TBH) I wanted to go the re-usable/ BF route was we had no money (our mortgage took care of all that) and I had been given some re-usable nappies. With the whole birth thing I just said that when the time came I'd be open to whatever it being an unknown at that point. I got 'lucky' that's all.
I don't get the whole competitive birth thing personally, what ever happens happens surely?

Morning all!
Had a horrible dream that my boobs just would not stop leaking. Like a dribbling tap they were, and I knew that they were running out of 'the good stuff' before the baby was here. I was a sad sight to behold, sitting slouched, dribbly nips and wailing "but she's not here yet!". Woke up convinced my boobs were going to start leaking if they hadn't already and it's taken over an hour to convince me I haven't. Knock on the door and my Breast Pump just turned up wielded by an unsuspecting Postie. Sub concious at work, clearly but I do feel relieved that now I at least have something to do if they do start with the milk taps!

Also had a dream a couple of nights ago that I kept dropping her in public (taking her out of the pram/bath and she'd wriggle = Ooops!, mortified looks from EVERYONE, etc) and then a few days later she was 4yrs old! I was so confused and wouldn't believe she was still mine as she was too old (again, cue everyone looking at me like I am a maniac for not knowing she is my daughter) and I woke up panicking thinking "but I don't know how she learnt to talk! Who is she?". Hopefully these are perfectly normal adjustment dreams

Thanks for the advice on sterilisers. I shall get me a bucket in town as I don't trust the ones in my lean-to not to be a bit manky and spidery.

Wow - I've just slept for a solid 8 hours - no wees, nothing. DD2 got up with DS and DD1 brought me a cuppa in bed. First time in about 100 years or so I've not woken up with an alarm. Was fab!

Stiff as hell as I don't think I moved all night but you can't have everything hey? V sore also where physio abused me but in a good way, like when you do lots of exercise - it hurts but you know it's ok.

I agree with you Twit on the nappy front. The first time I did it I got all the nappies I needed for £80. This time it's a money saver too as DH's business is only fledgling. I like the idea of helping the environment too, but my biggest reason is cash!

I can't understand about competitive birth either. It's a bit odd on here. Two threads spring to mind immediately - one from a few months ago where this MNer had done a back to back labour with just gas and air, had been told that's amazing - most people have spinals - and was either terribly naive and wondering if it was indeed and acheivement or was asking for lots of praise . I'm not sure which it was personally. I've done a bcak to back without an epidural but that wasn't for want of trying. I asked for 4 hours for an epi!

The other thread is one that's running at the moment about breech birth. Another poster came on evangelising about breech birth (from what I can make out, where the MWs make a brew and leave you to it) and then talking about breech delivery where you're in stirrups with a dr using forceps etc and (quote) 'the mother has nothing to do with getting her baby out' and has therefore 'not given birth'. This sort of mentality really winds me up as it seems to validate natural birth but demonise medicalised birth and negates any input the mother has in the preceding 9 months ie quite a lot! After all, birth is only one part of creating a new life and shurely it really doesn't matter how, just that the baby has been born and is safe and healthy? She got a bit of a pasting to be fair...

I think I may well be heading for a section this time. But I shall tell people I have given birth and I will be proud of my method if that's what happens. There are definately things which you can do to help if you want a natural labour, but there is no benefit to being a hero (and certainly no benefit to expounding about it later!). After all, we all end up with the same 'medal' - a lovely baby!

That was quite long. Can you tell it winds me up too?

Morning all,
buttton I think I have seen that thread an know what you mean. For what its worth I also did a back to back labour with no epi despite begging and pleading but it never came. DD1 did instead lol.

Well I have woken up today after another night of crap sleep so I am very jealous of your 8 hours button lol.
I can NOT get comfy and to top it off I now have a full on cold !! My throat is burning, my nose is streamiining and I fell horrible.
Not sure what to do today either cos its the grand prix so DH will be welded to the t.v today and tommorrow.

He did suggest we have lunch out later and then go the garden centre to try and get some bits for our back garden as he is trying to sort it but my enthusuasm levels are zero at the moment.
Will have to do something though or my poor girls will go mad. Thank god for the Wii and Moshi Monsters on the p.c lol

31+ 2 today ..................

twit I was just having a bout of pg insomnia so was up at around 5am. My DD 15mths sleeps like a top but my sleep is sooo disturbed at the moment. If it's not insomnia it's heartburn or needing a wee. Also the vivid dreams - either highly sexual or morbid in nature. I hate being pg.

I'm sorry you've had bad experiences with NCT - I don't know if my group is unusual but it's been really good, I was expecting the teacher to be bad mouthing medical intervention but she's actually been really good and has given a balanced view of "normal" birth as well as forceps/ventouse, caesarian, induction, epidurals etc. The other couples in the group seem very normal and there is a good mix of ages and backgrounds - the only problem is we're from quite a spread out area so I guess meeting up in the future would be difficult!

One of the couples has also been to the local NHS classes and she was saying that about 18 couples were there, and in her opinion the only good thing about it was it was done by a midwife who works at the hospital she is due to give birth at, so she could ask questions about the facilities (ie. ensuites - apparently only 3 of the labour suite rooms have an en suite!)

I can't believe I'm 33 weeks tomorrow. I'm beginning to struggle with smart clothes for work, I've got 2 pairs of trousers but they have to be worn with shoes and I;m having real difficulty bending to put shoes on now. I was thinking about getting some linen trousers and wearing flip flops but I have to be reasonably smart for work as I'm training to be a GP! I'm fed up of constantly checking whether the bottom of my bump is hanging out as well - my maternity trousers still won't stay up, and the tops are only just long enough. Oh well, only got 4 weeks left

Hope you all have a lovely weekend! Good luck Confuddled - hope everything goes smoothly when it does happen xx

I'm glad it's not just me Stangirl - I keep having very graphic sexual dreams that usually have Jeremy Clarkson standing on one side giving a running commentry - I wake up feeling really disturbed and my DP thinks I'm some kind of pervert!

spanner yup, mine last night with J Depp was ok.

