Calling all the Pregnant PS''ers

[mayerling]

Hi ladies! This thread's a-hopping. Congrats to all the new mommas: choro and muff and am I forgetting somebody?

Muff, Luca looks wonderful and I love the name!

Choro, can't wait to hear your birth story.

Steph, hang in there. I hear you on the heat. We've been having a heatwave and even with the a/c I can't help sweating all the time.

PPM, you look great! How far along are you now?

Petite, it's getting close? Have you finished your hospital bag yet? I've finally got mine ready to go.

MP, I'm glad you're finally getting some movement!

Buttons, I'm sorry you're having a rough time today?

Lulu, welcome!

Have I forgotten anyone? Keep those babies baking away!

AFM, full term today! I had my weekly appointment today and I finally got a doctor who gave me the time of day. She felt for the baby and said it's head down and has started descending into the pelvis. She also gave me a quick scan and took some measurements. She said he's measuring fine for his gestational age and is almost at 6 pounds. Amniotic fluid and placenta also looked good. She also said to walk a lot as that helps the baby descend, and "if the mood is there" that DH and I should have "relations" as that releases prostaglandins that also help with getting things going. BH are still there and in the last 24 hours I've experienced menstrual cramp feelings twice. Both times it was for a few seconds so I'm trying not to read too much into it. I know I shouldn't be impatient, but it's been so unbearably hot lately that I'm really hoping he comes before July.

Anyway, happy hump day bump day. Here's me at 37 weeks - sorry about the crap resolution:

 

[lizzyann]

Choro, congratulations! Hope you are settling in given baby arrived earlier than you thought. Please do let us know some details on your little one!

 

[monkeyprincess]

Muff, ah, Luca is so darn cute! Thanks for sharing the details of your labor and delivery. It makes it just a little less scary the more and more stories I hear, although I'm still in denial that this little guys has to come out somehow.

Choro, congrats! Would love to hear more about your experience if you care to share and find time to do so!

Mayerling, congrats on full term! Hmm, relations at 37 weeks? That sounds a bit, um, challenging But the walking definitely sounds doable!

Steph, hang in there. You're almost there, and hopefully things will keep moving down there!

Buttons, sorry about your rotten day. Hopefully, things will go more smoothly tomorrow.

Sunnyd, what a considerate little girl you have! My belly seems to have exploded too. I definitely feel like I look bigger than almost 24 weeks because everythign is just going straight out!

AFM, I woke up with the worst acid reflux feeling in the middle of the night. Is anyone dealing with this? And if so, what are you taking to control it? I had to almost get into a sitting up position to fall back asleep, but it seems to be getting a little better today. I'm sure my late night binge on tortilla chips right before falling asleep is what did me in!

 

[amc80]

Hi guys!

Muff, great story! Sounds like everything went well. He sure is a great looking newborn!

Mayerling- Yay for full term!

Amc, sorry the contractions keep bugging you. Yikes on the big baby! Will they induce early/do a csection if he continues this growth?

I'll have to talk to my doctor about it at my next appointment. I will fight it if they try to induce me early. I'd rather have the baby finish baking completely. No reason to punish him because he's big, you know? If it comes down to it, I'd rather have a c-section at 40 weeks than an induction earlier.

Buttons- Hang in there. I hate days like that. That was how my last Thursday was...and it ended up with me having tons of contractions. Try to relax!

Choro- Yep, that's about right. My husband thinks it's awesome that his "super sperm" created such a large baby. I keep reminding him that ultrasounds have a pretty big margin of error, so this kid could just be slightly above average. Here's to wishful thinking, right?

AFM, I woke up with the worst acid reflux feeling in the middle of the night. Is anyone dealing with this? And if so, what are you taking to control it? I had to almost get into a sitting up position to fall back asleep, but it seems to be getting a little better today. I'm sure my late night binge on tortilla chips right before falling asleep is what did me in!

Yes! I've had it through the entire pregnancy with the except of about two weeks when I first started taking Zantac. It's now back and SO much worse. The other night, in my sleep, I somehow burped/spit up a ton of stomach acid, which caused me to cough like crazy. Talk about an unpleasant way to wake up! I've found that nothing helps. I get it on an empty stomach, full stomach, 1/2 empty stomach, whether I eat a cheeseburger, salad, bread, or just drink a glass of water. The reflux simply laugh at the tums I take.

