Easter is approaching, and the PESH are laying all over the place!

[maamalady]

Antenatal fred fun for BESH graduates

CRESH

Faith - pinky faithlet arrived 14th April 2013
Pinkr - suitably pinky one arrived 25th August 2013
Jethro - blue one arrived 23rd September 2013
Noks - pink one arrived 12th January 2014

PESH

Frankel - EDD 4th March ANY TIME NOW
Sinky - EDD 18th March
Merks - EDD 21st March
Driz - EDD 7th June
Draf - EDD 19th June
Kat - EDD 20th June
Winks - EDD 26th June
Dor - EDD 18th August
Ginger - 20th August
Euro - 28th August

PESH-in-hiding
Bugs - EDD approx 21st October

These are my favourite muslins. They are bigger than average and very useful. I have a couple of packs of these and a bunch of smaller ones.

I use the big ones for lining the crib when he was pukey, flat on the bed when I was breastfeeding, as a sunshadee, to swaddle, to clean up everything. Endless stuff, They're fab!

Oh, good to know dor. None of my muslins are big enough to use as shade and I spent our walk yesterday shading his face with my hand! How do you tuck into the pram?

Ah! Have just seen "clam-p clips" on the jojo website! Designed for that very purpose!

Here's hoping you get a couple more long stretches every now and again so you can at least recharge the batteries a little, sinks. Good to hear you're not feeling so desperate, though :)

I'll add those to my mental list, dor!

Good tip dor. I guess we need to start making a list.

I used to use clothes pegs or just tie it on at the corners!

I seriously found them the most useful things I bought and they have washed brilliantly. They are a bit faded but will still be good for number 2.

I hadn't seen those clips. I bought some massive clothes pegs and they were crap. I found cheap wooden pegs were more effective or just tying on!

Yeah, pegs, bulldog clips, or knots sound like the easiest solution.

sinks it sounds like you are doing marvellously!

frank how's the boob?

dor how are you feeling? Are you looking forward to your replacement hols?

I am really looking forward to tot it buy I am also pleased that we have next week off.

I am just having a tough few days and missing my Mum loads. I keep looking at The Little Mister and seeing how awesome he is and how funny he is becoming and I wish Mum was here to share it too.

Boob is better thanks though still quite swollen. E can't/won't latch on to it because the lump is right behind the nipple so it's flattened out and she can't get a good mouthful. Extremely gross I'm afraid but what looked liked pus came out when I was expressing in the shower so I'm hoping that's the infection shifting it's way out.

Sleep was good last night too, she went 11-1.30 and 1.45-6 which was amazing, though my boob, which I'm constantly having to express on, was almost solid when I woke up.

I'm still having up and down days, when things go well it's great but when they're bad I take it very personally - like E's crying is my fault. I know it's not and that crying is the only way she can "speak" but it's hard not to be upset when her cries are so loud.

Bugs since you have a huge car you have loads of choice! If you have £££ a bugaboo buffalo has lovely big wheels, same as I have on the donkey, carrycot, seat can go either way, decent shopping basket, extendable handle for tall people. Uppababy vista is very popular too, fantastic carrycot, huge basket, don't know about handle height. Baby jogger versa might be worth a look too, they are easier to fold than other pushchairs and have nice big seats which will last well into toddler years. Mountain buggies have big wheels for off roading but seem to lack the parent facing option.
I had a mamas and papas urbo for a while, it was great for small car and public transport but the handle didn't extend high enough for our liking and I know you are both tall. I started off with a graco system but it was not the best choice. Carrycot was lovely but chassis was a/pain to fold. Haven't seen one of those b dual ones up close.

bugs I highly recommend going to Kiddicare if you can. We went in and said This is our budget, these are the things we require and this is the car we drive and she showed us the options. She also gave us a discount FOD buying everything that day. We've got the babystyle oyster which I luff (I only have a polo so needed something that folded small) but I have to admit its crap off road.

That sounds yucky but satisfying Frank and hopefully you'll be on the mend now. The crying is so tough - like you say it's the only way newborns can express themselves but it can be incessant! It does get easier!

We've got the Uppababy Vista. It's great!

If you do decide to buy some from Kiddicare let me know as I've got a 20% off discount code for online purchases. It's an unlimited use code so if anyone else wants it too PM me.

