Due in June part 3 :: Entering the 2nd trimester, bring on the blooming!

[NattyandThomasandBumpandSanta]

new thread as old one once again will not load in the time it takes me to make a cup of tea so as far as i am concered thats too bloody long!

keep this one full guys!

N&T&B

how many weeks are you straw?

sorry, laptop down.....16 weeks, over the most horrid sickness ever and now just curious that i imagined the whole thing..

16 weeks too!

Oh hell!! Just looked in the mirror and realised my boobs are starting to grow! I went from a 34B to a 36DD with dd and they never shrank! I'm going to look like Jordan by the time this baby comes (except with a considerably bigger bum!). .

Strawberri LOL at the pregnancy ailments thread!! VV funny and oh so true!

Hi all and Happy New Year!

Not new have been posting as Ingalls until we'd told our RL pals who also use mn. Nice to finally be under my proper chat name and not having to keep changing login! Will put up stats too as no longer a poss give away to id: Me: 28yrs old, SAHM, 1 previous early mc. DH: 28yrs old, Surgeon. DD: Phoebe, 16 months and a wee charmer. Had emergency section last time after failed induction at 40+12, dd finally arrived after 54 hour labour at 40+14. Hoping for VBAC this time round at Aberdeen Mat Hospital.

Welcome to: AuntyMandy - no6 wow! Hollyandalice, KDRay, Sleepychunky, and Strawberri - and anyone else my pg brain has poss missed during quick catch up read down thread.

Daisybump - have you tried John Lewis for bras? Tend to be pleasant when doing fittings and have a reasonable range (Royce are patcularly good if a bit pricey and think just come as feeding bras but comfy!).

Doggus, hope your fully recovered after being sick over Christmas - poor you.

Tallulahbelle - hope your dh has been spoiling you after missing out on the misery of those early weeks!

17 weeks to day and finally felt ome decent kicks - been feeling fluttery movement since around 15 weeks. Been so diff to dd who was kicking hard at 14+5, never experienced gentle movement with her at all - could this one be a boy ? Gave up and climbed into mat clothes at around 14 weeks - jeans were just so much more comfy, feel huge already compared with last time and have neat, small bump already - nice to be past chunky stage. Boobs finally starting to change, still vaguely bfing dd so again been diff from last time. Def getting bigger and need to get re-fitted soon. Passed driving theory test last weekend and hoping to do practical in about three weeks time - eek!

its a girl! one of each

Lovely news NT&bump! Sounds like a good excuse to go shopping for something pink for your hos bag!

That's great news N&T&bump - now try not to buy too much before the birth

Congrats N&Tbump, buying girls clothes is sooo much fun!!!! You can never have too much pink!

fab news n&t you sound pleased

i just got letter this morning saying my spina bifida test is normal, so pleased as i have a neice with spina bifida and i see how she struggles with every day life.

Hi again everyone! Just a little update - I hired a doppler last week as DH was desperate to hear the heartbeat. Although we only hired the cheapest one, it works fine and we've been able to find the heartbeat every time. DH recorded it on his mobile and played it at work, asking everyone to guess what the noise was. People guessed it was either a train running on the tracks, or somebody running down a street! Nobody guessed it was the baby
Still at the "fat rather than pregnant" stage, although in the evenings my bump is a lot more bumpy than during the day.
Looked into NCT classes near me but got the information through and we can't afford to go, so will just be going to the midwife-run antenatal classes. Have discovered 2 people near me who are due within 2 days of me, which is nice as I was worrying about not knowing any other pg ladies in my area.
Anyway, better get back to work but nice to hear how everyone is doing!

Sleepychunky
19+1

NT & Bump that is great news, girls clothes are great fun....so many cute outfits and little shoes to match! Although I am happy either way (& as long as healthy!) I secretly would love another girl!

Hi Nikie welcome!! - glad to hear not the only one from the Brum area. I'm not a million miles from you I'm not far from Alcester & Redditch. Have friends and family over in Solihull and DH is from Solihull too. Have recently been to MUMS in Solihull also for some private scans. Which hospital are you booked in? I'm planning to find some yoga classes so if you hear of any!

Sorry to hear you're not well auntymandy also have hacking 'bag lady' style cough which makes me whince everytime also 16 weeks......

Lucky you hollyandalice my boobs never grew with DD - seem to be getting bigger this time - have my fingers crossed as although not exactly pert would love to know how it feels to be jordan-esque!

Sleepy - cost is exactly why I never went to NCT last time (or this time) found hospital parenting classes were great though never bonded as such with others in class. Went to some classes run by the Health Visitor just after DD was born and still meet up with girls/kids from there alot. I think all health centres run these straight after the birth for new mums and its just not my area but would definately recommend!

Good news NT&B...I'm also hoping for a girl so I can have one of each, but DH doesn't want to know....only a week to work on him though.

