The Berry-Copter!!! (Early 2015 edition)

[FeatherFeather11]

Here we go! Here's to a big Berrie clusterdiff from the other thread and many a safe and healthy baby Berrie arrival in 2015!

Chloe - Congratulations - I know the birth wasn't what you planned but is sounds like you are now both doing fabulously! BFing from the get go! wooo hooo!

Hey Otter - I get what you mean about money. We've spent such a lot getting pregnant we'll have to be having EVERYTHING 2nd hand or bought for us! We might JUST be able to manage a year off but well have to see (I see beans on toast in our future) In fact (this sounds massively entitled) my mum is releasing some money from a trust fund to help us out (new car - mines teensy) its a bit depressing that at 40 I haven't got the wherewithal to do this myself. I see others just buying stuff without thinking and it does make you a bit but then I think I've a roof over my head and my lovely hubby and two babies on the way... and Its all okay again!

Fluffynut! I'm going to go to that! I can't wait - I'm going to take my mum so we can get all excited! Anyone else going?

Hey otters You're not moaning at all. Remember that babies don't need all this stuff that adults love buying for them. They just need food, sleep, a clean nappy and lots of love. They don't care about having a swanky buggy and every gadget under the sun. I saw a lady in hospital taking her baby home swaddled in an old towel, and he was just as content as any other in there!

feather Yes breastfeeding is just soooo hard. I got a bit down in the hospital seeing other mums manage what I couldn't. We seem to be making some slow progress every day though and we have a great midwife who has been a real help. It's just hard to stick at it when she's hungry and frustrated. I totally understand now how so many women start with BF and then switch to formula.

Thanks you lot, I was having a bit of a 'moment' this morning!

We didn't think we'd actually ever manage to get and stay pregnant so we frittered away any spare cash we had in little 'treats' these past few years. Oh we did have fun. Nowt to show for it though (except debt) And you're right jellie, we managed to scrape our way onto the property ladder a year and a half ago and I'm very thankful for that. And for my lovely DH who may drive me up the wall at times (hormones again?!) but he's a good one. I wish he'd surprised me with a secret trust fund once I'd married him though! (he assures me that the feeling is mutual!)

The baby show sounds fun fluffy! It's a bit far from me to go sadly but report back.

My next moan is that I have a fancy wedding to attend on Saturday and not a thing to wear! I'm 20 weeks now and although I do have a wee bit of a bump all my gained weight has gone EVERYWHERE else. What the chuff is up with the weight gain on my arms and thighs? I'm DOOMED to not look svelte and toned (I was never this way to be honest) with a neat bump it would seem. It's terrible for the self-esteem!

Otter , do you know anyone you can borrow a frock from? I wouldn't worry I've never even been in the ball park of svelte. I Dont think my bump will show until very late I'm such a heifer. I'm sure you look great. Look on eBay I've had a few good bargains occasionally!

Fluffy and Jellie enjoy the baby show! I went 5 years ago when my sister was expecting her first, it seems like a great place to try out loads of different pushchairs and they had lots of package deals on travel systems. It's probably worth doing research on prices beforehand though so that you know if you are actually getting a bargain. I learnt about reusable nappies and wipes there and they had some weird stuff like getting a 3d scan made into a little baby statue?!
Otters I made an amazon baby wish list and bought all the remaining items on it when I started maternity leave and could be in for all the deliveries. I'm taking a year off (sorry!) but I don't think we'll be having any nice holidays this year.

Congrats Chloe!! Well done on getting through it, seems like you made sound decisions, cant have been easy. Keep its updated, good to learn from you grads.
RP Dorothea looked absolutely gorgeous on her outfit!
Dh keeps going on and on about going to the baby show on Brum. It's quite far for us to go and on the first wknd of our week off work...which I'd intended we go abroad for but he'd prefer to go to baby show....? sigh. Might be worth it for a baby statue though..maybe we could paint it and pop it out in the garden.
I have a massive shopping list, budget plan and project plan for nursery (involves decorating our room too!) so feeling mighty organised. Think we'll go for uppababy Vista pram if we win the lottery can afford it.
Jellie I'm a size 16 heffer but still started showing around 15w mark but everyone's different. With twins you may be surprised at how soon you well start showing. Now I just feel massive already and still have 18w of growth to go !
My aim is to take 9 mths ML at least then see how I feel nearer the time. I don't know when to start though...it's an office job so not on my feet a lot, was thinking to work through to 38w. That sound about right?
Lady how you feeling..aches and pains?

