Late May 2012 Bambinos- 2nd trimester thread- less pumping, more bumping

[CrackersandCheese]

Here we are ladies- a lovely new home for us all- filled with good vibes.

Link to 1st trimester thread 1st trimester

Morning all...getting slightly fed up with the 'what am I going to wear today' dilemma I seem to be facing each morning!! And finding it even harder to work out what I'm going to wear to a wedding I've got tomorrow but, as you say bloomin the LO is worth the hassle and I just need to keep remembering that, especially as there's so many women who'd give anything to be 20+ weeks pregnant but can't for so many reasons so i don't want to moan too much!

We have booked into an NCT course, but a short one so cost £168 I think. I rang my hospital to book into their class as well but was told I can't have a place since I am doing NCT (apparently they're barely coping with demand so finding every excuse to say no to people for the NHS one!). I refuse to watch OBEM but would like to be reasonably clued up from reading/the classes so I can make informed decisions on the day if I need to (and am in a fit state to!!) or at least have been able to discuss with DH what i think my preferences will be in advance IYSWIM.

Only half day at work today which is nice so I'd best get back to doing something (not the most productive morning so far...oops!)

Hello ladies- room for a not so little one?? I'm due on May 11th, and am desperate to compare notes...... I have a ds of 7, but that feels like a lifetime ago, and everything feels different this time. We've found out we're having a little girl, so uber excited, but have restrained myself from buying anything pink and sparkly thus far!! I had bit of a fright this week as my midwife decided I was measuing -5cm, but after an emergency growth sca lil un is 1lb 10 oz, and everything seems to be growing and in proportion-huge relief.
Myself and dp are also trying to decide about NCT classes- more for the socialisation aspect than anything else, as we've recently moved into a new area , and I have less then no desire to become a sad and lonely figure, leaking breastmilk and banging my head against the walls while he's at work!
(realising that I'm not giving the best first impression of myself!)

Hey ladies, and welcome dizzy. I was going to do NCT, but the course in my area was £350 so decided to go for a private course for £230 instead! I can't wait to start, even though it doesnt start until March.... I have booked another scan for 29 weeks, I can't believe I will be married by then! So excited. We provided notice yesterday morning. Bump is getting bigger, but I still dont even feel pregnant apart from getting a bit more tired after a week at work. Oh and feeling a bit heavier. The mailroom man at work yesterday said congratulations to me though so it must be starting to get fairly obvious!!
Angel how are things with your brother?
dozey so glad you got to see your DP, even tho they messed up your visit!
:)

Hello Ladies. Sorry not to have posted for a while but have tried to catch up on all your news! Welcome to the newcomers & big hugs to all those who need it.
I had a stressful Nov/Dec as we packed up the flat & put the contents into storage (or sent stuff to charity or the tip!). We then took a long holiday to see family & friends in California, Melbourne & Sydney which was lovely (actually it was totally awesome!!) and arrived in Joburg this week. (RTW ticket was cheaper than a return to Melbourne for our friends wedding so we thought right lets do it - once in a lifetime & all that!). DH has a project out here & has been travelling back to London every other weekend for nearly a year so I thought I would avoid the British winter to come join him. I am here until end March so will be exactly 33 weeks when we fly back to London.
It is a bit weird to have gone from alleged high flying career (just an excuse for your employer to expect you to work all hours god sends) to not having any work to do all day. It has hit me this week as DH has been back at work. Don't get me wrong though it is amazing to do this now & avoid all the stress that goes with the job which I am sure will be good for me & LO, especially as I have been warned I may be at higher risk of PE due to a low PAPP-A score at my Combined Test & family history. Fingers crossed I am allowed to fly back!! (we are prepared to fly back earlier if necessary but need to find a dr out here to "look after" me so I can be monitored)

Btw - has anyone tried to find travel insurance? What a nightmare it can be!! Please check your policy wording carefully as many insurers do not cover pregnancy at all. I don't know how they are allowed to do it but it was a very stressfull search fir me before we left. Nearly had a stand up row with DH about it due to some of the quotes we had (quite amusing in hindsight as we were on Skype at the time!!). Eventually went with these people:
Citybond Suretravel
109 Elmers End Road, Beckenham, Kent BR3 4SY
www.citybond.co.uk
Tel: 0845 618 0345
A division of Citybond Holdings Plc

The quote was fair & they do not exclude pregnancy so long as you are following dr advice. If we need to use them I will update you on how good they are.

