Due June 2009 - Fattening Up For Christmas!

[Ineedmorechocolatenow]

Here's the new thread... hope you find it!

Bumpsadaisie 28th May
CoteDAzur 28 May by dates, 1 June by scan (37, dd 3)
swottybetty 30th May (31. DD 07/03/08)
llynnnn 1st June
Myneaux 1st June
Bigcar 1st June (37, dd 18, dd 9, ds 8, dd3 2)
joyfuleyes 2nd June
marmotti 2nd June
gems27 4th June
Mrs McJnr DC2 4 June 2009 (34, ds 8mths)
Ineedmorechocolatenow 5th June 2009 (31,ds 2)
summerbird 6th June (35, 1st one)
daisy5 6th June (41, dd 2)
LittleSarah 6th June (26, dd 4yrs)
thisisyesterday 6th June (ds1 3.5, ds2 1)
DreamyDorrie 7th June (30, dd 19/11/07)
Yoshimi 7th June (ds 18nths)
Aligard 8th June (one dd)
Leaky 10th June (39, ds1 5, ds2 2.5)
DawnoftheDead DC1 11th June 2009
Champagneforlunch 11th June (27, DD 4yrs)
NickelSodium 12th June
travellinglight 13th June
Sparkle73 13th June
Froggy16 13th June (27 ds 6 yrs dd 4yrs)
Nemoandthefishes 14th June [30 DS 5[+2days],DD1 2.9yrs,dd2 21mths]
Irishmama3 17th of June (36) [dd 9 ds6 and dd2
chocciedooby 18th June (37m ds1 4, ds2 3)
onehitwonder 18th June (41 DD1 3)
snowwombat 21st June (31)
TTCnumber3maybe (36) DC3 22 June 2009 (DS 4.5 and DS almost 3)
StrawberrySam 22nd June
Diege, 22nd June (38, dd1 7, dd2 5.8, dd3 2.8)
Heebeejeebee - 22nd June (36)
BobsWendy DC3 26 June 2009
TheLittleMermaid DC2 26 June 2009
Tee2072 DC1 26 June 2009 (39)
Sweetie34 - 29th June (37)
Wilsonmummy 28 2dd edd 30th june NotSoRampantRabbit
tessofthedurbervilles
boundoriginals
helpivegottogivebirth
Lionstar
Li lacpink
mel1981
flynn1984

I'm quite suprised by how little by 'bump' is. in fact lying down i would say there is nothing there.

Standing up there is what i would describe as 'flabby tummy' - not in the place where the baby is, but most likely as a result of me doubling my calorie intake through hunger pangs in months 2 and 3.

do you think i should be worried?

meant to mention i'm 16 weeks exactly....

helpivegottogivebirth I guess it depends on how slim you were before pregnancy.
I'm 16 weeks as well, just weighed myself and had a shock, I put on a stone!
People who know I am pregnant think it is showing, other acquaintances probably think I fell off the bandwagon and got fat again (used to be 3 stones heavier and lost it at the gym working hard over 4 years).
I've definitely got a flabby belly though, no round and firm bump to show off

When you say you can feel the baby, what can you feel? I can feel like bubbles from time to time which I think is the baby??

I think I'm going to have to go back to the gym so I don't put too much on.(as in "dangerously too much" for me and the baby.) I just feel too tired at the moment, getting cold sore after cold sore.

Yeah, it feels like bubbles across the underneath of your skin. It also can feel like a little 'pulse' if you get a kick. I felt DS move at 16 weeks too (even tho the midwife told me I was ridiculous and only experienced mums felt it that early). I'm now an experienced mum and can tell you that's exactly what it was last time! Obviously the feeling intensifies to the point where you can get a painful kick in the ribs or the fanjo and it takes your breath away! It's lovely (til it gets painful) tho! I also have a flabby tummy June tho it's starting to look a little more rounded in certain clothes....

