October 2004 - Moose massive, part 3

[beansprout]

Does anyone want to come and play here? There's loads of space!

Bean, you almost can certainly pack your hospital back in labour if it comes to it. I did, last time round. Despite all the curious gizmos on offer, all you really need are Big Pants in case of a Caesarian (which I in fact could not find) and nappies and a babygro for the baby. All of which can no doubt be purchased in a convenient shop if need be before or after the baby emerges.

Toots, trust you have a wily coyote accountant who can get you all the pathetically small benefits a self-employed mama is entitled to?

Last night I experienced bad pain in my uterus, felt like period pains for a solid hour, back ached like never before?

is my uterus stretching again or could it be a problem, am 29 weeks now.

is anyone else feeling this pain again? Can't imagine labour pain.......

Where is Florence, Piglit and Miffy???

Hope everyone is surviving in this heat?? I am melting..

Turtle - I had similar last week, but in the end, put it down to a growth spurt (she says casually, after sitting there thinking "arghhh, what if this is it?!"

Hope everyone is ok.

Allyco - how are you? Been thinking of you loads, best wishes to you xx

Turtle - it probably is just the ligaments stretching. If you´re still worried it´s probably best to get it checked out just so that you can put your mind at rest.
Know what you mean about melting in this heat. I don´t know how those of you who are commuting are coping, but you have my deepest sympathies.
I spent the weekend with my SIL who is lovely, but she is a size 8 and spent most of the time moaning about how fat she how she needs to lose weight. Can´t say I was full of sympathy - just sat there feeling like a beached whale.
Hope eveyone is feeling fine, or as fine as is possible under the circumstances.

Turtle, you might want to get that checked out. I had some really bizarre, severe chest pains in the last month of pg last time. They didn't know what they were, but if it's any help, they were much worse than my induced contractions!

Toots your chest pains were worse than your induced contractions?????? OMG!!! they must of been awful.

The pain has subsided now - I am sure it was a big growth spurt - thanks Bean.

I am still suffering big time with back ache and now my hips are killing me at night and I roll over endlessly to try and get comfortable. The bloody painters are still here and therefore we are sleeping in spare room bed which is not as good as our own bed bla bla

Is it me or am I a walking painful disaster?? I always seem to have some sort of pain or ache and I am really fed up I am off swimming in hopes that will help my back?

Huppa, don't let your size 8 sil get you down, you are pregnant and beautiful and carrying a baby and therefore you feel BIG!!

Hi All,

Off work feeling poorly, so thought I'd check in on you guys. I too feel like I've got a different ailment every day and get those period type pains that last all day but then disappear. This weather is killing me and I'm sick of comments from people about anything baby-ish. Going to mothercare this afternoon where pg women are a "normal" sight andhopefully noone will say a thing to me.

• also grumpy.

Bibi and Turtle - sorry to hear you are both so uncomfortable with one thing and another. This is not an easy stage I think, and another 2 months of increasing size etc fills me with no comfort.... that's too long!

B - I know what you mean about respite in Mothercare, I get the same from yoga classes. I could just sit and look at the other meece and I would feel better just not to be "the pregnant one" for an hour. With civilians, it's getting to the hot and bothered point where I just brace myself for the NEXT comment on my belly - grrr! I need a t-shirt - "yes, I'm huge, too f**king hot and knackered. Ok?!"

Here here Bean. I too at times feel like I am gonna snap at the next idot who has some sort of comment on my belly. t-shirt not a bad idea

I just joined a gym today and went for a swim and found it very theraputic although I did get some funny looks in a swim suit This gym does aqua baby classes and when the little one is old enough I can take her to the pool and try and get fit too!!

Bibi sorry you feel like crap, I know exactly what you mean and can't seem to escape it. Try and do something really nice for yourself like a massage or even light some candles and take a long bubble bath.

This pregnancy is feeling like a life time now.

Aw Turtle - suddenly felt all squidgy at the prospect of you taking db to the pool!! Glad that helped. We need a list of things that will provide respite in the coming weeks. I'm very big on the cooling, but not too guilty effects of strawberries/raspberries etc and sorbet at the moment. Also, feet in bowl cool water is nice, if not very sexy.... I think it's the rolled up trousers that really clinch it though!

Bean IKWYM about taking baby swimming!! it's so cute when you see them in their swim suits - I know I am having a girl and the lickle pink frilly ones are to die for! - Can't wait.

