Due May 2010...the final thread??....unless the thread bursts before we all do!!!!

[AnAngelWithin]

Hope you don't mind ladies, the last thread kept jamming up on me!!! We are a chatty bunch!!!

THE NEW ARRIVALS

11 April LuckyC, GIRL MATILDA, 14.47, weight?, first baby
15 April ForcesSweetheart, GIRL, MOLLY, 10.27, 7lbs 6ozs, 2nd DD
16 April Littleowls, BOY JOEL, 14.40, 4lb 8oz, first baby
16 April Memorylapse, GIRL, OLIVIA GRACE, 6.17pm, 6lbs 11.5ozs
27 April Brightredballoon, GIRL, ?, 10am, 7lb 12oz

THE WAITING LOUNGE

27 April (just brought forward a week)- Pagen, 36 #1 (unknown), G&A & water birth (I hope) Bulford, Wiltshire
03 May - hormonalmum, 33,#3
03 May - Lizzie9442, 23, #4 GIRL
04 May - Squirtsmum, 27 #1, Belfast NI
05 May - Sweetkitty, 34, #4 3DDs, BOY, Lanarkshire (nr Glasgow)
06 May - DorotheaPlenticlew, 35, #2, GIRL, Edinburgh
07 May - hobnobfanatic, 38, #2 GIRL, Wye Valley/Forest of Dean
08 May - Sassles, 31, #1, BOY, Nr Glasgow
08 May - LittleOneMum, 36, #2, GIRL, planned CS, central London
08 May - Asparagusaddict, ? , #1
09 May - alexw, 37, #2
10 May - Sophie2008, 28 #2 & #3 (TWINS!) BOY & GIRL
10 May - Gils, 28, #2, ?, Falkirk (Central Scotland)
11 May - Itshappenedagain, 26, #2 GIRL liverpool
11 May - MarquiseDeMerteuil, 33, #1, South London
12 May - pamelat, 31, #2 BOY Nottinghamshire
12 May - Katnkittens 30, #4, GIRL
12 May - Haribolicious 36, #2, BOY
12 May - Mustbemadno3 35, #3
12 May - LivsHannah 27, #2, BOY
12 May - slipperthief 34, #2, BOY, Cambs
13 May - Cith, 30, #1
13 May - Wibblela, 36, #1, GIRL?, Huddersfield
13 May - TinyVeins, 29, #1
13 May - Mummymunchkins, 40, #3, BOY
14 May - MinnieMummy, 37, #3, ??
14 May - Fiveisanawfullybignumber, 37 #5 GIRL
14 May - Carikube, 36 #2 ?, Southampton
14 May - JamesAndTheGiantBanana, 28, #2 GIRL
14 May - CornishSAMum, 33, #1, ?, Cornwall
14 May - TomlinTowers, 31 #2, GIRL, York
15 May - LuckyMiller, 33, #1
16 May - MoggMum, 38, #1
16 May - schipo 40, #1, BOY
16 May - Vicky204, 34, #1
16 May - Rachelfruitloop 35, #2 BOY, Chilterns Bucks (NW London area)
17 May - newmomma, 31, #2 GIRL Reading, Berks
17 May - TwentiethCenturyHeffa, 26, #2 Devon
17 May - Morph2 36 #1
17 May - KaffaCakes, ? , #1
18 May - 30ish, 31, #2 BOY, cs booked 11th May, Bolton
19 May - Pigleychez, 28, #2 West Sussex
19 May - cupcakefairy, 25, #1
20 May - LolaAnn, 22, #1, BOY
20 May - Aim, ?, #2, BOY
21 May - Suey2, 39, no2, GIRL
21 May - Sweetpeasmum, 38, #2
21 May - Mumofeag, 34, #3 BOY
22 May - Mollybob, 37 #3, Gender unknown, Bangor, Northern Ireland
23 May - RacquelWelsh, 38,#1 BOY
23 May - Nimk, 30, #1
23 May - myfirstbump, 26, #1, Shrewsbury
24 May - AnAngelWithin #5
24 May - Yorky, 31, #3
24 May - peakyispreggers, 27, #1 BOY
25 May - Den26, 26, #1 BOY Inverness, Scottish Highlands
26 May - booboomonster, 35, #2 GIRL, SW London
26 May - kateyjane, 32, #4, Halifax, West Yorkshire
26 May - AliMouse, 40, #3 BOY
26 May - Glastocchick, 34, #1
31 May - Hollyoaks, 28, #2

Had a good day done nothing gone nowhere and just had a lovely lavender and tea tree oil bath with no DC in the house

lizzie - I am completely with you on how hard it is being this pregnant with other DC about. Everything seems such an effort and takes twice as long.

pigley - lovely to get the flowers if I am not going out I have on one of DP's t shirts with jogging bottoms and no bra, cannot stand anything tight on me right now. I couldn't count how many times I am going to the toilet in a day just now either.

hormonalmum - you will cope just fine, 3 is easier than heavily pregnant with 2.

