The Continuing Adventures of the First Time Frolicker Graduates....

[Hermya321]

Right (plonks self down and breaks out the biscuit tin and tea bags), I've stuck the kettle on. Whose joining me?

ARRIVALS:

Fulhamgirl - EDD 30th May - DOB 9th Apr - Girl - Lily Ann - 4lb

CURRENT__GRADUATES:

Trying4Baby1 - BFP 21st Aug - 25th Apr - Girl
Kaystar - BFP 27th Aug - EDD?
Pepperonipizza - BFP 12th Sep - 24th May - Boy
Ladyemmalou83 - BFP 13th Oct - 23rd Jun - Girl - Erin Elizabeth
bluesnowfalcon - BFP 14th Oct - EDD?
DesperateHousewife21 - BFP 3rd Nov - EDD 18th Jul - Boy - Dylan
Spirael - BFP 7th Nov - EDD 25th Jul - Secret
Curlycasper - BFP 11th Nov - EDD 21st Jul - Girl
EmsieRo - BFP 16th Nov - EDD 20th Jul
vix206 - BFP 8th Dec - EDD 22nd Aug
HypotheticalMummy - BFP 9th Dec - EDD?
Ozziegirly - BFP 16th Dec - EDD 24th Aug
NovemberAli - BFP 24th Dec - EDD 2nd Sep
Eleanora - BFP 28th Dec - EDD 4th Sep
WhiteRoses - BFP 11th Jan - EDD 15th Sep - Boy
hamsterlover - BFP 11th Jan - EDD?
Hobnob - BFP 17th Jan - EDD 26th Sep
MadameG - BFP 17th Jan - EDD 16th Sep
pixiestix - BFP 18th Jan - EDD 24th Sep
ceebs05 - BFP 22nd Jan - EDD 29th Sep
addie81 - BFP 28th Jan - EDD 8th Oct
chancewouldbeafinething - BFP 1st Feb - EDD 11th Oct
WorrisomeHeart - BFP 29th Jan - EDD 12th Oct
Hermya321 - BFP 12th Feb - EDD 24th Oct
fudgecat - BFP 19th Feb ? EDD 28th Oct
Pidgin - BFP 27th Feb - EDD?
Honeymoo - BFP ? - EDD 1st Nov
YorkshireTeaDrinker - BFP 1st Mar - EDD 6th Nov
DrewsGirl - BFP 4th Mar - EDD?
bunnygirl80 - BFP 12th Mar - EDD 19th Nov
Mumnerves - BFP 1st Apr - EDD 8th Dec
Spanishlady - BFP 3rd Apr - EDD?
luckyseven - BFP 8th Apr - EDD 17th Dec
Capricorn76 - BFP 12th Apr - EDD 1st Jan
Homebound - BFP 30th Apr - EDD 8th Jan

FUTURE_GRADUATES:

aly323
Ariesgirl
Bellaby
calligraphy82
Calyx
CaveMum
chalky3
cher rycobbler
claireinthecommunity
Dinkytinky
evilgiraffe
FelicityFlick
haloflo
Kaloki
kkas
kurl yvoice
misshoohaa
MrsWajs
Muser
Papertiger
pinkiePoo
pipsicles
seablue
Sevans
Stiffybyn g
Wannamummy
Zippys

Whiteroses that must have been so scary! I"m so pleased that all is ok. It's scary how quickly things can happen isn't it?

Really pleased that all seems to be ok now though.

Fudge hang on in there. Know that people all over the world are rooting for your tiny baby. It's actually one of the first things I think about when I wake up and I always check the site as soon as I get into work.

As for me, the low GI diet is going ok. I had a few good days and some weird readings. I am really struggling with breakfast as I have tried cereal and that is out, toast on its own is out and egg on toast seems to work but I really don't fancy it at 7am. I'm a bit stuck for breakky ideas though. Needs to be some protein and some carb.

Off to see endocrinologist today though so am hoping I don't have to take insulin yet.

Hi,

No word from Fudge? Really hope she and Splodge are okay.

November - here's hoping the placenta shifts for you. Suppose it's best just to try and not worry about it in the meantime, eh? Not long to go either way though, so that's something nice to focus on.

