Due March 2010 - just because I'm pregnant at Christmas doesn't mean I'm a taxi driver

[annamama]

... new thread for oldies and newbies due in March! ...

Heckle I bought that snuggle me for my BF last year and she says it has been the most useful and cute thing ever. So now you must buy it. IWCAS I just got back from the M&P factory shop 15 mins ago, with that blanket.. ooh and the curtains now £25.. and the change bag and the floppy cow thing to match.. factory shop is ace - only went into get moses matress (as have great BF who has handed me all her newborn stuff) and soooo much stuff there, all at least half price and there is nothing wrong with it! So now Im going to convince DH to come again tomorrow and we might actually get the cotbed from there too.

while we're shopping Sariska which swaddling things did you get? Im after something like that too..

I love ears on babies and me too! My fancy dress of choice will generally involve ears. You can get a great bear suit in Tescos for under a tenner - all brown fur with ears And I bought my little sister some cats ears from Ikea for xmas.. she in turn bought me a pramsuit like a bumblebee for small siamese. It has antena!

While we're still on shopping - I dont fancy giving birth nude but I dont have a huge T shirt and DH would kill me if I borrowed on of his - what did you second (third fourth and fifth!) timers give birth in? Clearly not an Agent Provocateur slip but what is the general dress code???

shroomer I think ears are fab! Unless as already mentioned they are for you!!! Hope you're not too far out into cold Northumberland. Very pretty but very cold. Newcastle is chilly enough at the mo.

iwcas - it's exciting collecting for your first isn't it!! I can't stop myself. We looked at the same pram as you but ended up with the silvercross freeway which we collected last weekend. I was just ever so slightly concerned as to how waterproof the m&P one might be and living in the wet north east thought the silvercross might be safer!!

Finally home and looking forward to staying in the warm until Tuesday. I'm going nowhere if I don't have to !!!

scooby - I'm not too far out in Northumberland, but it's still F*** cold. Had to snap a dog off a lamp-post this morning

Siamese-my sisters advice based on my desire to also not be naked-is tankini for pool and a long tshirt or nightie that you dont mind ruining for birth. Ive bought a 4quid size 18 tshirt type nightie from matalan for the job knowing itl probably be binned. Also bought asda knickers for afterwards rather than paper knickers which do not appeal. I dont normally buy clothes at either place but seemed sensible for these!

Oh, those Hotmilk Pjs are gorgeous - they might just need to be purchased !

DH is in the process of buying a car that will accomodate our whole brood AND satisfy his racing driver needs, gah!
He keeps asking my opinion and I am so not interested - other than in the financial aspect of it: if I left him to it he would remortgage the house to buy something crazy !

-11 on the way home earlier, brrrrr!

I am off to fish various little boys out of the bath - DH can dry himself - and help with bedtime; be back later.

Siamese - the swaddling cloths I bought are the Kiddopotamus ones. Got mine through Mothercare.

Giving birth? I started off wearing an old shirt of DH's - including in the pool. (Even at the height of labour I wasn't going to wear nothing at all.... Might go for a tankini top this time tho'.) Actually gave birth on dry land wearing a hospital gown. One of the ones with stupid ties instead of a proper back. Oh, the glamour....

Not even bothering to pack tshirts etc this time round as had to have hosp gown last time with epidural, and assume I will this time. Second avoidance of disposable knickers in favour of cheap supermarket big pants.

Hey- second timers, we should be passing 'useful hospital tips' on to first-timers.....

here's Sarah's facebook update: "rosies op went all ok she is just sleepin at the moment sarah is with her and ok this is mike writing on her wall for her"
written yesterday but tis an update all the same..

On the What To Wear in hospital front, I'm ONLY going armed with this little beauty

ha ha ha ha. i particularly like the silver poem in the neckline...
loving the purchases though ladies, am browsing the internet with purpose (can you tell?!!) so keep the suggestions coming. onto swaddling next

ooo IWCAS youve made talk round up

On the subject of what to wear whilst in labour... I bought a cheap nighty last time but in the end things went so fast I wasn't even bothered what I was wearing and ended up in my vest and knickers then had to be reminded to take my knickers off as I progressed. So dignified, especially when they wheeled me through to the delivery room with only a towel over my lap to cover me

Was it Shroomer who said she was in Northumberland? Where abouts? I'm in Berwick upon Tweed, very cold and stupid amounts of snow!

My tips...

I started off each time in a T shirt but was quite happy to whip it off for the waterpool! I had no pants on throughput so dripped my way round the delivery room (my waters had gone).

I got very cold and shivery after my epidural so take something warm as well.

For after the birth stay away from paper knickers - get some big cheapy knickers instead. Noraml heavy flow pads are much comfier than maternity pads ( and less visible in jim jams!)

