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

[LittleMissFlustered]

:o

Shake those bumps ladies.

And squeeeeeeeze

"Any guesses on when the next thread baby will arrive? My guess is before Monday night."
seven, you're really scaring me!

Sorry, KateM, I didn't mean to make you feel bad. However, if he really is in the middle of so much work, if your baby were to come now, there would be so much still in his hands, so if he can delegate at all, I really hope he will! It reminds me of another thread running at the moment: A partner laying out what he does and saying he doesn't understand why his wife feels like a married single mother. Someone has linked to a very interesting discussion about the "psychic burden" of managing a family, which means that even if the partners are physically doing 50-50, one person is still planning, thinking ahead, checking, writing lists.... I guess that's what your DH has at work at the moment! kri5ty, it sounds as though you are suffering from that psychic burden as well - hope you manage to close your eyes to everything that "needs doing"!

Morning all, hope all is well Jo, sorry to hear about stressed out, over-worked DPs, Kristy put your feet up and switch on Loose Women. darcies enjoy that massage - when it comes! cheep - sorry you're having a rough time. Like you, I'd be wary of kicking up a fuss and aim for a quiet life, but it's wrong for this woman to impinge on your life like this. I have no experience whatsoever with these things, so I'll bow to others' ideas. Loved plu's SMART idea.
I am 38 weeks today!!! I am full term!! Hurrah! We made it so far! I'd like to think GingerBaby will make an appearance very soon but we'll see.
The Christmas Market has opened on Manchester, and am thinking of going tomorrow to celebrate our first wedding anniversary with a big sausage (oo-err missus!) and a Gluhwein. Maybe Gluhwein will get things started. or the sausage.
Got a MW appt this morning. Then got to find a card and some ideas for our Paper Anniversary. Was plannig on just writing a lovely letter to DH about our fabulous first year, but is it enough? (plus baby of course!)
Have a great day everyone! It's Friday!!! Yippee!

Oi Hope you enjoy the market. We are really looking forward to the Victorian Christmas Market down in Gunwharf Quays Portsmouth :) plus DD can take some info from it for her history homework.

Morning. The boy is off school with tummy grumbles today, so he's sat listening to his phonics cd while we wait to go to the doctors for his jab.

I slept dreadfully
Ast night so am off for a le down:)

Hope you all have a good day.

Morning all - I'm a little frustrated because I'm pretty sure when I woke up this morning the baby is back to back. I could feel little knobbly bits on the front of my bump and that must be hands and feet, surely. I know that can make labour longer and more painful and at 38 weeks I want it to be the other way round, right? I thought I was doing really well sitting up and forward, doing circles on the birth ball and kneeling and leaning on the side of the bed or sofa...but it does make my knees hurt after a while so I probably haven't been doing it for long enough to turn the baby round I just don't want to do anything which might make my baby flip to breach as I'm pretty sure it's still head down.

Anyway Honey what are you planning to do re: natural induction?

Also I have been sent by a lovely auntie of DH's a 100ml bottle of witch hazel, and three essential oils: tea tree, clary sage and lavender. No idea what I'm supposed to do with all of them besides putting tea tree in when washing cloth nappies...so I shall hie myself to google.

tyel to get baby to go LOA, short inversions (30 seconds) are good and won't flip baby to breech, sitting backwards on a dining chair, no flopping on the sofa! Although as this is a number 2 baby you can turn them in labour a lot of the time, having had oddly positioned babies before though, it doesn't necessarily mean long or painful labours, DD1 was 7hrs, DD2 was just 4.

Tea tree and lavender are good for healing, they are the only oils you can use neat and tea tree is good straight on the maternity pads, both a good in the bath. Lavender also good for sleep, either in a burner or a few drops on your pillow. Clary sage is supposed to intensify contractions, a friend swears that it re-started her stalled labour, but for me it was great sniffed from tissues during labour, I found it made me feel grounded during contractions which was great.

Witch hazel is also great for healing, works well on nappy rash as well as on sore fanjos!

Forgot to mention cat-cow (yoga) for getting a posterior baby to turn too!

Ladies, I'm not having a good week. Gave in and went to hospital yesterday as LO wasn't moving around much. Bit scary but had some monitoring and all OK, I think maybe baby had moved to a funny position.

Just been to see MW this morning who thinks I'm now measuring small and coupled with reduced movement yesterday is sending me for a scan. Just sitting by the phone waiting for her to call. Trying to be calm but v worried now. What would be the reason for measuring small? Am resisting the lure of Google, don't want to scare self further.

Sorry for slightly panicked post, am probably just being silly.

Sorry plu I didn't mean to scare anyone! I just can't believe it's over halfway through November and we've only had one baby so far. Every time I check the thread I expect someone to come on and say they're in labour.

pully do not google! Chances are everything will be fine, although its good your MW is sending you for a scan to check. How many weeks are you now, if you're above 36 if there is a problem they may decide to induce so I'd take a hospital bag just in case. Hope everything goes ok x

Morning Tyel :) I was planning on going for long walks & booking some acupressure or reflexology + lots of sex if DP is willing

I researched essential oils last week & am waiting for my delivery of oils to arrive any day now. I've ordered 2 of those so I have notes...Clary Sage should be used in labour (or when due), it has inducing properties & can be used with a carrier oil for a back massage or on a warm compress on your back or lower abdomen. Also can be inhaled deeply during surges (good with rose oil), instead of gas & air. It's supposed to give stronger, more purposeful contractions. Lavender also stimulates labour. Other properties include; pain relief, muscle relaxation, antibacterial, antiseptic, antiviral, antidepressant. Use for backaches, headaches, muscle & joint pain, insomnia & colds. I think someone on here mentioned putting Tea Tree in a bath after birth because of antibacterial properties?

