Dear Mumsnet please could we have a 'Larger Families' section?

[PaulaYatesBiggestFan]

rather like the 'multiples' section

it could be for 4+ children maybe and we can all get together and discuss how to run home soup kitchens/chinese laundry and whether or not Nick Leeson had the right idea for how to finance our broods?

I have mooted it before and people seem quite keen - it is different having a lot of children and it helps to have support

Thanks !

psychomum - me
paulayatesbiggestfan - who started this fab idea
peachy is very soon to join if bubba hurries up
LTH
neversaynever
padilia
tortoise
liaghen
evenhope
cargirl
suedonim
tickle
tiggywinkle
jes74
cupsoftea
marslady
snorris
cazbody
magnolia74
idobelieveinfairies
kitty
waggledancer
swedes
conniedescending
oliviaelanasmum
sorky (by the fact that she is trying for #4)
ceolas
slacker
ggglimp
lisalisa
tiredmumof4
lucewheel
pollyanna
stopfighting
duchy
har man
diva
bythesea
tooticky
maoui

and to add

Spidermama
137wallis
lljkk
zephrycat
heronsfly
PPH
morespamthanglam
bigcar
aGalchangedhername

CADMUM

you are now

p.s have just read further down cos I was skimming before - OMG Psycho that sounds awful. I was only referring to what you said on your 'list' post IYSWIM - feel a bit foolish now!

don;t feel foolish...I feel sure at times that some people think I over dramatise how bad it was!!!!!!

I don't....in fact, DH says it was much worse, altho he was watching the woman he adores , and their baby going thro hell, and thinking about all the other children at home. All I remember is the pain the evil MW telling me I wans;t as bad as I knew I was......since when was she in my skin and knowing how I felt.

in fact, had she been, she would have given the strongest pain stuff in the world!!!!

still.....all;s well now and altho it seems to have a small repucussion in DS2 and his bowel, I am just glad that we are all still in one piece IYGWIM.

Thanks...

Feeling almost famous now.

My DH has had some pretty hairy moments too...

Our hospital here is a 'cottage' hosp so they can deal with normal births, but anything complicated gets referred to the mainland. And the helicopter is called for emergencies.

ds2 was 10 days late - and when I was finally in labour his heart rate was really dropping with every contraction. So they stretchered me onto a snowy field at 5am to get into a Sea King (lovely crew ) and I was flat on my back with drugs to stop the contractions til we got to the hosp. DH meanwhile was discussing the fab view with the midwife

At the hosp they had to get a monitor into the top of ds2's head to measure his blood oxygen. Doctor was completely incompetent, kept missing and it hurt like hell. Labour pain is somehow another level - I know I can take it - but some idiot fumbling around and clamping the wrong bits of my fanjo with cold steel instruments was excrutiating.

Anyway, to cut a long story short, ds2 was fine, and born a few hours later normally, but the placenta again wouldn't give in gracefully so I again lost loads of blood and met the same consultant (as for #3) in the op room for the scrape.

I don't think my body could take another one... but can't persuade DH to have the snip

eeek for the births, and am with you on all the fiddling the pinches re-fanjo pain versus labour pain, but I am so sorry for this...........PMSL @ your DH discussing the view with the midwife

psychomum, thanks for the ideas. Our fridge is waaaaaaaaay too small. I would LOVE a big American stylie one

We have a mahoosive fridge, it's fab

How do mean Demi? Whether you posed naked pg?

no sorky wasn't thinking of that LOL! Just that I remember thinking that her before and after pictures for 4 children were annoyingly similar

Agree on the fridge - it can never be quite big enough. And that futility room is overflowing with wellies, trainers etc... mine only have one pair of each but it still looks like a charity shop

oh, erm then yes I still look the same as before pg, but I might not after no.4 just remember Demi had $130,000 of plastic surgery to look like she does. She was hardly a mingmong before tho'

Might I add that my pelvic floor shuts like a trap door, because I work it hard after each birth.

I'm so frightened of wetting myself at inappropriate moments

I don't have stretchmarks either, but I do think that's hereditary, noone in my mum's family has them.

My fanjo has taken a bit of a bashing it has to be said, but I don't look down there too often so not bothered as long as it doesn't heal over

As I said, no.4 might change all that

Yes please add my vote for larger families section for those with 4+ kids. Would be very useful to share tips not relevant for more "normal" people

Im more Dawn French than Demi Moore! I was a size 8 before dd1 and im a 22 now oh well at least there is plenty of me to love

Talking of pelvic floors. A few weeks ago after having had a horrible cough fro at least a month I was convinced that i was having a prolapse. it all felt like it was falling out. I went to the dr and she had a good poke around but said all was fine.

