March 2016 #6, we're just breeding here!

[MyNameIsSuz]

New thread, whoop whoop. Come on over!

This is interesting to read. I'd assumed everyone loved baby showers so it's interesting to see the opinions. I personally did have one with ds1 and I did felt awkward. I hate being watched opening presents and it was weird not giving anything back. I didn't consider one this time as I didn't think it was "done" to have a baby shower with every baby..... is it?

Loving everyone's names! We were up til stupid o clock last night discussing names and still can't agree with ANY!! Is anyone else on team blue struggling with boys names?

Hello again March mums!

Yes beautiful do have a baby shower if you'd like to and if it's a milestone Parker for you. I think it's a nice celebration & need not be too over the top.

So glad you've been feeling movement :) DH hasn't been able to go to 12 or 16 week appointments because of work so we've just got a doppler (£20 on Amazon ) and his face lit up today as he heard heartbeat for first time :) think we may get addicted to listening to the little one!

Ooh glad the subject of weddings had come up. We actually got engaged earlier this year, booked everything up and then unexpectedly found we were expecting. It was a shock but also a very nice surprise as I'd been diagnosed with endometriosis (hope that isn't over share ) & we thought we might struggle to start a family. So its been a very happy addition to our plans but it does mean next year will be very busy as the wedding is booked for august 2016! Hopefully we can pull it all off though! Any wedding tips greatly appreciated though!

Hope the sickness subsides soon

And also loving the names - Edward & Tamsin both get a big thumbs up :)

hayley Yup, we're team blue and have nothing either of us really like or can imagine calling our son yet!

I'd quite like a baby shower as I think it'd be lovely to get excited about the impending arrival but as I don't have a circle of friends I know I won't be getting one (just as I had no hen party - although that I didn't want anyway!)

neh What sort of wedding are you planning? Sounds like you've got the venue booked but have you booked other things? In August you'll find lots of suppliers (hair/make-up, photographers, caterers, cake makers etc) booked up so don't hang around!

Weddings are usually a lot of fun, be they tiny or enormous. I always like going. DH and I did the Christmas season tiny version like you Beautiful - our anniversary is just after Christmas and we had only our very immediate family (9 people including us) present for a quick civil ceremony and then a fancy lunch. I personally wouldn't have minded just popping down to the registry office, but DMIL, who I love to bits, was heartbroken at the thought of not being there. So we gave her a budget and asked her to organize it . Everyone was happy.

Took us ages to get around to having kids though - married 6 years before we seriously considered it, and even then DS was a surprise. I feel like my life is a weird game of pregnancy bingo: termination (in uni, awful ex), ruptured ectopic (lost one tube), surprise conception and DS, another surprise conception ending in early miscarriage, and then planned conception on the first month trying (this pregnancy - now 22 weeks).

I've just been in the USA for a few days (hanging around in the airport now!) and I am so impressed at the selection of maternity wear I was able to find. Still no good lightweight nursing tops (issues with gapping due to big boobs) but I have some lovely jersey shirts with button necks that I'll be able to wear through pregnancy and for nursing for a couple of months until the weather warms up. I really look pregnant now - my bump has sort of popped up and baby is carrying high.

ThePug we are having low key summer wedding, garden games that sort of thing. We'd put deposits down for all of the suppliers before we found out I was pregnant so that's another reason why we decided to go ahead as planned. Hopefully 5 months will be enough time to get back in to some sort of shape!

TheMshipIsBack fingers crossed you find the maternity tops soon. My bump has also just popped up in the last week too! It's funny how things work out isn't it. Everything happens for a reason I guess!

I have to say I am not a fan of weddings in general, at least the traditional UK style! Just my personal preference though, I've never been to a small wedding (9 sounds lovely!) and I think I'd enjoy that a lot more than big ones with all the tradition. Unfortunately me and DP both come from large families, if we were to have only immediate family - I have five siblings, three of whom have long term partners, two parents and two step parents, and DP has three siblings, a SIL, and two parents. I also have 6 nieces and nephews! Plus my nan! So no small intimate wedding for us haha. My brothers girlfriend is also one of my best friends, which would make it awkward as would mean one of my friends slipping into the wedding and my other two best friends being left out!

