TTC 6 mths+ GRADS THREAD

[Biscuitsandtea]

Afternoon.

I thought I'd start a Grads thread for those of us previously on the TTC 6 mths+ thread. I've been lurking on the ttc thread recently to see how everyone is getting on (having only very recently qualified to move off it!) and a few people were saying what a nice idea it would be if there was a grads thread so we don't lose each other.

Anyway, would be lovely to hear from other lovely ladies that were on that thread - or even if you were never on the ttc thread but had a sticky time of it getting your bfp then come and settle down with a decaf cuppa for a chat.

Ps anyone else already a bit fed up with hearing about the royal baby?! I'm a bit obsessed with the White Queen at the mo and also reading Bring Up the Bodies, so am half expecting Harry to seize the baby and lock it up in the Tower, now it's knocked him down to 4th in the line of succession

Gin don't worry about traces of protein, I've had that and the midwife just shrugged and said traces aren't a concern. The next time I went back it had gone. Just drink lots of water - more than you think you need to stay hydrated and good exercise for the pelvic floor and incredible shrinking bladder. In exchange for my oodles of tax and NI the government gives me maternity allowance for 39 weeks at a standard rate which I think works out at about £135 a week. It's going to be a shock - I am the main earner so our income will more than halve. One benefit of taking bloody years a long time to conceive is I do have some savings so am planning for the full 39 weeks off. Then we'll just have to reassess and decide what's the best way forward. One suggestion is for me to work part time, Mr A to do his current hours in 4 days instead of 5, and my mum to do a few days of childcare a week. But that may change!

Yep totally sick of the royal baby already. Mostly I would like to know what our politicians are up to while the media's attention is engaged elsewhere . I do feel sorry for William and Kate, I can't imagine that level of scrutiny of your every move though I imagine the many million £££s and the palaces must make up for it a wee bit. I've just finished Bring up the Bodies and feel bereft, I want her to write another - did you read Hilary Mantel's essay on 'royal bodies' some months back? it was horribly misrepresented by the press but I was thinking about it again while wondering if the media were actually going to start speculating about the state of Kate's cervix and whether she did a poo in the birthing pool. I also must watch the last episode of the White Queen before it vanishes from my iplayer app as usually happens with series I've been watching!

I forgot to say hello to Cosmos yesterday . Best of luck with the FET and I'm glad this fred can give you a bit of optimism. It's lovely to see folk from the main fred over here, I like to think of us all as one big gang.

Back to work.... pissing down today though so i don't mind too much.

Congratulations Mellow that's wonderful news (and a lovely perfect little boy too).

Sympathies with the sore nipples! I have to say I found my nipples were sore for the first 4 weeks before suddenly they were okay and now (at week 7 of bfeeding) I literally don't have any pain at all regardless of if he puts in a bad latch occassionally (and he does!).

I just wanted to say that because there is a lot of guff out there about bfeeding not hurting if you're doing it right etc etc, but with both mine, it was done 'right' but it still took 4 weeks for my nipples to stop hurting, friends of mine only had discomfort for a few days so it totally varies from woman to woman, and what I'm trying to say (in a clumsy fashion!) is that even if it takes you a bit longer, your boobs will stop being sore and it does become efortless and painless - I always felt if someone had reassured me about this I'd have felt better the first time, rather than wondering if I'd ever be able to bfeed long term.

Lansinoh was also a life-saver for me and I used it before and after every feed until week 4 when one day I just didn't need it every feed and only used it in the morning and night and a few days later I stopped using it altogether.

art so close to d-day now - Glad you're getting close to end of work time, so you have a cuople of weeks to remove all thoughts of work from your brain and relaxing (as best you can!). Kudos to self-employment, reckon if I was ever self-employed and we relied mainly on my salary, we'd all starve (I'm way too easily distracted!)

Gin - sorry about the slight alarm about traces of protein, I reckon pregnancy is just awash with signs and symptoms that freak you out and then fade away to nothing - like art I've also had 'traces' of protein in my urine every now and again, but the following test was always clear and midwives were never worried (only when it gets up to 2 plus protein they start getting concerned I think!).

And sympathies for the 'lazy cat' stress - our youngest cat (slinky) also freaked us out a few weeks back by not eating for 2 days and sleeping loads - was gearing up to take her to the vet on the monday when suddenly she was back to normal (think they just like to keep us on our toes!)