AFM- Insomnia is in full swing. I'll be tired all day, lay down to go to sleep, and am suddenly wide awake. Then I glance over at DH who can fall asleep anywhere, anytime, in less than 60 seconds (he says it's from being in the Marines). It makes me want to beat him. Last night after tossing and turning I gave up and went to the couch, where I surprisingly managed to fall asleep fairly fast (fast these days = less than 30 minutes). My OB gave me Ambien but I know it's super addictive, so I'm trying to reserve it for really bad nights.

Has anyone watched/read The Happiest Baby on the Block? I bought the DVD at a swap meet and we finally watched it. I'm curious to see if those techniques really work. Hopefully this baby will be calm and I'll never have to use them

Here is my 32w picture!

 

[megumic]

Muff, he is beautiful! Omg! And what a great birth story. Thank you for sharing that and for being so candid. Congrats to you and your DH!

 

[mayerling]

Amc, I've watched the happiest baby on the block and thought that a lot of the advice made sense. I look forward to seeing whether it actually works!

 

[sunnyd]

Muff, that is a good looking baby! Congrats to you and DH. I love how he's swimming in that striped onesie! So cute!

 

[JGator]

Muff, congrats on your beautiful baby, Luca. And, thanks for sharing your birth story. I feel more prepared for what to expect now.

MP, I take Zantac 75 as soon as I get my first acid reflux or heartburn in the AM and then again later in the afternoon/evening when it comes back. Last night, it didn't seem to work so I popped 2 Tums before bed as I was still feeling the acid reflux. Tums seems to work more quickly, but it's not that potent and doesn't last long. I have taken the Zantac 3x/day on some days if it recurs a lot in a day.

AMC, you might need to try a recliner. That could help with the acid reflux too. I know my sister who has been pregnant 5 times usually sleeps in a recliner towards the end of her pregnancies to get comfortable. Also, when I had bad insomnia recently, my OB said I could take Tylenol PM. You might try that first as I think it's less addictive. I used to take Ambien a lot when I traveled to India for work multiple times/year, and that is a life saver drug though. Good stuff! And, I usually felt great in the AM after taking it too.

 

[choro72]

AFM, here's my birth story!


My ultimate goal was to push the baby out without a C section, naturally as possible. I had a birth plan typed out to avoid a C, and my midwife was aware about it.
Short version, I was able to push him out! Weee!

My plan flew out the window when my water broke Thursday 9:30 AM. As DH was playing with my belly, I felt a gush of fluid come out. I thought this was no different from the pee/gunk that gushed throughout my pregnancy. I jumped to the bathroom, stuff poured out of me, and my constipated body pooped immediately. I put an overnight pad on my pantie, and soaked in a few minutes. Hmm, strange. I told DH that my water might have burst, and I called Kaiser. They told me to come in for evaluation. By that time I was leaking only when I changed position from a resting position (i.e., normal pregnancy pee leak).

I thought that I could go to Kaiser, confirm that it is/isn’t amniotic fluid, come home, and return to the hospital when contractions begin or if it had not started by that night. Boy was I dumb. I grabbed my purse which had nothing other than my wallet and my phone. Skeptical DH made me bring my birth plan and went to work, which takes an hour each way. 12PM I arrived at the hospital. The triage nurse told me that I can’t leave if water broke. I had signed the admission form already, and I was upset at my stupid decision to come to the hospital. I decided to at least have the baby checked. They slapped the strip on my pad and it immediately turned blue, showing that it was amniotic fluid. I updated DH. I told him to take his time, and gave him a bunch of stuff to do. He came back from work, ate “lunch”, fed the cats, washed baby clothes, washed bed sheets for my mom who was arriving on Saturday, and packed the hospital bag. Baby’s heart rate was normal, so they unhooked me from the monitor, gave me a second hospital gown to cover my back, and I walked around the hospital to get my contractions started.

