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

Oh Fudge you are being so brave, I really think splodge knows how loved he is, and he must be happy in there. As all of the others have said as long as there is a heartbeat and splodge is happy you hang in there, you are doing the right thing. I will be thinking of you.

roses how scary for you, hope you are feeling better and your first day back at work was ok. This must surely be the last hiccup for you

ozzie good news on your dh job prospects, at least you have some time now Good to hear you are coping well with the diet, and you are being looked after well

bunny congrats on your little man...its exciting isnt it? have fun on your holiday

hermya in my yoga there are women who are ready to give birth who are about the same size as me....and then there are some that look like they are having 3...at least you know you havent gone overboard eating

Chalky I hope that you get some answers at your scan, i am sorry to hear about the bleeding, thinking lots of sticky thoughts for you.

november I hope your placenta moves in time, you must be getting excited now that its getting close

spirael wow you really are ready to go now, my fingers are crossed that gadget will be in the right position for you to stay at home

cavemum thanks for the horse tips I did have a few wins ( i cant really remember on what now, blame my pregnancy brain) It was a good day, but freezing. Nice to see queenie too

worrisome thanks for the plane tip, i have requested that seat, but also hoping a friend will be able to get us an upgrade (fingers crossed) hope you had a good trip back.

I think i have managed to catch up with almost everything - sorry its a long one

A quick update from me - I have had a bit of SPD / sciatica (they cant decide which) it comes and goes and is not too bad. The hot weather did me in last week, I had FREE tickets to see bon jovi, but my body had other ideas, i spent the whole afternoon with my head in the loo and ended up not going lots of other stuff going on too DH had his B'day last week, have been visiting the in-laws over the weekend just before MIL starts chemo today (she has to take 18 weeks off work as she is in contact with old & sick people, so if anyone has any ideas that could keep her occupied that are cheap let me know)
I have been trying to find out today if i can take strepsils or not...and so far i have not got a proper answer...soothers are just not doing anything for my throat...has anyone used them before?

Hi All!

Just a flying visit from me - had the scan and baby is just over 11 weeks not the just over 10weeks we were expecting!

Nurse doing the scan said this probably as U/S are not as reliable for dating pre-8 week, which is why even if you have an early scan prior to this (8 weeks), you still get the scheduled one. After 8 weeks the margin is reduced to a few days, so they often don't bother to repeat.

Everything looks "right for this stage" and we got given 7 pics of LO. Really amazing to see from "blob" to baby although one picture due to shadow baby's face resembles the Joker (from the cartoon series of Batman, not film)!

OH had to go back to work, so when he gets home, I'll ask him to upload it so you can see what I mean...

Sorry to dash, I'll check in properly later - but hope the other scans due today went well x

Baby Casp has arrived a month early. A few small probs, but we are generally well. Sorry - she didn't give me the maternity leave time I had planned to use to catch up with you all!

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
CurlyCasper - EDD 21st July - DOB 24th June.

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
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 ?

Just quickly logged in there to see if there was any news (particularly from Fudge about her growth scan today). Anyway, didn't really intend posting - will try and do a proper catch up tomorrow but I couldn't not say a HUGE congratulations to Curly! DELIGHTED to hear that all's well! Well done!

Flying visit to see how Fudge is doing.

Congratulations to Curlycasper Brilliant news!!

Sorry not been on for ages,

Huge congratulations to curlycasper fudge I have everything crossed for you.

hope everyone is coping with this heat!

First off, Yay for Curly and babycasper!!! I can't wait to hear details!!!

Sorry I've dropped off for a bit. I've been so exhausted and yucky feeling. I must have a bit of whatever Chance has in addition to my morning and evening sickness. My throat has been hurting for ages now. I also just got a little overwhelmed. Fudge, you're constantly in my thoughts. It's just such a reminder how fragile this all can be. The same with your scare, WhiteRoses. I was so relieved to hear that all's well, but I can only imagine how terrified you were feeling for awhile.

Homebound and Oneof*- I'm totally . I wanna be 11-12 weeks. I was thrilled because today baby Arpad measured 3 days over what I expected, 9+3. Every single day (even if it's just a mis-measurement) makes me feel a tad more willing to breathe.

Sorry to hear about your scare Homebound I'm happy to hear that baby is safe and fine!

