Jue in June 2011....... labour here we come!!!!!

[Jer79]

New thread. Should last us a week.

I am also wondering if there is someone who could take the practical load off for you moomin? I don't know what your finances are like but temporarily having a cleaner / someone who can do laundry/ironing/keep fridge full etc? Don't blame you for feeling tearful - even though Florence is doing so well there's a lot on your mind xxxx

Oh crazy I'm really sorry. Do you know when he's likely to come home now? Just think in a couple of months' time you'll have your gorgeous new baby and your DH back and I'm sure that today will feel a million years behind you.

moomin thanks for giving us such a lovely update on your baby girl :) It sounds like she is a fighter, like her mum :) I second what everybody else says - don't feel guilty for anything! You are bound to be full of the most crazy mix of emotions right now, but you've helped nurse your LO to health and in three weeks she'll be home! Then you can really get on with starting your family lives together :) You are a massive inspiration on this thread :)

PS - I say if you can't get any help then take your own advice. Daytime TV and afternoon kips. Sod the dishes, sod the garden, sod the washing - no-one, and least of all Florence, is going to give a flying f* if the hedges are trimmed or everything's spick and span :)

Im so glad to hear from you, Moomin - I've just caught up on pages of posts myself today and was hoping for an update from you. Am so delighted to hear how well Florence is doing - I just cant believe shes 3.7 already!!! . Im in awe of you too - Your amazing - really are. Despite it being absolutely fantastic, Im thinking of when I had my dc, and how difficult those first few weeks are - bearing in mind both mine were 8.10 and 8.4 - overdue babies and the longest stay in hospital was 3 days (1 with ds) - I dont have a clue how you are managing to juggle everything and express and care for a prem baby. I think your brilliant. Try not be too hard on yourself, you certaintly are entitled to cry - you must be so stressed and so tired at the minute. Am crossing everything for Florence's arrival home to be soon.

TTL hope your ok now and not too worried. Just to echo what everyone else had said - its very unlikely you did pick up anything.

ThornyKate and Knackered, my ds was breach all the way through my pregnancy - at my 12 week scan, my 20 week scan, 26 weeks, 32 weeks, 36 weeks... I pretty much resigned myself to a cs because I thought, as he was feet down from basically the onset, there must have been a reason for him adopting this position and there wasnt much hope of him moving. My consultant at the time (at 36 weeks!!) told me I shouldnt be worrying at all, that it was too early to be concerned and he could turn. Anyway, he did. I had a scan at something like 37+5 and he was head down. I think its normal for babies to be in any position at our stage now so I really wouldnt worry. If you are though, try www.spinningbabies.com for tips. Also, best piece of advise I was given, go into a dark room, completely naked and get someone to shine a torch up your fanjo and make cooing noises (apparantly the baby is attracted to light and sound and this has been none to work.. honestly)

Nurse and SuperSunny YAY on starting maternity leave!!!!!. Nurse any more news on UTI?

Jasmine really glad to hear dh is on his way home.

Sorry yours isnt, Crazychic

Confessions congrats on the move!! bet your glad to have that over with!.

So one of my work colleagues (from the last department I worked in) had a baby boy on Friday! Local babies being born really brings it home for some reason, doesnt it? (??!!) His name is Paul which you dont hear much of these days?

So, my big news - DH and I had the most fabulous day yesterday. We took your advice once again and my aunt, mum and my granny took ds and dd off to a petting zoo and for a picnic for the day so dh and I could go off to Dublin for the day together.

We went out for the most yummy dinner and the 3d/4d scan was amazing I just couldnt belive it!!! at one stage the baby puckered out her lip, frowned and looked like she wanted to cry!!!. We got a dvd and loads of pics to take home and I showed them to everyone once we got home (my granny - at 77 was absolutely amazed). Was definately worth it. Really, really enjoyed and it did help put mind at ease - heartbeat looks good and measurements all seem fine - everything appears to be where it should be.

Anyway, we were 100% certain we werent going to find out the sex of this one as to be honest, I really wanted a surpise. DH said to me in the car on the way up could we please find out - that he really wanted to know. He said that he thought it would make him feel a little more bonded to baby, knowing whether to expect a boy or a girl and to name it etc - that I've bonded with it as its inside me but he feels a little detached (again, number 3 with a teeny gap between ds and this one, we've been worried about how busy we've been). I think his reasons for wanting to know completely outweighed my reasons for not wanting to so I let him have his way.

