We will brook no argument for a boring, uneventful, blooming pregnancy; followed by a perfectly-timed pain-free sneeze birth; vol 5

[ScreamIfYouWantToMeetSanta]

Hi No Brookers! I do hope this has worked and is in the right place...

I've added a few extra sofas so we have plenty of space for all the Rat Smackers who will be joining us soon. There's also a nice long table filled with mince pies, yule logs, gingerbread snowmen and xmas puds! Plus some non-alcoholic mulled wine. I've strategically positioned a few clean glittery vom buckets under the table, just in case it's still a bit too early for xmas munchies for some people!

As you were...

I'm tall and mousy haired pomme. My hairdresser actually described my hair colour as mousy the other day. Charming

I also imgaine dream to always be standing in front of her fireplace.

I know what Biscuits looks like in RL, but also have a mental picture of everyone else.

Biscuits I hope you're feeling much better now. You are not alone. I have also had a huge meltdown this afternoon and thoroughly embarrassed myself in public. We can just blame our hormones.

Great that things are looking up for your Wants

Appt update - after waiting for over 90 mins consultant confirmed all ok. Baby growing well and has an est size of 7lb 10 eek. So all good really but they've booked my cs in for the 28th which is a week earlier than I thought it would be. I'm really upset about having to have another cs as I can't imagine i'll go into labour before then. Absolutely no signs if anything happening and due to Christmas highly unlikely to be able to see a mw before then for sweeps etc. DH thinks I'm totally overeacting but have been in tears about it. Can anyone tell me some good stuff about cs'? Am clearly way over emotional about it but feel so gutted about it all.

Sorry scream, forgot to say glad your scan was good.

Dd still awake, left her piping up and quietening down for 80 min, til I got worried about. The Overtired Freakout so now I'm stuck under a baby but still not winning- she keeps looking up at me and grinning

Hawthers this is my first so I can't say anything firsthand about cs's, but I just wanted to say that I have numerous friends who've had them and they all say it was fine. I definitely understand your nerves, I'm apprehensive about the idea of potentially having a cs as well, but truly everyone I've spoken to about it really says that it's fine. The important thing is getting your LO out by the safest means possible, and the pain management/care for cs is supposed to be great. They will look after you both!

I forgot to say - congrats on the healthy baby size by the way!! Excellent No Brooking!

Right hawthers,

1. You don't go into labour til you do, so could be anytime, even tomorrow
2. Sweeps are grim, no loss (from my friends' experience, one was going to refuse them for her second child, luckily went labour anyway)
3. CS preserves your pelvic floor a little more
4. CS allows you to plan child care and make it easy for your ds
5. No chance of rupturing your old scar
6. No chance of big tear/ instrumental delivery which can be horrible

Err, bit stuck now, v uncomfortable with dd lying on my bump, please, please go to bloody sleep now child...

Hawthers what a great sized baby! Well done you!

I've also heard lots of people saying CS are fine. Didn't you have one before? Am I befuddled? I think it's a different sort of recovery but to be fair which ever way the baby comes out its gonna need some recovery!

Scarlet sorry you've had a tough day too . At least you can blame pg and illness! Hope you're feeling a better on the poorly front though and we're all back on an even keel tomorrow.

There was actually a very nice young man who asked if I was ok as I sat sobbing in the middle of the shopping centre. He was really very nice and sweet. Everyone else just gave me a wide berth.....

Nice summary Dream!

Good work, especially from under a baby or three!!!

Make her go to sleep biscuits, make her!! I'm sat and she's in her cot, meltdown is probably close, she's certainly nowhere near asleep, its 10 O' f*%$&by clock!!!!!!!!!!!!

oh, and scarlet, it's par for the course, you're pg, tired, ill, totally understandable. Really hope you feel better soon.

Right then young Dreamlet. Now, it's time to get in bed, lie down and GO TO SLEEP. Mummy needs her sleep too so I'm going to count to 10 and I want everyone in that house asleep. Understood?

1....
2.....

All was peaceful once daddy got home at 10:30 and sorted her out... Her mummy-clingyness seems too extreme for her to accept me putting her down and going. And clearly she can go on for hours... Do you have problems with this with your clingy one generic? Not long til your scan now too, and we see how many you're growing!!

Morning all! Biscuits, glad you broke your shopping drought with the shampoo ;) I had a similar Christmassy present meltdown this year, and in the end pinned DH to the sofa until he'd helped me complete it all online! Needless to say it's all now done, but only just...

Generic, scan tomorrow? How exciting! I'll be lurking!

dream, Amazon and Play were my saviours this year! Willowy and blonde? I'm short, very small (6-8 before, though probably never again!), but I'm also a member of the brunette club (with auburn bits sometimes -not sure what's going on there). I'll try and post a photo at some point, maybe a Christmas bump-esque one. Along with all the others, I see you standing by a fireplace... forever stereotyped by your MN photos! Hope you managed to get DD to sleep eventually, and that you (and your bump) got some well earned rest.

Scream, so glad your scan went well, even if the baby was being elusive! And as Biscuits said, it's the ideal excuse for another scan, no?

Scarlet, how are you feeling? Hoping you're significantly less rubbish than yesterday :(

Hawthers, congratulations on such a wonderfully sized baby! And Brookers, congratulations to us on our wonderful brooking skills! I've heard wonderful things about CS's from friends, and I've heard that if it's pre-planned that the recovery tends to be quicker than an emergency one.

A lovely quiet morning as I'm not teaching until this afternoon- hurrah! Last rehearsals before a concert today - what's the betting that after a school trip last week, the kids have forgotten everything? What fun...