THANK THE LORD

Anyhoo, I wasn't going to take a chance and since i can't remember to do the exercises I bought one of those electrical vibrating PF exercisers, rather pleasant it is too

BUT......DH reckons I have a bony bum, and when the kiddies babysitter comes round, or grandma, or SIL, they reckon they are more comfy to cuddle as they are 'more padded'!!!

oh, and the boys.........they love nothing better than bigger boobs to rest their heads upon, and even used to fall asleep on one babysitter citing her boobs as the reason.........definately will be 'boob-men' as adults

kitty.......am intrigued by the vibrating PF floor excerciser.........tell me more please.

prolapse seems to run in my family, and after my endo op (and fibroids/cysts/laser/yacky surgery), they told me I had a slight one then and they would refer me for proper PF physio. I was then told not bad enough and left, but I do get a heavy dragging feeling during periods that is more than I used to get, so am feeling the need to start something better than just the oldtype ones I do anyway since babies IYGWIM.

Havne't got time to read all the posts o sorry if I miss any important bits out.

Psycho, that was a bloody rough ride you had. I can't beliove some MW's...bet she idn't have children!!

Sorky, My worst afterpains were with ds3. I literally couldn't walk 10 paces without almpst collapsing. I couldn't even breath through them they were so bad. Ds3 was my fastest birth -2hr 16 mins according to my notes, so I think thats why, TBH it felt like some had beaten the living daylights out of me.

Ds4, who took 4hrs 21 mins, didn't give me any afterpains. The actual birth was horrific, easily the scariest experinece of my life (mentally not physically) so I think if I had of had afterpains I really wouldn't have noticed or cared, I was just glad it was over.

I'm in teh same size clothes as pre-children(10-12) but after ds4 my shape totally cahnged if that makes sense.

What happened during your fourth LTH?

Well each pregnancy makes me look healthier and in better shape. I was terribley skinny before children 6.5 stone!!! But skinny minnies run in my family. I am now 8st 4lb after 5 kids and do look better for it. My tummy is still a bit squishy though

No shocking births here but had dd1 within 1/2 hour of my waters breaking, twins at 35 weeks agin very quick easy labour, dd4 was born at 33 weeks by emergency c section due to placenta abrubtion. Scary having her in scbu but she is a huge 4 year old now
Ds1 was born at 37 weeks by elective c section due to grade 4 placenta previa, consultant said I would probably lose lots of blood and need transfusion ect.... but it went smootly

I am a real life Demi in the fact that I posed for a magazine when pg with ds1

Afterpains for the normal births were not too bad a bit period pain like but even with the twins I wasn't too bad.

Needed to add I will never have a c section wound drain in ever again The pain of them removing it was worse than any labour!!!

did you really? which magazine?

very impressed! did you keep a copy of the photo?

This might be long. Its a long story....

Nothing out of the ordinary happened, as births go it wasn't any harder physically then the others but thoughout the whole PG I was convinced something was going to go wrong.
Ds4 was completely inplanned, from the moment that PG test showed +ve my mind went into freefall, so by the 12 wk scan I was sure I'd miscarried. I hadn't. Then I had a bleed at 14 weeks again convinced I lost the baby. All ok. 20 wk scan I was sure something would be wrong, all fine again.

Literally every day I felt like something bad was going to happen. It wasn't the normal level of worry you do when Pg, I was frantic. There were lots of little problems but nothing that unusual but in my mind hey were massive problems.

So, as the birth got closer and nothing bad had happen the only thing that could happen was the worst possible outcome. I'd come home without a baby. I was utterly utterly convinced that he wouldn't make it. I couldn't (and didn't) tell anyone what was going on in my head because I thought if I did then I;d make it happen. I couldn't even type it out on here. I talked about in a raound about way on a few threads but never actually siad the words.
I was terrified during the labour and thought the MW was lying to me when she said she could see the head. All I could think was I had kept him inside so he;d stay alive...if I let go and he was born he wouldn't make it.

My body was making me give birth but my head was telling it to keep him inside.

As his head was born, he cried immediatly (with just his head sticking out) and it felt like he was telling me he was ok, he;d made it and I could do the rest without any worry. It was a very surreal moment.

I was looking at a photo of us both when we'd just got home from hospital teh other day and I can so vividly remeber the feeling off complete and utter relief that he was there in my arms. It made me cry.

So thats it. Nothing physically/medically bad happened it was all in my head. In hind sight I think I had antenatal depression....There was no way anyone could have known or helped me because I just couldn't say it out loud and that now tells me its not normal.

I saw Magnolias magazine photos. Shes a babe!!!