Ozzie - hope your appointment went/is going well today. Must be very difficult having to be so careful with what you eat. Still, won't be long for you either. I take it that once the baby's born, you'll go back normal, will you?

As for my scare, I do keep thinking about it, and it still terrifies me a bit that it might happen again (cause it was so fast and without cause), but I just need to try and get over it, appreciate every little kick that I feel, and hope, as you say, November, for a nice boring time of it from now on... Hard not to torture myself with all the "what if"s, but all's well now, and that's the main thing.

Just a quick one as should be preparing to lead a crucial meeting!

Thinking of you fudgecat - you did exactly the right things. I'm so sorry about the fluid and what it means for splodge's lungs. I just hope that somehow there's some positive change, as it's all a mysterious business.

chalky - so hoping that it's all just been a mix up with your dates. what a horrible time for you and your partner.

whiteroses - that bleeding sounds terrifying. so glad all was well in the end. congratulations on your stoicism!

ozziegirly - good luck finding the right diet. is ham on toast any good for you? always quite nice in a continental way - less rich than egg?

I've been a bit worried since Sunday as I've been having some light brown discharge (not really bleeding, just staining of what's normally there- sorry way TMI!). I rang the EPU and they said not to come in unless it becomes bright red or the slight cramping I have gets worse. My 12 (or actually 13) week scan is next Thursday, which seems an age away. I keep reading that brown spotting isn't a big deal, but it's still a shock when you see it - did any of you lovely ladies have similar? I know I've just got to learn to roll with the uncertainty, but my inner control freak is finding this rather tricky. There was a heartbeat at 7 and a half weeks...

oneof8 - so sorry about your friend. So sad. Look after yourself.

hermya - glad your boss was so understanding. Not sure when mine is going to realise how distracted I am by catastrophising over next week's scan!

Have good days all. Welcome salty!

whiteroses just popping in to say sorry about your scare but glad to hear that you and baby are fine.

fudge thinking of you

[waves to all the other graduates!]

Seablue - sorry to hear about the spotting. I didn't have anything between implantation at 4.5wks (very little bright red blood when I wiped) and then the other night... The only thing I would say though is that there was a great lack of interest when my discharge turned brown in the hospital - they said that was just "old stuff" and "better out than in", whereas they wanted to know about anything red at all. When (a little) fresh red came out on Monday morning, they had me hooked back up to the fetal heart monitor straight away. Seems like there's a big difference between brown and red. I know your scan seems ages away, but try not to worry. The fact that you saw the heartbeat already greatly reduces the risks of anything nasty happening too, doesn't it?

As for my stoicism... Not sure about that! Just trying very hard not to whinge when I feel I don't really have the right to!

Kkas - cross-post there, sorry. My laptop's running very slowly today. Nice to see you popping in. Hope you're doing okay? x

fudge, thinking of you, really hope you're holding up ok and things work out for you.

whiteroses, the bleeding must have been terrifying, glad everything is ok. Try not to think about the what ifs and concentrate on the positive outcome you've had.

seablue, bleeding isn't necesarily bad and as they say, 'bleeding during pregnancy isn't 'normal' but it is common'. To me this means it should be checked out as soon as possible to make sure everything is ok.
That said, I know from experience that brown bleeding doesn't seem to concern the health professionals too much unless it goes on for a couple of weeks and you really do have to badger them to be seen even then. Even if the physical symptoms aren't concerning them much the stress and anxiety you are experiencing should definitely be taken into account. If you're really very worried you should keep on at your GP and the EPU until they give you a scan, at 11 weeks they should be able to see enough to tell you what's happening. Good luck!

Not much news from me. Four weeks on and still bleeding. It was a bit heavier last week, more like a light period than spotting, but I was told that might happen as it would have been AF week. It's more like brown/red spotting now (sorry if TMI!) Doing alright today but the past couple of days I've been really stressed out about it all. Still got another week to wait until the next scan, there's no point in going any sooner as they said they won't be able to see enough difference from last week's scan to tell anything. I'm trying not to be too hopeful as getting bad news next week would be like when they said I'd had a miscarriage and I really don't want to experience that again. I'm trying to focus on the positives like feeling well but I can't forget about it as I've been advised as I'm reminded evertime I go to the toilet (TMI again!) Whatever happens next week, I really want an explanation as to why I'm still bleeding. This length of time certainly isn't normal or common!
The waiting between these scans has to be the longest 2ww of my life!