I was very upset at myself. I was stuck in a hospital with nothing to entertain myself. This was after resolving that I wouldn’t go to the hospital soon when my water breaks. In reality I just didn't know what was leaking, and I made the dumb choice of asking the hospitals. Most of all I was very upset that I had lunch reservations for the next few days with my mom as part of my pre-birth bucket list. DH called my sister so that she can call my mom. He updated IL so that they can pick up my mom that weekend.

This was about 2PM. I was starving so I went to the cafeteria and ate a sandwich before they confined me in the room without food. Went back to the triage and got a lecture on my disappearance. Midwife said that because 2 days ago I was only 40% effaced, she’s going to stick Cytotec inside to get things started. Around 5PM I got a delivery room. My mom called me super upset. She wanted to see me pregnant and feel the baby move. Most of all she wanted to help me through labor and she was about to cry.

My midwife delivered another baby, and around 6PM she came in to insert the pill. I was feeling only the good ol’ BH contractions up to that point. DH arrived at 6:30PM. I was bored out of my mind so I was so happy to have someone to talk to.

7PM, the contractions started to feel different, like strong menstrual cycle cramps. I've always heard about this so I've never been afraid of contractions. Again, I was so wrong. It's a million times stronger than my regular menstrual cramps. I told DH how BH contractions were nothing like these, and how I understand why they suck. All in a sudden the midwife and nurses came rushing in. I looked at the monitor and saw that I had contractions after contractions without break, and the baby’s heart rate was dipping each time. They had me roll over to the other side, but as soon as I did that his heart rate dipped to the low 80s. They injected something in my arm to stop the contractions, slapped an oxygen mask on me, and stuck an IV. That managed to get his heart rate back up and stable, but from then on the baby had to be monitored directly, so I was confined to my room. Seems like I responded to Cytotec too well, it caused too many contractions, and the baby was getting tired from them. They checked me, and I was 70% effaced, 4 cm. All the nurses were excited and left me to labor on my own. I stood up beside the bed and rocked myself through each contraction.
My sister and her BF arrived around 9PM, along with MIL and FIL around 10PM. My sister skyped my mom, and my mom felt much better about the situation after giving me some advice. The contractions were quite bad. I gritted my teeth and talked to everyone slowly through each breath to distract myself from the contractions. I whispered to DH that the contractions were getting worse and it was becoming hard to talk.

Midwife came in quickly again, told me to get into bed because baby’s heart rate was dropping with each contraction. I was back on the oxygen mask, and as soon as I crawled on the bed I started shaking badly. I couldn’t speak anymore. I had to moan through each contraction rolling all over the bed. My sister thought it was funny how I kept apologizing every time I caught a breath. Midwife shift changed, and new midwife checked me at 12AM. I was 90% effaced and still 4cm. I wanted to shoot myself. Midwife said I needed to make progress so they were going to use Pitocin. I could use the epi, or put stuff in the IV to take the edge off the pain. I pondered the IV option, but I was so discouraged at the 4cm announcement. I also didn’t think I could sit still later for them to stick the needle in because I was already shaking so much, and I had to roll all over the place through each contraction. I asked for the epi, and everyone were kicked out of the room, sis’s bf went home. 1AM the anesthesiologist came in. I was terrified and I grabbed on to DH to stop my shaking. I cut off his blood circulations through the contractions. The epi started working immediately, and I felt my legs numb as if they were asleep. My contractions were only pressures. MIL and sis came back, and I could smile and carry a conversation with everyone.

Midwife and anesthesiologist came rushing back. My blood pressure was reading in the 70s, when my normal blood pressure is low 90s. Again, I responded too well to the epi, it lowered my blood pressure, and the baby’s heart rate was jumping erratically between 70 and 150. They increased the IV drip level, and ordered tons more. The hydration helped bring him back. They turned off the epi, and started the Pitocin. I dreaded the contraction after they stopped the epi, but I was still feeling the effect of the epi so we all got some sleep.

At 3AM they woke me up to check me again. The epi was wearing off, but the contractions were mainly pressure. I was 7cm dilated, but because they estimated the baby to be tiny and because of my frame size, they had me do some practice push to see if his head will come through the cervix. That must have worked, because then a bunch of people came in and started preparing for something.