Right time for TMI..... Haemorrhoids... Yes. Is anyone else suffering? I don't know what to do but I think the combination of long flights, different food, pregnancy & the resulting constipation ha now led to this sorry state of affairs. Any tips for dealing with it would be gratefully received! Plus any funny stories to relieve the stress!!

Hope everyone is feeling better in this trimester. I feel good although still in denial :). We had a great 21 week scan in Australia though & all seems to be going fine. We are expecting a surprise so grannies are instructed to knit white cream or mocha. I will have another scan at 24 weeks & at 28 weeks to check growth & PE risk so we will get the chance to see LO again. LO is not doing much which I am secretly disappointed about. You all seem to have v active LOs.... But perhaps I am too overweight to feel it? I get the odd sensation mainly in the evenings though so maybe I just need to tune in more!

Am looking to do NCT when I get back but difficult to know where to book as we don't know where we will be renting!! Love to hear your NCT stories - is it a good investment of time & money? I have heard mixed stories from my mates.....

Bloomin I'm going with NCT classes too. I was drawn to them because it said they focus more on natural labour, which is what I want. I wouldn't have bothered with classes at all really because I figure I can pick up what I need from a book, but DH is severely dyslexic and he learns better when people show him how to do things.

I'm quite gutted that there will be no more scans to see the baby now. Considered a private one, but it seems like a lot of money x

Hi all,

sorry I haven't posted in ages. We're just back from a week at centreparcs - the weather was awful but DD had a great time swimming every day, playing on her new bike and charging around the softplay. It was a lovely relaxing week for us all . We went lasy Jan too as it is so cheap but it's strange to think that if we go next year there will 4 of us . LO has been very active recently, lots of wriggling and kicking especially in the evening and when I go to bed.

We did NCT classes last time. The actual classes were rubbish - don't be put off as we had a particularly bad class leader and most classes are much better, just be prepared to question any info you don't think is quite right. Our leader was very pro natural birth etc which is great but also said that mothers who use pain relief in labour, don't breastfeed or don't co-sleep won't bond properly with their babies and implied we were terrible mothers to consider giving expressed milk from a bottle so the dads could do the odd feed . We all get nervous enough about being good mums without idiots laying on the guilt trip before we even give birth . On the plus side we made a great group of friends - all the mums got together loads during maternity leave and we still get together regularly with the kids or just for a night out. We had a big joint second birthday party for the LOs in October and it was amazing to see them all running around together chattering away. It seems no time at all since we were all texting each other with birth announcements.

Just bought a Quinny Buzz travel system - buggy, carrycot/pram and car seat :)

Wommer I'm going to get a Quinny Buzz, we're skipping the carrycot as I've got a sling and intend to carry her around in that at first. We're getting the pram,carseat and footmuff with the isofix base.

Not buying it until third trimester though, my Mum and Dad are paying for half and they want to wait until then x

Hey hippie we have a shop in our town which sells reconditioned 2nd hand buggies etc. Saw it there today and snapped it up! It looks brand new but was, I think, about 1/3 price that it is new, so chuffed to bits!

Gah! I've caught the lurgy off DP & DSS1. Luckily I've avoided the 2 days of the shakes DP had but I'm now in my second day of sandpaper throat & blocked nose, and I'm operating on about 9 hours sleep in total over the last 2 nights. Saw my mum this afternoon and she suggested getting manuka honey from H&B as it's on offer and it's supposed to have anti-bacterial properties, but was sick (ongoing morning sickness exacerbated by cold) on the walk back into town and forgot all about it. Have to wait until Monday now... Fortunately, I've got Monday & Tuesday off work so I'm not overly bothered about not being up to much today as I can catch up on chores around the house then. I just wish I didn't feel quite so much like a wet rag in the mean time.

