Calling all the Pregnant PS''ers

[iwannaprettyone]

Robbie...HOW CUTE ARE YOU!! Wow you look amazing, getting close.

 

[Mandarine]

Robbie, you have the cutest belly!!!!!!!! so, so cute!!

Peony Good to see the little ones growing!!!!!!!!

. It is crazy how fast they grow!
Ebree Thanks for posting that link!



We''ve got friends in town and the girl is also pregnant (1 day apart but with a singleton)...I feel so HUGE next to her!!!, she has zero belly!. I guess it does make a difference having two in there...and I guess everyone grows different anyway!

I hope everyone is having a great Friday! I''m not posting a belly pic since I already showed you guys my pic this week!

 

[Pandora II]

Hi All,

Back from the midwife and...

She''s dropped and is now at -2 station. Hooray!

Sadly, it seems like she''s turning posterior which is not what I wanted to hear - the midwife got another one to come in and have a feel as well as they were having problems identifying all the knees, feet and elbows that seem to be sticking out everywhere. The heartbeat was where I thought it should be so, with any luck she might swivel back a bit. So, now I''ve got to spend as much time on my hands and knees as I can apparently...

Glucose came back normal, so that ruled out the GD - so she''s just fat basically... however my iron levels were down to 7.1 from 8.1, so that wasn''t so good although it explains why I am so tired at the moment.

The midwife was really nice (I''ve seen her a few times before) and we went through all the choices I could make in advance for my birth plan, and all the details about when I should go to the hospital: if waters break, if there is any red bleeding, when contractions are around 30 seconds long and every 3 minutes or so etc.

Apparently I ''could'' have a water birth if I wanted, but I would have to have an interview with the matron on the Home from Home unit to see if they would accept me. As I reckon that an epidural is likely to be high on my list of desirables, and you have to be in the Hospital Birth Centre for that I decided to just stick with the original plan. Also the other huge plus of being on the Home from Home is that you stay there till you go home and there''s a bed for your DH in there. As I''m in for a week I wouldn''t get that and would have to go to Post-Natal whatever, so frankly I can''t be bothered with all the hassle...

It was a really useful appointment though and the midwife said she really hoped that she got me as her patient when I went into labour which was very sweet of her (there are 7 of them in the team), she''s one of my two favourites so that would be good.

Robbie - I have a belly button piercing as well and they do look a bit odd (dread to think what it will look like after the birth!) and so far no stretchmarks at all, which I''m really suprised about as genetically I should have got them by now.

Sorry you are so uncomfortable - I think it does seem to come in patches and the growth spurts can really take their toll on you! Cute photo though!

Mela - Congrats on 38 weeks. I have a feeling that Himer may just arrive before Daisy (put me down for a boy for you by the way)...

 

[nycbkgirl]

robbie- wowza u lookin amazin mama!!! i cant believe u are almost popping!

mela- yay 38wks!

 

[mela lu]

Oh Pandora - great update! I'm happy to hear that you're -2. Did she do an internal? My Middie doesn't do them until 40 weeks! I know that I'm LOW though...as I've been having very deep, very painful pressure on my cervix for the last 3 days. I wonder how long this can go on for?

I think sticking to your original plan is a good one. Can't wait for Daisy to come so we can meet her! YEY Pandora!!! Can you believe we're here? tee hee.

Today I hiked for 1.5 hours in our massive city park, and then weeded the garden. This is also known as "pulling a Blen". haha. I'm hoping that all this fresh air and excersize, combined with the full moon tomorrow, will induce me

.

I was born on Mother's Day and hope Himer will continue the tradition

 

[Pandora II]

Date: 5/8/2009 5:22:28 PM
Author: mela lu
Oh Pandora - great update! I'm happy to hear that you're -2. Did she do an internal? My Middie doesn't do them until 40 weeks! I know that I'm LOW though...as I've been having very deep, very painful pressure on my cervix for the last 3 days. I wonder how long this can go on for?

I think sticking to your original plan is a good one. Can't wait for Daisy to come so we can meet her! YEY Pandora!!! Can you believe we're here? tee hee.

Today I hiked for 1.5 hours in our massive city park, and then weeded the garden. This is also known as 'pulling a Blen'. haha. I'm hoping that all this fresh air and excersize, combined with the full moon tomorrow, will induce me

.

