The Berry-Copter!!!

[Bunnygirlie]

The Berry thread - berries (over 30s) pregnant with first baby after trying 12+ months.

Support, advice and hand holding from the grads.

Don't forget to CLENCH!

I'm probably not the right person to ask RP. We have bought literally nothing for the baby. I wonder if this is becoming a problem!!

Win we're the opposite - I can barely reign husbo in, and we're only 18 weeks!!!

Don't think it's a problem win :) I just think people deal with it in such different ways, it's fascinating!

My mum said she bought literally nothing other than few clothes before I was born. Not even a cot! Apparently I slept in a box She can't understand me buying things. I just keep thinking, with my luck it'd be a rough birth or section and I'd have to trudge around bloody Mothercare with a screaming newborn and clueless DH

I would have your hospital bag at least started by 30 weeks. You can lie a list of stuff that's still to be packed on top and if you did get taken in at least there's a list to guide your DH or whatever.
The ultimate list is on the facebook group, however my must haves were snacks, disposable knickers for afterwards, far more thick mat pads than you think you will need (you'll use two or three at a time the first few days), big black granny pants to go over the disposables, and a dressing gown.

Not even thought about hospital bag(s) yet, rp! Still getting my head around the fact that I'm actually pregnant and that it all looks likes it's actually happening! Thanks for the reminder and thanks for the tips, merk!

Went and picked up a few bits and bibs from a friend. They given us their baby Bjorn (new in the box - they were given two), that Matt that sits under the baby with a monitor that senses when/if the baby stops breathing - not sure about that as it all seems a little confusing, a baby monitor and a travel cot. They had loads more but I got overwhelmed at the thought of bringing stuff home that baby feather can't use till she's 6 months.

How is everyone else? Nice weekends? I'm bloody exhausted! Starting on the Spatone today - midwife recommended it even though iron levels are fine - she said it's great for energy levels and that it's good to have too much iron as you lose blood in childbirth. Also, if your iron levels dip low, then they don't let you have the baby in the birthing centre. Straight off to the labour ward! thought to pass on that tidbit in case you fancy giving it a go.

Just added maternity pads to our internet supermarket shop. That counts as a baby purchase right??

Ah I cracked and bought massive knickers from M nS the other day. Their cheap cotton 3 for 2 ones in fetching festive prints. Soooo comfy. 4 sizes bigger than normal but feel lovely

Also finding my abdominal scars from previous kidney surgery quite sore now. Think the bump has expanded a lot in the last week!

Haha win, yep - I reckon that counts for sure!

rp big m&s knockers sound perfect. My stomach scars hurt a bit too. Sometime I can actually FEEL my stomach stretching. Also, baby feather is practising some very energetic Kung-fu moves in there - can actually see my stomach moving around now!

I meant Knickers! NOT knockers!

Ooh rp they're faaar from sexy but primark have 100% cotton full briefs knickers, £3 for a patterned 4 pack or £2.50 for a plain black pack. Wit woo.
Hope the scar isn't causing too much trauma love :(

Does anyone else's belly button feel tender? Win? RP?

Yeah my Marks knickers are lush and giant

The scars are fine just sore now and then. I use really thick body butter to massage in to help them stretch. It's just a shame, as they are v v neat keyhole scars and I suspect all the surgeon's lovely work will be ruined. Ah well.

Feather no. I think there was a thread about it some time ago though, try searching the Pg board. I have quite a pronounced inny and it's got a bit shallower but that's all so far. There's still time though! I think the consensus from that other thread was moisturising it regularly as that skin is stretching too. Try that for a couple of days and see if it works.

Anyhow I had yet another stupid paranoid moment on Tues night I hadn't felt dino move for about 16 hours so went to maternity triage to get checked. They were LOVELY and I would totally recommend going if you have any doubts. Embarrassingly by the time they clapped the trace on, he was moving so much they had to do an ultrasound to see where the heartbeat was! He looked much more like a real baby now, with little fat fists. And it was very good to see the mat triage unit as that is where you go when you first come in with suspected labour (to tell if you are established I mean) but because my hospital doesn't do tours I would not have got to see it otherwise.

It was a pretty grim place (rushed, screaming women, horrible decor) BUT I'm glad I did as it lets me know what to expect.