Met a couple of friends last night whose DD is now about a 18 months old (don't tend to see them that often). Was given loads of advice about the local "Boob Club", the antenatal classes offered at the local hospital and the birthing facilities available. My next check up with the midwife is in nearly 2 weeks so I suppose I'll be able to check the up to date details with her then. Seems mad that I'll need to start planning a birth plan soon, but with the mad busy time in work being March & April, I think I'd better start getting something sketched out before then.

So tired right now...

I'm 23 weeks due 26/5/12.
two questions, one when are people starting to buy things for their baby, I've had a complicated pregnancy and was going to leave it till after I was 28 weeks gone. What is everybody else doing?
I have some navy size 14 maternity trousers, slim fit from H and M, that do not fit me anymore, they are on the small size, pre pregnancy I was a normal size 12. These were the first maternity I trousers I brought at seven weeks.

Hi mrsallcock I have started buying a few bits, just a few clothes and things in the sales. My family have bought us quite a bit though (crib,bouncer,changing mat,clothes etc...) I'm buying the pram at about 26/27 weeks when I'll be going into my third trimester, I'm also going to buy the cot then.

I've been slightly the same. I got told I wouldn't conceive naturally after a year of no periods due to PCOS, but somehow I managed to. Kept thinking something would go wrong, had some spotting and early scans. Now not only am I having a miracle little baby, but she's also the girl that I had hoped for. I have decided that instead of worrying my pregnancy away, I'm going to think that she is such a blessing that she wont get taken away from me. :)

Buy things when you feel comfortable to. I bet you'll find that once you start you wont be able to stop. :)

Evening all! So so tired today but was up dancing at a wedding disco til late last night so I guess that is to be expected have renamed LO the 'dancing bean' after last night as it was so active with all the music even when I was sat still!!

We have ordered our M&P Zoom pram system which we'll pick up at 30+ weeks, cotbed and changing table still in their boxes in the spare room/soon to be nursery and loft getting rather full of my other purchases...but...there's v little that I haven't managed to find on offer somewhere in the sales which is why we've bought it all now. Still not bought any clothes though...bizarrely that seems to make it all a lot more real and personal than all the nursery stuff IYSWIM?!

enfy hope you feel better soon!

hippie and mrsallcock we had an MC last year so had early scans and stressful early weeks getting through the 1st trimester and now I've realised that our due date falls almost exactly a year since we found out about the MC, which I have mixed emotions about, but mainly just so grateful that beany seems to be happy and healthy in there!

Hoping to book my next MW app this week, which will be for mid Feb when I'll be 25 weeks - seems ages since our last scan at 19wks and strange to think we only get to hear the heartbeat and feel kicks from now on, with no more scans, but also don't really want to pay for a private one.

Right...think bed is starting to call, and lie in tomorrow as I have the morning off!!

Morning!
mrsallcock I have nothing for the LO yet and am unlikely to make a start on The List until I get back to the UK in early April when I shall be 33 weeks. I did not want to buy anything before I left as for some unfathomable reason I felt really superstitious & did not want t do anything wh might jinx the happy outcome statistically we shall have. DH thinks I have gone a bit doolally!! However my mum has a crib and a silver cross pram which she is sorting new mattresses for; my SiL has loads of baby clothes and muslin cloths, as do friends; DH has done research into buggies & car seats & has instructions to order in good time so I think we will be OK. I expect we will muddle through. There is always Ikea, boots, Argos, baby's r us & mothercare plus begging from mates to fill in any gaps!!
We won't have anywhere to live when we get back so actually I will have plenty to do without worrying whether i have The Stuff on The List and I am sure the DGPs will all muck in, even if they will stress me out!!!
I have started to think about nappies though...... Disposable or cloth nappies? What are other people doing & why? Love to hear thoughts on this.
Right, am off to book onto an NCT course. Fingers crossed we end up living in the London borough I sign up to!!!!