Who mentioned cats and babies, I have 3 (cats well and babies just now lol) and they have never been a problem. The cats have always given the baby a wide berth avoiding completely. I have never found them asleep near the baby or anything. We have one room that is child free during the day and the cats stay in there sleeping as usual, once the DC are in bed they come downstairs. Now that DD1 and 2 are older they actually quite like each other and will allow the DDs to pat them, the stay well away from DD3.

Bessie - thanks for the well wishes, I know what it feels like to have to leave an antenatal thread and see it in active convos without you especially as the births happen. I still spare a thought for the one I lost I don't think they ever leave you. Time does heal you though. Although it is sad to lose a baby I wouldn't have my DD3 and that makes her even more special. take care x

Five - am waiting to hear how the consultant visit went, I am still warning you no beating me to the finish post

just marking my place as feeding dd at moment..will come back and post later

*alle& my cat was never a problem and she was only a baby herself, about one when DD arrived. I bought the cat safety net, a waste of time. In fact the only time that my cat showed any interest in DD was when the cat net was on.

Just keep an eye out when little one is asleep etc as cats just love to cuddle up to warm little things.

Now that DD is 2.3, the cat makes sure she is rarely around

When I was pregnant with DD1 I researched a lot into cats and babies as my relatives were saying I would have to get rid of the cats as they would smell the milk on the babies breath and try to suffocate them apparently that is an urban myth and there has never been a case of a cat smothering a baby (despite what my Gran said about Mary along the roads, daughters, neice lol).

The cat will give the baby a wide berth. The thing is unless the baby feeds the cat, cats aren't interested in the little annoying noisy things. Cats barely have time for their owners nevermind babies My DDs so want a dog a pet that actually likes and interacts with them.

Thanks for the lovely new thread, my computer likes it much more.
Alle, my cat just ignores new babies, she prefers to think they don't exist, so wouldn't worry. we have a no cat upstairs policy as well, so no chance of her kipping in the crib, she looks guilty if she even looks at the stairs now, so knows the rules!

Sorry but this may be a me post, really need to have a moan.
Had a consultant appt today to discuss induction dates, as have Group B Strep and a history of silent and precipitate labours (basically no pains till late on then mega fast!!!)

DC1 was 4.5 hrs and 1 hr of that was trying to push him out, turns out the cord was wrapped round his neck 3 times which is why he kept getting stuck, but delivered ok in the end.
DC2 was just under 1/2 hr from waters breaking, which luckily happenened in hospital as I was being monitored and they tried to convince me I was in labour (not really feeling it yet.)
DC3 was induced to keep me in a controlled environment so I didn't give birth at home or at side of road, 4 hrs from waters breaking but very rapid at the end.
DC4 was very similar, with the addition of IV drip with antibiotics first to prevent GBS infection for baby.

No problems with any of the above. Was seen by delivery ward on Sun eve as having a few pains and tightenings (to be expected though on DC5), just wanted to make sure I wasn't dialating and could just go home and have some paracetamol. Did ask if I was in the same state next week (ie, this sunday) would I be ideal candidate for induction? Midwife said with my history, absolutely fine, cervix is already softish, but not dialated yet, so 1 prostin pessary should set me off followed by ARM after my 2hrs on IV antibiotics.

Saw registrar first today who said they would not be willing to use prostin pessary on DC5 as it could risk uterine overstimulation, said come back in 7 days & we'll examine you again. Not on your nelly! was my response, I've never been past 39 weeks, 3 of DC's came at 38 weeks and am 37+4 now! She pulled in big boss lady who said same thing. Not willing to do anything till I'm 1cm dialated and they can go straight to ARM, which happily looks a lot better for their statistics, as not officially classed as an induction, just helping me along. Have googled extensively tonight, yes slight risk of uterine hyperstimulation on plus 5 labours not plus 4 mentioned.