Spireal glad to hear you were able to convince her to get into the proper position! I can't believe it's so close now!!!

I don't know why, but it meant a lot to me that I finally showed on a regular ultrasound today. It seemed more real for me than the vaginal. The doc was going to try to hear the heartbeat, but decided to wait for next time when she was certain it would be loud enough. She didn't actually measure/time the heartbeat, but said it looked great (and little arpie tried to move a little). I've been having loads of bloodsugar issues, but that's to be expected. Now, I'm just counting the days until the next big date. I have my NT ultrasound on July 15th. Althought it'll be a couple days short of 12 weeks, I feel like it'll be a big weight off my shoulders if things look good.

BTW, I've got my fingers crossed for a boy, but am sure it'll be just fine if I get a girl instead. One reason I want a boy is that I know DH will be so smitten with a girl that I'll have to be the heavy all the time. I want to do the spoiling!

fudge I really hope everything is ok x

curlycasper congratulations!

We had our scan today and LO has grown so much in two weeks! A normal amount yes, but I couldn't believe the difference! We are officially 12 weeks and 4 days with a final due date of 6th January instead of the 8th. I still cant believe there is a baby in there no matter how much i look at the pictures or feel myself gag ..lol

So jet-lag and early pregnancy dont mix...but i thank goodness that i took today off as i ended up sleeping most of the afternoon by accident, but i feel so much better for it...now to rid myself of this gaggy feeling and we are set! If my husband would stop eating anything aniseed flavoured that would be great cause nothing smells worse!!

healthy baby dust for all

curleycaspar congratulations! Wonderful news and look forward to hearing the details.

fudge really hope all is ok with you, DH and splodge.

chance yes I am pleased to see we will finally have paid maternity leave next year - it's not much money, but better than a poke in the eye (which is what we get now...)

Thanks for all your suggestions re breakfasts - weirdly I tried my old fave of bran flakes, but with some nuts, and have had perfect readings with that.

But I am to go onto insulin from Thursday this week. I have been spiking readings above what they want, despite being absolutely religious on the diet and not cheating with even one mouthful, so they have said basically that I need the extra insulin to keep everything level.

I'm resigned to this as my readings have been all over the place, even with such a boringly healthy diet.

I feel fine though, Pip is moving like a proper wriggler. I feel proper bulges and can see my tummy moving, it's really fun.

Sorry to hear about the insulin Ozzie. It should make you feel good to know that you've done everything right. Most likely it'll be much easier now that you'll be on the stuff. I wouldn't mind it so much if I didn't constantly have hypos. Lucky for you, this isn't as much a problem in later pregnancy. Let us know how it goes!

Thanks aly - yes, I haven't had any hypos at all, my issue is with too high readings. Even then, only a couple a week, but they say that even that is too much.

How are you going?

so happy for curly and babycasper!!!

Congratulations, CurlyCasper! I hope everything went ok with the birth, I'm looking forward to reading the story! Have you picked a name yet?

I think I'll be going back behind the sofa for the rest of the day though. Since we found out pretty much at the same time about our LOs, and your due date was virtually the same as mine! Eek!

Of course, I still have a suspicion that I'm waiting until August myself... I've always tended to take my sweet time over things and can't really expect Gadget to be much different!

Funny, supposedly virtually all first timers are late, but so far half the group have gone quite early.

Picked up the birthing pool yesterday, it's currently in pieces in my conservatory. But DH has promised we can get it set up tonight. Of course, naturally the weather has cooled down, now that I have the option of going and sitting in a cool vat of water. Ah well! It's meant to warm up again before the weekend, so I might get chance to use it then.

Anyway, I think Strepsils are on the banned list, Chance. However, I think that's because they have a slight alcohol content, rather than any medication? So you might be ok with that. I don't really like Strepsils myself, I find all they do is make my tongue go numb!

I found hot Ribena with a spoonful of honey in it was good for a sore throat, if that's any help at all? Alternatively, hot lemonade is good. Stings a little on the way down, but then feels good afterwards.

Hee, assuming Gadget does turn out to be a girl then I just know she's going to be the apple of my DH's eye, Aly. He's always said he wants a daughter, she'll be spoilt rotten by him! Although I know he'd love a son too.

