Due in July - Part 3- we are a chatty loy...

[twoplusone]

Thought would start a new thread...

Morning from sunny London!!

Can I just ask how much baby stuff people have bought so far? I haven't bought anything yet and haven't really looked at much. I'm not sure why as I'm very excited about the whole thing. I think maybe I'm just worried about tempting fate - something going wrong and having to take all the stuff back, that sort of thing. Also, I'm very lucky to have been offered lots of things to borrow, like pushchair, moses basket etc. My good friend has also offered to lend me her car seat (14 months old). I have read that you shouldn't buy second hand car seats, but if it's from a trusted friend ... not sure about this??

Is anyone finding any relief from the achy hips? I'm just so tired at the moment as I'm waking up 6 - 7 times every night because my hips ache. I try to prop myself into a sitting position which works for a couple of hours but then feel uncomfortable again and have to reposition myself on my side. I'm driving dh mad, and feeling v ratty today. I suppose I should try to get used to the lack of sleep as it's only going to get worse this summer .

Hope the sun is shining where you are!

abgirl- I do miss Aldershot.. had/have some great friends there.. my mam still lives there.. she is moving to Ash Vale ( I think!! on Thursday.. she has just bought a 5 bedroomed place there with her friend.. so plenty of room for me and my brood when we visit!!.. I will be there next week.. as going home for the memorial service of her friend.. hoping to get some visiting in too..

I already have odema in my legs... can still wear my wedding rings for now but they are starting to get tight.. but I always bloat.. fill with fluid quite badly when pg.. after ds it tok about 10 weeks till I was fluid free!!.. Nice thing to look forward to again.

miaou.. tbh if dh wasnt in the army I would prob have another.. but 4 bedroomed quarters are quite rare.. been left on my own with three is going to be bad enough .. he informed me on friday looks like he will be going back this time next year!!!
I need to get him dwn the doctors!!! lol

Goodluck with the scan tommorrow myfairone..

I had my first enquiry from stranger today about when I am due.. must be the new tops I bought.. they really make my tummy look round and very pg....

looking forward to my doppler scan next week so that I can see lo.. on the other hand am very nervous...

catstar- re carseats.. tbh when I had dd money was very very tight, my ex step mum gave me her carseat that she had used for her dd.. who was 2 at the time.. I would say aslong as you know and trust the people who are lending/giving it to you then it will be fine.... TBH whats the difference between you using there used carseat and me using my used car seat which I will be doing defo not buying another one..

catstar, i would check that the car seat your friend has is suitable for your car, normally possible on the car seat manufacturer's website. Did your friend buy it new? If yes and hasn't been in any accidents then should be OK, but do think it is wise to be cautious. Otherwise take up all offers of things to borrow, particularly moses basket, baby baths etc. as they really don't use them for long and you end up with a loft stuffed full of baby paraphenalia! I waited until 24 weeks with DS (when the pregnancy is deemed 'viable' - horrible word!) and then bought loads!!

MMnika, am not doing the protein dipsticks unless told to by medical people, I do get obsessive about things like that which is why I also don't have scales, a machine for listening to the baby's heartbeat or a BP monitor at home. I would be doing them all day everyday and think I am more relaxed without them! Trusting my body to tell me if I am getting PE, which it did last time...

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I'm glad someone brought up achey hips and lower back! I woke up with a really stiff hip last night and then couldnt get comfy again. I have tried all sorts of pillows etc but nothing really seems to work. I mentioned it to the midwife who only said 'oh dear'! So I take it that its normal and have to just grin and bear it!

Glad to hear that everyone is still managing to wear their rings! Good sign!

And to answer the question regarding 'what have we bought'...I have bought nothing for the baby but have bought some stuff for the room. That said, I have left it all at my parents house and plan on bringing it round when we decorate (hopefully Easter).

Does anyone else have to keep reminding their DH that they are pregnant? Mine has a brain like a sieve and asked me to and I quote 'jump up into the loft' to get something for him! When I refused he was like 'oh yeah'! grrrrrrrr.....

Have a great afternoon and sorry to all those that feel ratty due to lack of sleep! Thats normally me and I really feel for you.

Good luck for all the scans everyone (of all sorts!) seems like a busy week ahead for many! (& thank you FirstStar!)

RE. car seats, like the others said so long as you can be sure it has never been in any sort of accident & fits your car ok it should be fine. I have to admit most of our baby stuff was borrowed or bought second-hand- a colleague gave me loads as had decided 3 was enough and wanted to clear her garage! - was good stuff too And our car seat came from a friend too- been offered a newer one by another friend so may use that this time.

