Due in November 08: Missing - 2 feet, last seen somewhere under bump in late August. If found, please massage and trim toenails before returning.

[ruthosaurus]

Hi ladies, new thread as we seem to have outgrown the old one!

Morning, ladies! I woke up at 10:30 today. How utterly slack is that? [wipes porridge from keyboard] You know you've gone nocturnal when you get out of the bath too late for Woman's Hour.

Anyone else turning into their grandma at a rate of knots? Mine has just got out of hospital after a fall - she is 86, btw - and all she can do is sit around grumbling about ailments and bewailing the fact that the evenings are drawing in... I'm not allowed to call her to try and cheer her up this week as she will worry herself to death about me.

Gawd, it sounds like everyone's been having a totally crap time of it. It's horrible how a bad night can make you feel for the rest of the day (hence the massive lie in) and I have total total sympathy for us all - big hugs all round.

I'm sending everyone a plate of virtual flapjacks and a large cup of tea and strict orders to stay in and watch Dirty Dancing or whatever else floats yer boat.

Go on, have a biccy. You're worried about your waistiine at a time like this?

Right, prams - loving the choices but agree that the silver cross is a bit big if you don't actually even want a pram, hana! We're getting the bugaboo bee (as a present from my ever-amazing mum) as we have no hallway and small rooms as well as being up a small flight of stairs, so we needed a supersmall and light pram that corners on a sixpence, whatever one of those is.

Plus they look bithchin', which was a bit of a selling point for a gadget-freaky DH . The fact that none of his mates will be even remotely interested as they are all single or childfree seems to have passed him by.

My mate's getting the chameleon but it's eyewateringly expensive, a bit big and has huge tyres (she lives in a pothole).

Braxton Hicks - OW OW OW OW OW STOPPIT YOU BSTRD!!! That's my balanced and objective view. Thirsty uterus, eh? Right - I'm off to drink a lake.

Seriously, I had to go to bed it was so painful yesterday and the only reason I wasn't panicking about early labour was because the bloody thing just stopped like that, just one big contraction. Grr. I was begging it not to start getting rhythmic and closer together!

BTW, please excuse long post, I have loads of energy after all that sleep and porridge!

lol@bee looking itchin' SGK dh hates it but she wants one of her own now she has been looking after mine for me.

what colour you getting? m,ine is black, but with yellow baby nest.

cameleon is denim edition one.

no, i am not loaded lol, but hunt out good second hand deals.

Hey misdee, you trendsetter, you!

We are probably getting the khaki as my mate told me not to get the yellow one as it attracts real,bees - I think she was kidding but it's put the wind up me (don't worry about the yellow nest - you'll only be using that in the winter!) and DH for some reason thinks all apart from the black or khaki ones look naff and babyish .

I have explained to him that babies are terminally naff and have LOADS of rubbish looking stuff that no design-conscious adult would be seen dead with, but hey. I wanted the red one

Plus he can talk - he still has his old blue bear.

Mum2becks was it you who was asking about are we going to be labouring together? I am due on the 12th though I'm not taking bets at the mo'!

Bugaboo bee looks very cool, have seen a few out and about. I had the frog, in aubegine, it was lovely.
I'm going to use my P&T, obviously, but I also got a new micralite on ebay with a carrycot, it also takes the maxi-cosi, which I have borrowed from a friend as mine went with the frog.

Would love to play scrabble but my head hurts.

[HUGS] for Pinky's sore head

Choc, don't mind the mockery - I am currently updating my baby list spreadsheets. Some of them are colour coded. And yes I know that spreadsheets plural is a sign of madness.

BTW, any advice on car seat bases for infant carriers? The one that goes with our pram (I'm getting a pram - whee!) is over £100 and I'd love to know if it's one of those "OMG get it NOW" things or "don't waste the money" things.

Saurus I am so much of a geek that I took it as a compliment (with undertones of mockery)!! DH teases me about my spreadsheets for everything. I even have one that calculates our tax and NI bills for the year ahead. !! So if anyone is getting married, having a baby, starting a new job etc etc I have a spreadsheet for the occasion!

