Due June 08: S**t, it IS June, and I still haven't packed my hospital bag...

[LauraT]

well it will be June on Sunday anyway! thought I should go ahead and start this as there were several votes for this name...

Oh Lorettah, big hug to you, you don't need this! I hope your DH is busting a gut to sort it all out NOW!

SATC sounds a good idea, others have said take a pillow.

Thanks PearTart. I know he's trying his best but you know that saying, sometimes you're best just is't good enough... well I keep thinking that!

I'm going to have to be a bit stronger I think, really try hard not to let all of this get on top of me.

I've got to go now to a parenting class - on my own - can't believe they hold them during the daytime when DH are at work!! Mind you if he wasn't in work I'd have in working on the house rather than coming to some parenting class!

Morning again

Sponge, how nice you've got your mum staying but sorry you didn't get too much other sleep! Re the rain, I have spent the last month working on the government's report into last year's floods. It's not published yet, but have you seen the environment agency's website? It tells you about flood warnings and about places that are likely to flood. This year's rain doesn't seem to be too disastrous ... yet! Very lazily, I drove DS to nursery instead of walking in the rain this morning ... (I reckon I can get away with it as it's a two-mile round trip and am nearly 38 weeks pregnant!)

Ernest, clean your house!!!!!! Glad that it's cooler for you, and your section date is coming up soon.

Lorettah, how frustrating about the tiler. when does he start?

Aberdeen and Josey, hope you are able to have a sweep today.

Someone, can't remember who, sounded like they had a very good sweep the other day. I wonder if anything is happening.

Daft Question Alert
with apologies to all who are suffering...

Is this BH?

My tummy keeps feeling tight at the top. It's nothing like a full-on contraction but I feel a bit stiff and wobbly. Also feel a bit sick. I can't really feel tightness from the outside, just inside iyswim. Baby is doing a lot of stretching and wriggling. I never had BH with DD1 so don't know if this is just because I ate too much for breakfast or BH...

Going out to NCT coffee am- will update later. All opinions welcome!
Will take spare knickers with me as feeling quite wierd...

PT, it's not a daft question, but I'm afraid I can't help as I've never had bh either. I think feeling sick before labour is reasonably common though - I definitely had this with mine.

Peartart can't answer the BH question as I don't seem to be having them. Am sure someone else will...

Thanks everyone for your nice words about the blog. Aberdeen big thanks for posting on it too. I was so excited when I spotted I had a comment - DH looked quite impressed too (that I had a friend)!!

Deb I am fine today. Better than average night's sleep. Had to get out of bed early (for me) as had the man coming round to look at my melted oven. Pleasingly he swore mildly when he saw all the melted plastic. This made me feel justified in having got so cross about it last week. Anyway he has ordered new parts and is coming back to fit them on Friday morning (assuming no baby).

Other major excitement so far this morning has been frog-gate. A frog had stupidly decided to leap down the lightwell outside the basement window. It had no chance of leaping to freedom on its own, and annoyingly the computer is right in front of the window so every few minutes I could see it make a pathetic hop, which made me feel upset. Far too pg now to climb down the lightwell, but I did manage to wrestle the window open (one of those funny tilt and open windows that Ernest and Deb are probably familiar with on the continent); trap frog under a cup, and take it out and put it in the garden. It's now sitting in the garden where I left it looking like it has died of shock , but at least it isn't distracting me from MN

All this and it's not even 10am yet.

Off with NCT ladies for lunch followed by SATC. We are going to look like such a sight waddling into the cinema together this afternoon. There is something ironic about watching a film dedicated to high fashion and Jimmy Choos when you resemble a beach ball and can only fit into slippers.

Sorry to those of you that had crap nights and indigestion.

Josey & Aberdeen: Good luck with those sweeps.

Like Ernest, I am of those of you that have got parents or PIL's around to help. Feels quite lonely here at the mo... The PIL that are normally in NZ are on hol in Canada and NY at the moment, so can't even ring them...

Thanks for that Sybil - I couldn't beleive that it would take them up to 48 hours to check LO's blood group and that I'd have to stay in for all that time as well. But I will be ringing my M/W today to check. (It was at the antenatal class I was told about stying in for Rheus -).

Loretta - that sounds really rubbish, I'm sorry. I thought we would have exchanged contracts on new house by the time I went on mat leave (mid May)...and we still haven't, so I know what you mean a little bit. (Luckily we can stay where we are until 5 July, but it would be so much better to have everything settled before our little ones turn up wouldn't it!?)

Awaiting my first ever online grocery delivery! It might be more fun if I had added some goodies to it, but on line I felt I had to be healthy...why!? I may well go back to sleep when it arrives...

PearTart - sounds like BH to me. I've been queasy recently, too.

