August 2008 mommies | 3nd trimester - our babies are arriving!

[August2008Moms]

Almost there ladies!



http://i4.photobucket.com/albums/y137/mrs_natalie/boy111.gif
Annette, Aletheia, Red'sGirl, Jeninef, Lizzy, cayso

http://i4.photobucket.com/albums/y137/mrs_natalie/girl111.gif
alootikki, Babywish, Chocolatecake, LoveandLaw, sdmama2be, ez2luv (x2), MrsBrownie, MMH, Baxter78, strawberry4

http://i4.photobucket.com/albums/y137/mrs_natalie/sur111.gif
chiclady815, MSH, Sue

http://i4.photobucket.com/albums/y137/mrs_natalie/teamyellow.gif



To join please post the following:

CC Name:
Me: Name, age
DH: Name, age
Married:
TTC Date:
BFP Date:
EDD:
Gender Prediction:
Finding out the gender?
Other children:



Please post updates in red for ease of finding! If we can't see it, we can't add it.

Your Threadmistresses are: MSH and cayso. Please PM us with us issues regarding the thread.

When posting, please put how far along you are in the subject line.

Links to previous threads:
1st
trimster (http://www.constantchatter.com/forum/showthread.php?t=38336)
2nd trimster (http://www.constantchatter.com/forum/showthread.php?t=39785)

[August2008Moms]

The mommies-to-be

Aletheia - Repeat Offender
me: Aletheia, 30
DH: Dr. Ramsey, 31
Married:8/07/04
TTC Date: mmmmm... N/A
BFP Date:12/18/2007
EDD: 8/21/2008
Gender Prediction: Boy
Finding out the gender? It's a BOY!
Other children: Oliver, b. 8/26/06

alootikki
Finding out the gender? It's a GIRL!

Annette
Me: Annette, 30
DH: Mike, 30
Married: 11/2001
TTC Date: 10/06
BFP Date: 12/15
EDD: 8/26/08
Gender Prediction: Girl
Finding out the gender? It's a BOY!
Other children: Our 2 angel babies

Babywish - Repeat Offender
Me: 35
DH: 39
Married: 9/19/04
TTC Date: 11/07
BFP Date: 12/21/07
EDD: 08/20/08
Gender Prediction: Girl
Gender? It's a GIRL!
Other children: Marc 9/02/06

Baxter78
Me: 29
DH: 29
Married: 7-27-02
TTC Date: September 2007
BFP Date: 12-19-07 (confirmed by doctor 12-26-07)
EDD: 8-30-08
Gender Prediction: Everyone, including me, has a feeling that is a girl, but I would be happy with either sex
Finding out the gender? It's a GIRL!
Other children: 2 Brussels Griffon dogs: Baxter & Captain Jack

Cayso
Me: Kristin, 36
DH: Steve, 39
Married: 9.4.04
TTC Date: ? (regulating after going off pill took a while....) 12.07
BFP Date: 12.25.07
EDD: 8.30.08
Gender Prediction: BOY, I *so* think boy!
Finding out the gender? It's a BOY!
Other children: Tasha, St. Bernard and Rusty, Greyhound

chiclady815
Me: Elizabeth ~ 27
DH: Matt ~ 29 (almost 30)
Married: 8.13.05
TTC Date: Went off the pill in late October to start actively trying in early 2008. Surprise!
BFP Date: 12.21.07
EDD: 8.30.2008
Gender Prediction: for some reason, I'm feeling girl
Finding out the gender? It's a SURPRISE
Other children: None

Chocolatecake
Me: G, 36
DH: J, 30 (Yes, I so robbed the cradle! )
Married:9/4/04
TTC Date:9/4/04
BFP Date:11/26/07
EDD:8/2/08
Gender Prediction: Boy, but I would be happy with either
Finding out the gender? IT'S A GIRL
Other children: 4 angels, Furbaby- Kennedy, the cutest Maltese alive

ez2luv - Repeat Offender
Me: Tammi, 29
DH: Trevor, 29
Married: Sept 29, 01
TTC Date: October, 07
BFP Date: December 14, 07
EDD: August 16, 08 (Not confirmed yet)
Gender Prediction: Hmmm...not sure yet...
Finding out the Gender: It's a GIRL and another GIRL!
Other Children: DD, Isabelle: Born Sept 18, 04

Jeninef - Repeat Offender
Me: 31
DH: 32
Married: 01.31.04
TTC Date: 10.07
BFP Date: 12.14.07
EDD: 08.22.08
Gender Prediction: I have no idea.
Finding out the gender? It's a BOY!
Other children: DS, 02.08.06

lindengraphics
Me: Name, age: Lindsay, 24
DH: Name, age: Thomas, 25
Married: September 22nd, 2007
TTC Date: Early November, 2007
BFP Date: December 16th, 2007
EDD: August 23rd, 2008
Gender Prediction: Originally thought we were having a boy, but...
Finding out the gender? It's a GIRL!
Other children: This is our first.

Lizzy
Me: Liz, 26
DH: 26
Married: 8/10/02
TTC Date: 9/07
BFP Date: 12/07
EDD: 8/17/08
Gender Prediction: My husband thinks boy
Finding out the gender? It's a BOY!
Other children: No

LoveandLaw - Repeat Offender
Me: 35
DH: 35
Married: 11/09/02
TTC Date: 10/07
BFP Date: 12/26/07
EDD: 08/26/08
Gender Prediction: Boy
Gender? It's a GIRL!
Other children: Christina 10/7/05

MMH - Repeat Offender
Me: 30
DH: 32
Married:8.16.03
TTC Date: 2.4.07
BFP Date: 12.1.07
EDD: 8.11.08
Gender Prediction:
Finding out the gender? It's a GIRL!
Other children: DD, 2.4.06

MrsBrownie - Repeat Offender
Me: Kim ~ 30
DH: Aaron ~ 30
Married: 09.03.04
TTC Date: March 2008 (oops!)
BFP Date: 12.17.07
EDD: 08.23.08
Gender Prediction: I have ABSOLUTELY no idea
Finding out the gender? It's a GIRL!
Other children: DS ~ Ethan ~ 06.10.06

MSH - Repeat Offender
Me: 26
DH: 26
Married: 2003
TTC Date: May 2007
BFP Date: 11.17.07
EDD: I think, Aug 2 but it has not been confirmed
Gender Prediction: boy
Finding out the gender? It's a SURPRISE
Other children: DS, 2006

Red's Girl - Repeat Offender
Me: Darrien, 41
DH: Robert, 40
Married: October 13, 2002
TTC: June 07
BFP: November 29, 2007
EDD: August 6, 2008
Gender: It's a BOY!
Other Children: Arrena, Aug. 7, 2005

sdmama2be - Repeat Offender
Me: 33
DH: 35
Married: July 20, 2002
TTC Date: We weren't
BFP Date: December 2
EDD: Aug 12, 2008
Gender Prediction: Everyone, thinks I am having a boy because of how differentlly I am carrying from DD BUT.....
Finding out the gender? It's a GIRL!
Other children: Kaelyn 10/28/2005

strawberry4
Finding out the gender? It's a GIRL!

Sue
Me: Sue, 35
DH: J, 38
Married:8/10/02
TTC Date:October 2007
BFP Date:12/4/2007
EDD: 8/14/2008 (sticking with the MW's date, just makes things easier)
Gender Prediction: nope
Finding out the gender? It's a SURPRISE
Other children:3 dogs, 3 cats

[August2008Moms]

by due date

July
29
30
31 - MSH

August
1
2 - Chocolatecake
3
4
5
6 - Red'sGirl
7
8
9
10
11 - MMH
12 - sdmama2be
13
14 - Sue
15
16 - ez2luv
17 - Lizzy
18
19
20 - Babywish
21 - Aletheia
22 - Jeninef
23 - MrsBrownie, lindengraphics
24
25
26 - Annette, LoveandLaw
27
28
29
30 - Baxter78, chiclady815, Cayso
31

September
1
2
3

[August2008Moms]

Gender predictions

Boy
Aletheia, Chocolatecake, MSH, LoveandLaw, Lizzy, Cayso, sdmama2be, lindengraphics

Girl
Annette, chiclady815, Babywish, Baxter78

None
ez2luv, MMH, Jeninef, MrsBrownie, Sue

[August2008Moms]

Appointments and ultrasounds

December
6 - MSH (Dr appt, bloodwork)
11 - JMD (BETA)
13 - Sue (MW appt.)
17 - strawberry4 (BETA)
19 - Red'sGirl (u/s)
20 - Elenna, MMH (OB appt.)
28 - ez2luv

January
2 - Off2skl, Sue, Abirney (u/s, RE), MMH (u/s)
3 - ieducate (perinatal), Jeninef (NP)
7 - Lizard
9 - MSH (MW appt), Lizard
14 - Annette
30 - MSH (MW appt)
31 - fats

