February 2014 - all our bags are packed, we're ready to go...

[sunflowered]

Well... we're getting there at least, and definitely ready to meet the first thread baby!

My MW thinks my birth plan of 'whatever as long as baby and I are well' is too vague whereas I think its a good way of not being disappointed by the 'birth experience' (I hope!)

Am feeling HUGE now thought and cannot believe that it may well still be 7 weeks if this one is as tardy as its sibling....

Can't be arsed writing my birth plan down this time. It's basically 'have a vbac unless doctors recommend something else for a particular reason. Will see how I go with the drugs, might want them, might not. Oh, and dh doesn't want to cut the cord because a) he's a fainting nelly and b) he thinks the reason DD has such a perfect belly button is 'because the professionals did it'.

Sorry to hear so many are having a bad day.

Cubano that sounds very much like my OH actually. Otherwise he's amazing, it's just the 'practical' stuff he doesn't seem to do. I've decided it stresses me out just as much to nag, so I'm stopping, and just doing it myself.

thingy resentment is certainly the right word, such a pointless thing though!

So glad we have a cat flap now, and the cats don't need a litter tray ever. I hate them so much, and only the last 2 weeks can we give them cat food (the wet kind) without me having to shut them in the utility room to eat because I retched at the smell. Cat litter is 10 times worse.

Luckily neither of us smoke, nor do friends or family (apart from my gran we used to live with). Must be such an extra stress on top of pregnancy and incoming babies.

jazz in the same boat also, he wants me to remind him, yet gets annoyed and say I nag him when I do. Never happy!

lastnight One of our cats have (when very stressed) decided that the cooker top is a good place to go for the toilet. Luckily we have a flat glass one, so it's very easy to clean, but it's utterly disgusting. Would much rather he went on the floor :P

champage can our boyfriends and husbands come for a training camp with yours?

Also, what's the deal with weight gain? I really don't need any of the "extra" weight that normalweight ladies are recommended, as I was already too big when getting pregnant. I've now gained more weight than my MW recommended, although trying very hard not to. Thing is - I still wear lots of my pre-pregnancy clothes, only looser things around the waist and longer tops + some maternity ones, as I obviously have a bump now. My body apart from the bump looks exactly as it did before - where is all the weight going?!

I've also got to take in birth plan thoughts for the MW on Tues. My notes have a page for it with leading questions (e.g. do you want to move around in labour? who do you want to have with you in labour?) I've basically filled it out with my preferences - no doubt it will go right out the window, but I figure it can't hurt to at least let my thoughts be known!

There is quite a good page on NHS online with a similar format if the notes in England aren't set up that way. www.nhs.uk/conditions/pregnancy-and-baby/pages/birth-plan.aspx#close just in case you haven't seen it.

Re c- section - I actually think with an ELCS you might have a better chance of getting your birth plan going to plan! I haven't written anything about a CS on mine except that I want skin to skin whether it's vaginal or CS, but if it does end up being ELCS then there are some great examples of birth plans online.

I think my DH has gone the opposite way to most of yours... he's ramped up his cleaning and tidying as the pregnancy has gone on. He's spent this entire weekend doing housework and the place has never been this clean (he's done all the carpets and sofas with the magical Rug Doctor, plus we've cleaned and varnished most of the wooden furniture...to be fair we would never have had to do any of this if it wasn't for the horrific mould which overtook the place during the summer, but it is lovely now it's finished. We also realised how unclean it must have been when we first moved in as found a grotty bib of the owners' son shoved way down the back of one of the sofas...eww)

Champs I'd imagine if you were borderline over BMI then they'd let you into the birth centre anyway... they need a cut off somewhere and it's probably more a tool for being able to refuse those women for whom they are worried there'd be complications due to weight. But it sounds like you will be just fine :)

Ooh, Marzi, what did you do to get rid of the mould? We have some in our bathroom :(

Julietee we actually had dry rot so had to have most of the house ripped apart and rebuilt - no joke!

But we still have some mould in the kitchen around the windows (the extractor fan is utterly useless and the windows don't open that far, so we get a lot of condensation when cooking) For that we've bought some mould remover spray from B&Q. It looks like pretty serious stuff (safety recommendation on back is to wear gloves, eye protection and mask when using) so you would need to keep well away and get your DH to do it. I think mine will be spraying next weekend so I shall report back then on whether it's effective or not!

Ooh that's useful marzi thanks! My mw hasn't said anything to me about birthplans yet but I should be thinking about it. I'm pretty flexible really but looking at that link there are some thongs actually I really want/don't like lots of skin to skin etc.

eeyorish I've been super lazy today as well and suspect tomorrow will be the same!

I've got to do birth plan for mw for Friday as well, really not that phased, will see how it goes but think she will want more detailed...

I've got to do my birth plan for tomorrow's appointment. I don't know what to write other than, give me drugs. If I say I want them I mean now!

Not caught up on all the thread yet, but I have packed the baby's hospital bag and most of mine - yay! Except for a baby cardigan - somehow amongst the squillions of lovely girls clothes my friend gave me (and all the neutral stuff I had) there isn't a single cardigan I seem to remember having loads when the boys were little, and I know I didn't give them away! Wish I'd had less willpower in JoJoMamanBebe yesterday! They had some gorgeous girly clothes in the sale but I resisted and just bought some sock-ons and a tiny Miffy soft toy.

at the birth plans. I haven't written a thing, mainly because when I had DS1 & DS2 if I mentioned a birthplan it was almost treated as a joke, and considering how hard it was to get the HCPs to read the vitally important health information on my notes, eg. Group B Strep + administer IV antibiotics during labour (which was all over my notes with big stickers etc!) the idea that anyone would actually read my birth plan seemed laughable. Maybe things are better now. People did ask me some preferences as the time came to make decisions during my labour, but on the whole, not a soul was interested in my birth plan, Community MW never asked etc. Friends who had babies at the same time as me, who had really set ideas about how their birth experience was going to be, then for reasons beyond their control didn't get that, ended up really taking it hard. I'd rather go with the flow like LemonDrizzle said upthread.

