August 2016 (3) - scans fast approaching, teeny tiny bumps appearing, and sickness easing....we hope!

[FourForYouGlenCoco]

Well we filled the last thread up fast! Seems we talk a lot round these parts

Four so sorry for your loss I have one grandparent left and lover her dearly. Heartbreaking.

Thanks all for your nice words. Ketones were gone this morning when I was tested again. I have also emailed my useless manager to tell him I need to ditch some of the workload as its stressing me. Time will tell... I won't hold my breath just yet.

Fizzy what travel system did you get that fits in a Cooper boot just out of interest? I have a Corsa and the boot isn't huge in it either but having had two Minis previously I know whatever fits in a Mini boot will fit in my Corsa!

Feeling bumpier here by the day and I think I'm finally at the stage where I'm looking pregnant and not just more rotund than usual.

18 +2!

Mslg glad the ketones are normal now, hope your boss figures not to mess with a pregnant woman if he knows what's good for him! Don't stress X

As for the pram thing, well after much research there were only about 3 that would fit, and amazingly my friend was selling her almost perfect original oyster (don't know about oyster 2 or max) with carrycot and all the accessories and brand new colour packs (all the fabric bits) for £100. We tried it in the boot and it fits!! Had to take the parcel shelf out, but even so, amazing! The boot is the size of a shoe! So I went for it! Felt a bit weird going for a 2nd hand pram but I convinced myself it was ok with all new fabric parts and the saving of £400 odd quid...

Talking of bargains, thanks to whoever said about tk maxx, popped in today and got some lovely gro bag summer sleep bags for £13.00! Bargain

Oh but also there's pretty much only one car seat that fits, sadly not compatible with the oyster. It's the pebble by maxi cosi, so that on the easy fix base and we're good to keep the mini! Yay!

18+2

Ah pregnancy insomnia, there you are! So tired but just can't switch off.

fizzy may I ask which other buggies you tried in the boot of your Mini Cooper? I've been looking at the Uppababy Cruz but not yet tried to see if it will fit. I have a John Lewis near me which let you try them out so must get around to it!

Fizzy I'm usually quite stoic but that story about your gran nearly tipped me over the edge! How sad and lovely ❤️ So amazing to hear stories of such enduring love.
Awesome that you've sorted out the buggy/car seat issues too, don't worry about buggy being second hand!! It'll be just as good, baby definitely won't care, and you've saved yourself a heap of cash - wins all round. That's a proper bargain for an oyster too! We'll be having pretty much everything 2nd+ hand this time round - when my friends started having second babies I lent out loads of my baby kit so things like the sling, the jumperoo have gone through 3 or 4 babies at this point. Given what it all costs new, might as well get plenty of use!
Mslg good news about the ketones. Fingers crossed your horrible boss magically sees the error of his ways and sorts his ideas out.

Nothing to report here, just plodding along - expanding by the day at the moment! I feel enormous. Keep forgetting about 20w scan on Friday, good thing DH is coming with me or I'd definitely miss it! Baby brain kicking in I think.

Hi all - today I am 17w, which I can't quite believe. I still don't feel pregnant, just fat and ill. I'm still having awful sickness but some days are better than others. Today, after 12 hrs sleep, I've woken up just as tired. I'm lucky in that I can work from home when I want, so planning to have a quiet day on the sofa.

Being overweight anyway, the bump doesn't look any different. 2 weeks till next scan and I'm looking forward to that. I was originally dead set against finding out the gender, but I'm slowly thinking maybe I'd like to know. I know OH would like to find out. We wouldn't tell people though.

Nothing much else to report. How is everyone else doing?

Sorry for your loss Glenncoco

That's so romantic fizzy. Desperately sad too.

Hi pear Recognise your from our TTC thread. Had a quick glance at the Sep thread and it does make for depressing reading.

All good here. Still just looking tubby rather than preg, but it's time to get down the maternity gear I think. I survived a 3 day hen do at the weekend. It was really good fun, but everyone else was drinking hard and I missed not being able to booze. Hard to keep up the craic at 3am when you're sober!

Decided on this dress for work do/wedding www.asos.com/pgeproduct.aspx?iid=5105578&CTARef=Basket+Page It's very much my usual style, as I don't think I'd feel comfortable in a 'maternity bodycon' and I'm too short for a maxi!

Sitting having my morning cuppa and I can feel baby popping away - such an amazing feeling. Pretty sure I felt a poke/kick the other day too (I'm 18w5d)

Got my perinatal mental health team appointment later so hoping they can give me some support, as I'm finding it really hard to focus on work instead of worrying!

