40 + mums with baby tums & those who've already 'popped' with muffin tops - come say Hi!

[jeanjeannie]

Yet ANOTHER thread. Like it says - those of you who've waved bye bye to 39 come and say Hi to us instead.

We think that 40 is the new 20, cyber cake is the new weight-watchers and older mums rock

So, if you fit that description come and play with us. We like cake, gossip an occasional luke warm debate and a good moan! Oh and we're also very friendly and supportive!

OK everyone.....take it away x

JJ sorry to hear your sad news. I guess all you can do is be there to support your parents (and aunt) which is difficult when you're not local Still, fortunate that OH is off but sad you're visiting under sad circumstances.

Wonderful that you've got a slim pic. I've not had one of those for nigh on 20 years But, I am determined to have one soon

LOL@tennis player scratching her ar$e. If Ikea had stocked it, DH would have wanted it

hedgepig this is exactly what I was saying about bidding on Ebay. People don't think about what they're bidding and end up paying over the odds for something second hand. Daft. What is it they say about a fool and his money? Anyway, there'll be others that come up for sale.

erminTRUDE hows the barfing tonight? Dunno how you're doing it this far into your pregnancy. Bloody bad luck. Hope you're feeling better soon

I've put up my 'slim' (ish) pic....that's gone a little way to perking me up I had all my new things on today, including my new boots - it's sad but true, a little tarting up does make you feel a bit better. No time for make up though - so that's why there's no close-up

Hot choccy then bed.

JJ super duper piccy! Wow, you're looking good, girl. Blimey, Verity looks like a 4 year old. She's huge She'll have to give up her job sweeping chimneys soon. I can see her getting stuck

I have new hair cut but haven't taken a pic yet and there's no point as I've still got several chins coming out of my face

Enjoy your hot choccy. I'm already in bed as I have no where else to loiter at the mo Ah well........

*jj am v v v v you've clearly been lying to us all this time and not eating cake at all!! you look fab.

jw re the chins - take the photo looking upwards towards the camera - there are 5 invisible chins on my facebook profile pic

I was thinking of ladymac today while watching Saturday Kitchen and James Martin - now totally ruined on account of her theory.

no bed for me as the little man has abandoned his routine on account of having baby- man flu.

JJ you look fabulous! And, JW is right. Verity is much too large for those chimneys now. Perhaps send her out to light street lamps?

mrsb hope little one feels better soon! Nothing worse than manflu!

Gah mrsb poor little D Really hope he's managed to get some shut eye (and you too) last night.

I was wondering how the clocks going forward will affect our little darlings?

Thanks for the tips mrsb on avoiding chin-fest on a piccy. I'm hoping that over the coming weeks that the chins will actually go away but crossing fingers madly that I won't be left with jowels that make me look like the dog from the Churchills advert.

Haha the crazy world of the footballers wedding. Just reading about Rio Ferdinand who is having an owl swoop down with a velvet bag containing the rings at his forthcoming nuptuals. rolls eyes

Oh deary me.

I was wondering if all you pregnant ladies are having a birthing plan and sticking to it rigidly or just going with the flow? No reason in particular. Just wondering

I am probably just going to go with the flow, JW. I really don't see the point of a birthing plan. The ones I've seen seem to say things like 'put baby right on my chest after birth' and 'help me breast feed.'

Well, according to my mid-wife, my hospital does both of those things automatically.

And I don't know what I want for pain killers...I've never given birth before!!!

I also have a very strong feeling that they will do a c-section early, due to my diabetes, even though things are going along normally at the moment. And I honestly don't care how this baby is born, just so long as they get it out of me in one piece!

I keep meaning to say, to my fellow pregnant mums, that I have a code for 25% of at Tommy Tipppee website, its WB02! Go, forth, use it wisely.

tee you're probably right being flexible on your first as you've absolutely nothing to compare it to.

I requested a CS with Katherine but they don't automatically give them with diabetes. I think it depends on how well it's being controlled and the size of the baby (if it's large baby then they'll CS). But, you'll only see the baby being large for dates after 28 weeks as that's when the placenta kicks in taking up a lot more insulin.

If you already know in advance your hospital's practice is to offer breastfeeding, then that's fab. Not all do though.