fudge still thinking of you. Can you get your DP to smuggle some decent food in for you? I would have freaked out at the moth in the bathroom. There was a cockroach in my car the other day, and it hid in the footwell before I could get rid of it. Now every time I drive I imagine I can feel it crawling up my leg!

chalky I hope you get good news at your scan next week. I think once you get pg you realise that the TTC 2ww was nothing compared with all the phases of waiting you'll go through over the next 9 months.

spirael I hope gadget gets into the right position soon. I think they can move in and out of your pelvis pretty much until pretty late on. My friend's baby was up and down until a couple of days before she went into labour. I know she said sitting on a birthing ball would get him down into her pelvis, or getting down on her hands and knees and scrubbing the floors. Personally I'd rather bounce on a ball in front of the tv while eating cake than scrub the floors

ozzie hope your appointment with the endocrinologist went well. Not sure what you can do about brekkie - I hate having to cook anything in the mornings- some sort of meat/fish on toast sounds like the way forward. Make your DH get up early to cook it for you Have you had any news about his job yet?

roses that bleeding must have been scary for you. The kicks aren't strong enough to make my belly move yet - to be honest the thought of seeing my bump move spontaneously completely freaks me out! I've only jut started to come to terms with feeling another person moving inside me, without seeing it as well - sometimes I wonder if I have any maternal instincts at all

seablue try not to worry about the spotting (I'm sure that's much easier said than done) You've already seen a heartbeat, so the chances of something going wrong now are small.

kkas nice to see you here. Hope you're ok, and you're here in an offical capacity soon

november hope your placenta has shifted into a good position

Poor DH is getting really frustrated trying to feel the baby kicking. The baby was going crazy this morning when I woke up, so got DH to put his hand on my tummy to try and feel it. As soon as he touched me it stopped, so he gave up and got up, and it started again within about 10 seconds of him getting out of bed!

DH found out he's been promoted at work yesterday. As a treat they all get taken to Luna Park for the day. For those of you who don't know what Luna Park is, it's an amusement park with a giant clown head as the entrance. DH is very scared of clowns so he's refusing to go He's told his boss that my scan will take at least 2 hours so he won't be able to get there in time! The scan's early in the morning and they're not even going until after lunch, so even if it really did take 2 hours he'd have plenty of time to get there. I'm considering phoning his boss and telling him that the real reason DH isn't going is that he's too scared of the clown

bunny that is hilarious re the clown! And a totally bizarro work trip I have to say.

Re jobs - he didn't get one of them and is still waiting to hear about the other in Adelaide. He has now been offered a job in Syd, but the good (!) thing about this diabetes is that he appreciates that I can't possibly move before the birth as I am now being monitored by three different people.

The job that he didn't get in Adelaide have also said they want to offer him something in Syd as well and he is v keen on this as basically it is the top bank in Aus - and also because it wouldn't be until Oct/Nov, which works fine for me. Plus it would be on more money which also allays some of my fears re moving back to an expensive city from a cheap one!

Bunny, my DH used to have exactly the same with Pip and kicking. As soon as his hand would go there, the baby would go totally still. I used to say that at least the baby knew who was in charge - or if I was feeling nice, that the baby was obviously calmed in his presence.

So all in all, I feel fairly happy about all the options and we're just waiting to hear with actual offers and decisions.

Hi all
spirael am very sorry to say but the moth buggered off Good luck with the MW tomorrow

whiteroses I am 22+2 today and just taking it one day at a time. The T word has been mentioned a few times but as long as my health and safety is not compromised I will carry on. At the end of the day I?m to far gone for a (sorry to call it this but you know what I mean) easy termination and I will have to give birth at some point whatever happens. Sorry to hear that you have had your own scare ? it?s not easy this pregnancy thing is it?

kkas hello you how?s things going with you at the moment?

chalky and seablue hope all is ok and that the spotting as eased up for you

bunny yikes ? have you evicted the cockroach from the car yet? Did you know that they can survive a nuclear explosion? Congrats to your DP on his promotion, he is not alone with the clown thing, I have had a rather strong dislike of then since I saw the film IT

ozzie could you have bacon for breakfast? (I want a bacon butty now ? grrrr)

Sooo.... I had another scan yesterday and there is no additional bad news which is as close to good news as we can expect at the moment. The scan showed no change in the amount of amniotic fluid ? its still under 2cm at the deepest point. They did not do any measurements to see what the latest is with the growth problems as it was too close to the previous scan to get a proper comparison. They are going to do another scan Monday to have a look at that. They said that I also have group B Strep but that should not be an issue at the moment as I am already on antibiotics.

