It's all balls, bicycles, and babies for the PESH!

[maamalady]

Antenatal fred 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
Frankel - large pink one arrived 10th March 2014
Merks - pink one landed safe and sound 21st March 2014
Sinky - Stubborn blue one arrived 26th March 2014
Driz - blue one arrived 12th June 2014
Kat - pink one arrived 21st June 2014

PESH

Draf - Expecting a late pink one EDD 19th June
Winks - EDD 26th June
Ginger - Miniginger due 13th August
Dor - A very special pink one expected 18th August
Euro - eager Centime expected to arrive a lot sooner than 28th August
Buggerlugs - Buglet due 20th October
Fankle - ESHlet expected 4th January
Cunty - Minichops expected 7th February

So the June cluster is halfway through laying, and then we're on to the July/August batch! Are we even going to have time for Wimbledon and Le Tour and the World Cup in all this excitement?!

So glad you are home Euro and hurrah that Centime has been moved closer to home. I hope the jaundice clears up quickly and that the feeding issues resolve quickly.

With expressing, just bear in mind that what you can express is not necessarily an indicator of your supply. Lots of women see they can only get a few oz off when expressing and assume their supply is low.

bugs I had them loads. I only had to cross the car park at work to set them off! I spoke to my midwife who said she thought I had an 'irritable uterus'. The suggestion was to rest if they came on not bloody likely on the ward!. If they don't stop obviously seek medical help.

Euro it all sounds really positive, hurrah. I'm crap at expressing but 3 tips. Colostrum only exists in tiny amounts, it looks pathetic but it's like super concentrated gold dust type stuff! You need to be consistent with expressing and regular and you will gradually get more each day. Keep pumping for a while after the flow stops...you will normally get a second let down. And mornings are the best time for pumping

Yay Euro!! I'll pass on the BF advice because I couldn't do it. Medula pumps were my best friend for a while. Does it feel odd not to be pregnant?

Hooray euro! Hope you've managed a better night's sleep in your own bed and that Centime kicks the jaundice's ass. She's shaping up to be a tough little thing. Good luck expressing.

bugs I think it's weird picking someone's name. I keep looking at the baby wondering if I picked the right one. I mean, I like the name, but is it hers?

I'm utterly shattered. Some neighbours had a noisy party until the wee hours. I hope the ones playing drinking games have disgusting 2 day hangovers. I was getting to the point of stabbing something if I heard pharell bloody williams played again. Happy? Not fucking very.

Hi all, I hope everyone's well! I've not posted for ages as I've been in a bit of a pregnancy limbo - felt too pregnant for BESH but not quite pregnant enough for PESH. I've been catching up on what's been happening.

Euro - I'm sorry you've had such a shit time of it all lately, but congratulations on the arrival of Centime! Hopefully it'll be onwards and upwards for both of you from now on. Wishing you a speedy recovery!

Winks - your neighbours sound as inconsiderate as ours. Have you tried putting a stereo against their wall in the early morning and blasting out something loud and tasteless? As you say, with any luck they'll be suffering for a few days with nasty hangovers. Fuckers.

Draf - breastfeeding sounds like a bit of a nightmare! Having no experience I can't offer any advice, other than to quote Bob Dylan: "Keep on keeping on."

I'm 11 weeks now and had my booking appointment with a student midwife last week. It all went pretty well, until I got home and had a read through my notes... some pretty huge mistakes! For example, she'd ticked the boxes saying my blood screen tested positive for HIV and Hepatitis B, but possibly even worse than that she also ticked the 'yes' box to the question 'is the baby's father a blood relative?' What the fuck!? Mr Chops and I have been joking about the last one, but they could seriously affect my care pathway! I don't want to get the student in trouble as she was really good with everything else, but I do need to rectify the errors. Anyway, I'm hoping that when I have the 12 week scan I'll actually feel like it's all a bit more real. Plus, I've got 6 weeks off school now!

Awww

My sister and friend threw me a lovely baby shower today. It made me cry.

I didn't want a big do with lots of ridiculous games but I was so grateful that people came to acknowledge what a shitty year it has been and to help me celebrate the good stuff.

wants to see photos

cunty that is shocking! Those aren't little mistakes by anyone's standards (does she want your nickname to be IncestyChops?) Good luck at the 12 week scan, its a nice one (when you've passed the stomach rotting terror stage), you can see arms and legs and Actual Baybee :)

dor hooray for good friends. Was there cake?