Pixie I stopped at 36 weeks but I reckon 38 weeks would be fine if you're not on your feet a lot. It's probably just in the last two weeks that I've started to feel like this bump is massive and this week I've had a lot of sacroiliac back pain which is making walking and sitting very uncomfortable. I did manage to paint my toe nails yesterday though!

otters I'd like to echo Chloe and say that babies really don't need much at all. I have friends who have a minimalist lifestyle and when their baby came they literally got a cot second hand and a plastic baby bath type thing. No pram - they used a large scarf as a carrier. They were the least stressed parents I know and traveling was a breeze. I am not saying you want to go down this route but just that there are very few necessities and sometimes all the stuff can get in the way rather than helping. Also - you can definitely gets loads of stuff second hand.
Hope you're feeling a whole lot better now and able to enjoy the wedding this weekend and your pregnancy

lady Final countdown for you now! Hooray! I think you're amazing for painting your toenails, I can barely do that now.

Regarding maternity leave, I am planning to finish work about a month before I am due, mostly because I have a 1 hour car journey to work which I think might get a bit uncomfortable by the end. I'll probably take about 9 months off too but haven't made up my mind. For us its not so much a question of finances, ironically - thinking we won't have children means that I am now in a much more senior role than I would have been otherwise, so I guess there were some unexpected benefits to long term infertility. As a consequence I am not sure if I feel comfortable leaving work and my team with an interim manager or indeed how easy it will be to go back after so long off. It's hard to hand over a project you've put your heart and soul into over the last year and a half and not know how well it will be managed in your absence and what mess you'll come back to.

In the nursery I visited they said that the younger kids are, the easier they settle in and that a 12 month old finds the process far harder than a 6 month old - so there are definite benefits to going back early.

The body shapes conversation is making me smile - I have spent the last few weeks worried about how massive my bump is and how much I am showing, so it's funny for me to hear concerns about not showing enough -goes to show we are always critical about our own bodies and shapes. I went to pregnancy yoga on Wednesday and seriously my bump was bigger than ladies who were a whole month ahead. It doesn't help that I am so short either - I think the baby has nowhere to go but out (see photo in my yoga gear).
Also my bump has been so sore with all the masses of stretching and growing it's doing that I thought something must be wrong and phoned the midwife.Anyway, I need to try and stop fretting about it and just try to accept my new shape.

Right, I will stop rambling now.
Hope you all have a lovely weekend enjoying your pregnancy, not worrying and feeling well!

pearl I think your bump looks lovely, v def a bump but neat & lovely and the rest of you is very trim. I think I remember having a freak out on here that my bump wasn't big enough & I was comparing it to others at pregnancy yoga. No danger of it not being big enough now!! The yoga teacher commented that myself & the woman next to me had really grown. Going to the group does show you that everyone is different. There 's one girl a few weeks on from me who is a runner and very trim & lean & her bump looks quite small and others who are bigger so we're all different. As long as our midwives are happy that everything is the right size then it's nothing to worry over.

otters hello!! Nice to have you on here & I totally get your moan. My friend's mum has a lovely saying that every baby comes with a loaf of bread under its arm meaning they don't want for much. Despite that I think the whole pram, car seat & base bit costs a lot & I don't really want to get those things second hand or from eBay. We looked again at prams etc today & think we might go for the oyster 2, seems quite compact, easy to steer& mid range price but by the time you add on the carry cot, car seat & base, adaptors etc it all adds up to quite a lot. Dh showed me the pram for £150 on eBay instead of £369 but I just think you've no idea where it's come from or if it goes wrong I think you won't have as much comeback/service if it needs to be returned. We are v lucky that my parents said they'd like to pay for the pram/ travel system so we don't have to buy cheapest. I did think he was being a bit stingy, after all you want the safest, most reputable version. I'm not against second hand baby stuff but know prams get a bit of a battering & second hand car seats are a no, no unless you know the provenance. I'm rambling!!

chloe wow! Congratulations!! Well done on the bf ing too. So it's lady & another berry who I can't remember without looking back at previous page next!!