I pushed through two contractions, and my epi was almost gone at that point. Baby’s heart rate dropped each time, so they made me wait through the next contraction. I pushed the next one, and midwife said I was doing great, the head is there. But she turned to the nurse and whispered something like “if she doesn’t get him out in the next three pushes…”. I freaked out and pushed with all my might. I screamed as his head came out, and wondered why they can’t simply grab his chin and pull him out. The next push, at 3:55AM, a screaming wriggling 6lbs 1oz baby was out and put on my belly. Nurses were letting out a sigh of relief, and sis skyped my mom. I was full of adrenalin chatting with everyone, my sister was taking pictures with her SLR, I chatted with mom, Mil was saying how he looked like DH. Afterbirth came out in a few minutes, and DH cut the umbilical cord.

Unlike MuffDog who is a real trooper, I was painfully aware that the midwife was still working on me. She told me that I had a 2nd degree tear, and the umbilical cord is perfect. They thought that the baby’s heart rate dropped with each push because the umbilical cord was wrapped around his neck. Seems like he was playing with the umbilical cord instead.

In the end I’m very happy with how my delivery ended. Even if I ended up with the epi, I still had the experience of the true contractions, and they SUCK. I was able to push the baby out and felt every part of him moving down inside me. I thought I tore because I pushed so hard, but later DH told me that I tore because the baby came out with his hand against his check. Sure enough, that’s his favorite position right now!

The real drama started afterwards. Without going into details, DH and FIL fought for 2 days with threats of leaving the family concerning the baby’s name. In the end, the “compromise” result is Shinobu Noen Ying-Jie Lee. I hope he won’t hate us for making it so complicated.
We are now at home which is clearly not ready for a new baby. Thank goodness we had installed the car seats. We had to make an emergency run to the store for diapers. I was supposed to go shopping with my mom for cloth diapers today before the baby came! Grrr.

It’s been so helpful and therapeutic to be here throughout my pregnancy. Thank you everyone! Looking forward to all the new mommies!

 

[Missy0483]

Wow Choro, sounds like an ordeal, but glad he arrived safely! He's a handsome little guy! Congrats to your family! I had some issues with Blake's heartrate decelerating as I had contractions too(he ended up being stuck behind my pubic bone), plus he was sunny side up and not moving down enough so it ended in c-section. How far along were you again??

 

[monkeyprincess]

Choro, uff, sorry you were caught off-guard. Did you assume he would be overdue? Sounds like you had quite a dramatic labor, delivery and post-natal experience. But I'm happy to hear that your little guy (I'll call him Shinobu for short ) made it here safely, which is all that matters in the end. Enjoy your beautiful little boy!

amc and JGator, thanks for the acid reflux advice. I really hope this is not going to keep happening. I'm so uncomfortable and don't have anything to help right now. Eating and drinking only seems to aggravate it. I'm going to sneak out a little early today and pick up some Tums and/or Zantac I guess.

 

[sugarpie honeybun]

Congrats to all the new mommies!!!

Don't have much time to post, but love checking in and reading all the amazing birth stories and seeing the adorable pics.

Can't wait to join the list! Week and a half to go!



38.5 weeks

 

[PetitiePoire]

Ok, time to get caught up !

Missy- I am definitely going to miss being pregnant. She hasn’t been moving much, except to jab me in the ribs. But I do love how close she is to me now vs her growing up! As much as I want her here yesterday I’m trying to just enjoy it now.

PPM- Contractions just make my stomach hard. AMC gave a great description, although I’ve never had a Charlie horse or strong menstrual cramps, so I can’t really attest to that. My pain level is really weird, in general. To me things either “hurt” (as in I think I’m going to die) or it “doesn’t hurt” (which means I can live with it). I can feel that there is tightening/pressure/pain, but nothing debilitating. I’m probably not making any sense, so I apologize.

MP- Thank you for the dust!

Sunnyd- You’re LO sure does have great timing! What special memories. I love feeling her move. I can see it too, however, she is shy and stops almost every time I try to point it out to DH. My belly button has been out for a long while. We think it’s pretty hilarious looking. Lately, as in the last week, it’s started hurting! Who knew.