As for painkillers I think I've had most of them over the 4 babies! I've never had pethidine though for some reason. Gas and air is a firm favourite and I'd very much like to have a whiff of that at home from time to time I had an epidural on my first and vowed never again and stuck to it. I'm not going to put you off but it just wasn't right for me.

Like you say, suck it and see!

Morning all and cheers for the nice comments - although I AM still eating cake - honest!

I know - Verity is so long - size 12 months + clothes

Verity actually slept ALL night - however my back went into spasm (old injury) and I barely slept a wink - it's a conspiracy

mrsB hope last night proved better and that the baby-man-flu is abating.

tee I always think that a relaxed approach is good to giving birth....there are so many variable. Out of our small NCT group of 5 - ALL of us had different birth experiences; a homebirth, c-sec, ventouse, forceps, water birth.....we had the lot and all happy with the outcome

mrsB you are indeed correct - look up at the camera slighty and a long lens helps too! Oh, and don't forget the 3/4 face onto camera shot too!!

Off for a bath as back is bad

Morning all

D isn't too bad now - its just me who feels awful.

tee I think of birth plans as an attempt to control the uncontrollable. Fine if you have strong views about epidurals to set it out clearly in advance or whatever but some people go into a lot of detail and the get hung up on the details and upset when things don't go according to plan.

For anyone living near a Morrison's they are giving away a free Marcus Wareing cookbook with the Sunday Telegraph. OH just got me one - looks good.

mrsb thanks for the tip on the cook book. Unfortunately for me I'd probably never use it unless it tells me how to put fish fingers in the oven or cut open a bag of oven chips I've tried and failed to change the eating habits of my family without success

Great that D is better You're a grown up so I'm sure you'll be fine

Morning all.

I think birth plans are important if you don't quite trust that the staff may not go with what you want - so if I were going into hospital I'd write NO DOCTORS UNLESS ENTIRELY NECESSARY AND DON'T TELL ME HOW LONG MY LABOUR SHOULD BE ACCORDING TO YOUR OFFICIAL POLICY TA V MUCH in big capitals. But if all goes well and I'm at home as I hope to be, MWs tend to assume you're going to do it naturally, will deliver the placenta unaided etc. and are on for helping that happen so I've never written down a 'plan'. And if I couldn't physically tell them how I want to do then things would be v serious indeed and I'd be in the hands of medics anyway.

A friend of mine just wrote 'I would like my mascara to be reapplied every half hour' to give the MWs a laugh

I mean afternoon all. Ironing makes me lose my grip on reality...

Afternoon.

LOL@the mascara quip ermintrude

Oh I love a cookbook mrsB may swing past Morrisons later.

jw poor you - I get the impression you're quite adventurous with your diet - but thwarted by a male-led oven chip household

Smells and bells church went fine - and May 3rd is marked out as D-Day! Trouble is we need some orthodox Christians - Serbs, Greeks, Russians...doesn't matter which one as it transpires you can't have family as Godparents in the Orthodox church. Eeekk - that could be a stumbling block! Perhaps I should put a 'wanted' ad on MN - or Freecycle

Hi all. Not been giving birth just been busy.

The new pushchair arrived on wednesday afternoon and it's fab. It's in lovely condition, you'd never know it was 2nd hand. Elizabeth loves being high up and being able to see so much. We've already been stopped a few times by other mums asking where we got it. For those that didn't see a pic of it before this is it but obviously with a nice lady from New Zealand pushing it. But you get the idea. Mine is bottle green. The actual pushchair bit lies flat for the baby. Only problem will be if the baby is deaf too in which case we'll have to look for something else.

My brother and his boys have just arrrived so will catch up a bit more later. Before I go I just wanted to say jeanjeannie - WOW! You're looking hot to trot

aye jw, I'm v glad that its me whose come off the worst with this virus rather than D but I hate feeling like the whole weekend has been wasted feeling ill.

that does look a great buggy ladymac I bet E loves the vantage point it gives her!