Hi everyone,

Chalky - things must be so frustrating for you right now. You're right though - the 2WW whilst TTC really was a doddle in comparison to the ongoing drama that is pregnancy.

Bunny - I thought it'd be the same, seeing my belly move, but it's not... I love it cause it's like more proof that I'm not just imagining it. After 28wks, six scans, hearing the heartbeat God knows how many times, morning sickness, pelvic pain, a belly bigger than my dad's, you'd think I wouldn't need any more proof! Lol! Still!

Poor DH. That must be frustrating for him. My DH gave up in the end and said "it'll be easy in a couple of weeks anyway, no point stressing about it now". That bugged me a bit, and even now he doesn't like sitting waiting, cause he says he's felt it plenty of times, it won't feel any different this time, and once I'm feeling it, we know everything's okay and that's all that matters. He really is so impatient with it all. Though it's funny, cause in many other situations, I'm the impatient one. Guess he's just very laid-back...

Gosh, fancy being THAT scared of a clown... Is there a reason?!

Ozzie - great news about DH's jobs. Just shows what my gran always said was spot on; "there's no point meeting trouble halfway".

Fudge - I'm so glad you've posted. You've been in my thoughts such a lot. My scare was nothing to what you've been going through but no, pregnancy's not easy. For what it's worth, I'm still with you 100% in that if Splodge is fighting, there's hope. I'm really relieved that your scan showed nothing bad, and here's hoping for Monday too. How are you sleeping? Seeing as you're in your own room, are they giving you peace, or are they still checking on you constantly? Have you had many visitors? Keep us posted about how you're doing, won't you? x

I knew it would happen, but I still can't help but feel a bit hmmmm about it. I'm nearing twenty three weeks now and I still don't look pregnant (I'm not complaining, I still fit into my nice jeans), I just look a bit rounder. Well one of my bosses jokingly said 'I bet you're pulling the biggest scam going aren't you'. I did laugh at the time, but now someone else has said it as well. So I'm getting a little worried that people are going to really wonder if I'm actually pregnant and not just faking. You're damned if you do and you're damned if you don't.

SPD is slightly worse at the moment, but it comes and goes. I've not seen a physio yet though, stupid waiting lists. I suppose it could be worse, I managed a little boogie today and didn't suffer too much for it.

Bunny You're DH is scared of clowns to the point of running away. What kind of scary ass experience did he have with one of them???

Ozzie Great news about the job!!

Fudge I'm glad to see a post from you, as long as Splodge is going gung oh then theres still hope. At least the little things giving it all it's got you should be proud of them, what a little star. I'll be keeping you in my prayers.

White I'm glad you're ok, thats sounds so scary. In the end I've decided that I'm going to go for a baba bing changing bag. I've seen some really nice proper 'yummy mummy' ones, but I can't bring myself to inflict them on DH and Jellybaby. Plus I don't think I could take myself that seriously lugging a great big flowery thing around with me. I mean all the bags I lug around with me are huge, practical and bomb proof....well apart from my handbag but a girls got to have one thing hasn't she.

Chalky How are you? Has the spotting eased up any?

November Thinking moving thoughts for the placenta.

Seablue I got brown spotting and cramping early on, EPU did a scan and everything was sound but they couldn't see why I had bled. Sometimes it does happen for no reason at all. Has it eased up yet?

Bunny My LO does that as well, I think he's trying to make his Daddy work for it.