February
7 - Sue (MW appt)
11 - Annette, MrsBrownie (MW, 2nd u/s)
13 - Red'sGirl
14 - Jeninef (Dr appt)
15 - ez2luv
18 - chiclady815
20 - Chocolatecake
26 - Babywish
27 - MSH (MW), Red'sGirl

March
6 - Sue
10 - Chocolatecake (BIG u/s), Annette, MrsBrownie (MW)
12 - MSH (BIG u/s)
14 - Red'sGirl (BIG u/s), ez2luv
17 - sdmama2be (BIG u/s)
18 - Baxter78 (OB appt)
27 - MMH (BIG u/s)
28 - MrsBrownie (u/s)

April
1 - jeninef (BIG u/s), Sue (BIG u/s)
2 - Sue (MW appt), ez2luv (BIG u/s), MSH (MW appt)
3 - Baxter (u/s)
4 - cayso
10 - Annette (BIG u/s), jeninef (NP appt)
11 - ez2luv
17 - Chocolatecake (appt)
29 - MSH (MW appt)
30 - Sue (MW appt)

May
2 - Chocolatecake (appt), ez2luv (OB appt)
7 - Red's Girl (appt)
8 - Jeninef (appt)
11 - Baxter78 (appt)
22 - MMH (appt)

June
3 - Cayso (appt)
7 - Baxter's Baby Shower, Cayso's Baby Shower
12 - Baxter78 (3D/4D u/s)
22 - ez2luv's shower

July
9 - Jeninef (DR appt)
10 - MSH (MW appt), ez2luv (OB appt and u/s)
11 - Sue (MW appt)
12 - Red's Girl's shower
15 - Sue (u/s)
16 - MSH (MW appt), ez2luv (OB appt), lindengraphics (DR appt), Red's Girl
17 - Cayso (OB appt and u/s)
20 - Red's Girl's shower
23 - Jeninef (DR appt), lindengraphics's shower
30 - lindengraphics (DR appt), jeninef (DR appt)
31 - baxter78 (DR appt), Cayso (DR appt), lindengraphics (DR appt)

[August2008Moms]

Helpful links


Weekly Pregnancy Updates:
American Baby (http://www.americanbaby.com/)* Baby Center (http://www.babycenter.com)* BabyZone (http://babyzone.com/) * iVillage (http://www.ivillage.com/) * StorkNet (http://pregnancyguideonline.com/) * Very Best Baby (http://www.verybestbaby.com)

Tickers:
Baby's First Site (http://www.babysfirstsite.com/) * Baby Gaga (http://www.baby-gaga.com/) * La Femme Bonita (http://lafemmebonita.com/cgi-bin/index.cgi) * Lilypie (http://www.lilypie.com/)* SnugglePie (http://snugglepie.com/)* Ticker Central (http://www.tickercentral.com/) * Ticker Factory (http://www.tickerfactory.com)

Miscellaneous Informative Sites:
American Pregnancy Association (http://www.americanpregnancy.org/) * Baby Names (http://www.babynames.com/) * Baby Net (http://www.babynet.com/)* Safe Fetus (http://www.safefetus.com/)(for a list of safe drugs during pregnancy) * Consumer Reports Report on Car Seat Safety (http://www.consumerreports.org/cro/babies-kids/child-car-booster-seats/car-seats-2-07/overview/0207_seats_ov.htm)

Maternity Shopping Sites:
A Pea In The Pod (http://www.apeainthepod.com) * Baby Style (http://www.babystyle.com) * Belly Basics (http://www.bellybasics.com/) * Bella Materna (http://www.bellamaterna.com/) * Fashion Bug (http://fashionbug.charmingshoppes.com/pagebuilder/HOME) * Gap Maternity (http://www.gap.com) * JC Penney (http://www.jcpenney.com)* Lane Bryant (http://lwww.lanebryant.com) * Mimi Maternity (http://www.mimimaternity.com) * Mom's The Word (http://www.momstheword.com/) * Motherhood Maternity (http://www.motherhood.com) * Old Navy (http://www.oldnavy.com/)* Target (http://www.target.com)

Baby Registries::
Babies 'R Us (http://www.babisrus.com) * Baby Center (http://www.babycenter.com/)* Baby Depot (http://www.burlingtoncoatfactory.com) * BabyStyle (http://www.babystyle.com) * Buy Buy Baby (http://www.buybuybaby.com/)* Sears (http://www.sears.com) * Target (http://www.target.com) * USA Baby (http://www.usababy.com/) * WalMart (http://www.walmart.com/)

Baby Shopping Sites:
Baby Age (http://www.babyage.com) * Baby Ant (http://www.babyant.com/) * Baby Bazaar (http://www.babybazaar.com/) * Baby Box (http://www.babybox.com/) * Baby Center's Store (http://store.babycenter.com/home.do?scid=aff:logo_bnr) * Baby Depot (http://www.burlingtoncoatfactory.com) * Baby Dilly (http://www.babydilly.com/)* Baby Dream (http://www.babydreams.com/)* Babies 'R Us (http://www.babiesrus.com) * BabyStyle (http://www.babystyle.com/default.asp)* Baby Universe (http://www.babyuniverse.com/)* Carousel Designs (http://www.carouseldesigns.com/) * Dimples and Dandelions (http://www.dimplesanddandelions.com/index.asp) * Dreamtime Baby (http://www.dreamtimebaby.com)* Elegant Baby (http://www.elegantbabygifts.com/) * Fisher Price (http://www.fisher-price.com/us/default.asp) * Gap (http://www.gap.com) * Graco (http://www.gracobaby.com)* Gymboree (http://www.gymboree.com)* In The Treetop (http://www.inthetreetop.com/default.aspx) * Land of Nod (http://www.landofnod.com/)* Little Showoffs (http://www.littleshowoffs.com/) * Net Kidswear (http://www.netkidswear.com/) * Nursery Depot (http://www.nurserydepot.com/) * Old Navy (http://www.oldnavy.com)* One of a Kind (http://www.oneofakindkid.com/) * One Step Ahead (http://www.onestepahead.com) * Pokkadots (http://www.pokkadots.com/) * Signature Baby (http://www.signaturebaby.com/) * Target (http://www.target.com) * The Baby Marketplace (http://www.thebabymarketplace.com/) * The Children's Place (http://www.childrensplace.com) * Tutti Bella (http://www.tuttibella.com/) * Wendy Bellissimo (http://www.wendybellissimo.com/) *

Delivery/Birthing Options (OB, Midwives, Doulas, birthcenters, etc.):
American Association of Birth Centers (http://www.birthcenters.org/) * American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists (http://www.acog.org/) * American College of Nurse-Midwives (http://www.acnm.org/) * Childbirth Connection (http://www.childbirthconnection.org/)* Lamaze (http://www.lamaze.org/) * Bradley Birth (http://www.bradleybirth.com/) * Birthing From Within (http://birthingfromwithin.com/)* Birthworks (http://www.birthworks.com/) * HypBirth (http://www.hypbirth.com/)* HypnoBirthing (http://www.hypnobirthing.com/)* Association of Labor Assistants & Childbirth Educators (http://www.alace.org/) * International Childbirth Education Association (http://www.icea.org/) * Waterbirth International (http://www.waterbirth.org/mc/page.do) * DONA International (http://www.dona.org/)

Breastfeeding:
Ameda (http://www.ameda.com/)* Breastfeeding (http://www.breastfeeding.com/)* Boppy (http://www.boppy.com/)* KellyMom (http://www.kellymom.com/)* La Leche League (http://www.lalecheleague.org/) * Maternal Concepts (http://www.maternalconcepts.com/) * Medela (http://www.medela.com/)* Mothering (http://www.mothering.com/)* ProMoM (http://www.promom.org/)* Whisper Wear (http://www.whisperwear.com/)

Formula Feeding:
Bright Beginnings (http://www.brightbeginnings.com/) * Enfamil (http://www.enfamil.com/app/iwp/enfamilHome.do?dm=enf&ls=0)* Similac (http://welcomeaddition.com/productinfo.aspx)

Diapering Info: (some have coupons & contests)
Cloth Diapering (http://www.borntolove.com/index.html) * Huggies (http://www.huggies.com/)* Luvs (http://www.luvs.com/home_new.jsp)* Pampers (http://www.pampers.com/globalsplash/flashlanguagejump.jsp)

Slings:
Rosie Baby (http://www.rosiebaby.com/) * The Hip Hugger (http://thehiphuggeronline.stores.yahoo.net/)* About Babies Inc. (http://aboutbabiesinc.com/) * Maya Wrap (http://www.mayawrap.com/)* New Native Baby (http://www.newnativebaby.com/) * Prenatal Cradle (http://www.prenatalcradle.com/) * Baby Wearer (http://www.thebabywearer.com/)

