September 2010 - the end is in sight (even if our feet are not!)

[comixminx]

Time for a new thread to take us into the final leg of the journey!

Here's the latest version of the list that I could find - do update with your info as necessary! PickleSarnie, I've added you. Sassie, I can't spot you in the list unless you've maybe namechanged?

Jaysfourth #4 EDD 24/08/10 Nottingham, GIRL
Inzidoodle #2 EDD 26/08/10 Scotland, BOY
MerryMagpie #1 EDD 28/08/10
comixminx #1 EDD 28/08/10 Oxford SURPRISE
Foxyjbro99 #3 EDD 29/08/10 Shropshire
lilypad72 #1 EDD 30/8/10
mcfee #2 EDD 31/08/10
cinnnamongreyhound #2 EDD 31/08/10 Suffolk BOY
BooStar #1 EDD 01/09/10 New Forest
sazziej #1 EDD 01/09/10 West Lancs, GIRL
SkaterGrrrrl #1 EDD 01/09/10 London SURPRISE
Stickhasgrownup #3 EDD 02/09/10 SE London SURPRISE
NovemberAli #1 EDD 02/09/10 Nottingham
lillyfc #4 EDD 02/09/10 East Sussex
Babyshoes #2 EDD 02/09/10
ChocolateCalculator #2 02/09/10
swordfishtrombones #3 EDD 02/09/10 SE London
bananastew #2 EDD 02/09/10
flippertygibbet # EDD 03/09/10
IlariaS #1 EDD 03/09/10
jbakedbean #2 EDD 04/09/10
patito #2 EDD 04/09/10
Cakeandfinewine #2 EDD 05/09/10 Staffordshire GIRL
Mellousol #1 EDD 05/09/10
Monstermuncher #2 EDD 05/09/10 Glasgow
ciacia #2 EDD 05/09/10
Eleanora #1 EDD 06/09/10
Debs75 #4 EDD 06/09/2010
monkeymiss #2 07/09/10
EmmaLM #1 EDD 07/09/10
Heather1980 #3 EDD 07/09/10 Manchester
Eggonlegs #2 EDD 08/09/10
Catbus #4 EDD 09/09/10
TTTrouble #2 EDD 10/09/10
Surreygirl #2 EDD 10/09/10
LB1981 #1 EDD 14/09/10 NE London, Girl
Susiey #3 EDD 12/09/10 N.London
weirdbird #3 EDD 12/09/10 BOY
upsoearly #2 EDD 13/09/10
AMMG #1 EDD 14/09/10
Cityangel #2 EDD 15/09/10 London
Love2Dance #2 EDD 15/09/10 London, SURPRISE
Bonners #1 EDD 15/09/10 Scotland
MadameG #1 EDD 16/09/10 London
CathN #1 EDD 16/09/10 London
MudandRoses #2 16/09/10 Brighton Boy
ArcticFox #1 EDD 16/09/10
HellysBelles #1 EDD 16/9/10 SW London
Bloominnorah #2 EDD 17/09/10 Scotland
WhiteRoses #1 EDD 17/09/10
cazza41 #1 EDD 17/09/10
Mellymooks #2 EDD 17/09/10 BOY
Willthecatbejealous #1 EDD 17/09/10 Leeds
Lifeas3plus1 #2 EDD 17/09/10
princerhysmum #1 EDD 17/09/10
aswellasyou #1 EDD 18/09/10 Birmingham GIRL
LadyRabbit #1 EDD 18/09/10 
LucyLG #1 EDD 18/09/10 Staffs
VoilaAnotherGimlet #1 EDD 19/9/10 London
Scooby16 #1 EDD 19/09/10
lenga01 #2 EDD 20/09/10
Whammie76 #2 EDD 20/09/10 Scotland
PickleSarnie #1 EDD 20/09/10
Irishgal1 #1 EDD tbc
MammyG #3 EDD 21/09/10 Ireland
Nandos #2 and #3 EDD 22/9/10 London
caprica6 #1 EDD 22/9/10 Hampshire
DreamingAboutSleep #2 EDD 22/09/10 Herts
Muswellmummy #1 EDD 22/09/10
coppertop #4 EDD 23/9/10
ooosabeauta #2 EDD 23/9/10 GIRL
JodeyLea #1 EDD 24/9/10 Birmingham
Saoirse86 #1 EDD 24/09/10 Birmingham GIRL
Bessie123 #2 EDD 25/09/10 London BOY
StrictlyTory #2 EDD 25/09/10 SUPRISE
Sunface #3 EDD 25/09/10
Kittyonthebeam #2 EDD 25/09/10 Dubai BOY
Bellabelly #3 & #4 EDD 26/09/10 Kent 2 GIRLS
Ohfuck EDD 26/09/10
RunningGuerita #1 EDD 26/09/10
Dixiebell #1 EDD 26/09/10 BOY
Zowina #1 EDD 27/09/10
Watersprite #2 EDD 27/09/10
legallyblond #1 EDD 29/09/10
velvetjess #1 EDD 29/09/10 London, SURPRISE
MummyFifi #1 EDD 30/09/10 GIRL

comix I stop work the same day as you.