I hope you're all ok, the sun is shining here and I'm off to a friends who makes the best cake in the whole world. I can't wait!!

fudge glad to hear splodge is stil hanging on in there. I didn't manage to find the cockroach after it hid so it's probably still in there. Luckily it's the work car so I only have to drive it every couple of weeks.

ozzie it sounds promising on the jobs front, and a move in Oct/Nov sounds much more sensible if you do end up having to come back to Sydney

hermya I don't think we can win whatever our bump size - if you were huge people would be constantly asking if you're sure there's not 2 in there

I think DH is exagerrating somewhat about his fear of the Luna Park clown. Although he's not a fan of them he's not so phobic he awould actually run away from one! He basically just didn't want to go on the day out. To be fair to him they are all being divided into teams to do a scavenger hunt and other games, so it does sound like my idea of hell.

Had my 19 week scan this morning. We were there for over an hour as yet again baby would not cooperate. I was sent to empty my bladder to get LO to stretch out its legs, which didn't work. So then I was sent to eat some chocolate to try and wake it up - I definitely didn't complain about that part. All of this was so the sonographer could check the feet We found out the sex, and it's a little boy. DH is excited and has his England rugby career all planned out already. Just need to start thinking of names now as I only had girls names picked out

ARRIVALS:

Fulhamgirl - EDD 30th May - DOB 9th Apr - Girl - Lily Ann - 4lb
Trying4Baby1 - EDD 25th Apr - DOB 6th May - Girl - Emily - 10lb 2.5oz
Pepperonipizza -EDD 24th May - DOB 28th May -Boy

CURRENT__GRADUATES:

Ladyemmalou83 - BFP 13th Oct - 23rd Jun - Girl - Erin Elizabeth
bluesnowfalcon - BFP 14th Oct - EDD?
DesperateHousewife21 - BFP 3rd Nov - EDD 18th Jul - Boy - Dylan
Spirael - BFP 7th Nov - EDD 25th Jul - Secret
Curlycasper - BFP 11th Nov - EDD 21st Jul - Girl
EmsieRo - BFP 16th Nov - EDD 20th Jul
vix206 - BFP 8th Dec - EDD 22nd Aug
HypotheticalMummy - BFP 9th Dec - EDD?
Ozziegirly - BFP 16th Dec - EDD 24th Aug
Sazziej - BFP? - EDD 1st Sep - Girl - Evie
NovemberAli - BFP 24th Dec - EDD 2nd Sep
Eleanora - BFP 28th Dec - EDD 4th Sep
WhiteRoses - BFP 11th Jan - EDD 15th Sep - Boy
hamsterlover - BFP 11th Jan - EDD?
Hobnob - BFP 17th Jan - EDD 26th Sep - Girl
MadameG - BFP 17th Jan - EDD 16th Sep
pixiestix - BFP 18th Jan - EDD 24th Sep - Surprise
ceebs05 - BFP 22nd Jan - EDD 29th Sep
addie81 - BFP 28th Jan - EDD 7th Oct - Girl
chancewouldbeafinething - BFP 1st Feb - EDD 10/10/10 - Boy
WorrisomeHeart - BFP 29th Jan - EDD 12th Oct - Boy!
Hermya321 - BFP 12th Feb - EDD 24th Oct - Boy
fudgecat - BFP 19th Feb ? EDD 28th Oct
Pidgin - BFP 27th Feb - EDD?
Honeymoo - BFP? - EDD 1st Nov
YorkshireTeaDrinker - BFP 1st Mar - EDD 6th Nov
DrewsGirl - BFP 4th Mar - EDD?
bunnygirl80 - BFP 12th Mar - EDD 19th Nov-Boy
Mumnerves - BFP 1st Apr - EDD 8th Dec
Spanishlady - BFP 3rd Apr - EDD?
luckyseven - BFP 8th Apr - EDD 17th Dec
Capricorn76 - BFP 12th Apr - EDD 1st Jan
Homebound - BFP 30th Apr - EDD 8th Jan
Seablue - BFP? - EDD 10th Jan
Oneof8 - BFP 18th May - EDD?
Aly323 - BFP? - EDD 31st Jan
Applecharlotte - BFP 29th May - EDD?
Papertiger - BFP 31st May - EDD?
wannamummy - BFP 1st June - EDD ?
pipsicles - BFP 6th June - EDD ?
saltyair - BFP 18th June - EDD ?

bunny so excited to hear about your son!

fudge glad to hear that LO is still hanging in there. i really admire your courage! thanks for asking how i'm getting on. i'm in the process of interviewing for a new job which i'm really excited about. so ttc has kinda taken a back seat. but that said, i think i'm ov this weekend and i have no plans to use contraception so, as whiteroses said, i might just make my life a bit more complicated! anyway, i hope to hear really good news from you soon. you are constantly in my thoughts and prayers!

anyway - better pop back to the TTC thread before i jinx any chances i have of joining you guys this month! tata!

