August 2016 number 5 - waddling towards the third trimester!

[Mslg]

For the August 2016 ladies and babies!

The other thing worth doing is looking at thenappylady.co.uk and filling out the questionnaire, she gives advice on what should suit you based on variables including your height, drying facilities and all sorts with no obligation to buy. V helpful.

Thanks for the and isthere, I am feeling a lot better after a good night's sleep last night..and a lot more optimistic too although, given that DS didn't go to sleep until gone 10 tonight, I might just be burying my head in the sand

We tried various disposable nappies, but ended up sticking with Pampers until a few months ago when we started getting a lot of leaks so switched to Sainsbury's Little Ones. I really wanted to use reusables but in hindsight I'm glad we didn't as I think we would have had a nightmare getting them dry in our old house. Shame as they're so much softer and cuter than disposables!

Had my first NCT class yesterday - was a bit disappointing :-( Very, very small group (4 mums) so hardly an opportunity to make lots of friends, especially when the facilitator decided to have a fun 'game' to see what we thought on such issues as smacking, co-sleeping, 'crying it out' etc! It was a bit all over the place as some of the mums/dads weren't able to come to second session so we jumped from logistics of childbirth to how to soothe a crying baby and I left feeling rather overwhelmed :-/ No information that I hadn't already found by reading either. Have found pregnancy yoga much more of a help. Ah well.

Hiya I'm 7 months pregnant and now needing to get maternity wear. I have put on roughly half a stone. I am a plus size I wear a size 20 and I can't find maternity wear an anyone advise me.

Hi Ava, have you tried New Look or H&M? I noticed a couple of days ago that they both go up to a size 20.

So I've just been asked to be godmother of my cousins children! Their christening is the 3rd of July and I have nothing to wear! So any ideas where I can get a christening, 9 months pregnant godmother appropriate dress?

That's nice Christine! I have 2 christenings in June/July, although I'm not a godmother.

I've bought a nice dress from JoJoMaman and also found quite a few good options on Asos. None of them are overly formal though, as our christenings will be fairly relaxed affairs. More like smart summer dresses. I guess it depends on how formal the do will be? Also would you consider a maxi dress - that's my back up option for my July event - it will hide cankles/swollen legs, and you can wear flats with it. Not sure if too 'beachy' for a godmother too!

I've never even been to a christening let alone been someone's God mother! It was thinking something full length, flowey and maybe white/ floral. Il have a look on both those websites, thank you!

Hiya LongTimeListener. I have visited their stores but they had very low stock of maternity wear in general. Online might be best

I ordered masses of stuff online from New Look, H&M and Gap on Friday for the same reason - there's hardly anything available in the stores. DS was a March baby so I have no summer stuff at all. I'll probably pick out a few bits and probably send most of it back..

I've just put 'maternity maxi dress' in the Asos search box, lots of cute options!

It's so frustrating that you can't try them on! You'd think with the amount of women who have been pregnant and encountered this problem someone would have done something about it by now! I don't care if it meant a day in blue water to find some maternity shops but I don't know that there is any..anywhere

Topshop, H&M and M&S are the only shops I've found that have maternity clothes in store. Not in every shop though. Oh, and Mothercare. Mothercare have loads of maxi dresses, by the way, stranded and christine although they'd need to be "dressed up" with smart accessories as I think the majority tend toward the casual.

One tip I have: maxi skirts and maternity tops. I'm still able to wear all my pre-preg maxi skirts, including some dressy silk and chiffon ones (I.e non-stretch material), as I just wear them under the bump on my hips with a properly fitting maternity top. So, if you want a smart wedding or christening outfit, try any shop for a nice maxi and then team it with a plain maternity top?

Apart from the three shops above, I've done as longtime and others have- ordered masses on line, tried on at home and sent back the ones that didn't fit or looked awful. Mostly from ASOS and Gap but one or two bits from Seraphine.

Sorry, just re-read and realised that sounds like a stealth boast about fitting into my pre-preg skirts..... I just meant non-maternity maxi skirts are worth a try as I've managed to wear mine despite pregnancy weight gain.

Haha it doesn't sound like a boast plimsolls! I have quite a few pre-pregnancy things I can still wear because of the cut they are but there are other things that there is no way I am ever fitting in ever again!