Cord Blood/Stem Cell Info:
Secureacell (http://www.secureacell.com/)* Viacord (http://www.viacord.com/) * Cord Blood (http://www.cordblood.com/) * Cryobank (http://www.cyrobank.com)* Lifebank USA (http://www.lifebankusa.com) * CorCell (http://www.corcell.com)* Cryo-Cell (http://www.cyro-cell.com)

Invitations/Announcements:
2Peas1Pod (http://www.2peas1pod.com/)* 5StarBaby (http://www.5starbaby.com/)* BabyGrams (http://www.babygrams.com/order/)* Baby J Cards (http://www.babyjcards.com/) * Bella Baby (http://www.bellababy.com/)* Celebration Cottage (http://www.celebrationcottage.com/) * Classic Card (http://www.storkavenue.com/) * inababycarriage (http://www.inababycarriage.com/)* InvitationBox (http://www.invitationbox.com/) * MetroBaby Cards (http://www.metrobabycards.com/) * Mommy's Miracles (http://www.mommysmiracles.com/) * My Gatsby (http://www.mygatsby.com/) * Naptime Cards (http://www.naptimecards.com/) * PhotoStamps (http://www.photo.stamps.com/Store/?source=si10985886) * PurpleStork (http://www.purplestork.com/)* Simply To Impess (http://www.simplytoimpress.com/) * Stork Grams (http://www.shopbirthannouncements.com/)* Tiny Prints (http://www.tinyprints.com/)

Fun Stuff:
Jewel Kids (http://www.jewelkids.com/) * Lifetime Mothers (http://www.lifetimemothers.com/) * ExpectNet (http://www.lifetimemothers.com/)(have friends and family compete in a baby pool!)

[August2008Moms]

Our babies
- coming soon!


Please post the following stats when your baby is born to be added in this section:
Birthday date & time
Weight & measurement stats
Name
Photo
Anything else you'd like to share!

________________________

j*east - DD
Due date: August 4th 2008
Birthdate: July 8th 2008


chocolatecake - DD, Waverly
Due Date: August 2nd 2008
Birthdate: July 16th 2008 8:41AM


MSH - DS, Ronan
Due date: July 31st 2008
Birthdate: July 17th 2008 3:15PM
7 pounds, 7 ounces; 20 inches long
http://i4.photobucket.com/albums/y137/mrs_natalie/DSC_6749.jpg

Sue - DS, Ryan Matthew
Due Date: August 14th 2008
Birthdate: July 24th 2008

http://i6.photobucket.com/albums/y247/misssue23/DSC01101.jpg

ez2luv - DD, Katelyn Elizabeth
Due Date: August 2008
Birthdate: July 25th 2008
5lbs, 7oz
DD, Sophia Danielle
Due Date: August 2008
Birthdate: July 25th 2008
6lbs, 5oz
http://i524.photobucket.com/albums/cc324/tammiroy/b076.jpg

[August2008Moms]

Our babies 2
- coming soon!

Red's Girl - DS, Julian Mitchell
Due Date: August 6th, 2008
Birthdate: August 1st, 2008 2:14PM
8lbs, 13oz; 22 1/2 inches long

http://i20.photobucket.com/albums/b215/redsdeltagirl/Redsboy/Juliansfirstpictures019.jpg

http://i20.photobucket.com/albums/b215/redsdeltagirl/Redsboy/ArrenaBirthday08008.jpg

alootikki - DD
Birthdate: August 8th, 2008
8lbs, 10oz

sdmama2be - DD, Kendyll Stephanie
Due Date: August 12, 2008
Birthdate: August 16, 2008 12:28AM
7lbs, 7oz

LoveandLaw - DD, Alexandra
Due Date: August 26, 2008
Birthdate: August 19, 2008 12:52PM
7lbs, 3oz; 19 1/2 inches long

Jeninef - DS, Logan Michael
Due Date: August 22, 2008
Birthdate: August 23, 2008 8:42PM
7lbs, 4oz; 19 1/2 inches long

http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3180/2799695319_329bbab936_o.jpg

Aletheia - DS, Elliot John
Due Date: August 21, 2008
Birthdate: August 24, 2008 9:26AM
8lbs; 21 1/2 inches long

[August2008Moms]

Our babies 3
- coming soon!

Baxter78 - DD, Kira Emmalyn
Due Date: August 30, 2008
Birthdate: August 24, 2008 10:47AM
7lbs, 9oz; 19 inches long

Lindengraphics - DD, Persephone Marie
Due Date: August 23, 2008
Birthdate: August 26, 2008 5:46AM
8lbs, 13oz; 22 inches long

Annette - DS, Ryan Alexander
Due Date: August 26, 2008
Birthdate: August 28, 2008
6lbs, 8oz

http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3295/2816439502_66bce194f3.jpg?v=0

[August2008Moms]

Our babies 4
- coming soon!

[August2008Moms]

Our babies 5
- coming soon!

[August2008Moms]

We're open for business

Come on in girls and join the soon to be party of endless diaper changes, sleepless nights and the most amazing experience of a lifetime!

Please take a moment to check the stats in the posts above and let us know if any changes necessary. I would especially love to have any EDD changes or scheduled c/s dates added.


Also a great big thank you to cayso who has volunteered to be co-threadmistress!!

[Sue]

I have been awful at posting, but I hope to be better this thread :)

Sue
Me: Sue, 35
DH: J, 38
Married:8/10/02
TTC Date:October 2007
BFP Date:12/4/2007
EDD: 8/17/2008 (sticking with the MW's date, just makes things easier :) )
Gender Prediction: nope
Finding out the gender? It's a SURPRISE
Other children:3 dogs, 3 cats

I started last week going to weekly appointments, I also need a weekly NST due to the gestational diabetes. I have a MW app't and u/s on 7/11 to check the size of the baby. We're also going to interview some ped's and try to get that narrowed down...

I can't believe that the time has gone by so fast!

[ez2luv]

Wow - new thread!!!
And the title is a little scary, isn't it??!!!
Seems like we just joined!!!

Scary also to think I'll *possibly* be the first, having twins and all...
doc figures by the end of July!!!
I'd like the girls to hang out at least another couple of weeks!

OB appt: 07/10 (morning)
Next u/s: 07/10 (afternoon)
OB Appt: 07/16

-Our nursery is done and waiting - just need to re-wash all the clothes/bedding etc.
STRANGE to have 2 cribs in there, let me tell you!!!!
-I've started packing the bag
-I've only got a few more things to buy (swing, boppy pillow..)

Should post another belly pic...but, they aren't looking so 'pretty' anymore -
swelling has gotten the best of me.
My hands and feet are terrible, but my face is huge too....
not liking pictures so much these days!!
LOL!

[Annette]

Yay for the new thread! I can't believe our babies will be arriving soon! Holy moly!

I am starting to feel huge. Its much harder to bend down and to get out of bed.
Our nursery is almost done. We finished the decorating. We just need the mattress so we can make the bed. We're also waiting on the night table. It had arrived damaged and they told us another 6-8 weeks.

This is my 32w belly pic.
http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3056/2637564444_d29740a4ff.jpg?v=0

[Annette]

Here are the almost completed nursery pics.

http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3055/2645188327_601a574d5c.jpg?v=0
http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3008/2645195509_78e811ccae.jpg?v=0
http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3174/2645186189_a925b11119.jpg?v=0
http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3067/2645193029_7fba68fd5e.jpg?v=0
http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3184/2646017036_30951505ec.jpg?v=0

[cayso]

Well, as usual you ladies are waaaay ahead of me! My "nursery" is mostly in the garage and we are almost done painting the room. I still need a lot of stuff - I've had a hard time finding a changing table.

Annette - nursery is adorable! Who is the awesome paint artist? Such detail!

Me - I'm getting anxious - no, honestly, freaked out :eek: would be a better term! We have no idea what life is going to be like when the little guy arrives and I usually like things to be fairly orderly and calm and in control...ack! I worry about not working for 3 months, finances, my DH trying to go to school with no sleep under his belt, whether or not I'll be able to handle a newborn, etc. Pretty much I worry about anything - the other night I couldn't sleep worrying about a changing table I was thinking of buying! Anyway, I hope this type of wondering/worrying/anxiety is normal - at least for a first time mom. No regrets, I'm also getting excited too, unbelievably so, and I have a feeling I will feel better once nursery is done and ready. As long as something *looks* ready!

I'm excited that we are going to start having some babies here soon! I have volunteered to co-threadmistress since I am nearly the last one due. We'll see if I can figure it all out...

[MSH]

I cannot believe I will be full term this week!! Yikes!! I have lots to do still but I am not really too stressed about it. At this point I know we will be fine even if a few things aren't done. Though I do have a short to-do list I want to get crossed off before the end of this week:

- pack hospital bag
- finish our fence (almost done)
- verify addresses for announcements
- wash and put away the clothes from DS we plan to reuse for this baby
- put away the clothes DS has out grown

I am starting weekly appointments now and show know the results of my GBS test on Thursday. I hope I am neg as I really want to be free to move around as much as possible during labour ... I hated being stuck in the bed for my whole labour with DS and blame this for most of the interventions I had ... which I am lucky didn't see me ending in an emergency c/s.