Muffdog- Thanks for the detailed birth story- especially about the menstrual cramp feeling. I know I’ll be like you and second guess everything. Your son is absolutely adorable!! I cannot believe he is already here.

Choro- thank you for telling your experience with low blood pressure. I’m terrified they will force a c-section or something. DH can’t be there at all if that’s the case and I don’t want either of us to miss the birth. I’m so glad you were able to push him out! I’ll have to remember your story if/when my water breaks without contractions. I don’t want to sit in a hospital any longer than I have to!

Buttons- I’m sorry you had such a terrible day the other day. I meant to comment then, but time passed me. I do hope you are sleeping better and have found a way to avoid the heat. I eat 2-3 Mr. Freeze ice pops when I get hot before bed. It helps cool me down.

Steph- Are you still around or am I next? That’s really exciting that you’re progressing. My doctor doesn’t do any more checks, so I won’t know until I get to L&D! I think it would be nice to have some idea.

Mayerling- Congrats on full term!! I loved reaching 37 weeks. Such an exciting time. You definitely look lower in your pic!

Sugarpie- Thanks for checking in! You’re getting close too! So exciting!

AFM- Still sitting here at 39w2. I had some cramping last night between 3-4am. It got me really excited thinking that maybe today was the day… but nope. DH has had this day picked out in his mind for her birthday, so I guess I let his crazy ideas get to me.

 

[stephbolt]

Mayerling, congrats on full term! You look great!

MP, so sorry about the reflux. Hope you can find something to help!

amc, we rented the happiest baby DVD, it's crazy how it seems to work. I guess we'll see if it works on our LO soon enough...

choro, thanks for sharing your birth story! Shinobu is such a handsome little man!

sugerpie! Hope the end of your pregnancy goes smoothly!

PetitePoire, don't worry, I'm here. I saw you post and was wondering if you had had your LO! Haha we are keeping an eye on each other for sure.

AFM, nothing new. Here's a due date bump pic! Thinking of going out to run some errands in the hopes that someone will ask me when I am due and I can shock them with "today!"

 

[mayerling]

Quick question: does anyone know what it feels like when your waters break? My friend who had a baby in January said it felt exactly like peeing . She said the only difference is that you can normally hold your pee in or interrupt the stream, whereas you can't do that with amniotic fluid.

 

[PetitiePoire]

Steph- cute due date pic! I'll have to remember to take one of those next week as I don't think baby has any plans to get anytime soon. If it helps to know, the due date here is calculated to 41 weeks vs 40 in the US, so they wouldn't even consider you late yet here. I've been going by the US date and I'm hoping baby realizes that! ETA- I plan to make a quick post before we head to the hospital, so I hope you do the same, because I've been obsessively checking and don't think I could go days without news.

Mayerling- I hope someone chimes in. My midwife's description was similar to what you said. Although, it still confuses me, because I don't pee myself- so do I just go in when that happens? I see a lot of people unsure if it's their water or pee... does that mean they've been peeing themselves throughout pregnancy? So confused!

 

[Buttons]

Choro thank you for sharing your birth story and big welcomes to very handsome baby Shinobu!!!

Steph you look amazing!

PetitePoire you are so funny, I hope baby has got the memo re baking to 'American time' for you

Re waters breaking, at my ante natal class last week the instructor said it can be exactly like when you leak if you sneeze/laugh etc. She said if you are in doubt to put on a pad and give it half an hour and then have a sniff... basically, if it smells like pee, it's pee! And if it doesn't smell like pee, then it's your waters Also, apparently your waters don't just release and then stop, they actually keep on leaking right through labour, a little bit more with every contraction. So if it stops, it was probably pee, but if it keeps leaking, then it's definitely your waters. Oh and she said only something like 8% of women have their waters break before labour starts - with the rest either it's done artificially or they go at some stage during active labour (and sometimes they actually never break at all).