Make sure your post birth attire is dark; bits of blood seem to find their way anywhere! Also comfy so you can bf. You'll have not only your family visitng but also on view from the rest of the ward's family and friends. There is no privacy. Also note that the wards are very hot and you'll be sore in many places so make sure what you have is comfy.

Finally the toilets can be really quite dirty. I am far far from a hygiene freak and for the toilets to even repulse me is sayign something. Some antibac wipes may come in handy.

For snacks post-birth I got sick of the sweets etc and craved dried fruit. I didn't get constiation following either birth but did following my ectopic earlier in the year. It was really miserable.

Practise with you pushchair and car seat a few times!

Oh dear, I cannot even remember what I wore for my previous deliveries other than fetching hospital gown for CS with DS2...

I suppose I should give it some thought just in case I make it into the pool .

I would second cheap knickers over papaer ones, and dark coloured PJs/jogging bottoms for after delivery as first couple of days are likely to be messy.

And Snickers bar after delivery, bliss!!

On the subject of PJs: does anybody here have experience of Hotmilk sizing? The choices seem to be 12-14 or 16-18, and I am a 14-16 with ample norkage at the best of times . Any advice what size to go for??

We had another inch of snow overnight, heating is holding up, DH has just ordered 10 bags of rocksalt for our driveway (downhill and around the corner, scary when slippery) as the council bins are empty and will obviously only be refilled come October or summat ...

Have a nice weekend all.

Don't forget a hairband for the delivery, I was so sweaty and was dying to put my hair up but had no hairband. I gave birth in just a normal black maternity top. This time will probably go for a big t-shirt or nighty. If going in the pool I will wear my normal bikini. I find it weird when women wear top but no bottom in pool. Inverted topless...?

Sending positive vibes to Sarah and her DD! Remember it's not forever...

We have blizzard here in Kent too now, and a pregnant woman was just seen snowboarding outside our house!

Pacific unsure as to how Hotmilks sizing is cut, but at least as you buy the tops and bottoms seperately you can overcome the impressive norks vs smaller bottom half by ordering different sizes!

Uh, I really have zero recollection of what I wore with DD during labour/birth, but I was only awake for about two hours (of a 5 hour 15 min total). With DS, although I was only awake for about 40mins of a 1 hour 40 min total I KNOW I was wearing nothing but a black bra as there is a picture of me with DD on the bed (between my legs, but on the bed covers, not directly touching ma nekkidness underneath!) and in turn, she's holding DS, with my arms around both of them. I look at it and don't really remember what a clearly touching moment it is, but more that ex-DH's parents had DD, and had turned up about 30 mins post birth... I remember not being worried about sitting there in my bra (after all, not really different from a bikini top) but that I was sitting in a load of gore and wanted to be alone to clear up and such.

But they didn't stay long, I guess 15 mins or so, and as I was still obviously on a different planet from the pethidine I wasn't in any kind of mood to ask for a bit of privacy (besides, for the sake of 15mins, I don't mind being a little 'put out').

I hadn't given any thought to what I want to wear this time... interestingly, I have a wrap dress that is virtually identical to the one linked by elk but I suspect I'll be in my bra again. Either that, or fully clothed en route to the hospital as they are too busy to book any but absolutely essential inductions and if I follow suit with previous labours I may not get there in time! I'm actually quite concerned about how this will work with my supposing to have the ab's in labour so may have to reiterate again at my next apointment... Oh, and anna is quite right about us lasses with long locks probably wanting them the Hell. Off. Our. Faces.

Whilst I remember, db I was perfectly serious with my offer! I figure if you're going with Kingston, I'm sorta en route anyway, too . Of course it's dependant on me not actually labouring myself!

sarah You and DD are in my thoughts. Hoping it's not too awful.

Whoop for IWCAS making the round-up! Being in the 0.1% and her username are starting to make a little more sense... but do impart the full story! My first DS is a 'condom baby' so I know someone has to be in those tiny percentages of 'fail!' when it comes to contraception. (oh, jealous of the snuggle... c'est beau. I know DP wouldn't like it though so I gazed at it longingly for a while before closing the window without purchasing )

Ears are kinda everywhere. I bought two all in one fleece bodysuits from baby Gap last week in leiu of a pramsuit (so difficult to judge what will be needed at what can be surprisingly mild or still bloody freezing time of year) and even though they are just block colour (one red, one navy) with Gap across the chest, seemingly 'no-nonsense' I discovered the hoods have ears on them too! It's a little odd. But not as strange as ears on the feet! Are you sure that's where they were, db?! That's completely bizarre!