Thanks rutho.

Not sure what the base thingy is? Is it to go in the car?

Ok firstly, will someone tell me why I can not find our group on FACEBOOK now they have updated the layout???? WHERE ARE YOU ALL??? I also want to play scrabble because that is a nice way of me letting you win! HELP

Prams, i don't like the prams where everything builds on top of the actual buggy part such as the Silver Cross. If ind it all very messy. The quinny has everything that clicks on and off. Like you Chocorange i have the cabrio car seat with the easy base which makes clipping it in and out of the car VERY EASY for stupid post pregnancy new mother first timer person like me! Mine however is still in the box, i couldn't possibly get it dirty .

My sister finally went for the Loola Babe thingy you know the one, but the new one with one bar in cream and coffee. She loves it because she lives in a basement apartment and it stores up right and very narrow, plus car seat clicks in separately.

Hi All
Nothing to add re buggies. I will stick to my Bebe Confort travel system that has seen me through 2 babies already. Not the greatest system but it works. I've also got a Phil and Ted's that is on its last legs. DH wants to get a new one but I don't see the point. I think I will buy new McClaren (I love these - it will be my third) for the summer, hopefully get one of those deckchair stripe ones along with buggy board.

RE HOMEBIRTHS - anyone going for having it in bath. Can't work out if I am being unrealistic. Had last one at home in a pool but he got an infection. The pool was one of those where it is installed, water in and ready to go a few days before due date and has a heater so temperature remains constant. Not sure what caused DS's infection but maybe it was because water was standing for more than 24 hours- apparantly bacteria starts. Wouldn't use this again because of my experience last time. Then there's the option of blow up job that you erect when you need it. Problem for me is I have a history of fast deliveries. DD was 2 1/2 hrs. So may not be time to sort out the erection of pool and filling up. Plus I am concerned that I will be annoyed by water temperature dropping and faffing to add more hot water. So I thought bath might do job. I keep rolling about in it experimenting with positions and worry there might not be enough room for me to spread out IYSWIM. My midwife has had a look and has said it is possible and that they've had other ladies do it like that.

Choco count me in for the scrabble, I'll bet now I will lose (unless Merry goes into Labour and can't play ).
of all the pram talk, I really want a new one but DH said no so I have a maclaren twin techno and a buggy board, oh and a M&P pramette and a M&P zoom - and i'm wondering why DH said no .
Hope everyone who is not feeling well is better and resting. Its my last full day at work today - Only 3 mornings left and i'm knackered, I think baby has moved again though although I can feel kicks everywhere so I have no idea which way it went?
Sorry Rutho can't help with the car seat we went straight for a birth to 4 years one as I'm a big puff and can't lift the infant carriers

Pinkali at the very bottom of your Facebook homepage you should have a list of Application tabs, of which Groups is one of them. I agree with the simpleness of the maxi cosi car seat / isofix - it was a big plus for us. Although the first time we tried it we couldn't figure out how to get the car seat back out and had to google it! And actually until you know the knack you can't do it (cause its that safe!) as you have to lift and pull the handle at the same time.

Oh I see, it's one of those base things that fixes in the car then you sit the seat on it. My mum has my niece's old one of those as the maxi-cosi won't go in her car. Unfortunately the one she has is impossible to work out and we can never get the car seat out. Hopefully new ones are better design.

I would have a good practice with the car seat in your car before the baby comes. You don't want to be fumbling about with it when baby is waiting to go home!

I know what you mean about the prams that everything piles on top of, th's what attracted me to the bugaboo (remember, I got my bug before it was a sleb accessory) The micralite is the same. I think they look lot neater.

That's the bunny I was on about! Sounds useful - all I have to do now is figure out if it'll go in my ancient and crappy car, which is from the last century.

We have a Facebook group? Or is that just for the scrabble?

I have a current 100% failure rate on scrabble. And don't envisage that changing. How do you invite only totally naff players, who can't spell ? Tee hee.