AFM I'd just like to send a memo to the universe and ask it could it please call off the pregnancy police? So far I've had the following:
* had my lunch order cancelled by a 'helpful' person who didn't approve of the sandwich I'd ordered;
* been told off for doing pregnancy yoga (!) and swimming - apparently I'm 'overdoing it';
* had someone try to prevent me totting up a restaurant bill in case the 'stress' makes me 'lose the baby';
* been asked if my DH 'lets' me drive now that I'm pregnant;
* and finally, today I was body blocked by a middle aged man who wanted to prevent me jogging the last few steps along the platform to catch a train - yeah cos having to sit in freezing cold drizzle for 30 mins waiting for the next train was so much better for the pregnant lady than jogging a few steps?!?

On a much nicer note, this morning I was playing music on the speaker on my iPhone and I balanced it on my belly and baby managed to kick it right off there. Guess baby doesn't like my taste in music!!!

 

[amc80]

Mayerling- I hope someone chimes in. My midwife's description was similar to what you said. Although, it still confuses me, because I don't pee myself- so do I just go in when that happens? I see a lot of people unsure if it's their water or pee... does that mean they've been peeing themselves throughout pregnancy? So confused!

I've wondered the same thing! Don't get me wrong, it's not uncommon for me to tinkle a bit when I sneeze...but other than that, not a whole lot of pants peeing going on. If I suddenly have fluid coming out of me or wake up with wet undies, I'm probably going to assume it's my water breaking.

Buttons- People are so annoying! Ugh.

 

[lliang_chi]

Hey ladies, here's what I did: woke up with wet underwear. Went to the toilet to pee, when I was done, see had just a tiny bit of fluid leak out of me and onto the floor. Soaked it up with white to to check for color and sniffed it to check if it smelled like urine. Sorry if that just grossed someone out. It was just a teeny bit so it's not like I was sniffing a whole cupful.

 

[mayerling]

Hmmm, so far I have never leaked or sneeze/laugh-peed during this pregnancy, so I wonder how I'll know if my water breaks... I really find it strange that it feels like peeing given that it comes out a completely different place . Also, with people's description of contractions as versions of menstrual cramps or bowel pain, I've been wondering how I'll know it's a contraction... Although, something tells me that when the time comes I'll know.

 

[Skippy123]

umm, something no one ever told me is that contractions feel like they are happening in 2 places. and the last spot makes you feel like you got to poop! I never pooped during contractions but I hear lots of women did.

water breaking: well my water broke when I went into labor approx 10 weeks early and it is clear and you can't tell if you are peeing or not? I could tell once I had lots of water.

Hope all you lovely preggos are well!!!

 

[bubbly1126]

mayerling, trust me, you'll know when it's a real contraction! I can't tell you what to look out for as I wholeheartedly believe that it's a different feeling for everyone but you WILL know.

The dr's had to break my water. It didn't feel like I was peeing at all. It just felt like I had liquid gushing out of me. And regarding peeing/tinkling when sneezing, etc, thankfully I have never experienced that.

 

[choro72]

Missy, I was 39W1D. Really, I shouldn't have gone to the hospital!

Steph, did anyone ask? I got a lot of "when are you due?" towards the end of my pregnancy!

Mayerling, PetitPoire, AMC, It was fairly obvious that I was leaking amniotic fluid, but I still wasn't 100% sure. You're lucky that you don't pee during your pregnancy! I leaked pee whenever I stood up, sneezed, shifted...And I was doing kegels everyday! From my experience, the amniotic fluid didn't stop throughout the labor. The initial gush was like a waterfall, but after that I only felt it when I stood up, etc.
Another thing was blood. My pad was tinged with blood throughout my labor. I'm not sure how common this is, because at the end the midwife told me I lost more blood than usual.
Sorry for being so long, but my experience is that I wasn't 100% sure myself which was why I ended up at the hospital so early.

Mayerling, contractions WERE like upset fluid #2! Except that it was more concentrated on my lower middle abdomen, where as #2 is around my lower left where the..um..action is. Also more intense and frequent.
Also during the contractions I had a serious urge to poop. Literally poop. I wanted to tear off the monitor and hide in the bathroom from embarrassment. When I told the nurse she said that it's a sign that my labor was progressing, although I was only 4cm at that time...I may have pooped during labor, but nobody said anything and I'm not going to ask.
On the other hand, I read about another woman's experience where she thought that she was having leaky #2. She pushed so hard on the toilet that she broke her water!