Please don't worry too much aout weight gain. I put on 4 stone with DS, and it was off within a year and I didn't even breast feed past 10 days. I know they're all mad about it at the moment, but you put on what you put on. As long as you're not gorging on fattening food all the tie and going mental, you'll be fine x

June, I'm nearly 15 wks and have a slightly fatter belly than usual and no discernible bump unless I feel v low down and can just make out the uterus hiding behind the pubic bone. I'm not wearing maternity clothes but finding the top button of my jeans trickier by the week. Unless you're v skinny the bump often won't appear till nearer mid-pregnancy. And despite Ineedmorechoc's advice about weight gain, I think she sounds incredibly lucky to lose 4 st in a year - must have a remarkable metabolism! Trying to keep it to not much more than 1.5 st makes it a lot easier to shift after the birth. But not by starving yourself of course, just not using pregnancy as an excuse for chocolate!

In terms of feeling movements, if you sense some of those 'bubbles' or 'pulses' and then you don't fart a few seconds later, it probably is the baby , I'm a bit windier than usual these days...

I think you're extremely lucky if you can manage to only gain 1.5 stone. Most people I know gain between 2-3 (the 'average' weight gain is between 20-30 pounds) and quite a few people I know gained much more than that, even more than me! Just don't go mad on the fattening food, but also don't let people make you feel shit if you gain a couple of stone. I only put so much on because I was bed-bound for 6 weeks at the end of pregnancy due to chronic SPD and and no way of burning off or doing anything active at all. I probably would have put on about 3 stone otherwise.

Pretty much the first stone shifts straight after birth (the baby, placenta and fluid weighing much more than you think). I found the worst bit was the last half a stone. It was a pigging arse to lose and went to Slimming World in the end. As it is, I lost so much with them that I only weigh now, 16 weeks into this pregnancy, what I weighed when I fell pregnant with DS.

Obviously if you suffer weight problems anyway, then you have to be really careful. But if you are a healthy BMI, just try to be healthy, but don't feel crap if you fancy a pudding or treats now and again x

And if you're lucky enough to be able to breast-feed, the weight will go quicker, as long as you're eating healthily and not going mad on the biscuits.....

It must be partially relative ie. if you're already big you might gain more weight than a lighter women but still have the same percentage gain according to original body weight. My original weight was around 9st 7lb (in the healthy BMI band for my height) and I found even the 21lb I gained in first and 24lb in second pregnancies (very similar to the weight gain of everyone in my antenatal group except for one already very large woman, and at the lower end of the average but still not unusual) took ages to come off, and that was with 18 months+ breastfeeding in both cases. It didn't bother me terribly but I was glad there wasn't even more to shift. If larger gain doesn't bother you and doesn't affect your blood pressure/cholesterol and general health then it's not a big deal, but I'd rather keep the cake eating as a treat and be out of maternity jeans not too many months after the birth. However, some of my antenatal group of 10 women were back to their previous size in a few weeks, so it really does vary from woman to woman.

Oh how scary strawberrysam! So glad the baby is in there dancing away! I would definitely push to be seen every few weeks.

As for weight gain...the first thing my MW told me at my booking in was 'you are not eating for 2!!' You really shouldn't gain more than about 1.5 - 2 stone and you really don't need to gain more than that.

Personally, I lost 5 pounds at the beginning, thanks to my really strict diabetes diet, and have now gained back 4 of them to be nearly back at the start! And I'm 13 + 5 as of today.

Hey ladies here to catch up. All fine with me, very bad sick day yesterday combined with a headache but feeling a lot better today definitely have a bump here, looks a lot bigger than 17 weeks I think but my weight is still below pre pg so it must be the baby (or my saggy muscles) weight is such an emotive thing. Having struggled all my life to keep my weight down I found it really scary last pg watching it creep up by 20 odd pounds but they did come off quickly even though I wasn?t proportioned the same afterwards and should have worked on my figure before getting pg again?..

Ttc ? hey there sorry to hear about your sickness and your scary screening tests hope the CVS went well and looking forward to hearing good news from you

Hey Tee ? try not to worry about the screening tests easier said than done I know!