I was born on Mother's Day and hope Himer will continue the tradition

They don't do internals here until you show up in active labour (or your waters have broken) or until 41 weeks when they will do a membrane sweep. The theory is that knowing how dilated/effaced you are doesn't necessarily make much difference to when the baby arrives - you can have no dilation or effacement at lunchtime and then go into labour that night, and you can also wander around for weeks 3cm dilated - and the more things you poke up someone's hoo haa, the more risk of infection there is. (Considering how long it takes me to put my clothes on, and how painful it can be (socks are the worst) I'm pretty happy about it!)

I hear you on the painful pressure thing - I also get pain down the inside of my thighs when I'm walking around. The worst is when she decides to twist her head back and forth - ouch in the extreme - although the midwives said it was a sign that she was trying to get as low and as comfortable a position as possible.

Does anyone else think that being head-down for weeks on end sounds like a very uncomfortable way to lie?

Mela, I cannot believe that you weeded the garden - how do you do it? Standing up long enough to wash the dishes pretty much finishes me... although I am trying to do lots of walking in the hope of getting her as low as possible.

I can't quite believe how close we are to the end - I told the midwife I'd changed my mind and decided I wasn't ready for a baby quite yet

I'd prefer her to be as close to her due date as possible - the 18th would be really nice - but I'd much prefer a little Taurus to a little Gemini so before the 22nd would make me very happy!

DH is back on Sunday thank goodness - I hadn't realised quite how stressed I'd be about him being away, keep having dreams that I go into labour on my own - although I must admit he's been really good and calls me every couple of hours. He's also answered his phone everytime I've called him (normally I have to ring 10 times, leave rude message about how if I was hit by a car/ kidnapped/ stalked by some rapist he would be the LAST person on earth I would call because I'd be dead before he picked up

)

I'm so excited to see if you have a Luna or a Romeo - my best friend in Italy named her daughter Luna, it's so pretty!

Pandora
38 weeks 4 days...

 

[Courtneylub]

Hooray for being -2 station, Pandora! Excellent news. I''m curious to see if you''re dilated though. I wish they would check ya!

Re: the belly piercing - mine looked really RED and stretched out while pregnant and now I''m hoping the redness goes away. I also still see that line under my belly button (forget what it''s called), but it''s really light. I hardly noticed it while pregnant. I purchased that post partum belly bandit, but I''ve only worn it 2 days (just could get it to fit yesterday) and can only stand it for about 4-5 hours. It''s impossible to sleep in right now. Maybe I''ll post a belly pic like Blen did.

 

[mia1181]

Oooh Courtney I''d love to see a belly pic. I loved that Blen posted one, since I have always been curious about that. Hope Alila is still doing well, she''s such a cutie!

I am also curious about the belly piercing because I have one I am wondering when it will be time to take it out. Do you ladies recommend I take it out before even TTC? I know the hole will probably always be there, and a scar will to, but the skin seems to heal quickly. I will be sad to see it go, not because I think it makes me look hot, sexy, young, or anything like that, but I have a super deep innie and I like that the ring hides it.

 

[Pandora II]

Date: 5/8/2009 10:00:48 PM
Author: Courtneylub
Hooray for being -2 station, Pandora! Excellent news. I''m curious to see if you''re dilated though. I wish they would check ya!

Re: the belly piercing - mine looked really RED and stretched out while pregnant and now I''m hoping the redness goes away. I also still see that line under my belly button (forget what it''s called), but it''s really light. I hardly noticed it while pregnant. I purchased that post partum belly bandit, but I''ve only worn it 2 days (just could get it to fit yesterday) and can only stand it for about 4-5 hours. It''s impossible to sleep in right now. Maybe I''ll post a belly pic like Blen did.

LOL - part of me is kind of curious too... although if it was 2cm or so, I''d be in a really bad state about DH being so far away at the moment.

I''ve not got much in the way of a linea nigra either - I can''t see any real sign below my belly button, and above it''s very pale - kind of very milky coffee colour - but I have very pale skin and it tends to be darker if your normal skin tone is dark. It also didn''t appear in me until around 22 weeks. My OB friend showed me her line at 7 weeks and it was incredibly dark already, I was really suprised - she has olive skin tones so I presumed it would be darker than mine, but not that early or that dark!

How does the belly bandit work? I''m reckoning on just carrying on wearing the bandage I got from the physios and then going back into the orthopaedic corsets I have (even though my surgeon would have a fit as they''re not good in terms of making your own muscles work...)

At the moment, my core abdominals are still really, really strong - I suppose 4 years of doing them and kegels daily has had some results - but I wonder if labour will be what wrecks them? Anyone know if it''s pregancy or labour that does the damage?

ETA: By core abdominals, I mean the really deep abdominal muscles that support your spine - not the sort you get from doing sit-ups or that give you a six pack. I am definitely lacking in that department!