At least with the insulin you might be able to ease up on the diet slightly, Ozzie? Have the occasional treat, or such? Or will you still have to follow an absolutely strict diet as well?

Anyway, I hope everything is going ok with everyone. I think I'm going to have quite a lazy day here today, as I didn't sleep particularly well. Getting a bit large and uncomfortable now! But I have no major plans for today, so a nap sounds like a good idea.

Congratulations Curly - glad to see our arrivals list filling up nicely.

Good to hear of your scans Aly and Homebound - it's such a reassurance isn't it?

Am v jealous of your birthing pool Spirael, I'm just having to make do with a washing bowl filled with cold water

Hope the diabetes management goes okay Ozzie and Aly, sounds like a bit of a juggling act.

I'm afraid it's back on the iron tablets for me as am a bit anaemic now - anyone got any tips for fending off the inevitable constipation ?

Ahh the lovely iron tablets and resultant turning to tar of the digestive system. I've been on the delightful things for the past month or so now.

Best thing I can advise is lots and lots of fruit! It's the right season for it as well at the moment, which helps. I've been eating loads of fruit and not had too many problems. George and I live quite harmoniously together at present!

I think initially the tablets caused my digestive system a bit of upset, but everything calmed down after a week or two once my body got used to them. Not too badly affected at present, though of course bathroom trips are as monochromatic as expected.

Incidentally, if you're taking any heartburn meds, it's best to avoid taking them within the few hours surrounding taking the iron tablets. I've also discovered that no matter what time of day I take the Gaviscon, it still tends to cause problems rather the opposite of constipation... Lovely!

Spirael, I don't know how it works with the diet - I would love to be able to relax a bit. Not so much with treats like cake, which bizarrely I have coped fine without, but more for things like being able to come in from work and just bung on some pasta instead of thinking "now, how many serves of carb can I have if I want an apple after dinner, 3 potatoes or 4?"

I do feel like I can't complain as it really isn't bad in comparison to what some go through (including aly who has had to do this strictly from day 1)

Exciting that you've got the birthing pool all ready to go. Also pleased George isn't causing you too many problems....

November re constipation, I swear by linseeds, prunes, dried apricots and mainly, plenty of water.

Hi everyone,

A proper catch-up now as promised!

OneOf8 - hope you've calmed down from your rage now... To be honest, I just try not to listen too much to the media spin. Best way, I find!

Bunny - I'm glad that post made you feel better. To be honest, yours made me feel better too... For the past couple of months, since I found out, I've been thinking I must be a terrible mother, to have felt that way even briefly, so it's nice to know it seems pretty normal! Like you, it really was only for the briefest of times, but I did totally shock myself.

Next time round, funnily enough, I'm not really hoping for a girl. I think that'd be nice for me, but for this baby, I think it'd be quite nice to have a little sibling of the same gender, hopefully with similar interests, closest in age. But we'll see! If we're lucky enough to be doing this all over again (hopefully with a bit less drama!) whatever we get will be wonderful.

Oooh, lucky you, away on holiday - anywhere nice?

You too, Homebound - I was wondering. Congratulations on reaching twelve weeks though - are you going to start announcing it now, or have you already done that?

Gosh, how scary about your bleed. Good to know what caused it though. Did the scan show that it was all healed up?

Spireal - sorry you're having trouble sleeping. I've been the same for a while. When I sleep, my sore pelvis gets really stiff and then I go to move and it hurts so much that I wake up and can't get back to sleep for ages. It's sooo frustrating. Then there's heat, leg cramps, heatburn and a huge belly causing problems now too! As you say, very glamorous! I was looking into different pillows you can get though, and the Dream Genii one looks particularly good, but I don't know if it is or not - have you looked into anything like that at all? I'm quite reluctant to just order one based on a picture on the internet, but if it were to bring relief, I wouldn't care what it cost!

Brilliant news about Gadget being head down now - should have trusted her - she had that little manual in there with her after all! It must be so terrifying and exciting that you're so close! Who are you having at the birth?

Chance - I'm sorry to hear you've been having a miserable time - misrable enough to miss Bon Jovi. Still, that's good news about MIL starting her chemo. Here's hoping all goes well for her.

OneOf8 - glad the scan went well - and you're a whole week closer to meeting your baby than you thought! Looking forward to seeing the pictures. Let us know when they're up.