I asked about the risks posed to me going into labour at home, potentially giving birth within 45 mins with no medical backup for intensive labour and possible post partum hemmorage (more likely after a few babies, especially with no injection to prevent it like in hospital.) Also risks of baby getting GBS infection and needing medical intervention, when me having the IV drip would prevent it!

She agreed that those risks were high as well. Said i rather the risks of a well managed labour 5 mins from an operating theatre if needs be!!! Feeling totally torn and peed off now.

Have agreed to go in on Monday to see if it's possible to ARM (break waters) then without prostin pessary. Think this could a potential guessing game with the outcome to late for whats needed though TBH. Feel like crying now.

Hi Lizzie

I've been feeling pretty sick today too.

Baby seems to be surfing on the amniotic fluid at the moment. My bump is one massive morph ball. I though movements were meant to slow down in last few weeks.

Think there is very little space left in their and baby getting uncomfy.

What do these braxton hicks things feel like? I get tight feelings accross my lover stomach from belly button down, but kind of just feels like baby moving position and stretching my bump out for a wee while. Not sore. Little uncomfy though.

Re cats and babies - we have a cat that we've had since before DD was born and haven't had any problems. The cat is a bit grumpier now that it gets less attention but DD loves it. It's always stayed out of her bedroom so no problems there.

Bessie - good to see you back and thank you

Pigley - nice of your friends

I've spent the day in hospital after MW sent me in because of contractions and because I've been very grumpy since starting on the second BP drug. Nothing much going on now but they gave me a sweep and I'll have another one over the weekend if nothing more happens because they want to trigger labour as early as possible. I'm not due till 17th May but I'm 37 weeks now so good to go. Apparently the new drug I'm on makes me very tired so they think I'm suffering from extreme fatigue, which is a pain.

Twentieth, sorry you've had a bad day too, those drugs sound like hell, late pregnancy is tiring enough anyway.
Sassles, those do sound a bit like BH, they're not usually to strong on a first PG. Hpefully they're getting you ready for the real thing though.

sassles - bh are quite uncomfortable and are meant to be like pratice contractions. You will feel your tummy tighten up and then be ok again. Sometimes I have to breath through them as they can take my breath away. They are not meant to be painful though. hope this helps xx

Hi all

Angel - thanks for the new thread, I'll try and squeeze lo's arrival onto this one, but it's doubtful with all the talking we do.

Five/Heffa - sorry you've had frustrating days in hospitals.

Bessie - thanks for popping back on, hope you are well.

Sorry for no personals, had a very long day at work and feel totally drained. Had a hot bath to ease my back but I think it was too warm and now I feel sick. Struggling to keep my eyes open, thankfully dh is bathing the cream egg out of dd's hair and face. She was saying mammy's cream' and rubbing it all over her face, I think it was meant to be moisturiser.

Hope those niggling don't have too much longr to wait.

LOL Hollyoaks - I love the image of cream egg moisturiser! That must have been VERY gooey!

HOrmonalmum - it's so normal to be run ragged with pregnancy and little ones. You'll cope fine with three - you'll have your energy back (sometimes!) and your hormones will go back to normal.

Alle - kids that DON"T have cats or other furry pets in their lives are at a greater risk of allergies. Kids that share their bedrooms with cats/dogs end up with stronger immune systems and have fewer days off school - fact! I agree that cat nets are useless - in fact, they can be more dangerous if the cat jumps on them and brings them down on the baby. In my experience (trillions of cats), they steer well clear of noisy, smelly things that move too much and disturb their sleep, and only cuddle up in cots when the baby isn't there!

Squirtsmum - LOL at hand escaping. My LO keeps tickling me in very odd places - mw says it's her hands. Very, very disconcerting.

Hefffa - hope the sweep works sooner rather than later. YOu sound exhausted.

PIgley - how sweet to get the flowers. Sweeter still when people say that children are a credit to you. YOu must be v proud.

Five - hope someone starts listening to you soon. It's so annoying when professionals think they know best - better than someone who has been through it many times before and knows their own body and patterns. Very .

Heard a tip today that pineapple is meant to help get things going... I'm having a girls' night curry on Sunday, so if that doesn't work, I shall have to get some pineapple in...

I'd better get on with some more work while I can...

Hope everyone else is doing well!

Hi everyone

First of all, congratulations to BRB! Looking forward to some pics and birth story when you have a moment!!

Thanks for the new thread Angel - although we are already on page 2!!

