May be Babies - The Third Trimester

[SirCharles]

A new thread as the other one was ready to burst!
Thanks *Mikocat" for the new name.

Clary Sage! Of course, someone told me about it on Monday but I forgot what it was called. Thanks for that!

Thanks for all the advice ladies I need to get a 55cm one as am only 5'2.5'' so that limits choice a little but will get one ordered this week I think! harecare my MW said that sometimes the shape of your pelvis means that they end up being back to back...with my Mum DC1 (me) was B2B but DC2 (my brother) wasn't so not sure if things had moved after she had me?! Grandma only had Mum so we don't have a comparison for a DC2 for her.

Think I might be heading off to bed soon...sooo tired...night all!

Knitting - Catsy - I really like those patterns, particularly the hats. Mustn't buy more patterns though, I have quite a few books I don't use enough as it is. I have been knitting rolled brim beanie (using a couple of online patterns) for dh's new wee brother and managed to use the DPNs! Started on circular, much less fiddly, but managed to finish off on the DPNs. Hat is very sweet, not sure of the size but looks about right, maybe a bit big for newborn but will fit soon enough.

SirCharles - I had ring sling last time which I liked but the rings could dig into my shoulder after I had been wearing it a while. I am trying out a wrap sling, moby wrap seemed to get a lot of good reviews so I have ordered that. Will definitely be practicing using it using a doll prior to EDD as I know they can be a little tricky to use at first.

Harecare - Very jealous of your good sleepers! Doubt I'll ever get one, have a feeling the early rising is genetic. I've drunk raspberry leaf tea with my last two (not started it this time yet) and they were both a little early, probably nothing to do with tea though, but I feel I need to drink it just in case! Sorry to hear things are still so uncertain between you and your DP, I'm not surprised you're feeling depressed! Has he said what he expects to happen? Constantly wondering is so hard, I hope you get some answers soon.

I am exhausted! One morning of gardening and I'm wiped out!

Hey guys! i saw you were discussing birthing balls and stuff so i thought i'd jump in! just had another antenatal class today and this session was about active birthing, we had an active birthing teacher in and she talked us through lots of stuff!

bluecrane she was about 5 3 and she was using a 65 cm one - she said you can always deflate more if you need to as your bum needs to be higher than your hips! so personally i would say get a 65 one or see if you can try them out before, i've got a 75 cm one and it's just right for me. (5 6)

She said the birthing balls are really useful to sit on because the best posture for pregnant women is when they lean slightly forward and have their legs apart and the worst is when we lie back. on a birthing ball you can't really lie back as you'd fall off! they're also useful for just rolling your hips or doing lunges etc

Hi all ! Thanks for your replies, my DP did cancel his fishing trip and I'm very glad about that!!!
Currently sitting outside On a terrace and I can't believe I did not notice the parking officer putting a PCN on my wind screen....

Birth ball - yes the bigger the better, mine is the cheapest I could get from Argos. It is still in excellent condition despite having been used regularly for the last 4 years...

Yoga - has a mothers day treat, dp is giving me "me time" for yoga session every Saturdays. He will look after both kids while I go to my classe. He works crazy hours all week so it is really nice to him to agree to wake up early on a Saturday. Can't wait!!!!

Baby position - no idea... Probably ok

Bump size... I am HUGE... Not sure whether my maternity clothes will still fit in 2 months time.... Glad there is only 8 weeks left but still... I'm scared I'll have a big baby again... Must stop eating pain au chocolat every day!!!

Enjoy the sunny day today!

Morning! I wondered if anyone else has a bad back, but has found a sling that doesn't cripple them after 10 minutes??? I get a lot of pain between my shoulders, but I also have a problem where 90% of the backward bend in my spine comes from between the 4th and 5th cervical(?) vertebrae (i.e just above my bum!) and tend to get pain there. I have a Tomy Safari sling, but it really pulled at my upper back and seemed to conflict with my boobs! I've tried a ring sling, and a baba sling, but didn't find them comfortable, and I couldn't see how the baby was staying in them, so didn't dare let go of them / bend over etc, which defeated the object really! DH got on really well with the Baba Sling, but I still found it scary! DD2 would not let me put her down for weeks, so I'm thinking a sling would be good to use in the house, any ideas anyone?

tostaky the revised fishing plans sound sensible and your Mother's Day gift sounds fab!! I am also starting to feel huge and now have a hairband holding a pair of maternity trousers together still 10 ish weeks to go here though, and 5 of those I still need to look reasonably smart for work this could be interesting! But I refuse to go out and buy lots more clothes for such a small amount of wear!