I wish my phone wasn't broken. I feel quite vulnerable going out without a phone. Hopefully the new battery will arrive today. And I'm thinking labour will be fast and furious after all the build-up I'm having so will take my notes with me if I go out.

Got a nice return text from my friend - he wasn't offended by my telling him to stop sending "any news?" texts!

Morning all. Sorry to hear some of you didn't get much sleep again last night. It took me ages to drop off but when I did I slept till about 5.30 and snoozed after that.

Pretty miserable weather here too . I'm actually going to have to wear winter boots to go into town today as nothing else fits. Hoping that if I get a pair of converse in a bigger size they will fit. I got some v cute leather ones when I went to New York earlier in the yer, but there is no give in them at all and they cripple my puffy feet now .

Rolf hope you get some time to yourself today. I saw both SATC and Indy films last week, thankfully the cinema we went to is fairly new and the seats very big and roomy so didn't get too uncomfortable.

Today's list - finish the list of things I need to buy, a wee bit of housework and meet NCT class for tea and cakes.

Good luck to those hoping for a sweep, and hope you've found the gaviscon spongebrain. I've found that cold milk gives some relief when I've been caught without gaviscon in the past. That and the fondant from a creme egg (if its been in the fridge)

Oh I missed a whole page before posting!

Lorettah sorry to hear about your tiling woes. I can understand why you are so upset and I'd be the same. You should definitely find something nice to do today.

PP - sorry you're feeling a bit lonely! I agree that you should put your foot down re: blood tests. It's ridiculous that they make you wait 48 hours and keep you in hospital while you wait. What a waste of resources. If your LO is Rh+ dont they need to know asap anyway?

Checking in here too - so it's one of those days (funny how we all seem to be in synch!) because I woke at 7 (grateful it was only 7 and not 3 like some of you). Lounged around until 8, and then got up. Been organised, waiting for the machine to finish so that I can have a lovely bath, and done my ironing.

What's with this wet weather? I'm feeling extremely smug because living on Anglesey, we had some light rain in the night but nothing for a month. My lawn is yellow. In fact, I might boast a lot about this until I'm unbearable - because I rarely get the chance...

Feet puffed up by 9.30, so no hope of getting them to go down today!

Argh DH has just made me cry!!! Said I wasnt in good tune today...his reply when are you ever he apologised straight away and said he didnt mean it like that but even though I feel even shitter now!!!!

Still waiting for MW to phone she better come out today or she will be for it....Im sure I can beg her for a sweep....AH hope your lucky today....I can assure you if I dont have one today there aint a hope in hell im having one in 40+5 I refuse to still be preg by then.

PP they need to give you the Anti-D with in 48 hours of baby being born so blood results are usually back within a couple of hours..they were for mine anyway...do you know your DH blood group...you can ask them just to give it to you straight away if its an issue.

PT sounds like BH they are usually round the top of bump....and last longer than real contraction.

Loretta I dont know how you are coping with the tiling issue I would be on melt down and ranting at DH also.

Right need to take DD to music I really cant be bothered but my alternative is sitting in the house being a grumpy cow!!

sophie it does indeed, I shall pass on your apologies for disjointed emails! We will try and be model guests when we come! (might be difficult with a new baby though!)

puffy feet brigade poor you, I so far am avoiding this and shoes are my main vice, so can't imagine the trauma it would cause me!

lorettah I really hope you get a tiler to get everything sorted - hanging about waiting for people to do jobs is so frustrating!

Am loving not being at work today - off to MW appt now and then my maternity leave treat of a facial, can't wait! (just as long as the MW doesn't mess up my plans by deciding to send me for a scan again or something!

I may manage to stick to my post limit today Josey as I am not trying to fill my day at work!

Morning. Think everyone has the grumps today. I have just had a rant at the crappy post office about a screw up they've made delivering a parcel. Grrrrr. Had a nice online time yesterday ordering some 'essentials' and now wondering if thanks to the useless Royal Mail if they're going to turn up before monster is 3!

Anyway, have been reading about the 'sickening deception' (UK tabloid speak, btw, not Whinegums speak!) that is Fern Britton's gastric band surgery.... Wonder if Ryvita will ask for their fee back.

Laura, this is your first day of mat leave isn't it? Hurrah!

Hmm, s'pose I'd better get out of my pjs and get dressed. Did manage to sort of arrange bedroom yesterday, must make an attempt to do some more nesting/bag packing today.

Oh don't worry about that, at moment you are all wedding guests which is lovely and we have a gerogeous 11 week old staying at moment. Really looking forward to meeting you in Spetember, this is so weird.