Pigley - how nice of your friends to thank you for your help. I really have a thing about saying proper thank yous to people - it takes nothing just to write a short note or send a gift, and it makes the recipient feel great!

Five - that is a really frustrating experience. Is there anyone you can go to for a second opinion? Could you ring your midwife for some advice? It sounds to me (a totally non-medical person) that you need to have your labour managed and the slight risk of overstimulation is a risk worth running.

Heffa - the drugs sound bad, hope the sweep works and something happens soon so you can stop taking them!

Sassles - good luck for tomorrow! Fingers crossed for your interview! Still a bit at your boss' email though!

Carikube - good luck to your DH, I hope it all works out for the best, whatever that may be.

Alle - we have never had cats, but DH was born with 2 cats in the house and MIL apparently never had a problem with them as long as you just keep an eye on them.

Has anyone else ever had a show? This may be TMI but...went to the loo this evening, and checked the loo paper as I always do from force of habit (checking to see if waters have gone/any different discharge etc - I haven't stopped since first 12 weeks with DS1!) and noticed that there was mucous-y discharge on the paper. Wasn't bloody or streaked, but was sort of white/green tinged, and was stringy not a blob. Never had one with DS1 so wondering if this is the start of my cervix dilating? I read in my book that this can happen in weeks before labour starts, and it is bloody show that means labour imminent - but does anyone have any practical experience of this? Thanks!

Been having more BHs today as well, as well as the stabbing pains in the cervis and can relate to the nausea, heartburn etc that has suddenly reappeared. Also managing to go through loo roll at a rate of knots given the number of visits I am making at the moment!

Other than that, have had lovely day today. Managed to walk to playgroup with DS1 and pick him up, which was lovely to walk there and back in the sunshine. Although whoever mentioned about mat clothes no longer fitting - so true!!! Got back home and realised that I had been exposing the lower half of my bump to the world - attractive! Am constantly hitching up my trousers and pulling down my tops. Also keep looking at pre-preg summer clothes and can't wait to get back into them (or the loose fitting ones at least). Then fell asleep in Mum's garden and she let me have a nap for an hour - was so grateful didn't realise how tired I was! Going to the seaside tomorrow, and can't wait to sit on the beach and watch DS1 build sandcastles....as long as nothing happens!!

Ooh Angel - thanks for the lovely new thread!

Sassles - good luck for tomorrow. You asked if you can prevent yourself going into labour... well one of the things that can really slow labour down is the hormone adrenaline, and you're bound to produce some of that in the run-up to the interview, so you should be fine!

Cupcake - I keep adding things to my hospital bag too! I realised this evening that I haven't actually packed anything to come home in, and that although I'd packed 3 pairs of pyjama bottoms, I hadn't packed any tops . Glad you mentioned your crafty stuff - it reminded me that I need to ask DH to bring the sewing machine downstairs for me this evening.

Five - sounds like an incredibly frustrating appointment today. There's nothing worse than being given two such different opinions like that. I hope you manage to resolve it. From what you say about your history, it sounds like you and the midwife have the best approach.

Hobnob - pineapple does have an enzyme in it that's meant to be able to trigger labour, but we were told in our NCT class that you'd actually have to eat 70 of them all in one go to get the right amount of the relevant hormone!! I have been drinking pineapple juice though, it can't hurt!

Pigley - so kind of your friends to thank you like that. I am a bit of their honeymoon, sounds fantastic. Brings back happy memories of ours, which was only 4 years ago, but feels much longer. We went to Southern Africa for 3 weeks - first to Zambia where we went white water rafting on the Zambezi River and swimming at the top of Victoria Falls, then did a couple of safaris in Botswana, then on to South Africa to Cape-Town where we climbed Table Mountain and chilled out for a few days, before going to the southern Cape for whale watching and the winelands to a gorgeous spa hotel and wine-tasting.

Tomlin - it sounds like you had a fab day, there's nothing like sleeping out in the garden!

I had another full day, it seems like I have less time to check in here now than when I was at work! Had coffee with the NCT girls this morning and met some of the babies who have arrived already, then had to go and buy some bits and pieces for the baby, including the mattress for our moses basket. Then just time for a quick late lunch, before spending the rest of the afternoon at the hairdresser, which was great. Got home by 6.30 and made an enormous spag bol for dinner, so that we have enough spare to put about 8 portions in the freezer for after the LO arrives.

