Due March 2010 - we're halfway there!

[annamama]

... this is a new thread following on from the last one, welcome oldies & newbies ...

siamesecatwoman I've had this happen to me too! Had it two weeks ago (when I was 23 weeks preg) during a handover in work, I felt that I had to leave the room to get a drink or a bite to eat and I collapsed into a chair! Felt so stupid

My boss found me slumped on the chair, I felt all sweaty and she said my face was really pale and clammy.

She made me something small to eat and once I'd eaten, I felt much better.

When I was a teenager I suffered from low blood pressure and had blackouts/faints quite often, and that's exactly how I felt this time. I didn't faint, but it was almost like I was willing myself to not faint, I had to focus on staying conscious!

It hadn't happened since, but I have felt a bit dizzy at times.

I also felt swollen down below recently! I thought it might be thrush, so put some thrush cream on it and it went away. Have had quite a bit of 'bedroom activity' recently, but not sure if that was cause of swelling. Also, not sure if it was thrush, but the cream did soothe it.

Hope you feel better soon; isn't it good to know we don't feel these physical and emotional pains all by ourselves?!

IWCAS happy birthday in advance for this week. Have a as there is no cake symbol available.

I love that Mothercare dress you linked. I saw that myself and was thinking about getting it. I'm going to a wedding this Saturday coming and was a bit worried that non of my 'pre pregnancy' clothes would fit, but I can squeeze myself into one of my dresses, so can't justify buying that Mothercare one. Is lovely though.

T

Hi all,

Back form the vvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvery wet lakes!!

Thoroughly relaxing and have booked a nice posh barn conversion for same week next year!! Didn't care in the slightest that we got rained on - it's what is to be expected in Nov in lakes - although maybe not quite sooooo much. We were flooded into our village at one point. My DH made the most of it at the pub - whilst I had hot choc in front of their real fire.

See the thread has been as busy as ever.

Pixie - Yay to mobility!!!

IWCAS - what a lovely unusual name. Pick what YOU like. You're the one bringing him up and I can't believe you have the decency to allow him the surname - no chance if it was me in your position!! Also agree wholeheartedly on party clothes. I managed to get a purple (fave colour) top in Dorothy Perkins maternity range. Jersey material so not very dressy but I like it all the same. II've made up for teh lack of clothes excitement by buying FatFace clothes in their sale whilst away for when I'm off next year. Made me feel better and I'm guessing I'll be somewhere back to a size 12 sometime (didn't buy anything fitted tho!!)

Names - my sister has 3 little boys - oldest is now at school and other mums from his class have started popping out babies for the same school year that ours will be. Already one is called Oliver (our fave name for a boy) We really really liek the name and always knew it woudl be popular but we are only 2 mths into a school year and already theres an Oliver - poor soul could be one of 6!!! Still we liked it first and he won't be in school all his life. Our alternative is Ben and can't think it will be any less popular. At least IWCAS your child won't have that. All that said - I hated school and never felt I fitted in - so being 'common' and 'middle of the road' without any reason to stand out may help him if he turns out to be like me!!!

Dare I ask- I am now 19 lbs heavier and got 15 weeks left. At everage of 1lb per week (recommend from now) I'll have put on 34lbs gulp!!)) Stil trying to console myself that average is 28lb to 35lb!!)

Start Active Birth classes on Monday. Really unsure what to expect. Just hope the other ladies are all welcoming and just as nervous!!

Hope you all have a fab weekend xxxx

Hi everyone,

only been able to catch up ont he last few posts - hope you're all well.

PD has some really sensible advice re mat leave. Make sure you network! MY NCT group were my lifeline - it would have been a lonely 6m without them.

In some ways I found my second mat leave harder than my first. I didn't have the ready-made NCT group that I had had first time. Only two of us had returned to wrk and the others disbanded somewhat. I still see a couple of them infrequently.

I kept myself busy runnign and plannning my wedding. Definitely found that after 7 months off I was ready to get back to work. Second time round the new born was a breeze in comparison to a toddler.