I'm on board with the 'fed up with the royal baby' saga - surely there is more important things going on in the world that someone (we don't know personally and who has no serious role in public life) has had a baby? And what kind of pressure to bring a baby into the world - I don't envy them at all (must be a nightmare trying to give your baby as 'normal' a life as possible with a million photographers following your every move. On a more selfish point, do you reckon we'll get another public holiday? :-D

teu I can only imagine the heat down your way and how poppy must suffer. Not sure slinky would take to the ice pack so well, although she did inadvertently jump into my sons paddling pool last week, not sure how she got in, I just looked up in time to see her leaping from the pool (puncturing the top ring with her claws) looking incredibly shocked and wet (she's almost a year old, so still a bit 'green' about these things :-D

Our car is on the way out (head gasket is failing) so we drove down to Edinburgh today (80 minute drive) to see a new car that turned out to be pants! We were so sure we were going to buy it too - doh! We're going to restrict our future car buying endeavours to closer to home (save on the petrol!)

Waves to all, especially those updiffed - looking forward to following your pregnancy paths to the end (when more grad babies will arrive - we'll never match the number of 'easy' pregnancies out there, but we can try :-D

ele ha that is what I said at work, we should get another bank holiday :) how long does it take to name a baby and tell the public unless they are still discussing it

gin i am still feeling a bit crap, the last couple of days have been rough and it makes it hard at work, wish I had an office job right now. Glad all went well with the MW appointment

art I wonder how we will manage financially, but I suppose we will find a way to manage

I cannot believe the fuss over the royal baby, they certainly have dragged it out, just get on with it . . .

Congrats mellow. Hope everyone is settling in nicely.

Quick post. Decided at the end of last week that I'd had enough, spoke to the boss and I'm finishing on Friday - 2 days to go then sleep and probably a cold because I've been sneezing all day. Now have splints for my hands at night.
We have a growth scan tomorrow as the midwife couldn't quite work out what the critter was doing. Will be nice to see it again. Hopefully it's just been strange it's got me for a mum after all Can't help have a niggle that they will find something not quite right.
Waves to all.

Hello

I am not sleeping well tonight so thought I would be productive and catch up here instead.

Mellow - congratulations on the birth of your gorgeous baby boy. Now that is a speedy labour and well done mr mellow for recognising the signs. Was the baby early/ late/ on time? Sorry about the sore boobs, I hope that settles very soon.

Art - you have 1 day left off work, that is amazing. What are your plans for the next 2 weeks. Do you see yourself doing books and cofee shops or will you be making lasagnes to freeze? It fascinates me to think how I will spend my time when I start mat leave. Itjust seems so unlike any other time in my life. The government are so mean to self emloyed people. I guess somehow you will stumble through. I try and remember that some aspects of not working make life cheaper I.e, less petrol/ work clothes and good excuses to opt out of expensive social events. But I know the cost of nappies is something else.

Gin - it's wonderful that you heard a good strong heart beat but im sorry about the protein trace. I guess the mw would be worried if there was any reason for concern. So what are your current set of experiences and symptoms? Despite being a healthy 19 weeks, I feek stuck in the first trimester due to mild nausea and indigestion and still no bump ( although I am rounder and I can fel hardness ovr my abdomen). I delivered some training this week to a group. At the end one person who knows I am pregnant asked how I was feeling. The rest of the room's jaws dropped open when I said I was almost 5 months gone. Don't think we are going to find out the gender at the scan. I swing from thinking its a boy, then a girl, then back. So really I have no clue, but most people think im having a girl.

Teu - hoorah for finishing work too. Its great that you get another scan but im sorry if this causes any anxiety. I should imagine its simply a case that the mw's cant feel every detail in some cases so a scan is just a bit of extra info.

Buzz- so glad you are feeling a little better. I know what you mean about wishing for an office job. Jobs life ours are tough in pregnancy and I've noticed a lot leave work early. We had a new starter during my really sick days. Luckily for me, she spent time shadowing me. She knew I was struggling and if she hadnt literally propped me up physically, ran to get me a chair, a drink, my resources and kit etc, I really wouldnt have been able to do my job. I owe her. Does all of this feel real to you now? Will you be moving to the new area?

Ele - that is a shame about your car. Thank you for all those feeding tips, x

Well all is fine here. Heard a good strong heartbeat recently too. I seem to feel lots of movement which is nice despite lack of bumpet. We are looking at nurseries shortly and are likley to put our name down very soon, aaaggghhh. What the hell???!! I am confuzzled by the world of prams and pushchairs and determined not to waste money. I am a little over tired and very slightly stressed due to work stuff. There are some big service structure changes and I find myself in a lead role within this which is very new to me. My eyes are sore and the skin all around them is pink, dry and crinkly and I look aged by 10 years as a result. I am wondering if this is a slight pregnancy thing as I have never had such a thing before. I am very sure it will calm down when i get some time off and a tub of good eye cream.

