Dec 08: but that doesn't mean you can touch my bump!

[rosmerta]

New thread with bisou's title suggestion

oli that is very funny - imagine if you had gone to the loo - you might have ended up being danced onto the stage instead and expected to perform the lift!!

Beans and Oli I'm so sorry to hear your friends' news. I had two missed m/cs before this pregnancy and nothing can prepare you for the emotional fallout. It's very very hard. I hope they both take time to look after themselves and allow themselves to grieve .

pixsix/effie what was this oxfam thing then? Are you almost famous now?! MUST see some clips/photos when you have them!

Well I've had some limited success with the medical profession today. Firstly a very businesslike consultant appointment - all A-OK and will book the c/s next time (ie in four weeks from now I will know my baby's birthday! Very spooky!) And also after a battle with a dreadful receptionist, eventually got a letter from my GP this afternoon saying I'm ok to fly. I'm due in Brussels next week but because of the Eurotunnel fire I need to fly... BMI are technically ok with it without a letter up to 30weeks, but as I'll be 30weeks next Thursday I thought I'd best get a letter just in case they decide to split hairs at the airport.

My work is the total opposite of yours, Oli and Beans, by the sound of it. I have 5 1/2 weeks left and the work is piling up. It's great that people want me involved in stuff but they have known my date for AGES and it's only now that they've started getting flustered about me going. I've got Brussels next week, again in two weeks after that, and then Geneva in my last week of work. It never rains but it pours,eh?! I'm glad I've decided to stop a bit earlier than I did with DD though because I found the change of gear very difficult and sudden with her.

Sorry - have rambled on as usual...!

Oh Verso - sorry work is so tough (and LT seems like she was really manic too) I feel guilty that I am just lounging around watching the clock and eating cake! I have just been asked to look at something and I told them to sod off as I am leaving at 5...I've been asking for stuff all day and have done everything offered but I'm not hanging around on their schedule! Naughty huh! I said I'd do it next week!

Gawd - could you imagine trying to lift a heffalump into the dirty dancing lift! Hahaha...oh dear - watch the pelvic floor!

kmp1 yeah I don't know if I'll ever get the procedures figured out. I always feel like an idiot when I go in and ask them questions about stuff.

oli that's hilarious! I'm glad that you didn't have to do the turtle impression.

Just had another (un)helpful work person telling me how behind I am on the baby front and how expensive it's going to be and I should start buying things etc etc why can't people mind their own business??!

Oli glad you didn't become part of the show but funny thinking that you nearly did

sorry that outburst was half a story. First the person sat as my desk (for no reason), interigated me then told me how behind I was. Thanks for that I am fully aware of what I need to do prior to the baby arriving. Maybe I should give him my home number so that he can tell me how wrong I am going one the baby is born! Ok rant over, feeling a lot better. must be hormones.

emma tell 'em to sod off!!

also ask around if people have stuff to sell/give you or do ebay if you are worried about costs mounting. I was worried that we should buy stuff new because it would feel "nice" for the baby, but then DH pointed out that whichever way we look at it, having children is expensive, and he will get a fortune spent on him by us over his lifetime!! so we have some second hand stuff so far and that is all! (and that was only last weekend, prior to that we had absolutely nothing, so i don't think you are leaving it too late at all)

Thanks Summer we are going to borrow a few bits from my SIL and collecting some of those on Sun. I not too worried at this stage and do have a few bits but nothing of any concequence. We are going shopping for the pram in a few weeks (again) and hopefully find one we like and fits in our very small car. It will all come together in the end and before the baby arrives i'm sure

Yeah, I think people can get overstressed about these things and buy too much stuff as well!

Emma how far along are you?? what is this person on. My DH has a superstitious thing in his family about buying anything for a baby to be before 30 weeks gestation i dont know if it's a chinese thing or if it's a general thing but to me it seems fair enough, it still leaves 10 weeks to get all important stuff but also it's not like you can't buy stuff after it born. And it also makes consideration for the unlikely (but sadly possible) chance that something could happen.

emma Maybe you should ask this person if they want to make a donation towards your baby fund if they're so worried about it!! Ahhh.... that makes me frustrated for you! Are you needing baby furniture?? I found a great little charity shop (in Leytonstone) today that sells mostly furniture and they had some great pieces that were nice and really well priced (under £55).