Really looking forward to aftenoon naps!

Thanks for the tip Picklesarnie!

sassy I slept DS on his front, as he would never sleep longer than 15-20 mins at a time on his back. The first time my mum I put him on his front, he slept for over 1.5 hours - I didn't know what to do with myself!

He also hated being swaddled, and even now, he thrashes a lot in his sleep... it'll be interesting to see how this one works out

We've loosely planned to use the carry-cot part of our travel system as a moses basket, and hoping to bf too. If co-sleeping works better, then we'll try that, but my bed is a regular 4'6". Then, once baby sleeps through most of the night, we'll move them to the cot

Ladies if you lived locally to me (as in 5 mins down the road) I would happily clean your houses! LOL!
In all honesty, I shouldn't complain about being bored, like you said, I should enjoy this extra time I have. I just know I'll be able to enjoy it more when the nursery is painted and furniture assembled.

Just looking into those slings/hug a bubs. They look really cosy and secure for baba. Think I may invest.

Getting a glider chair next week. My sister had one when she had her first DS and found it really relaxing when BF. And DH likes the idea of being able to use it when baba is older for telling stories. Anyone else had one or used one in the past? Are they worth the money?

I'm starting to feel uncomfortable now when baba moves around. It can be quite forceful! Is this normal? Also, he/she is measuring above the top line on my fundal height chart so I may have to have a growth scan if this persists at next appointment! Fingers crossed everything will be ok.

Um, please can I stress that actually there are lots of books out there about the benefits of co-sleeping and that if you read the guidelines the times when suffocation is a risk is if you are drunk/drug user/extremely tired it is only in the western world that this negative attitude towards co-sleeping even exists the rest of the world co-sleeps quite happily and the risks of cot death are significantly reduced.

All our MW's where I live recommend co-sleeping and without them I would not have had the confidence to do it and yet it was a wonderful experience that I'm so glad I did. You are incredibly tuned into your baby even when you are asleep and I used to wake if she moved an inch.

Right getting off my horse now...........

Glad there's a consensus on the hiccups - it's nice to know it's normal

Dixie I've been voraciously reading babycare books since I got pregnant (my mother was a terrible role model as was my stepmum so felt i needed to do some research) and I agree with others sentiments on here that the most important thing seems to be to get attuned to your baby, and trust your instincts as to what is right as ultimately you will become the expert on them.

For your hubby, one that I thought was a good manual style book for some basic instruction on things such as winding, nappy changing, bathing, babyproofing the house etc was Jo Frost's 'Confident Baby Care'
The book I most identified with on a parenting style front was 'The baby book' by Sears and Sears which takes a bit more of a psychological perspective about responding to a baby's needs and looks at co-sleeping, baby-wearing, demand feeding etc. but was quite comprehensive on the practical stuff too.

However, I don't think any book should be seen as a bible, I think I've agreed with some things in most every book I've looked at and definitely disagreed with at least one or two things (except Gina Ford - i thought her whole ethos was horrific!) but i do think it's useful to consider different ideas and to use them to crystallise what your own thoughts are on parenting.

I'm sure it will all got out the window when the boy comes along but it makes me feel better in the meantime!

Sorry mellymooks i stand corrected. I will change it to say, in every book i have read they say don't do it. There is even a radio advert on my local station that says don't do it! I did it with DD but don't think i will do it with two. I'll probably be bloody lucky if they sleep at the same time....groan.

The thing with Gina Ford is, they are not her babies. She is a nanny. She doesn't quite have the emotional and loving attachment to the babies as a mum does (or the hormones in the first few weeks/months)
I remember frantically trying to get my boob out from under my clothes and out of my bra, while DD screamed blue murder! It must have only been for a minute........no way i could have left my DD crying for an hour!!!!!!! My boobs would have been leaking all over the place and i would have been in flood of tears as well.

Mine's been getting hiccups all the time too! We had a lovely Thai dinner the other night, and then bump started wriggling and hiccupping, and I lost the whole thing... Sorry tmi. Getting horrible nausea at the moment and can't work out what I want to eat, but then it gets worse if I leave myself hungry for too long.