.....

I know, they're fairly whopping mistakes! I don't want her to get into trouble as she was so lovely and was brilliant at taking my blood - I usually faint and get myself into a right UnBESHly state when I have blood tests but she was very good. I will mention it when I see my usual midwife at 16 weeks. Waiting for the letter with the 12-week scan appointment - so it's normal to feel terrified as well as excited about it then? I'm so scared of mmc I think I'll cry whatever happens!

Dor that sounds lovely!

How's it going Euro?

I think usually they would expect to see a rise in the number but a drop isn't worrying.

If they aren't worried I wouldn't panic about it.

cunty I cried with fear before my 12 week scan, even though I had private ones at 6 & 9 weeks), then cried with relief when they found the heartbeat at the 16 week scan. I relaxed a little for a few weeks but then got myself worked up into a frenzy the night before the 20 week one. I only really relaxed when I felt regular movements from her. Fear is very normal, I got a few days respite after each scan before the menkulling resumed.

cunty I think most people are a bit scared of the scans and long termers/mcers are terrified. I hate scans (and ended up having about 45 in this pregnancy). Like winks I would get a few days of reassurance from a good scan and then the menkulling would recommence.

I'm doing ok, thanks. The bruising has come out today and my fanny looks like it has taken a proper battering. It is literally black and blue all around the section wound. But it is less sore each day and I am moving a little bit more easily each day. My current woe is my boobs. KFZK had to do a mercy mission across London last night to borrow a breast pump from a friend. I have a hospital grade one on order that is coming tomorrow, but my milk came in yesterday and my tits turned to rocks. I had no baby here to do anything about it and hand expressing was just not enough. By the time he came back I was literally climbing the walls in pain. I've just been on the one in the neonatal unit and the relief is amazing.

Centime is still undergoing sunbed treatment for jaundice which means she is back in an incubator with limited opportunity for cuddles. She's struggling with feeding and the hospital are dicking us around a bit. Yesterday they insisted on formula top ups (warning us about the risk of infection and overmedicalisation of intravenous feeds) and basically bullied us into accepting against our better judgement. Today they have decided that they should be going for intravenous feeds instead. They are not filling me with confidence, I have to say.

bugs the name thing is so hard. We couldn't choose one for sure in advance as we didn't know if centime was a boy or girl, and awful as it sounds, given that she might not have made it, it seemed wrong to get too attached and naming her would have been part of that. So here we are on day 4 and she still doesn't have a name. We have set ourselves a limit of a week!

12 week scan appointment letter came in the post today: 31st July. 10 long days of menkul...

The menkul never goes. I am currently in a pre-birth 'oh God, what if something dreadful happens at delivery' menkul.

Yep, me too dor.

Yep, I agree - the menkul never goes.

I am really missing centime today. While she's under the jaundice lights they don't like her being out for more than 20 minutes a day. We both got a short cuddle yesterday (KFZK's first bit of skin to skin - I think I had something in my eye then) but I'm getting a bit tiger mummy and want my fricking baby baybee here now.

I hope the breast pump arrives soon so we can get up to the hospital.

Aw Euro that must be so tough. Not that it's likely to offer much comfort but centime is in the best place for now and you will have her home with you as soon as she is strong enough.

Cunty you have my sympathies. I've been building up the menkul for the last week or so as I've got my 16 week appointment tomorrow. I had the same fear for the 12 week scan and didn't dare look at the screen until they'd successfully found the heartbeat. MG's hand was well and truly squeezed. The high afterwards was amazing and lasted about 10 days. I've seriously thought about getting another private scan or buying a Doppler but MG keeps being calm, sensible and rational (I hate him for that but also love him for it). I just hope the midwife will listen to the heartbeat tomorrow so i have some reassurance. In my moments of clarity, I tell myself as long as I am gaining weight and my bump is creeping up on me..and no bleeding, then surely everything is normal. Surely. Right?

Sounds like it doesn't really get any easier from what the other PESH have said.

Just be aware they might not be able to hear the heartbeat clearly at 16 weeks, doesn't mean anything is wrong, just that baybee is a bit too small yet.