Have got the walk-in consultant thing tomorrow morning to go over the results of my growth scan from last Friday. The fact that my DSis (who was measuring the same as me all along) has now had a healthy, if small, 5lb5oz baby since my scan last Friday has made me much more relaxed about the whole thing. Although I have been eating for Britain since last Friday, and haven't managed to put on a single ounce .

Re cats- None here... However i had the shock of my life from one earlier! I was sitting on the sofa,dozing alittle whilst DD napped when i felt something brush against my leg. Jumped up ( well as quickly as I could!) and saw this cat sitting there looking at me. It then turned and walked back out the patio doors. Calm as anything! Scared the crap out of me! No idea who's cat it is but its the same one thats taken a liking to sitting underneath DDs sand/water table in the garden lately.

Lizzie- Def with you. Im finding it much harder this time with a toddler to run around after too.

Five- Sorry you had a bad appointment. Sounds like you need some kind of monitoring if your labours are that fast and furious.

Heffa- the new drugs arent great for you. Hope the sweep gets things going for you.

Hollyoaks- Oh I bet thats a right mess! Sticky hair!

Hobnob- I looked into everything when I was 2 weeks overdue with DD. Pineapple being one of them. I started eating tons of the stuff (must be fresh not tinned) but apon futher reading you would need to eat 8 whole fresh ones to make even the slightest difference!!
As much as i like pineapple... Thats a hell of alot!

Tomlin- My Bloody show with DD, didnt result in labour at all. I still had to be induced a week later Enjoy the seaside tomorrow

Feeling very stuffed tonight after dinner at the local Harvester tonight. Had a massive big dinner and DD helped me finish off an ice cream. DD was fantastic. DH and I sat chatting away during dinner and you hardly knew she was there.. Just sat happily tucking into her food

MDM- Hope the clinic goes well tomorrow.

70 pineapples! Even worse than i thought!

When I was about 56 days overdue with DD2 in the one day I did the following: had sex twice (!), ate a whole fresh pineapple, 6 Raspberry leaf tablets, clary sage bath, reflexology on uterus pressure points on feet with clary sage oil, curry, bounced on all for about an hour, now that was desperation, you know what I am going to say, did nothing!

tomlin - I only had a pink tinged show after my waters went with DD1

pigley - I bet that was scary re the cat, could have kicked you off!

Right off to bed for me soon I think

Lol Tomlin I had noticed we seemed to be using loo roll way quicker than usual and it only clicked the other day that it was my fault! Haha

MDM I made soup to freeze today and feel like it may have started a cooking energy boost! Am going to fill freezer in next couple of weeks
Your honeymoon sounds amazing! Am ...we went to Cornwall! (but it was still amazing )

Eek, don't like all this talk of being overdue...3 weeks feels like forever when all my NCT friends are giving birth now..would hate it to be another 5 weeks

evening all!

BRB- congratulations. hope both you and baby are well and home.

thankyou to all who have wished me luck with the exam...am hoping to go after it but have a sort of contingency plan if she decides otherwise.

FIVE- do you want to swap consultants? mine wanted to induce me...with no reason really, they think this baby will also be big, but other consultant 4 weeks ago wasnt too concerned, anyway after being told that syntocin isnt good for asmatics he still wanted to book me in. if i were you i would ask for another referal or go to obstetric unit each day to get them to do an examination based on history. i wouldnt let the consultant do another today as it can kick things off and had one on monday only to be told slow labour.

alle my friend is a midwife and thinks i will go tonight as its a full moon...apparently its always busier on full moon.

anyway hope everyone else is ok. im off to bed as i was up most of the night again and have to get some work done and go do a big shop tomorrow! will be glad when exam is over and i can relax.

five..the risk of over stimulation is really small..I was induced this time and it was my 4th induction..you are entitled to ask for a second opinion..is there another consultant you can see?