Aly - sorry to hear you've not been coping so well. On the plus-side, they reckon bad sickness is a sign of all being well with baby. But you knew that anyway! Imagine him/her trying to move for you! Lovely!

Funny, I'd never thought of the boy/girl thing from that perspective before... In the beginning, I worried that DH would have more in common with a boy than I would, but what you say about him spoiling a girl more makes a lot of sense... I'd hate to be the mean one...

Homebound - sounded like you needed that sleep! Great news about the scan too - two days closer to meeting your LO than you thought!

Ozzie - sorry to hear about the insulin. Fingers crossed though, that, like you say, it'll allow you to ease up a bit on the strict diet.

Spireal - like you, I was thinking the same about the trend for going early! It'll probably even out soon enough though, like the gender thing did.

I think you're having a day similar to mine today - I'm on the sofa, got a movie ready to stick on, fan going full-blast... House a tip but I don't care!

My first day back at work yesterday was alright. Though I did have to walk for about 40mins (albeit very very slowly - probably normally a 15min walk). Anyway, I ended up really really sore. I'm off today (only meant to be in Mon, Wed, Thurs, Fri, Sat this week - I'm not off sick again!) Tomorrow I'm meeting with my manager (who was off yesterday) to discuss how things are going, update risk assessment, etc. I'm thinking I'm going to have to insist that I do less though. Even if I have to end up in the office or something. But the likes of yesterday was bad. Some days I'd have coped fine; yesterday I woke up sore and made a bad day worse. Now I'm suffering, and by the end of the week, I'll be in agony. I hate giving in, when I know some (probably most) pregnant women would cope fine, but as DH says, everyone's different, and it's just not worth putting myself through this.

Okay, whinge over.

Fudge - I really hope you're doing okay, and you manage to log in soon to update us on how yesterday went. xx

Ugh, I really should proof-read! I initially had a short paragraph in, saying something like; "Glad you've popped in to tell us you're okay, Chance". It went before the; "You too, Homebound paragraph, but I deleted it, because I went on to read and comment on more of Chance's news later on... Anyway, Homebound, what I meant was that I'm glad you're okay, and had wondered about you not posting...

There are probably loads more mistakes but I think that's the only really confusing one!

Congratulations Curlycasper!

I'm baaaaack!

Computer is playing up madly, so I may have to do a few catch up posts rather than one epic one!

Curly - OMG, thats so exciting! I can't wait to hear all the news about your Curlygirlie - how much did she weigh? Did you have any idea you were about to go into labour? Is she completely scrumptious?

Roses - god, your post about your scare sent shivers down my spine. I'm so glad you and your little boy are ok. I really thought I would be able to relax after the 12 week scan, but pg just never feels safe, does it?

I did laugh at you talking about what you would like for baby number 2 though - after the pg you have gone through those are very brave words!!

Sorry work is so crap and exhausting. Not long to go now! Count those days!

Chance - it just doesn't seem right to have a cold in this heat! I hope you are feeling a bit better, London in the summer is hard enough at our stage of pg without added illness.

Spirael - I can't believe you are 37 weeks! Yours was one of the first BFP's I remember vividly. How exciting! I hope you will do our first live birth thread when Gadget decides to make an appearance!

Sorry you are having trouble sleeping. I am suffering with one good night, one bad night and I am ten weeks behind you so I can only imagine how bad its going to get!

I thought the same about all the early births on this thread - DH has to go away on a week long course when I am 35 weeks gone. He will be 8.5 hours away and I have been assuring him that it will all be fine as most first timers go over their due date I won't be showing him this thread!

Fudge - I am really hoping that no news is good news, and that you and Splodge are doing ok. [hug]

Sorry about this ridiculous way of posting, my computer keeps turning itself off!

Seablue - glad to hear the spotting has got fainter. Not too long until your scan now.

Chalky - I can't believe you are still bleeding! Knicker checking is supposed to be for the TTC-ers! But hopefully as the bean has stayed put for this long there is nothing to worry about.

Homebound - yay for being past "sea monkey stage"!! Your scare sounded very frightening, I'm glad you are ok.