This time round I suspect my time will be spent sorting the house - we finally got an offer on ours this weeknd and have had an offere accepted on a proper

ty we like. Finally! IT was beginnign to feel like we'd never move! At least now we should be moved by the time the baby arrives.. and have space! I dream of space!

I really must get on work. Hellishly busy at work at he moment and haveing to use sunday to catch up

Roll on mat leave!

Scooby - I'm doign worse than you! I have put on 2 stone and know that I will put on at least another stone!

I put on 3 1/2 in each of my previous pgs and did lose it both times if that's any reassurance!

Hey girls, Tigress here just dropping in to say that I have been doing some good research work online. (Golf course shut)

I need some more Pregnacare Plus (not sure if you are taking this, it seems to be the midwife recommended one and has Omega3 in it) and thought I would do a price comparison online. Having checked Boots, Superdrug, Sainsburys (my usual supermarket) and Asda I found Asda cheapest at £6.

Hope this helps any of your out who are already buying it and those who aren't.

Also had smoked salmon with scrambled eggs for brekkie on nutty seedy bread- a great pregnancy brekkie in my opinion.

Very windy sunday here... DD is having a nap which I'm very grateful for, as she has been refusing to nap lately.

EmLou - your first birth sounds lovely! And good that you managed to sort out BF, it took us a while too, DD wasn't back to her birth weight for ages. I've just convinced myself that this time everything will be easier! How was your docs appointment?

Washing baby clothes... erm yes well I never did anything special, but I think we used non-bio in the beginning as they say that's best. I found I had to wash in 60 degrees to get rid of poo stains but then a lot of clothes shrunk! So my advice would be to wash clothes before use so you know what size they will end up...

NCT classes sound good!

IWCAS - I don't think you should let your baby make cups of tea as he could burn himself on the kettle. But I'm sure he'll be quiet and enjoy reading! I agree with others, get out of the house every day and meet other mums. Are you going back to work after maternity leave? If you are you can tell yourself it's not forever that you're home all day with a baby. SAHM is not for everyone (including me even though I am one at the moment)... Oh and yes I too think that the NHS are pretty good and it's free hurrah! Well I guess it's paid for by our taxes. The dress is pretty!

Smac - your debrief and plan sound great! Hope you get a fab natural labour this time.

Slings in my opinion are mainly for use in the house, to make baby content. DD loved nothing more than being scrunched up in what looked like an uncomfortable position... I guess that's what it was like in the womb! We never took to the Baby Bjorn and ending up sticking it back on ebay, but different things work for different babies & parents. (ebay is so great both for getting things and for getting rid of them, sometimes you even make a profit)

Pixie - of course your twins will be just like you said! It must be nice though that they always have each other, you won't hear as much "mummy I'm bored!" (?)

Finally got my invitation to swine flu jab, well it's nice to be invited! But I'm not having it... [hippie emoticon]

Siamese - that sounds scary what happened to you! Were you hungry by any chance? Low blood sugar, low BP, low iron, low everything maybe? Bring a snack on long trips out of the house! Well done for fighting panic attacks, those I understand are awful.

Scooby - don't not use a name just because it's popular if you really like it! Oliver is lovely. Let us know what you learn at Active Birth please.

I FREAKED OUT yesterday, so sick of being on my own, and DD was being super whingey and she had woken me up to early. I was making pasta for lunch, she saw another packet of pasta in the fridge, started crying because she wanted that one, I calmly told her mummy is making other pasta, just wait a minute. But she just cried more and more... and then I did something I never do, I shouted at her to stop whining! Of course it didn't help and she cried even more. I ran upstairs to the bed and cried and screamed and kicked and banged my fists on the bed for a few minutes, then I calmed down. Oh well, that was only the second time in 3 weeks I've lost it so not too bad considering. Don't call the NSPCA please, she wasn't too traumatised and has been pretty good since.