[Red'sGirl]

It's crazy to think that I'm (practically) full term! And I'm getting a lot more Braxton Hicks contractions.

And believe me, ladies, you are not behind. We do not HAVE a nursery. We just got out the co-sleeper this weekend, and are cleaning it. DD is still in the crib - though we might buy the toddler bed this week (DH has a friend who it getting rid of one). We did go through our house this weekend and clear out all the old clothes, etc. We donated 5 bags to Goodwill and more to other people. I cleared out Arrena's drawers, as she'll share with DS. I even washed all the onesies, etc. in storage, and all the clothes we received in showers, etc. and put all his clothes away.

This week, I'll tackle my hospital packing, and those kinds of odds and ends. I think we aren't thinking of getting too organized because 1) DH is in denial that this is happening so soon :rolleyes: and 2) we're still house hunting. So why set up a nursery now when we'll just have to re-do, or undo, it when we move. Ugh! I am SO TIRED!

[jeninef]

I can't believe the title of this thread either! How exciting/scary at the same time! We just got back from our annual week long vacation in the mountains and it was a lot of fun! Some stuff was a bit difficult for me, but for the most part, we did a lot of relaxing so I felt pretty good overall.

I don't even want to make a list in here because I have sooo much to do, I'd probably take up a full page! ;) I'm really starting to stress over the things that need to be done, but I do know that they will eventually get taken care of. I really need to purchase a hotsling for this baby and get some size one diapers. I'd also like to get a going home outfit for this baby in NB size.

I have a Dr's appt. on Wed. July 9th and also July 23rd. I think after that I go weekly. Anytime I walk around for extended periods of time, I start with braxton hicks contractions so I "think" this kid is going to come early, but who knows. Part of me wants him to and the other part doesn't! I'll just be happy to get my body back, but also feel a little sad that this might be the last time I'll be pregnant. Oh all the emotions are so over whelming sometimes! :)

[alootikki]

Hello! I am the worst poster ever - at this point I am averaging once per trimester! :o But I'm glad to see that everyone is doing well and that some babies are arriving - congrats!!

I'm still feeling well, although getting achy down low! In total denial that this baby is coming in a month or less! We spent the long weekend getting all of the basics, now at least I feel prepared. It's exciting and terrifying at the same time!

[lindengraphics]

Look at all those 3's!

I totally understand cayso what you're going through. I went into major anxiety/nesting mode yesterday on my day off. I still have 2 showers left (one with family, one with my DH's coworkers), and the final one is on July 23rd, which seems super late to me. I'm one of those people that likes to try and be as prepared as possible, which is proving difficult so far.

Yesterday I washed all the clothes/towels/bedding/etc. that we have so far for DD, and put away all her bath stuff. I still have to wait to put her clothes away since the dresser we're planning on giving her is currently still my dresser (we're getting a new one from IKEA this weekend). I also broke down and bought a pack of NB diapers and wipes and a diaper bag yesterday, since I hadn't put a bag on my registry since at the time I wasn't sure what I'd want. I ended up getting a gender neutral one from Babies R' Us that I really like because of how big it is (like I said, I like to be prepared, so I carry EVERYTHING). So that's all packed up already, and I washed all the bottles/pacifiers we've gotten so far as well.

Our nursery still only consists of a crib, and now a hamper, but I'm waiting until after the showers to get the rest of what we need. My parents are coming up this weekend for my sister's college orientation and they're bringing up a rocking chair that belonged to my great-grandmother, so that'll be one more item for the nursery. Still... I am in full-blown panic mode.

Has anyone else's baby dropped yet? I had an appt. last Thursday and my NP told me she'd dropped already, which would explain why I've been waddling like a penguin lately. My next appt. is on July 16th, then July 30th is when I start going once a week.

I'm both totally excited and absolutely terrified. We'll see what the following month brings. Good luck to everyone!

[ez2luv]

lindengraphics - no, actually..my girls haven't dropped yet, which sooo surprises me.
I'm tightly closed up, no escaping from me!!! LOL!!
But..I was reading back in my journal from being PG with Isabelle
and I had a doc appt the day before I started contracting and was closed and no signs of anything happening for a while - then BOOM!
So, you never know, I guess!
:rolleyes:

I don't even know if I posted about my shower...I had one on June 22.
It was a blast and I got great things. I'm only having one - there was lots of friends and family here.
I never had a shower with Isabelle, so I was super-excited and had such a wonderful time!!!

Washing more bedding/clothes today....

[Lizzy]

I can't believe I am nearing the end... it still doesn't seem real.

The nursery is finally ready. I can think of only two things that we still need... sheets and a diaper pail. I still have some laundry to do and we have to install the car seat. Other than that, we're as ready as we'll ever be!

I have been feeling pretty good. I get tired as the day progresses but it's not unbearable. I do not think the baby has dropped yet. My boobs are still resting on the fundus and I'm not waddling at all.

For those who are working - how much longer? My plan is to work the rest of this month. I'll stop when I'm 38 weeks. I plan to spend the time reading, watching the Olympics, and cooking meals to put in the freezer.

[ez2luv]

I've thought about cooking meals and freezing them...I just really don't want to!!!! :rolleyes:
I'm back in the 'cooking does NOT appeal to me' stage like I was in the first trimester. Eating out WAYYY too much!!
I know of a couple people who are bring food for us...I probably won't even bother...LOL!
:)

[Red'sGirl]

ez2luv I am so impressed that you are going strong! And they haven't dropped, so you might just take these girls all the way. Wow.

DS HAS dropped, and the waddle is in full swing. He's so long that his butt is still sitting up against my ribs, and his legs, when he's moving around, hit me above my hip bone! :eek: Gah! This kid has to come out before he's 6' tall.

I'm finally in nesting mode, though I'm also exhausted. I'm even cleaning up my desk at work! :D But I know I have so much more to do. Ugh.

My next appt. is July 16th and then I go to weekly. I have a shower this Saturday July 12th and a last one on July 20th. Then, I'm done!!!!

[cayso]

Well, I'm glad its not just me that is a) still disorganized/shopping and b) "excited and absolutely terrifed" to quote linden! That's me to a T!

Lizzy - your plan to stop work come August sounds perfect. I am off now and will be going *back* about then (teacher) and will work until the day comes or I can no longer stand up...

As for baby dropping...not sure I would know how to tell, but I can report this: *something* happened two days ago and I have to pee *constantly*. When I bike or walk I feel like his head just moves back and forth over my bladder! Ack!

Can you RO's tell me when to buy nursing bras? And what size compared to where I am at now (which is one size up from pre-preg.)???

[MSH]

nursing bras I would buy just one or two somewhere you could easily exchange them in a size larger than what you are wearing now. It will be hard to tell what size you will need until your milk comes in (and generally many moms experience some engorgement in the first few weeks which can also have an impact). My favorite from last time were Bravada brand. I had a few which had underwire, which I ended up throwing out and also one where the cup was padded/lined this made it really hard to get baby latched on because I couldn't get the bra out of the way.

This baby has definately dropped, I was really uncomfortable a few weeks ago, lots of heartburn etc. Now I can breath again but do find myself using the washroom more often.

2 days till full term!!! I cannot believe I am *this* close!! I started mat leave this week and am loving every minute of it. DS and I are sleeping in in the mornings and I am just enjoying my last few weeks of him being an only child.


ROs talk to me about strollers. I have no idea what to do. We use our stroller alot and DS will only be 22 months when the new baby comes so I feel like we need a double stroller. My concern is most seem rather bulky which won't work with our sedan. What worked/didn't work for you? What are your thoughts?

[MMH]

CC Name: MMH
Me: 30
DH: 32
Married:8.16.03
TTC Date: 2.4.07
BFP Date: 12.1.07
EDD: 8.11.08
Gender Prediction:
Finding out the gender? GIRL
Other children: DD, 2.4.06

MSH - The stroller debate! We recently purchased the Chariot Cougar 2 with the infant sling. We can walk everywhere so this will be perfect. It's VERY easy to use. It was either the Chariot or the BOB Dualie...

I am also getting a Joovy Caboose Ultralight. DD will be 2.5 when #2 arrives. The Joovy is far more expensive BUT after reading a zillion reviews, I think it's the way to go. For us at least.

Nursing Bras I stocked up on Bravado tanks at Babycenter.com. I'm interested in their new "lifestyle" bras. I lived in my Bella Materna everyday nursing bras last time around, plan on doing that again! I also got a cute nursing nightgown from Belabumbum and am trying out an Aimee gown. Both seeem comfy so we'll see.

