July 2014 - Here comes the 3rd trimester, hold on to your knickers! Thread 6

[ZingWatermelon]

hope you like the title!

zing and maggie I am definitely getting the push/kick/hold thibg. I defintely felt a weird hard limb that wouldn't move yesterday so had to rub it. Baby does more squirming and pushing now than kicking...or back flips from the feel of it! Means my belly ripples almost constantly now...think people think I have an alien in there.
In terms of bathing I've got a bath support that my mum found in a gorgeous second hand childrens shop, but think I'll probs get a baby bath too. Mum told me it's nice to put it on the moses basket stand to save your back a bit (obviously you have to hold on tight!) and she said it makes for a good laundry basket/dolls bath afterwards

Or a foot bath patch or small sand pit... so many uses that I can't see it being wasted!

Baby is very wriggly today and I'm trying to concentrate on learning my new job... pelvic floor exercises seems to set it off!

Patchwork You're right, once you've had a cleaner, you'll never go back. I always make a point of telling people to get one when we are asked to fill out a guest book / leaves (don't ask...) / notelets at wedding with advice for the newly married couple. They work wonders for relationships.

Blue A TMI suggestion - but I've always eaten a big fruit salad for breakfast. I chop up at least four different fruits to make it more interesting day after day, I add three tablespoons of fat-free yogurt and then I put 30g of All Bran on top and eat it whilst the All Bran is crunchy. I've never been constipated in my life, consultant told me that's probably why. Have you thought of All Bran? It really does work...

In other news, I need help. We're going to the wedding of some very dear friends who are quite quirky. They're having a very hippy-ish sort of wedding (DH's eyes have been firmly looking at the back of his skull for months now) and I've just been told not to worry as there will be a chair for me (I'll be about 36 weeks). This implies that everyone else will be seated on the ground so has made me a bit uncomfortable about wearing a cocktail dress as I'd rather not have my hem hovering at their eye level. They also told us that there is no dress code and that the bride will be wearing flats. So I'm totally at a loss. The vast majority of weddings we go to are "morning suit" formal, so I'm drowning in hats etc. But I've got nothing for a casual, vegetarian June festivalish wedding that will stretch to fit the bump. I was just going to buy a nice dress from the Luxe Seraphine range that would double as a dress for the opera at week 39 (can you tell I've packed our last few months with baby-unfriendly events?) but I feel that would make me look more formal than the bride. I'm at a loss, they won't give us guidance, and our friends and I are panicking slightly. Does anyone have any ideas? Has anyone ever been to a hippy festival wedding before? Someone suggested I wear a maxi dress but I feel myself automatically resistant to the idea - what do you think? Might it be appropriate / comfortable?

PS Zing I don't like bathing newborns either. Or holding them, If I'm honest. They just feel so breakable (and squirmy!). Hoping that passes when ours arrives, or the poor thing is going to have to be raised by our DCats as one of their own...

Gin would a colourful sarong or boho skirt and sandals work? With something plain on top maybe? Depending on the weather there might be some v v soggy / sorry bottoms out there!

Oh no blue not what you want, hope that stops soon. A very chilled day required I believe!
I went to the doctor's this morning to get different sickness medication as had enough got some to take 3 times a day which seems to be working for now. Got to work a bit late and then felt so feint and unwell was sent straight home got a fair bit done though so going to physio. Wasn't sure if should cancel or not but thought if not coping can always come home and better to try...just hope I can get back into doing work mode when get back as so much to do!

Thanks for all the bath advice. ..still not sure whats best...think will try a support and if not coping buy a bath but will be useful for the long term...