Ineedmore I wrote a diary last time too, wish I could get my act together and keep one this time, I know I?ll want to look back I use Pampers/Dodot with my DS, I have tried so many makes and they all leak and I have been very fortunate, DS has never had nappy rash for more than a couple of hours (when I have used less absorbent nappies).

June ? all your points about the reusable nappies are valid in my opinion I tried to do that perineal massage last time (much later, from about 36 weeks I think) but it was very awkward to reach and not exactly comfortable. I decided I?d take my chances. I did tear a little and had some stitches but I never looked at them or had any issues with them so I think I got off lightly! Ironic really as I was really hung up about the whole tearing thing when I was pg ? even bought ice pads, arnica, lavender etc but thankfully never needed them! those pelvic floor exercises on the other hand are a must?.so SQQQQQQQUUUUUUUUUUEZE! Hope your Dad feels much better soon.

Choccie ? LOL yes, there are things that I would rather do with my precious time than perineal massage in fact, I managed to get round to one such thing today, I washed my make up brushes! Pre DS I did it monthly but I haven?t done it for 6 months manky! Pretty thirsty here too!

Cote ? so pleased for you that all is fine and as Ineedmore says boys are fab! Really cuddly!

Great news Diddlie

Littlesarah ? I thought raspberry leaf tea was meant to make your contractions more effective? I drank tonnes and it worked for me, 4cm-10cm in 3 1/2 hours!

Poor you Dreamy, hope you feel better soon!

Hello Flynn, Ermintrude, llynnnn, Vikbaby and Daisy!

Welcome and congrats WelshChristmas

Strawberrysam ? poor, poor you I am so relieved to hear your baby is fine but I am so sorry to hear about all the scares you keep having, I really hope they find out why soon for you.

Evening all

I'll try to catch up later, not been around much this weekend been running about like mental taking my mum for the last of her christmas shopping...not fun people banging shopping trollies into my stomach

Strawberrysam how upsetting the bleeds must have been for you and your dh glad you saw your baby fit and healthy!

Quick question, I am extremely worried about weight gain (i was 13 1/2st before I fell pregnant) I'm now 14st at 14+1weeks. I have ordered a prenatal exercise dvd think this will help keep the weight gain to a minimum I was a fit person before I fell pregnant but gave up exercise in fear that I would mc after 2 years of ttc

sorry for the 'me' post

June, the reason for my original comments on weight gain were to reassure you. If you've put on a stone already, don't think that you've got to diet like mad so that you only put on half a stone for the rest of your pregnancy to make it easier to lose afterwards. Don't panic, but do chat to your midwife if you're worried.

I've put on 8 pounds and I'm 16 + 2 Flynn. I think the amount you put on varies from person to person. Ermintrude and I have been discussing it, earlier in the thread. 20 - 30 lbs gain is the average.

My physio said not to try anything 'new' in terms of exercise when pregnant (your ligaments are so soft due to hormones so you can easily hurt yourself), but you're fine to do moderate exercise of the type you're used to. I know some friends of mine who ran regularly pre-pregnancy, still go running, over 20 weeks into pregnancy. However, they are used to it and their bodies are tuned to it. Swimming and walking are the best as they are low-impact and can still burn off the calories. Have you got any aqua-natal classes near you? A brisk, 15 - 25 min walk a day will also be good. It's hard to stay active when you're so freaking knackered all the time!

I have to be really careful as any exercise aggravates my SPD and I'm laid up for days. However, I am allowed to do swimming. I'm booking into aqua-natal as soon as the Christmas break is over....

I've found it much easier to be active having a toddler running around this pregnancy!

Hi everybody, poor, poor you Strawberrysam. Your bleeds sound terrible and really traumatic. I'm delighted you saw the baby though, obviously you must feel massively reassured by this, but I really feel for you and what you're going through.

Ineed I feel incredibly guilty after reading your post, as my treats are definitely daily, not occasional. And like you, Flynn I've given up exercise because I'm paranoid about mc (weak cervix in my case because of a leetz done last Jan). I've put on 5 lbs so far, which I think is normal, but after Xmas, I'm going to walk to work and swim twice a week. I reckon I'm saving loads of calories from not drinking anyway.

