Charters Anonymous Graduates Volume 2! – No more temping!

[Iwish]

A nice cosy place to accommodate our growing bumps and little wrigglers.

Woo hoo for baby gaga! CONGRATULATIONS lady!!!! Lovely name, great healthy weight, and just gas and air?! I salute you! Look forward to hearing more abt the birth and beautiful Iris. Xxx

Welcome to the world beautiful little bean iris
Seems only a few weeks ago she was a bfp!!
Well done you my lovely fantastic news

Look forward to seeing the bookface pics real soon

Massive congrats and hugs and kisses to you and your delightful familyxxxxx

;) ;) ;) ;) ;)

Lady so so pleased for you. WELL DONE! xxxxx

I've had a warm glow of loveliness all day thinking about you tucked up with your brand new baby. Can't wait to see some pics

To add to the general air of celebration on the thread, I've had my 36 week scan today and madam is porking up nicely, and is now guesstimated at about 7lbs!
And... I am booked for the MW birth unit.

So, just need her to stay put until the weekend (full term) and then I would like her to come out and continue her growing outside of me

Congratulations Lady, lovely news. Looking forward to seeing some photos!

That's also fab news from you spilt.

Woo hoo and congrats LadyG I am so so for you. It feels extra special for me too as you are the first charter I charted with who has completed this amazing journey. I am so happy for you and your family.

spilt that is awesome news, I would have gone for a MW led centre if there was one near me last time but went for HB as there wasn't, there is one now but still trying for HB. I have heard great things about them though

I am having a surprise version but I won a 4D scan on twitter last week so I wonder if it will stay a surprise? I am very excited about it as DH really wanted one and it will be a nice experience to share.

Raven great news on the scan, when are you due? Thanks for happy birthday wishes - I had a fantastic party with wonderful friends so feeling like a very lucky lady. Also got the most beautiful diamond pendant necklace from DH so feeling well and truly spoilt!

Who is due next, is it you spilt? I am very excited for you but at the same time quite sad as my MC EDD was the day before yours so I think it will be a difficult time for me that day - maybe a lovely successful birth story will turn the day into a happy positive one though so I am keeping my FX for that.

Hello everyone else!

lady hope you are having lots of lovely cuddles and enjoying lots of attention!

Hey terrys - am due at end of Jan so an absolute age to wait. By then you will all be gone so either need to recruit some new charters grads or (gasp!) find another thread! Sounds like a wonderful party and what a lovely gift from DH. Good work MrTerrys!

Oh and great new spilt, yours is the first charters BFP I remember from my early days and can't believe you are so close!

Ooh terrys congrats on the 4D scan, I bet that will be amazing! I'm sure they can keep it a surprise if that's what you want, just say at the start. nix is due next, she's 2 weeks in front of me. I'm sure it will be a weird old day for you when your due date comes around, lots of us have had that during our current pregnancies. Let yourself have a down day or a special day doing something if you want, it's an important date.

DH had a nightmare last night about my waters going... think the boy is getting twitchy!

Woohoo split that's lovely news about the birth unit and the porky baby lol. Not so great about your DH having nightmares tho lol.

Oooh terrys enjoy your 4d scan. They are amazing! We had one a few weeks ago (pics are in my profile if you want a nosey) They will keep away from baby's bits if you don't want to know the sex too.

raven so glad your scan went well, bet you are over the moon! Will you find out thr sex? And thanks re the nursery. We have even impressed ourselves lol!

mrsp nix mrsa pippa and getdown hope you are all doing ok?

lady hope you are having lots of cuddles with little one.

My little mine seems to have found the best to stick his feet in my ribs. Slightly uncomfortable but he seems to like it lol. He is very wriggly these days and I love it!

I meant my little 'man' not 'mine'! Lol

Just been crawling around on all fours scrubbing all the hard floors... otherwise known as optimal fetal positioning and nesting combined!