Tomlin..I had lots of show inc blood stained whilst an in patient..but nothing happened..however..when I was being induced I had a proper show which was completely different..just a huge blob of what looked like the start of a period...lots of jelly mucous is good though means cervix is softening

allie...re your cat..it depends on the cat really some if not most cats are nervous of newborns..they dont like the crying and keep away, others crave the warmth that newborns emit so you have to be careful that your cat doesnt get in the moses basket or cot..easy enough just keep the cat out of the room...hopefully your new baby and cat will be great friends(when baby is older)..although saying that, my cat hated my two eldest kids and kept away!

carikube..best of luck to your DH

cupcake..apologies that you are adding more to the hospital bag

lizzie..Im glad I didnt have toddlers to look after this time..hopefully the birth isnt far away for you

Hollyoaks..now Im craving a creme egg...must resist

HV came today and DD is now 6lb 15..so she has gained 4 oz BF back on track as boobs look normal and no pain..DD is feeding happily from both sides and cheerfully taking EBM from the bottle too...still feeding every hour in the night though

Hello just a quickie am so tired - stitch like pain on right side of bump all day, combined with potty training disaster has left me drained. I soooo second whoever was saying being pg and having a toddler is hard. Now I am worrying how I will cope with 2, let alone 3!

Anyway, thought I should check in on new thread and also tomlin when I had a bloody show I went into labour next day! Just throw that one into the mix of experience.

Good luck everyone with the full moon. X

Angel - I love the nice neat new thread too. Doing my bit to fill it though:

Booboo, definitely with you on the tiredness! Mine caused by a terrible nights sleep though, which left me with 'the fear' today. Still, the waxing wasn't as bad as I'd expected (hurt less than a diy job tbh).

ML - very good to see that having a new baby doesn't necessarily mean there's no time to use internet - also of course that your DD is gaining good weight !

Hollyoaks - sounds like your DD has some work to do on her skincare tips

Twentieth - sorry to hear you've been in hospital - can't believe they reckon it's time to go already. Also for you Tomlin! Hope you get day at beach. I had some great times on yorkshire coast line as a child. Assume that's where you're going?

Five - sounds like chasing a second opinion is like a good idea. Monday could be a long way off. Fingers crossed for you.

Alle - thanks for pointing out that thread about pre parenthood expectations. I think DH and I will be in for quite a bit of shock if that's anything to go by

Pigley, nice you had such a great response from your wedding weekend away.

Sassles - hope your interview goes well.

Apologies for everything I missed - it really is too late. I am wondering though what happened to all the expected full moon arrivals? I saw it last night and it did look beautiful. Didn't stir much here though thankfully. Maybe we should expect to get a deluge of surprise announcements over next few days?

morning all
thank you all for the cats post, my dad had me worried and had been insisting i get rid of the cat, possibly cause never like it to start with, last week told me i only had a week or so to find him a nice home as no way is gonna be at home with baby, like he is gonna eat him or something, now really ease my mind,...

five- i really feel for you, surely is better to do it in hospital in a controlled way than have you worried, with very good reason, thought.

pigley- i need a stray cat, frights like that sure will bring labour in, will do anything by now...

itshappen- i can tell my mother and your midwife wrong, enjoying the mother part,, full moon and not even braxtons yesterday, today a bit of a tightening but not much hope atm...

schipo- i think we can all relate, i showed it to dh and he laugh so much he wants to email it to his friends, also said that our ds will sleep by himself, be well behaved, not tv,....

have a massive post today, i have 6 hours of uninterrupted sleep for first time in ages and no heartburn, and it's like i'm on amphetamines or something, due date today and nothing really happening, need a c-sec for the weekend, i literally can't take it anymore...

Five - sorry you had a frustrating appointment too yesterday

Hollyoaks - love the creme egg moisturiser DD keeps sneaking into my parents bedroom at their house and sits on my mother's vanity table covering herself in makeup and perfume

Tomlin - sounds a bit like a show but I've never had one so wouldn't know.

Re pineapple - I ate loads last time until I realised how much I'd need to eat and that it was giving me mouth ulcers.

I wonder if any of us benefited from the full moon last night? Complete lack of sleep from Tuesday night has caught up with me today so I might try and grab a nap on the sofa. It's quite weird to think LO will probably be here in a couple of weeks.

Good Morning all!

Heffa I dreamed about you last night, you'd had a baby boy and you called him Brannon, like Brannon Braga who produced those Star Trek shows! I hope you start feeling better soon, and hopefully you won't have to wait too much longer for it all to start happening. Saying that is a bit scary since you're due the day after me!

I'm glad to report that my DS is feeling much better, the inhaler and steroid tablets seem to have cleared up the breathing problems for now. I'm wondering if hayfever is the trigger as he doesn't have any sign of a cold. At least in worrying about him, it's taken my mind off my own aches and pains! He's been stroppy the last couple of days so I know he's feeling better!

Sassles thinking of you today, hope your interview goes well!! I hope you saved that email from your boss in case you need to take further action down the line, that attitude is not on!