Do NOT feel guily about cooling effects of sorbet or icecream - they are all that really helps and it keeps me going DH bought me a whole watermellon yesterday, I cut it up and have been grazing on cold watermellon all day - it's lurvly

can't seem to find bucket for feet but am on the search now, my feet have been so hot and itchy - quite frankly don't care who sees me!! hmmm reminds me to book in for pedicure - they are looking a bit grim at the mo.

Turtle, lovely idea about doing something for myself, but the bath thing is guaranteed to have me in tears - we have a crappy little one with curved sides, and I used to get wedged in the thing before the bump, so I haven't dared have one since! I had a nice time in Mothercare though, no one said a word to me, which is good as I would have set MIL on them - she was guarding me and my fragile state from the comments of strangers.
Why is it that even the most innocent, well meant comments have be bubbling with anger and internally screaming "WHY CAN'T THAY SHUT UP ABOUT MY SIZE?!?!" I have used the innocent tack a few times now and it embarasses people enough to shut them up without making me feel like too much of a cow ... like when they say "Gosh, you can't have long to go..." or "Only the one in there?" and I reply with "Why do you say that? I've got over two months to go yet..." or "Why do you think twins?" with haad cocked inquisitively to one side - they get a bit flustered then as they don't really want to spell out the fact that they think I'm a walking whale.

Okay, rant over, sorry gals you hear this all the time. I feel mega guilty for being off work and then going shopping as I don't feel half as poorly as I did this morning, but there ya go.
Had a nice tea cooked for me at MILs house, so not entirely a bad day, oh and she insisted on footing the bill at mothercare (which was rather large) so not a bad end to the day.

Not really much to add but to say you all have my sympathies. Althought the size comments really get to me as well I do actually think that people just don't realise how hurtful they are!

Weather actually bearable in the north-west and yesterday and today absolutely tipping down. DS1 finishes nursery this week as he has 3 weeks off before he goes to school. I am sure i will be in tears again.

I really wish I could make the meet-up in September but maybe there will be a post-baby one as well .

Hope you all have a better day today.

Bibi really sorry you're feeling like this, you have my deepest sympathies. Your MIL sounds like a good Friend to Meece, though.

I'm going to start being vague, as there's nothing worse than a million and one people knowing your due date. Next time someone says 'not long now then' I shall reply 'no, not long' and drift off smiling to myself, or drift off into another topic.

I'm all aerated about it again though. Met lovely friend the other day who said 'you look really big' I said, 'please don't say that x it doesn't make me feel good, and it makes me scared I won't be able to push the baby out'. She said she'd meant it as a positive thing, you know, big, round, healthy, and got upset that she'd upset me, and I spent the next fifteen minutes saying 'it's not you, it's me'. Exhausting! Why can't people keep their big mouth's SHUT?????? I know it's political, and I know it's bad to collude with dodgy body image value judgments, but I'm sorry, 'big', in this context is not life-affirming (about the mother - of course it is about the baby - ha ha!). I too know we've been here before, and goodness knows, we'll go here again, but it does bother me. The only good thing bibi is that at some point we will be able to say 'yes, I'm due next week/tomorrow/four days ago' and they will feel justified, and we will know it's soon over.

Have been feeling like death on waking and wanting to go back to bed by about 9.30. But today feel quite chipper. Could be the spatone iron sachets I started taking yesterday...

Definitely feel 'late' pregnancy arriving. Swollen hands and feet, stiffness, backache, (as opposed to back pain and problems) none of which I've suffered from up to last week. Am going to find some gentle stretching type stuff to do - the stiffness got really bad last time.

Sorry, wasn't expecting that rant to come out.
Glad you haven't been suffering too much from the weather eyelash.

It's wonderful to be sitting her at my desk and feeling some naturally produced cool air round my ankles for first time in well over a week. Hooray for rain and non-tropical heat. I'm sure it will help with everyone's everything.

I want to wish everyone a lovely fulfilling day.

We are one moose with many head (and bellies). I feel the same about the comments. I now live in a world where personal comments pass as polite conversation. It's the drip, drip effect - no single comment tends to be that awful but combined, it all gets too much. The people I love the most now are those who still treat me as me rather than "the pregnant one". I'm practically in love my boss on this basis as he is squeamish about women's stuff, so we hardly ever mention it. He asks me to use my brain instead!

Am bracing myself for late pregnancy. Getting up from the sofa has never been so much fun!!