Re. the ball I'm now thinking maybe I should just get a 65cm one on the basis that I probably won't actually manage to inflate it all the way to 65cm and the feedback seems to be 'big is good' WRT use in pregnancy! That'll keep me entertained at lunchtime having a look online...

Hi ladies, loving how active the thread has got now :)

sarah that knitting is too advanced for me too!! I can just about manage blankets, hats and booties (not even turned-heel booties) and haven't attempted DPNs.. I know my MIL uses circular needles a lot though and gets on v well with them.

sircharles I actually learnt to knit when pregnant with ds from an M&S 'knit a baby blanket' kit someone gave me for Christmas...I had a LOT of help from my mum though. After that I bought 'Knitting for Absolute Beginners' by Aneeta Patel which I can really recommend, doesn't assume you know anything which I found a lot of other books/patterns did. Most of the patterns in the book are a bit naff but really good for learning.
Re slings we have a Close carrier which was FAB for getting ds off to sleep then I'd just carry him round with me.. and a baby bjorn which is much mroe sturdy and we used for walks etc (plus dh refused to wear the 'girly' close carrier!!)

catsy your knitting recommendations sound lovely, especially the beret style hat I'd like to try something like that, was it easy enough? I love bamboo knitting needles too, so much smoother.
Not sure about slings that are good for back pain although I don't remember the Close ever feeling like it was straining me..maybe you can go and try a few out in John Lewis or similar..??

saggybaps sounds like you're having a crap time :( but I'm amazed you ahve such a positive note to your posts so well done for that!! Hope the back pain improves, it really is the pits.

welcome cherrypie :)

tostaky glad your decision was made for you about the trip :) I too feel MASSIVE...in fact perhaps later if I get round to it I'll post a bump pic on my profile to make you feel better!! Everyone tells me I'm huge.. like bluecrane I just can't justify buying more clothes for only 8 weeks of wear but even maternity tops/jumpers are riding up over my bump now!! I have several maternity dresses though so hopefully this sunny weather stays and I can float gracefully waddle around in them!!

My birthing ball just came from Argos too.. you're all making me feel very guilty that I hardly sit on it it's just so much more appealing to lounge on the sofa!! Plus every time I get on the ball ds starts pushing me off saying 'boing, boing' cos dh started a game of bouncing him on it!! Not v helpful!

Right, think ds has drifted off to sleep now so time for mummy to watch last night's OBEM

tostaky glad you don't have to go fishing!

cupcake the beret was quite easy, but you have to count the lace pattern carefully, as it's easy to get sidetracked and end up with a wonky pattern! I had to pull a row out once or twice (!) but it ended up just like the picture on the pattern in the end! The good thing is that there is just the one lacy bit, so it's only a few rows you have to count for...

Have had a fun day of hospital visits. First a trip to the paediatrician with DD1. Booked the appt for 9.15 (weeks ago), so we were in first, but DD1's notes hadn't been sent down, so we had to wait while they found them, and he saw 2 people before us!! When I told the nurse I needed her seen before 10am, she acted all surprised and said they were going as fast as they could. The doctor saw us half an hour late, then asked me "are you pushed for time". No, I have infinite time to sit in your waiting room.... I then had an appt in a different hospital, with the Occupational Therapist I see for CFS. She asked me if I was still pregnant. I'm huge and pregnant shaped!!! Neither of them told me anything useful, just the kind of keep doing what you're doing appointments.... Have only just got back, and will have to go to collect the DDs in an hour. There goes my day.... Grrrr!!!

Another gorgeous day today! Started off with a frost and by this afternoon I was sitting out with a cuppa of tea warm in my t-shirt and jeans. Also got lots of digging done in the garden so yet another bath required!

Catsy - I love berets, would like to knit that lace one for myself! What a faff you've had today, it's amazing I don't think I have ever been seen on time at the doctors but heaven forbid you are ever late...

cupcake - So glad I managed to finish off with the DPNs, much prefer the circular though. I find that easy enough and the great thing about them is you can do stocking stitch without once having to purl. This wool has inspired me to knit more so I'm going to get more and do a wee cardi from one of my Debbie Bliss books. Have realised this Sirdar stuff is an absolute bargain too, I looked at my Debbie Bliss pattern and for a cardi for 3-6 months you need an outrageous 6 balls... looked it up and found that DB cotton is about 83m a ball, whereas the sirdar summer stripes (also cotton) is 158m! Three balls it is then! (Sorry about mad advertising of previously mentioned wool, I'm just in love with it both price and look wise).