WE'RE HAVING A GIRL!!!

We're over the moon. Can stop worrying about those bloody boy's names now - baby Kate it is.

breech even .

Oh Barbie - congratulations on your baby GIRL!!!

Moog - hope you had a lovely holiday :)

TTL - I have a very good long term memory. It's just my short term memory that is shit

CMH1st - hope you will be okay to go to the wedding. Your friend is very thoughtful in warning you though, hope her hubby is ok.

Moomin - lovely news about Florence. I hope she enjoyed her bath! Have you been offered the use of a nursing supplementer? These can be used when baby needs to get some extra milk in while getting bfing established with babies whose sucking is weak. As she gets stronger, you move the end of the tube further and further back so she has to work hard until she is getting all her milk straight from the breast.
And be gentle to yourself, you have been on a real rollercoaster ride this last month, I am not a bit surprised at your SCS! It will get better once you get the go ahead to bring little Florence home, I hope it will be soon
And forget about the housework - it'll still be there once Florence comes home!

Crazychic - sorry to hear about your DH, I hope he does recover soon.

Sassamax - fingers crossed you get your chiropodist appointment!

Barbie - glad the scan went well, and congrats on your baby Kate :)

BTW I have written my birth plan.

If anyone wants to see it you can message me and I will email it to you. Just don't want to post it here. Here is an outline though.

Introduction

• Where and who would be present & policy on student MWs.

Labour options

• Activity in labour
• Monitoring of me and the baby
• Pain relief options.

Birth options

• Positions for second stage
• Pushing techniques
• Perineal care
• Who catches the baby

After birth options.

• Immediate care of the baby
• Cutting of the cord
• feeding options
• Transfer to hospital.

You can put an extra section in about things such as interventions, caersarian section as well.

Have just messaged you now SSD.

Ha ha, I'm glad you lot dont actually know me..(except Jer...and Mother...and Lisa...), and glad that DH isnt here either..but I've just been killing myself laughing...had some beany chilli for late lunch and have been trumping all afternoon with abandon (such a satisfying feeling). However I think my daily lactulose has just kicked in and the last explosion was a little...errrrrrr....moist. Thank goodness I didnt try and have a sneaky bubble at aquanatal tonight! Sorry if that was all tmi but Im feeling very juvenile today....do you think bump is hearing all this and is disgusted at his mummy?

Jasmine I expect he is learning loads and will trump like a trooper too :o

Wow I only went away for a few hours and I feel like I have missed loads!

moomin I agree with all the others, give yourself a break, after all this is still your maternity in the sense you are preparing to be a full time mum at home, and I am sure Florence wants a happy rested mum !

barbie your scan sounds amazing, in fact I am a little I didn't opt for one myself!

Jasmine - I will admit trumping without feeling undignified has been a highlight of pregnancy, that and the relief of taking my bra off at the end of the day!

I built my cot with the help of my mum today - and it has made me go properly gaga - I love it soooo much! Keep going in the room to look at it

Hi ladies, have been AWOL the past week or so again because of work. I took my last pre-ML business trip last week and as these things go, worked round the clock, walked a lot more than usually, didn?t sleep very well, and didn?t eat as well or drink as much fluid as usual. I came back exhausted and with very swollen feet and ankles, and slightly swollen fingers (and am now wearing my wedding and engagement rings on a chain around my neck). I?ll be working about three days per week over the next four weeks and then starting ML at 35 weeks. Really looking forward to taking it easy!

Had my 31-week appointment on Friday, and all is well with LO, who is measuring exact for his dates. He?s definitely running out of room in there, and I?m feeling more squirms these days than proper kicks. Now thinking more seriously about my birth plan and getting the house ready for the baby!

Very interested in the chat about perineal massage?has it helped anyone to prevent tears/episiotomies in previous births? Is anyone doing it already?

Daisy, interesting point about cord blood harvesting and a managed third stage. We have also been considering donating the cord blood, so will have to look into it more to decide whether I feel more strongly about having a natural third stage or donating the blood. I?ve also had a chat with my step-MIL who is a midwife, who told me that waiting until the cord stops pulsing to cut it significantly increases the chances of the baby becoming jaundiced and needing to stay in hospital a bit longer under the lights. Will need to keep researching and think about it.

Sasamaxx, I also like the idea of donating breast milk to SCBUs. Will look into it, and definitely want to watch that programme!