If you're having a water birth & want to add oils to the water make sure you dilute them as some neat oils can burn LO's eyes...milk is recommended but personally I'm sticking with an oil diffuser nearby.

pully it could be for all kinds of non-worrying reasons, like the measurements being a bit off, baby having a growth spurt last time you were measured, a change in baby position, being measured by a different midwife...the final height measurement isn't terribly accurate or useful by itself but it can indicate women who need some more investigation. It is mostly the midwives needing to be cautious, it is quite probably just a position change and baby wanting to keep you on your toes!

seven I'm hoping that it just means we are all going to have our babies exactly when we want them!

Thanks seven and Mrsbuggy, feel a bit better after your lovely reassuring words and advice. I'm 36 weeks now so I will take my bag...

Thanks ladies - I will try some inversions on the sofa when DH comes home for lunch, and lovely to know I have such useful essential oils around now. May have a sniff of the clary sage now...just to see what happens

Pully hope all's well. And also I JUST got your name - I have always thought it was a play on pulling the wool over your eyes but I only just realised, wooly pullover, pullywoolover...you are clever.

I'm debating Tinselperion as my Christmas name but I'm sure you'd all just call me Tyel anyway!

Bacon Noodles for lunch...I really want Jaffa Cakes!

No need to apologise plu I think I just didn't get my point across eloquently enough at 4am

Pully I hope all goes well. Try not to panic, it's good to know the MW is being cautious.

Msbuggy Yes, it's rubbish to have plans change like that. I've been to Tesco this morning, it's no kind of substitute! I'm hoping some NCT friends will be about this afternoon for something more entertaining.

seven I know what you're saying, I'm really surprised we've only had one thread baby so far. We must be making life very comfy for the babies. I hope the LO born in Sept is doing OK. I'm afraid I can't remember who it was that had him

Tyel I'm loving your tinsel name idea. Wish I'd come up with something more inventive for myself, but I have zero imagination :)

The community midwives have to refer us if we are + or - 3cm in difference... So, as I'm measuring 42cm (!) today, I have to go for yet another growth scan next week.
Hopefully, I'll have popped by then.

Oi I hope things get on the move for you soon then. Meant to say before, I thought your idea of a letter for your anniversary present was lovely

I've just stumbled across this article which is incredibly fascinating - about the first two years of a child's life and the effects of their environment on their brain development. Absolutely riveting stuff, well researched and evidence-based.

Morning everyone

I'm feeling really stupid today, baby didn't move much yeasterday and not at all last night and i started panicing at 8am as still no kicks. I called hospital and was told to go in to get monitored. Called DH from work and droped Air off at GP's. Got to the waiting room and sat down and the baby started kicking

I was monitored for an hour and the baby is fine, so maybe she was just having a big sleep getting ready to come out? Its so typical of my children.

I have a meeting next week with everyone so i have gone thru all the post and made notes - i'm so going to get them to do smart objectives. Thank you everyone for your advice

MsBuggy - I like the Discworld novels too, i think they are great. My fav is Guards! Guards! and Eric (which i named my dog after)

Talking about DP being run down the MW looked about DH and had to tell him to stop worring and that everything is fine. In the end she sent him to make coffee as he looked so upset. He really is twitching/stressing out about the birth now bless him.

Wow, how can doing nothing be so tiring? I have an old work friend popping round for a cuppa sometime after 2, had planned on doing a full mornings work & having a quick tidy up but so far have managed to do Epi-No & have a bath I am shattered. Going to go lie down with hypnobirthing cd for half an hour & see if that refreshes me. Looks like I will be working late again tonight I am fed up with work but fed up with myself for being so bloody useless in the morning's. Feel like I should be able to do more :(

Great article tyel and it reminded me, if anyone wants a good book for the last couple of weeks/days of pregnancy, I highly recommend What Mothers Do it isn't a how to type book at all, it just describes the experience of lots of different mothers and brings together what all mothering has in common. I found it endlessly helpful when DD1 was born and I felt that I was doing bugger all all day!

Pully good luck with your scan.

I am 37 weeks today and ready for baby to come out!! I have to say he has dropped down so much that now when sitting down the bump rests on my legs MUST be a good sign!!

Have had some niggly back pain/tightness since yesterday going to try and walk them off as am off work this afternoon and off to do my xmas shopping this afternoon and get nursing bras for me (ooh lucky me).

I cant believe apart from our 1 early early baby we still waiting for anyone else to drop!!

Have a nice afternoon ladies!!

Give yourself a break Honey - you are heavily pregnant! Your body is tired. It's normal!

PullyWoolOver, you really shouldn't think of going to be checked as "giving in". Definitely wait for someone to discuss it with you sensibly. In the meantime, are you drinking enough fluids? That certainly cannot hurt (could save you all sorts of aggro with constipation and other things as well!). Hope you get your callback soon!

KateM77, no need to apologise, but it's worth considering different ways of looking at the "work problem", as sooner or later we're going to have to make demands in order not to be stuffed by a partner's work! Anyway, I hope you manage a nice weekend. (as for a namechange, does KateOneChristmasNight do anything for you?)

As for making life comfortable for the babies, I have just scoffed a packet of biscuits - the sort of thing she's not going to get until well after 1yo, so she'd just better enjoy it now!

I'm really looking forward to getting new bras. These ones don't seem to have been fitted properly, as I have no cleavage, just a monoboob. That's not a good look past a D cup, and I'm into the second quarter of the alphabet.

Will read that later, thanks Tyelperion!