Are your children’s vaccines up to date?

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Connect with mums-to-be with similar due dates to share experiences and support.

due in jan on the home stretch now!! on the 1st day of christmas my true love gave to me a baby up in a tree,2 babygros,3 teddy bears,4 waddling mummies and five smelly nappies

968 replies

tinkisallreadytositonthetree · 19/11/2008 08:27

hi ladies thought i would be organised and start a new thread

OP posts:
Are your children’s vaccines up to date?
newmomma · 03/12/2008 17:00

Hi ladies,

I have been reading this thred for a while and hope you don't mind me joining in - not sure if you're all mates or whether anyone can join..? It's hard to know with these long standing threads

I'm due 17.01.09, which makes me 34 weeks on Saturday. It's my first baby and I'm currently swaying between feeling like all my Christmasses have come at once and the cold terror that takes over from time to time.

Its nice to read through some of the old posts and see that everyone seems to be going through vaguely similar problems and symptoms.

moosemama I have a lovely male boxer dog - the love of my life (until number one child comes along!). He'll be 3 in February - what dogs do you have?

Oh, and a silly question - but could someone enlighten me as to what dh/ds/ds1 etc all stand for - am really struggling to understand the meanings of some of them!

Anyway - hope you don't mind me barging in...

tinkisahugexmaspudding · 03/12/2008 17:14

hi newmomma you are very welcome to join us
i am due on the 15th of jan with number 2
i am 34 weeks tomorrow

dh = dear husband
dd = dear daughter
ds = dear son
ds1 = dear son 1
if you have more than one son can then use
ds2
i have a dd who is 3 years old

other abbreaviations

oh = other half
dp = dear partner
gof = good old f*%$

moosemama · 03/12/2008 17:18

Hi there newmomma, welcome to the thread

I am on baby number 3 and I still swing between being really happy and looking forward to it and being absolutely terrified. It's perfectly normal.

I love boxer dogs. The dog that was and always will be the love of my life was a boxer x gsd, huge soppy and big brown eyes to die for. We have a belgian shepherd x border collie, who will be 9 next week, a soft coated wheaten terrier who is nearly 11 and a 2 year old lurcher (saluki/deerhound x collie/greyhound). Poor things are feeling very hard done by at the moment, walks have been few and far between with our life being in such chaos. Think it's especially hard on the old gals as they were used to going to dog club and doing heelwork to music and agility etc before we moved and had kids. The lurcher is fairly typical in that a good 20 minute romp around the garden with a frisbee or ball wears him out so he'll sleep for pretty much the rest of the day. Am looking to lots of long walks with my new off-road pushchair when bubs arrives though.

dh - darling/dearest husband
ds - darling/dearest son (number indicates first born, second born etc
dd - darling/dearest daughter

If you scroll to the top of the page, there is a tiny link under 'useful stuff' called acronym list - all the most common initals and their meanings are in there, I found it really useful when I first joined.

Of course you're not barging in, everyone's welcome. Hope we are able to answer any questions you might have and support you when/if you need it.

HeathersMummy · 03/12/2008 17:19

Hi newmomma and welcome to the madhouse
DH is darling husband, DS - darling son, DS1 darling son number 1 and so on.

Moose - sorry things are not getting any better for your ds. Big hugs to you.

Great news ladies. Been at the hospital today and they have booked me in for an induction....on 15th December!!!! Really, really pleased. Baby has turned from breech to head down so don't need a c-section. We'll have a new baby for Christmas - how exciting!

Must get organised now

moosemama · 03/12/2008 17:21

Tink! gof! That one's not on the acronym list!

Sorry for the cross post!

moosemama · 03/12/2008 17:23

HeathersMummy, how exciting! Good news about not needing a section too.