Hello and waves to all, please can any lurker future grads make sure they come on to here and join the convo whenever they like. X

Hello all :)

Congrats mellow!! A bouncing baby boy - wonderful news . Glad you had a quick and easy birth too. I'll second everything ele has said about breastfeeding. After mini princessss gourmet 7 course Tudor style feast feeds (she's a hungry baby!) my nipples can still feel a bit pounded (she's 5.5 weeks now) but it's not as bad as when we got going and her latch was excellent from the get go! Those people who say it shouldn't hurt are liars! I think they should re-phrase to, your nipples will be tender to start with and it will hurt a bit but it shouldn't be excruciatingly, toe curling bad. This is what I said to all midwives who asked does it hurt and when I phrased it like that they said yup that's normal. Come on NHS a bit of expectation management wouldn't go amiss! She can get lazy late at night / after a cluster feed re: latch (although her 6 hour marathons are calming down now) and after a really bad night in the 2nd week I got a deep crack on one of my nipples. I thought it was a milk blister / blocked duct so squeezed and squeezed and scratched at it making it much worse. Oh the pain! The hv identified it as a crack, gave me some fab advice and sent me to the local breast feeding clinic. I kept feeding on that side, no choice really, but using a different position to take the pressure off the crack, used lots of lansinoh and went topless as much as poss to let the nips dry and putting her on the other boob first as this is when they latch on the hardest as they are at their hungriest. It took 2 weeks for the crack to heal and about a week after identifying what it was and doing all of the above before it stopped being excruciating when she latched on. Now I feel like a dairy cow breastfeeding pro, get them out wherever and can feed in a number of positions! The only issue is she can get a bit frenzied / angry at night and if I'm not concentrating she'll get non nipple bits of boob in her mouth and give me a spectacular love bite next to the nipple! As Ele said it gets easier and is really convenient. We went out for a wedding anniversary lunch this week that lasted 2.5 hours, she was good as gold and fed a few times, had a look around and a play, snoozed and cuddled in between courses. She's still mostly a very happy baby with just a bit of crabbyness in the evening.

At her weigh in yesterday she was 12 6, she's plotting the 98th percentile perfectly. The hv and nursery nurse were that she is just breast fed . I find that kinda attitude weird tbh. Anyway. Sorry for waffling I just think sharing experiences really helps as I get irked by all the nonsense spouted about breastfeeding. Oh and I highly recommend a mamascarf, bravissimo fitting service & panache sophie nursing bra, h&m mama vests and vertbaudet for feeding dresses :)

critter so glad you got to see your lo in London with your parents. It's a really special moment. Hope you had a great trip visiting friends and relatives and stocking up on British treats :)

cosmos very good luck with your fet, crossing everything for you. Thank you for swinging by, lovely to see you here.

All other lurkers, show your faces and say hi :)

Gin sorry about the protein in the wee and your bleed. I definitely relaxed into things later in the 2nd trimester and felt really comfortable at being pregnant in the 3rd. I think Hypnobirthing really helped me in that respect as you have to practice affirmations such as "I trust my body" "i eat right" "i am happy that my baby is finally coming to me". I guess it gave me a positive focus and removed some of the anxiety. Anyway, I hope it's plain sailing from now on.

Ele Hamish sounds gorgeous as ever! Glad it's going well. :) Sorry about the car - that must be really annoying especial taking the boys with you! Happy car shopping closer to home!

Teu I'm sorry to hear about the splints and pain that you are in. I think you have finished work now? I hope you get to rest up and your body starts to heal while you're off.

Sar sorry the nausea continues - you have my sympathies! As for prams, we have a city jogger mini gt and I love it. It's a mid price pram but I preferred it to the more expensive ones (mum and dad bought our pram and told us to pick what we wanted - so I could have had something much more expensive and therefore tried all of them!!) my advice is to go to somewhere where they stock the prams you are interested in and try them out next to each other and think : will this fit in my car? Can I push it one handed? Can I lift it / fold it easily? Is there lots of space underneath? Will I be able to get around in a small shop? Can I get upstairs? Will my oh be happy pushing it re height of handles Etc etc you'll know as soon as you push the one for you. Happy shopping :)

buzz sorry for your rubbish day yesterday but amazing news re your scan.