Another vote for Sears here. I'm keen on listening to what your baby wants rather than trying to 'train' them out of their instincts IYSWIM, but I suppose I had the luxury of making my life totally baby-led, where some people with more pressure to go back to work etc. felt a stronger need to make things manageable and transferable to a nursery setting. My ds was a non-put-down-able baby for the first 5 1/2 months, so the hug-a-bub sling was great, and I felt he really benefitted from feeling secure and 'attached'. He co-slept until 11 1/2 months, and then, when he started walking, he suddenly was able to sleep in his cot in his room without upset. I think the early investment paid off, as a 'demanding' baby has become a very secure and easy-going toddler, and I always loved being close to him. Each to their own. My MIL (retired HV)is a big Gina Ford fan which puts me right off! But then she also said to me 'You know the babies in Chinese orphanages don't cry, because they know they won't be rewarded for it' Needless to say I don't take my MIL's advice very seriously...

i need to pack my bag.......! i keep saying, i will do it tomorrow , i will do it tomorrow, tomorrow never comes!

We have just finished decorating three rooms, had to move my two boys into the biggest room (in bunk beds now) so had to move eldest daughter into eldest sons old room, so we could have the smallest room, formally youngest sons, as the new nursery.... jeez did that make sense!? So we had to re do all three rooms to accomodate the occupiers! managed to turn it round in a week though, some good going on my DH part

I am finding i cant eat much either, its so annoying as i am really hungry a lot of the time , 5 am is a prime hunger time! still little and often

i had a glider chair for DD1 but i never 'glided' (is that right?) whilst BF, i am one of the women who cant just hold LO in one arm whilst feeding, i have to hold baby in one and boob in the other... so i tended to be sat still whilst feeding, i did glide when winding and cuddling though, and it was relaxing, we had the stool to go with it to.... thinking about it, i could do with it NOW so as to get some sleep!!

wow! nobody crusified me!
yeahy!
i totally agree that you should do whatever feels right for you and your baby,but i was never told the way i did it was okay,until after id figured it out!
for me the whole hug a bub co sleeping business came about because dd had refux (arggghhhh!!)so was un-put-down-able for 6 months,she was walking at 7 months though and has been very independant since then!
she sleeps in her own big girl bed now,
and joined us in bed at about 3am this morning...god shes wriggly now!!she slept horizontaly!i was being kicked from every avalible angle!

anyhoo,the kitten i was looking at got snapped up yesterday but i found another v cute little girl and brought her home today!shes so sweet and cuddly,but i do feel slightly mental to have bought a kitten right now!eeeekk!

Crikey - this thread moves fast!

Thanks for the welcome SkaterGrrrl - where abouts in London are you?

Skyeplusbump congrats on your placenta moving Not sure about the kitten, but then I'm a dog person...

Boostar my baby gets hiccups at least daily. Wouldn't wake me though - although my aches and pains from not moving in my sleep at all usually wake me without help from the wriggler! I can't turn at all without waking and sort of heaving my bump over from one side to the other. Elegant...

Work-wise, I'm planning to work until 38 weeks then use 2 weeks holiday and take mat leave starting on my EDD (assuming the baby doesn't arrive first!) If travelling to the office gets too much I'll work from home instead... can't face the thought of sitting around doing nothing for too long!

We've got a little bedside cot which has 3 sides and attaches to the side of our bed. Baby is right next to you so you don't have to get out of bed to feed, but we all still get our own space. No idea whether it will work for us, but we'll give it a go

31 + 3

skye I spent so long getting round to posting my post, that by the time I'd finished you'd got your kitten anyway ;) In which case, who cares if it's mad? Enjoy her snuggly loveliness and just make sure she still gets lots of hugs when you have a baby to snuggle too!! (I'm sure DD will help )

alikatt thanks! we had a bedside cot...they are pretty great,but for us it was just the fact that she couldnt fall out of bed if she was on that side of me...and make sure it fits snugly up to the side of your bed,ours had a great bloody gap bettween it(even though the height measured up fine)that we had to stuff with pillows and an old single duvet to stop dd falling in between bed and cot! grrrr!

on a diffrent note....
arrrgggghhhhh!
not thrush again!!
its not fair!!!

sorry tmi!

AliKatt we're doing exactly the same - except ours sounds a bit more homemade than yours - it's basically a cot that DH is taking the front off and attaching to the side of the bed (he's very handy at these sort of Macgyver projects! )
We're hoping that this will be a good compromise to co-sleeping, sort of in our bed but also in his own space and then as he gets older we'll move the cot away & put the front back on so it's freestanding in our room and then eventually into his room... Ah the optimism!!

Congrats on the kitten skye - very jealous! Photo?

i'll get a photo as soon as she comes out from under the piano!!