Hello newbies...hope you are well. Surely the ms must be passing for all of us now. I've got a stinker of a throat infection which has lasted over a week. Pharmacist wouldn't sell me any throat lozenges so I've eaten about a pound of boiled sweets today...maybe I should get some suger free ones as I think sorbitol has a laxative effect.....[sorry, tmi ). Sneezed in the car today and I wasn't braced for it and thought I was going to keel over with the pain. Ligament pain definately worse this time around.

On the bra saga....went to Bravissimo (we don't have John Lewis in Leeds)and paid £56 for two Royce bras ....a bit 'industrial' and they show under all my lowish cut tops, but whats a bit of lace between work colleagues . Feel much more comfy now. They're not nursing bras but I noticed that Royce do them too. Also got some camisoles in Debenhams which are by Miriam Stoppard and are the comfiest things ever. They give a bit of support to both boobs and bump. The material isn't that nice, but who cares....wearing them as pyjamas and much more comfy at night too. There are also knickers in the range, which I'm tempted with...although 'over the bump' knicks do seem like a step too far in the comfort stakes. god this is getting expensive...I just hope that these bras will do me till I need nursing bras, can't take the expense.

Have a good week xx

Daisybump, glad you got the bra thing sorted - nothing worse than being uncomfy. Price you were charged sounds way over the top - £28 a bra, mind you guess they have a captive market. I've never paid more than £24 a bra in John Lewis for the nursing ones. Might be worth trying online at Figleaves or similar next time if can get fitted before hand and can wait a few days. Blooming marvelous are now stocking the nursing ones at £23.99 if you need them nearer delivery time. Nursing ones not too bad under low tops but the fuller cup means sometimes visible round the sides rather than bottom iyswim?

Trace2, great news re the spina bifida test.

Have wandered about NCT classes too but they're really pricey. Found my local ones not that great on info front last time round. Barely told anything about induction, c-section etc, all very basic stuff you could get reading a good book. That said it was lovely to know some of the faces on my ward when I had dd and a few of us still meet for lunch once a fortnight. Made 2 paticularly good friends from the class so not a total waste of time. We were a huge class of 22, which was quite intimidating to begin with. Want to attend some classes this time as hoping for VBAC and just wanting to ask a lot of questions and stuff.

ok anyone thought about feeding?? and nappies?? what which you doing bottle or breast? and real nappies or disposable?

i did bottle with ds and dispoable but thinking of doing the breast and real this time but just dont know where to start with real nappies

trace2 real nappies are a great idea, but I found them a right pain in the bum!! You need loads if you are going to use them all the time (unless you want to do 3 loads of washing a day) and they cost a fortune. Kushies are 45.00 for 5!! They are also massive and trousers won't fit over them. If you are feeling environmentally conscious you can buy Nature Baby nappies from Waitrose. They aren't as absorbant as Pampers or Huggies, but they are biodegradable!

I got 2 nursing bras last time in the M&S sale for 5.00 each. They are really pretty and lacey, so keep your eyes out!!

Trace2, I bf dd until just recently ( still having odd feed every few days but at an end) and am hoping that bf will work out well this time too. On a nappy front we use Tots bots with Motherease wraps and they've been fab, will be using again for no2. Would recomend the following site Nappy Lady if thinking about cloth nappies, lots of info and even a questionaire to fill in for free advice - takes into acc things like your drying facilities etc. Also check out the forum on here, lots of diff opinion on what's best on a nappy front and lots of folk who know heaps and can give you a pointer in the right direction, ditto on the bottle/bf debate, although can get a bit heated .

On a disposable front would echo H&A, Nature baby ones are good - we use occasionally when out and about or leaving dd with friends who aren't sure what to do with the cloth ones. They do nappy bags and wipes too which are also biodegradable and the wipes seem to be ok on sensitive skin and a little less harsh and def less perfumed than some on the market. I've found washing has been ok, was once a day when dd was newborn - used to put on last thing at night and into dryer/radiators come morning. Now down to every 2/3 days as she only goes through 4 a day. Again if you fill in questionaire on the link I posted will advise re numbers etc.

Breast fed DD. Plannedfor just the first three months but DD wouldn't give it up (tried everything!) until 9 months. Did not enjoy breast feeding found it difficult. Didn't like the leaky boobs, sleeping in feeding bras, etc. I'm not sure at moment as have worries regarding emotional impact on DD if I'm breast feeding all the time - she starts school in September and we're moving house (hopefully) too! Have nothing against bottle but jury is out on this one for me!

Did seriously consider real nappies with DD and researched it quite a bit,agian my plan was to use disposables for first few months and then switch when got into routine....but never happened, I was very put off when visited someones house that was using them for two of her kids - the inital outlay, amount of washing and drying... also may seem fussy to some others but when I saw state of some of nappies (grey, fraying around edges, etc) was quite put off!