Jasmine, we?re planning to call our LO William, and I had also been a bit worried about Royal Wedding connotations/an increase in use of the name this year. We like the name so much though (it?s a strong family name for me) and have been calling him Will since learning his gender, that we?ve decided to use it regardless. Plus, there are always going to be a few Williams as it is a very traditional name. I say, if you like it, go with it!

Moomin, so glad that Florence is doing so well. Good luck with BF! Please do not feel guilty ? you are certainly doing the most important job by being by her side. Please continue to keep us posted!

Just sat down, thinking I really cannot be arsed cooking dinner tonight. Typically as soon as I've gotten comfy I am suddenly STARVING. May just ditch the spag bol for scrambled eggs instead.

That said I was going to sit down and mull over my hospital thoughts from the other day, but again it shall have to wait.

Hi everyone

My body is now SHOUTING at me to stop. After developing PGP and having so little energy, it tried to go into labour yesterday. The contractions seem to have stopped now, but mw was here twice yesterday and we have been in touch by text/phone during the day. It is only because she knows how much I hate hospitals that I avoided a trip to the Day Assessment Unit and probably overnight admission. I am trying very hard now to do as little as possible and focus on getting through the next 3 weeks as mw says she is happy for me to have the baby at home from 36 weeks.

I am now an expert in the difference between 'real' contractions and Braxton-Hicks.

NOTE TO SELF: Pack hospital bag just in case. Should I go into established labour I expect to have about an hour before I give birth.

Having said all that, I'll probably go over. DD1 was a failed induction resulting in an emcs at 43+1.

Right, back to the baby blanket. I taught myself to crochet at the weekend in order to make myself sit on the sofa more...

Thinking of you mother of keep those legs crossed and the little one cosy in there for a bit longer......

Just checked back in and saw that about 10 posts had appeared above my last post that weren't there when I posted. Congrats on your DD Barbie! It's nice to know, isn't it?

Kara, I would be very interested in looking at your birth plan as we seem to have similar ideas about natural childbirth and such. Will send you a message now.

Motherofsnortpigs, please do take it easy!

Mrs - have replied!

I didn't know about the Jaundice link to delayed cord cutting. SIL had a home birth and a delayed cord cutting and her DS did end up with Jaundice.

So will do some research and discuss with MW as may need to change that part of the plan.

Well i have managed to stop crying now today. Seemed to be far to overwhelmed with the whole situation of DP not coming home. When to the hospital at lunchtime to see him and pretty much cried the whole time i was there and im sure the nurses wondered what on earth was wrong with me! They are lovely though asking if i was ok! I was trying to blame it on the pregnancy hormones but im just a big cry baby!!

Got a message from DP this afternoon saying that as a result of the CT scan he had last night, the consultant has decided he wants to insert a drain into him to drain the fluid that has built up around his kidney to see if that will help him as they have found more blood clots since the first scan. If that doesn't work then they are going to take out his kidney which is a scary thought.

Went back to see DP after he text me this and he looks so worried about it so i had to keep it together and re assure him that everything was going to be ok and it looked like he was going to start crying on me! Dont no what time the op is tomorow for the drain so im hoping that the nurses will phone me otherwise i'll be popping off again to the hospital at visiting time and hoping that he is back from it otherwise i will look very lonely!

The nurse told me not to go into labour tonight which made me laugh - and worry as seeing as im only 32+6 that would not be a good idea! On the plus side though all they would have to do is wheel me across the road to the Maternity Hospital LOL!!! Not that I want baby to come now because of DP in hospital and my mum is in Wales on holiday!

Can anyone send me a virtual hug please coz i really need one!!!!

crazy chic virtual hugs for you. Sounds as if you are having a really stressful time, I know it's hard not to worry but take each day as it comes, hopefully the drain will work and if not and he has to have a kidney removed then remember that you can function fully with just one kidney. Do you have someone that could come and stay with you??

Sending you lots of birtual hugs crazychic

Oh my goodness motherofsnortpigs - I can't believe that happened to you . How are you supposed to have proper rest with the other kids though??
Were any of the others early? What a fright - really reminds you that we just can't be too complacent.

My back is KILLING me tonight - had to leave choir early and everything as I couldn't sit in the chairs beyond tea break. Have midwife appointment tomorrow - somehow I doubt that the baby has switched to head-down position since Friday but I live in hope.