 

[Pandora II]

Date: 5/8/2009 10:34:58 PM
Author: mia1181
Oooh Courtney I''d love to see a belly pic. I loved that Blen posted one, since I have always been curious about that. Hope Alila is still doing well, she''s such a cutie!

I am also curious about the belly piercing because I have one I am wondering when it will be time to take it out. Do you ladies recommend I take it out before even TTC? I know the hole will probably always be there, and a scar will to, but the skin seems to heal quickly. I will be sad to see it go, not because I think it makes me look hot, sexy, young, or anything like that, but I have a super deep innie and I like that the ring hides it.

I took mine out before TTC. The hole hasn''t close over at all, but the skin has stretched so much I would say it''s about a centimetre wide now. I also ''had'' a very deep innie - that is now flat as a pancake!

How long you could wear it for when pg I think would depend on you. My belly button started to flatten at 14 weeks, but even before then my skin was starting to feel very sensitive. The top half of my bump is incredibly sensitive - even touching it lightly feels like burning. It''s a thing called ''allodynia'' and is just the nerves being super-sensitised in that area rather than anything wrong, but it''s hard enough having clothes on it, let alone pieces of metal.

I don''t know if I''ll put the ring back or not - I had it done when I was in Italy, early 20''s and wearing little crop tops a lot (and had a nice fake tan). Now that I am nearly 37 and live in a country where it''s too blooming cold for crop tops, have gone back to my lovely grey English skin-tone and it''s doubtful that my stomach is ever going to look good enough to put on display again, I''m not so sure...

 

[phoenixgirl]

My 16 week appointment went well. They found the heartbeat right away this time (in the 150s) and the technician said that the weird thumps were the baby moving. She thinks I''ll feel it move soon.

The nurse told me that having gained 4 pounds was good, and I was trying to figure out what she was talking about. Then I realized that''s how much I''ve gained since my first appointment at 9.5 weeks. She doesn''t know I gained 7 in the "whoa, I''m newly pregnant and ravenous" and the "ew, I feel like throwing up, all I can eat is sausage" phases before that! But I''m just figuring my body wanted to be 124, not 117, to make a healthy baby and that my body was playing catch-up. I''m still ten pounds under what I weighed three years ago before I got in shape (I''m sure we''ll surpass that mark before this is all said and done though!).

So I''m waiting for the results of the triple screen now and looking forward to finding out what we''re having on June 3!

Do any other soon to be first time mothers have Mothers'' Day plans? DH asked me what I wanted to do, so I said a nice outdoor lunch at our favorite French brasserie.

 

[Pandora II]

Found this online contraction timer tool that might be useful...

http://www.contractionmaster.com/index.html

Great news on the appointment Phoenix!

Is Mother''s Day different from Mothering Sunday in the USA?

We''ve never celebrated it in my family - or DH''s for that matter, but those that do over here do so on Mothering Sunday.

 

[Courtneylub]

Pandora, easier said than done, but 2cm is nothing to freak over. It would be exciting! You could be 2cm for a few weeks. I wouldn''t think labor has any effect on the ab muscles, but pregnany sure does. The belly bandit is just this wide sized band that you put around your waist and it keeps everything in. Without it, it''s real easy to just slouch over and have the tummy hang down. It''s very soft at first. Regardless of muscles I am sure.

I took my belly ring out a few years ago, but still have the open holes.

I am already sick of being a milk factory. I feel like I''m not motherly enough to handle it.

I feel this way sometimes and then other times I feel really put together. I wish I felt the latter ALL the time.

 

[Pandora II]

OMG, I just got a call from DH who is at the wedding that I had been debating going to a while back. He passed the phone to my friend so I could say congratulations and she just told me what must be up there amongst worst nightmare scenarios.

She and her now husband had been planning to start TTC after the wedding, but thinking it was impossible to get preggo straight off BCP, they threw caution to the wind and she got KU the first month. So she's 10 weeks today.

As she was about to leave for the church at 1pm this afternoon, she felt a bit wet and so told her dad to wait while she went to the bathroom. Anyway, she's started bleeding pretty badly poor girl - not what you want when you are wearing a big white dress, your wedding starts in 15 minutes and you are 10 weeks pg with a very much wanted baby.