I can see the environmental arguement etc and hats off to anyone who makes that switch, I obviously chose the easy way.

thanks girls sooooooo many mixed opions, just dont know what to do?

#found a place near us that take away dirty nappies and bring back ,but so expensive.

i may try bf but again like Seansgirl says i have ds 4 half at home, dont want him getting upset.

god so confussing wish some one could decide for me lol

I'm kind of with you on this one seansgirl re bf and nappies. I only managed to BF DS for 6 weeks, and it was agony and a chore and the worst time of my motherhood by far. I couldn't get him to latch on properly and had constant cracked and bleeding nipples (tmi for all you first timers...sorry). I was a single parent too, so there was no one to even hold him for 5 minutes until we both calmed down (obviously it was frustrating for him as well as me) I started expressing at six weeks as I couldn't face latching him on at all, and he seemed to enjoy the experience more and we both started to relax a bit. Switched to entirely bottle fed by eight weeks (fed up feeling like a prize Jersey) and after that we didn't look back. My HV was less than supportive about my choice and made me feel like I was letting both my son and womankind down in some way which still rankles after nearly five years. So, I'm being philosophical this time. I'll give it a go, but am not prepared to martyr myself over it if things aren't working. Also DH will be working away during the week and not sure how I'll cope with it in the early days, given I'll be trying to get DS ready for school and out the door by 8:30 every morning....I have visions of me at the school gate in my milk stained jammies, with 'just got out of bed' hair and poor Cameron wearing three day old pants with weetabix crusted into his face and clothes!
Where nappies are concerned, I wanted to use real ones with DS, but I lived in a flat, with no garden and electric storage heaters so drying them was the biggest issue. This time, I've got a garden and gas radiators and a tumble dryer, so the drying wouldn't be an issue. But, I can barely keep on top of the washing I have to do at the moment, never mind factoring in the new baby...and all the nappies. I'm also a bit obsessive about my whites (woe betide DH if anything coloured goes in with them by mistake.....stems from a childhood wearing grey and off white socks and pants...thanks mum) and I know that if they got discoloured I'd be after throwing them away and starting with fresh. If anyone out there can convince me that they can be kept white and sparkly for the duration, then I'll be sold!
sorry for being so long-winded

Daisybump health visitors are a nightmare!! I have had many and they all find something to whinge about. I had real problems bfing my dd at first and a really lovely mw told me to use nipple shields (the best piece of advice I ever had!). I had to use them for 3 months, but was then able to feed dd for 13 months. Every time I saw a hv I was told I shouldn't be using nipple shields as they restrict milk supply. This is in fact a load of rubbish as my dd was putting on weight faster than any of my friends babies, bfed or bottle, and I was producing so much milk I had to express quite often to be more comfortable. I was then told by numerous hvs that my dd was too big and to feed her less often, I became really paranoid about her weight and felt really miserable. You cannot win with hvs, they all have conflicting advice and you must
trust your instincts. If you don't feel you can bf then don't, it's not the end of the world and don't let people make you feel bad about it.
P.S. I hate these threads on MN where the 'bfing police' slate every woman that can't, or doesn't want to bf. Although bfing is best, it is clearly a personal choice.

Sorry, just had to get that rant off my chest!!!

Trace - I filled in the enquiry on the Nappy Ladies site and they sent me a lovely email advising where to start. As I got my 20wk scan today and all was ok I went straight onto Ebay and bought a starter pack (not exactly loyal to Nappy Lady, but I'm sure I'll spend enough money there).

I've just invested in some Tots Bots fluffles. I will be trying these out in June, so I'll let you know a)how easy it all is and b)if I stick to it.

I was a bit rash going out and buying it before the babies even here, but heho.

I intend to breast feed too. But will be trying to express for at least one feed a day, so a)DH can feed baby and b)baby gets used to bottle.

First time at all of this so haven't got a clue if either of of my fab plans will work!!

I think the key to it all is you have to do what feels right for you and be prepared to be flexible - if something doesn't feel right or is too hard work, it is often not worth it. At the end of the day you want a happy baby and a happy mother. I think that it is fantastic if you can bf but don't put yourself through torture if it isn't working. All you hear is how "breast is best" but we don't hear of the down sides to bf - it just doesn't agree with some people.

I bf DS1 for 6 months and ds2 for 4 weeks (he didn't agree with my breast milk and was sick all the time on it but got along really happily with formula).

On the nappy front, I used fuzzi bunz and found these really easy to use and wash. I did wait until ds' were over 6 months though where you will go through about 3 nappies a day.

Agree with you Anobal. Like you say, you have to do what you are most comfortable with and what keeps you and your baby calm. Would really love to bf, but there's no guarantee that it'll work out that way, so I'll try for as long as I can and then at least I've given it my best shot.