[MSH]

Whoohooo I am full term!!!

I had my 37 week appt today and found out I am GBS neg. which I am thrilled about. We talked about pain relief options other than the epi today as I really want to avoid it or at least delay it as much as I can. I would love a NCB but as I mentioned to my MW I am not hung up on no drugs as I want to enjoy the experience as much as I can and if the pain will prevent me from looking back on it with a smile on my face I would rather take the drugs.

Unfortunately, I was also informed the receptionist at their office had just lost her baby at 24weeks. I am so sad for her. I wish I could have formulated something to write in the cards they had provided but I just couldn't find the words.

Cloth diapers Is anyone else planning to CD from the beginning? We have CDed DS for 21 months and only used sposies for the first week or two. This time I really want to use cloth from the beginning. If any of you have any experience with CDing a brand newborn please share which dipes worked best for you. We have CPFs but I am open to anything.

[ez2luv]

MSH - wow, she lost @ 24 weeks...that's terrible, I can't imagine.
I hate when you are in such a position and what you want to say just can't come out.
Horray for being full term!!!! I think with twins - I may be now? or maybe it's 36w...??? I can't remember....???

Cloth Diapers - I'd love to, would be cheaper that's for sure...I have a few and may try (I didn't with DD)
I couldn't BF with DD, and it looks like I won't be able to again (long story), especially with twins
- so I'd love to save what I can from diapers - cause the cost of formula will KILL me!!! :(

Push Present - Anyone expecting or knowing what they'll get??
I got a video camera the day I had DD (what a great day to have one, wasn't it??!! LOL!)
With twins this time, I should be in for a great push-present!!!!!
But - I think what I really need is a gym membership!!!
LOL!!!
(I cannot wait to work out again!!)

I had an appt today (35w)
I'm measuring @45w!!!!!
Wowzers!!!

[Annette]

ez-Wow, 45 weeks?!?!?! Push present? I am not familiar with that.
msh-yay for reaching the full term milestone. Sorry to hear about the receptionist. Just keep it simple in the card. I'm sorry for your loss and thinking of you and your family during this difficult time. I suffered early losses and just having someone acknowledge my loss in a card helped a lot.
redsgirl-hope your shower is fun!
cayso-Thanks for the compliments on our nursery.

Waving Hi to everyone else!

nursing bras-Since I will probably be in the house alot when he's little, are there any bras out there that fit more like sports bras? I'm a DD right now and I typically just wear a loose fitting sports bra around the house. Are you supposed to sleep with a bra?

baby dropping-He has not dropped yet. He's still in my ribs.

I got my paperwork started for my leave. If he's not too early, I won't go back till January.

[cayso]

MSH - congrats on your good news - full term and GBS neg. I hope to be so lucky, as I would really like to avoid *everything* in labor, including a stupid IV!

CD - I am planning on using CD from the beginning (with some disposables as backup!) but I cannot speak from experience having never done this before. I am going to use Bum Genius dipes, which although I have not used before, a good friend is using them on her newbie right now and reporting them as working really well - fitting better on his newbie tininess than the Fuzzi Buns she used on her first baby, so I am pretty hopeful/excited about utilizing these with good outcome.

nursing bras - I am still shopping - hard to find my size, what has happened to me??? :eek: Annette, I have seen some sports bra styles - check out tummystyle.com. I think you are going to want to sleep in a bra (this is the feedback given to me.) I was advised to get one or two of those wireless/comfy ones or a nursing cami top (I just found one that worked for me at Target!)

EZ - 45 weeks??? I think we need a belly shot! :D

[Lizzy]

CDs - I can't speak from experience but I do plan on CDing from the beginning. I have CPFs and Bummis and Thirsties wraps. I also have a few of the GMD infant fitted diapers to try out.

[MMH]

ez2luv - We recently got a Flip Video Camera, for around $150. It's the BEST thing ever. Totally easy to use and as small as a digital camera.

Push Present - I normally wouldn't expect anything BUT it is my birthday, my due date and our 5 year anniversary all in one week. I've hinted at a couple right hand rings I like, but we'll see! I am getting a new house here soon so that is nice too ;)

CD - Not for us. DD is potty trained now and I was sorta sad to buy some newborn diapers today. Back to the changing table!

Internal Exams - I'm so curious to know if anything is going on down there. Is everyone having internals now?

[ez2luv]

Internals...???
Not sure the def. of internal on here...
but for the last month, at every appt - doc reaches in and checks the position of the cervix
(jeez, that hurts!!)
Always high and thick!!!

Is this not standard? Why do some people opt to not have the cervix checked???

:confused:

[MSH]

Internals With DS I didn't have any till my 40w appt, when my membranes were stripped. My OB wouldn't do them any earlier. With this PGcy I haven't been offered one and would honestly turn it down if I were. IMO there is no need for them it only adds to the risk of infection. It would be interesting to know how dialated/effaced I am but when it comes down to it, it doesn't actually matter till I am in labour. If I go to my due date I will ask to have my membranes stripped and at that point would get an internal, but otherwise not till I am in labour. Just my preference.

[ez2luv]

hmmm...didn't know that...

[Lizzy]

Internals - I'm going to refuse any until I get to the hospital. Of course I could change my mind on that... but I don't think I will.

[Sue]

I just had another appointment Friday, but my u/s needed to be re-scheduled to 7/15. I'm "measuring" about 37 weeks, but my MW said that it could be position of the baby too - my belly has a point at the bottom like an egg, from the head being down :) I've been going weekly for about 3 weeks now since I'm high risk because of the diabetes - also getting weekly NST's. I'm still feeling good, but the braxton-hicks have picked up lately. I expect to get my GBS test in the next couple of weeks.

Cloth Diapers I plan on cd'ing and have picked up I think is a good nb stash, some new and some used from diaperswappers. I haven't gotten too much of one style/brand since I don't know what will work best for us or what we'll prefer using.

Nursing Bras I plan to pick up a couple in the few weeks, once I measure myself. I was at Target yesterday and picked up a nursing tank and pj pants for the hospital. I'd like to get my bag packed so it's one thing I can cross off the list.

Internals I haven't had one yet and the MW hasn't mentioned it. I'd like to avoid them as much as possible. It's already been mentioned about not letting me go past my due date and getting my membranes stripped because of the diabetes and the fear that the baby may be big. I do NOT want to be induced and as long as everything looks OK, I will refuse that and any other interventions. The plan is to labor at home for as long as possible to help avoid any interventions. Thankfully, the hospital is literally 7 minutes with traffic from our house :)

Working Plan is to work until the end, but we'll definitely see how I'm feeling.... I'd love to take a week or so off before, but I don't want to kill any time beforehand.

Push Present I think a couple of friends have mentioned it to my DH, but I'm not really expecting anything and honestly I used to work for a jewelry manufacturer so I know how much stuff really costs and I'd kill him if he paid retail!

[Red'sGirl]

I don't think I got anything for my birthday - so a push present seems unlikely.:rolleyes:

Besides, we're trying to buy a house soon, so I would prefer he save the cash.

[JLRenheos]

I'm a new July mommy, but just wanted to say that I got my nursing bras from Wal-mart. Love them!

The brand that I picked up is called: Bestform with child Maternity Nursing. It's a Molded Sport Bra with Comfort Straps. Style B388. What's even better, the price - under $12!! They're really comfy.

Hi annette!!

Good Luck August Mommies!

[lindengraphics]

Hi everyone!

Hope everyone is doing okay.

Shower: Had a shower on Sunday, July 13th with my DH's family. Alot of fun. We now have most of the items we need for the baby, minus the changing table and Diaper Genie, which makes things for our budget super awesome since I won't be paid for my full maternity leave (only 2 weeks out of the 6 I'm taking). I'm planning on using the comp time I've accrued, which is a little over 40 hours, and my weeks worth paid vacation, but I'm still nervous about the time that won't be covered pay-wise, since bills will still need to be paid. Having fewer items to purchase severely reduces my stress level, which is awesome. :D

Appts: Have another appt. this Wednesday, with my next one being on July 30th, which is when I'll start going in every week. I'm so excited for her to get here I can hardly stand it.

Nursing Bras: I'm not planning on nursing, just because of how hectic my work schedule is, it might end up being just too much for me to handle this time around. However, do I need to worry about breast pads until my milk dries up? Any ideas how long that usually takes, for those of you who have formula fed in the past?

Work: We're interviewing temps to take over while I'm on leave this week. I really need/want to find someone to train in for at least a week before I take off. I work at a weekly newspaper publication, and I'm the sole person in charge of laying out the entire paper each week, so it's important that whoever comes in knows what they're doing since I'm not coming back for 6 weeks once I go into labor.

Maternity Leave Helpers: I have so many people offering to stay and help me after DD is here, it's a bit overwhelming. There is talk that my mom wants to stay the first 2 weeks to help me out, then my MIL wants to stay a week, and my SIL (who is the godmother) wants to come up for a few days as well once everyone else has cleared out. I am happy for the help and company, but I'm not sure if we'll have room! :( Guess we'll have to wait and see.