My belly button feels ok feather. A lot shallower, but not sore. It does sometimes feel like the baby kicks it from inside, which feels weird!

Had my diabetes clinic apt today. They were lovely, very reassuring. I have a thing to
Monitor my blood sugar, they're going to see if I can manage it with diet. They've said they won't let me go to 40weeks though, so probably an induction or c section before that, depending on how my blood sugars/ size of baby. Trying to keep my eye on the prize rather than getting lost in thoughts about being a crap mum already, or still birth risks.

It's all getting a bit real now!!

RP, sorry you had a scare, glad it all worked out. Absolutely the right thing to do if you hadn't felt anything for 26 hours. Nice to see dino again!!

Good news over on the berries ttc thread....

Hi y'all! How are you all doing? x

Win youarenotacrapmum youarenotacrapmum youarenotacrapmum

Berries, I am having a minor wobble. I spoke to a colleague today who gave birth at my local hospital a few months back in the spring. Her description sounded horrific to me: they didn't have enough beds in triage OR delivery so she was left, in established labour, in a corridor for hours in her nightgown, bouncing on a birthing ball and trying not to swear, whilst all kinds of randoms walked past and peered at her. She ended up having a complicated delivery winding up in theatre because (she reckons) she was so stressed it stopped labour. She said she could feel it slowing down.

My local hospital does not in general have the best rep. I have always entertained the idea of a home birth but gave up on it because of a) generalised fears about not transferring in time if something went badly wrong like PPH or compressed cord and b) my dodgy kidneys maybe causing a problem.

But now I am thinking, would I be better off at home? It just sounds awful. DH says not to judge on the basis of one experience and I know he's right, but ARGH - wwyd?

Jesus! I go away for a day and it's all happening! So pleased for our bushy - really hope this is the one for her.

rp It might be worth posting a thread about your hospital to see if there's any other feedback from mumsnetters? One opinion is not enough to base a judgement on. Also, are you not deemed as 'high risk' cos of your kidney stuff? If so, I'm hoping you'd be getting special treatment, no?

win sound promising about the GD being kept in check with diet initially. Keeping your eye on the prize is the best manoeuvre - who knows what's in store for any of us, really!

Nowt to report this end. Looking forward to a chilled weekend after much madness and entertaining over the last two or three. Phew!

RP that does sound like an extreme case.
Is there an option of a midwifery led birth centre nearby? Personally, I wouldn't want a HB but I think a few graduate berries have entertained the idea, not sure if any managed to have one but Boom is pregnant again and hoping for a VBAC at home. She's a midwife, you should join the facebook berries thread and ask her about it!
I've just signed up for a hypnobirthing course to help with my birth fears www.mindfulmamma.co.uk/, maybe this is something worth thinking about?

Hi Lady - nah no MLU near. The closest one is about 20-25 miles on windy roads. The local hosp has an overloaded cons led unit.

Feather they have now discharged me back to MW care. So I am "allowed". I don't think special treatment applies as the high risk bit is me having a nasty kidney experience not the baby having issues.

I think I'm just going to do hypnobirthing and keep things xed.

Also Boom is pg again?? Wowee she doesn't let the grass grow

I know, I think she's 20 weeks, singleton this time!

There's a which website about places to give birth...can't remember the web address but it gives ratings of all hospitals and midwife led units. May be helpful

I wanted a home birth. My husband was really not keen on the idea in case anything went wrong. I went to a midwife led unit at my local hospital instead; full blown birth centre where the strongest pain relief was gas and air and they transferred you if you wanted/needed anything else. I had an easy and quick labour (think I'm one of the only ones so far with a natural labour who didn't end up transferring to hospital so I count myself v lucky)but I still would prefer to be in a midwife led unit than a home
Birth for next time now that I've done it. Something about knowing you're in the best place if you need help

Oh and most stories you hear about labour are really bad so I would take a little bit with a pinch of salt. Go on a tour and talk to the midwives, look at the hospital stats etc before you make a decision

Rp the other option you could look at is hiring a doula to be with you throughout labour at the hospital. That could be a good middle ground

Merk they don't do tours and I have looked at the stats - found the Which? site a while back - only 25% of women have fully natural births there and their rate of instrumental deliveries is somewhere between 10-15% higher than the national avg :(