Calling all the Pregnant PS''ers

[Hudson_Hawk]

I'm feeling great LV! 36 weeks today and I start my weekly appointments tomorrow! I'm not sure if these appointments come with internals. I can't remember what my doc said. Internals-Yikes! DH and I also have our last baby class tomorrow night and then we're doing a breastfeeding class on Thursday night. Yes, I'm making him come to booby class with me, LOL. And I finally packed my bag and it's in my car. My boss is lined up to take me to the hospital if I go into labor while at the office.

Really though, I feel great and I have few if any complaints. I've noticed a slight increase in BHs, but they're not timetable and I only get them at night when I'm laying in bed. So I suppose it could be LO moving or my body adjusting to relaxing for the night. Either way I'm not concerned. I've randomly started waking up at 3:15am one night a week. It's happened over the past three weeks. Two times on Tuesdays and then last night. I get up to go to the bathroom and then find myself WIDE awake. This morning I was able to fall back asleep about an hour before I had to get up. I can handle one low sleep night a week, but I'd prefer to not have it happen any more often than that! I've had several people comment on that possibly being the time/day of the week that I'll go into labor, but I don't see any validity in that. Although ironically I'm due on a Tuesday.

How are you feeling?

 

[Loves Vintage]

Good! Glad to hear you are doing so well! That's great that your boss is going to be your driver!! Hopefully, labor starts in the comfort of your own home, but it's nice to have a plan in place.

I feel really good too, but I have a long way to go! 20 weeks thus far. Very happy to have reached the mid-point and to feel good and relatively normal. I definitely feel in less of a fog than I did during the first tri.

Oh, and I wanted to mention that I miss Puppmom! I have noticed that people who post regularly drop off completely for a few weeks after giving birth. It took me a while to realize why -- haha! I am beginning to have a clue as to what's to come, though I am sure it's just a slight clue . . .

 

[Hudson_Hawk]

I know, me too Hopefully I wont go MIA after Aidan is born, but who knows. It's hard to type with a baby attached to your boob.

 

[somethingshiny]

lol at Nat Geo boobs.

Actually, mine got enormous during both pregnancies but within the last 2-3 weeks (when my milk started drying up) I lost 2" in my chest measurement. I've lost quite a bit of weight so some of it is probably back fat but I am pleased that I didn't keep my giant fake looking girls. All DH wanted to do was touch them. Usually I'm game for that but when they're bright red and hot...owww!!

So happy for you ladies who've recently found out genders! Pregnancy takes on a whole new level of excitement when you start to really know who's in there!!

noel~ Absolutely adorable sweater! I didn't know you were a knitter. Are you going to knit a blankie?

HH~ My PS visits are a bit sporadic these days but I wanted to make sure to give you lots of ****dust**** for an easy and quick labor in delivery! I'm so excited to "meet" Aidan!

Hope all of you lovely mamas are feeling well!!

 

[cara]

Noel that is the most adorable sweater.

Cdt- Congrats on the girl! How awesome.

And congrats Kundzite for the boy and for the news coming out! Awesome as well.

Clothes shopping, Motherhood maternity actually had some good stuff. I liked their secret belly band bottoms for most of pregnancy, as it actually stayed up without being too uncomfortable. And I got a couple decent cheap dresses there. But their stuff is cheap the non-monetary sense of the word too.

Feet: argh! I bought bigger shoes at 4 months, and those are pretty much the only ones I have worn apart from some dress sandals for special events. And my toes reached the end of those last month, so I switched out the inserts to a thin 3/4 length one and am suffering through. I think I am in a little bit of denial that I have another month left - or even as long as 6 more weeks! Yikes, definitely hitting that stage of well, labor might suck but so would staying pregnant!

I did just realize that most of my shirts have minor stains on them from me spilling food on myself. Not going to replace them now, but maybe some of these will need to be retired before any future pregnancies.