Anyone else having an overabundance of visitors/helpers? How is everyone else coping with the heat?

[MSH]

Someone please tell my husband (you figure he would know as this is #2) some women go into labour before 41 weeks (when I was induced with DS) and therefore we should probably start getting ready. He is driving me crazy, everytime I say I need to get something done or have to pick something up he says "you still ahve 3 weeks left", uhm buddy I better not have 3 weeks left and if you don't stop I will quite possibly hurt you :p

Anyways moving on, lol. We went shopping for a coming home outfit yesterday and found some really cute ones on sale at the GAP. I n.e.e.d to go look at double strollers, not so much to buy one but just to know my options, it is an obsession and one I must feed.

I just sent in my application for mat benefits today, so I should start receiving them early-mid August, yay! Thankfully, DH just switched jobs so even with me being on mat leave we are bringing in more money than before, takes a huge weight off my shoulders to know I don't have to worry about bills, plus we will be saving on DC.

Names we cannot agree on anything!! If this baby is a girl she won't be named for weeks. There isn't one name we both love. For boys we have a decent shortlist but we keep changing our minds. Not to mention DH is stuck on a couple of names, which I veto'ed along time ago ... he veto'ed some of mine too, so it is all fair. I think at the moment we have 2 top contenders but gosh this is stressful.

Uncomfort I'm getting there. Rolling over in bed is a bit of a task these days, the multiple trips to the bathroom at night, charlie's horses, insomnia = no fun!

[ez2luv]

MSH - I was thinking the same thing these last few days (about mat leave).
My last day was Aug 1, but doc wrote me off so early.
So, I don't think I can start my paperwork until after the 1st
(after I have my ROE). But - If I am in the hospital or whatever at that time....
wondering when I'll have time to get all that paperwork done!!!
Hmmm...I think I need to call my pay and benefits division to see if there's
an easier way to do this..(I remember last time, I did all of it before DD
was born, and it was LOTS of running around and offices to go to...
I don't want to do it after the babies are born!!!)
<<rant over>> LOL!

lindengraphics - You know...I have no helpers...I'm having twins and no definate help!!!
Well, hopfully DH will be around for a while after, before he has to return to work.
There's My MIL - which may not be the best idea (ANNOYING!!)
and there's a few of my friends who will help here and there...but nothing definate....eeekk!!

NAMES!!!!
OMG!!!
We still haven't agreed on one!!!! :eek: (let alone 2!!!)
We have our DD, Isabelle....any suggestions would be greatly appreciated!!!
(we want 2 or 3 syllables b/c of our really short last name...)

My next appt is wed (7/16) - and I cannot wait!!!
It's finally with my regualr doc, and I have ISSUES that I want to discuss!!
OMG - I am literally falling apart!
From head to toe I am a mess!!
You name it, I got it!!!

[Red'sGirl]

MSH Your DH must be talking with my DH. DD was a week late, so this child cannot possible be coming any time soon, despite being full term. :confused: I keep telling him it could be any day now, especially since he's running big. DH keeps saying that "the odds are, he won't come soon". Odds? What odds? Is there some place in Vegas that I'm not aware of that runs odds on horse racing AND labor?? I keep asking him where he gets his informatin, but........... :rolleyes:

lindengraphics You have helpers? With my first child, my mom left the same day that she was born! She had been there a week, but..... she's retired, so what's the hurry. My MIL left after two days (we were still in the hospital!). People kept saying that they didn't want to bring by food, etc. since they knew so many people would be there. Uh, we were lucky we didn't starve.

This time, my MIL is coming the week before I'm due (my sister will be oot and we need to make sure someone can watch DD) and will hopefully stay a while beyond, though we know she has to go home for a medical test. My mom isn't coming unless she knows she's in good health - which is an issue for her, so I can understand it. Other than that? Well, I really should be freezing meals because we might starve again.

ez2luv What kind of names do you like? Beyond 2-3 syllables (we have that same rule, since our last name is one syllable). Classic names, older names, different (but not too different) names, or fairly common names??

[lindengraphics]

Baby names: We already have ours picked, so I don't feel too bad sharing some of the ones we decided not to use...

Boys: Aiden, Roman, Liam, Owen, Harlan, Christian

Girls: Sophia, Isabella, Beatrice, Artemis (Mimi for short), Constance

We picked out some random names... let me tell ya. :rolleyes:

[MSH]

MSH - So, I don't think I can start my paperwork until after the 1st (after I have my ROE).

You can file before you have your ROE. Most of the numbers should be on your last paystub. Then you will have to send in a copy of the ROE when you get it. I just did mine online and have to mail in or drop off the ROE and notify them when the baby is born as they need the exact delivery date. Last time I didn't do any of it till after DS arrived, which was a pain.


MSH Is there some place in Vegas that I'm not aware of that runs odds on horse racing AND labor??

OMG you are too funny! If so I am sure our DHs are betting against us. With the hauling of laundry and a 30lbs toddler up and down the stairs I do on a daily basis this baby better not be overdue. I believe we will be dicussing natural ways to induce labour at my next appt. on Weds, hopefully they will mention something other than sex (which is all my OB suggested with DS) as that surely doesn't sound like much fun at this stage.

[ez2luv]

MSH - Hmmm...I need to get on the site and refresh my memory on this again...last paystub? That may not come until the end of Aug...????
Thanks - I do need to get this started...


LOL!!
Sex - Yes -please, let there be an alternative!!
Between the huge belly, sore hips, swollen limbs, sore BB's, the constant urge to pee and functioning on 2 hrs sleep a night...ya, last thing on my mind!!!
NO THANK YOU!

(Funny how it's the cause of our misery
and now we are told to use it to end the misery....go figure! :rolleyes:)

~

Names for our girls - well, I like classic older names...we named DD Isabelle and DH really does not like anything non-traditional and 'trendy'.

For instance, DH wants to name one of the twins Danielle, which I like - but then she will rhyme with Isabellle and the other won't...which doesn't sit right with me.
And we don't like matchy-matchy...
(unlike the pressure from our family to have their names rhyme. I keep kidding them that their names will be Gidget and Widget...LOL, they almost think i'm serious)
We also like Sarah (but we both have one on each side already)
He also likes Elizabeth..which will probably end up to be a middle name...
I know - naming is so confusing.
i wish we were one of those who's had names picked out forever and knew right away...
hmmph...our children will be nameless until they have teeth at this rate!!

[j*east]

Delurking to say...I was due 8/4 and had my baby last week, at 36 weeks. Trust me, you do NOT want to leave anything for the last minute! I had absolutely no sign or warning until my water broke and I had my baby a day later. I hope this story helps motivate some DHs. :)

[MSH]

Delurking to say...I was due 8/4 and had my baby last week, at 36 weeks. Trust me, you do NOT want to leave anything for the last minute! I had absolutely no sign or warning until my water broke and I had my baby a day later. I hope this story helps motivate some DHs. :)

OMG!!! Congratulations!

[jeninef]

Congrats J*east on your new addition!!!

DH is allowing me to indulge in the possiblility that this baby could come early...although I think deep down he probably feels he won't. ;) We attempted to get the rest of the nursery put together last weekend, but still have some stuff to take care of. I did get a hotsling since that is how I am hoping to tote around this child. We're going to attempt to fore go the double stroller for now, but if it doesn't work out, we'll get one. I also got a bouncy seat which we never used for DS. I ended up getting a used one off of Craig's List and it's in excellent condition.

As for names, our name is all set, but we decided to keep it a surprise for everyone since we already told everyone the gender. Plus I really didn't want to hear family's opinions on the name...I was surprised at how opinionated everyone was the first time around.

I think my mom will be coming down to watch DS1 during the birth and hopefully she will stay awhile or else come back down after DH goes back to work. We'll see...I would really appreciate her help in watching DS1. We are sending Josh up to the grandparents this weekend so we can enjoy some alone time before this baby gets here....mostly we plan to go out to eat at restaurants we couldn't with DS and enjoy a movie at the theatre! I also plan on buying DS1 his big sibling gift from the baby.

Oh and I just finally had the realization the other day that I have to actually give birth to this child! I've been so worried about what life is going to be like after the baby is here, that I forgot about everything labor related! I had a very easy delivery for the most part with DS1, but have started freaking out that this one won't be! Ay-yay-yay...

[August2008Moms]

Updated to here

As always please check the first page and let me know if there is anything I missed :)

[Annette]

Congrats jeast!

[MSH]

Yay, I think we may have settled on at least a boys name!! We have two names in mind and will decide when we see baby. Now if this baby is a girl we are still at square one.