I'm amazed that pixie's DH wants to go to the baby show. I'd have to drag mine kicking & screaming, an hour looking at prams was enough for him today!! I think I'm on a hen w/e that w/e anyway but I would be a little interested. Do you have to buy tickets or is it free?

I have an image of fluffy & jellie waiting for each other at the baby show holding placards like at an airport!! You should meet!!

Jellie it's amazing you have 2 babies & you so deserve it.

Back to work on Monday- boo!! Easter hols are over & it's been so nice & true to form I still have planning & the food shop tomorrow. Was a bit lazy today, after pram shopping we had a sausage sandwich ( red sauce for those of you who listen to Danny Baker!)& watched the grand national, then didn't do a fat lot.. Had grand ideas of sorting out wardrobe of clothes that don't fit anymore/ school work but nada!! Oh, one of my horses came in- shut the front door- but by the time I paid dh for the bet & bit I lost,I only won £4.25!! Still enough for coffee (decaf!) & poss a cake eh!!

Lol Bushy! I'm brown but Hubby's red! Lol

I hate brown sauce, it tastes like blood! I've shopped around for the best prices for our baby stuff and bought some things on ebay but even so, I think we've spent about £2k, the biggest expenses have been the pushchair, carrycot, 2 car seats and 20 reusable nappies, just got to make sure I use them now!

Lady our local real nappy group reckon that no matter what the packaging says, real nappies often don't fit well till the baby is 10 lbs+ so if your reuseables don't work well right away keep them for then!

You must be due any day now?

RP are you using them as well? I've got some disposables to start with, hopefully I don't give birth to a 10 pounder but that's how much DH weighed! Due today but nothing happening.

Ooh exciting lady.
I had. ' shit I'm having a baby' freak out last night. There just seems to be so much stuff to organise & get & it's hard knowing what you actually need against what is not necessary, e.g if you are planning on breast feeding shld you buy a breast pump etc before the baby or after. We know which pram we want but I am still confused over the car seats & bases. We want to get a maxi cosi either way but want to be able to use the same base with the next size up car seat, otherwise it seems a big waste of money. I'm a bit confused over whether to get a 2 way family fix base which fits the new I size regulations of rear facing longer and the seat that goes with it (pebble + then a 2 way pearl) or family fix base with pebble car seat. I said to dh I think we need to go back to mothercare & check.

Anyway trying to stay sane. Chatted to my mum who was absolutely lovely. Along with the gah don't know what to get panic is the what do I actually do with the baby. I don't know anything about how to look after them & a little part of me is worried I'm going to get it wrong. My mum said to put that out of my head & that it's instinctive. I think I could do with buying a good baby book. A friend has lent me her copy of your pregnancy week by week which has the first 6 mths in it so could start reading that. Someone told me ' what to expect in the first year' is good.

Lol jellie at the brown sauce, my dh is no sauce at all.

Lady planning on it, when Dodo gets to 10 lbs - 11w and she's not quite there yet! How are you feeling? Could be just days or even hours till you hold your very own baby in your arms.l

Bushy Miriam Stoppard's Complete Baby and Child Care is what we have - highly recommended! Also the MW and HV will help you with everything. And really, it's not rocket science - feed them, keep them warm but not stifling, help them sleep when they need it, smile and talk to them lots, and that's about it! Oh, and accept that sometimes they will cry when you have no idea what's wrong, and it will stress you out, but just go ?ith it and cuddle them.

And it's okay to have bad days!

Failed sweep today, cervix too posterior, baby back-to-back so head not getting applied to cervix. Got another one at 40+9 and then it will be an attempted induction at 40+12.

Oooh good luck Lady!

I fit back into my pre pg jeans today

Let's ignore that I'd put on a dress size right before getting pg!

Thinking of you lady, I hope the little one gets a wriggle on soon!

bushy re books. I have Baby Love by Robin Barker which is really thorough and good to dip in and out of and to look things up. I also quite like Jo Frost's book which you can read through quite quickly. Do your reading before the LO arrives as afterwards there is zero time!

Re car seats we got the Pebble and the base that takes the next seat up (can't remember the name). We got a good deal on it by shopping round online. I wonder if this base is a bit of a Maxi Cosi con though, as it means you're tied to buying their brand for the next seat up?