Hello! Just a quick one as am meant to be applying for a job at work (sideways move). Thanks for all your kind comments about the spotting. It's still there but very faint, and cramping has stopped. Who knows? Obviously terrified of the scan on Thursday, but as you've all shown this whole business is about constantly waiting and seeing isn't it. Even after the scan I'll be on tenterhooks for the blood test results. Then I'll be worried until I can feel the baby (if there still is one) move. Then I'll be scared when it isn't moving all the time. Then I'll move onto worrying about later stage issues. So I should just find a Zen-like centre of calm and get on with it!

Thinking of you fudge and chalky - thank you for being concerned about me when you're going through such terrible stuff - you are lovely people.

Thank god it's Friday. And nearly the end of term, so I might see DH soon! At least I hope it's DH I sometimes glimpse in the house - I'll have to check with our wedding photos to make sure...

Have good days all, and a lovely hot weekend (or an in the shade weekend for lots of us I imagine!)
xxx

Hi everyone,

Gosh, amn't I doing well keeping up these days?! Must be all the time I'm spending lying on the couch, following doctors' orders and resting! No doubt I've just jinxed it and I'll end up struggling to catch up again soon... DH is off for the weekend and then I'm back to work on Monday, so I suppose it's bound to happen...

Anyway, Hermya - look on the bright side about your (lack of) bump. You're going to be one of these gorgeous skinny women pushing your pram about, unlike me, who'll probably still look about 6mths pregnant when my baby starts school!

Bunny - lol at your LO being so uncooperative - mine was the same. Maybe it's a boy thing?! On the plus-side, you got a lovely long scan! It's interesting what you say (I've been reading the Conception thread too) about your feelings that it's a boy. After finding out I was having a boy, I came out, sat in the car and burst into tears... We had a girl's name picked out, and two possibilities for a boy, and I think I was hoping to be able to imagine my baby, gender, name and all after the scan. When I was told it was a boy, I was really conscious that I didn't even know my baby's name. And it made it worse that it was more or less down to DH, as I had a very definite favourite name and he was torn between them. That made me think that this was the start of it all, and this would always be DH's baby now, rather than mine, seeing as they were the same gender... Really ridiculous and irrational, and I was over it very quickly, but the build-up was so much, and then it's SUCH big news, isn't it? Anyway, now I think little boys are best. I keep imagining this cheeky little face, looking up at me... I have all these gorgeous "little man" clothes hanging in the wardrobe... I don't want a girl!

Kkas - lovely seeing you here again. It's so nice when you pop over. It'll be great when you and the others are here permanently. We'll all be keeping our fingers crossed for you.

Fudge - I don't know if you have a telly or not in your room, but it's all over the news this morning about babies less than 24wks not feeling pain. It just made me think of Splodge in there, fighting away, and perfectly happy... Just reinforces that it's you making the scarifices, not Splodge, and I TOTALLY think you're doing the right thing. I'd be doing the very same in your shoes. xxx

Seablue - sorry, that was a cross post there. I think the worrying in pregnancy is just nature's way of preparing us for motherhood! I'm glad to hear that the spotting is easing up though, and that you have a nice weekend ahead of you. Good luck with the job, too.

Just a quick one from me - but since I heard that on the news about 24 weeks I have been fuming - not preg rage - full on hulk style rage.

It is a woman?s right to do what she feels best for her and the baby. I 100% believe in the right to choose.

I believe if it is medically necessary, late procedures are emotional enough without the "anti" parade making that person feel worse than they already do.

By the same yard stick, women who choose to continue a pregnancy when the signs are not good have every right to do this. There are times when this decision saves a life.

Not feeling pain at 24 weeks being twisted to fit a campaign (as was being suggested by the news channel I listened to) is unacceptable. I know a girl that was born early (before 24 weeks) and due to 101 reasons, they fought to save her, and she survived. No medical issues related to the early birth. This was over 18 years ago.