I had a maxi dress for my cousin's hippy wedding. I didn't get to wear it as I gave birth 16hrs before hand!
I was going to wear it with flat sandals and a flower in my hair instead of on a corsage.
The dress was plain turquoise and I sewed on a lace daisy chain round neckline, hem and dotted around the skirt.
It was very pretty even if I do say so myself
Dh was more of a problem as he is ver traditional and wanted to wear a suit and tie. Looking at photos later, he would have been really out of place but not alone. You could pick out the family members (mostly dressed for a tradition wedding) from the very hippy friends.

homeiswheretheginis
you're wedding sounds alternative to say the least. I had a maxidress from ted baker for a wedding last summer, so although it was a maxi it was pretty/smart enough for a wedding. Hoping it will still fit me for for a wedding at 36 weeks lol! if not ive got a maternity maxi dress from jojo which although casual I think with a nice cream cardi or.jacket will be smart enough (and this wedding certainly isnt in a field!)
However as a wedding regular (8 in 2013 alone) I would say that people really do wear all sorts so you probably don't need to worry about how dressy or.not.you are. People will forgive you anyway as they will see you're pregnant and know you have limited options.
Now having flashbacks to my own wedding and the surprise.i had at some.of the very casual clothes some guests wore...at the end of the day though I was just happy they were there!

On the subject of gin, have discovered that tonic and lime is lovely and I can almost fool myself that it's a real g&t!!

blue

what iron tablets are you taking? what is the dose?
if they make you feel ill stop taking them, please.

Zing can I be updated please? Have nc'd from firstbaby01. Due date has also changed from 17th to 11th and expecting a boy :) you can tell I haven't checked in on here for a while

Thankfully dh as able to get the day off (not sure how) but came home and took DS out so I have been in bed all morning. DH took one look at me when he got home and said I wasn't to take another of the iron tablets and to put in a bulk order for spatone (which I've just done... V good offer on at boots.com at the moment too so I have enough until 8 weeks post partum... That should keep me going!). I'm also about to do a tesco shop with lots of iron rich foods too!

home both my mum and grandad have also suffered over the years and grandad had allbran and prunes every day for breakfast for as long as I can remember! I tend to have sultan bran or similar and have added prunes too since being pregnant. I must just have stubborn bowels :) just not when faced with iron tablets!!

On the wedding thing...I think a maxi dress would probably be your best bet... You could pick one up fairly cheaply and use accessories to glam it up a bit if needed, you would also be confident no one was going to see up your skirt then either:) As for what to do with the guys that is always more tricky...I know my DH would hate the idea! More casual trousers and an open necked shirt?!

for all

oh and holding a newborn normally is not a problem but the bathing thing is...

well, I might as well tell you.

When I was 12 and my cousin was expecting she and a few adults (inc my parents) were chatting about disabled children. I wasn't in the room but overhead the conversation.
my cousin said that if her baby is born disables she will drown it in it's first bathwater
gasps and awkward giggles followed by "don't be silly"
but she insisted "I'm not kidding, I don't want a sick baby"

I remember feeling sick and panicky, had nightmares about babies and children drowning and was really worried she'd kill her baby for the rest of time.
when she was born saw them in hospital and I cried with relief that she was healthy and alive.
Then I forgot all bout it.

When DS1 was born and the midwife showed me how to wash him I felt sick and panicky and was shaking.
I just couldn't do it.
it wasn't until DS4 was born and my mother was nagging me and criticising why I never do it (massive argument) that I blurted it out "because I don't want them to drown! "
and as soon as I said it I realized where that fear comes from.
it was very traumatic to hear what my cousin said and the fears I built up never left me.

I know it's safe to bathe a newborn and I know I'd be careful and nothing would happen but I just can't do it.

sorry for bringing the mood down but I felt I had to explain.

home yes I'd go maxi dress as well. I got a nice one in the sale from ASOS (I feel like that's my catchphrase) which is kind of floaty but with embellishment/sparkles on the shoulders and straddles the dressy-but-not-formal line nicely. Sadly they don't have it any more but they've got similar stuff. And I expect they might have chairs for older guests etc as well (rather than you being sat on your own, throne-like!) but if not maybe a beanbag or something might work?

zing it's amazing what lodges in our minds and rears again at a later date-at least your DH was supportive to do the early bathing-no suprise really that you felt so uncomfortable about doing it.

Did someone mention cake think that might be what's needed right now...

zing that's such a traumatic thing to overhear at a young age. did it affevt your relationship with your cousin at all?
I don't blame you for feeling scared of bathing newborns given what happened.