 

[Kunzite]

Thank you ladies! We're excited, but a little scared. I don't have many boys in my family so this will be new for me!!

cdt - Congrats on pink! How nice to have one of each!!

noel - Girl, that cardigan is sooooo cute!!

re: maternity clothes. All of my tops are pretty much from Old Navy. I love how light they are and how long they are. Oh yeah... and cheap!! Like Cara, I like the secret belly band bottoms from Motherhood. So far I have two pair of jeans and a pair of work pants from them and I love them all.

 

[Kunzite]

Oh, I forgot to say... LV!!! Yea for feeling movement! So excited for you. I started feeling our LO about two weeks ago and it makes me so happy Poor DH, he's a little jealous that he can't feel anything yet.

 

[Lanie]

Kunzite -- yay for a boy! i'm having one too!!!

Cara and HH -- WOW! You girls are up next! I'm not gonna lie...I'd be more scared than a long tailed cat in a room full of rocking chairs if I was in your position right now. Cara -- thanks for the recs/comments on big feet and clothing for big bellies! HH -- hope you get your sleep back before your little boy arrives!!!

So my DH vetoed my fave name for a boy. It was Hudson. Now it is no longer Hudson. I finally found a name I loved, and he said he tried to visualize it, but it's just not working for him. ARGH! We can't agree on a name! This is getting so hard!!!!!!! He broke the news to me last night and I was crushed!

 

[Hudson_Hawk]

Boo Lanie. Maybe when the LO comes out and you see him he'll look like a Hudson...or a Joe. Who knows...

So I just got back from my 36 week check up. My BP is super low, which they were thrilled about and I've lost a lb, which they were also pleased with (I've gained about 30 lbs already). Apparently my practice is super hands off. I take my own weight at every appointment, they don't do internals unless you're late or having issues, and I had the "pleasure" of completing my own GBS (group B strep) swab today.

Anyway, more interesting was her comments about my due date and when she thinks I'll deliver. She says that she thinks I wont go until October!! This was just a statistical estimate given that it's my first and I'm not having any outward signs of progress, but still...holy crap I could still be pregnant in October!

 

[cara]

Oh fooey HH! October! Bleh. At this rate I am mentally trying to make it to September. Well, I don't really want to go into labor tomorrow but I am definitely not thrilled about being preggo for another month. So tired and crummy feeling all the time! Sigh...

Bliss, those nursing bras may be useful at some point. I think the (*)(*) go down a bit after the initial surge in some women, even if you keep nursing.

Lanie, sorry about the naming woes. Hubs and I are still not sure and not thrilled about the options.

Anyone want to help? I initially liked Xavier, but last name also ends in an 'er' sound so it doesn't flow very well. We have been kicking around Silas, Colby, Luke, Riley, Rhys/Reece, but have some issues with each of them (or more likely, we aren't in love with the name so we are come up with picky objections). To give you other ideas of what we like, I liked Cameron and Cadel but hubs nixed those, hubs liked Calvin and Holden and Lake (not sure if he's serious on that one), but I vetoed those.

 

[HOUMedGal]

Hello, preggo friends!

Quick drive by...more later!! Need more time to catch up since my last post...

Had 2 pregnancy milestones this week: First, random male sales clerk in shoe store asks me if I'm having a boy or girl. Second, nurse at work gave me my first stranger belly pat (not totally stranger, since I've known her for years, but only in the sense that she didn't know I was preggo already).....

So apparently I actually look preggo and not just chubs now! Yaaaay!!

 

[noelwr]

preggo update: for the first time felt my daughter having hiccups! of course it had to happen at 5am, but it was cool nevertheless. I woke up thinking what is this strange feeling like having a heartbeat on the surface of my belly?

the big maternity/baby store chain in Holland was having a 15% off sale of everything in the store this evening so I went there to buy some tops for myself and then of course had to buy cute little clothes for the baby. I hope they fit. you never know what size they're going to come out so I just follow the charts recommending sizes.

Lanie - one of the reasons we were so happy we're having a girl is that we couldn't agree on a boy's name. they are difficult.