Hormonalmum I am also not very patient with my DS at the moment, sorry that you were feeling cross and tired yesterday. I can relate!

Moggmum Enjoy your pamper day!

Pigley hope your MW appointment goes well today. That's lovely that you got flowers and gratitude as well as compliments on your DD! I have been wearing dresses as tunic style tops for about 2 months now as my bump is so big that regular maternity tops don't cover it. With you on the trousers falling down as well, I only have one pair of Next maternity jeans that are under the bump which remotely fit. All of the over the bump ones I have are too small to go over anymore! My 29 inch waist has now expanded to 49 inches and some stretch marks have started bleeding! Didn't have that last time around!

Lizzie I understand what you mean about the big heavy bump and looking after a LO, I am really struggling with my DS lately. Bear in mind that some of those who have had babies already had them early, and there are others here who are bound to have giant babies, too!

SK your soak in the tub sounds lovely! I was tempted to have a nice bath last night but I fear I will get stuck in the tub!

Five how frustrating your appointment sounds! I would be so upset if I were being told that, it really doesn't make sense to me with your history of fast labours and your Strep B. Hopefully on Monday they can break your waters and it will be a non-issue. Until then, could you get a second opinion? Monday seems a long time to wait to get to the next step!

MDM How did your sister find her treatment was at Stoke Mandeville Hospital? Glad you're feeling better about your scan results and I hope your consultation goes well today. Your honeymoon sounds like it was fab! We went to San Francisco for our honeymoon (which wasn't a big deal really since we were living in Los Angeles!) Cupcake a Cornwall honeymoon sounds lovely as well - I'd love to have a trip down there this summer!

Hollyoaks LOL about the creme egg! My DS had a creme egg last night and made a huge mess too. I hid his crushed up steroid tablets in it, I was concerned more of it would end up on his face than in his mouth! He did ok in the end though!

Hobnob I ate about a dozen fresh pineapples when I was overdue with DS and it didn't make a bit of difference except that it helped with the constipation! SK I think I tried all of those things to trigger labour as well and baby just arrives when it's good and ready! I'm not stressing about this one (yet), trying to be more relaxed! We'll see how long it lasts!

Speaking of going overdue, did many of you had your due date brought forward? Mine was brought forward from 21 May to 16 May at the 12 week scan because of the size of the baby. It irritates me that they do this as standard practice, esp as it's my second baby and my first was large and late. With my DS they moved his due date from 28 May to 21 May and he was born on 3 June. Whenever anyone asks me about my due date I'm very vague, just because I trust my LMP date more than the scan date and also it is so annoying when you go late and everyone is calling, texting, emailing, etc. Seems the last couple of days I can't even sign for a parcel at my front door or buy a pint of milk without being asked when I'm due and people look at me funny when I say "about a month" as if a specific due date is written in stone and they feel like I'm trying to keep a secret from them! I think everything is just irritating me lately, though!

Tomlin have a lovely day at the seaside today!!

ML so glad to hear that Olivia is doing well and that breastfeeding is on track! The very hungry stage is so tiring, I'm not looking forward to the frequent night feeds! But at least in the scheme of things it passes very quickly!

Slowly making progress on the curtains for DS's room, going to finish the second panel today hopefully. He's been getting up at 6 instead of 7 the last few mornings so I'm hoping the new heavier curtains will keep him from waking so early. I'm ready to go back to bed now, thank goodness he has pre-school this afternoon, I plan to have a nice snooze!

Morning!

Rachel My date was kept the same after the scan but I think it is a couple of days late anyway but that will probably work in my favour as I think it means LO will turn up before we need to discuss induction. I have been able to avoid most comments from people about when I'm ready to drop though last night I had two people in a row tell me that I looked ready to go and that I wasn't going to last the next two weeks. We have also had a better morning today as we hung an extra sheet over DD's curtains (we're not organised enough to actually improve the curtains themselves ) and she stayed quiet for an hour longer which was lovely.

ML glad to hear that Olivia is doing well though hope that she starts to go a bit longer at night so you can catch up on some sleep!

Off to MW today for latest appt - as she told me at the last one that she thought I wasn't going to make this one, it will be interesting to see what she says today If DH gets through to the next round of interviews, he'll need to be away on either 10th/11th May which will be a bit too close to due date for comfort so I hope that this one has turned up before then so we're not on tenterhooks the whole time he's away...