I am 33+2 so have a maximum of 6 weeks 5 days left as they will do the CS before term - I will get an actual date at my consultant appointment in a couple of weeks - hurrah! Still feels like an eternity away.

Had a surprise night off work last night (paid, yippee!) so finished the curtains, which are now hanging in the baby's room. At some point I will get round to taking pictures and posting them on the FB group. Today I have no energy or motivation left - we've taken down all the Christmas decs, put them away, hoovered etc and the house still looks like a bombsite (too many flipping toys and boxes of chocolates!). I feel very very flat. DH is fab though, has done the lion's share of the post-Christmas tidy up and is now putting the boys to bed.

Sorry for the length of the last post! Sympathies to those of you feeling fed up - I'm so cranky at the moment, snapping at DH and the boys for no reason and feeling guilty afterwards but unable to lift myself out of my permanent bad mood. I'm sure I've developed frown lines during this pregnancy

eeyore your day sounds lovely!! Very envious:)

Hope everyone's days are ending a bit happier than they started!

Should maybe make a start on my birth plan too. Although Iv not really got many stipulations, just more see how things go and how I feel. Would love a water birth but at the moment I'm not allowed to a mlu due to low iron levels:( boo. So steak for every meal it is:)

champagne I think they use the bmi at the start of your pg rather than weighing you at the door of the birth centre FWIW I was over the bmi threshold last PG but was still passed for a homebirth. This time I was borderline (just under) and so no problem again.

I haven't been asked for a birth plan and wasn't last time either. Although my mw did ask me if I planned to use a birthpool and said my sofas were perfect for kneeling/leaning against for birthing ds but there has been no discussion this time. I assume afer my 34w appt on Thursday my next one will be the homebirth visit at 37w.

First load of baby clothes are in the wash (had to bleach them first as they were covered in ds's milk stains - he was such a chucker!). Actually I probably didn't need to bleach them but at the moment I am finding any excuse to run a bath with bleach and slosh clothes around to satisfy my cravings

champs at my 34 week appointment the midwife went through a list of questions to decide if I was suitable for MLU. I'm sure it's BMI at the start.

No progress made on birth plan I did however at least leave the house for church.

I haven't been asked about a birth plan yet! Maybe I should just write one anyway. A bit worrying as the time is creeping ever closer!

We started our NCT classes last week, and had a mammoth session on Saturday, poor DH almost keeled over at one point after all the repetitive talk of labour. It's making me worry that he won't be up to the task when the time comes. Hoping the adrenaline will see him through.

I had an email from my boss on Friday, seriously. I'm technically on annual leave and don't start ML til the 11th. Hope this isn't the start of constant emails from her.

Getting loads of braxton hicks and stabby pains, sleeping is very hard and turning is nearly impossible. Poor DH is now in the spare room but at least he'll get an uninterrupted sleep for the first time in months.

I was borderline bmi when booking in, hope that doesn't affect getting on the MLU, might have to ask.

35+5

Loving the talk of birth plans. My MW has just written in my notes "Birth plan -go with flow".

First day of 'proper' may leave tomorrow - DD is back at school, and I have the house to myself. I am planning a very long and indulgent bath, with NO interruptions.

Hi I'm joining this group!!! What a nightmare this last week has been....

And your all doing your birth plans... Ill be nearly 36 weeks when I see her Friday and not even spoke to me about any of this.

Feel ain't confused in what's going on actually...

I've also only packed the baby's stuff non of mine... So I'm half wAy there

Also about feeling dizzy I fainted at a posh hotel on nye was soooo embarrassing!!! Come round pretty quick tho.

Is anyone getting cramp?? I'm getting it in my groin and bottom of my back and also right hand side of my back where I feel like I don't wanna take deep breathes :(

Not long now girls xxxx

welcome fedup

I'm awake early for the umpteenth night in a row. It's getting really annoying now! I've got to be up in a few hours as we've got plumbers and MIL coming, but I want more sleep first! I guess it'll have to be an afternoon nap instead.

I hope all of you still working have a good return to work after Xmas. Not long now

Hello EeyoreIsh - i've also been awake since stupid o'clock, and DS will be awake within the next ten minutes demanding breakfast/Postman Pat/'Mummy play'.

Just desperately hope he's up for an afternoon nap as I definitely will be!

Awake since 4 too Hope you manage to get a bit of kip during the day.

Just waiting for community midwives to open to see if I can pop in and get blood pressure checked as cankles now extend to calves, knees and thighs, and more worryingly face is all swollen too and bump hasn't been its usual hyperactive self for the last 24 hrs. Might just look rough through lack of sleep but for the sake of being a couple of hours late for work thought it's worth getting checked out.

Eeeek sunflowered if they don't open for a little while can you call your midwives at the hospital? Cankles are one thing, but a swollen face etc sounds a little more serious - definitely get checked out. Hope it's just lack of sleep/water retention.

Sunflowered, poor you. Hope you can see a MW ASAP. Welcome Fedup. I've made a start on hospital bags too. But I got bored so we started to decorate our bedroom instead (extreme nesting type reaction). We are sleeping in the spare room until new carpet can be delivered. FX it's before baby arrives! Mess and "dirt" are starting to really get on my nerves.

Hope everything is ok sun.
I got half an hours sleep so I'm feeling terrible. Why do restless legs only happen at night? I could happily sleep for hours now my leg has stopped twitching but I've got to get up.