Oh dea, we're all feeling a bit crappy aren't we? Want some good news..? The toaster broke yesterday so I had some galaxy and a cup of tea for my breakfast ... and didn't feel guilty!!!! I am so off salad and veg that I'm stuffing tonnes of fruit to compensate and it was lovely to eat something as bad as chocolate for breakfast instead of cereal and fruit. Mmmmmmm

Anyone else sleeping more and more all the time? I'm beginning to think I'm turning into Sleeping (not so) Beauty. Sunday I had an extra 2 hours in bed in the afetrnoon then slept a good 9 hours (give or take 3-4 toilet breaks) at night. Same yesterday... I had 3 hours during the day and then slept for a whopping 12 last night - am I broken? Do I need mending? Everytime I ask the midwife she just says you obviously need it and get all the rest now, while you can - like you can 'bank' sleep - wouldn't that be nice?!

Got midwife this pm and am hoping she's forgotten about 30 wk bloods as she hasn't mentioned them so far ... will all the meese out there keep their bloated fingers crossed for me?

PS. Bean, love your idea that we are all one moose with many heads and bellies - lol!

After my insomniac ways of earlier months, I have been sleeping a lot better lately, despite the horrible humidity, so am with you on this on Bibi, although haven't managed 12 hours yet!

The worst thing about not sleeping was definitely the "ooh, just you wait, this is nature's way of preparing you" comments. Yeah right - nature's way of preparing me for no sleep is ... no sleep. I don't think so! She's just a bit cleverer than that! As I am working until pretty late, I am firmly of the view that the first few weeks of leave i.e. until Bean's arrival, is REST time for me!

Sleep - what's that???? I feel like I haven't slept for about 4 days. Probably cause it's true, my back is giving me so much trouble and my hips ache that as soon as I wake up in the morning I am in so much agony I have to get out of bed. I feel like I fall in and out of sleep all night but never get a solid sleep any more.

Bibi you are so lucky, sleep as much as you possibly can, the baby is growing rapidly and taking your energy!! Nice.

Number of trips to toilet last night ...5!! I stopped drinking water at 7.00 pm. I am sure this baby in me is huge! I am getting kicks in the ribs and really low down consecutively and wicked heartburn.

Being back at work after being at home for the last 5 days is awful. Still must keep saying to myself only 3 1/2 weeks left of work!! ahhhh

Turtle - that just sounds rubbish my friend. Any one of those things would be difficult, but all combined... plus the heat... not for the first time, I wish I had a magic wand. Am happy to pop over and growl at anyone who doesn't give you a seat or is horrible to you in any way at all.

Awww thanks for the vote of confidence Bean. My DH said to me yesterday "I guess this will be our only child then"!!!!

To all those second time and third time Mums out there - how do you do it. I couldn't imagine going through this again??? am I totally selfish or having a real crap pregnancy?

A summer bump is so different from a winter bump - far more swelling and discomfort involved this time around for me, than with DS who was born in Feb... and I wasn't as big so early on.

Had my appointment with the Obs Consultant this morning to talk about 'October' stuff (still not sure any of us are ready to post about you know what!). All a bit scary but nothing I didn't know from before! Everything is fine, apart from db's position... early days yet but so much depends on it... eek!

One of the wonderful things about being at home is not having to put up with inane comments from colleagues. God, I don't miss those at all! Mind you, DS is keeping me so busy; oh and the plumber is driving me nuts. So it's not all rosy!

Keep well everymeece.

hi everyone - back from holiday and slowly easing back into real life. Just to let you know I've posted on the meet-up thread, to confirm date and venue for our meet-up - my place (Wimbledon), Sept 13th lunchtime. Please contact me if you are coming, and I will email address.

BTW I hate being pregnant - hot, fat and sweaty, can't sleep and can't just sit on sofa with fan because of DS! Plus my bump got even bigger on holiday and my wardrobe correspondingly smaller. Car trip down to Cornwall and back was agony - both DS and I squirming after about an hour! Courage mes amies - only 2.5mths to go...

Hi all,
with regard to the comments, I firmly believe it is because people feel they can't NOT comment on a pregnant woman, you know, almost as if you will be insulted or hurt if they don't acknowledge your bump. It's like not mentioning someone who has started to wear glasses or had a dramatic hair cut.

I have seen people upset because they are told they are neat (is my baby too small), others because they are big (am I really just fat?)

Anyway, tey not to get upset by comments, very few people do it to hurt. Just think, many of them may be purely envious of your moose-like state and be longing for a bump of their own?

I personally love being pregnant, despite the piles, the morning sickness, the SPD and the occasional bout of heartburn. This is most likely my last time round (#3) so I am trying to see past the discomfort, lack of sleep etc and revel in being a baby-producer, because I really do feel special!

OK, so I am feeling a bit positive today, maybe cos I have only 2.5 weeks left in work