Emma: you do not need to buy loads of stuff before the baby is born. All you really need is clothes for them to wear when they're in hospital, a carseat to take them home in and somewhere for them to sleep. And nappies. Oh and a pile of muslin squares come in handy. They prob won't be going in the pram for a week or so, so you don't even need to buy that in advance. Obviously if you want to be mega-otganised you can but really newborns need very little . It doesn't have to be expensive either.

kimberly - meant to ask, are you from Atlanta? Quite a bit of my family live there so have been a few times...

verso - sympathies re the travelling. My work also seems to be conspiring - I have trips to Brussels/Paris/Montpelier coming up and am really fed up with the idea that might need to fly - the tunnel is so much easier! (Although some colleagues did use the Eurostar this week, seemed to be fine if reduced service?)

emma - like Effie says, don't worry about stuff! You really need very little at the beginning. They don't even need a cot for the first three months or so. I found the issue was more trying to make sure you didn't get stuck with lots of pointless bits rather than being behind! People will give/lend you masses of stuff.

theinvisiblehand Yes I am from the Atlanta area!! Is your family living in downtown or are they out in another city? I lived in Lawrenceville.

Thanks everyone for your good wishes. Had a great birthday and feel very loved and spoilt .

Alas today has been hard as DD1 was very tired and has been a bit minky. She pushed DD2 off the roundabout in the park, splitting DD2's lip and bruising her chin. DD2 bled so much that I nearly lost it. She is still a bit groggy post MMR and to see her mouth bleeding like that was not good. All a bit fraught. Both asleep now though, thank goodness.

Rosmerta, I am very sorry about your granny and Beans, your friend's news is also very sad. A good friend had a MC on hol in Turkey last week and is devastated. DD2 and her DS are the same age and these 2 would have been 3 months apart. Makes me feel very lucky.

Love to all XXX

emma, how rude, agree with the others, you really don't need that much when they're born. Even just one of those starter sets of clothes you can buy is enough to begin with along with the car seat.

chutney, glad you had a good birthday. Thanks for the sympathies.

Funeral is on Monday so on the weekend I have to go and find something to wear as I don't have anything appropriate in maternity clothes.

Afraid I won't be able to make this evening either - bit of a family crisis that requires phone calls and hiding my head under the duvet for a while . Will post this on the meet-up thread as well.

Rosmerta: best wishes for the funeral on Monday. Will be thinking of you.

Oh chutney - you poor thing - always a shock when children get hurt. Glad they're both ok though.

My friend is very stoical about her m/c and seems to be ok. I will nip to see her this weekend at some stage.

Went for blood pressure test at doctor yesterday as a follow up from previous high pressure and it's gone up again. It's not scary high, but at start of pregnancy, I was really low (110/59), then 2 weeks ago was at 119/59 and am now up to 125/71, which I think is still normal, but compared to what it was, he's a bit nervous. I'm going back again on Monday. I'm actually really impressed by how they're monitoring me. When he said he wanted to see me again, I thought he'd say in another 2 weeks, but he then said Monday, which gave me a bit of a surprise! And I've now officially got to leave work at 4.30 every day, do as little as possible at weekends and sleep every afternoon if I can! Brilliant! Although the little as possible at weekends is quite difficult as we are starting on the nursery and shopping this weekend and have to get a new car and sort out cot etc! eek!

Ooh, we also went on the St Thomas's hospital tour last night. I was so impressed with it. The rooms are lovely! And it made me want to have a natural birth with no epidural etc, because then you get to stay in the same room for the whole duration (with ensuite bathroom) and your husband can stay with you! And you get to use a birth pool if it's free (first come first served). If you have intervention of any kind, then you have to move to a slightly different ward, but still with lovely rooms, but once the baby comes, you have to move a few hours later down to a ward and share your room and bathroom with 3 other people and DH can't stay too. But it really was lovely. AND the views are of the Houses of Parliament and Big Ben and the river, or if you're on the intervention ward, it's off the London Eye, which is just lovely! Made me a lot less nervous too. Hurray!! pixsix - I don't know if you've been on a tour yet there, but they're every Tuesday and Thursday at 6.30pm and well worth having a look.