We've actually been talking about getting married in January before baby 2 comes, for legal reasons rather than romantics ones. If so will just do the two of us at registry office and get a couple of witnesses from somewhere, possibly a couple of colleagues from work. Just the difficulty of telling our families what we're planning to do, DP says we should just tell them and just say we're not having anyone there, but I think it'll be a bit awkward! Still no more awkward than getting married on the sly and then announcing it I guess...

marmite You could always do the ceremony like that and then invite everyone round for dinner. My DSIL's DB (if that makes sense) and his wife did it that way - there's a big annual family picnic and they turned up saying "look we got married this morning!" and cracked open the bubbly to celebrate. One of the nicest 'weddings' I've ever been to.

neh I'm actually browsing nursing tunic sewing patterns online while I wait for my flight. I've learned how to make simple things like trousers and t-shirts for DS, so I think I could probably manage a button-top light weight tunic.

Lovely names marmite!

An old friend of mine eloped and got married by themselves in Scotland. They just organised a huge party when they were back and she wore her dress again. It was a fab idea!

hayley I've only ever been to two baby showers, both the same person! (As described above!). Though the second was much more reasonable and restrained, as more guests had had their own babies by then and seemed to get the point of a baby shower rather than it being an excuse to show off. Much more enjoyable!

So if you want another one, why not!

neh congrats on the engagement! I don't think there is such a thing as over sharing when in a few months we'll be discussing perineal tears, shitting ourselves in labour and then copious lactation!

Regarding wedding tips: it's your wedding, do what you want, invite who you want. Don't do anything to please anyone else. (Remember: "those who matter won't mind, those who mind don't matter")

I don't know if my bump has 'popped'. It is certainly starting to feel uncomfortable at times, but it's always looked big to me.

Back to work tomorrow so I'll note any comments about it. (I'll be disappointed if there are none now!)

Morning all! Loving the discussions about names, baby showers, weddings, you really cover it all on here!

I've thrown a couple of showers for people, and have opted for something cake and craft based after being present at a hideous shower full of seemingly totally humiliating games. We did some lovely decoupage alphabet blocks at the first one, and fabric paint stencilled baby onesies for the second.

Is anyone else having to do a risk assessment for work? Am just going through mine with my (slightly hapless) manager, who has asked me to fill it out and then he will "finish it off". Been googling templates online. I work in primary education but do behaviour support outreach, so lots of travel, no work station, lots of contact with challenging little ones... Wondering how on earth I'm going to make it through to maternity leave. Any advice greatly appreciated.

All you experienced ones out there,
do you know when really is the usual time to start buying things?

I'm thinking like pram/travel system, cot etc?

i'm only 22 weeks this week so keep wondering if it's too soon, but also wanting to be super organised too.

just don't know!

Hi q, I'm 22 weeks too and have a cot and car seat so far, mainly because these have been given rather than bought! I don't know when we will start looking at prams, probably not til Feb I would have thought. I'm prioritising a sling to begin with I think.

Thanks flen

I already have baby bath and moses basket as these were given, got a nursing chair and footstool yesterday as they were a bargain so only really needing to get cotbed and travel system - chosen the travel system already but won't be getting it until jan/feb time, so really only the cot i suppose - and that's no rush as won't be used of r first few months.

I just seem a bit lost, feeling like I should be doing something.

I don't intend on having a proper baby shower, but will be meeting up with my friends for an xmas lunch mid december and they have said they're going to give some baby gifts then.

No risk assessment here, but the place i work is useless! I hope to god that I can find another job while I'm on maternity so I don't have to come back here!

Ha, experienced!

Cucumber I've already got a few bits including the Next 2 Me crib. But only because we've got gorgeous amounts of storage in this house. It's really nice to think I'm 22 weeks tomorrow but got nearly everything ai need. I'll get the pram at the end of January so it doesn't spend weeks collecting dust/being used as a pram for dolls. I'll get the mamaroo swing whenever I win one on eBay for less than £150...

Ginger are you ok?

Ooh DD2 has chickenpox!! I'm rather excited... 7 and a bit years of parenting, 3.5 children and this has never happened to us!!!

Q I definitely have that want-to-be-doing-something feeling too. Am mainly managing it by looking at baby clothes!! We are moving on Friday this week and can't wait to get into the new house so I can start planning and getting things ready. After the hideous unpacking, obv...

Beautiful what is the mamaroo swing?!