She said she hadn't got any cramps or pain, but it was bright red and fairly heavy - but seems to have slowed down over the afternoon. They leave for the USA on Monday for their honeymoon, so she's hoping that they can get a scan tomorrow and check that everything is okay. (The first scan you get here is the NT scan at 12 weeks so they haven't had one or heard the heartbeat yet). I spoke to my OB friend (who is also a friend of hers and also pregnant but 5 weeks ahead) and she's going to be on 24/7 phone standby in case she needs someone to talk to - and said as long as there wasn't pain and cramping it was hopeful.

What a complete nightmare - I am so sorry for both of them and just hope that everything looks okay tomorrow - and that they can actually get a scan on a Sunday. Dust would be very welcome!

 

[VRBeauty]

Dust outgoing for your friend -- and for you and the soon-to-be-out kid!

 

[Pandora II]

Geez, I just rang round all the hospitals in that city (2nd biggest in the UK), only two have a Maternity Unit and none of them can do a scan or have an EPU open on a Sunday and none of them would see her in a Maternity Unit unless she was over 16 weeks.

Basically the only option is to go to A&E (ER) where they will tell her to come back on Monday as they have nothing available on a weekend.

So her options are either to leave for her honeymoon with her fingers crossed that everything is okay or to cancel the honeymoon... I don''t know what I would do in that situation.

She only asked me last week about getting a scan before she left as she is somewhat stressy by nature and I gave her the name and details of the hospital here in London that will do early viability scans, and at the last minute they decided not to do it...

 

[mia1181]

OMG Pandora, I am so sorry for your friend. Hopefully the baby will be fine. Could she go to the ER after the wedding or tomorrow? It''s so amazing the differences between the way we do things here in USA, versus there. I mostly like a lot of what you tell us about the way they do it in the UK, but that sucks that she would have to wait to see if her baby is okay.

Courtney- Breastfeeding isn''t easy, so try not to beat yourself up for not loving it all the time. It''s a lot of work and I''m sure it must be overwhelming at times to be your babies only means of nourishment. Remember that whether or not you breastfeed, does not at all indicate how "motherly" you are. Good mommies take care of themselves too, it isn''t all about sacrificing for the baby. So make sure you are getting help from DH and are able to have some time for yourself between feedings. I''ll be thinking of you. Happy Mother''s Day, I''m sure you are a wonderful mommy!

Thanks for telling me about your naval piercings guys. I think what I am hearing is that I don''t need to make a quick decision as to when to tak it out because I will be stuck with a scar and hole either way.

It is odd that the hole is still there because any time I have ever taken mine out for a day, it seems like the skin has already closed up and I need to poke it back through again. But maybe it isn''t actually closed but just narrowed.

 

[Steel]

Pandora: Positive calming sticky thoughts to your friend. She must be very stressed

.

 

[Courtneylub]

Mia, I didn''t mean that I thought breastfeeding=motherly. I just meant that I don''t love it all the time and I wish I felt "together" more often.

 

[mrssalvo]

Date: 5/9/2009 4:46:30 PM
Author: Courtneylub
Mia, I didn''t mean that I thought breastfeeding=motherly. I just meant that I don''t love it all the time and I wish I felt ''together'' more often.

Courtney, I''m getting ready to wean my 3rd kid . i can honestly say that I never really loved it with any of them. I looked forward to weaning every time. It really was one of the hardest things I''ve ever done. especially with my first when I had no clue what I was doing. hang it there, it will get easier at least.

 

[Pandora II]

Result.... she''ll need to come back to London, but my hospital appears to be the only one in Britain with a 24/7 EPU and a sonographer on duty tomorrow. They told me to tell her to call them first to check the sonographer is definitely there, but if coming back down is an option then they will see her straight away.

I''ve also found the name of a private OB who will do weekend emergency scans - at a fairly substantial fee, but a lot less than they would probably lose by cancelling the honeymoon.

No wonder I''ve been so impressed with the care I''ve had so far - I seem to have struck the jackpot...

Mia, they would see her at ER, but all they will do, after waiting for a gazillion hours, is tell her to come back on Monday to see the gynae as they have no sonographer on duty and there is nothing they can do at 10 weeks anyway...

 

[phoenixgirl]

Pandora, that''s so awful for your friend. Ugh. I''m glad she has someone knowledgeable who is not busy being at the wedding to do all this legwork for her. I hope everything turns out ok.

 

[mela lu]

Wow Pandora - that is absolutely SCARY! I really hope that it was just ''wedding stress'' causing the spotting/bleeding and that her bean is ok. I had bleeding from week 13 - 16 (i think) and it turned out to be just that subcrionic hematoma. Praying it''s something similar for her...dusting!