Christine That'll be lovely being a Godmother - I imagine it'll be a really emotional day what with your own little one nearly here :-)

Little boy has been giving me a scare today. He has been so kicky all this week but obviously needed a nap today after the excitement of NCT yesterday! He's still been kicking and moving but just not as much or as vigorously as yesterday. Did the whole 'lie on your side and make sure you feel ten movements' thing though and he obliged!

Is anyone else getting awful leg cramps? Mine are so bad they're waking me up in the night and they leave my legs aching all day afterwards. I'm sitting drinking tonic water in the hope it'll help but it's just making me miss gin!

Ooh, and while we're on clothing. If anyone is buying from Gap any way, I'd recommend the Gap Support Camis. I've been wearing them under pale coloured or light weight fabric tops; they hug your bump, smooth everything out, stop things looking so see- through and kind of mask the visibly protruding bits like my weird belly button

Mine were in the sale but I think you can usually find discount codes for Gap.

Thus ends my Maternity Wear bulletin.

Phew -sophia! Glad your little boy obliged with a few kicks. It's a horrible feeling when they go quiet.

I'm sorry about the leg cramps, sound horrible. Tonic water is an excellent idea. I read somewhere that bananas help with cramps too. Good luck.

It seems he really loves tonic water - just had a bit of trampoline belly! Yeah, it's horrible :-( I feel really lucky that I have a posterior placenta, as it means I get to feel a lot of movement and be reassured, but that kind of makes it worse when he goes quiet. I don't work a 9-5 office job either, so my days can be totally different and it's difficult to keep track of what's regular. Will try and eat some bananas :-) Oooh banana bread!

I have similar issue with work. I'm using an app called Foetal Sleep Tracker, which you just tap every time you feel a movement (you can "back date" as well if you feel movement when you've not got your phone), and it builds up a pattern of active/quiet times. I find it interesting but most importantly reassuring!

Hi Ava i am plus size too and have brought mat jeans from mojo maternity, Asda do nice ranges but most plus size is only available online so you have to order although j have found them good sizing. Next also do a nice range of bits, the range is limited but i live in their best tips as they are nice and long and will be great for summer! I brought my work trousers from eBay so also worth looking there!?
With my first pregnancy I was a little smaller and found lots in H&M in blue water I think, the store is much bigger than the local ones!

Best tips should be vest tops

Sophia I've recently started getting leg cramps too, I read it can be caused by pressure by babes on the big vein that runs up from your legs to your heart, so things like laying on your back while you're sleeping can make it happen. I'm most comfortable sleeping on my back, so I figured this is why... Trying to make more of an attempt to side sleep!

Thanks everyone for the nappy advice, I have also just received some very helpful info from the Nappy Lady (cheers lots!) and have found a local group that runs a trial session so will go to that once babe is here and see how I get on with it all. I think it totally depends on your babies size and build as to which brand suits, so I will wait until s/he's here before investing in anything.

soph sorry to hear NCT was a bit of a disappointment, how many sessions are you booked in for? I had a couple of friends who did NCT, one who absolutely loved it (still very close to the mum friends she made) and the other who thought it was a complete waste of time/money and came out of it feeling more confused than when she started! I think unfortunately it depends on group size and if you are lucky enough to meet like minded ladies. I hope your next sessions are better, otherwise have a look for other local mums groups...yoga/pilates/coffee mornings/facebook groups etc.

Anyone heard from lily ?? She hasn't been online for a while, hoping all ok.

I think Liky posted on the Facebook group fairly recently. She had been back into hospital for a bit of monitoring as the baby had gone quiet but everything was OK in the end. I think I've remembered correctly!

Sophia im dissapointed you had a bad first NCT experience, too. We just went to one session, 9 couples so a chat was probably stetched out a lot more - but no silly first meet conversations, more about what we wanted from the sessions and loads of talking about difficulties or choices around giving birth! Id feedback - its so much money you need to get value for you.

Christine congratulations on being godmother! Ive stuck pretty much with ASOS for mat wear, free delivery and free quite easy returns. Going to a shopping centre brings me out in a cold sweat. Also Vertbaudet for a pair of jeans which fit really well but there was some dresses in the catalogue.

Im about 5'11" so found all my pre-maternity tops came up a little short on the bump quite quickly when I tried to match with maxi skirts. Old maxi dresses are ideal stil and so much more comfy!