I have a bee too! So I'm feeling in good company. I wanted khaki but for some reason DH was insistent on yellow (er... he thought it should be black & yellow cos that's the colour of a bee... don't ask!) so we've gone for that. DM, I'm a bit worried by your comment - what didn't you like about it??

As for teh car seat bases - are they really necessary? Strapping the car seat in with the seatbelt doesn't seem too hard - is it not as safe or something?

Obs, you are beating me badly. i have the 100% failure rate.

I'm in for scrabble tournament. I am getting my Dad addicted too!!

I don't think I am bothering with car seat bases, will just strap em in with the belt. Can't use the isofix as the isofix points are only in 2 seats, which happen to be the wrong seats in our car, and ds won't be able to get into his seat up the back if we use it. Also, I will need to remove car seat base every time to get ds in, so it is probably easier to just use the belt to strap in.

Buggies, I had an M&P last time, it was light, but quite comfy for a newborn, and I uaed it from the start until now (very occasionally). I loved the fact it stood up on its own. I have a MB Double Urban for the twins and can't figure out how to store it! Dozy, any tips on this, I know you have one. It doesn't stand by itself. Man, it is HUGE, innit?!!!

Choco - but when i click on that our group isn't there???????? Have I been abandoned?

Go bees! Okay, I admit that it wasn't just DH that thought it was dead sexy. It does come to something when the nicest thing in your home is the darn pram, tho'.

Right, lie-down time now. I might go and catch up on Woman's Hour and do some more crochet for that 1950s feeling (although I should probably also have curlers and a pinny for total authenticity).

Thomasina according to the Halfords sales guy (who may not be completely unbaised as a sales person!) the bases are safer if you have a crash at over 40mph as they mean the car seat doesn't shake/move from side to side (DH and I do a lot of motorway driving to see family). Crashes under 40mph there is no difference. A friend of mine recommended the isofix more for peace of mind as you know the car seat is in properly, and its easier than putting the seatbelts on all the time. But its a personal choice.

Pinkali here is the group link - I hope it works for you (should do as you are listed as a member)!

I stop for lunch (prawn and avocado salad, I'm so 80's me!) and look at all these messages!!!!!!!!!

the bee for me was rubbish, the fram was not very good at going up and down, but more to the point, DS2 was about 14months at the time and too big for it!!!!!!!!!! He is not a giant baby, a little bit taller than average perhaps but not extreme...It also felt very flimsy in comparison to the mountain buggy and for me walking everywhere, wasn't practical....

Merry MB doubles are ever so slightly cumbersome, but mine does stand up when folded - quite small in fact but better than most other doubles I have had.........what one did you go for in the end?????

chocorange I was on ly jesting about the spreadsheet, but I KNOW you are a spreadsheet bore geek erm I mean expert!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! think a tournament is a great idea - just think when we are all up at 2am feeding baby we will be solving and planning words!!

Thomasina according to the Halfords sales guy (who may not be completely unbaised as a sales person!) the bases are safer if you have a crash at over 40mph as they mean the car seat doesn't shake/move from side to side (DH and I do a lot of motorway driving to see family). Crashes under 40mph there is no difference. A friend of mine recommended the isofix more for peace of mind as you know the car seat is in properly, and its easier than putting the seatbelts on all the time. But its a personal choice.

Pinkali here is the group link - I hope it works for you (should do as you are listed as a member)!

OK Scrabblers so should we have a knock out tournament (FA Cup styley) or a League??

(Sorry for the previous double post - my comp crashed!)

Hi all

Have been to the hospital this morning and have now got soaking wet walking over waterloo bridge! My jeans are wet through and I just want to go home and have a nice hot shower and change into my slummy trackie pants!! Turning into a slummy mummy already and little boy not even here yet.....

Prams - I have got a Bugaboo Bee too! It's in khaki with a khaki baby nest and I think it's ace. I had to have something small and nimble as I have to get it into a lift at home then into my flat and also on public transport as taking the car is not always an option in London!

Sorry for those not feeling brilliant and I can totally sympathise with the non-sleeping thing

xx