Re the slings, cupcake my dh is the same! Never used my ring sling last time and he has now bought himself a more 'manly' baby bjorn as he also won't use my wrap. Despite my choosing a very neutral slate grey shade! Sorry catsy no idea what would work best with a bad back although I would guess ring sling no good. Something that keeps baby higher up and as close in as possible, like a wrap, might be worth a try?

tostaky - Very pleased to hear you won't have to be a fishing widow in May! Enjoy your yoga, hopefully it will give you some much needed chill time.

Got another manic weekend coming up. If you remember dh's new baby brother (Alexander mark 2), we are going up to Aberdeenshire on Saturday to spend day/night with them. Also will first be going up to Edinburgh on Friday night to see my uncle who is visiting from London. As my mum is under the weather I am going to cook but not only is my uncle veggie he is also allergic to gluten which doesn't just mean no wheat, also means no onions, garlic, asparagus and even very few pulses (and that is not the full list either; not sure it is all gluten related, think there may be other issues...) Then on the way back through Edinburgh on Sunday we will be stopping at my dad's for a visit before picking up dd from her dad's and heading home. Man I am exhausted just thinking about it. Just hope weather is like this!

cuppa of tea?!

Coo it's got busy in here! Just a quick message from me as I'm half asleep on the sofa and need to go and make a start on tea. Sounds like there are quite a few ladies having a rough time of it all at the moment - hope relationship worries and health troubles are sorted soon.

Brain has turned to fluff so can't remember any other messages I was going to write - thanks to whoever mentioned the raspberry leaf tea though, that's reminded me to add it to my shopping list this weekend!

6 more working days until I'm on maternity leave...and then I will be getting out in the garden as I need to get a wriggle on with planting up some veg! Will also be cracking the sewing machine out to make some cushions and bits for the baby's room.

Nearly Friday, wahooooo! Think I'm going to try and watch last night's OBEM tonight but I fear it may be a tear jerker as it's about prem bubbas. Tissues at the ready!

dreaming I sobbed at obem last night, but mainly the mum with the cleft lip baby, her reaction to seeing him just made me cry loads (happy tears!)

catsy beret sounds gorgeous will def have to give it a try.. a friend has promised to teach me to crochet too which I'm really excited about, need to fit that in in the next 8 weeks!

cupcake and littlesarah thanks for the sling tips! We are a bit out in the sticks, so anywhere with actual slings to try on would probably be about an hours drive each way! I'll probably try to get one online. I had been looking at the Wilkinet one, and the Mei Tai, (and is there one called Bobo 3G or did I dream that???) but am not sure. I'll check out the Close one you suggested too, cupcake.

Dreaming and littlesarah I also have so much gardening to do, but am not making much progress. I felt really sick last autumn so I didn't do all the autumn jobs, so there is now a heavy carpet of weeds! Those sticky buds have really spread themselves round the garden, despite being one of the things we were quite strict about weeding out. I suspect the cats have been spreading them around on their fur! I managed to empty out some of the old stuff from the veg bed yesterday, but think I'll have to set the time aside at the weekend to do the border, if it's nice again.

We also need to decorate the babies room. I've finally picked the paper, paint and fabric, so we just need to measure up and order them from the very patient lady at the interiors shop down the road (who I have been tormenting for about the last 6 weeks ). Hopefully we might be able to decorate next weekend...

Am also working my way through crates and crates of stuff to eBay - I really want to get it out of the way before the baby arrives, as it will only increase when I start adding any decent maternity stuff and newborn clothes etc. once the baby is born!

The really good news is that we are hopefully getting a cleaner from next week, temporarily till the baby is a couple of months old. Have been nagged by the Occcupational Therapist about this more than once - she keeps going on about my job being to bond with the baby, and I have to look at my energy reserves as a bank I can only withdraw a certain amount from etc., etc. She is worried I am over exerting and will not be able to do anything as a result, but in reality I don't see I have much choice but to do the stuff that needs doing, really. She wants me to get a Home Start volunteer too, but I just can't quite cope with the idea of that! Glad about the cleaner though - yay! :)

Catsy have you thought about a wrap at all? something like this - ?

sorry - link

catsy - i have a mei tai and i would not recommend it if you are prone to back pain.
However i have heard lots of good things about the ergo baby carrier and i am toying the idea of selling my baby bjorn, mei tai and ring sling so i can buy an ergo instead... they dont come cheap...

im defenitely hormonal as i keep having tears in my eyes for silly tings.. ie i was watching the E.T. trailer earlier and i just started sobbing like a mad woman....

re - baby nursery: we've moved and are hoping to start renovating the flat in the next few months (while living in there) so the baby has no room at all... he will have to get used to sleeping in the daylight and with two noisy brothers... ii prefer not to think about it!!!

