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 :)

gosh, baby is really wriggling tonight! It's clearly having a dance in there

Oh gnitting, so sorry to hear your house news. We were in your position this time last year. Without the baby to add extra pressure though. We ended up moving in Jan instead of Dec - maybe not what you want to hear either, but if your sellers are truly motivated to move they may be able to make it happen!

28 weeks check at the MW yesterday went OK. No GD thankfully and fundal height measuring 26 weeks, which I am happy with if it's a reflection of the true size of baby (DS was a big baby). Somany she wouldn't sign me up to ante natal classes at the Ch Centre as it's my second baby. She did give me a really helpful checklist that they use for birth planning though - you check a box against all the key decisions - labour positions, partners roles, vit K, managed third stage, cord cutting etc. Easy reference for the midwives and not too many words so if they are busy you might actually get some of the things you had in your mind beforehand (cynical second timer ).

I've got to take an iron supplement on top of my vits, anyone taking an over the counter non pill form?

ruey I'm not taking iron, but someone told me it makes you very constipated so always buy slow release.

Sorry to all those with work and house issues, I'm lucky my work worries consist of 'what the hell am I going to wear today?'.

Just read this thread and am loving it -www.mumsnet.com/Talk/am_i_being_unreasonable/1917728-To-ask-your-best-baby-tips?pg=5&order=

Still haven't slept a whole night in about a month and sick of all the fuckpigs telling me to 'get used to it'. On the bright side I see it as baby seaweed waking me up to say hello and for a play so I always oblige.

My 100yr old grandma had to be taken to hospital last night which I'm really worried about. She's the picture of health and has lived alone for ten years so I'm panicking that hospital will be her downfall. She only had a tummy bug but I just don't feel they bother looking after old people as much as young ones. So feeling blue.

www.mumsnet.com/Talk/am_i_being_unreasonable/1917728-To-ask-your-best-baby-tips?pg=5&order=

Grrrrrr.

for those of you who may not see this on active conversations. Angelcare have recalled several models of their baby monitor. Article here:
www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-2511431/600-000-Angelcare-baby-monitors-recalled-strangulation-deaths.html
Apologies if it doesnt link properly

I used to take normal iron tablets ruey (just holland and Barrett ones) and they do make your poo go scary and black at first but I wasn't constipated with them - I think that does happen a lot tho especially if they're high strength so if you can get a liquid form it should hopefully be better. I think you're advised to avoid caffeine around the time you take them as it slows absorption (it's either caffeine or dairy, I can't remember, I know I just always used to think "no cup of coffee" with them). Vitamin c is good to help absorption too.

Shrops I really hope your Grandma is okay. Im sure they'll look after her well but I know it's really hard not to worry. Hopefully she'll be right as rain and out soon xxx

champs apologies for yet another HR question, I've finally heard back from my pension administrator about how contributions work during ML:

1st 13wks – EE receives 100% of salary – EE & Employer contributions as per normal pay
2nd 13wks – EE receives 50% of salary – EE pays normal % contributions based on reduced salary – Employer pays normal contributions based on pre Maternity Salary
3rd 13wks – EE receives SMP - EE pays normal % based on SMP – Employer pays normal % contributions based on pre Maternity Salary
4th 13wks – EE receives zero pay – No contributions paid by either employee or employer

The only thing I am unsure about is the SMP period - I didn't think pension could be deducted from SMP?

Sorry for hijack of thread with HR stuff....

(Am also sick of getting no sleep and people telling me that the worst is yet to come)

Later on I will post about the save a baby's life NHS course DH and I went to last night... ooh the suspense..

camwombat I've decided against the Angelcare now anyway as I read some reviews about how you need a perfectly flat cot base for the pad to work properly (people were putting cardboard/mdf on cot base). Our cot is so old and not perfectly flat so assume it won't work anyway. Scary stuff about the strangulation risk though.

Hope your grandma is ok shrops will you be able to go and visit?

Sorry to hear about your gran shrops - sending get well soon vibes her way x

missk I've just been put on iron supplements, and asked the dietician why no tea, and it's not the caffeine as I thought, but tannins. So coffee and tea are out for one hour after you take the pill. I've also been warned re constipation, but am eating well, eg lots of fruit, veggies and pulses (not everyone's cup of tea, but low-GI!) and so far haven't had a problem.

Ps sending lots of healing and vitality vibes to your gran, shrops I'm sure she'll get good care.

Wrote a long post last night but it didn't work so in brief sympathies to all those suffering work, health, house and poorly granny issues.

