Dec 08 - the one where we wonder what are our bodies going to do next?

[rosmerta]

Sorry for rubbish title, best I could do

Pushchairs - aaggghhh! We've decided we're going to sell the travel system we got last time, it was too heavy & ds ended up facing away from me at quite a young age which I didn't like. Haven't decided yet whether to get a new pushchair or just see how we get on with the Mclaren/sling combination.

Ooh, just wanted to add - Waitinggirl, I am so pleased you are feeling something now

I must be the only person who isn't a fan of the bugaboos

I like the look of the icandy too...have not played with any of these buggies though, and don't know what I am looking for really apart from that I don't want it to be too big, like the look of the more compact nippy ones.

Have progress on deciding on sling thing too which I also find confusing, have found out that wife of someone at work is a bit of a sling geek and has four or five!! So i am going to see if I can pop round and get demos, and the lowdown on each one!

Nah, Rosmerta, each to their own. All the systems seem to have their own special disadvantages! I'll probably be on here cursing it a few months down the line.

Also don't know why I want a small one, as I have a massive estate car and doubt I will use public transport very much. though I live on a road with narrow busy pavements so it might be useful.

Hmmm...maybe I should stop talking about prams as i said I wasn't going to buy one.

Rosmerta: I'm not keen either, partly cos they're ubiquitous in this bit of London and partly cos they're on teh heavy side. I'm sticking with my pramette (though plenty of people hate them as well )

I think it was because I travel on the buses a lot, the ones I've seen take up the most space & the fact that you have to dismantle the seat to collapse it! Btw, we got a Mothercare Urban Detour last time, didn't really like it all if anyone's considering one!

I like the Bugaboo until it comes to getting into your car. We don't have one but all my friends do. I am getting a second hand Phil and Teds this time as I need a double and it is the only one narrow enough to fit in our hallway. If I was a first timer who thought I was likely to want two or more kids then I would consider getting a Phil and Teds as my first pram. They look fine as singles, they are manoverable (sp) and then when you have the next baby you don't have to fork out on another expensive pram, instead you just get the doubles attachment. That is what I wish I had done anyway.

Hi everyone, hope you all enjoyed the bank holiday?

Just yesterday I was eyeing up prams and pushchairs - even to the extent of following someone with one I'd never seen before to check the make! Don't think I was spotted, and I'm mightly relieved to hear I'm not the only pram stalker out there!!

I was talking to friends just yesterday who didn't use their travel system for long, cause it was just too big and heavy to get around the shops - so they're now loving their maclaren. I'm definitely thinking ligthweight and easy to fold and put in my car now are priority criteria (I think!)Currently looking at Silver Cross, like you Beans.

On the bugaboo, a friend has one and loves it. But then again, my Mum looked after a friends baby and she found it too heavy and immoveable - so a mixed reception there. It's all too confusing ...

In just three days off tinternet, so much has happened to so many of you - so just wanted to say those who are struggling at the moment my best wishes are with you, and those who it's all going well, I hope it continues.

ZJ.x

artichokes, I agree, I wish I'd got the Phil & Ted's first time around as well. Don't really need it now though

Prams are endless debate - don't think there's a definitive, just best to go along and try out all the collapsing etc options in the shop, I reckon.

Oh wow, just been to Red Herring and finally bought some smart maternity jeans. so comfortable and think they might double up for work trousers as well. Hurray! I was dead against under bump til I tried these. AND one in the eye for H&M as they're a size 14 and fit perfectly!!! Hurray!

Tbh, I don't know anyone who's been 100% happy with their first pushchair!

beans glad you finally got your trousers! I got these at the weekend, very comfortable. Just realised though, they're £5 cheaper in the shop than on the website

Turnip, we bought the same McClaren as got fed up with the 3wheeler. I am toying with using it for junior, because it can lie flat but it does face away which I didn't really want! Aaggghhh, too many decisions

Hi turnip - yes, the size is the same as my usual. So am feeling quite perky about it! Will definitely go back there again. It is really nice, too. Although not an enormous amount of choice.

I'm having some rather sharp pains down the inside/side of my tummy - bit like period pains, only sharper - is this normal growing pains? Been warned I might get more of them this week - 25 weeks now... Not really bad or regular or anything, but definitely uncomfortable. Ow. Anyone know?

Dear God I hate the Daily Mail. Someone just sent me this link - have a read of the awful comments at the end. I'm not a big fan of Minnie Driver, but am not going to get involved in the comments re a father, but she's only wearing a bikini - people are horrible about it! I think pregnant women's bodies are so cool! To think there's a whole person in there, it's fascinating and lovely!

ha ha, horrid people!! she looks great!

But did you read this -
Minnie will have a full delivery room when she gives birth later this week - her mum, aunt, best friends, yoga teacher and, of course, midwife, are all invited

Yikes!!

Yeah, the Daily Mail supersucks and Minnie Driver looks in better shape than me - about three months behind her! However, I am an expert on this morning's edition as someone had left a copy on the train (I couldn't resist) and there was a horrifying piece written by a midwife who works at 'a busy London hospital' all about how she is appalled at the poor standard of care many women receive - and it's because they are simply too shortstaffed (eg four women on one shift not being given the epidurals they'd been expecting, as there wasn't time to monitor them). I won't do a link but do nose it out if you feel in the mood to depress yourself ... I am hoping someone can naysay it and tell me it's all b*ocks.

Which hospital are you booked in at LadyT. I had DD at a "busy London hospital" (Queen Charlottes) and the care while I was in labour was fab (ante natal care was less good and post natal was pretty non-existant but they were there when I needed them). I had to have constant monitoring throughout my 36 hour labour and every one of my four midwives was fab. I got an epidural when i asked, and when it failed to take they found a consultant to suss the prob. When i heamorraged at the end i had a room full of brilliant doctors and nurses appear within seconds. I was very impressed .

St Mary's in Paddington. But I have to admit, and you can all throw rotten tomatoes at me now, that I'm going into the private wing and not the NHS wing. HOWEVER, I do genuinely care about the standards of maternity provision on the NHS and I really, really don't want it to be as bad as I sometimes read it is. So I like stories like yours, Arti. I was in the Royal Free at the end of April/beginning of May for a week on the Obs and Gynae ward. Um, I don't think anyone is going there but I had a burst ovarian cyst and kidney stones when I was about 8 weeks pregnant (wasn't on Mumsnet then) and the standard of care was, imo (and maybe I just had a random bad experience and it's not always like that) poor. I mean frighteningly poor. My sister is an NHS Nursing Sister and even she was appalled. If she and my barrister DP hadn't chucked their weight around with the bigwigs at the hospital I'd have had my appendix whipped out (there was nothing wrong with my appendix!) and I've have almost certainly lost the baby. The nursing care was below par as well. So, after much soulsearching...I decided that if we could possibly afford the alternative, I'd bite the bullet and go for it. This is not to undermine anyone else's choices, and NHS hospitals can be fab, as Arti's was. But my own spell in hospital undermined my confidence in the system, whereas I guess some of you ladies have done it before at different NHS hospitals and had fab experiences.

No personal experience as it is my first one, but hearsay for my hospital is similar to what turniphead says, that labour care is pretty good, but postnatal care pretty dire...