Bunny congratulations on your boy! I found it interesting to hear how many people were a little bit disappointed when finding out. Thats one of the things I hope will be good about having a surprise - I know DH and my mum are secretly hankering after a girl, and I guess I am too a bit, but I also think the baby is probably going to be a boy, so hopefully the fact that they won't find out until there is a squidgy little person in their arms will make it all irrelevant. On the other hand, at least finding out at the 20 week scan gives you another 20 weeks to get used to the idea Maybe I have done the wrong thing! Well, too late now

Aly - "exhausted and yucky feeling" sounds just about perfect for that stage of pregnancy, although I'm sure it doesn't feel like it now! I'm so happy for you that Arpad is thriving away

Novembers placenta - mooooooooooooove!

Well, I will be joining the black poo club too! Had my midwife appointment today and I am iron deficient so will be getting a prescription tomorrow. Joy! DH immediately rushed out and bought every iron rich food that we could find listed, so hopefully I will be back to normal before too long. its amazing - when the midwife read out the list of symptoms I fitted every one. Extreme tiredness, paleness, dizziness, weakness. I'm so cross that I have been feeling like this for weeks and I could have been doing something about it

Gestational Diabetes test in two and a half weeks time, and I'm not feeling confident about passing that one either. This is worse than sitting my finals!

Got my red book through the post this week which was a bit of a surprise - I thought you got it when the baby was nearly here. Has anyone else got theirs?

The midwife also said that I am measuring two weeks ahead of my dates, according to the height of my fundus. So either I have a very big baby or I am full of amniotic fluid. Eeek! She will check on me again in a couple of weeks and if it has increased by any more then I will have to have a growth scan at 32 weeks. Oh god, I am remembering Tryings mahooosive baby and sobbing into my keyboard!

Right, thats enough of me blathering on. Big hellos to anyone I have missed.

Morning all! Looks like another warm day today. Oh well... If it were grey, cold and wet I'd probably complain about that too at the moment-! At least it's not meant to be as warm as it has been, and tomorrow they're predicting some heavy rain which will clear the air a bit.

I have a Dream Genii pillow, WhiteRoses. It is very comfortable, the side bits support my bump and the long sausage bit fits comfortably between my knees. I think it's probably because of it that I've made it to full term (ish - tomorrow!) without losing too much in the way of sleep. I managed to pick one up at TKMaxx pretty cheap, if you have one near you.

I think I'm just reaching the point now though where there's nothing that can really help. I didn't sleep great last night either, bah, so it's back to napping this morning, I think!

My problem at the moment seems to be my hips primarily. I have no option but to lay on my side now, but when I do the weight of the baby leaves my hips cripplingly sore. Once I stand and move about it clears and I can lie down again for a bit, but having to do that every hour or so is getting to be a bit tiring. Still, I guess it's good practice for regular feeding of a newborn!

Hee, I'm planning on submerging myself in the birthing pool with a snorkel and not surfacing until Gadget is born when things kick off, pixiestix! However I'll get DH to boot up the laptop in the lounge and one of his jobs when he needs a time out can be to post updates! Assuming of course that everything goes to plan and I do get my home birth.

Well, not much else to report here really. Got the birthing pool all set up yesterday, but unless I go early it looks like I won't get a chance to use it until Saturday evening. DH is out for various reasons pretty much the whole time until then - only popping home to eat and sleep! I doubt I can prepare and fill the pool myself, bending over the rim is a touch difficult with Gadget in the way.

I think Saturday evening might need to be a celebration though for Gadget making it to full term. I'll get in some tasty food, then DH and I can spend a relaxing hour or so in the birthing pool, sipping on Champagne Appletiser and nibbling at some tasty chocolates!

Then the following week is our 5th wedding anniversary... So we'll just have to celebrate all over again-!

hi all

got discharged yesterday so back at home now with real food to eat.

Had the scan on Monday, splodge has grown a tiny bit but is only 50% of the weight s\he should be. The docs are still saying chance of survival is about 1%. Because of the size the normal 24 weeks viability will not apply and they would be judging viability by size but they dont thing splodge will be able to hang on for long enought to be big enought to have a chance. They have said that if splodge does get big enough they would have me back in hospital so they could try and help but she thinks that that stage is about 4 weeks away at the current growth level.

So just got to wait and see what happens now... got another scan next monday but there is always the risk that i wont make it until then.