The kitchen seems to be where my need to nest is overwhelming just now. Today I have cleaned the extractor hood, cleaned the light fitting, scrubbed all the skirting boards and the front of the dishwasher, hoovered the floor, scrubbed floor. And made a humungous batch of chilli for the freezer. And last night I made chocolate brownies, slightly underdone to be fair but they are sooo yummy and gooey! Clearly all this cleaning deserves a brownie type reward
Tomorrow I plan to get the sugar soap out of the loft and wash the walls down.

And the first few of my nappies have arrived. Have spent far too long poppering and un poppering them and mucking about with all the sizes and inserts They look so comfy

oh lord. Don't read the Discussions of the Day thread on Labour and 1-1 care. Freaking terrifying. I had not as yet considered the possibility of being totally neglected by MWs when in labour

iwish hopefully if his feet are in your ribs then his head is down south! What are you now, about 30 weeks? (lost count )

at spilt I know what you mean, I've got nesting bad too. Too lazy to actually do any scrubbing though

I stupidly watched that panorama last night, and scared myself silly, which was really daft, especially as DH is away at the moment so I had no one to be rational and sensible for me. They interviewed a poor man, whose baby had died in the womb at full term, and they'd induced his wife to give birth with 16x the recommended dose of syntocinon causing her womb to rupture and then she died too It was awful

Am trying to banish all those horrible negative thoughts. My friend leant me her natal hypnotherapy CD so i now have that as well as the hypnobirthing one, so I can alternate them. I much prefer the English voice of the natal hypnotherapy one, it's very soothing and much less irritating than the American twang!!

Someone give me some advice please - I'd decided to get an electric Medela pump, as my Avent manual one last time just didn't quite cut the mustard, and I really want to give breast feeding a good go this time. It's quite an expense - nearly £90 but all the reviews seem to say it's well worth it, so I thought I'd go for it.

Found a place online selling for £82 - that was the cheapest I found it, so I ordered it. That was 2 weeks ago now, I still have nothing. I've emailed them but had no reply, and tried phoning on different days and at different times but it goes to answerphone each time Am now cursing myself for ordering from an unknown firm, and am scared of losing my money. Wish I'd just gone to Amazon now What should I do? I paid on a credit card, so that should help shouldn't it? If there's no way of contacting them, how can I cancel the order, or find out what is going on??? It's stressing me out a bit, particularly as it was quite a big expense...

Flipping eck split you have been busy!! I hope the nesting kicks in for me In a few weeks (preferably after 2nd September when I finish work lol) as I've been soo lazy recently and it's even a chore to Hoover the kitchen. However I did wash and iron baby's clothes the other day, even his little vests lol.
And omg I could just eat some of your home cooked brownies. They sound amazing!!
Yeh 30 weeks yesterday!! Eek. Im wishing time away now, just want October to come!

getdown I'm do glad I didn't watch that!! Was it that 'one born every 40 seconds'? If so I have recorded it so might delete it.
Maybe you should get it touch with the credit card company and see if they can get your money back? I'm pretty sure its better if you have paid on credit card as you can get your money back easier. The only other way to contact that company is to write to them I suppose but that may just be as useless.

I've just put my 30 week bump pic up - I'm HUGE!!

Yes GetDown it's the panorama program they are discussing on the Discussion of the Day. I am definitely NOT going to be watching that, I got the gist from the thread, and also so many people saying they were left alone for most of their labours

Re the pump that hasn't arrived - if you've paid on credit card then phone your credit card company and explain that the order has not been fulfilled and you want to cancel. They should refund your money and pursue it with the company themselves.

Got to go, but just wanted to post that quickly x

Thanks iwish and spilt I feel a bit reassured knowing if all else fails I should be able to get my money back.

Wow I feel shattered this evening. DH has been away yesterday and today, and am feeling the strain with DD. Took her to costa for a milkshake this afternoon, and I had to have a non-decaf coffee as I was soooo sleepy. Then managed a trip to the playground, but that is about all I've done today

She's in bed now

Oh, and getting on to that icky topic of perineal massage again......

My hypnobirthing teacher said it is essential, and I need to be doing it every day. I've only managed two days so far, and man, I hate it!! For one, I find it really hard to reach Is it just me???? What.... errr... position do you ladies use?