Funnily enough Spanner I was going to post about exposing your tummy today. I too am fed up with flashing the world and now I've got tubigrip, I'm not sure which is worse - wobbly belly or cream tubigrip!

Equally, I'm not up for spending a lot of money on more clothes. Sooo, I was in Tesco yesterday and caught sight of some boob tubes. I was thinking that they might do the same job as a belly band but they come in more exciting colours than just white or black. What do you think? I think they were 2 for £8 or something of that order too so I could get 4 and cover every 'colour' aspect of my wardrobe.

I too am having fruity dreams. Not often, only three or four in the last month or so but, my word, I didn't know I had it in me!

Just realised that we've got less than 80 messages on this thread left

We'd better come up with a name quick. I'm rubbish at that sort of thing so I'm relying on you all to get on with it!

Bet you can't guess why I have been quiet for two days...

Nope, no baby yet! Tightenings got very intense Thursday night, very close together so we decided to go in. Everything calmed down then and after a night in a delivery bed (them things are NOT designed for sleeping on!) I was taken to the ward for another night and been sent home as things have settled down. They agree not long to go now but don't think it's today.

Got to go out for a bit now so will catch up when I get back.

Fraochsmum - we're going here, we left it late to book so had limited choice but we picked it for the pool really, particularly the big roman steps as it should mean they can paddle and splash without me or dp having to actually get right in every time iyswim. We have stayed near Riberac for last 2 years running and also in '06 with my family. And in '08 we went with DP's family and were nearer Sarlat, can't remember where exactly but I do remember visiting Rocamadour, La Foret des Singes and St-cirq-le-poppie (sp?!) and being nearish to Gourdon. I don't plan to keep going back to the same area but it just seems to have the nicest, cheapest places in France! And I do like to go South for the hotter weather!! But I am quite glad that the best places we find keep being around there as it is so lovely. My secret little dream is to one day move to South of France but I can't see dp ever going for it and dc prob getting a bit too old for relocating to a foreign country with a foreign language now as well. Not to mention that my French seems to be getting worse, every year I seem to forget more words that I used to know!
Lol at your dp moaning about rubbing your boobs, I'm impressed you got him to do it for 2 hours! My dp is a bit uncomfortable with the idea of sex in pg, he's better than he was the first time but now my hips are so bad it does tend to hurt a bit and, while I'm happy to carry on regardless (the pleasure outweighing the pain!) the second he realises I'm in pain he stops and thats it! Which I suppose is a good thing really but a bit disappointing as my hormones are making me quite keen!! And even if we find er other ways of doing things I end up having very painful BH after so he's stopped even trying now!

Button - don't have a mattress topper but do have a new rather posh mattress with a memory foam top that I'd hoped would help but apparently not! Will have a look for an old duvet and see if that helps though, thanks.

Lol at Jeremy Clarkson Spanner!! I was having lots of sex dreams but they seemed to have stopped. I have had some very bizarre dreams with horses and moving house being involved a few times. And some flooding dreams

Confuddled - glad to hear baby is still hanging on in there Although all this 'is it isn't it' is so frustrating isn't it? Last time I had 3 weeks of having very strong contractions and thinking 'right this it' and then they'd stop. Although that was from 38 weeks so a bit different I guess.

DP has gone to Weymouth today with a group of mates on an all day piss up. I am , I want a day out with my mates (or even his mates!!) and no dc! They are all mid 20s though whereas dp is 31 and struggling to keep up I think! They have been asking him all week if he'll be going out in town with them when they get back (last train back is 8pm) but he has just text me to say no he will def not be going out tonight but will be coming home to pass out on the sofa me! He went to Ibiza on a stag do with the same group of friends last year and texted me almost continuosly saying how much he missed me and he was never going away again! I think at heart he's a few pints down the pub kinda guy whereas these friends are more hardcore clubbing types. He did however go to Prague in Feb on another weekend stag do with a different (older) group of friends and had a great time so the 'never leaving you again' thing didn't last!
My friend is getting married next June (I have repeatedly told her how glad I am its next June and not this year!!) and I believe there will be a weekend hen do which I will most definitely be going on and leaving dp with all 4 dc to look after. I can't wait!! As much as I love my dc I'm a much better mummy when I've had a little break from them (have only ever managed a 1 night break so far though so a whole weekend will be amazing!) and a bit of 'me' time. I think particularly as I childmind so I'm still mummy even when I'm working.

In danger of making this another huge post so will shut up now!

Ooo confuddled I keep thinking each time I log in you will have deflated!

Well I celebrated being 32 weeks by going into the labour ward for baby monitoring. I bashed my bump with a car door yesterday...stupidly didn't allow for bump clearance....but since then baby had hardly moved. Baby is fine thankfully and after the trainee trying to unsuccessfully locate my heartbeat with the contraction monitor...found out all is ok and baby started really moving. I felt a bit stupid but the ward midwives were brilliant and looked after me and made me realise had done right thing. HOWEVER the ward I was in was like purgatory....the ward between no labour and labour....scary scary stuff. I'm obviously doing this for the first time but seeing the people pre labour with various issues, people just about to reach established labour etc....really gave me a reality check! Ow. Ow. Ow.

Oooo and button baby is head down and movements were the same as before so must be picking it's way out rather than kicking ha ha! Ooooo what a nice thought....my bigger more prominent movements to be fair are up the top and the bigger wiggled are baby wiggly bum. Now just need to keep baby that way up!