Good luck to everybody who is about to move - i did it a month ago but would not be able o do it now!!!

Catsy my friend has a bad back and I know she used a wilkinet, I love my close carrier though. I know I had 2 at one point (had a 'work' one when representing Lollipop nappies but had to get one for me too!) but wouldn't like to guess where the 2nd one is atm - probably in the loft :(

Jealous of those decorating nurseries - I can't even decide what colours I want in the front room but now that we've taken out the old gas fire and hearth, and part of the dado rail, and had a doorway knocked through which is attractively edged in raw plaster - it really needs doing sooner rather than later!

Would love to get on with some knitting, did plenty before DS1 and progrerssively less for each subsequent baby, so far this LO as precisely nothing hand made with love by mummy, or whatever the tacky labels say! Biggest challenge is staying awake in the evening to do it - this is the latest I've been awake all week

Morning all...everyone at work keeps exclaiming at how pregnant I look today - d'oh?! Really, I hadn't noticed!! I even have a black top and black trousers on which should technically make me look smaller I do feel a bit like a whale but can't believe I look that much different to yesterday!! Though I am exhausted and slept v v badly last night so I guess it is possible that beany had some kind of mega growth spurt during the night!??!

On the decorating front I'm a bit picky read control freak when so I repainted the spare room in the nice caramel neutral colours I wanted last summer when we were still TTC as it would still be fine as the spare room until 'conversion' to nursery which we did last week, so feeling fairly sorted in that respect, not sure I could deal with sorting that out as well as feeling this tired and still working at the moment...I finish 5 weeks today 22 working days left...woohoo!! Though that is still 22 days I need to find and fit into suitable clothes which could be a little bit of a challenge!

Good luck to all those moving house now! We moved when I was 35 weeks with DS, no idea how we managed as I'm nearly 34 weeks now and knackered! We decorated the nursery in cream, I figured we'd put up transfers when we know what it is! DS has a yellow room with fire engine transfers but his room is pretty small whilst the new nursery is pretty big.

I knitted when pregnant before, made a sampler style patchwork blanket that took hours! Not managed any knitting really since DS dropped naps at 18 months! I taught myself from the stitch n bitch book, found that pretty good for learning then blanket was from cool knits for kids pattern book.

Had MW appt this morning. Baby is transverse so I was warned if there's any signs of my waters breaking or labour starting I need to go straight in to hospital as there's a risk of arms, legs or the cord popping out but baby being stuck. She said that's prob why my braxton hicks are so bad as my uterus is being stretched sideways when it isn't expecting to be!

Mil is coming next week to give us a bit of time off, I should use it to rest but I've got loads of work to do (I volunteer as a treasurer for NCT) and I want to get all the baby clothes out and washed. After what the MW said I think I should get all my hospital stuff ready! Then I might go and browse the shops alone, would be bliss .

Just in case anyone would like to see, I have managed to upload a couple of pictures of the gorgeous Sophia :)

GotMyLittleLamb can't click on your name i think your profile is private

The barmaid at the cinema said that my bump looked "fabulous" last night. I thought I looked a bit like a barge or tug boat with it peeping round corners before me, but being told it was fabulous was rather, well, fabulous!

Just a quick one... Yorky - I have been the same with my knitting for the children. Dd got lots of wee pieces, ds got one - rather complicated! - shawl... so far this one has about 1/8 of a very simple blanket! Bought a load more of the fab Sirdar wool today so plan being a knitting machine this last couple of months... we shall see...

Ow ow ow ow. Sorry for the rant but omg. Pain in right hand side of my rib age, about level with my breast. Feels muscular but ow. Only relief is putting my arm over my head but cannot do that all night!!! Hurts standing sitting & lying down. Feeling a bit sorry for myself. DH at a loss as nothing he can do! Googled it tho & seems tis just another pregnancy thing. Grrrr. I swear if they told teens what happens in pregnancy I am sure it would reduce teen pregnancy rate. .....