Cara - I love Xavier, too. what about just Xave? my choice would have been Lex, but DH knows someone with that name whom he doesn't like.

 

[Lanie]

Cara -- I really like Xavier! Too bad it doesn't go with your last name. We have similar taste in names bc a lot of the ones you listed are really nice. Do you like Callum? Or Calder? Or Wyatt? Geez...boy names are hard. I'm thinking of Owen now...that's my top choice for today.

HH -- OCTOBER?!? Yikes! That seems so far away!

Hou -- yay on preggo belly! Good thing you didn't take it personally. I'm starting to get sensitive about mine, hence why I haven't posted a belly pic in a long time.

Noel -- yay for hiccups! I think I've felt hiccups too....I guess they are the ones that are very rhythmical (if that makes sense). Every once in awhile (a lot actually!) he will bump me RIGHT on the surface of my belly, and they come in perfect intervals. I guess that's what that is! Or he's a drummer! And yay for finding a good sale! Post some of your fave pieces if you can! I love European clothes.

 

[ChinaCat]

CDT- YAY for Team Pink! SO excited for you!

Lanie- If it makes you feel any better, I know five Hudson's born in the past year. Though none in H-Town. But all in Texas. As for mat clothes, my best finds were in the Village. On Rice Blvd there are a few maternity stores- specifically Pea in the Pod (MUCH better than the one in the mall, though pricey) and Nine Maternity- lots of cute easy pieces, and some non-mat stuff that works.

Cara- Love Xavier. FWIW, our last name also ends in -er, and we named our son Oliver. It flows fine. At first I wasn't sure if it would bother me, but it doesn't at all. Love Calder too, great suggestion! And you can never go wrong with Luke.

 

[Loves Vintage]

Kunzite, My due date buddy!!! Yay for feeling the baby move. It is the best thing ever. My husband asked me what it was like, if it was distracting or anything like that. All I could say was that "it is wonderful!!" Smile, Smile! I love it! Was it you that said she might look into getting a doula? Have you? I have to call mine, but I am not feeling 100% about it yet. I haven't met with her, just talked on the phone, so we'll see how I feel after we meet in person.

HH, Wow, to October! That was what you were hoping for, for a while there, right, because of your work start date? But, then it wound up not mattering anyway. How funny would that be, if you went til October anyway? It'll be interesting to see if the dr's prediction is correct!! Oh, and sounds like you got the self-serve treatment today, huh? Whatever works, right?

Lanie, Does your DH have any favorite names? Hudson was on our list for a boy. My husband LOVES the name! I told him that ChinaCat told us it was a very popular name (I thought they were all in Houston, though), and he didn't want to hear it!

Cara, Love the name Luke!! Hopefully, you can both reach agreement soon on a name that you both LOVE!

HMG, That's awesome that people can tell you're preggo! Hasn't happened for me yet, but I do look forward to it.

Noel, Yay for a great sale!! I'd like to see the baby clothes too if you have time.

ChinaCat, Thanks for chiming in about the names. I'm still amazed that you know 5 Hudsons! Know any Emerson's down there in Texas? I'm hoping it won't be climbing the charts anytime soon. It's DH's favorite name for our daughter, though I am not completely sold yet. (We were considering Emerson as a boy name before.)

We had decided on Samantha before we found out gender, but decided to re-open negotiations after we found out she's a girl. I'm still kind of stuck on Samantha (and I adore Sam with our last name, much more so than Em or Emme, I guess.)

Anyone want to vote on Samantha vs. Emerson? I have a strong preference for a non-popular name, if anyone wants to vote from that perspective. Lurkers welcome to comment. I'd love lots of opinions.

 

[ChinaCat]

Loves Vintage- Popularity isn't necessarily a bad thing, it just depends on how much it bothers you. The other thing is with Hudson for example. There might be FIVE that I know (all in Dallas, TX), but if there are none where YOU are, then who cares, right?

