February 2014 - is there an octopus in there?

[LittlePandaBear]

Okay I don't like to run out of things, even threads, so here's the new one.

Can't remember who described their baby kicking like an octopus but it's very true :)

jazzcat, forgot to say that I feel your pain. MIL is coming to spend Christmas with us so that DH gets an 'authentic German Christmas' , cos apparently I haven't been doing it right for the past 5 years?! This means that this season will consist of days that start at 7am, insane amounts of non existent cleaning, and food without herbs and spices!

Thanks for the dress advice. Sunflowered I've a JoJo code so will have a look, thanks for the suggestion.

Didn't know about the Surestart thing. Bugger. Well we definitely have a children's centre near us so hoping that's the one with some baby related stuff going on, and that they will let me in!

I'm a week away from the third trimester, wow! Just heard that the daughter of a family friend has had her baby today and I was really overwhelmed with a mix of jealousy and terror and ended up crying while walking the dog. I didn't realise I was so scared of the birth!

Then got home and had to manouver our very large, problematic dog down a road full of workmen who are currently cutting down the tree next door. A stressful prospect because she is given to lunging at people and I can't restrain her weight anymore, she should have been walked by the dog walker today (and every day we are dogsitting) but she never got back to me. So, got into the house very shaky and anxious and have just finished shoving all the food in the house down my throat to restore some sense of equilibrium. Phew.

Julietee if you're scared of the whole birth thing, can I recommend you a book? It's Ina May Gaskin's "Guide to Childbirth" and I've probably wittered about it before, but it's so reassuring. She's a hippy midwife in a commune, helping deliver babies for over 40 years, and just reading her book was like being given a glass of warm milk with a valium in it, at least for my birth fears. She acknowledges what can go wrong, but focuses on how our bodies work, and what actually happens during the birth - I am actually kind of looking forward to it! She's not very pro-medcalisation of birth, but she's writing in the US where their care guidelines are quite different, so a lot of that won't apply - I ignored that. But it's worth taking a peer at

Just had my first GD appointment with the entire team, and if I can manage my blood sugars well through diet and exercise alone I will be left to get on with it up to 40 weeks, after which I'll be induced. Fingers crossed for a spontaneous labour around 38 weeks! If I need medication I'll be induced at 38 weeks, which doesn't sound very appealing, but needs must. They say it takes 21 iterations of something to build a habit - I've got potentially 10 weeks to build a low-sugar eating habit. Over Christmas. No problem!

gnitting thanks for reminding me about that book, I've been meaning to read it since seeing her on the Business of Being Born. She looks exactly like my yoga teacher. That's good news about your GD - agree, it's a terrible time of year to build a low-sugar eating habit, but great that induction isn't a foregone conclusion.

Well I didn't manage to get a doctor's note before flying, it was fine on the way out so fingers crossed on the way home too. In my coat I just look a bit porky, not obviously preggo. As DH pointed out "the moral hazard of asking a woman whether she's pregnant is enormous."

Sorry to all those feeling so incredibly rubbish. The third trimester has been the best one for me so far, still puking every morning but as long as I'm careful about when and what I eat I feel almost normal once that's out of my system.

Thanks for the alcohol free mulled wine recommendations, it's not Christmas without it...

Julietee - have you thought about trying natal hypnotherapy/hypnobirthing? I used to be really scared of labour before I got pregnant but after doing hypnobirthing classes and listening to the CDs and affirmations and learning more about how to keep things relaxing and calm durin birth I'm almost excited about it.

Gnitting - fingers crossed you can manage the gd with diet x

Ruey the antenatal classes running in the baptist church building (childrens centre) are in January. There are also earlier ones but run elsewhere, I think leatherhead etc.

I am just going to go to the January one as it is in Bookham and hoping to meet others from Bookham. They told me we have to book at our 25/28 wk appointment with midwife. But my midwife never mentioned a thing and I completely forgot so I will ask her next time.

I am feeling really down in the dumps today, I think it's the weather it is so gloomy outside. But I should at least be grateful I am not ill. Sorry so many of you are feeling rough with the cold. Hope you all feel better soon, I perscribe lots of lemon and honey tea.

That video on FB was amazing. My little boy is sticking bits out like that all the time at the moment. However, it looks nowhere as clear and fascinating as that. Actually I have never seen anything like it and was a bit scared watching it, I kept expecting it to break out.

Time actually seems to be flying by at the moment. It doesn't seem that long ago that we all came on to the first thread with our great news and wondering when symptoms would start. Then the 12 week scans, then 20 weeks. Now we only have a few months left until we meet our little cherubs. I am actually really excited to see the pics of everyone's babies once they decide to arrive.

How was the nct sale misskat? Did you get any goodies?

Thanks for the book recommendation gnitting, think I need something to calm my nerves too.