Buttons, wow, how was the universe able collect so many judgmental people at once? So sorry about your experience.

Thanks everyone for your comments! Shinobu is his first name but my mom calls him "laptop" because he's always on my lap instead of my actual laptop

 

[PetitiePoire]

Steph- I'm curious if anyone asked too! Hehe. I always want to say "oh, yesterday" to scare people... Especially those that ask if I'm expecting twins!

Choro- thanks for the waters breaking info! I am terrifying of pooping during labor. I guess it's good that they make you use a suppository when youre admitted. I'm terrified of that also!

Buttons- I cannot believe you've encountered so many people policing you! Yikes. I am terribly grumpy some days and I would not handle that well!


AFM- 39w4d! I cannot get my mind off of labor. I keep waiting and hoping it will start. Grrr. DH and I saw What To Expect last night. I really enjoyed it because I could really relate to Elizabeth Banks' character's emotions (luckily not so much her preggo side effects). It was a cute movie and it also made me think of Bellamezzo regarding the Ethiopian adoption- I had to hold back tears when I thought about it being her and her DH. So sweet.

 

[mayerling]

Steph and Petite, how are you holding up? Does it feel like it might happen soon?

Petite, I'm terrified about pooping during labour too! I'm extremely private about bathroom-related issues (can't go if people might hear, etc.) and the thought of going in front of everyone terrifies me . Thankfully, here they have a policy of giving enemas as soon as they admit you so I'm hoping there won't be anything left in my system. In the UK, they don't and they feed you during labour so "accidents" are fairly common.

LC, Skippy, and Choro, thanks for the descriptions of what it's like to have waters break and what contractions are like.

Buttons, I'm sorry you keep having to deal with a bunch of annoying issues.

AFM, 37+4 today and I generally feel fine. The only new thing is that whenever I get Braxton Hicks, which is fairly often, I experience pains resembling menstrual cramps. It's new for me because my BH had been painless up to this point. I'm hoping it's a sign that things are progressing. I'll tell the doctor at my weekly appointment and see what she says. Did I tell you that at my 37w appointment she said the baby was about 2700 grams ?

 

[mayerling]

Should I perceive this silence as an indication that Steph and/or Petite have had their babies?

 

[stephbolt]

Should I perceive this silence as an indication that Steph and/or Petite have had their babies?

I can't speak for PP but not for me! Three hours of yardwork yesterday did nothing to move things along. Have my weekly appt tomorrow so we'll see if there's any update after that...

 

[monkeyprincess]

Steph, ha ha, I was wondering the same thing as Mayerling. Take heart that it can't be too much longer now!

Hope everyone else is holding up well! Has anyone read Exploiting my Baby by Teresa Strasser? I read it over the weekend, and it was pretty funny, and I could relate a little too much to her pregnancy neuroticism!

AFM, nothing new, except I'm getting quite a belly and wondering how in the world I'm going to be able to accomodate 3.5 more months of growth. Seriously, for those of you farther along, does your belly keep growing exponentially, or does it slow down and just fill out and lengthen at some point? I'm scared! We started looking at cribs this weekend, but quickly got overwhelmed. We're not that picky, we just want a safe, white crib. I guess I'll move to online reviews. Oh, and I was reclining on the couch this weekend and felt a couple of the strongest kicks yet, so I had DH try to feel it, and the little man obliged and kicked a few more times. So amazing!

 

[amc80]

MP- I used to wonder the same thing. For me, it tends to spend a few weeks lengthening and filling out, then one day will just pop out more...then repeat.

I'm not sure if I'm supposed to post links to videos, but here's my weekly progression pics. Just replace the (dot) with a ".".

http://www.youtube(dot)com/watch?v=u7Xs6lBo_GY&feature=youtu.be

 

[monkeyprincess]

Amc, cool, thanks. I'll check it out. Here's my latest pic from yesterday at 24w2d. And honestly, this one almost minimizes my bump because it's not a maternity top!