As for Emerson- I don't know a single one!!! And my circle extend from Houston to NYC to LA to Chicago to Dubai, so I keep my ear to the ground. Natalina has an "Ellison", which I love, but I can't think of any Emerson's. Well, Teri Hatcher's daughter maybe.

The only thing I would say about Emerson is that while the name itself is not "trendy" the type of name sort of is. But so what. Oliver is definitely up there, and I still love it.

Oh wait, I spoke too soon. I DO know an Emerson, just born about a month ago. Emerson Claire, "Emmy". Such a pretty name though!

As for Emerson vs. Samantha. Hmmm. I happen to LOVE Samantha. It's old fashioned, yet still sounds fresh. And the nn "Sam" is such a cute and fiesty one, so it fits both a tomboy and a princess.

But Emerson has a poetic, dreamy quality to it. I do happen to like Emerson over "Emmy" though. So if you won't call her Emerson, then I think my vote is for Samantha. I call my sis Emmy, so I love that as a pet nn, but she doesn't introduce herself as Emmy.

Hope you don't mind me butting in, I love names and discussions about names!

 

[icekid]

25+4

Hahaha, you ladies are cracking me up with the BB talk! Mine are bigger, but uhhh in a barely noticeable kind of way. As in I have gone from a solid 32 AA to a 32A, maybe. Glad not to have to be buying a new bra weekly. I don't think I could take rapid body growth in the belly AND BB area. That sounds intense.

Kunzite- Congrats on team blue I happen to think it's an awesome team.

cdt- and congrats on PINK!! That is so exciting. Your little man is going to have a baby sister to protect, so sweet

LV- YAY on feeling the baby move. It is amazing, isn't it?? I can feel body parts from the outside now and it still so WEIRD to think that there is a little person in there.

Lanie- I hear ya on not wanting to spend thousands on something with such a finite lifespan. I have picked up a few (mostly new) things on ebay for super cheap. And bought one pricey dress for a formal wedding we have coming up. Otherwise I am trying to keep it fairly simple. I think I've spent maybe $250-300 total? Luckily, most days involve scrubs and that makes me life much easier.

noel- I am soooooo jealous of your knitting skills. That is the sweetest little cardigan EVER. How special to be able to create such gorgeous clothes for your little girl!

cara- Do you think boy names are harder than girls? It took us no time at all to settle on a girl name, but coming up with a boy name we LOVE has be so hard. I've become moderately obsessed with http://www.youcantcallitit.com recently. Really fun name blog. I THINK we're settled now on a name, but prob will not announce it until after birth to avoid peanut gallery comments.

Lanie- Any chance that Hudson might grow on your hubby? In my case, I know the more I called our little guy by the name I want, the more used to it he got.. then he liked it... then loved it! Don't think he will even consider any other names now haha. Tricky, aren't I?

HMG- I've only had one random person ask if I am preggo, and that was when I was on the OB floor so people around there are probably paying more attention. Think I still look kind of chunky depending on what type of clothes. Oh well....


Trucking along.... I am starting to feel huge, though obviously it's going to get much worse. I am about to start a crazy rotation which will involve waking up around 3:30 in the AM and am terrified. I miss my sleep already. OH, and the boy is already kicking me in the ribs. It does not hurt yet, but it is sure not comfortable.

 

[E B]

Quickly popping in to join the name discussion! Can't resist one.

Cara, a few suggestions:

Ronan
Finn
Asher
Jude
Grant
Callum
Landon
Grayson
Drake
Lennon
Weston
Reid/Reed

...on the right track?

Loves Vintage, I vote Samantha since names that end in -son are traditionally for males, and I lean toward favoring more traditional picks, though I know some of the -son endings (Addison, etc.) have gained popularity for girls. I have a family member named Samantha and I've always loved her name.

 

[Loves Vintage]

ChinaCat, Thank you for your analysis! So, you DO know an Emerson!! OK, it's out! J/K. I agree that a popular name is not necessarily a bad thing, but I would just prefer something that's more original. I like everything you said, and especially love that you said Sam is cute and feisty! Exactly why I love it.

