December 2011: We've got big bumps and we cannot lie (down comfortably)

[LittleMissFlustered]

:o

Shake those bumps ladies.

And squeeeeeeeze

Tyel The lack of sex drive from your Dp's side might just be a reflection on how he is feeling about himself... not just about you being preggo. DH and I were having some ups and downs but it stemmed from his own feelings about becoming a dad, being stressed about being the "provider", and all sorts of unreasonable fears. And while, it is frustrating when your partner doesn't want to get it on and you do... at least it is good to know that it isn't you it is him and it is something that HE needs to work on. And till he is ready... there is no good reason why you can't help yourself

Athel I reckon you are right... it is either a bum or the hips up there! When will the baby DROP!!!

Mmm Tell us more about your athletic 6'3" brother

Plu Small is good. My niece was 5.8 and my sister said she just slid out... and now she is a tall and healthy toddler!

Something rich & dark for me, something lighter for DD. DP won't eat fruit cake because he's odd lol.

thanks Honey

CONGRATULATIONS SEVEN I can't believe that I totally missed that when I put up my last post!!!

Thanks Darcies I am trying to chill. My head is so bad, it should be a good lesson to me not to get so stressed out in future, as this is the consequence. I still feel like bawling but not giving in.

Welcome Eva Rose! Such wonderful news Seven, well done you. Hope you are enjoying new cuddles and get home soon

Are we going to have a new states thread with baby info on?

Sorry the clementines are no good for you, msbuggywinkle. Are the DDs keen?

mopsy, plenty of mothers have lots of stress, but we can all hope that the hormones promoted by the onset of labour and of bonding give us a fresh start. That's what I'm hoping for, anyway, after all the shouting and getting stressed and cross I've done during this pregnancy!

Earwigwam, you're scaring me with this talk of 3 hour labour! When you say "labour", though, what do you mean? 3 hours from start of irregular contractions or from regular contractions and dilation? This all sounds a tighter and more horribly stressful rush than I had already feared!

My mum and sister had horribly long labours - nearing or passing the 24hr mark. (obviously including the first stage contractions, but MWs agreed they had particularly rough times) So I'm not expecting anything less! Especially as this baby is expected to be large.

Welcome to Eva Rose, and congratulations to seven and Mr seven:) Excellent work all round

Who's next for the pompoms then?

I'm currently giving the cat carrier a de-germing as it lives in the shed. Last thing I need to do is introduce an infection to a leaking cat >_< All three cats are giving me a wide berth, none of them like going in the box:o Appointment in a couple of hours so have just got time to get it clean and then convince the damn cat he needs to go in it. I suspect this is going to cost me lots of placatory tuna tonight.

Thanks, OiMissus, that's actually a bit reassuring! It sounds stupid, I know, but what with the stress of getting care for DS and getting to the hospital on time, I feel a prolonged labour might not be so bad! For what it's worth, I had a very long labour with DS (most of a day), but it was uncomfortable, rather than painful, so apart from the tearing at the end (which wouldn't have been so bad had they stitched me properly - and the point of going to this hospital is that they will stitch well), it's not the worst option, and not something to Fear Above All Else. Hope that reassured you a bit. You sound as though you've done a lot of physical exercise and preparation, so have done the most you can for your chances of success!

LittleMiss, hope you avoid any scratches! You are being a good mother to that poor cat.

Congratulations Seven and Eva Rose, that's fantastic news!

Fusam, you were asking about the self-administered injections of anti-clotting stuff after a c-section. I was a bit squeamish about the idea after ds was born, but actually it was dead easy. At the moment, my bump feels quite solid, but after the baby is born, there will be rolls of skin/fat on my tummy and the injection just goes into there so it doesn't hurt. I think it's more the idea of them, rather than the injections themselves which seems bad.

MrsBuggy - I second the pasta and cheese sauce cravings, although mine at the moment is with sweetcorn rather than broccoli.

Am having a relaxing day at home today - it's too wet to go out, none of my coats actually fit around the bump and I'm on crutches for spd so can't use an umbrella either - oh well, how dreadful, having to spend the day on the sofa! . I've been wrapping presents as well - have got most of Christmas sorted, but DS has a couple of parties coming up, and I keep finding tat I don't need extra Christmassy stuff to order on the web. Have also ordered DS a letter from Father Christmas from the NSPCC website - they also do a 'baby's first Christmas' letter as well, but I'll have to leave ordering that one until we have a name! I'll be 38 weeks tomorrow, so hopefully not long to wait!

Congratulations Seven!! Welcome Eva Rose!

Good luck at the vets today LittleMiss.
Hope you feel better sooon mopsy.
Another one having a relaxing day here! 'Period' pains are still here & starting to irritate, either turn into labour pains or piss off! Gah!!
Going to take a leaf out of SoTired's book and start wrapping presents today!

When DH got home last night after all my angst-ridden complaints on this thread I burst into tears and we had a long chat which I will write about later, still digesting - but you guys all helped me lots, thanks again.