This morning I am feeling a lot of pressure down low and BH. I have the day off so I am going to try and get out and do lots of walking/moving around. My MW appt is in 2.5 hours, I will be meeting with the only MW I haven't met yet, after that I will officially be ready to go into labour as I will have met all of the MWs who could deliver this baby. I will have to ask about *TMI* the mucus plug today. I have had alot of discharge lately, nothing unusual in colour but kinda goopy/stringy.

[ez2luv]

well, had my appt today:
cervix still high up there and closed.
No dropping of the babies yet
<<sigh>>
I'm no hero and don't want to overdue with twins!!!
LOL!
Doc says that nothing should happen this week, and if there is no progress by next wed (7/23) - he'll induce.
(he doesn't like to go past 38w with twins due to the incresed chance of stillbirth after this time)

So - 2 weeks at most for me!
I'll be definately having some July babies!!

I started taking Evening Primrose
and...I'm not sure what else to do...I haven't stopped since day 1...
still gardening, cleaning....everything. It's tough and I take more breaks, but I'm on my feet all day..???

Oh, and I'm measuring at 46w....LOL!!
:eek:

[Red'sGirl]

Honestly, ez, I didn't know they had a measurement that high! :)

I had my appt today, and am now on for weekly visits. Nothing unusual. He's head down, still, but no where near engaged. Heartbeat was fine, that's about all they do.

I wish I had something to report. DH asked me last night if I had my bag packed. I said no but that I had started taking everything out that I'd need. He seems to be coming around to the idea that we might actually go before August. My MIL is coming in next Wed., the day my sister is leaving for a week long trip. So, we're covered as far as DD, if we should go early. Plus, my daycare provider is also on call. She says she'll pick the girl up from the hospital and keep her the 3 days, if we need it (at no charge!). It's great to have such a good situation.

[MSH]

Well one of the suggestions my MW gave me yesterday for encouraging labour seems to have helped. I have been up with contractions less than 10 mins apart for 2-3 hours. I totally forgot how not comfortable these things are :)

My appt yesterday was really quick as another girl came in right as I got there and thought her water had broken. I told the MW I had been having increased discharge and just yesterday morning I started getting BH I could actually feel. We both agreed it didn't seem the baby had dropped quite yet. I asked her what I could do to make things start happening and she says "lots of hot nookie (OK she used a different word)", orgasems, nipple stimulation, lots of walking and climbing stairs and also using evening primrose oil (1000mg x 3/day, once with breakfast, once with lunch and once vaginally at bedtime).

I spent the afternoon at a girlfriends house who pampered me with a mani/pedi and full leg vax, so I guess technically I am ready, lol.

The contax have increased to 5 mins apart, but lasting only about 30-40 secs. I'm going to monitor them till 9 and then probably call my MW to see what they suggest. I made DH leave our carseat home today, just in case and he has been informed to keep his cell on.

[cayso]

Go MSH! Whoo-hoo! This is exciting! (We'll see how I feel about that when its my turn...)

EZ and Red's - It sounds like you are both so ready! Hang in there! In a way, I am envious that you are feeling ready - I am so not - so, so NOT ready. Not in any way - nursery, stuff I need, and most of all emotionally. I still feel like everything is happening too fast in my world - like I've entered a time warp and everything is going faster and faster and beyond my control.

I have my u/s today and appt. - maybe I'll have more news later...

[ez2luv]

Wow - MSH!!!
I wish you all the best!
Ya-Hoo!!!

I was thinking...when my doc said yesterday that he wants to induce Wed if there's been no progress, and have these babies by the end of the month...what would his means of inducing involve??
Hmmm...should have asked, but my head was all in a fog at the thought of an end...Grrr, why wasn't I thinking clearly???!!!
I guess that's why I have been thinking DTD, Evening Primrose etc...
I hope he didn't mean scraping the membranes...I want to try to avaoid that and start things a little ore gntler on my own first....

[Sue]

Congrats J*east !!!

MSH - Good luck!! How exciting!!

Don't really have time to wrap my head around responses right now since I had an interesting MW appointment today...

I had an u/s on Tuesday, I'm measuring about 2 weeks ahead and the estimated weight of the baby is 7lb 9oz :eek: I am getting by on thinking that it isn't very accurate - hoping is more like it :) But at my appointment today, it seems my fluid is on the high side so I have to go for another level 2 u/s so they can determine if it's the gest. diabetes or that the baby's kidneys aren't functioning right. If it's the diabetes, then it's not a huge concern, but if there is something wrong with the kidneys, then they'll want to induce - that is after they do an amnio to make sure everything is "ready". Needless to say, this weekend is going to be very hectic getting stuff done and things ready, since we are SO not ready! I also had my GBS test today and with the way my luck has been going, I wouldn't be surprised if it's + :rolleyes:

I'm getting a bit bummed that there is a good chance that everything I didn't want in a birth, may happen. But I'm trying to stay positive until the u/s next week...

[Red'sGirl]

Good luck Sue. Get things done, but hopefully you'll have some more time.

Don't know if I said it before, so Congratulations J*east! And MSH, is no news because you're busy pushing?! Let us know what's happening (and which of the MW suggestions do you attribute labor, cuz I wanna do it, too!).

[cayso]

OK, Sue, you and I had similar experiences with the u/s...

For me, the u/s measured baby at 5 pounds 5 ounces, which the tech said was big (she also said he was big around the middle - bigger there than anywhere else!) but my doctor said that put him at the 55th percentile - average. They also told me that I had a little excess amniotic fluid - not abnormal, just a little on the high side. My doctor said that excess fluid at the 20 week u/s would have been a bad sign but this late its most likely cause is "cause unknown". No joke. It simply doesn't amount to anything meaningful. The second most common cause is gestational diabetes. So, I am having *another* glucose test this week. So, for you, already having the GD, I would say it is quite likely that you simply have the bigger baby and more fluid that goes with that and that is all it is. That matches up with what I was told anyway. Hopefully they will not try to induce you! Stay positive. Of course, I say this and the fact is that I am so anxious lately that even though my doctor said everything was fine, I started to freak out about every *possible* thing that could be wrong. For example, I have a great face-on shot of baby in both regular u/s and 4D u/s (which is really cool!) but his nose looks really wide in a couple of shots. (No one in our family has a particularly wide nose.) Now, this is *u/s*, right? - not exactly the best photography for detail. But that combined with the fluid thing got me thinking things like "Oh god, I have had a couple beers" and "What if he has Down's after all - don't Down's babies have wide noses?" You know, stupid stuff. Just stupid, scared, paranoid stuff. I wish I could calm down and stop worrying so much when I'm sure everything is fine!

[MSH]

Well girls I am happy to announce the birth of my baby boy Ronan!!!

We arrived at the hospital this morning at 11am at which point I was 4cm, Ronan was born naturally at 3:15pm ... I cannot even say what a crazy day it has been. He weighed in at 7lbs, 7oz and measured 20in. We got home around 7pm and I cannot even say how great I feel. I did not expect this at all when I woke up this morning, never in a million years!!

FWIW, I think the EPO totally did the trick ... well and DTD.

[cayso]

Wow! Congratulations MSH! And Ronan! (*cute* name!) Job well done, you two make it sound easy!:) Best wishes to you and your family.

[babywish]

First of all congrats MSH on your baby boy, I can't believe we are all almost there!. I've been reading along since we first started the thread but at this point I think I've earned the 'worse poster' tittle, I think I posted twice on the first one, once on the second one and now…


Life is crazy! There is so much going on that I don’t even know where to start. I will skip the second trimester since it was pretty uneventful. The fun started last week… this whole time I've been saying that this baby is coming early, don’t ask me why but I just have that feeling. Well, last Monday (July 14th) I was carrying my son and fall on my belly. I called the dr because my right rib was bothering me, they asked me to come in for a quick visit… well the quick visit end up being 8 hrs in the hospital, they did all kind of tests, it was nerve wracking because they would say everything looked fine with the baby but that they wanted to run some other test (of course my thought was, why would you have to run more test if everything is fine?). Fortunately all test came back normal and they just told me to take it easy and NOT to wear anymore high heals just in case .
Two days later there was a storm in our area (I work 2 miles from home) and there were a couple of really bad lightening. The next thing I know my husband calls me saying that he is outside of the house with the dog (mind you is poring outside!). I asked him why and he just said … the house was hit by one of the lightenings and there was some smoke coming from the kitchen wall (no fire, just smoke), just to be safe he called the fire department and they were on their way.
This was around 3:00pm he didn't call me back (I later found out he didn't want to worry me), up until this point I was not worry at all just making jokes about it, and then I got home… let me just summarize by saying the whole kitchen got on fire, there were 3-5 inches of water throughout the first floor, there were wholes in the walls everywhere, net-net they have to re-do all hardwood floors (1st floor), replace all the cabinets in the kitchen, tore down the kitchen wall and replace all the studs, paint the whole downstairs. Replace all carpeting through the house. The fire made it all the way to our bedroom so they have to toor down that wall too and repaint. It has been one week and 2 days and the house still smells like burned wood, it got in all the clothes, sheets, towels, drapery… so they had to take everything ( and when I say everything I mean EVERYTHING) to the cleaners. We've been in hotels for a week and finally end up moving in with my sister (3 adults, a toddler and a 100 lbs yellow lab in a one bedroom apartment).
They are telling us is going to take 2 months to get everything fixed and because of the new baby we can't move in. We just got approved to move in into a three bedroom apartment that our insurance company will cover cost for (furnished and all). But this means baby will come (I have four more weeks), my mother will come, my mom, my dad and we will still be in the apparment.
All this is causing a lot of stress, add up work and you have a very worried mommy, I really want to be able to make it all the way to full term (just one week and half to go), but last weekend I was having a LOT of BH, they kind of went away or at least I didn't have as many for a couple of days, but last night they started again, they are pretty intense, at times I feel like if they are real contractions, but I know they are not because they are not regular.
Needless to say sleeping is something that is not happening lately so I am exhausted, I feel super heavy and I am just ready, I just want her to stay in for 2 more weeks just to make sure there are no issues, but I am scare shitless that is not going to wait that long.