Ignore me misskat, sorry, didn't read sat messagespregnancy brain probably should get back to work and stop being naughty on my phone

somany how do you know which body parts are sticking out? Is it just experience? I can tell her spine as that's really obvious but earlier I was rubbing a bit that might have been her head or her bum. The mw at my 28wk appointment showed me where her foot was and I would never have recognised that...

Gnitting A glass of warm milk with valium sounds pretty appealing right now! Mm, valium. Could have used some of that when my anxiety was really high. Thanks for the book rec, I will definitely check it out. Like I say, I had no idea I was so scared!

MissKat I was actually given the Mongan hypnoborthing book right at the beginning but I assumed it was too early to start it. Thanks!

I guess I'm a few weeks away from identifying body parts, dammit! But this morning I saw a good writhe through my stomach which was pretty cool!

Just a quickie to say sure start centres are still running as a whole, but there are cutbacks and closures in some areas.

Awww no worries Tea. As you can see I was very excited about the sale - honestly get down to one if you can!

Julietee - if you pm your email I can share the hypno stuff I have in skydrive - might be useful x

tea have you asked your midwife about breastfeeding classes? Our local nhs does free classes, has a specialist breastfeeding midwife, hands out dvds etc. They must have a really low rate in our area.

Baby back to moving normally (still more gently but more regularly) after scaring me yesterday!

My job still hasn't been advertised yet! I'm so over my commute though. delays, people full of colds and cough, rudeness etc. I'm a proper ranty preggo today!

I'm actually finding the third trimester easier than the start of the second. Yes, I'm in pain with ribs and ligament, and I can't sleep through the night. But I find that easier to cope with than the constant nausea and exhaustion I had. I still get tired, but it's more easily resolved than in the first and second trimester. I think it helps that I love a close deadline to focus on! Only 76 (ish) days to go.

I may feel differently soon though

champ can I ask a hr question please! not sure if you can help or whether it would purely be payroll?

I started working in my school last week of term 2010, then continued from the sept until now. I was paid august 2010 a full month salary, I dint think I should have it, so rang council to be told, no you shouldn't, we will take it from you next pay. They didn't, so rang again, another 2 times, told it was at heads discretion whether to pay me and if it wasn't taken, next month, to assume it was mine.

Fast forward to today (3 years later) and I have received an invoice for the full amount, no explanation, nothing.

Question before I ring them is, is there a timescale which they must contact you by, can they legally do this given I did contact them on several occasions and if I do have to pay it back, can in request that they take a minimum amount out of my wages (eg £20 a month). Wouldn't have minded if it hadn't been 3 years ago! And the fact that they have been messing up an extra honorarium pay I should have been getting since august this year and it's still not sorted!

Thanks for any help, just would like to know where I stand before I ring the,. Did try googling but only comes up with tax overpayments... Also, would it make a difference to my tax?

I made mince! I'm proud of myself because I'm not a practiced cook by any means. I'm just learning how to feed me and DH most nights without resorting to takeaway. Luckily he is pathetically grateful for whatever I make, and fairly undiscriminating :D

very random and off topic, but do any of the north east folk have dogs and use kennels for them? I need one for ours and todays visit to one was almost a horror story. I am used to a half hour drive so similar is fine.

back to babies, do any of the third timers use buggy boards and if so, can they really sit on them. the lady in JL tried to convince me they could...

Cam... how far North? I was talking to a guy at work the other day and he was raving about one at Alnwick- too far?

Soooo tired, I'm reading all the time but can't find the energy to post properly whingewhingewhinge

Oh Champagne meant to reply ages ago, no didn't get sorted with FB could you invite me or something please?

Alnwicks probably a tad too far, especially as i will generally be heading South after dropping her off. i looked at one near Morpeth today.

Pm me your email for fb, and I'll invite you to join the group now.

Advice from those of you with two dcs please. My dd will be 2 yrs 10 months when baby arrives - will I need a double buggy of some sort. She still goes in it now if we're out shopping etc and I can't see that changing for a while yet? Any recommendations? X

Sassy they're all so different aren't they. At 2.10 DS would've needed a double but he will be 3.5 and definitely doesn't now. So I'd recommend you look for a real bargain as you won't need it for very long at all.

Or would a buggy board suffice? Or babe in sling and toddler in buggy?

DH persists in walking too fast EVERYTIME we walk anywhere.

I'm prepping a rucksack with 2 stone of lumpy tins of beans mixed with a couple of food bags filled with hens eggs. See how fast he walks with that sucker strapped to his front without damaging the cargo.

And yep, 2 stone and 29+3.

Now getting off lightly I fear.

That's a great idea thisis

Am finally in double figures for the countdown woop woop.

Saw the dr yesterday for my mammoth cold and he's put me on antibiotics. Fx they start to kick in soon, although really don't like idea of taking anything in pg, was hoping to avoid :(