DH calls the baby Emmy now. It's very cute, though it clashes with our last name, but you're right, she won't be introducing herself as Emmy. Hmmmmm.
Ok, so definitely keep your ears to the ground. You're covering a lot of territory for me!!

Icekid! Yikes to 3:30 AM!! Off to check the blog you posted . . .

EB, Thanks for chiming in! That is exactly what I told my DH, well one of the things anyway, about Emerson! In Iceland, her name would be Emerdottir, daughter of Emer! I have seen it spelled Emersyn, but I do not like that spelling at all. I'll put you down for Samantha!! Maybe I'll tell DH if he wants a kid named Emerson, then we'll have to have another!

 

[Kunzite]

Oh, names are our favorite subject these days! Like some of you have said, we have some names picked out but we just don't LOVE them the same way we did with the two girl names we had chosen. I think we were both secretly hoping to have two girls so we'd already be done with picking names!

cara - I actually love all of the names that you listed! I really like Rhys and Luke.

LV - Nope, I'm not looking into a doula. I did for about one day and then realized how expensive it was. My dh will just have to be my doula I love Emerson but we have a bar back home called Emerson Biggins and I would never be able to look my child straight in the eye knowing that! I really like Ellison too.

China - One of the two names we're torn between at the moment is Oliver. My dh is hesitant because he doesn't know any Olivers and he's afraid that our LO will feel like his name is uncommon. I told him that's silly! One of the reasons that I really like it is because it's always been around but never really popular or unpopular. Do you get mostly positive responses? The other name is Liam but I feel like it has the opposite problem because it's so stinking popular now.

 

[Laila619]

LV, I love Samantha! I think it's become sort of a classic, and it's really pretty. You could also call her Sami for short.

 

[Hudson_Hawk]

Ooooh I love the name Emerson for a girl! I might have to file that one away for future reference (even thought we already have two top girl contenders for the next LO).

We had out last baby class last night. DH feels like we're officially "certified" to have a baby now...lol...Oh! And we made friends and exchanged emails. I told DH I felt like we got someone's digits. I know no one in our current town, everyone I know is in the Boston area for the most part. So I'm excited. I'm off for a lunch date with a girlfriend and her 3 mo old son Finn. He's so stinkin cute, I can't wait to see/hold him.

 

[fieryred33143]

LV-Another vote for Samantha! I love the name

I don't have any other input on names. I pretty much suck when it comes to picking names. For our first it was easy because if we had a boy, he would be a Jr. and if we had a girl I knew I loved Sophia (although we didn't make a final decision until we were asked at the hospital). For the next one...no clue.

Are you next in line HH?? Wow!!

 

[noelwr]

LV - I prefer Samantha. Emerson is too boyish for me. though I prefer Savannah over Samantha. sorry, I know that wasn't an option. what about Spencer? I like that, too.

anyway, here are photos of the things I got yesterday. sorry if this is death by camera. it is a rainy day so the lighting isn't very good at home, either. what I got myself were just long-sleeve t-shirts. DH is a bit spooked out by the one with a lady's face on it. and with the onesies, he loves the little pink one with the bow. the longer ones have the little Dutch bunny Nijntje on it (he is known as Miffy in other countries) and I am absolutely in love with Nijntje. the onesies that include the one "could i be any cuter?" are what I bought in Singapore.

would love to see the favorite clothes you ladies have bought so far.

 

[Lanie]

Noel -- cute tops! I love the onesie "Mommy and I agree...". It's interesting that you mention Spencer for a girl name. It's more common here as a boy name, but I actually like it for a little girl!

fiery -- I still love the name Sophia for a girl! That would have been our middle name if we would have had one!

 

[ChinaCat]

Lost post.

Anyways, as I was saying...

EB! I was wondering if you'd chime in on the name thing. My fellow name nerd. I still read name blogs. Love your thoughts, of course. A few of those were on our list as well.