Thanks for the hugs.

tinkisahugexmaspudding · 03/12/2008 17:35

here is the list new momma have added u on

HeathersMummy - 31st Dec (DC2, DD born May 05)
MsSparkle - 2nd Jan (DC2, DD born Oct 06)
scare85 - tbc
Ginni - 2nd Jan
charmed24 - 2nd Jan
Teuch - 2nd Jan
kidsfromfame - 2nd Jan
okaythen - 2nd Jan
looweeza - 2nd Jan
Ginni - 2nd Jan
blot4 - 3 Jan (DS1 is 1)
NatalieJane - 3rd Jan (will be DC3, DS1 born Mar 02, DS2 born Dec 06)
moosemama - 3rd Jan
Periwink - 3rd Jan
MrsMagpie - 4th Jan
1973magpie - 6th Jan (will be DC3 - Gulp!)
Chefswife ? 6th Jan
MissHairspray - 6th Jan BOY
Hopenotsickthistime - 8th Jan (DC2, DD born May 07)
witchandchips 9th Jan
Nellybell 10th Jan (will be DC2, DS born Sept 06)
ScaredofEverything - 10th Jan - DC1 and she's a girl!
mermaid31 - 10th Jan
Shanster - 10th Jan
Mel2005 - 10th Jan TWINS(ds born sept 04, dd born jan 06)
RambleOn - 10th Jan (DC2, DD born Oct 06)
nooschmoo - 12th Jan (will be DC2, DD born sept 07)
OutofthisWorld - 12 Jan (1 boy, born April 2005)
Spink - 12 Jan (will be dc2, ds born Feb 2007)
LenniEd - 13th Jan (will be DC2, DD born Dec 2006) Also having blue feelings! And I was right - 'Tis a boy.
Largeginandtonic- 13th January (twin boys-9, dd-8, ds-6, ds-3, ds-15months) GIRL!!!!
icklepeanut 13 Jan (Son 16, daughter 12)
Stripeywoollenhat - 13 Jan - little girl!
Poorbuthappy - TWIN GIRLS 09th Jan (1 dd born Sept 04)
Tallulahbelle - twins due 13th Jan (1 DD born June 2007)
llareggub 15 Jan (will be DC2. DS born Oct 06)
tink-15th of jan (dc2, have dd1 3 aug 29th) girl
Tokentotty - 16th Jan (DC2, DS born Aug 07)
buickmackane - 16 Jan (DC3, DS1 11/01, DS2 08/04)
iwouldgoouttonight - 16th January (DS born August 06)
Chocsolot - 16th Jan
LittleSquirt - 16th Jan
FourLittleFeet - 16th Jan (DC2, DD May 07) having blue feelings this time, not finding out
newmomma - 17th of jan (dc1)
MissJackson - 18th Jan
MrsT77 - 18th Jan
Happyathome - 18th Jan (DC2. DD born June 02)
ColumbosWife - 19th January (DC3)
MrsAay - 20th Jane
FioLondon - 20th Jan
mrsmontano - 20th Jan (DC2, DD born May 03)
Rrrayray- 20th Jan
EachPeachPearMum- 21st Jan (DC2, DD born Feb 06) BOY!
Buckles- 21st Jan
Booksgalore - 21st Jan (DS born Mar 07) It's a Surprise!
Feedmenow (c-section or induction about now although not officially due til 4th Feb)
LooseyC - 22nd Jan (DC2. DS born Dec 07) Another BOY!
Upwind - 25th Jan
Lizzih1974 - 26th Jan
Oops - 26th Jan (DS1 - 6, DS2 - stillborn 19 Dec 07)
elkiedee 26 Jan (DC2, DS born May 2007)
FYM - 28th Jan (DC2, DS Dec 05)
NoNickname - 29th Jan
Tobemory - 29th Jan (DC2, DS 14 months, Charlie)
Givethedogabone - 30th january (will be dc 3, DD 4 in feb, ds 2 in decemeber)

givethedogachristmaspudd · 03/12/2008 17:46

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moosemama · 03/12/2008 18:10

gtdab, I love my boys nativities and always well up at some point. Its not looking like ds2 will be making his nativity this year though so will have 2 completely useless sheep outfits! At least I don't have to worry about the outfit he really wanted arriving in time now.

Sorry your ds is still so poorly. Hope he has a better day tomorrow and is up to playing with his birthday presents. Also hope you are managing to find time to take good care of yourself as well as the dcs.