Hawthers excellent news re baby's size - great brooking! I understand your disappointment at having another CS but the things Dream says are true. My cousin had one for her 2nd and found it helped with her DS childcare and planning it all. But you may still go into labour in the next 8 days!

Scarlet sorry you are feeling rubbish and had a lousy day yesterday. Hope today is better.

Dream you are really going through it aren't you? My DD although clingy at times (wanting to follow me everywhere this morning and not wanting me to go to work) has always been OK at bedtime. I really think like others have said that the sleep thing is the luck of the draw. I don't think we have done anything to 'make' her a good sleeper, just like you haven't done anything to make her a bit more challenging! I am sure she will settle down when she's over this bout of illness. (Hopefully soon).

Musical enjoy your quiet day - not long until the hols now!

Biscuits hope you are OK this morning.

It's my last day at the office today - whoop! I'll be working from home tomorrow, but got my scan at 11am, so not much work will be done, I'm sure!

Just popping in for a virtual brook for generic's scan to confirm twins

giving myself a good slap in the head and reminding myself of the fortunate position i'm in. sorry for being a petulant child! dream thanks for the reminders of the good points and everyone else for their kind words. promise i'm belting up.

hope scarlet and biscuits have better days today.

generic good luck for your scan tomorrow - i'm sure it will show everything is tickety boo. we've got some powerful brooking going on over here so it has no choice but to be ok.

dream did you manage to get a full nights sleep last night? DS has just about stopped being quite so clingy now (although after mini h arrives am sure it will all go out of the window!). it will get easier re putting her to bed and remember every crap bit is a phase and all the good stuff is down to good parenting - makes me feel better everytime!

Generic I'll be lurking tomorrow waiting for your scan update. Very exciting.

dream I hope you had a better night's sleep last night.

musical best of luck for your concerts and hope that the children haven't forgotten too much.

I think I'm on the mend . My throat isn't nearly so sore, my nose isn't nearly so snotty. I'm still really tired and didn't have a very good night. DS has now decided that he wants to wake up in the middle of the night for a wee. While it's fantastic he's getting the hang of using the potty, it's not great at 1.30am and he's shouting "I want a wee wee" Don't really feel like I should tell him that's what he's wearing a nappy for when we're working so hard to get him to stop wearing them in the day. I wonder how old they are when they can just get themselves up in the night and go on their own?.....

I've had a good midwife appointment this morning. Was lovely to hear the heartbeat (officially). Although I have my own doppler it's always good to have it confirmed. My blood pressure has dipped a bit which explains my dizzy spells. It's still within the normal range but has got lower every time it's been checked.

Hello all!

Good to hear you're a bit better scarlet, just in time for Christmas. I think I'm catching your cold though... sore throat, snotty and sneezing, very tired- that the bad boy?! At least you know why you're feeling a bit faint sometimes. Is it just something they'll keep an eye on? Surely better low than high? And great to hear the HB. I do miss that, having not heard it at all- suddenly makes it feel like they're in the room with you!

The annoying thing with the sleeping is I put so many hours into getting DD into a routine of going down well at night, doing my best to 'make' her into a good sleeper, and thought I'd won- i.e. a baby who went down, and often slept all night. Serves me right for feeling a bit smug about it all several months ago... Before last night, DH put her down for the previous 2 nights, straight down, no problem. That drives me crazy, as he's not always here, and it reminds me she can do it, and worst of all, it actually it's me she won't do it for with this super-clingyness . I've put her down for a nap now, and she won't go to sleep, again.... There is nothing I feel less like doing than walking her to sleep in the pushchair... argh!

hawthers, it's horrible being truly huge and waiting for labour, your very mild complaining about that is nothing compared to my whinging on about sleep!!!!! So I will try to belt up about that. (And a lovely size mini h will be too- 7lb 10!!! Bet you never imagined that, by the way)

musical, glad you had a quiter morning, hope those children surprised you by being note-perfect

Also, I would love to live by my fireplace, preferably with gas fire on, and sat on the sofa more than staning in front of it though!!!! For a bit anyway- and obviously, without a child in sight, because she's out doing something fun with DH or a GP.

Hello all, after my run of unfortunate events the Christmas fairy is smiling on me once more. The mechanic was able to pop round in the few spare hours he had today, look at the car and fix it! He just charged for a couple of hours labour( no new parts needed) I can do my final Christmas food shop tomorrow with a car not a garden trolley!:0)
dreamI hope your cold goes away quickly and your whole family stay well at least for a couple of days over Christmas.
hawthers how exciting to have a date to aim for( although mini h will make a quick and easy entry into the world before that anyway) :)

Wants that's great news! Glad your car is now fixed.

Dream don't beat yourself up about being 'smug' - like Hawthers says it's just a phase, although the successes you had earlier (pre-illness) were down to excellent parenting!

Scarlet glad you feel a bit better and had an 'official' doppler.

Farfalla nice to see you here and thanks! Hope you will be a PSEPP soon, chuck.

This time tomorrow you'll know if you're having a multi-pack generic oh I hope so, I really hope so!!

Oh shurrup Dream! I can't think like that! Just hope it is healthy (or they!!!)

It won't matter generic, you'll be delighted with your healthy No Brooking bean, whatever, or however many there are!! I won't tease you any more. And at least its the morning- waiting til 4pm or something for your scan must be hard for the first one... i'm sure it'll all be fine, after all, we're all Brooking No Argument about that for you. xx