I don't mean to show off, but I really have got a bump. Last night I dressed it in a tight sequined pink top to show it off at a party. I figured if I was going to announce my single motherhood to the world, I may as well do it in style. And just as you said, LittleSarah, everybody was incredibly supportive. I felt really loved and cherished.

My 'friend' (or babyfather, as I believe is the term in single mum circles) and I are emailing regularly now...he has said some lovely things about the baby being lucky to have me as a mother, but is still "floored" by the news. He is telling his parents over Xmas - but surely he must realise once he tells his mum she's going to be dying to meet this baby, no?? I sent him a JPeg of the 12 week scan, which he said was "cute, terrifying and awe-inspiring." Which actually I took as quite encouraging...

Welcome WelshChristmas, I am the queen of worry when it comes to aches and pains, but share here and it helps (see my previous post about stabbing pains in the cervix!)

Hope everybody's Xmas plans going well!

Hi loooouise! Sorry to make you feel guilty! If it makes you feel any better, yesterday I had a whole (very large) bag of crisps, two slices of cake and half a large bar of Galaxy! No wonder I've put on 8 pounds!

So sorry to hear about your bleeding Strawberrysam. It must be so frightening. What with all the other bloody pregnancy anxieties, you don't need that. I hope it calms down soon. At least they are monitoring you closely x

Ineedmorechocolatenow thanks. Your message was really kind and did reassure me. I know I can loose the extra weight after, obviously the more I put on the longer it'll take and the harder it'll be.

It's been a bit of a wake up call I think (hopefully).
I have clearly been eating too much and had too many treats the first three months, second helpings and everything .

flynn1984 I would suggest meeting with a trainer who knows about pregnancy. The dvd is a good idea but won't tell you if your posture is wrong.

I'm meeting with a trainer in the new year.

I can't wait to go back training as this is the only way I know to manage my weight, been struggling with it forever and only found a balance with one hour exercise everyday and watching what I eat very closely. If anything it'll make me feel better about myself.

Weighed myself this morning and I'm 2 pounds lighter than yesterday [hmmm], I guess I'll have to be careful over xmas and weigh myself in a week or so.

StrawberrySam I really feel for you too, I hope today's appointment goes well.

It's a really bad time of year to be talking about cutting back on the food, isn't it? The house is full of mince pies, stollen and Thornton's continentals. Not to mention the giant boxes of sugary breakfast cereals 'for the kids' (I asked them what they wanted for breakfast on Christmas morning and the reply was Cheerios and Crunchy Nut Cornflakes because usually they have worthy no-sugar muesli or bran or porridge. I thought they'd want fresh pancakes or muffins, but no). I LOVE Crunchy Nut C/flakes and will eat at least 2 huge bowlfuls every morning. But after Christmas, naturally, my body will be a temple again. Quite a large temple...

StrawberrySam, what a worrying time for you. So glad the babe is still dancing in there, and hope they find an explanation soon. The fact your cervix is always closed sounds like the biggest reassurance, even though it makes it all more of a mystery. Hang on in there.

Looooise, sounds like you introduced your bump to the crowd in great pink sparkly style! Good news that your 'babyfather' - love that term - is getting a bit awestruck. And as soon as he tells his mum I bet she'll be thrilled. Do you know her? Hope she's someone you can have 'onside' along with your own family and friends.

Re weight and exercise, as Ineedmorechoc says, best not to worry about very specific weight gains, certainly don't actually diet or deprive yourself of nutrition, and don't overdo exercise if you didn't do much before. Once I stop feeling sick (surely it can't go on much longer!) I hope to do the odd gently 20 mins on our cross-trainer, and start swimming again. I already walk everywhere and find a brisk half hour stroll in the fresh air good for making me less nauseous.