Hi all,

It's a very soggy sunday round here although I'm sure not as awful as all those poor people who have been flooded. My sister's house got flooded a couple of years back and it's just devastating - it took over a year for her to get back in there.

annamamma - I sympathise with the pasta incident. I've been more irritable with my DD too recently. I don't think we're alone either - I know at least two other pregnant mums who have said the same thing. As much as we'd like to be serene earth mothers all the time, sometimes the whingeing can really get to you.

I've been feeling incredibly thin-skinned recently anyway. I got really upset last week because one of my tutors in college snapped at me for no reason. She was unnecessarily rude but it was no big thing as she's always been lacking in people skills. Normally, no problem. Last week I went home early, cried and couldn't sleep that night. Absolutely ridiculous. I wish I could stabilise those hormones...

IWCAS - I agree with what everyone else has said about there being loads of support around and I think it's totally normal to be anxious about coping. Hopefully you'll get loads of support from family and friends and it's absolutely right that there are loads of other new mums out there you can make contact with as it really helps to go through it all with others.

I agree as well that the NHS is the nuts (whilst acknowledging that it's not perfect). I never thought twice about it before having DD but she couldn't breathe properly when she was born and needed surgery and a lot of special care for a while. I am so profoundly grateful to the wonderful team who looked after her I can't begin to express it. I feel VERY lucky not to have to worry about paying for ante-natal and post-natal care and knowing there are such amazing professionals on hand to care for us and our babies.

Gah, DS3 has just deleted an entire fascinating and very informative, very long post I had composed. Gah, again!

Anyway, was just saying hello to you all.

Weight gain: who knows? I avoid scales like tha plague since I became pregnant. I had lost weight earlier this year after I had stopped BFing DS3. I have never been able to lose weigth whilst BFing; it just makes me even more greedy hungry. But I am so definetely now into mat clothes now. I am currently wearing "normal" jogging bottoms and they keep slipping down over the bump, so certainly not a look for outside of the house !

Well, here is another NHS fan (I suppose, I have to be, working for it...). Having lived in other countries I have a fair idea how much even normal healthcare can cost, nevermind if you need surgery/ have unwell newborns. A friend of mine recently had a very unexpected premature delivery via CS in the States with her and the baby needing special care afterwards. They are now both fine but still battling with their travel insurance whether their £37.000 bill will be reimbursed by them. They had to find the money at the time !!

As long as the new thread name contains "March 2010", I will find you all again. I am not very creative or witty for this kind of thing.

Pacific - type something in the box, then delete it........ and then press CTRL Z

Hey presto, there it is again!

I only learnt this the other day, by chance.

Pixie noooooo there's not a chance that the next thread will be our last Antenatal. Things get frenetic on the posting front as birth approaches and people go on mat leave. I reckon we've got another 2 in us easily.

Names.... Names.... Names.....

March 2010: Who can still see their toes?

March 2010: Bring on maternity leave! ( for those who get it....)

March 2010: D-day approaches.

March 2010: During this thread we will mostly be finalising birth plans (OK so mine will look like this "Get it out")

Urm... should go and supervise dinner......

I like "who can still see their toes?" Or fanjo but that's too rude... D-day approaches or shall that be B-day(?), I think we should save that for the next one.

Swings - thanks for sympathy... yes serene earth mothers we all are or will be! That's horrible about your rude tutor - b*tch!

Pixie - did you see the twins program on BBC a little while ago? There was this story about 6 year old chinese identical twin girls who had been adopted to different countries (USA & Norway) and never met. They got to meet each other for a week and they had this instant bond and it turned out they're very similar the way they behave and everything. So I think there's def something special about identicals and I can't see that they won't be close!

My dad is a twin and he thought all his life that they were fraternal, that's what they had been told at birth. But everyone has always said how alike they look and how similar they are in the way they behave, faces they pull, etc. And this year they finally had a DNA test and it turns out of course they are identical. My dad was slightly traumatised by this as he wants to "be his own person". When they were young they were always referred to as the twins and dressed in the same clothes and he feels a bit resentful about that and can sometimes say aggressive things about his brother, half joking, but I know he loves him really!