 

[icekid]

Date: 5/9/2009 8:06:06 PM
Author: phoenixgirl
Pandora, that''s so awful for your friend. Ugh. I''m glad she has someone knowledgeable who is not busy being at the wedding to do all this legwork for her. I hope everything turns out ok.

Seriously, I can''t imagine anything more stressful. Poor girl! Though so sweet of you to find out what she needs to do. Dust to you two over in the UK!!

 

[Courtneylub]

Pandora, I hope your friend is ok and I''m glad you''re able to help her find someone to check it out.

Here''s my post belly pic. Notice the faint line and the redness where the belly ring holes are. I had 2 piercings. The lower hole was when I had a hoop and the upper hole is from the barbell ring. I really hope that redness fades.

 

[Courtneylub]

And from the side. Week and a half post baby.

 

[Jas12]

Courtney--2 things.
first--you will totally be one of those women who* just* has to wait out the uterus shrinkage after baby. Lucky gal. I think my tummy look similar a week PP but i was much, much more giggly everywhere else

. I also had a red and stretched out belly button where my piercing was located. My belly button in general was really stretched from week 40-42 and i thought it was going to be extra lrg, crater-like forever! It''s normal now.
Second--like MrsS. i like but don''t really LOVE BFing but i am going on 14 mos now. I find it annoying to have to worry about being too far b/c i am a food source and i don''t feel super-connected or anything while i am nursing, but the way i looked at it was it was only one year of my life and kinda what i signed up for (please don''t interpret that as meaning ''it''s the only way to feed a child'' but rather, whether it be cleaning bottles and mixing formula, or nursing for long periods--it''s all work in the beginning, not really fun, but it passes very quickly!)

 

[Sabine]

Oh my Pandora, I''m hoping your friend is able to come to London to the one available u/s place and sending good thoughts that everything is okay. That really is a nightmare situation!

Courtney, thanks for posting the pic! I definitely think you will have you body back in no time! I have a feeling I''m going to feel similarly about bfing...not really enjoy it, but do it nonetheless. I give you major props for keeping with it, and I''m sure it will only get easier.

I''ve got 2 things to share/ask today...first, definitely don''t forget to wear your sunscreen if you go outside for any period of time, even if it is cloudy! I knew pregnancy made skin more likely to burn, but I didn''t really think too much about it. I''m Italian, and I''ve never really had a bad sunburn since I tan so easily although I do wear sunburn if I''m at the pool or beach. Well yesterday, I sat outside from 10-1:30 for a yard sale, and although it was cloudy 90% of the time, I came back in with my chest and arms red! It''s not painful, but it just took me by such surprise!

Second, I might have to ask this in the mommy thread, but when you''re in the hospital, after the night of delivery, do you sleep in both a nursing sleep bra AND some sort of nursing friendly pajamas? I know it''s ridiculously early for me to think about this, but we have a Motherhood Outlet here, and there are NO Motherhoods in the area we''re moving to soon. I plan on getting one nursing sleep bra and a nursing tank before my milk comes in...but I''m having trouble figuring out what I''ll actually want in the hospital. The sleep bras are to hold pads so you don''t leak, right? If so, I can''t imagine needing actual nursing pj''s, I think just wearing a regular teeshirt or tank top would be fine, right? Would nursing pj''s be more practical after you stop leaking and don''t really need the sleep bra anymore, or am I just confused...?

 

[indypitty]

Quick question for you ladies ~ hopefully someone can help me!

I have an appointment with my doctor on Thursday, and I will be 10 weeks at that time. At my last appointment, she told me at this next one she would give me the 1-hour glucose test. I didn''t think much of it at the time, but as I''ve read up about it I see it''s usually done much later at 26 - 28 weeks, UNLESS you are overweight or are high-risk for developing gestational diabetes.

Well, I am not overweight and she told me I was considered to be having a low-risk pregnancy. Any ideas why I would be tested so early? I will have to call tomorrow...

 

[neatfreak]

Date: 5/10/2009 9:00:40 AM
Author: indypitty
Quick question for you ladies ~ hopefully someone can help me!


I have an appointment with my doctor on Thursday, and I will be 10 weeks at that time. At my last appointment, she told me at this next one she would give me the 1-hour glucose test. I didn''t think much of it at the time, but as I''ve read up about it I see it''s usually done much later at 26 - 28 weeks, UNLESS you are overweight or are high-risk for developing gestational diabetes.


Well, I am not overweight and she told me I was considered to be having a low-risk pregnancy. Any ideas why I would be tested so early? I will have to call tomorrow...

Yeah...that''s really really bizarre. Even if you are high risk they don''t do it that early...

Maybe a slip of the tongue.