Gah mrsb What a bugger. I guess when you're going out to work (as opposed to me who doesn't) then your weekends become sacred. Still, the plus point being that LO is ok and he's the most important one (sorry about that dear )

ladymac woopeee on new pram! Fab. Looks very practical too. Fingers crossed for next LO being able to hear a pin drop in Carlisle

JJ the most adventurous thing I can get my DH to try is curry and he only started eating that when he met me. DSS is even worse, what with the Aspergers He eats pretty much whatever is that weeks favourite.

I expect to see an ad on the back page of Sun/Times/OK! scouting for godparents What a bind no family. I'm having my oldest DD as godmother. Only proviso of catholic godparents (and you only get one of each when you're a left footer), is that one has to be a catholic and I've filled that criteria. Tick.

erminturde calm down dear, it's only a delivery Know what you mean. Actually I was very adamant about breastfeeding Katherine as I know that hospitals have a habit of taking babies of diabetic mothers away for blood sugar testing immediately after the birth and won't let you feed them AT ALL for at least 45 minutes until the blood sugars on them have been done. They also have a nasty habit of giving them formula after this time with or without the mother's consent. Mostly without. tee you need to get this straight as what your MW (who won't be at the birth probably) has told you that all is tickety boo in that department, in practice it's often not the case. You need to be clear beforehand if that is what you want.

Anyhoo...I'll just slope off and join ermintrude in the corner, rocking.

Yeah, I've heard that JW. So I guess there is one thing I need to put in a birth plan!!!

Ah crap. I called you erminTURDE again!!!!

Sorreeeeee

I'm used to it now. Sob.

cripes, I am so dim I have just twigged what is happening with Ermintrude vs erminTURDE, I have been wondering what on earth was going on.

JJ well done on the size 12, I was one of those when I was 20 and cycling 16 miles a day to get to and from the lab where my sandwich placement was nice boots too.

LOL at Ollie scuba diving, it's one of those neoprene things to keep them warm in the pool, our local pool is freezing, actually I think I should get one for me too.

I think birth plans are as important for you as well as the hospital. It can help you think what is important etc, although you have to be realistic and things do happen that make changes necessary. Its also important for your DH/DP to be able to support you. Talking to the mws when I was having O they really don't like the I will not have X, I will not have Y etc birth plan because sometimes you need interventions to help things along. When I was writing mine for O the consultant mw also suggested I explained why I wanted or didn't want various things to help them to understand my thinking. That said my birth did not even resemble the plan but they did explain we know you wanted this but it is not possible because of.... which just made me feel much more in control for the whole thing.

hedgepig I wrote my birth plan at 23 weeks - the week before I had her and nothing in that plan appeared on the day! Alright, it was exceptional circumstances but things can sometimes (and do) take control of situations. Still, I know what you mean about feeling in control.

I honestly cannot remember the last time I was a size 12. It was probably sometime before I had my DD#1 who is now 23.

I have only ever been a size 12 that year I was doing all that cycling other than that I went from childhood o a size 14 and have steadily been increasing from then on. I have given up on dieting for now, I am just so tired I have no will power.

You had very special circumstances JW, there was no way you could plan for that, or we would all be asking for helicopter rides .

For me Bens arrival just did my head in it really did, so to achieve a VBAC this time was really important and writing the plan was part of that.
(for those who I haven't bored to death with this, Bens birth story. I went in a 40 weeks because of reduced movements to find he was an undiagnosed footling breech and there was with no amniotic fluid and they whipped him out that afternoon. It was absolutely the right thing to do for him but I had no participation in the birth which did weird stuff to my brain for years, even stranger it is all cured now since I had Ollie)

I was a size 12 about 8 years ago when my best friend got married and I didn't eat for 3 months beforehand in order to be a slim bridesmaid. She wasn't best pleased as she hadn't managed to lose weight herself and charmingly referred to me as a skinny bitch when I was trying on the bridesmaid dress.

I wish someone had occasion to call me that now. sigh.

jw I hope you realise that as soon as you announce your first week's weight loss I will be pestering you with questions about the Xenical regime.

mrsb I'm resisting weighing myself until Tuesday as that will be 1 full week on them. Tbh not found it hard at all and I'm eating lots and lots and lots! of fruit and veg as they're naturally low fat. In fact the portions are huge so I'm not hungry at all after a meal. I'm hoping that I've lost something though. At least a 1lb.

I'll let you know Tuesday and then you can cross exam me