The Creme Egg Appreciation Society...memberships expire June 08

[debinaustria]

Good morning all you creme egg lovers ( and those weird ones amongst us who don't appreciate them)

Good luck for all the scans coming up this week, and next.

good morning! hope everyone had a good weekend. we started hypnobirthing on sat and it was good, despite dh's skepticism and b*tching about missing football! we listened to the cd last night (it's more or less meditation for deep relaxation) and he was asleep in about 2 minutes so it must have some impact! i was just falling asleep and ds woke up so i was very rudely pulled out of my peace.

feeling like this is the week - i'm going to get organised and eat healthier (no more bloody chocolate, i think i may actually be getting sick of it!). of course it's on 8.30am, we'll see how i do by 8.30pm!!!

Morning all- it's Monday a nd yet again I'm recovering from a MIL attack....onwards and upwards though as my mother arrives on Wednesday, and obviously still hoping for news that we have sold the house. Sorry- Monday moan there .

PJ- I have been give so much advice about introducing our dog to the baby....give the dog something of the baby's to smell before you bring her home. Make sure that you give your dogs attention the moment you get in the door so she (dog) knows that the baby hasn't pushed her out of the picture...then give the dog the baby's foot to lick so that she understands that they are all family. I think that's it, but I like the suggestion of bringing dog to the hospital. Will definitely do that.

Oh, and I much prefer William...could you use Aragon as a middle name? I just worry that he will get abuse in the playground...I had a friend called Nellie at school and she got Nelly the Elephant every day. Ernest, Eragon is a dragon slayer and not in LOTR....

Hope you find something to help Debs...haven't yet reached that point though have my Fybogel ready, just in case. I regularly get woken in the middle of the night for a party inmy tummy, but eventually go back to sleep, thank God. I still suffer during the day as a result though.

Suppose I had better get up and face the day...before he left for work, DH managed to tread mud all the way through the house so will be spending the morning on my hands and knees scrubbing carpet. The joys of married life!

Morning all, hope you all had nice relaxing weekends.

Am impressed with everyone that's bought stuff already, I really really must get started instead of just looking at stuff and not buying anything. Must move our computer stuff etc out of what will be the nursery, that might help me get started .

I have a question for all you experienced mums - I had several episodes of leaky boobs yesterday, which really surprised me for some reason. I didn't expect this till much later but I guess this isn't that unusual? Do I need to start wearing breast pads and stuff already [denial emoticon]...

Morning all,
We have also started to try and get organised. We have booked an info session with John Lewis where they run through all the things you need (mostly the basic stuff) and you can create a list that is accessible online. Luckily this is a free service and it kind of works like a wedding list, so anyone who wants to buy us presents can get what we want. We'll be doing that on Thursday evening, so hopefully by the weekend we'll have kept MIL happy as she is itching to buy us our crib!

Morning all! Lovely day here and after a v. unproductive week last week I'm hoping to get lots and lots done at work this week. Feeling so much more energised now than a couple of weeks back - avoiding sugar till the evening meal has made a huge difference, and I've also started listening to my pregnancy hypnosis CD in the evenings. I have no idea what it says as it knocks me out within seconds but I do feel a lot better afterwards so it must be good! I listened to it a lot in the run up to last time and I think that's one big reason a fairly traumatic birth didn't leave me with any mental or emotional after-effects.

Neenz, I have been having exactly what you describe too for the past few days, I think they are Braxton Hicks, I get them more if I've been walking or otherwise exerting myself. Feel different to the baby moving - it's definitely the bump hardening.

PJ: Another vote for William, not Aragon. I have a slightly unusual name and it has always been a pain, especially when I started high school and was feeling really self-conscious anyway. I have sworn that my children will only get 'names you cannot get wrong'! On dogs, I grew up with flatcoat retrievers, v. similar in temperament to springers - bouncy and mad. Mum and Dad introduced me and my brother as newborns by laying us down on the floor and letting the dog lick us all over, which went very well - the dog immediately adopted us as puppies of the pack and to be protected - but I have to say I don't recommend this approach!

hia everyone. back from scan. gave in and said I wanted to know - but baby had knees together so he couldn't tell for sure, but did hazard a guess, but as it was only a guess I'm trying not to dwell on it, as obv. totally unreliable. For ease I came clean and told dh I had asked, but that they couldn't tell. WHich they couldn't really.

makescakes - I thought so, as I have had to suffer through LOTR & Eragon films, and listen to ds1 & 2 relentlessly going on about them,. Tried to blank them out tbh

Doc challenged me to not put on (loads of) weight by next appt in 4 weeks. I am such a big fat pig (my words, not his, lol)

Gosh, you all seem so organised. The only thing I have done to prepare for the baby's arrival is to grow .