Effie hope everything okay?

Chutney glad your birthday was nice apart from your poor DD- they can be such fierce little things can't they? My two are always scrapping!

Rosmerta hope the funeral goes okay and you find something to wear.

I've discovered that buying tops in the tall ranges of top shop and new look have allowed me to extend my maternity wardrobe. I've bought a size up and the extra length on them means they cover my fairly substantial bump impressively. Am v pleased at my discovery. Depends how tall you are - I am 5'7" so just in the tall range but I guess it would also work for maternity if you are smaller.

Emma grr at the person telling you to buy stuff.

I have the opposite people keep telling me how I have ages and ages to go! Which is a tad depressing when I'd like the next few months to speed up a bit so I can have my baby here rather than feeling like a ancient old woman who huffs and puffs when getting up off sofas!

Just a question - is an upset tummy quite normal in pregnancy? Sorry for tmi but have had the runs and feeling like my tummy is being shredded the last few days and have faint paranoia in my head about early labour and upset tummy. Think I am probably being ridiculous - maybe the babe has shifted and is pressing on my bowel?

Beans very jealous of your hospital - it sounds amazing! Up here it's 6 women to a ward with no partners allowed to stay. Couple of private rooms but they are only available if no emergencies and you have to shift if emergency happens.

Do you have a lap top? Could you lie in bed and do shopping online? Baby needs very little in comparison to you being okay. Hope you manage to get some rest.

Hatty: I've had a few tummy bugs as well, put it down to suppressed immune system and generally being more sensitive. Stick with bland food for a while and see if it helps

Beans: good on your Go for prescribing afternoon kips! Can I go see him too? Do rest as much as you can - is it possible to get friends to help with the nursery etc? I bet they;d be more than happy if asked. Also, remember that most babies don;t go anywhere near a separate nursery for 6 months (SIDS advice is that they sleep in your room for the 1st 6 months, something to do with regulating breathing) so if it isn't ready it's no big deal.

Chutney: DS bleeds copiously when he bashes his face (which is fairly often I'm afraid). He manghed to give me a split lip the other day as well in mid-tantrum - if they're not beating up their siblings they're starting on the parents!

oh and St T's sounds great, having an ensuite bathroom is amazing if you can wangle it. I ended up in a side room after I had DS and it was bliss.

hatty - I don't have an upset stomach so much, but I do have to go for a number 2 after every single meal and that's not normal for me! Sorry if TMI from me as well. But it is a bit exhausting somehow and I had a bit of an upset tummy a couple of weeks ago for a while.

Beans, St T's is great and the facilities are so good. Even the PN ward is OK. I am very glad to be going back.

BP - i'm no expert but yours is very similar to mine and no one is worried about me! My starting point was 100/60 and it is now 110/70. I felt a bit dizzy etc on Mon and so got the nurse to do it on Tues when I was there and she said no cause for concern. It is normal for your BP to drop in pg and then steadily climb back up, so I wouldn't worry too much. Nice that they are looking after you though and even nicer that they think you should leave work early! I second the afternooon nap - makes me feel so much better!

Hope you have a good time tonight girls . Wish I could join you but maybe next time?

Morning All,

Thanks so much for all the good advice. I'm only 25 weeks so have a while yet to get organised. I have got a few items of clothes (lovely ones too), lots of muslin squares (thanks SIL) and lots of nappies (thanks MIL). We are going to borrow SIL's moses basket and crib. Thankfully we don't need nursery furniture as we have fully fitted wardrobes in both bedrooms and have cleared quite a bit of space for the bubba's bits and pieces. So we are getting there.

It is still so infuriating when other people (and it's always the ones that you are not the closest to) put there penny's worth in and start asking personal questions like have you decorated the nursery? have you bought this and that? Grr.

Had a very early night last night and feel a lot calmer today.

St. Thomas's sounds fab (now in jealous ) I can see St. Thomas's from my office window but that is about as close as I am to having my baby there.