Gosh zing how horrible can totally understand your feelings...feel bad For bringing it up now...sorry!

must be the answer!

My goodness zing I'm not surprised you were traumatised by that!

Although I am the eldest of several siblings and have nieces and nephews that I have cared for a lot and done the bathing/feeding/overnightcare/taking them out the youngest is now 6 and I feel like I've forgotten what to do! I know it will come back but still worries me a bit!

Thank you all for the wedding attire advice. I've never been to a casual wedding before, in our crowd it's always formal attire. In the 30-odd weddings I've probably attended, I can only think of one person that didn't dress up and it caused quite a few eyebrows to be raised. DH is worried about it too, I think he'll go for chinos and his club blazer with a country tie (attending a wedding sans tie, even where he's been told to, is probably more than he can bear). I will start looking for a maxi dress that I can dress up then. I feel foolish asking this but what about jewellery? Pearls I suppose, as anything else might be a bit too formal? If anyone comes up with anything else, do shout out as any advice on this would be gratefully recieved. I've just seen that Seraphine have some quite pretty small formal jackets with french cuffs, I might order one of those and try it over the dress. It just feels odd to be so casual at a wedding! That said, it's their day so I'll try to make it work.

home we went to a hippy wedding in june last year. majority of women wore maxi dresses myself inc, the men wore everything from fitted suits to chinos to linen trousers, small few had ties. I wore a dressy maxi dress with some bling from topshop & leather flipflops. hope that helps

So my bad day got worse...crashed into the back of someone
Bye bye cheap car insurance and hello expensive bills. Was a hire car so no chance of settling without involving insurance.
So so annoyed at myself... that is all!

Home I genuinely don't think I've ever heard of pearls being described as the informal jewellery option! I clearly don't move in the right circles

I'm now thinking maybe we should push you right out of your comfort zone and make you go the 'full hippy' - tie-dye for Mr Gin, and an earth goddess look for you with floral head dress and bare feet

Seriously though, maybe a maxi dress with some embellishment would work, and then you wouldn't need to worry about jewellery. Like this or this (sorry I can only do ASOS, it's an affliction)

Thanks for support everyone.

oh ickle that's just shit.
poor you. are you ok?

My goodness this thread is moving fast! Still haven't caught up!!! Sorry about your crash ickle

Home I have a bit of an informal wedding about a month after my due date - family one so have to go. I ordered a strapless maxi dress in my usual size (which surprisingly fits me now with room to spare - probably due to the flounciness!) and some leather sandals. Was planning on adding a well placed pashmina/scarf in a complementary colour to save my modesty if breast feeding/incase its a bit chilly and some dangly earrings/bangles

I only popped in to say bleugh! I am sooooo 'over' work today! Currently fixing up a paper to be published and soooooooo sick of looking at it! I seem to have very little concentration span for anything at the moment - think pregnancy is rotting my brain!

Can't wait til DH comes home in an hour with my click and collect grocery order so I can munch choccie biscuits in frustration!

Hugs to everyone suffering today - take care blue and I hope you feel better soon!

home our hubbys would get on well mine has been known to be the only one at a europe wide week long training course to wear suit and tie everyday whilst everyone else just gos casual. When I asked why he didnt just not wear his tie he looked at me as if I was suggesting murder, and told me that he'd carefully selected shirt/tie/sock combo's for the week and wasnt about to break that up now! As for weddings...well if there aint a matching pocket square then there's trouble...

ickle I hope you're okay and getting over the shock. Make sure you put your feet up this evening and don't worry about insurance stuff too much.

Had my 28 week MW appointment today - my less than impressive bump didnt even make it on to the chart, so have a growth scan booked for Wed. 95% of me is not concerned, given that at 20weeks belly was negligible and yet baby boy was above average size on scan. Plus, a few of the girls at my running club have needed similar - I'm hoping that I just have better abs than I ever appreciated before. However, 5% of me is somewhat anxious.... wish scan was tomorrow instead. Im anticipating a very long Tuesday.