dame that sounds like a lovely outfit! I love a pair of snazzy pumps, especially in the summer. (I'm rarely found out of knee-high boots in the winter, whatever the occasion, as I get v. cold!) nice you met up with another preggers lady! hats off to her for making it to the wedding so close to due date!
tramp how do you feel about possibility of MrM not being at birth? Good luck finding a doula and looking for a nanny! I've got a few nursery visits lined up next week, but we're talking around £800 pcm for two babies in for two days which is quite a chunk of money, esp. during mat. leave! Our cleaner, who is lovely, says she might be able to help out with the babies and I think I'd be comfortable with that as an informal arrangement. Best solution would be a regular nanny-type though, as I'd love the babies to stay in the house whilst so tiny, and I know we've chatted on the thread about that before. It's just so daunting. I don't want to be an employer etc. MiL was a bit po-faced when I mentioned a nanny. My interpretation is that she thought I shouldn't be working on my research and books and stuff in mat. leave, nor going back to work full-time after 9 months. But I and DH are totally in agreement - we know what's best for our situation. I buggered off to the loo till she got over it. DH later said it was just that she felt she should be looking after the babies, but can't do it regularly as she's so far away in north-west. She keeps suggesting we move back up but that ain't going to happen anytime soon because of jobs.
Lanny so, so pleased you have some meds! And time off work! You take good care of yourself. Glad you made it to NCT even tho feeling rotten. And glad other couples are nice 
I think it's making it real and tangible for my DH too - he's taking a lot of info from them, more so than everything I've been wittering on about these past months anyway!
Sheldon I have a veritable 3-inch wide doughnut of stretch marks around my poor, poor belly-button-that-was, if it makes you feel any better about yours! And it's all a bit blue inside the doughnut-circle. Stretchmarks fade to the colour of my skin so I'm not bothered too much, and that area is now a bit less sore because it's been 'out' for a while now, thank goodness, but I'm still a bit funny about touching it when moisturising etc! Most of all I'm terrified about the twin-belly overhang which seems to be inevitable 
leni, a friend gave me her long sausage-shaped sleep-and-breastfeeding pillow, but I didn't get on with it. It will be useful for tandem feeding, though. My solution is to sleep on my side with a normal flattish pillow lain between my legs, from ankle to knees. This opens up my hips a bit and helps with bump ache. My bump is so bloody enormous it would hurt to prop it up at this stage, so it kind of slumps down on the mattress and I admit I sort of half-sleep on it, too. But I think this is unavoidable. Babies seem to wriggle around a bit and find a place to be. Then, instead of my usual two pillows under my head, I have three, but I have the third at a bit of a jaunty angle, 45 degrees to the rest, and I snuggle into it. It's a precise science going to bed, I can tell you! When I'm sore or need the loo I come back and change so am facing the other way - bit of a palaver and I huff and puff a lot, occasionally getting stuck halfway down the bed (!) and needing to wake DH to winch me up, but I think alternating (and squishing the baby on the other side for a change) is sensible! I really, really miss lying on my belly tho.
Grotty someone gave us one of those bouncer swing things too! Enormous! But apparently v.v. useful. We've had to reject one gift that was just too big, though - an elaborate padded high chair the size of an armchair! We'll either get two fold up ones or these, which I think are ace, though they would damage the table a bit: www.johnlewis.com/230675414/Product.aspx. They are supposed to make babies feel party of the party, rather that stuck out on their own.
Sarah awesome print for the blackout blinds!
Okay so bump is being a bit weird the last few days. Movements aren't the same as they were, nor as frequent. But when they do move, they really turn over and - good god - it's a sight for sore eyes! Crikey. Who knew skin was so stretchy?!! Trying not to be neurotic and just telling myself they have probably moved or have less space in which to move around in. Bump is flippin' huge now and have developed a new lower back ache. LOTS of tightenings this afternoon, but again am trying not to be too concerned. Am sure is just BH. If it continues tonight I'll try to pop into the MAU tomorrow - I forgot to get my bloods done in time at the docs for Tuesday high risk clinic appts so have to go to hospital first thing tomorrow (bit of a pain in the arse).
Been meaning to ask ? is anyone else feeling antisocial? I didn't go to a good handful of parties in December, and a really good friend wants to come over for a couple of hours tomorrow (she lives in London and we are overdue a meet-up) and I've a birthday party on Sunday evening ? but all I want to do is stay in and hibernate. Everything is just a lot of effort and I feel that I'm in some sort of transitional social period and I'm just not sure a lot of my female, single, childless friends get what's going on for me. At all. Some are really freaked out too, which is odd to deal with. And I'm a bit impatient too - I caught myself being a bit harsh with a mate who, once again, has frightened off yet another nice bloke recently. Normally I don't say anything and we blame it on the bloke being crap etc, but I just didn't have the patience and stuck up for him a bit which didn't go down well. Ooops. Anyway, perhaps it's just me. I'm focused v. much on the weird wonderfulness of what my body's doing at the moment, DH, getting the house ready and - when I have the energy! - my work. I don't really have space / energy for much else right now and I know it's probably more than a bit selfish.
Sorry for the essay...