Not feeling pain this early may bring a small amount of comfort to a family who needed to make a tough decision, or who had the decision made for them by the powers that be (Spiritual not Doctors) ? but this is all it is. Information that a baby may not feel pain at 24 weeks.

I feel I had better apologise in advance in case the rant causes any unintended upset, but my point is I hate the media and the way they twist new information to fit an alternative means. I disagree that (god I HATE this word) viability only ?kicks in? at 24 weeks, and personally feel THIS should be lowered as surely this means more could be done to save a baby without the emotional blackmail from Drs who use the pain card to ?guide you? into making a decision.

I don?t believe there is ever ?no hope? until proven otherwise.

Sorry ? all I feel like i do at the moment is sway between feeling sad, or angry. Funeral was deeply upsetting but a celebration at the same time. Today I thought I would get through without exploding, but I have been needing to vent since hearing the news at 7.30 am!

Fudge Thinking of you. Good news re the scan. Sounds like they may be getting slightly more positive? Splodge may be small, but is a real fighter. FWIW I think you have done everything right and would have made the same choices. There is always hope x

Seablue glad things are starting to settle. Heres to all scans next week showing strong heartbeats! (mine is Monday and STILL swaying between ultimate excitement and fear) ? ooh, and thank you for your supportive words Hermya Bunny and whiteroses not sure if I have already said thank you, this week has been a bit of a parallel universe with one thing and another!

Chalky I understand wanting to take things more cautious ? really hope everything is well x

Woo hoo Bunny for your BunnyBoy We have said we?ll wait for the surprise (think I may crack, but hey ho!) I feel it?s a boy... If it is a girl, think I would be a little ?oh? at first, but girls are just as lovely. OH doesn?t care ? he is happy for a ?Daddies girl? or future football star ? to which I said it would be rugby as this was a real man?s sport!

Dear me, not to sure why the epic post ? think it was clearing my chest that made this such a ridiculously long one ? sorry!

roses your post has made me feel better that I'm not the only one who has felt a teeny bit disappointed in the gender. I think I shocked myself by feeling that way as although when we started TTC I wanted a little girl, since I've been pg I've told myself that the sex doesn't matter, it's a healthy baby that counts, so I was surprised that the gender preference was still there.

I only felt bad for about half an hour though - we went out for lunch and once we started talking about names and what year he'll debut for England at rugby I felt happy again. I've always preferred baby boy clothes to baby girl ones anyway, and all my friend's little boys absolutely adore their mummies, whereas girls always seem to prefer their dads.

oneof8 my DH would definitely agree with you that rugby is what real men play (as long as it's union you're talking about as apparantly only girls play league!)

We're off on holiday on Monday, and it's just started to dawn on me that this will probably be the last holiday we take with just the two of us for the next 100 years or so!! It's making the whole becoming parents thing seem so much more real.

HI All,

Sorry have been MIA laptop has a virus.

Will try and do a big catch up as soon as we are back in action (using FIL comp now)

hope all ok xx

bunny welcome to the boys club!! Very pleased for you, fantastic news (and I know what you mean about the slight disappointment - I'm just thinking we'll do the girl thing next time!)

Way too hot to do anything or to formulate proper posts! - fudge hope you're doing ok. Have a lovely Sunday all.

Well Hello! I have some serious catching up to do and Im sorry if Ive worried any of you as I did seem to fall off the face of the earth (mumsnet) there for a while. I think I was getting concerned about getting my hopes up too high too early, but guess what??!! IM NOW 12 WHOLE WEEKS!!! YAAAY! Though this hasnt been without adventure!

Ive returned this morning from my long awaited trip home to see my family in Canada and had a great time (other than constant trips to the airplane toilet and the inability to sleep on the plane!!). We did have a wee glitch though. I had a gush of blood while I was away that scared the hell out of me. We went to the hospital and an emergency ultrasound said that it was a haematoma from a small tear in my uterus, but that baby was completely fine and we even got to see my wee nugget earlier than planned!! YAY! The best part is that I was expecting it to still be at sea monkey stage, but the wee arms and legs were flailing around (flailing is my medical terminology word for the day)! It was so exciting!!

We have another scan tomorrow here for the records here and they will check to make sure the tear has healed. Im so excited for tomorrow!! YAAAAY!!

