We're now halfway and it's PMA all the way - Nov 2011

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Halfway there now ladies. on the countdown.

Really quick post before bed - where does the time go these days, I have so much to do...........

I live just near Chester (is someone else near there?) but frequently travel to Manchester, so I'd be up for a meet if convenient. What about the Trafford Centre - free parking and good coffee/cake shops!

Btw, agree with all the comments re accruing holiday/keeping vouchers etc. Good points.

I used to live in Chester - now in Glossop! I miss Chester so much though...

Trafford Centre sounds awesome - what about the rest of you girls!?

Sorry too tired for proper post - off to Cornwall on Sat for hol (nr St Austell). Anyone got tips for things to do with toddlers. Hoping lots of beach trips but weather looking dicey

I'd be up for a trafford centre meet

Hi! I officially cannot keep up with the thread. Sat since I got out of bed at 6, catching up, now have time for a 2 min post and then by the time I get back to it again I'll have to catch up all over again!!!

Anyways hope everyone is well. If it is not too late my vote for hols is Northumberland but I am biased as I live very near there! That also rules me out of most of the meet ups I guess then!

My OH's mum has just offered to buy our pram, which is very very nice of her, she is definitely not likely to insist that we get one she wants and wants us to get the one we have had our eye on. Thats a relief financially and I am happy she is getting involved too. It is unlikely that my mum will go all out in comparison as this is her 5th, it is my MIL's 1st. Can't say I blame my mum at all!! MIL has also asked to keep the pram at hers, as she is a little superstitious like that, I dont mind either way.

I have a list of exactly what we wanna buy and where from etc, tis pay day today, am so tempted as the cot and mattress are on offer.

Finally, I must update the stats with pink, don't think I have done it yet!

With all these meet ups maybe it's time us Southeners get involved, I know from comments on faceyb that there is quite a few along the M4 corridor and further South... Anyone up for cake?

Snoozle Yes, that under rib pain is quite common. I've gotten it in all of my pregnancies. It's caused by a mix of pregnancy things, mostly normal muscular stuff, but make sure your midwife checks your urines next time for infection as it can exacerbate the problem (I had it really bad my first time around, went down to normal dull muscle pain after a course of antibiotics).

Happy thanks for the tip about the stomache muscles! Why does noone tell these things!
Folic, if you are fatter after the birth then sex will be fantastic excercise! Though don't envisage it being easy for a few months at least if we all have babies sleeping in our rooms!
Gold - what does SWI mean? Is that some wierd sex thing?? [Confused]
Sunshine, my mw told me that I shouldn't monitor the movement until 28 weeks as even if there was none, they wouldn't do anything, no scan or listening in. Folic my mws won't listen in at all until 25 weeks :-( think I'm the only one on here not to have heard babys heartbeat!
Finally H007, I'm m4 corrider, welsh side though? X
Hope everyone has a nice day, we have our work summer party tonight, hospitality and open bar (great use that is) at the cricket!
Oh nearly forgot to add, first yoga class last night, it was fab and I swear I had the best nights sleep in months! X

Oooo, the Manchester meet-up sounds fun! I'm over in Derby and the wonders of google map says Trafford Centre is near a lot of train stations so I should be able to make it without oo much trouble (though, I may have to ask one of you nice ladies to meet me at the train station as I've never been to Manchester and am known for getting stubbornly lost as I have no sense of direction ). Shops and cake sound like an excellent ladies day out!

H007 I'm liking your thinking, I live reading area of the m4 but am often found on the m4 itself between reading & bristol due to visiting various people!! A meet up sounds good :)

Trafford centre meet up sounds fab!! X

Hi everyone, sorry for such a long absence - bring on the end of term is all I can say!!! Thanks to those who talked me through the consultant appointment - it was very positive - and certainly made more so because of the reassurance that I'd had on here. I was able to ask the questions that I wanted to and my mind was certainly put at rest - I was so worried that they would be judgemental about my weight, but they were't at all - just wanted to make certain that all would be safe - exactly what I want too, so I'm very happy with that!
Hope you are all doing ok - can't believe that we're all past the halfway mark now - eek!

H007 another M4 lady here up for meeting (I'm Bristol)

Can we arrange Manchester meet up by PM please?

Hi all, popping on with a rather trivial question - what sort of swimwear are people taking on holiday? And for anyone doing aqua natal what do you wear for that? I don't whether to wear usual bikini or if that's not the done thing with a bump and I should be wearing a one piece!

mashpot I wear a 1-piece for aqua but then I would if swimming (only wear bikini in super hot places!!). But a few ladies at aqua wear bikinis, showing off their bump!!

mashpot I wear a tankini because you can often buy a bigger top to bottoms. I also have a one-piece I bought in the next sale between pregnancies which isn't attractive but covers everything.

I love my bump but would hate to wear a bikini to aquanatal. Love to see other bumps though so wouldn't think twice if other mums worse one.

Alicat we stayed near St Austell last year, it's lovely around there! It's worth doing some research into the beaches, as not all are child friendly (I remember one gorgeous beach where the waves were so strong there's no way I'd take small children there).