art happy last day of work :) enjoy your maternity! I recommend having long baths and really enjoying them, eating dinners with a knife and fork and being able to leave the house to do stuff on your own terms and in your own time!!! Mini Princess is gorgeous and wonderful but she won't really let me out of her sight, has a sixth sense for when I'm eating (mummy eating, baby eat too) so Mr P has to chop up my food so i can just eat with a fork and an equally good sixth sense for pooing or needing another feed as we're trying to get out of the door! I'm the master of the 5 min shower, one handed food shovel and grabbing of stuff, lightening nappy change and getting in pram before she's realised what's happening!. She's asleep in my lap right now looking beautiful but I really need the loo and breakfast and I know when I put her in her basket she'll wake up and I'll have to listen to the mummy alarm whilst I'm trying to poo!! Re : hospital bag I recommend more maternity pads (ultra thin ones - boots or tesco ones were equally good) than you would think - i couldn't believe how many I got through. And lots of spare dark pj bottoms or nighties & knickers. I bled all over the bed just as all of the visitors including pil's rocked up and sat trying to hide it. Not nice. I was only in one night and I took in way too much stuff but a couple of spare pairs of bottoms would have been good. My food bag was a god send as we're luxury mini toiletries and my own nice towels for getting clean afterwards - felt like a lovely treat. Saying that, everyone rallied round, mum bought in bigger clothes for the baby (mini P was too big for some stuff I had!) and Mr P got things for the following day from home, I left a spare bag ready for him to grab. Also, phone charger and light reading trash. I felt really odd when visiting hours finished (9pm) and I was left alone in a cubicle with baby! She was under obvs and had checks at 10.30 and 4.30 but they checked on me at midnight too and told me off for not feeding her enough even though she was asleep and I was just settling myself having not slept for 3 nights, having just given birth after 56 hours of labour and being very tired! So I had to wake her, feed her and settle her and then get her ready for the check at 4.30. I was so glad for MN, music on my phone, posh snacks and heat magazine!!

Right we're off for our 6 week sign off soon and I need to get us both ready!

Happy Friday all :)
Xxx

art pleased I'm not the only one obsessed with historical fiction at the mo! How are you doing this week? Have you finally finished work? It's so near, yay!! Your childcare plan sounds sensible. I'm the main earner too (although don't really earn that much!), so I'm hoping to be able to do 5 days in 4 or work from home part of a day per week. Unfortunately neither set of parents are nearby so can't help up. I am still in shock at the cost of childcare on top of the ivf costs, grrr

Thanks to you and ele for letting me know protein traces aren't nec something to worry about. That made me feel a lot happier that you'd had them and are ok!

ele hope all is still well with you and mini E. You sound so happy and sorted, which is just lovely. Have you managed to source a car yet?

teu hurrah for finishing work. Was your scan ok?

sar I hope you're feeling better now, I am except for the tiredness, mostly caused by not being able to get to sleep after my early hours wee! My bump is rather huge. I'm def carrying all at the front! I got a bit paranoid and googled bump 20 weeks pics and was relieved to see I'm somewhere in the middle ignoring the fact this is my first so I shouldn't be so big. I too am feeling lots of definite movement, which I love and find reassuring.

Funny about the training session, as I ran one last week and got v cross when some woman said to me afterwards when moaning about it, I know you're pregnant but you could have stood up to do it. I hadn't mentioned the pregnancy at all (I could have just been fat!) and was furious she brought it up in a work context.

princess so pleased to hear all is going so well with mini P. I found your BF experiences really interesting to read. I now imagine mini P in a Henry Viii style hat, guzzling down her milk . I'm considering hypnobirthing but not sure it's for me. Suspect I'll be screaming for drugs! Interestingly my mum was a hypno guinea pig when having my bro in the early 80s. She had one to one lessons on the NHS and then had my 9lb10 brother with no pain killers at all, much like you and mini P. I'm hoping to start some pregnancy yoga classes led by a doula (sp?), so will hopefully have a taste and see if it's the type of thing that may help.

Waves to buzz and critter and everyone else.

I'm feeling a bit less anxious this week think the heat was sending me mad, although nervous about next weeks scan. Am kinda counting down the weeks until the baby would be viable! I think all the movements I can feel helps me to feel less worried.

sar are you finding our the gender? I am and cannot wait so i can buy it stuff I've been a bit obsessed with trying to work out what it is... It's HB was 160 bpm which may indicate a girl but I'm convinced it's a boy!

We've not really thought about nurseries. It's a bit tricky as we want to move next year, so not sure where we'll be when I return to work. Do you have to pay a deposit to go on a waiting list?!