Just a quick check in to say hi and ask how everyone is getting on?

Lady - thinking of you lots. Hoping the baby gets a move on, or the doctor sees sense and takes you in for an elective c - section.

rp look at you in your pre-pregnancy jeans with a newborn, you amazing woman!

All good here - feeling pretty well and keeping active. Lots of wriggling from little one now which is the loveliest feeling and dispels so many of my fears.

Jellie Just thinking that you're 12 week scan must be coming up soon?

Lady - hope the sweep wasn't toooooo uncomfortable. Here's hoping the next one starts you off!

RP - YAY for the pre preg jeans (whatever the size!) HURRAH!

Pearl - It must be lovely to feel it move about! What week did it start? Yes my scan is booked in for the 29th. I'll be exactly week 13 though. I really had to push to get it booked GRRRRR. I changes docs so had to wait to be registered, then had to wait a week to see GP then midwife on holidays for two and a half weeks until 13th (booking appointment next Tuesday) I left a note for the MW to call me which she did but she REALLY dragged her feet about referring me for a scan... lots of "NO not until the booking appointment, well we don't know what appointments the hosp has (yes I do I've spoken to them) I haven't got your information" I said well if you don't I'll get the GP to... "oh alright then" I hope the midwife I see on Tuesday (a different lady) is nicer than this. In fact I was really looking forward to seeing the midwife until this!

So now I have two weeks to wait until the scan.... I think this will be better as I have the MW appointment Tuesday to break up the weeks... I just want to know they're still both there and okay! I've seen a few threads recently where one stops... (I know step away from the computer!)

Right onwards and upwards. I've been ebaying like mad last weekend and on Monday - none of my summer clothes fit. Because of fat not the babies. Mind you me trews feel sung to day! And they HAVE been fitting okay... EEEEEP!

Hello ladies,

jellie what a shame about your grumpy midwife. I hope the next visit is ok. If your trousers are feeling snug then try the hairband elastic round. The button hole and use the loop to fit on your button. That,with a loose top, bought me lots of time before I had to on to maternity wear.

pearl it's great feeling movement, der helps you feel more relaxed& also connected to the baby.

chloe thanks for the book recommendation. I will check them out.

I think the whole base & car seat thing is a bit of a con. Just seems like throwing money after money!

lady sorry the sweep didn't work out. Sure things will work out.

rp second the admiration for getting back into pre maternity jeans. I love my maternity jeans & can't imagine getting back into stiff, ungiveable normal jeans!! Thanks for the reassuring words. I think sometimes it all gets a bit much & you need an'old hand' to reassure you that it's not that complicated! Also thanks for the Miriam Stoppard recommendation. I have plenty to look up!!

Does anyone find that their ribs hurt? I 've also been getting terrible backache through the night & on waking. I have a dream genii pillow & last night put a small pillow behind my back & that worked wonders.

Next Friday I am having the diabetes test which you have to fast from 10pm the night before. The appt is 9am, you then have to stay there and at 11 they test your blood. All the time not eating!!! I am not good hungry at the best of times, so this will be fun!! My mum is coming with me & I'm bringing food. Later on myself and another pregnant friend are having a pedicure so that'll be lovely.

bushy I had that test too - it's torture not being able to eat, but luckily it's over soon enough.

lady thinking of you. Sweeps are horrid but may do the trick. IF you end up being induced and you have any questions, feel free to pm me. Also, pessary over gel as if you get overstimmed, they can pull the pessary out whereas the gel is unremovable. Hopefully you won't need any of it and baby will make an arrival v soon.

Again, sorry to be rubbish but I will write properly soon. Xxx

For the people going to the baby show at the NEC, I had some mail from Emma's Diary which says you can get a reduced ticket price by booking tickets at thebabyshow.co.uk and quoting DM3, it's £11.95 for one ticket or £22 for two.

Such a good idea to have a pedicure! I kept meaning to, and then didn't, and then she was early, and now 12 w on my feet look like something from a sci fi movie! Eurgh.

Lady how do you feel?

Dodo is 12w today - eek! 3 mos next week. We bought her a sunhat and sunglasses last week and she was a little bemused! But sleeping beautifully - went down at 10.50pm last night and didn't stir till 5.30am! Fifteen minute feed then back down till 8.30! I am just waiting for something to ruin it all