Spink · 03/12/2008 18:25

newmomma hello, you're very welcome to join! I can so relate to 'cold terror'.... I am due 12th Jan, so 34 weeks and a bit, and have a ds who is 21 months and likes to practice shouting and wailing.

oops really sorry to hear about your stillbirth last year. I cannot even begin to get my head around what that must be like. you ok with the induction idea?
on the milk topic - I've got some colostrum now, I notice little droplets of it coming out when I'm in the shower. Feels like a colossal waste, last time I was hand expressing teeny teeny syringes of it when ds struggled to latch..

Heathersmummy fab news about the date and the baby-turning. Got any tips for me? baby is breech and not sure what the local policy is for upside down babies and homebirth.. still, I guess there is still lots of time for the lo to get in the right position. Isn't there?

givethedog yay for the lovely nativity, can't wait to be a sad mum welling up at her lo.. where are these pics??

tink lol at gof...

oh, and I bought something for my homebirth basket that I'm not sure is on your list moosemama - sorry if TMI but I found out by accident, when having to wee into a plastic measuring jug last time (they need to check output if you've been catheterised) that it doesn't sting if you wee sort of standing and leaning forward. into the aforementioned jug. As an alternative, you can also use the jug as a container for warm water which you can pour over your stingy bits as you wee. Either way, a very useful piece of kit!

HeathersMummy · 03/12/2008 18:31

Spink - no idea how the baby turned! I was convinced it was still breech, so I was shocked. The consultant thinks it probably happened when I was very relaxed in bed one night. It's turned sometime during my 35th week though, so I guess people were right when they told me it had plenty of time to turn .
Here's hoping it doesn't turn back!

givethedogachristmaspudd · 03/12/2008 18:49

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LenniEd · 03/12/2008 18:54

Heathersmummy - wonderful news! Am so pleased for you, know how much I worried when this one was transverse.

Welcome Newmomma - we have a 5 yo boxer dog, he was 3 when DD arrived. He is a loon, but a very affectionate one. I can't wait to not be pregnant so I can get back to long walks with the dogs, that is what I miss more than anything else right now, even more than wine although wine is a pretty close second! Our boxer is a law unto himself, he is stubborn as hell but perfectly well behaved if there is something in it for him! He is wonderful with DD though despite having his nose pushed out when she arrived. Our other dog is a mongrel, prob GSD x Staffie/Collie and she is the most well behaved obediant dog you could wish for - some of her good behaviour rubs off on the loon occasionally she doesn't take any interest in DD at all though. They took a bit of adjusting when DD arrived, the hardest part was when she started crawling but have been far better than we thought they'd be.

LOL at gof Tink - like the way that was the most common acronym you thought of after DH/DS etc

Still snowed in and 8inches forecast for tonight (ooo-err ) so hope the baby doesn't ahev plans for freedom. Am glad it is now and not in a couple of weeks - 34+1 today so unlikely baby would arrive this early, but would have been panicking if I was 37wks +

GTDAB and MM - sending getting better vibes your way.

LenniEd · 03/12/2008 18:57

Aaaaa, GTDAB - love that photo of your DS with bump. Lovely lovely lovely

I want one

Spink · 03/12/2008 19:00

givethedog awww! she is gorgeous and very very cute. liking the fact that she has a belly-bump - to match her mummy's?

lennied where ARE you? surely there isn't that much snow somewhere in the UK??? time to build a pregnant snowman methinks

givethedogachristmaspudd · 03/12/2008 19:06

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LenniEd · 03/12/2008 20:22

I'm on a hilltop on the lancs/n yorks border! Photos on their way tomorrow, far too cold out now Pregnant snowman tomorrows project - fab idea Spink.