I now have a very snotty and miserable toddler, that could have explained her whingeyness, that she was coming down with a cold... I feel like a terrible mother now for shouting at her. Where's Supernanny?

annamama, you star! Thanks for that tip on how to restore lost copy . Always good to know somebody computer literate....

Hope your DD is better soon.

annamama Not that I try particularly but without the aid of a small mirror I can't ever see my fanjo. Let alone with fat baby in the way.

When does one thread have to become another? when it reaches 30 pages?

I like:

"March 2010: who can still see their toes?" (Arcadie's suggestion) and
"March 2010: who can still see their fanjos" (Annamamma's naughty suggestion)

Tigresswood's Asda pregnacare tip is very useful thank you!

I like 'D-Day approaches'

I vote for - who can see their toes! Pixie- im the twin x

hi ladies,

Hope you all had a good weekend (and weren't too rained on!). In London we've been pretty unscathed by the rain, but Cork city (where I'm originally from in Ireland) has had awful flooding, and most of my family there are currently without water (and those still with running water are having to boil everything), so schools, universities etc shut.

I love that people think so far ahead on the name front but I guess the 200 plus messages left on here will evaporate soon . I quite like "can anyone still see their feet?" as I reckon we'll have time to use "d-day (or should that be b-day) approaches" on our next thread. Shroomer threads fill up once they hit 1000 messages.

Anna how interesting about your dad - must be quite a big thing to get your head around!

Pacific how awful for your friend dealing with the insurance company (and finding £37k while also dealing with a prem delivery). The private insurance systems in Ireland and the US aren't a patch on the NHS, in terms of fairness, in my book. I get quite riled when people criticise the NHS, as they usually have no idea what alternative systems can be like. My husband's cousin, married to a Dutch woman, ended up £50k in debt when their youngest son had medical emergencies (due to prematurity) at birth. He's fine now, but they moved to Holland as his wife just couldn't bear to live any longer in a country with such a medical system!

BPM yay to the house moving news! Now you get started on all the organising

Scooby try not to worry about the weight, as it sounds fine to me. And enjoy the Active Birth classes (are these Janet Balaskas ones?) - let us know what you learn!

Siamese sounds like a scary incident - hope it doesn't happen again!

Sorry for not naming anyone else - have just had time to skim the last page (work is busy busy today).

We had a great weekend - for the first time since Sept, it was pretty much just the two of us. We managed to buy our car seat from John Lewis and availed of the excellent Sainsburys half price stuff - so now have lansinoh, breast pads, sudocrem, maternity towels etc tucked away in a drawer! Feeling quite organised!

Actually, a question for those of you with children already: how many maternity towels did you need after birth? I bought two packs, which is 20 towels, which seems like loads but then I'm comparing it to my (quite short and light) periods...should I get some more?

Hi Caitni - erm, you'll probably need more than that, you may need to wear 2 at a time in the first 2 days, and get a million breast pads too, the johnsons one's are really comfy

Suggestion...

'March 2010 : hello baby, goodbye pelvic floor'

like the toes one too

Thanks Mumbot . Looks like I'll be adding quite a few more packs to my shopping basket!

Haha, that's funny mumbot, but I think we should save that one for the post-natal thread!

I didn't like the Johnson breastpads at all, I could only use the tommee tippee or lansinoh ones. If you don't like the ones you bought, try different ones! As for maternity pads, I thought the thick ones were really uncomfy, got the thin ones after a few days, and then switched to normal period ones... Think you're not supposed to in the beginning as they can mask smells (=sign of infection).

Caitni - that's great that you've been so organised and got your stuff ready already! Feels like it's more real then doesn't it...

My DD is still snotty and miserable but at the moment she's playing by herself and listening to the Sound of Music soundtrack... her favourite. She asks to hear "Do dear!" (Do a dear a female dear...)

Just marking my spot, really, as when I go to my bookmarked page of 'threads I'm on' it appears I'm not on any. Woe. Being rather 'blah' makes Amanda a scant poster...