Beautiful- hope dd is ok. I had chicken pox at two years old but brother had it at 18! . I'm glad I couldn't remember having it.
I found out at booking bloods I'm not immune to rubella though so having the mmr after bubba is here. Felt baby jab me again yesterday evening after a quite day- she's quite again today though. It's very unusual as a first time mum as its so hard to know as I get some feelings that are still just gas but also a lot that's baby as we saw my tummy move Saturday night.
I haven't been sick again today and yesterday evening felt loads better and managed two litres of fluid which stayed down. I still feel really nauseated today though. I reckon I'll suffer until birth- I have never looked forward to labour so much as I reckon it must be easier than months of suffering.

I have so far a Moses basket and a cot as we've been given them but I read somewhere that your not meant to use the same mattress twice is that right?
Also been given a baby walker. Trying to talk oh into the mamaroo showed him videos etc but he didn't seem impressed and says a lot of money for not much lol.

Q I'm 22+3 today and DH and I have been buying things since we had the 20 week scan. Our nursery furniture is arriving this week which does seem early but it's mainly because we want to spread the cost of everything over the next few months while I'm still earning. Other than the furniture we've bought wall stickers, curtains and a lampshade for the nursery and a few clothes and a changing bag.

So quite a lot more to go! The pram I think we're going to get close to Christmas or just after it.

Q I've bought quite a lot just because I'm getting a lot of it on ebay so I get it as and when a bargain comes up.

We have:

• breastfeeding pillow (ebay)
• baby bjorn sling (ebay)
• assorted little baby clothes
• pram (bought new as had £50 off in nct shop). It's a babyzen yoyo so is teeny weeny - v easy to store
• bouncy chair (given to us secondhand)
• sleepyhead (given to us secondhand)
• car seat (given to us secondhand by family - a nearly new maxi cosi). We don't have a car so it won't get used much.
• Grobags (bought in sale)

So we're doing quite well! The cot and mattress are the only big things to think about now really. Ginger I think you are supposed to buy a new mattress but I'm not really sure why - might be due to it being stored in dodgy places with asbestos etc? But if you got the basket from a family member/friend I imagine it's probably ok.

oh and I also bought a new in box medela breast pump on ebay!

me a lot more to go? Christ, my list basically is now just cotbed, travel system, wall stickers and some clothes, already got drawers in the babys room and the nursing chair from yesterday. Also want a white sheepskin rug for the floor in there.

Won on ebay yesterday a full mapas and papas nursery set (including curtains, cot mobile, tie backs, nappy sack, cot bedding and bumpers, height chart) all for £24, was over the moon with it!

I honestly think that's all we are getting, I feel like maybe my list should be longer now haha!

Glad I'm not weird for buying now haha!

one more - changing bag as was 50% off in cath kidston...can you tell I'm a bargain hunter

oooh maybe I saw the Cath Kidston bag reduced in the outlet but resisted because it was pre my 20 week scan but might have to get it next visit!

We have bought a changing table as it was an ebay bargain, was just watching for one local and cheap and it came up quicker than I thought.

We have been given a moses basket and cot so just need to buy the mattresses for them and the bedding..

Apart from the at we have a fair few clothes already so I am going to hold off with that and going to buy the pram and car seat after christmas if it hasn't appeared in any black friday/ christmas deals..

I'm currently on the case selling the furniture in our spare room so that we can replace sofa bed etc with the stuff we are buying so there is a no net gain on ebay at the moment..

I haven't bought anything but a pack of three tiny hats! We live in a two bed flat though so there's nowhere to store anything. All the big stuff is in my in-laws loft from ds, including loads of clothes, so will get everything down probably after Christmas and sort through. As this one is a girl I will probably just keep the nice clothes and babygros as I know we'll be given loads of pink stuff!

My list is:

• big chest of drawers to replace the one in ds' room, so we can put baby clothes in there.
• crib, as we didn't really use the Moses basket anywhere but the bedroom last time, so it makes sense to get something which will last a bit longer and keep the baby in with us as long as possible. We're hoping to move before the baby needs to go in with ds, but won't be until at least six months old. Our bedroom is tiny so no way of fitting a cot in!

• big muslins
• swaddle pods that either Velcro or zip shut, as ds always wiggled out of his. Maybe I'm a rubbish swaddler.

That's it! No idea where car seat etc will go when we start needing them... It's going to be cramped!

Q, we bought our pram about two months before my due date last time, and the shop delivered two weeks beforehand (we were given a choice). That would probably be a good time as the January sales will be on.