Will stop waffling on now... Hope you are all having good weeks xx

Hello hello!

mellow huge congratulations and wow at the quick labour. I hope you are snuggled up with your little chap and that the breastfeeding has gotten easier. He sounds absolutely gorgeous, how lovely!

buzzy how are you doing? How's the nausea? Mine is getting better, just a few dry retches a day now (when I brush my teeth, think about taking a vitamin, or have to change the smelly bin bag) at 15 weeks. I hope by next week I'll have seen it off.

sar glad I am not the only one with a hairy belly. Are you going to find out the sex at your scan? I am dying to know, but I think I'm going to hold out and wait until it arrives. It would make buying clothes and thinking of names easier though!

Gin I'm glad you're feeling better. I too have a bump already (well, more of a pot belly which has just expanded exponentially) at 15 weeks and have put on about 4 pounds. How rude of the woman at your work to speak to you about your pregnancy that you mentioned on the other thread. I would be fuming. What a cheek! I am excited for your scan too, aren't you and sar on the same day?

princess I LOVED the tale of little Tudor miniprincess, hilarious! It sounds like you're managing amazingly - I am going to have to hit you up for lots of tips.

teu hope you're getting some rest on your mat leave now.

art have you finished yet? I loved Bring up the Bodies too. She is kind of my hero, actually - such an interesting and complex woman. Hope you're managing to get everything squared away and settling in ready for your new little arrival.

All well here, nothing exciting to report really. Going to try to find out what my mat leave allowance is this week - I think the best I can hope for is 20 weeks, which is much better than most US women, but I do wish we were still in the UK so I could take the full year. gin I think you said you were planning to go back and work 4 days or do a day from home? I think I'm going to do similar - one or two days from home but full-time. I'd rather do a year or two of part time, but we need the money.

Hello everyone - how are you all doing?

Had a busy week so not been online much. We took Hamish to his first 'show' at the Edinburgh Fringe on saturday (the show wasn't for him, but for big brother) and we all survived (although had to take him out early as he had a poohy nappy, so me and Mr E swapped places so we each got to watch half the show each. Love getting to the Fringe - made me feel all grown up (even if it was a kids show we were seeing and not some up and coming comedian!)

We also fitted in a day at the races last week - took our suntent (to protect Hamish from the elements) and it worked out really well - the tent also provided a bit of privacy for bfeeding which was a bonus - no winners, but a good family day out (was a belated fathers day event for my dad).

Oh and we got a new car (off gumtree!) so, we'll see how that goes!

Critter sorry you only get 20 weeks maternity, although as you say, for the States, that is pretty good (but can imagine how gutting it is when you hear folk (like me) talk about having a year off, at least if you're working from home a few days you can be close to your baby so it might not seem so bad?

art - are you getting to that scary point where you're thinking 'this baby could arrive at any time' or are you in denial now the end is near :-D Can't wait to hear about baby A's arrival!

mellow hope you're too busy snuggling your little bundle to respond to this post - but if you're not, hope everything is goign well with you and baby mellow.

Gin - when is your scan? Is it soon or does it still seem an eternity away? Hope your bearing up well with the waiting (always wanted to get that first scan out of the way!)

princess sounds like little miss p is thriving! my little bundle has now climbed up to the 91st percentile - he feels it too!!

ok - need to go, baby calls, but will finish post later!!!

Ele - well done on the outing.glad you got the car sorted.

Well we had our scan today at 20.6 weeks. All is great with the baby and its measurements. The placenta is anterior but I dont think that is a big deal. We didn't find out the gender but it was lovely to see bubs on the big screen once more. It seems to like stroking its face.

My bump has literally arrived in these last 3 days, although it is still small and I look about 3 months pregnant. I have gained a ton of stretch marks overnight grrr but worse is my nausea and vomiting is back with avengance. Nevet mind, its all totally worth it.

Gin I have been thinking of you today too.

sarlat congratulations on a good scan (it's great seeing them at 20 weeks isn't it? Totally reminds you that there is in fact a baby in your tummy and you're not just imagining it all.

Bad luck on the return of the nausea and vomiting :-( hopefully it will just be a little blip - I'm sure princesses nausea went away then came back again (mines just stayed until about wk 25, but was week 30 before I felt good)

Is gins scan today too? Looking forward to more scan news - will run now but will be back!

Hurrah sar for a good scan and the bump appearing! It's a bit magical seeing the little baby on screen isn't it? Sorry to hear the MS is back. Mine's mostly gone but have the odd time when i feel sick. It's more the tiredness I'm finding hard now.

ele I'm v impressed you took Hamish to the Fringe. You must surely be the coolest parents on the block?! Hurrah for a new car and day trips.

critter how are you doing? 20 weeks is a shocking allowance for mat leave! Yes I'm going to do just 4 days in the office but it'll be my full time job, so I'll be doing some extra hours and working from home to make up the time. I plan to have about 10 months off, I think. We can't afford any longer!