Hello all! Lovely to see the bumps coming along nicely. I remember I didn't pop until 28 weeks or so with DD and then had a HUMONGOUS bump (and baby) but have already started showing with this one. Tummy muscles definitely not as they once were.

I have a question for those that have had a vaginal birth previously. I did with DD but ended up with a 3rd degree tear pushing her shoulders out. Anyway, all fine with recovery, consultant at 6 week pp check said I had healed very nicely etc but my midwife has requested I see a consultant in a few weeks just to check I'm ok to give birth vaginally again. Has anyone else ever had this? I'm not sure if I'm doing to have to 'assume the position' for a physical check or if it will just be questions?

16+2

That dress is lovely Sophia. You'll also be able to wear it again as it's not overly 'dressy'!

Hello all, have had a day of CBeebies with DD2 on the sofa as she has a nasty virus so had to stay at home from school. Fortunately she's not too bad and just had a high temperature, there's also norovirus going round the schools near us so avoiding the D&V (so far) is a blessing! Tbh it was quite nice not to have to get up early and go to work!

I decided I would be one of those good mothers and when she said she felt like doing play doh, I decided to make her a new batch. Managed to pour nearly boiling water all over my hand (fortunately not over DD!) ouch. Now we are back watching CBeebies and both feeling a bit sorry for ourselves!

I had a look at the sept thread - it is huge! There were some unnecessary over reactions to someone deciding that the mood of the thread didn't suit them and explaining that they were going to step back.

I am 19 weeks tomorrow and have my 20 wk scan in 8 days. Time is racing!

I have now made my first purchase for DC3 - a new changing bag! Tk maxx have skip hop ones in at the moment for a 1/3 of the usual price so I obtained a bargain! I had a baba bing with dc1 on which the strap broke, and then something else which got worn out! When DD2 arrived I got a double skip hop and it was great but it's long gone nearly 6 years down the line so a new bag it is!

I'm sorry to hear about your grandad four.
**
That dress is lovely Sophia. I've just really struggled to find a dress for a wedding next month. I ordered loads from ASOS and they were mostly awful and far too long (for 5'1" me) and badly cut. I finally settled on a lacy blue one but it's not something I'd choose if not pregnant.

I think my bump is starting to pop, well my belly button is doing strange things anyway. I can now feel
movement when walking around, not just when sat still concentrating. I love it at the moment but can imagine it will get uncomfortable when they get harder.

And sorry to hear your DD is unwell lots. I'm going to try and get to TKMaxx to check out those bags. Sounds like a good deal!

Hello everyone,

Sorry I have been a bit offline, have had my mum visiting and work is a bit manic at the moment! Calming down now which is such a relief.

Had some very sad news today, my best friend who also found out she was pregnant just 8 weeks after me, has had a miscarriage :( I don't know the details, just that it's not good news and she's been admitted to hospital. Very upsetting as we were of course both so so excited about sharing this special time together with our 1st and I am unsure how best to help her get through it when I almost feel bad that I am still pregnant. I know that sounds strange, but I don't want her to be reminded of it every time we see each other. I will go visit her over the next couple of days when she is ready to see people.

Hope everyone is doing well, sorry I am not up to date on all the goings on, but sending happy vibes to all and welcome to any newbies! coco sorry to hear news of your Grandad

I am 19 + 4 today and finally starting to feel what I think are little movements, more like flutters and twinges...so I think this is the babe?! Still struggling with weird sleep patterns but guessing this is just my body getting me used to being exhausted 24/7!!

Have my next scan on Monday, can't believe how quick it's going now. I remember booking it in and thinking 'gosh that's absolutely ages away' !!

Hi everyone. Having a bit of a worrying time at the moment as my blood test showed raised AFP. I need a scan on Thursday to check for Spina Bifida. Trying not to worry. I do have increased risk factors due to diabetes and epilepsy but have been taking 5mg folic acid.

Thanks strandedabroad and Bergamotmouse. Hopefully I'll get a lot of wear out of it once it's warmer. Ooh is it the Mamalicious one Bergmotmous I looked at a lacy once too :-) My belly button seems to change every day - it's so weird to look at! I like it as a little sign that baby is in there pushing out though :-) My belly button popping proceeded my belly doing the same by about 2 weeks.

Really sorry to hear that bearhuggy :-( When I had my early miscarriage two of my best friends were pregnant and my other close friend had a little boy. I honestly didn't resent them one bit as I was still excited for them - it was seeing strangers with bumps and buggies that was harder for me. There is a lot of brilliant support for women going through miscarriage on here if she'd feel comfortable coming on. If the flutters and twinges feel like nothing you've felt so far, I'm betting it's baby :-) My scan is next week too - the weeks are flying by aren't they?!

