Hi everyone! Big long catch up needed, so sorry as I haven't posted for ages. Feel free to skip ahead... (I've been copying bits as I read so that I could catch up eventually)
rosmerta regards immigrating to Auz, did you ever check out skilled labour options? Are you training/working as a midwife or health care professional? My mother who is a midwife herself says she could pretty much get a job in any country as demand is always so high for trained midwives.
I had some sort of notes about taking snacks in for labour? Can't remember what that was about. Anyway my mother told me you can always tell when a woman is truly in labour as she feels more like vomiting than eating (!) Although I reckon one would be ravenous afterwards.
Lovely pics from all the ladies who have put them up! Keep em coming, they are great
hatty I was so sorry to hear about your DH's work situation, and also the eye problem and suspected prostate cancer with your FIL. My father had his prostate removed just last month after being diagnosed with prostate cancer, and he's just been given the 'all clear' from his recent PSA (prostate specific antigen) test which is such a relief. If the cancer is contained within the prostate (stage 1) then the odds are good for survival. My dad had his removed rather than go through chemo, and has had a fantastic recovery thus far. Hope the outcome is also good for your FIL.
Effie regards having property management for real estate in London - do be sure to research the company, and make sure there is a 'get out' clause in the contract just in case you are not happy with them. I've been really unhappy with the agents managing my property in Upper Norwood, and am about to give them the sack. Management fees are really very high in London so make sure you shop around, haggle for a better price (lower percentage) and in my experience bigger is not necessarily better. I'm going to be going with a small local management firm next - the big company that currently manage my property are so hopeless at contacting me and returning my many many emails (grr!)
Beans, I LOVE that santa suit, it's hilarious! I am now on the lookout for a 'summer' (short sleeve/legs) version here in Oz, I've been told they sell them at a few stores closer to Christmas time, as there's nothing online that I can find as yet. Our baby also has 2 super hero outfits already (one was a gift) in slightly bigger sizes, so I can just see now this poor kid is going to be a comic/sci-fi nerd in no time...
Turnip what a classic quote from the Ina May Gaskin book ("Gates of Life")!! I'll have to read it now of course. My mother (also a qualified naturapath) has lent me some of her natural birth and water birth books and they are an interesting read. One of them is called Birth Without Violence which is a bit extreme in some parts, but did have some interesting ideas in it. I think it's been a while since they held babies up by their feet after birth though (it was written in the mid 70's).
Re: dilemma about what to do for Christmas. We're a couple of hours drive from our families, and two weeks late would mean a Christmas baby for me. So we've decided to be undecided and wait to see how we feel once/when this bub chooses to come. I've felt a lot better since deciding not to worry about it. Family will understand either way with whatever we choose to do, and they will come and visit us if we don't end up going to spend Christmas with them.
LadyThompson I also agree your DP should give up drinking while you are pregnant if he expects you to abstain. My DH and I don't really drink much alcohol normally, however I was getting jealous that he was drinking cola all the time in front of me so he vowed to give it up for the length of my pregnancy! I am a lucky lady.
waitinggirl and Turnip - regards the "Sphincter Law" - have you seen the video on youtube of the woman singing whilst having contractions? I found it really interesting. Link here but it comes with a kleenex warning for those feeling teary/emotional
emmanbump - grr at unhelpful people making comments about not being organised/cost of baby stuff. They should mind their own business, and anyway it doesn't have to be expensive. For example, for anyone buying a cot wanting to save money, I would recommend having a look on ebay. We got these (matching cot, chest of drawers and change table) for a steal for a total of Auz $91 (£40) and they are so fantastic! No teeth marks or anything and actually in much better condition than we expected. My BIL who lives in Lancaster did a similar thing; they got their cot for about £45 on ebay UK. We bought a new piece of Dunlop matress foam for ours @ $40 (£17) for which I am making 2 waterproof covers and 2 fitted sheets for (cost for these should be less than £35). So it is possible to do things cheaply but still get quality if you go second hand (I wouldn't buy a second hand mattress or sheets though).
Veggie - "I usually wash in cold" - this is a rare thing in the UK! I found it so difficult finding a machine that even did a cold wash when I lived there, and considering machines are mostly cold fill these days, doing warm/hot washes not only costs electricity but also generates build up on the element inside the machine especially in hard water areas like London. There are some occasions one needs to do warm washes though of course. Luckily here the sun's ultraviolet rays do a great job of disinfecting and drying quickly. But I reckon that the lack of cold wash machines in the UK is simply because manufacturers want people to have to replace them sooner.
poisondwarf and zoejeanne also watch out for MSG (flavouring number 621) if you get heart palpitations. My mum gets them when she eats anything with MSG in it. I try and avoid all of the glutamates (anything beginning with 62) as well as other colorings & preservatives if possible. It's amazing how much crap goes into some packaged food!
Also thanks for the info about leg cramps poisondwarf and veggie - I was worried as I've had some myself too. I've had suspected DVT in the past, so was going to ask a doctor about it. Will look into the magnesium/calcium/banannas/more water solutions too.
Kimberly I'm a cleaning addict at the moment too. I scrubbed the bathroom floor for almost two hours recently, very unlike me! We've just moved into a rental property and I've got many years' worth of built up grime to get rid of, blargh.
chutney GRRR to the man who fell on you! What a twat. Karma will bite him in the bum for that, I have no doubt!
waitinggirl I'm sorry it must be so worrying for you with your deadline looming. And here I am not having sent you any info to you by email, I feel so bad! Is there any specific topic I can offer experience on for your references? I'm having some trouble with reflux/gerd again if that's something that relates? Anyway good to hear that your mw thinks you have good abdominal muscles - must be the singing! Hopefully it will help you with the birth.
zoejeanne I use a pillow between my legs at night and find it really good too. DH just has to put up with it, although it does help that we sleep on a queen size bed (which I think is a bit bigger than a UK queen size but not quite as big as a king).
poisondwarf as the others have said, you have a right to see your notes, electronic or paper. Legally, it's covered in the Data Protection Act.
hatty chutney and summer - I used to have an 0203 residential number when I moved to Upper Norwood (SE19) and needed a new number in October 2005 (Wiki was right!) So they have been around for a bit but are still not that well known to many people. I was told by BT at the time that all the 0207 and 0208 numbers had been used up.
mibbes - love the nursery pics! I have cot linen envy
hatty re: the youtube clips - I've seen most of them! I'm with mibbes in thinking that 'forewarned is forearmed'. The youtube clips are not for everyone though, and some are really a bit worrying (esp the one I saw with an episiotomy - could have done with a pre-warning on that one!) but personally I feel I know more what to expect now. And can start dealing with psychological preparation in advance. On a related note, had a 'moment' recently when I had to do a bit of a hedge trim (with the aid of a mirror!) and upon seeing exactly what was down there, I thought "how the heck is bubs going to fit out of there?!?"
kmp I swear just as I was reading your post about hiccuping, I noticed baby bisou was doing it! Now I know what it is, thanks for enlightening me about it
beans turnip mibbes and jolly, re: mattress protector - we had a fitted waterproof one when we were in the UK - I think it was from Ikea and it was pretty decent, think it was something like this. I remember it was one of those ones that looks like it's terry towelling on top, so not justm made of of plastic. Many of them are "breathable" now, and my SIL reckons hers saved their mattress as her waters broke whilst she was on their bed (!) I've also bought 2 for the cot mattress, so that I've always got a spare when I need to wash one if they get dirty/soiled/weed on/spewed on. Nice stuff eh?
Sorry again for the huge post! I'll try to do it a bit more regularly so I don't bore you all to tears again with another essay...