When we were expecting DD I was too paranoid to get anything ready so it all stayed in storage until after she'd been born, then DH had a mad rush to collect it and buy new a mattress, changing mat etc.

We're getting ready for some building work so I don't really want anything in the house that doesn't have to be here.

Good luck with your scan, Ernest.

Pyjamarama - another vote for William. I think it's classic enough not to be affected by the royal connotations. But obviously if you don't want a name in the top 20 or whatever it won't be for you. A friend of mine wanted a name that was outside the top 100 which made things quite challenging!

So what did the doctor guess, Ernest?

I have trouble getting up from the floor. I have to roll around and do a heave-ho with a groan.

ernest what did the dr guess? I want to know now, I am assuming he said girl.

That sounds really rude of me!

worried sil of dh might see but, well yes, you're right

I am not organized at all this time!! I have one pack of new baby nappies (so I could get the free changing bag from Boots) and have sorted through some baby clothes that someone gave me. (Most of ours went home to my brother who had a baby girl a couple of weeks back.) We have the little co-sleeper travel cot up following a visit from a friend with a baby, but it is currently where we put the pile of clean washing before it gets put away (or worn ... usually gets worn first tbh!). Other than that, nothing ...

I should probably think about getting a hospital bag ready at some point, and an emergency bag for ds, but it all seems a long way off yet. I kind of figure that as long as the baby has nappies, a few clothes and somewhere to sleep, we'll manage the rest when she arrives! Oh yes, must get car seat back though ...

I assume all was well with scan ernest?

ernest thats lovely, can see why it would be a bit of a shock after having three boys! Are you having another scan in 4 weeks, maybe baby will be more co-operative next time!

Oh Ernest that is such a tease! you can't not tell us now!

I haven't bought anything yet either (apart from changing bag which is kind of for me...) although we have started redecorating the spare room to move dc2 into so that we can then redecorate the nursery. Its currently her choice of colours (pink and lilac) and dh is definitely not going ot be putting his little boy in there!

About the leaking breasts, I haven't either have this pre-birth so no help, but have friends who had it really early so I don't think you should worry. If you are soaking your bra though, I would get a pad otherwise you might make yourself sore.

sorry Ernest, crossed threads while I typed but wow! I think it is more likely to be a girl if they can't tell as boys tend to be more obvious. We had the same with dc2, they couldn't really see at the scan and she was a surprise girl at birth.

Goingfor3 - glad I'm not the only one without everything ready!

Ernest - we were pretty freaked out about having a girl. When DD was born I sidled up to the midwife and asked her to show me how to clean her - after being used to boys with everything hanging out and spraying you, I was very nervous about it! Now I think that little girls with big brothers are brilliant.

systemaddict, can I ask you a question about the free changing bag. When I tried to get mine at my boots, I took the bag, my completed form and the nappies to the paypoint and they didn't want to give me the bag. They said I needed to send the form, the would receive a voucher, then could come back to get my bag. That doesn't sound right to me, is that how it happened for you?

this is slighlty irrelevant because they irked me so much I bought another changing bag and I don't use pampers on babies any way (use nature boy and girl which i really recomment).

needahand, I joined the Boots parenting club using a form (or maybe I did it straight on one of the Boots card machines in the shop thinking about it), then they sent me a voucher for the changing bag (along with a load of other vouchers too, most of which I won't use but you can get lots of offers if you want them), so I think that is how it works. It's a pretty flimsy plasticky bag though - looks better on the page than it does when you get it - so I don't think you have missed out on much!