So when I said I was making my final final purchases the other day, clearly I forgot about today's final final final purchases - as they are nice to have but non-essential I used the JL vouchers my work got me as a leaving gift. Maxi-cosi adaptors for the buggy, a hot water bottle for labour (because for some reason I cannot find one anywhere with a cover that's not cheap and scratchy) and a cheapo iphone dock so it can double as a white noise machine next to the cot (and I can use it in labour to play hypnobirthing stuff if I end up anywhere other than the living room). AWCH I ended up getting the philips fidelio iphone dock after perusal of the links you provided up-thread - they have a new model that's only £40, is small enough to fit on the bedside table and works for up to 10 hours off batteries if I want to labour in the bathroom.

Had MW appt this morning at nearly 39 weeks - she had a student with her which was really interesting as everything was explained in detail! Baby is fully engaged, head right down, LOT(?) so whatever I've been doing positioning wise is working, hurrah! Also the baby is so big and heartbeat is so strong they can hear it just using a sort of plastic hearing trumpet, they don't even need to use the machine (though they did use that too to let me hear the heartbeat as well). So now it's just a waiting game! She booked me in for an appointment and sweep on the 6th of Dec when I will be 40+3 which was rather dispiriting...seems so far away...

Yep plu I live in SW London, a bit along from Hampton Court. So Reading involves an hours drive. Mind you, DH commutes in and that's 75 mins to Paddington, so if he's at work when things kick off it will be interesting...

Got back from shops and am knackered! So going to sit down with a cup of raspberry leaf and sew a new cover for my maternity beanbag pillow, it's clean now but when Widget arrives I'll be using it as a BF pillow and it needs a removable washable cover!!!

Glad you mentioned a sweep tyel. this is a kind of soft induction, right? I have another growth scan and consultant appt on Thursday, when I'll be 38+6, and am thinking of asking them to do a sweep then. But I don't know much about them.

Wow... I am only 36 + 2 so still feel very very far away! I spent all of last night crawling around on my hands and knees (in hope that it moves baby is in good position)! Been drinking rasberry leaf tea, popping evening primrose oil (although not inserting it!). My next 3 appointments are with the GP not the midwife... and I am really hoping that labour kicks off before my 40 week appointment.

WHEN, WHEN, WHEN???????

Thanks cheep & SoTired about the info on the injections, the way you describe them makes it seem not too bad.

Today I should really be hard at work but I am too busy spending my hard earned dosh on the Amazon black friday sales. So far christmas presents are nearly sorted for everyone. Not much baby stuff on sale so far but apparently they are releasing some items later on today.

Question on movements

does anyone know if you feel them less with a posterior baby? I cant remember feeling him much yesterday (but i was walking all day), today i have felt 3... but very faint.

Feel silly for ringing hospital as i saw the mw yesterday morning

kri5ty have you tried the usual stuff to get baby moving i.e. sugary food/drinks, cold water, etc? If you have I would just ring the hospital, that's what they are there for.

I had a small coke, then about 10 mins later i felt a very faint wriggle, nothing compared to normal though... i may try a bath and see if that gets him moving!!

Kri5sty - don't feel silly ringing or going in for monitoring, things can change quickly so they rely on us to know if things feel right. No big deal, and the midwife who saw me a few weeks ago stressed that I must come back if I felt things weren't right despite everything being fine that time.

Plu - didn't mean to put the wind up you, but I am talking about people who woke up with pains and had babies very soon after. Maybe there were some earlier niggles they slept through but I'm trying to plan for not having much notice.

Oi the midwife explained that a sweep would mean basically her running a finger round the cervix just to loosen things up and detach the membranes. Apparently it's pretty good at getting things going naturally if you're nearly there anyway, and can be uncomfortable but isn't painful (famous last words?) They'll do one at 40 weeks, and then two more before 42 weeks, at which point they will recommend artificial induction with syntocin (though I don't have to accept it if I don't want to and there are no medical complications).

aethel you must be no more than a few miles from me...

Kri5ty get things checked out - it will set your mind at rest if nothing else and m/ws expect it.

Mopsy v sorry to hear you are so stressed with work. Hope you've been able to get some rest today.

Honey I batch cooked loads over the weekend and had the same problem with standing for long periods of time. In the end, I sat down to do a lot of the prep. However, I discovered that it's standing still is the problem. If I walk, I'm okay. I'm trying to walk every day at the mo - think it helps a bit with sleep and am naively hoping that staying active will encourage an earlier labour!

oi: if you really want to know what a sweep is...!!

Usually a midwife will only do a sweep at term or later (some won't do them til 41 weeks). Most GPs don't do them as they aren't doing them often enough to keep skilled (and it is a halfway house between antenatal care, which GPs do, and actual deliveries, which most GPs don't do.)

The actual procedure is simple: midwifey lies you down, performs a pv (internal exam with 1 or 2 fingers). She finds your cervix (and will estimate its size, usually 1 or 2cm if you're not labouring). She then uses her finger to stretch the cervix, like running your finger around the inside rim of a milk bottle. That's the "sweep" bit. It stimulates the cervix, you may bleed afterwards a little, and get period pains or BHs. 50% of mums go into labour during the 48 hrs after a sweep (though some would have done so anyway!)

I had one with DD2 (at term plus 3) and had her at term plus 7....