Also, I seem to have loads of horrible discharge and the whole process is messy and uncomfortable
Plus (and this is probably the worst bit), I have looked in the mirror and I have horrible scar tissue from my tear last time It is a bit of a mess down there to be honest. I don't know if scar tissue perhaps is a bit less stretchy than normal tissue? It feels so sore to try and stretch it Every day?? Ick.

I'm sure the nesting bug will get to you soon iwish. I certainly didn't have the puff for it whilst I was working. It felt like a marathon just chopping an onion or whatever for tea whilst DH did the rest! Your bump looks lovely, love your set of stripey tops! I've just put my 36 week bump pic up - given the size of the baby alledgedly in there I seem to be really quite neat.

Poor you GetDown. Pregnancy exhaustion really is draining.

So, perineal massage... I tend to aim for 5 days out of 7 because there's always a day or two where I can't be arsed/have to get up quickly and I am not going to feel guilty about it. Position wise I've found 3 that work:

1. Pillow on floor, kneel on it with your knees wide apart and pointing outwards, and pretty much sit back on your heels. Go in with both thumbs from the front (i.e. not reaching round behind your bum because I can't get my arms round that far!)
2. Squatting in the frog position, knees wide pointing outwards (can lean head forward onto the bed/a chair for stability). Again, go in with both thumbs from the front.
3. Sit in the position you must not give birth in! Semi reclining, bum on a pillow for comfort, knees bent and apart and get going.

Yes I also have lots of skanky discharge. It is revolting. I have a couple of tissues to hand for immediate wipeage afterwards and then head straight to the bathroom for half a dispenser of hand soap!

I was surprised to find just how much softer and more pliable the whole area was when I did the massage straight after a hot bath, so that might be something to try whilst you're finding it quite uncomfortable. I definitely find it a lot easier now, it got noticeably better after about a week so do stick with it. I'm sure I read that scar tissue is less stretchy so all the more reason to work with it a bit. Go gently though and build it up.

I found having some soothing Einaudi music playing helped me stay relaxed and distracted me a bit from the yuck factor. Good luck!

Hi lovelies:)

Very very swollen and uncomfy here, Bp a little elevated, but watching out for headaches and visual probs ( Pre eclampsia) so adding to that horrendous carpal tunnel feeling a little hideous;(baby tho is absolutely fine ;)))

Nesting, well trying!! Not much energy and very breathless but doing my best!! ;))

Can't believe I am next.......

Lady hope you are enjoying lots of snuggles x
Big kisses to everyone else x

Thanks spilt that is really helpful advice re. the fanjo stretching perineal massage, I'm so glad you said about the discharge, I found it all quite distressing the couple of times I've done it so far and ended up feeling really disgusted with myself. Mine seems to be quite runny, to such an extent I actually freaked myself out at first thinking I'd burst my waters as there was so much of it - gross !!!

I will try those positions, and glad to hear it does get softer / easier. Good idea re, after a warm bath too.

BTW I love Einaudi!!! We have several of his CDs. Always been favourites of mine. Can I also recommend some of Steven Halpern's stuff (look him up on Amazon) very chilled out music which I like a lot

Go for it with the brownie-eating. I had a brownie myself in Costa earlier, tho I'm sure not as nice as your home made goo-ey ones!

Hiya nix wow you're up next! So exciting! Sorry to hear about the BP and the swelling, just keep an eye on it. When is your next MW appt? Is DH around a lot more now? Hope DS is not driving you too mad. I have days where DD just exhausts me. And that's even with excessive mis use of CBeebies

Evening all! Glad to hear things seem to be going well for all, hope your swelling is just normal pg stuff nix
I am 23 weeks now - one more till 'viability'. Not that it means a great deal but nice to know baby is considered a little person then.
I'm doing OK. Much better than last pg.

Met my doula yesterday - nice lady, not hippyish and would generally defer to midwives rather than 'homebirth at all costs' attitude. I liked her.

I didn't know about panorama. Tbh, it doesn'[t surprise me. One reason I want a hb is that you get 121 care at home. In last labour I was left alone so many times cos I had the monitor on and they just relied on that. DD was also taken away after the birth for no good reason and I was too out of it on drugs to bf.
For me, hb is safest option!
But, that's me.