Kunzite- What area of the world/country do you live in? Oliver is very popular in England and is getting more popular in the US. I actually was worried that it would be TOO popular/trendy! I think it's a classic, old-fashioned name that is very fresh and charming, like Henry and Jack and Thomas. I actually hear it quite a bit more than I would like to, but no one directly around me so far has it. But when I toured daycares, I did hear it a few times. It's cute and quirky, rakish for a little boy, but serious and manly enough for a grown name. Plus it passes the Supreme Court Justice test. We call him "O" more often, though.

EB and I LOVE name chats! We're here to help.

 

[Jena17]

Hi ladies, I have MIA lately, I have been really busy at work trying to get things done before maternity leave! And this new PS is not working on my computer very good so I only get to read parts of peoples posts.

I have 39 days until my due date and was thinking about something I read a while back about something to help your hips go back into place. Does anyone know what the name of it was? I have seen something called hipslimmer or shrinkx?? I was thinking of maybe getting one if they work.

Congratulations to all the new mommies out there and good luck to the soon to be mommies!

 

[turtledazzle]

Our little boy surprised us by coming nine days early. Baby Tyler was born on 8/16 at 3:10am. He also surprised us by his size at 8 lbs 5 oz and 21" long. I am just 5'4" and only gained 19 pounds during the pregnancy, so we really weren't expecting that!
My water broke at 10:30pm on 8/15 and labor progressed very quickly from there (had only felt a couple of very random contractions before my water broke; in fact I had gone out earlier on 8/15 for a 5-hour shopping spree for baby items that we hadn't gotten at our showers). Labored at home for the most part and when we got to the hospital I was fully dilated and pushed for about 45 minutes before he was born. Thank goodness for our doula -- I never would have made it through the nonmedicated labor without her -- I definitely was not prepared for how fast my labor was, but her experience kept me calm (for the most part).

Now, let's see if I can post pics in this new environment.

 

[Lanie]

Hi Jena! Good luck on your last days!

Turtledazzle -- he's so precious! Your labor and delivery sound like a dream! Hope it was really that way! Congrats on sweet baby Tyler!!!

 

[Puppmom]

I missed you guys! It's been so long...hopefully, I can eventually catch up on everything I missed. And I must get my arse over to the newborn thread. Those ladies really have a lot of advice and insight to offer...and cute baby pics!

Turtle, congrats! Yay for a quick labor and a gorgeous baby!

HH, I can't believe you're 36 weeks! I'm so glad you're feeling well. Time is flying and your LO will be here before you know it!

LV, I totally heart the name Samantha but I think Emerson is great too. The nickname Emme is SO cute! Ok, so that probably wasn't much help.

Congrats everyone on their gender scans! There sure are lots of you due around the same time this winter. It's going to be a busy few months!

As for the BBs...mine are kind of ridiculous and not in a *hot* way. I feel bad for DH - they're hanging out all of the time. He must be totally desensitized by now.

I promise to read more and catch up - as you can imagine things are pretty busy around here. Nursing is pretty much a full time job. Why didn't anyone tell me that? I really can't complain though. Nolan latches wonderfully and, aside from sensitive BBs, we have no issues in that department. He's growing SO fast! At his 2 week appointment he was already up 21 ounces from his birth weight. He's a pretty laid back kiddo which has been really nice for us. He recently started fussing for reasons other than hunger which threw us for a loop at first but we're getting the hang of things.

As for me, I'm feeling pretty good. I've been taking the baby and dog for walks every day which is helping with the cabin fever. I'm still chubby but I guess you can't expect 40 lbs to come off in 4 weeks, huh? I've tried taking postpartum belly pics but I can't help but suck it in when I hold up the camera which sort of defeats the purpose. Maybe I can get DH to take one. The belly actually isn't the problem. I think my thighs doubled in size! Oh well...in time.

Ok - Nolan is grunting which usually means he's about to wake. Here's a pic from our newborn session.