I didn't gather much stuff until about 28 weeks gone last time, and then DS was born at 30 weeks and still hadn't got loads of stuff- but in retrospect was glad there wasn't much baby stuff at home as it is very hard when baby is in hospital- we finally got everyting the week before DS came home.

This time I am also trying not to tempt fate but am lucky I have a lot from before so not too dire... To be honest in the early weeks you don't need too much- somewhere for them to sleep, a few changes of clothes, somewhere to change them and bath- but I used the kitchen sink for a while for that as with a c-section found bending down to bath level hard!! I also used a sling for a long time so didn't need a buggy for a while.

Abgirl- I know what you mean about becoming obsessive- I also don't have scales, BP monitor etc. to panic myself with!! But cons wanted me to get dipsticks so got prescription from GP....

Hope achey hips ease somehow- have to admit I'm lucky & haven't had this. Hope physio can help somehow xx

Hi All,

Doesn't the world seem a better place when the sun is shining?!

Catstar - I was the same as you til about 10 days ago and then I started buying Got a pram and some reuseable nappies so far, oh and a sleeping bag... and a couple of bits of clothes!

I also wonder about the used car seat stuff. There is only a risk if the seat has been involved in an accident and occasionally it can be hard to see any damage. I have a feeling that car seat manufacturers are encouraging the fear in this area so that we all spent £100s on new car seats. I would agree with others that you should try and get a history on the seat, check it over for any damage and I believe you can sometimes take them into garages or something to have them checked? My personal view is that I don't think a parent would lie to another about the safety of something a important as this for the sake of a few quid second hand on ebay or whatever. It would of course be ideal if you could buy from a friend and be confident of the history etc. I will be using a second hand one, and carrying out whatever checks I can.

Wow - that was a bit wordy.

Glad everyone is, in the main, feeling good. My mild groiny SPD is now quite annoying. I wasn't expecting this at all. Ouch.

Enjoy the sun!

Hello all,

I haven't been on for a while. DD has had chickenpox but is out of the contagious stage now. Luckily I've had it before so no risk to me or baby.

I didn't buy much until very late on last time (8+ months), but was itching to get things but DH held me back. I would recommend shopping for things a bit earlier, as it was very tiring going round shops when heavily pregnant.

We borrowed a lot last time from DH's sister, but she is also due in July so we don't have that luxury this time round, so we need to ask friends if they will lend us things instead, as it seems silly to buy things now as we're not planning another. Two children is enough for me I think, although we have somehow started to talk about what it would be like with three - don't know how that happened!. If we suddenly decide 3 is what we really want, I'd want to do it quickly as I'm 35 and don't want to be too old when they finally leave home(and I worry about increased risk from downs syndrome etc).

I'm 24 weeks today which is quite a key milestone, as abgirl pointed out. I remember last time round feeling so much more relaxed at this stage, as the baby has a reasonable chance of being born now and surviving.

Last week was the first time someone noticed my bump and asked when I was due, so must be getting bigger, although not massive yet. However, for those of you concerned about weight gain, I was worried last time when people kept saying I was small for my dates (I didn't really weigh myself). I put on loads of weight right at the end, and found I had gone from 9st to 13st! I managed to get down to just over 10st before this pregnancy, and hope I don't put on too much again (although with all the sweets, chocolate, cake, buttery toast and crisps I may find I do!).

Hope you are all well, and enjoying this blooming stage- apologies to those still suffering from morning sickness/heartburn etc. My only side-effects at the moment seem to be constant hunger, and leg/feet cramps, so I feel very lucky.

Hi ladies,

Not been around for a while as we were in Centreparcs last week on holiday and I had a busy run up to going away. CP was really really good and we had a ball. My DS (2.10yrs) loved it all and we enjoyed a bit of rest in the evenings once he'd nodded off. All in all a great time for not much money...

I've tried catching up as much as possible nice to see we've got some newcomers and good to hear from those with scans.

EmmyB - I've had really similar dreams about being punched in the stomach. I'm wasn't sure if I could just feel the baby in my sleep or if its a kind of paranoid dream. I took part in a University study when pregnant with DS about teh psychological effects of being pregnant on women and the results showed that a large number of us had very vivid dreams or waking fears about being punched / kicked / falling over - just generally hurting the baby.

Abgirl - Am very very impressed you can keep the secret from your DH... Are you able to tell us or do you want to keep it a cyber-secret too

Baysmum - Hope you are used to the idea of a second boy... We are having our second boy as well and although I had moments afterwards of feeling a little strange about it, I'm now loving the idea of my two little boys... As this will be our last baby I do wonder what it would be like to have a daughter but I've resigned myself to the fact that I'll never know.