Jazz looking forward to hearing about save a baby. I really want to do an infant first aid course but haven't been able to find one between now and EDD.

Shrops hope your gran gets better. I was actually surprised at the lengths our hospital went to with my nain!

I hit 6 calendar months yesterday and 27 weeks third trimester today - I feel like I should celebrate in some way? It's treat day friday in our office today (although we find a reason for a treat every day ) but perhaps I should have an EXTRA treat?

Oh I totally agree you should get an extra treat pettyprudence. Think of it as one treat for you and one for the bump

Get well soon to Granny Shropshire x

I am almost embarrassed to report how pleased I was when I opened my latest Bounty pack this morning and found enough one-wash samples of Fairy and Persil to do my entire weeks washing - 6 in total. What a sad case I have become :-)

Off out for a curry tonight to celebrate DH's best friends birthday. DD will be happy as her favourite grown-up big sister is babysitting. We will be lucky if she's asleep by the time we get home, they'll probably still be up playing princesses or something.

In the meantime I'm going to send DH (who is supposed to be working from home but in fact is not doing much work!) up in the loft to find all my newborn stage baby kit for me to sort through. Wish me luck, our loft looks like an explosion at a rummage sale.

So my trawl in the loft-rummage has yielded a baby bjorn front carrier I didn't know I had, the Moses basket, and very few newborn clothes - 1 sleep suit, 1 long sleeve vest, 1 dungaree outfit, 1 hat, 1 thin cardi and 2 thick cardis. An excuse to go shopping?

Petty I'm about to hit 27 weeks on Sunday, and I just realised I might only have 10 weeks left, which has me in a bit of a panic! So have decided to buy 1 thing every weekend from now on.

Shrops I hope your grandma gets better soon

Ruey I’ve just started taking prescribed iron tablets this week, one thing I was warned about was to take them an hour or two after eating dairy or wholegrain, fibre and cereals. So, I’m taking my first one mid morning after my bran flakes have been digested, the second one before dinner (depending on what I’m eating) and the last one before bed. No trouble in the toilet yet, but things are definitely black and sticky!

jazz my pension will be deducted from SMP at the usual percentage, which doesn’t work out too much and I figured it’s worth it to still receive the company percentage of my full wage.

Ooh just found a

So tired today! How can that be, I had a nice sleep in and everything. Gotta go down to Birmingham tomorrow for the day and so glad I've got an open return as I'm worried I'll be flagging after a couple of house lol!

Eeeek I was listening to my audiobook before which has the character in who were naming baby after (Artemis) and I was thinking about nicknames and thought - oh my god - what if she gets called something awful like "Missy"!!! Noooooo must ensure that doesn't happen! Anyone else got lovely names that could be shortened to something rubbish?

Ooooh and m&s have boxes of truffles half price (£3 instead if £6)!

Shropshire hope your granny is doing ok. Excuse to take her some and scoff some too?

Right, so save a baby's life course last night. NHS in a university teaching hospital. Course organised and run by medic/nursing students who looked about 12 to me (but were probably more like 20).

The course focused on 3 things - unconscious baby, choking baby, drowning baby. We did CPR on a baby doll (mouth over nose and mouth for 5 breaths followed by 30 chest compressions to 100 bpm using 2 fingers not hands like on an adult). To relieve choking we had to hold the baby face down along our forearm and slap its back really hard (much harder that I would have).

All in all the course lasted 50 minutes and whilst the techniques were useful, it was all summed up with the closing statement "if you can do any of this after having called 999 and stopped panicking then you're doing well".

So not sure it was really as good as it could have been. DH wasn't too impressed. Did meet some lovely couples though.

Food for thought after reading the 'having an actual baby in 8/9/13 weeks aaargh' posts on fb earlier... Just read through the posts, closed the group, and the top story on my newsfeed was from someone whose baby was due on Christmas day but she's just announced his birth 9 weeks early now that he's left hospital... 31weeks isn't far away at all Sounds like he's come home healthy and was a fairly good size for an early baby but makes you think... I might go and buy some stuff for a hospital bag at the weekend just in case...

Shropshire hope your gran's ok and they're looking after her well. Ask all the awkward questions you need from the ward if you've got any questions/worries at all about the way she's being looked after or if they're not clear about what's going on.

Ladies who have flown in pregnancy what is it like? Does it feel any different or did baby react at all? Am flying soon and just wondering what to expect..

Unplastered definitely a reason for shopping!

Well, hopefully none of us are going to be that premature!