Well we had our 20 week scan yesterday (at 21+4) and we're team PINK . I was convinced the baby was a boy and that I had no preference, but was just so thrilled to find out. I sobbed like a mad woman in the scan room. It's made it all feel a bit more real for Mr G and me and we had some nice conversations last night about our daughter. I am v excited.

The baby is measuring bang on average, but they did spot a couple of things with me that may cause problems in later pregnancy. Did everyone else have their uterine artery blood flow resistance measured? Apparently mine is high meaning I have a slightly higher chance of a small baby, or high blood pressure. I have a growth scan booked in 6 weeks time and they will make sure the baby is delivered before 41 weeks. I am trying not to menkul but failing a bit. The info says that 1 in 20 have this and for most there are no problems at all. Must try to remember this...

The other thing they saw was that one of my fibroids has grown a bit and is near the cervix. It's not near the placenta, so hopefully not too much of an issue unless it blocks the cervix or gets humongous and stops the baby growing.

I think I'll worry about these things for a few days and then feel ok about it (my usual pattern). I guess at least the extra scans mean I get to see ginster more often.

Hope everyone else is ok x

gin just wanted to say that I also had the same issue with uterine arterial flow, so went back at week 28 for another scan and it had resolved itself and was back to normal. I'm sure you've read up on it, but they said to me at the time that while the arteries normally open up by week 17, in some women it can take a bit longer, maybe week 23 or so, so having 'notching' at this point doesn't necessarily mean there is anything wrong, it's just something they watch for as it can be linked with high blood pressure.

I had pre-eclampsia with my first pregnancy and was pretty sure the notching would have stayed and would be destined for high BP this time, but it was all fine.

Just thought I'd give you a positive outcome story so you can try and step away from the mentalling!

Worse case scenario, you'll just get lots more scans and monitoring and that's not a bad thing, that means your baby girl will be well looked after whilst in utero - you're in good hands.

I have to say, I did feel cool hanging out in the underbelly bar (even though we were drinking fanta and I was bfeeding hamish) there's always a good buzz at the Fringe that makes you feel you could walk in anywhere and see anything (however, for us it was Captain Flinn and the Pirate Dinosaurs - so cutting edge... :-D

Thank you ele. You have made me feel soooo much better! This is why I bloody love mumsnet! I didn't know it could resolve itself, so will be keeping my fingers crossed. There weren't any notches yet, just high resistance. Pre- eclampsia terrifies me, but you obviously got through it ok and were brave enough 2 have another baby! at Captain Finn and Pirate Dinosaurs. Sounds ace.

eleth it's absolutely brilliant that you've been out and about with little H, how lovely! I love the Fringe, wish I could go this year... I hope you've had nice weather for it. And a day at the races sounds fab too - well done on getting the car, that must be a weight off your mind.

sar how lovely to have the scan - I can't wait for my 20 weeks one - which won't be for a while as I think I am 4-5 weeks behind you and gin. So are you going to wait to find out the sex? I think we are too, although I am LONGING to find out and do think it would make things feel more real. Sorry that you're still feeling so rough, it doesn't seem fair after everything you went through to get here. Did I see on the other thread that you now have a bump? Brilliant! I am still in the looking like I ate too many pies stage, looking forward to a proper pregnancy bump!

gin oh a little girl, how absolutely gorgeous! Ah, how wonderful. A mini-gin! If it was me I'd be going crazy with the girly pink decorations now, you should go to John Lewis and go wild in the baby clothes department - they have THE most adorable tiny party frocks and sundresses which will be perfect for when mini-gin is six months old and at that beautiful chubby stage. Aw, I am SO happy for you.

The mat leave thing is ok - as eleth says, 20 weeks is really good for the States where a lot of people only get 6 weeks or less paid. So I am lucky in comparison to many of the women I know here (although not many of my friends my age here have babies, weirdly - which was a good thing while TTC - it's my UK pals who all have been sprogging). I need to go and chat to the benefits lady at work to find out exactly what I'm entitled to - I would love to take longer, but don't think we can afford to take much unpaid leave (and my boss probably wouldn't hold my job open for me).

buzz how are you doing?

I guess it's art and teu next? Hope our other ladies with newborns are settling in well and getting some sleep, mellow and princess.