I am also unlikely to use up the packet of nappies as once the meconium's through she will be going into reusables, and I don't particularly like Pampers either. Ds' skin reacts to all the disposables with scents, the only ones we have found so far that we can use (when I'm behind on washing ) are the ASDA eco-baby ones.

Thanks System addict.

I send the form so long ago, I can't believe I haven't received anything yet. Never mind the one I bought was quite cheap (£20) and pretty. I never tried the ASDA nappies, but might try this time as we have a big ASDA near us.

If you've not heard anything, you could check on one of the machines next time you go to Boots whether you've been added to the parenting club, and if not you can add yourself there. I don't think they're completely efficient with the paper forms - I didn't ever got the first set of vouchers first time round, which was why I wanted to make sure I got the free bag this time, even though I don't actually need or want it! [ridiculous packrat emoticon]

Ooh, ooh, oooh Ernest. How exciting! And how shocking! It took me a good three or four days to get used to the idea that mine is a girl, so thanks Rolf for your reassurance as well.

So so far away from hospital bags ... in fact am in denial about whole birth thing. Someone has suggested hypnobirthing but I'm worried I'll be too cynical. How cynical are you, Sytemsaddict?

Now seriously wondering about getting a doula. But perhaps it's not worth it if I have to have the whole cycle of interventions ... Any thoughts?

BTW, Ernest, re weight gain, the NHS in England doesn't worry about it any more as it's believed to create unncessary anxiety and shouldn't affect the baby. If you really have put on loads (and I bet you haven't!), you can always take it off breastfeeding!!! [Upside reaches complacently for another cerme egg ...]

Upsidedowncake - that makes the king size pack of Revels I've just eaten sit so much better in my tummy .

I have just looked up something about hypnobirthing and according to the website you should start having lessons between 25 - 30 weeks. The independant midwife/doula I'm thinking of booking does hynobirthing lessons so I guess I should get in touch with her. She's expensive though - I've been hoping to hold off writing a huge cheque. And DH is really busy at work at the moment and I know that if I tell him we're going to need a few trips to Cheshire for hypnobirthing lessons, his reaction will be unfavourable!

My doc shrugged his shoulders and said it didn't matter. It's me thats panicking about it. I'm already only 1 or 2 kilos off my 'at full term' weight for ds3 and I've still got a whole trimester to go!!!!! And I bf my last 3 and it didn't make any sodding difference to my weight . Ideally I should avoid eating non-stop fatty sugary crap, but somehow I'm driven by a force scarier and stronger than myself I seriously have NO willpower atm for some reason and it's very frustrating. And I am really a big fat pig my thights are horrendous. This is one disadvantage of an early summer baby - the whole summer looking like Mr Blobby with wobbly, empty wrinkly tum, leaking breasts, and cool (not in my case) revealing clothes, so there's nothing to hide behind. Ds 2 & 3 in winter was fine, no one could tell how fat and wrinkly you were under all the layers. sigh.

I would say I'm fairly cynical Upsidedowncake. Eg can't bring myself to pay for homeopathy as I just don't believe in it, despite good reports from many of my friends. (Someone did lend me a 'homeopathic birth kit' last time, which caused a moment of hilarity in the delivery room when I and the midwife realised how very far we had travelled from that, as the drips and monitors beeped around us!) But I think there is an evidence base for hypnotherapy as pain relief, though it depends on the individual's susceptibility to hypnosis (and the skill of the practitioner of course). And I am pretty sure I'm very hypnotisable, so it was worth it for me. If nothing else, it helps me to relax and feel re-energised at the moment, which is worth it on its own, even if it doesn't help with labour - but I think it did help me cope last time. And it can't do any harm.

I would have liked to see an actual hypnotherapist but ££ and time meant I went for just a CD package instead. I would have gone one-to-one though, not sure about the classes - I would have been suspicious they'd be a bit lavender oil / whale song for me.

I would love to get a doula, but dp is v. anti (and it's ££ again of course), so I think we're unlikely to. I need him to feel comfortable on the day to be able to help me, and if a doula would make him feel squeezed out it would be counter-productive. But if you are both happy with the idea then it's definitely worth pursuing. Even if you think you'll have interventions they would have a role - could you discuss it with one or two doulas in your area before you decide?