Gd re the breast pump - I have the medala dual electric one and it was fab! Got full bottles in minutes! Would seriously recommend x

No Dh not about ATM.. But parents and peeps swarming round in this heat, helping with the last min nesting lol..
Everyone on standby and dh four hours away like a cat on a hot tin roof.. But never mind!! Ds been a gem recently actually ;) helping me and gma get everything ready for the baby! Shit scared, terrified what the birth is going to bring, need to shave my legs but want it out now... The heat is killing me!! Bring it on ;)

Saw mw yest just have to watch out for vision and headaches otherwise they ate happy to wait til 40 weeks. ;)

Sorry for me me me hands are pretty bad so hurts to type xx

You know I step away for a couple of hours and the talk turns to fanjo stretching lol. Quite intrigued about it tho. When are you supposed to start it?

Woohoo mrsa 1 week to go! Glad you liked your doula :)

nix I hope bubba comes soon for you but with plenty of time for your DH to get there too!

split your bump is so neat and nice! I feel like a whale and I'm pretty sick of people telling me I'm massive baby might be massive eek!

getdown sorry you have been so tired. Put your feet up at every opportunity! Hope you manage the massage too.

Well I'm upset. I can't get my feet in my trainers! We are going to work dressed in running gear (with slight changes for me lol) so trainers it Is but my feet are just too fat :(

Hi everyone every time I disappear for a couple of weeks someone has a baby . (Is it me?! Nix what's your ideal birth date? I'll make sure I'm not online...) Fantastic news Lady - can't wait to hear your birth story. Made me a little bit choked up when I got to your post!

I'm 31 weeks and carpel tunnel has properly set in - splints don't seem to help and I spent yesterday with an entirely numb left arm. Ouch. In other news, I requested to change midwives, as mine made a call in front of me about another lady in which she gave out full name, full address, details of problems she was having breastfeeding, and I felt so uncomfortable (and so wouldn't want her to do that about me in front of someone else?!) I just didn't feel I could trust her. So now, finally, with a couple of months to go, will hopefully see just the one person till the end...

Sorry not to namecheck everyone, I have read everything but I've missed so much (naughty) I'm way behind. Needless to say there's a certain nursery I'm very jealous of!! Hope you're all feeling well - can't believe so many of us are in the 30+ week stage now...somewhat scary and amazing!

(Talking of scary, I have got over my Hypnobirthing cynicism and would thoroughly recommend )

Morning all,

Great that you've found a good doula MrsA. Viability is an exciting milestone

nix sorry to hear about the swelling and raised BP, that must be quite worrying and uncomfortable. Fingers crossed it is just the heat and nothing sinister. Stick your feet in a bucket of cold water if you get the chance of a sit down!

Iwish about 34 weeks I heard for the fanjo stretching. I think I started at about 33 though.
Tbh even though I am quite compact I feel like a whale anyway. I think it comes with the territory. Turning over in the night is about a 5 point turn with grunting. When I get out of bed I walk sideways into the furniture before I regain control of my legs. If I sit still for too long the skin on the top of my bump goes numb. And I can only dawdle along at pathetic speeds whilst getting out of breath. Ho hum. Not much longer!! (I am so very VERY excited about being able to lie comfortably and guilt free in whatever position I choose)

pippa lovely to see you again. You must be onto the summer holidays now? Sorry about the carpal tunnel, that sounds horrible. Is it just paracetamol you can take for it? Hope your new MW is much better.

GetDown I forgot to say, when I use a pillow to sit/kneel on I always cover it with a manky old towel in case of oil drips/gloops of discharge. Mine is all thick and sticky and has it's own special odour (Hope that makes you feel less ick about yourself!)
Einaudi is lovely. I bought a big double CD of his and have loaded it onto the ipod ready for labour (I can't listen to natal hypnotherapy on a 38 min repeat cycle the whole time, I will go mad!). But I find his music very soothing and usually play it when doing my yoga exercises. Seems to help keep the breathing deep and calm.