I had my 16 week check up yesterday and got to listen to the baby's heartbeat - such a magical sound. The midwife said he/she was moving around a lot, which was really cute. Work has been quite stressful recently (if I wasn't pregnant I would be thinking about looking for a new job) so it was really nice to take my mind off it and just focus on how awesome it is that I have this long-awaited little person in there doing somersaults. Happy days.

ele you had nausea until 25 weeks faints in horror mine has come back with a vengeance I'm also struggling with breathing as supposedly everything is crushing my diaphragm, no shit sherlock I cannot walk more than a 100 or so metres without feeling breathless so far this pregnancy has been crap, I was hoping around now I'd have this so called pregnancy glow

critter yay to hearing the babies heartbeat, sorry about work but that won't be your problem for much longer, alot of my friends haven't sprogged and they are late 30's early 40's and those that have live far away.

sar I'm glad all was well at your scan, i am impressed that you didn't find out what you were having, Barry and I can't wait to find out, not that it matters, I can sympathise on the sickness, I'm going to see my GP with a couple of drugs I would like to try

ele how hip is your baby already going to the fringe

art I hope you have had some time to rest

gin yay to team pink, it does make it feel more real, and half way there

teu ants you say, Kayla is still chief fly catcher, but only the big fat juicy ones

Well I had a private scan yesterday, all looked well, minibee was kicking the life out of my bladder, perhaps a future All Black in the making

waves to all the new mums

I had a quick look in Mothercare and they had these little all in ones that said 'prince/princess in waiting'

sarlat Sorry you are feeling yuck again. Good about the scan though. You may have a smaller bump all the way through because baby will have to hide behind the placenta. As you say, anterior isn't a problem.
buzzy Sorry you are suffering too, but it is all part of gaining the dream. It won't matter in a few months. I was horrified at how unfit I was when we were on hols at New Year, didn't appreciate at the time it was critter related I'm sticking to that explanation I've been stunned by how difficult getting around can be, but it makes sense when you remember that your heart is shifting 40% more blood.
Poppy likes fat flies and spiders too. Yay for the future AB.
ele glad you got the car sorted and managed an outing to to the Fringe. All I remember of the Fringe was how horrendous it made getting anything done for the whole of August.
Gin Team pink, how exciting! And half way there. As Ele says you'll probably get lots more monitoring etc for the other stuff. It was really cool to see critter on the scan the other week. Drinking away and practicing it's breathing so all good.
Critter Is that 20wks all up? I thought our 14wks paid was not great, but at least I have the option of another 38 unpaid. MrTeu only gets 2wks unpaid, better than nothing though. Isn't it exciting hearing the heartbeat?!
AFM due on Tuesday 13th. Lots of wriggling this weekend, 3/5ths engaged, lots of funny 'normal' end of term symptoms. A friend (who's had 3 and is cooking No.4) reckons it won't be long. MrTeu is getting out of delegating lots of stuff at work with "but I can't guarantee my availability". I think he is somewhat relieved. I've started pinching his shirts because nothing else really fits any more. Had a massive anxious depressive breakdown last week, only one for the whole pregnancy so pretty good. Felt much better the next day and still feeling pretty sunny. Feel we are on Pause awaiting the Engage command.
Waves to all the bundles and mums.

teu good luck - wow, you're so close! It sounds like everything's going well. I am sure your hormones are completely haywire right now so meltdowns would be understandable, you've had a rough ride with family being so far away. But you sound like you're managing brilliantly. Really really good luck for the birth and getting to meet your little critter! I'll be thinking of you and MrTeu and sending you lots of positive wishes this week - and looking forward to hearing about a mini-Teu!

On the mat leave front - I am lucky in that my employer that will give me 14 weeks fully paid of mat leave (pretty much unheard of in the US). I also get 6 weeks of 'short term disability leave' at 70%, I think, bringing it up to 20 weeks - but my job won't be protected if I take more than that unpaid. There's a law in the US that you can take 12 weeks - unpaid - for a family medical emergency, which covers maternity, but other than that, there's no legal job protection or requirement to offer any paid maternity leave at all. And in fact, the law about the unpaid 12 weeks only applies if you've been in the job a year and your company has more than a certain number of employees. A lot of women save up their paid vacation days and their paid sick leave and use that, but it's fairly standard for women here to be back at work 6 to 8 weeks after having a baby.

buzz sorry you're having an uncertain time with Barry's work - I hope it works out. Hope you're feeling better nausea-wise, those little baby t-shirts sound eyebrow-raising indeed!

All well here, lovely weekend with MrC spent pottering about. Still dry retching every now and again, but not nearly as bad as it was - sar I do hope you are feeling a little better and that the nausea goes away soon - and that your DH feels better too.