Cant get over how fast this thread is moving!
I had pre natal yoga this evening - wonderfully relaxing and even started a few moves that are super comfortable. Really suffering with my bladder now. Feel constant pressure and need to go all the time! Also am now more or less awake from 4am onwards.
Am stressing a bit about the future. Esp with all the talk about routines etc. DS1 was textbook baby - did everything when he was supposed to and slept well. I did make an effort to get him into routine as I had to get back to work when he was only 4 months old. I had a full year off with ds2 so everything was more relaxed. He was a very difficult sleeper. This time round I have to go back to work when the baby is 22 weeks. Just hope I can manage to have some semblance of a routine by then as am dreading juggling my job with 3 children. The boys arent in school yet either so will have the two at home with me for the most part bar the odd playschool session. DH will only have about 10 days off too. Im finding it hard going with the boys at the moment - I am just so tired all the time. Think Im just feeling overwhelmed - must get rescue remedy! Oh and pack the bloody bag!!!

Went back to clinic today as have been panicking over my ever increasing sugar levels. Only to be told that as long as the majority stay under 7 then I am fine on the metformin so no need for insulin.
Have to go back every week now and after next growth scan in 2 weeks he wants to discuss methods of labour. He's not bothered about when as he has decided I will go in at 38 weeks regardless...No I won't.

I am willing to go in the week before if I have to, and I mean have to, not to sit around for 3 days like I did with dc3 as there was no room in delivery.

I need some encouraging words of wisdom so I don't cave in and go in early. I tend to listen too much and just go with the flow and this time I want to stand up for myself a bit.

I co-sleep with dc3 and have done since she was a few days old. I have the best of both worlds as she will sleep in her cot at least half of the time. I enjoyed having her in with me and we got more sleep as she tended to feed during the night loads.
Personally I think it is very safe to do as long as you take the sensible precautions

debs have you read ina may gaskin? for encouraging words of wisdom,shes got to be the best around!

Will look at that Skye thanks. Your previous post reminded me of the downfall of co-sleeping. Where do you put your arms? I like to sleep with my arms in front of my face but had to adapt to shoving them under the pillow or behind my back, DD hates being cuddled up in bed. For a while I woke every morning with dead arms, a full nights sleep made up for it tho.

I didnt co-sleep with either boys. DH is a terrible snorer so they were both in their own room fairly early on if they wanted any sleep at all. DS1 will only sleep in with us if he is ill now and even at that as soon as he is ok he is off. DS2 is a lot more cuddly but to the point where he climbs all over me if he is in bed with us. Tho he still gets upset if DH snores so usually I have to squash in with him. I think it would be a lovely experience when they are small but I dont know how I would feel if they were reluctant to move into their own bed later on.
I had a moses basket with both boys but it didnt last daylight as they were so big. Think it will be basket for a week or so and straight to cotbed rather than hauling cot out of the attic. I would love to buy a new one but will have to make do.

DS was in a swinging crib to begin with, but he moved about so much and disturbed my sleep so much, I started to hallucinate daft things... I could have sworn he fell through the bars of the cot...!

The next night he was in his own room! lol He was only 3 or 4 weeks old, but it did mean I slept something resembling properly.

Ohhhhhh....... sorry to change the subject, but my pram has just been delivered. Very exciting. It's enormous and only just came through the door folded down in a box. Me and dd have just tried to get it out and can't! Phoned mum to come round in her lunch hour and help us! ha.

Tako Pram

Oh wow, that is gorgeous!

My pram is in storage at my MIL's. I can't wait to bring it home for keeps, but I'm mildly concerned how I'm going to store it!

I bought it 2nd hand, and have added to it, but haven't really put any thought where bits will go! lol

Sassy that is a gorgeous pram. My doubles are at my friends and Mums house as we don't have too much room atm. The side by side for me won't be very practical as I won't be able to get it through the front door or down the drive past the car. That will probably go on Ebay so at least I will have some money coming in.

As we won't be moving before baby is born it will be in with us and DC3. Not sure how this will work out but we have nowhere else apart from in the living room

parkj83 & debs75 It is gorgeous! So pleased. Was fretting alot about it, cos couldn't see it before i bought it. But it is such good quality. I wanted one that unclips off the wheels, so i could carry both babies in at the same time, as i have yet to find a twin pram that fits through a standard door. (Don't like the idea of carrying one baby in the house and leaving the other outside.) This one doesn't but it includes two very sturdy carrycots that fit inside the pram. So you can just pull them out and take them both inside together and then go back for the pram. It also has a reversible handle so you can have them facing you and away from you.
Only downside I have found is, it was slightly complicated but we have managed to figure it out.