I posted on your other post Tattie but wanted to add that AFP is just a screening test and not diagnostic, so it could be absolutely nothing at all. I hope the time passes quickly till your scan, and that all is well.

Sophia gorgeous dress! Just the right balance between pretty and preggers hope your appt went well today. Do let us know how you got on.

Hazza I've not had personal experience but I'd expect it to just be questions, and maybe a look at your risk factors to check the likelihood of it happening again (eg if you had a small/narrow pelvis, they might want to get a plan in place for your next birth). Really doubt there'll be any internals going on!

Dots your poor DD, hope she is ok - and your hand! You still get Pinterest mummy points for even attempting homemade playdoh. Agree that TK Maxx is brilliant for bag bargains - got one from there when pg with DD, don't think it was even supposed to be a changing bag but it did the job and is still going strong!

bear how lovely to be feeling movements, that definitely sounds like baby! So sorry about your friend. I was in a similar-ish situation with my first pregnancy. A girl I worked with & was friendly with had gotten pregnant by accident on a one night stand and was very ambivalent about keeping the baby at all. Kept drinking, smoking, going out etc all through her 1st tri. We were almost exactly the same gestation. I had a mmc found at scan at 13 weeks. She stayed pregnant and her baby was fine. I was absolutely devastated and I'm not proud of it, but I could hardly look at her. I obviously didn't wish anything bad on her, but it felt so utterly unfair that she got to keep her baby, that she didn't even want, and I lost mine. I really struggled to be friendly to her and (shamefully!) stood her up once - I went to meet her for a coffee, saw her waiting with her baby bump, turned around and went home again. It was a hard, horrible situation all round. Be prepared that your friend might take a bit of a step back from you - let her know that you're there for her, but be ready if she needs a bit of space. She will still be happy for you, but might just be caught up in her own pain & loss for a while.

Tattie sorry to hear that, how worrying for you. Really hope all is well, will be thinking of you on Thursday. You've given baby the absolute best chance by being on the high dose folic acid, you couldn't do any more. Everything crossed all ok, surely they would have noticed at the 12w scan if there was an obvious issue?

Lovely dress, Sophia!

Tattie, so sorry to hear about that & all the anxiety & stress you must be feeling. I hope you can get a reassuring answer soon.

Bear what awful news for your friend. All you can do is let her know that you're there for her but understand that it may be hard for her to see you. But make sure she knows you're there for her when she's ready. I've been in a similar position to her & ultimately my friend's support mattered hugely, as did the lovely snuggles with her baby while I was still waiting on my own.

Hazza I'd be surprised if they wanted to examine you, unless the midwife is concerned things may not have healed optimally? Not sure what they'd learn from an exam, but that's not my forte & I didn't tear last time. Let us know how the appt goes!

My belly button has already turned inside out & my son loves to poke it. I will need to do some serious Pilates after these 2 pregnancies to get my abdo muscles back in shape! Love feeling the little one wriggle around more & more though. One of the best parts of pregnancy, I think. I'm kind of jealous of those of you getting to do all the exciting shopping! We need another high chair, but nothing else really. All the excitement is in trying to think up names that go well with our son's.

Hi all, been only just managing to keep up the last few days. Wrote a post the other night and just as I was getting to the end my laptop died, grr!

Sorry to hear that some of you have had sad or worrying news recently. Glencoco sorry for your loss, hope your family are all looking after each other. Tattie, what a worry, sorry you're having to go through it. It certainly sounds like baby has been getting plenty folic acid though! Good luck for Thursday, hold tight and no doubt all will be fine.

Lovely bump photos guys. I can tell mine is coming along but I'm definitely in the 'still just looking tubby' camp! Had to undo my fly for the drive to work this morning though - classy! Really pleased because I got an order through from JojoMamanBebe today and praise be, I now have 3 pairs of maternity jeans/trousers. Going to start in them tomorrow even though I'm not really big enough yet, they're just so much comfier!