Oopsa - I'm also sorry to hear about your stillborn son. A very close relative had a stillborn son when I was only just pg with DD, it was a terrible experience for our whole family but I can't even begin to imagine what it must have been like to lose a child. I can entirely understand your anxiety though, I suffered with antenatal depression when I was pregnant with DD and it was almost certainly triggered by my anxieties after what had happened. I am a bit overprotective of her too which I know is something I need to get over.

fourlittlefeet · 03/12/2008 20:39

Hi there, just want to add my tuppence on the breastfeeding stuff...couple of intersting points I wish someone had told me beforehand...

it isn't easy or necessarily natural and you both have to learn it (helps if the baby latches on easily though)

the baby doesn't need anything at all for the first few days (think of it as a kind of yolk thing going on that it lives off), as long as you let it suckle very frequently to get collostrum, this will also bring your milk in

sometimes they have tongue ties - when they stick out their tongue, the end goes into a heart shape; this can stop them from latching on and make breastfeeding very painful as they can't 'cup' the nipple with their tongue properly

lying down on one side is the easiest way to breastfeed when you are tired (some classes say you have to sit upright with your lap flat, so like a loon I was getting up in the middle of the night to assume the breastfeeding position! Then had trouble getting back to sleep as was totally awake after all that malarky) - caveat to this is sometimes it can be a bit harder with very large boobs!

I had a c-section and my milk still came in on day 3, despite a lot of midwife pressure to give formula (I didn't know the milk could take longer after c-sections and thats why they were trying to make me feed her formula!).

breastfed babies DO need winding - worth doing if they bob off and between breasts as it can be wind, not that they've finished.

You don't need to feed both breasts each time; mine only did 1. Also, there isn't a proscribed length (some take 40mins; mine was 15mins from the start). The times also do get shorter!

Lasinoh is a godsend. Get it in your hospital bag and put it on your nips after each feed. You will thank me for it!

If it hurts in a toecurling way as the milk comes through, that can be normal. If it feels as if your nipples are being sawn off, there is a problem with the latch.

If it hurts, take them off (using your little finger in the corner of their mouth to break the suction first) and relatch. Don't struggle on. Milk will go everywhere, but your nipples won't crack.

finally, I know some people have a shit time with breastfeeding and that some babies just can't do it (militants will come on and kill me for saying it though!). My sister pumped every single bottle for her DS for a whole year, as he just couldn't latch on; thats 30 mins pumping then 30 mins feeding them the bottle! HOWEVER, I do have a friend who was forced to cup feed her baby formula in hospital at the beginning and its now got a cows milk allergy, so do be aware there can be (rare) repercussions from formula, especially if you have allergies in the family. Also if you do mix feed early, you are much more likely to have a baby that prefers bottles and can drop the breastfeeds, as they are harder work for them.

Sorry for the humongous post, but I really, really wish someone had told me all of this and also all the winding stuff (will bore you with that later) as it is so very useful! I do realise that I was incredibly lucky with breastfeeding and know lots of healthy happy babies (and mums) who bottle fed, but this was really some of my experience aimed at those of you who want to give BF a go.

fourlittlefeet · 03/12/2008 20:41

rubbish, just realised I didn't refresh my page before I posted and you are all onto snowspeak!

Spink · 03/12/2008 21:13

Flf - bless! you've written a superb summary - I wish I'd had something like that before ds was born. There are just a couple of other things I found:

  • ASK for help - there is loads out there, you are unlikely to be aware just how much until you look. I was taken aback at how much support flooded in when I finally mentioned all was not well.
  • Nipple shields are not the work of the devil. In fact, most things that people tell you off for, when it comes to bfing, are not all bad - do your research! a website I found really useful was www.kellymom.com
LenniEd · 03/12/2008 21:24

Wow - thank you FLF, will keep that handy. I couldn't BF DD so am collecting up all the info I can find this time (hence my list of helplines ) am hoping to see a bf advisor before DC2 arrives, but various things have conspired against me - this week snow. Am actually quite worried as was due to see midwife tomorrow and won't be able to go. Haven't been seen since 31 weeks as only being seen every 3 weeks. Making me feel anxious. Sure everythings ok though.

moosemama · 03/12/2008 21:24

gtdab your camel is sooo cute!

flf, really good advice on breastfeeding. I never managed to feed lying down as am cursed blessed with the aforementioned large enormous boobs! Only thing I would add is that it is definitely worth trying a feed within the first hour after birth, it's not actually a feed exactly, but really helps them to get the idea of latching on while they are still running on instinct so to speak.

Both mine only fed from one side per feed and always finished inside of 20 minutes.