Well done on the sechsing bugs! I am currently some sort of fiend and am finding CGH extremely attractive ALL THE TIME. I'm sure it's some biological reason as he's the father of my child, but still!

Glad you seem to be on the mend frank.

We're off to kiddicare in a minute on the way home from the inlaws.

Well done bugs!

I'm feeling a bit down today about the scan results. I have been googling (I know, I know) and the outcomes seem to range from fine - full size, full term baby, to early (in some cases very early - 30ish weeks) delivery, to in a few very sad cases stillbirth. I just feel like the universe owes me a break.

Oh euro I am pretty sure that google is not your friend with this one.

The thing is that statistics always look bad but you have to be assured that you will be well monitored.

My friend's daughter was diagnosed with major abnormalities in utero. She is currently competing in gymnastics for Wales for the under 6's. She has problems to contend with but if the stats were to be believed then she should have been terminated because they were so poor.

I guess all I am saying is that you have to be hopeful for a successful outcome. I will continue to hold you in my prayers and in The Light x

It is hard but stay away from Google. You will get extra monitoring and care to ensure the best outcome for centime, which is most likely to be a healthy term baby. What did the scan say exactly? Have you been referred to consultant? Perhaps a chat with a medical person would reassure you?

I have been diagnosed with a slight case of reactive hypoglycaemia. Bloody healthy diet has been prescribed for next nine weeks avoiding excess of glucose. I think I will start on Monday when the lindt bunny is gone...

I am very happy as have just been to pick up the co-sleeper we have bought second hand, It's in perfect condition and ideal for what we need!

Definitely get the Lindt bunny out of the way first, kat.

Thanks Dor. I am a non-believer but will happily accept all Good Thoughts.

Never had nipple cramp bugs but pregnancy does all kind of strange things.

I've just been for a nap (I never nap during the day) and feel slightly better now. I was tired and teary earlier. I think I still have the tail end of jet lag and might be fighting off a cold - I am slightly stuffy and just a bit out of sorts. I'm also worried about my mum. My parents came up earlier and she is just not well. She has lost loads of weight and is not herself at all. She's had loads of tests but no one can find what is wrong with her beyond the broken arm and sleep apnoea, neither of which would explain all her symptoms.

The scan showed increased pulsarity and notching in both uterine arteries, kat. Apparently you can have the increased pulsarity or notching on either side. I have both, on both arteries. Basically the blood is having to work really hard to push through to the placenta. The main risks are developing pre-clampsia and the baybee not growing properly - either your blood pressure goes up crazy high to push it through or it doesn't manage that and the baybee doesn't receive enough blood and oxygen, or both. Centime has been smaller than the 50th centile all the way through so I am worried that he/she is not getting enough blood.

I think this is where having opted out of the NHS symptom is probably not helpful (although reading online the NHS often seems to do what has been recommended for me - a scan at 28 weeks, with some drs recommending an extra one at 24 weeks, plus aspirin). I will see what my independent midwife says on Monday. Maybe I will need to go back into the NHS for consultant care. While everything was going well I wanted the medical care to be as hands off as possible. But now I might find more monitoring comforting.

I would definitely head back in for consultant care. You need to experience and expertise of people who know what they are talking about.

I also know about people who have had highly medical deliveries but they have been amazing experiences. I guess you just have to reframe your expectations of what you wished for originally in line with what you are now having to deal with.

That's what I'm doing dor - whenever I thought of birth before I always thought of water as I love being in water, but now my mind is thinking of a OBEM flat on my back hospital birth. I suspect a medicalised delivery is probably inevitable now. Unfortunately, my local hospital has a nice MLU but the CLU has a terrible reputation, so I might need to see if I can change hospital as I really don't want to end up there. A good friend of mine (another IVFer) had an early induction for pre-eclampsia and didn't have too bad a time. I'm going to try to have a chat with her about it.

Half of babies will be below the 50th centile. Its OK to be lower so long as they track their centile, which is what extra scans will show you.

Although we all want the best possible birth, I think we have to keep eyes on the prize and remember we went into this for the baybee at the end of it. I had an induction in CLU last time, it was not that bad. The birth is just one day, you do what needs to be done for safe delivery. I would definitely get back in the NHS system.