Also, I trust it's not just me that's not massaging their perineum daily with moisturiser/oil?! I read about this somewhere recently. I laughed at the time but after reading about your tear hazza I'm starting to think it might be worth a go

Hmm it's 2am and I'm now in a worry about my screening tests. I was too far gone for the combined test, but ended up having blood taken to test before the 15 weeks needed for the quadruple test. I got results back anyway saying Down's result was 1 in 7500 but others couldn't be done because I presented too early. Spoke to my midwife and she was all, "oh no, it's fine don't worry" but now I'm panicking that other tests weren't done and I'm now thinking about taking myself back off to pathology tomorrow to explain and ask to have the full quadruple test done. What do you think? I'm now (weds) 18+4

hi ladies, i've been travelling for work in the past week or so - missed a lot happening! including a lot of sad, difficult things - glencoco so sorry you've lost your lovely granddad, but so lovely your DD has had him in her life until now. great-grandparents are a rare thing!

bearhuggy, so sorry about your friend, but you're clearly very kindhearted so i'm sure whatever you say or do will be really reassuring. as so many of the others have said, i've been in your friend's situation, and though it's tough to be around friends whose pregnancies are working out, it also made me feel much more hopeful about the next time around - and you'll obviously understand what she's lost, which will help to connect with her.

tattie fingers crossed for you with the screening tests. sure they're just being extra cautious, but do keep us posted.

fizzyboo afraid i can't help as i'm not sure what the quadruple test is, but the downs results are absolutely fantastic.

i'm in a bit of a funk at the moment, tbh. after weeks of feeling calm and excited, i'm suddenly full of worry again. i've been feeling tiny taps and wiggles for the past couple of weeks, but nothing yesterday, which is freaking me out. i'd started to think about buying things and believing it's all really happening, but suddenly don't want to get ahead of myself again. 20w scan next tuesday cannot come round fast enough. i actually feel like time's going slower again!

Hi Fizzyboo I don't think it's standard practice to screen for Edwards' and Patau's across the country. I only got the Down's result - I think as that is the most common one.

Hi Clara. I'm in the week-long wait for the 20w scan too :-) Mine is a week today. I think it's normal for the taps and wiggles to not be consistent yet. I'm feeling exactly the same about the 'is it really happening' and have only bought a few bits in a charity shop so far, but am going to treat baby to a coming-home outfit if all goes well next week. Can you plan in lots to keep you busy till Tuesday?

Fourforyou Thanks for asking :-) Psychiatrist was lovely but there isn't much they can offer me. Although I have chronic anxiety, I'm pretty 'high functioning' (can hold down a job!) and am not a risk to myself or baby so there's people who need help a lot more than me. I am going to try and come off my antidepressants before third trimester, so I've got another appointment with him to support me with that.

Hi guys - though I'd add my perspective on testing...had to make a complaint to the hospital, as even though I mentioned nuchal scan at the 12 week scan, the midwife decided not to tell me that I wouldn't be getting it on the NHS (I'm in Northern Ireland)! So I'm too late for it now (16 weeks and 3 days) and the harmony test costs £550 here. The generic odds for a 31 year old with no family history are 1 in 800, which would be unacceptably low for some on here (understandably). Well, we've just decided to crack on and not worry too much. Just trying to be as calm as possible about this pregnancy - I feel like if I worried about everything that could go wrong, I'd never stop. My heart sincerely goes out to people who are prone to anxiety anyway, as pregnancy could be really such a stressful time. Just interesting to realise how different the service you are offered is, depending on where you live!!
xx

Ladies, sorry to change the subject, but, boobs! Have been having loads of grief bra shopping, not really able to find/get ones that properly fitted, then a thread came up saying how to measure yourself properly. Turns out I've been wearing the wrong back size 36 instead of a 34, and I've went up 4 cup sizes! Seriously recommend if you're in the same boat to have a look. I'm like a brand new woman!

Well I went up to the hospital to see if anything could be done. (I was too late to have the nuchal/combined test due to a power wielding receptionist not letting me see a MW till I was 14weeks)
Anyway much traipsing from dept to dept and finally they told me I wouldn't be allowed to have the quadruple test as they had already done the combined test (even though I was too late for it and therefore didn't get the patau, Edwards or spina bifida test, only the Down's) well I ended up with a lovely person who properly looked into it, got a head specialist MW to look, who said my babes head measurements etc all looked good, and I have my 20 week scan in 2 weeks so any anomaly would be flagged then.

I feel better now. I think it was just a case of the fear last night as my sister in law launched a stupid attack on me on Facebook (regarding my lovely post about international women's day of all things!) and then started saying she could easily win a debate about it but she wouldn't because I'm pregnant and therefore not able to deal with it! Well all sillyness I know, but she's a new mum too and it seemed she kept bringing up my pregnancy and attacking and it left me all out of sorts really! I'm a strong character but not confrontational at all, and it knocked me and set off the worries is all..

Feeling much better about everything today though