Spink, at our hospital they gave you a cardboard potty thing to wee into rather than a jug. Have heard of lots of people doing the pouring water while weeing thing and am told it really helps, but fortunately for me, despite stitches both times I was never that uncomfortable.

chefswife · 04/12/2008 06:56

my goodness. i started reading through the posts of the last few days but i simply do not have the mental capacity.

moosemama your poor son. its heart wrenching. hope he is getting better.

welcome to the newbies... i think i saw a couple when i was scrolling through.

my cold turned for the very worst. i too had a very high fever on sunday... so much so that DH took the day off to monitor me. i laid in bed for two days, coughing, sweating, freezing. DH phoned midwife and she made a house call on monday. she wanted me to see my GP as well to be sure i don't have undetected bronchial infection or pneumonia and therefore get some antibiotics... which i'm not too keen about. she gave me a remedy and i slept through the night... well, 6 hours. then i had to pee. i felt ok tuesday and got up to do a few things because DH has been busy hauling and cleaning in our new flat and catering to me. it put me over the edge. i kept DH and uncle up all night. i coughed from 11pm to 6am and then i think i finally just passed out i was so tired because all of a sudden it was 10am. every part of me aches, even my teeth. i have no appetite, only want juice and fruit and dry toast. i just had to clean the bathroom today though. our new bed has been at in the new flat for a couple of days and i am desperate to sleep in it. midwife rang today to check up on me and DH told her i lost my voice so we went to see her tonight before our acupressure for labour class and she put her foot down. i'm to do nothing for the next two days. nothing. she was very stern about it so i guess at least my christmas cards will get done. surely making them will be ok. i can set up in bed with all my accoutrements. DH has been an angel the last few days. he wants to take tomorrow off as well to be sure i don't start fuffing about with flat but i assured him that i won't be doing anything. i think i'll just watch the parliament/news channel... there's actually some interesting controversy going on in canadian politics right now... who knew it to be possible.

hope everyone else is well/better.
off to take a bath then bed. night night.

newmomma · 04/12/2008 08:34

Morning everyone!

Thanks for being so welcoming

chefswide you poor thing - I can totally sympathise. I came down with what I thought was just a cold last Monday. It got gradually worse and worse and after several visits to the docs I ended up with a chest/ear infection and a very high fever. Pregnancy makes you feel so much worse than normal. Tried antibitotics for a few days but after FOUR nights in a row with absolutely no sleep I went to the docs again on Monday morning looking like death warmed up. She took one look at me and signed me off all this week. I thought she was nuts but have to say that (considering its now Thursday already!) that I still don't feel right. Still struggling with breathing problems and walking up the stairs is enough to do me in. I had a dentists appointment and by the time I got there she was really concerned as I was really flushed and my temperature and rocketed again. She made me promise to go to the doctors immediately but when I got home I had no temperature so just went back to bed...

fourlittlefeet that is some amazing advice for breastfeeding - I'm going to print it off and put it in my hospital bag. Looking forward to the winding instalment.

moosemama i totally understand about nutty dogs. my whole family keep stressing about how our huge/stupid boxer will cope around a tiny little baby - they think i'm mad for not worrying. he's completely soppy and would never hurt a baby - intentionally or otherwise. i'm quite looking forward to watching him be protective of the baby like he is of my DH and me.

Anyway - sorry about the massive long post...

Thanks for all the abbreviations advice. If i've got the 'right' end of the stick then i'll be looking forward to the arrival of my DS1 in January...?

xxx

oopsadaisyangel · 04/12/2008 08:57

Morning!!

Thanks everyone for your kind words - we're coping OK at the moment but as it gets closer to the point where we lost DS2 it gets harder - especially with it being nearly exactly one year on!

Moosemama - our pup is a Dorset Old Tyme Bulldogge - she's a cross between a Dog DeBordeux (sp) and an English Bulldog but she looks more like a spotty boxer at the moment!

Got a splitting headache this morning and my hands have swollen a bit - have one of my twice weekly hospital monitoring visits today so will see what they say when i get there!!

Finally packed my hospital bag last night - well half packed it. Put the things I need for the baby in the bag but still need to put my things in, in fact need to go out and buy the things to put in my bag god I'm always so disorganised!!

Oopsa x