Is anyone else getting constipated? I'm eating as much fibre - cereals, wholemeal bread, fresh fruit and veg, prunes, oatmeal, the lot - as usual but already feeling bunged up digestively. Makes that feeling of being 'full' in the abdomen even worse. Any top tips for keeping regular would be welcome!

ermintrude13 re the constipation I'm the same, eat oat crunchies (quaker cereal) every morinng with tropicana orange juice, take everything wholemeal except bagels and I'm contantly bunged up! I'm going to try activia yoghurts hopefully that will help.

Re exercise - June thats a great idea about meeting with a trainer, think I'll do that after new year, as well as going back to karate where I can do light exercise like kata and pad work. I'll be signing up for aqua-natal in january too
weighed myself this morning and I've lost 1 pound so back under 14st (just) I know pregnancy isn't the time to lose weight but when your already overweight it can't be a bad thing as long as I'm still getting all my nutrients and vitamins

Loooouise what a way to introduce your bump I cant wait for mine to really show (right now its reall just my flabby belly showing ) I'm sure once the 'babyfather' tells his parents they will want to be a part of the baby's life!

Hey girls

Flynn ? try not to worry about the weight gain, ½ stone isn?t really very much in the scheme of things. There is a useful section in the ?What to expect? book on what you need to eat when pg and what you should avoid etc. I bought a DVD last time and never did it, either pre or post-natally

Ineedmore ? lol yes I am certainly getting into positions (and lifting things) I would never have dreamed of when I was pg with DS but because I have him, I just have to get on with it and that includes dancing like Stephanie

Loooouise ? I reckon that most of the weight I have lost to date was my alcohol stores not being able to eat cured ham and soft cheeses probably makes a difference too as does not being able to eat much at night. Well done on the showing the bump off, you go girl! And I?m so pleased the ?babyfather? (love that term too) is realising how amazing this baby is how do you feel about him by the way? What if he suddenly turns round and wants to look after you both? Ignore me if I am being too nosey

How are you all getting on looking for a name or is it too soon? with DS I read every book I could find, spent many a lunchtime in Waterstones and in the end we just had 2 boys names and 1 girl's name. DH is adamant that we should use that girl's name and I do like it but I can't help still looking for a back up in case she doesn't "look" like that name but I haven't found anything yet!

MrsMcClaus me and dh have already chosen the names we would call our son or daughter...Adam John Flynn (John is the name of both our fathers) or Sarah Flynn (there would be middle names of Margaret & Emily to cover the grandmothers names but baby would never be called by them)
Let me know what you think?

We've got the two names we didn't use for DS when he was born. I have to have the boy's name, because it's DH's grandfather's and I promised. I still love the girl's name.... thank goodness...

MrsMcClaus been looking for names on and off since we've started dating 10 years ago . Can't agree on ANYTHING though so far. Dh wants to know the sex so we only have 1 set of names to look for! .

flynn, love the names :D we'll have our parents or/and grand-parents names in the mix somewhere as well.

ermintrude13 yeah constipation is a problem here too and I don't want to try too hard in case the baby comes out instead (sorry for TMI).

mrsM I have a ton of names, none of which DH likes!! I am really leaning towards Natalie Anne (for my grandmothers) or Abigail Rose (for no one!!) for a girl. I have no preference for boys since DH has said he hated Eli Harrison (for my great uncle and my grandfather!).

Hey ladies.. thank you for all your kind words - advise and fun anecdotes!

my scan on the 16th went well.. and no abnormalities were found at this stage. So fingers crossed for my next scan in January..

Dad is home now and he is much better then he was - which is a relief.. I am pretty symptomless at the moment but I think I can feel flutterings of baby!

The sonographer annoyed me a bit actually - He goes its "maybe" a girl! I was a bit like... MAYBE! What do you mean maybe! tell me for sure or dont tell me at all!

I'm so sorry so many of you are feeling poorly..

I'm sorry this is such a me post.. I'm having one of those days where you just feel so overwhelmed by what the future holds.. quite scared really..

I really want to buy a new place as well but DH thinks its a bad idea with the present climate...

I dont know!- ITS SO CONFUSING... and everyone keeps telling me how expensive having a child is - which is forcing me to think I shouldnt take the full maternity.. I wish I was richer, younger and a bit more experienced with all this!