Can I ask a baby name question - I already have a 'Max' and really like Zack for DS2, but they kind of sound quite similar. What do you all think??

Hope everyone is doing well!!

Hi Chooster

Am keeping it a cyber secret as well as I suspect that some of my rl friends are mumsnetters too and I've said enough to be identified on here (and have photos of DS in my profile). Have actually told most family/friends that we don't know as it's easier than getting hassled about it all the time!

re baby names we have definitely chosen 'Sophie' if it's a DD, and either 'Samuel' or 'Lewis' for a DS. I really like Max and Zack and think they go well together.

We are definitely just having two dc - can't go through pregnancy again and don't have a big enough house or bank account to have any more - more seriously we made a concious decision just to have two so we can afford to take them abroad when they are older, go to disneyland etc., and have a nice non-struggle life style. Can see the attraction of bigger families though!!

hi justaboutmanaging we have been talking of moving to and we have decided that it would be better to move heavily pregnant than with 4 year old and a baby

but in our case ds1 has autism so think it would be better to settle in house before baby arrives for him anyway..

plus you get to sit back back and watch everyone else do all the lifting

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Thanks for all the advice ! I think that I've probably got the 24 week viable milestone in the back of my mind at the moment - but only one week to go!! I think I'll start to get bits and bobs as I go along looking out for offers etc to spread the cost. Good point about checking that the car seat would be suitable for our car .

Kyte - thanks for the tips from your physio. I have already tried the first two points you mention, but will combine with the one about the upper body tonight. Thanks.

Good luck to all with scans to come - and justaboutmanaging congrats on selling the house!

Chooster - I second CentreParcs! Great fun and good value. I think we might sneak in another trip before no.2 arrives. I am in the same boat as you - another boy. I will see how it goes... but have to confess that going for a no.3 could be a possibility!

JAmanaging and bubble. I think we are going to move also. So I will be joining the heavily pregnant movers club with you guys. I just remember that after DS arrived I found it hard to cope and if its the same this time around I can't see how I would manage new baby and DS just under 3 and looking at houses / planning a refurb. That said - there are plenty who do! And a fair portion of my NCT class moved and re-furb'd with their new babies!!

Welcome back Chooster. I love those names and think they go well together.

J A M, I don't envy you! Don't fancy either options. Last pregnancy we had a new kitchen fitted and new floor through dining room and kitchen. The decorator finished on the Saturday and I went into labour on the Monday night. Very relieved it was all done in time but not great for your nerves. Of course this time we are getting a new bathroom fitted......

Myfairone. My Dh is opposite and wont let me get away with anything. Also constant comments at work should you be doing that?? You shouldnt be carrying that.... Dont cross your legs...

Abgirl Sophie is a lovely choice my DD is a Sophie and she is fantastic!! Im still having a nightmare trying to think of boys names. I just dont like any...

Emmyb i am quickly learning not to tell dp things I shouldnt be doing (such as crossing legs) because he will nag me about it, on the flip side he also conveniently forgets I am pg when it suits him too (in the middle of the night when ds wakes up) He's a good un really though

Glad I am not the only one who is big in the tummy - its reassuring as a work colleague who is almost a month ahead is hardly showing and i think it gives me unrealistic expectations!

We were house hunting while I was pg and i think exchanging contracts while i was having a marathon labour but dp did all the work liasing with estate agents, solicitors etc and told them off for stressing me out on the phone! We moved in when ds was about one month but paid for packers (worth the money not to be living in boxes in a too small flat) and dp who is a tidy freak unpacked within days. DP is reg blind so like to be organised and have things in their place.

Yes it really is 2.30am and sleep is nowhere to be found for me! I have no idea what happened but went to bed feeling really tired but really excited about my scan tomorrow (whoops, I mean today!) and then bang! woke up at 1am and I am now wide awake!

I have tried everything from tossing and turning, moving to the other room to cuddle the dog (who is not one bit impressed at being woken up so early!) and now I have resorted to peppermint tea and a biscuit!

I have no reason to be worried about the scan (as my DH keeps reminding me!) but you know what its like. Will just be so relieved when I hear the sonographer say that all looks well.

I love the names that you are all deciding on. Max and Zach are very strong names and Sophie sounds very pretty and delicate to me. We are still undecided, mainly because we have such different views on names. I seem to be drawn to names with 'ie' on the end for some reason but DH prefers the more traditional ones.

Hope you all slept well...I have 10 hours to wait for the scan!