sircharles all sounds very brave!! Not sure my 'need to plan' could cope but such a great opportunity to see some of the world before LO arrives so I am also a little bit of your trip! To respond to your nappy question:

We have decided to go with disposable nappies for several reasons...firstly we live in a flat and have nowhere outdoors to dry things and I'm a little concerned as it is about getting all the clothes, bedding etc dry without adding nappy bits to that as well! Secondly I don't really want the flat stinking of napisan (or similar sterilising fluid) as there's no window in our bathroom which is where the soaking would have to take place! Thirdly I think that by the time you add in the cost of all the washing, drying, sterilising etc I'm not sure how much cheaper they'd work out. And finally, when my friend's DD was trying to learn to crawl and then walk she had to put her in disposables during the day anyway as the reuseables were too bulky for her to get moving. I'm sure someone could come along with a v convincing argument for reusables but for us, dispoables are just the more practical option.

Heartburn has been yucky for the last couple of days so have been glugging the gaviscon again! Nearly had to come out of a meeting earlier as I was in so much 'pain/discomfort' with it...all good fun!

Going to try out the ridiculously expensive NCT Relax, Stretch and Breathe Class tonight so am interested to see how that goes and whether it is even nearly worth the £10.50/per class fee!

How's everyone else today?

Hi All,

Not caught up on previous posts yet, but wanted to update you; my brother died on Friday. Painful, upsetting and emotional times, but it's a release for him. The funeral is Friday week. I have taken a couple of days compassionate leave because I just couldn't face going into work, but back in tomorrow. For now we're just all concentrating on loving and supporting each other.

Thank you all so much for your kind thoughts. I may be a bit sporadic in posting for a while but shall keep a close eye on how everyone is.

Much love xxx

Oh angel I'm so sorry to hear your news. Take as much time as you need to from work, it must be a v tough time for you all. Thinking of you, take care

Thinking of you Angel

I'm so sorry for your loss angel x

So sorry to see this Angel, my thoughts are with you and your family.

Do be sure to take as long as you need off work -- after expecting this day for so long, there must be a lot of feelings to work your way through.

x

angel so sorry to hear of your loss. I hope you are Ok! Sending happy vibes into the atmosphere for you!!

My thoughts are with you and your family angel. X

Angel so sorry for your loss, can't imagine how much you're goin through, take care of yourself, thinking of you x

How are you doing today angel ? I hope you are doing well, and looking after yourself and the baby :)

Currently watching OBEM, think it's my new vice. DH loves watching it!

Quick question about kicks. When are we supposed to start counting them? I'm 22+5 and have quite an active baby despite an anterior placenta. She does have her quiet days though, and I'm not sure what I'm supposed to be counting and when?

How is everyone this evening? x

angelyaz, hope you & your family are coping ok, best wishes & big hugs for tomorrow.

hippieshake I had my 25 week appointment with gp & she didn't mention counting kicks, she's also pg (further along judging by her size) so don't think you need to worry. My LO has some really active days and other lazy ones, no real pattern as yet apart from if she's moving at all during the night it doesn't disturb me :)

mrsallcock we've been given piles of clothes & car seat/carry cot by my brother plus I bought a few pink things (he has 2 boys). I didn't want to get anything before 20 week scan in case there were issues, but with things progressing normally have now started in earnest. Got cot on eBay for $22 and ordered pram from Mothercare on baby plan so just paid deposit (plus they price matched at $200, normally $265 in store :o) & it will be delivered on my 1st day of mat leave. I went for maclaren techno xlr as we already have car seat & travel systems can take up sooo much space. As hippieshake said it's all about what you feel comfortable with, there's no rush yet!

On mat clothes front I was also size 12 pre pg, & have found next & blooming marvelous (from Mothercare) size 12 fit well. I also have a couple of h&m dresses, but the medium is a bit on tight side on arms. Bit worried about how big I'll be in 3 1/2 months though!