Ok, I'm still so iiiiilllllll! The intensely sore throat is still, uh, intensely sore. The cold symptoms on top are raging away. Feel rotten.

whoops sorry manda didn't mean to be rude about the wrap dress, just from my memory, like many of you I can't really remember a) what i wore or b) being too bothered about it once it all got going... I'm not a very glam person so the thought of actually wearing a LBD for labour just made me smile wryly!! hope I didn't insult. love the idea of your picture with DD and DS. Might have a pop at that ourselves!
Agree on the hairbands/dark trousers for afters/cheapo pants (disposables didn't even fit with all the water retention i had)/hygienic anti bac wipes....
Plus I had a clip on fan which was AMAZING in the hot post natal ward afterwards....
A friend lent me a tube of this which was equally lovely, I'll be stocking up on it again, so cooling, i definitely think it helped with healing and comfort afterwards. Think you can get it elsewhere, not just greenbaby. Lavender Oil also a nice one?

I'm off to wash my buggy cover (such an exciting life) and check up on hotmilk pjs!! lush lush

Hehe, no mummyelk fear not... I mean I have a wrap dress just like that and I found myself wondering, after looking at your link, whether I should be considering it as a birthing outfit. As I said, though, I reckon I'll end up in my bra so I considered it for all of a nano second before dismissal .

I'm all for looking 'presentable' if at all possible but isn't the process about how you feel rather than how you look? Although, I guess for some women, the way they feel is very tightly wrapped up in how they look and if that works for them, then great!

I have to confess to being very anti 'ears' on baby clothing but I'm a fussy so and so, so just ignore me. I don't like Disney or other 'character' clothing, frills or top to toe pinkness either!
Labour wear for me was a £2 Mens XL t-shirt bought specifically for the job but survived so now packed in my half packed hospital bag. Another vote for cheap big pants. Again 4 out of pack of 5 survived and I just giggled as I packed them this morning!!!! They are seriously unattractive.
I couldn't find any decent nightie's with buttons down the front for BF (they all were really granny type ones) so I just wore dark pj bottoms and baggy vest tops which allowed easy access. Another thing that put me off nighties was the girl opposite me in the post-natal ward had a ridiculously short nightie so I spent 3 days with her flashing her knickers at me as she sat with her legs wide apart!
My other labour bag tips are to pack some mints as I vomited early on but was strapped to the monitor so couldn't get up to brush my teeth so mints were very welcome and a sports top bottle so you can still drink in what ever awkward position you get yourself into. Also I ended up with emcs so was flat on my back the first night. I could stretch out and grab the sports bottle though whereas I would have struggled with a cup.
Yesterday when I finally ventured out to Tesco I stocked up on snacks for my hospital bag. I was starving after delivery - and much to my disappointment I never got the much talked about tea and toast cos of CS. Infact I was starving for the whole 3 days after delivery until I got home. Chocolate is essential but I've also got some cereal bars and some dried apricots to snack on (good for constipation too!)

Also anti-ears! I was bought a few nice things with ears on and must confess to having cut them off!

Pacific Hotmilk PJ's arrived today, they are sized smaller so go up a size if you're unsure, they are lovely though

Planning on wearing a black comfy jersey maternity dress for giving birth in, wore a nightie last time and it was fine

Phew!! am glad manda!!

Anyone got a decent link for hotmilk pls? The one I found was very snazzy but utterly useless (like some of my previous boyfriends)

Washing machine actually FROZE this afternoon.... we had to put the heater in the back porch and wait for it to thaw where we heard a big sigh and a lot of slushy snow came out the back end.....

And yes to sports bottles smac, great call. That or straws! And an extra pillow was also brilliant, you NEVER have enough pillows there.
V in awe of everyone sorting out their bags now (feverishly hoping I'm not the one MNer who lives to regret this) I haven't even got DD's old clothes out the attic yet....hospital bag is WAY down on my list at the moment.

Thanks, mumbot! You sound pleased with your purchase . Figleaves do the trousers in XL for under £20 in their sale at the mo' but there was rather critical customer comment about quality of the material which put me off... Please tell me they were wrong??

at frozen washing machine, MummyElk, that's impressive!

Pacific the material of the trousers is like a very light cotton and doesn't have the silky appearance that the photo shows, but they are still comfy and pretty

mummyelk I bought my hotmilk stuff from envie4u I haven't used them before but their delivery was fairly quick

at mummyelk I was shocked at the talk of hospital bags before Christmas but now that Christmas is over and I'm 33 weeks I have started to get organised. My dates shifted so I was due 28th Feb, then slipped back 5 days to March and then jumped to 25th Feb at my 12 weeks scan which is what the consultant is sticking with so I'm due at the end of Feb which really doesn't seem so far away now! (and I'm sticking with you lot now not joining the Feb ladies at this late stage!)
Frozen washing machine sounds completely absurd but given the sub zero temps not really that surprising! Hope it's still working!

MAde it to and from Lincoln. Got fitted for my bridesmaids dress. Turns out I fit the size 16 perfectly and no alterations are required. [gloat] [smug].

My ribs hurt so I can't sit at the comp too long.

but

ears What's not to love people?

birthing gear tankini top for pool change into old nighty for delivery on dry land. Naked? nooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo oooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo

And IWCAS where's the link to you being in the round up???