If you're the types to like traipsing round outdoors, then I'd recommend the Lost Gardens of Heligan. There's a great boat trip from Mevagissey to Fowey, which is good for a hot day as the spray is cool out at sea.

Starting to feel a bit more human here - second day in a row of not crying on anybody (touch wood!). Meeting my mum for the day tomorrow - we don't see each other very often so could get very soppy and gooey over little boy clothes and so on.

Have good weekends everybody!

On the Southerners meet up, I'm in Surrey j4 on M3 would love to meet up. I'm a adhoc shift worker though so only get 1 in 5 weekends off.

sunshine I bought a doppler as I was being paranoid at 16 weeks and although it's not recommended by midwives etc I use it a couple of times a week. HB is so strong now and I can located it in seconds. Also helps DH to feel connected too as kicks aren't strong enough to be felt by him yet. It was £35 on Ebay. Might not be for you be always reasures me if I have a moment of worry! Once kicking starts (I'm 21+4) I will put it away for next time.

Also, we joined NCT and have signed up for ante natal and post natal classes. They send emails of social events, sales etc in your area. Going to a 'bumps in the pub' event in August and we'll deffinatly go to nearly new sales. I don't know many people in the area so hopefully will make some good friends and bump will have baby buddies too.

Hello all, this is only my 2nd post (in manner of confession) I just can't quite seem to keep up. I work 6 days a week although I am hoping to sell my business very soon - pretty please in the next month or two - which means I can then begin 'maternity leave' and hopefully not have to worry about working again for a year or so..

I'm also moving house in 2 weeks. With that in mind, I'm trying to be organised. Going to take the plunge and buy a pram tomorrow - after much deliberation, I'm going for the new John Lewis Complete Travel system.

Looking forward to starting NCT classes in Sept as I don't have much of a network of friends pregnancy / baby wise. Voodoo - I'm near Northumberland too. Is anyone else in the North East? I own a coffee shop near Newcastle. if anyone would like to meet up for cakes, I have a ready made venue!

ha ha, I just had a wee google there of NCT as everyone is talking about it, and a close friend who had a baby recently swore by it. My nearest classes are in Glasgow, so thats, ooh, 100 miles by car and boat, or just 3/4 of an hour on the plane! Ah well, it was worth a try....! (friend who swears by them, as you will clearly have worked out, lives elsewhere, not anywhere near me!)

I decided not to do NCT class as I just feel that they are ridiculously expensive for something which is suppose to be a natural process... I just figure with all the new things I need to buy and moving house the money could be better spent of something else! I am very lucky in that I have two close friends due September, a best friend due December and a best mate due 3 days after me. Other than that just going to close my eyes and hope for the best :)

Thanks Buffy - good tip re beaches, and the boat trip and gardens sound good also

Ahhh Snoozle that made me laugh. I looked into an NCT refresher class for this pregnancy to find the nearest one to us here in Fife, was in Newcastle... in January. So don't think we'll bother :) That said we did one the first time, as we were moving from England to Scotland so missed NHS ones at both locations, and it was worth every penny. It covered so much more detail both in terms of labour and early baby care and everyone said they made more friends that way than through NHS classes. We had a mixed bag of births, I was the only emergency section HDU veteran, but most had instrumental deliveries/ inductions although a few had v little intervention, but we stuck together from the week after the course when we began meeting up for regular cake right up until today when our littlies are almost two and more are on the way. In the early days however puke spattered I was I always knew there were seven other puke spattered women nearby to call upon. V v reassuring and financially a much better investment at least for your sanity than a sooper dooper buggy. Although I do HATE our eBay buggy and can't wait to upgrade.

Morning all, busy couple of days so just caught up. Had my Prince2 exam yesterday, it was rescheduled from when I went into hospital. Bit tough but fingers crossed.

H007 you said your ms was back? Mine too, not quite as bad but sick when I brush my teeth or eat - marvelous.

On movements, one way to put your mind to rest - at your scan just watch how much movement your wee one makes that you can't feel. At my 20 wk he was spinning like a top and star jumping and I couldn't feel it. Yet other times he is pummelling me hard and I feel it clear as day. I think it is because he is relatively small and sometimes sitting behind the placenta. I feel him on the left and low down, never on the right or at the front because that is where that big old placenta is cushioning him.

Under rib pain - I still have dull ache which worries me as I think a gall attack is about to start but mw said that was normal as everything is squished up.

Haven consulted Dr Google :) I think this is normal but has anyone else experienced a drop in blood pressure? Mine went down to 95/65 my normal average is 120/75, it caused me to be dizzy for about 2 days.

TMI WARNING

On the "business time" front we aren't doing much due to sickness and me sleeping 16 hours a day! But when we have OMG it's all very sensitive down there so is very good, very quickly. Sorry if this is TMI. But post scan DP was a bit put off, he said, "are you sure you want to now you've seen his face?". We did and I think DP is going for land speed records not sure I can measure the act in minutes but given the strength of sensation that was fine and dandy. Again very sorry for TMI.