How is everyone keeping, Ive got some reading ahead of me but im afraid my jet-lag has kicked in and im not going to last long!!!

sprinkles healthy baby dust on everyone

~H~

worrisome I'm thinking I'll get my girl next time too - at least she'll have a big brother to look out for her

homebound glad you enjoyed your trip home. The bleeding must have been scary, but at least you got to see LO

We went shopping for baby stuff at the weekend. I bought lots of vests and sleepsuits, and despite me always saying I'd get mostly gender neutral stuff it's all blue It's a bit if a shame it'll be hot when LO arrives as I just love the fluffy snowsuits with little ears on, but the poor thing will fry if he wears one. At least we'll save some money on clothes for the early days, as all he'll need to wear are vests and a nappy, with maybe one nice outfit for going out in

We're off on our hols for a week, so I won't be able to check in for a while.

chalky and seablue good luck for your scans, I hope you both get good news.

fudge I'll be thinking of you

Hi all, i am at home with a cold and sore throat...and laptop is working again..so will be catching up on mn time.

Ozzie & Bunny Thought you might be interested in this...maybe useful for baby number 2!
Paid parental Leave:

The Australian Government will introduce a comprehensive Paid Parental Leave (PPL) scheme for new parents who are the primary carers of a child born or adopted on or after 1 January 2011.The scheme will provide a parent of a child born or adopted from a payment equivalent to the Federal Minimum Wage, currently $543.78 a week, for a maximum period of 18 weeks.
In most cases, the person will receive the payment through their employer.
To be eligible for the PPL scheme, the primary carer must be in paid work and have:

Been engaged in work continuously for at least 10 of the 13 months prior to the expected birth or adoption of the child
Undertaken at least 330 hours of paid work in the 10-month period (an average of around one day of paid work a week)
An income test of $150,000 will apply based on the primary carer?s adjusted taxable income in the previous financial year.
The scheme is available to employees, casual workers and self-employed individuals.

Eligible families can choose whether to participate in the scheme depending on their individual circumstances. Families electing to participate in the scheme will not receive the Baby Bonus (except in multiple birth cases) or Family Tax Benefit Part B during the 18-week PPL period. The dependent spouse, child housekeeper and housekeeper tax offsets also will not be available during this period.

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Morning all! I hope everyone has a good day today. The weather looks like it's going to be lovely again in this part of the world.

It was a bit too warm last night though, I had a bit of trouble sleeping. Not that I sleep particularly well anyway at the moment, thanks to the giant bump, hip ache and regular bathroom trips. Pregnancy... So glamorous.

Ah well, not long left to go! I'm 37 weeks on Thursday, so considered ready to go at any point from then. Though hopefully Gadget will hold on for a little while longer, preferably until after the 12th July as otherwise my maternity leave gets confusing as currently I'm technically on holiday.

Gadget was finally properly head down at my MW appointment on Friday. Not yet engaged, but that's fine. Unless something unexpected happens or things kick off before Thursday, I'm good to go for my homebirth. Picking up the birthing pool tonight, yay! I'm really hoping I don't wind up at the hospital for any reason.

How is everyone else doing? Fudge, I've been keeping my fingers crossed for you and your LO. I hope everything is still hanging on in there!

There doesn't seem to be much good gender neutral stuff around, bunnygirl. I've had real trouble getting neutral stuff for Gadget. I didn't want to get too much gender specific stuff in case the sonographer was wrong! Not that the gender specific stuff for girls is much better. Small amounts of pink is ok, but I really don't want everything pink and frilly! Bleh!

I'm another one who felt a little disappointed when finding out the gender, incidentally. I think it's most likely a very common and natural thing. It wasn't that I'm disappointed that Gadget is (probably) a girl, it was more the fact that I'm (probably) not having a boy this time around! I get the feeling it would have been the same the other way around, I'd have felt sad to not be having a girl.

I think finding out was a good thing though, it's given me time to come to term with my feelings, so now I'm just really excited about meeting Gadget soon, no matter whether the sonographer was right or wrong! (Not quite so excited about the concept of labour, it's more of a necessary evil!)

We were quite girl heavy in here initially, but we've definitely switched to being boy heavy now, huh? I'm sure it'll even out over time though, that's usually the way of things.