Peartart they are definitely braxton hicks - this is my first baby so I am clueless and I thought all along that it was the baby's big bum pushing out but it is deffo BH (my MW felt one and told me!). Also I could see on the trace I had yesterday - they put a monitor on the top of your bump and the graph showed peaks every few minutes (too small for me too feel though) . I am getting loads of strong ones now and the baby is really squirmy which I put down to the sweep I had yesterday. MW is going to give me another one on Thursday - very proactive as I'm not even 40 weeks until next Wednesday! I think they are trying to stop me from going overdue as i am meant to be having a whopper. x

PS Whinegums - Ryvita say they are standing by Fern! I don't think her diet and exercise vid will sell much though!

at your DH Josey - does he not know not to anger a pregnant hormonal woman!? Seriously, don't worry, I think we scare them at the moment and they quite simply don't know how to handle us....shall we abuse this power?

PP found a nice M/W at her hospital shocker! Spoke to M/W who said rheus negative no problem, will test after birth and then send home as normal, if I need any further injections, it just needs to be done within next 72 hours and community MW or HV can do it at home! Yay.

As she was so nice, I also double checked with her re: LO not being engaged. She said it'll probably be fine, but if he isn't engaged when I go into labour, I'm probably looking at an emergency CS. If he isn't enagaged by EDD (next Thursday), I should talk to my GP who I am booked in with for 40 week check and decide what to do then. Agreed that willnot induce if not engaged (only 20% chance of working but high chance of distressing baby).

This might sound silly, but if my waters break or I start getting regular contractions is there any point in me waiting until 4 in 10mins before going into hosp? It seems silly for me to sit around in pain waiting to dilate if he's not engaged...

Ah well, much like when he chooses to arrive, there's not much I can do about it now. Just written my birthplan though, so a bit happier about that.

Tesco delivery slot was 9-11am....and I'm still waiting. Phoned up and they said 12pm now...erm, why am I paying £4 delivery charge again? I could have had at least an extra two hours in bed!

Hi ladies

I have just had the best news and couldn't wait to share it with you!! My group B test unexpectantly came back negative which means I can have my home birth and not have to travel for 40 minutes to hospital to have AntiB [completely surprised and overthemoon emoticon]. I guess all the humiliation with the garlic and echineca was worth it. I could jump with joy!

You must be so pleased needahand really for you.

That's great needahand.

PP - that's also good news re: blood tests. Seems a perfectly logical question re: waiting about if head not engaged. If your waters break before your EDD, it seems that the sensible thing would be to see someone to find out if head engaged and then decide what to do? If head in engaged then you could always go home for a bit until labour progresses a bit more (assuming the hospital isn't hours away?). Rubbish about your tesco delivery - if sainsbury's late you get a voucher (I think for £10?).

Josey, really sorry your DH made you cry. I did chuckle though at the thought that DH's and DP's can do no right at the mo! I was moaning to my DH the other day that someone in my NCT group clearly hadn't put on as much weight as me (I dont mean bump size, just generally) and he agreed. I was distraught!!!!

hi all -can't keep up. big sympathy to the no sleep/puffy feet brigade. Was up from 3 - 6 with horrible period like pains and back aches (in fact woke up as dreamed I was going into labour and wet the bed ) - walked about and seemed to ease it off but am assuming this is all normal for this time... clueless first timer.

Josey your dh should know better! Mine being very patient but I think he is finding it amusing - said to me this morning that never realised I was so vain when I was crawling about bed trying to get comfy and moaning about my size.

off to ahve something to eat before going into antenatal appt.. sigh expect it will say that nothing moved .

Might do a search for some cucumbers on the way home..

Needahand, that's excellent news, chuffed for you.

Amber, Peartart, and anyone else, I didn't think BH were supposed to hurt, well that's a nonsense isn't it?? After the other night, I've had more, and I can't speak or anything during them. Eeek. Glad to hear real contractions don't last as long.

I think DP has been pleasantly surprised by how lightly he's escaped the wrath of pregzilla this time around (he already has 2 DC's, and I think the previous experience was, ahem, somewhat different). He's been v good actually, but has to go away for work for the next two nights and most of next week. Might wind him up with a few 'gasping' phone calls, although I s'pose that could backfire if something does kick off.

I have achieved this morning - monster's bag for the hospital is packed, and changing table in bedroom all ready and stacked with supplies. Which I know is pathetic when I hear about what some of you have been doing!

PT what you describe does sound like BH (sorry to disappoint if you thought it was something else)

Lorretah big hug to you. I hope you are on your way to see SATC. I think I will try to go sometime this week too.

alli pmsl at froggate!

I have puffy feet too. The worst was on Sunday night after all my nesting. My feet were very swollen and I was aching so much I couldn't even reach to wash them with cold water. Luckily DH was happy to obliged and ran the cold shower over them which was bliss!

I've had my first "can't be long now" e-mail today!

Fed up with the rain too. I mean it is June!! why does it feel like November? I actually had to buy wellies this week as I have no closed shoes that fit and it is unlikely I will wear flip flops outside the house anytime soon

Any news from GF?