Glad you got to hear the heartbeat critter it is magical isn't it? And sorry the job is sh*t just now, hopefully you can get something better once baby critter has arrived.

buzzy sorry for depressing you with tales of nausea (always try not to do that to people!) I was just very unlucky, it's not that common and I always suffered from travel sickness as a child so I think that maybe I was always destined to suffer from morning sickness (doubt there is a correlation but it makes sense to me!) First time round though I did find it much easier to cope with than this time.

Mainly because I was just so pleased to be pregnant after ttc-ing for 3 years and having the failed IVF, I'd went down the 'it's never going to happen' route of thinking, to the extent of having conversations with Mr E about him going off and finding someone else if he wants kids, and planning a future of lots of holidays and pets as an alternative.

So, when I felt nauseas for all it was horrendous, it felt bearable and Mr E could run about after me all the time, so it was okay. This time, having to look after a 3 year old a the same time, nearly killed me. However, for the vast majority of women it doesn't last anywhere near that long or as bad so hopefully you'll be fine.

Sympathies with the breathlessness though, had that worse this time round and combined with the groin pain was waddling like a duck at 5 months (last time I went and hiked a few minor hills when I was 7 months pregnant!)

I wish my cats only caught big black flies - sadly, I've had to pick up many corpses this year (made the mistake of leaving the patio doors open last week and came downstairs to find a savaged dead bird in the middle of my rug - yukky is not the word!)

Gin glad I helped you feel a bit better (bloody scary this pregnancy business isn't it?)

Teu sounds like you're getting ready to pop (how cool is that?) Not heard anything from Art in a while - do we think she's already getting on with the job of delivering baby A :-)

Hamish is doing really well and has taken to having long naps (very unlike my first son who seemed to resent napping!) Anyway, means that yesterday I actually had time to make chocolate and banana bread (I'm eating a slice now - its yummy!)

Hope everyone is keeping well and I look forward to some birth announcements soon :-)

Hello all
Thanks for the nipple support, baby mellow is 4 weeks old tomorrow and we are professional breast feeders, even feeding while walking in Hyde park yesterday! Not so professional sleepers.... DH is away and I'm surrounded by white noise, hoping my squirming sleep resistant son will settle- he is not a sleeper! Not sure if he is having his weekly growth spurt, but has hardly slept today for e feeding and is reluctant to sleep now! But, heis gaining weight beautifully so can't complain!
He is gorgeous, and cuddles are lovely. But a few hours sleep is needed for both of our sanity...
Teu- sounds like you are close, v exciting!
Congrats on mini gin girl, we loved knowing the sex beforehand
Ele v impressed and jealous of you being at fringe. We try to do something every day, but nothing that adventurous!
Lovely lurking and hearing news, sorry for not giving more updates!

mellow so great to hear from you, and totally impressed at bfeeding while walking - how do you do that? I was amazed at my friend once bfeeding her child while walking in the kitchen, I kept watching thinking -how is she doing that? That's professional bfeeding right enough (did you attend a special class?? :-D

As for sleep - it's over-rated, babies view sleep as a waste of our time, so they try and protect us by keeping us awake....

I'm very lucky, Hamish seems to like sleep, whereas my eldest fought it all the time and would only nap on the boob or whilst being pushed in the pram (I lost so much weight in the first 4 months when he was born as he had colic so needed carrying all the time at night until he settled, and he wouldn't nap, so would need to take brisk 90 minute walks during the day to get him to sleep - and of course, I'd arrive home sweaty and knackered as he awoke full of energy and refreshed...)

It'll get better (or worse - one of the two :-D

Glad he's doing well and gainig weight though - makes it all worthwhile!
Sending your little one some napping thoughts (let me know if it works!)

Hi all

Just a quick update with my news. Our baby girl was born Sunday evening, 6lb 12oz, and we are smitten. It was by no means the labour I had hoped for as I had to be induced because my waters had broken but still no contractions 36 hours later, but we both came through safe and well. She is a little poppet and far too small for all the new baby clothes we have so looks quite comical - midwife had told me to expect about 7.5 - 8lb so she is a lot smaller than anticipated!

She is currently napping on my lap and will probably want changing soon judging by the expressions she's pulling so I need to go - sorry for lack of namechecking but just wanted to let you know about the new Mini 10+er. i will pop back later with the full lowdown and a proper post. Lovely to hear everyone is doing so well - the down sides of pregnancy are all worth it in the end!

Lots of un-MN love to everyone xx

art Congrats on your beautiful baby girl :)

art Congratulations! How lovely.

Mini Teu has dropped another notch and shifted more to the centre. Good baby, optimal positioning. Mixed apprehension of please let it happen soon because my stomach is so sore and I feel yucky, and not ready to face facts.

waves to all. Hope you're all keeping well.