I am probably border line obsessive when it comes to planning, our nursery has been done for quite some time now. All the clothes were washed, folded and in the drawers ready for the baby's arrival. And now I just realized (yesterday) I have nothing for her if she comes in the next two weeks. They took all our clothes and made us separate a 'rush' pile with stuff we would need in the next three weeks. I couldn't pack it because of the smoke (I am asthmatic and DH wouldn't let me in the house since the smell was pretty bad) so needless to say ½ of the pregnancy clothes I needed weren't separated on the 'rush' pile, and I dind't even think about asking DH to separate some stuff for the baby… like I said life is hectic!

Don’t take me wrong, things could have been much worse, the fire man said that if DH would have not been there (he usually travels a lot, as a matter of a fact he was out of town the two weeks before) the whole row of houses would have burned down to the ground. I just keep thinking about the awful things that could have happened if it would have happened in the middle of the night while sleeping. So I am very, very, thankful that it happened the way it did, I am trying to stay positive but the timing couldn't have been worse.

Which brings me to the next topic HELP – my mother in law is coming in a week and half and will stay for 1- ½ weeks, then my mom comes and stays with us for a month, my dad will be here 15 days while my mom is here, at this point with everything is going on I honestly don’t even feel is such a good idea for everybody to come, but my parents live overseas so asking them to cancel their flights is not an option (specially since I kept insisting that both of them had to come).

So that is my story… I keep saying that I could write a book!

[ez2luv]

Congratulations MSH! Welcome Ronan!!!
Wow - easy labor!! And you went home that day??
OMG - MY hero!!!
Please, please, please pass some of that my way!!! I Need it!!!!


babywish - Dear lord!!!
Wow - it could have been worse, you're right.
But, like you said - such bad timing!!!
I can't even imagine the position you are in..it'll be tough to get adjusted so fast to new surroundings with a baby and so many people coming....I have no suggestions, I'm sorry.
I just hope baby stays put until you make proper arrangements!!!
keep us updated!

[Red'sGirl]

Congratulations, MSH and welcome, Ronan!!!
You certainly made is sound easy. Don't send ALL the easy labor vibes to ez2luv (though she certainly deserves many of them. I could use a few this way, too.

Babywish THAT is quite a story. I'm glad everyone is safe. You're right, it could have been much worse. No baby clothes? Ask some friends for some loaners or hand-me-downs. Chances are, your parents and ILs will bring some cute clothes, too, right? Don't sweat it - the first few weeks, all you'll need are some lightweight blankets, onesies and a couple of pairs of shorts. Just get plenty of diapers! GOOD LUCK on getting back into the house.

[jeninef]

MSh- Congrats on the birth of baby Ronan!!! How exciting!!! I can't believe he's here already! You had such a short labor, that's awesome! And I can't believe you were home the same day!

Babywish-Holy cow! I had to bring my DH in here to hear that story! I'm glad everyone is safe and you are totally right...it could have been so much worse. I know you don't need the added stress, but I'm glad that it didn't turn out the other way. Time will pass faster than you think and soon you will be home.

[Annette]

MSH-Congrats on the birth of your son, Ronan! Thats great you had a short labor.

babywish-OMG! Thank goodness you and your family are alright. I hope that when your families visit, they will offer lots of help. I also hope that your house gets fixed quickly. Good luck!

sue-Hope that everything checks out well with your next u/s

cayso-Sorry to hear you have to go for another glucose test. I hope the baby is okay.


Nothing going on here except I am sick of work at this point. So my BFF is due next Wednesday and they told her the baby is measuring 8.5lbs. I have no idea how accurate that it is. She's fairly petite so her doc told her they would induce the day after her due date. Is this common? I feel bad for her cause I heard that the pitocin really hurts.

[Lizzy]

Congrats MSH!

Babywish - so sorry to hear about your troubles. Can your family stay in a hotel part of the time, or with friends/family? I am sure everyone will be accommodating to you given the circumstances.

Annette - ultrasound late in pregnancy tends to be very inaccurate. I wouldn't induce based on an ultrasound estimate, but unfortunately I think that is a very common practice. I'm of the opinion that your body knows how to birth whatever size baby it grows.


I met with my doula today. I am excited to work with her. She encouraged me to pack my bags and be ready to go. I'm 36 weeks and definitely want baby to stay put one more week, which is when I would be eligible for a waterbirth. I'm mentally prepared to go overdue but I also want to be prepared in case I should go early.

I'm going to start working from home in two weeks - yay!

[cayso]

Babywish - my heart goes out to you - I cannot imagine what you are going through. Remember to take care of yourself first and foremost and ask for what you need from friends/family. Maybe cancelling visits isn't appropriate...but delaying them might be?

Annette - Have your friend read some Ina May Gaskin! I love her! She has some things to say about babysize and mama size and doesn't believe in "babies getting too big and undeliverable" type stuff. My MIL is *tiny* but gave birth to my DH at 91/2 pounds!:eek:

[August2008Moms]

Updated to here


...which I think is just the birth of MSH's Ronan added to the first page. Let me know if there is anything else to update!

[Sue]

Welcome Ronan!! Congrats MSH!!

Cayso I'm sorry you're going through similar stuff... I'm hoping it's the GD that's causing the fluid... I'm right on the cusp of having too much, I think my number was 25. I'll find out more at the the u/s Tuesday. I really don't want to be induced, it's enough that there will be more monitoring involved because of the GD - which is why my MW agrees that I should labor at home for as long as possible. I'm waiting for the results of the GBS test, with the way things have been going, I am almost expecting it to be positive :o . And about the nose? I said the same thing!! Except my DH has that kind of nose :eek: !! I'm hoping everything is kinda squished in there :) I hope everything turns out ok with your glucose test.

Babywish Holy cow!! Try to stay positive, knowing that it could have been much worse. I know it's hard, but everyone is safe. Like Lizzy said, hopefully everyone will be understanding and not expect too much and try to help as much as possible.

[Chocolatecake]

Well ladies Baby Girl Waverly arrived on
July 16th @ 8:41 a.m. :D

She is so sweet and we are so happy to finally have the baby that we so prayed for.

Congrats to all new Mommies and upcoming Mommies!!!

[Sue]

Congrats Chocolatecake on your little girl Waverly!!

[cayso]

WOW! Congratulations Chocolate Cake! I confess, you were on my mind since your due date was next...do we have a early birth trend going on here? :)

Welcome to the world Waverly!

[Annette]

Congrats Chocolatecake! on your little girl!

[Red'sGirl]

..do we have a early birth trend going on here? :)

Please let it be true!! ;)

[ez2luv]

Another one!!!
Yaaa!!!
This is sooo exciting!!!

Congrats ChocolateCake!!!!

:D

[cayso]

Well, Red's Girl, my focus is on you now that Chocolate has had hers!:D

[alootikki]

CONGRATULATIONS MSH and chocolatecake!! Wow, this is all really happening, isn't it? :)

I hope the early trend doesn't continue for me - I need at least another week!

[alootikki]

babywish, wow, I'm so sorry you had to go through all of that! You definitely don't need that much stress right now. I hope you're all hanging in there!

[Red'sGirl]

Well, Red's Girl, my focus is on you now that Chocolate has had hers!:D

I had a bowl of pineapple with dinner last night. Totally freaked DH out! :D My MIL arrives on Wed. for baby watch. Please let him be early!! Even on time, but NOT LATE. I can't handle late. I will be the Cloverfield monster, if this kid is late.

[jeninef]

Congrats Chocolatecake! I love your daughter's name!

[strawberry4]

Hi August Mommies....

Wow, your time is almost here. Congrats to Chocolate Cake and MSH on the birth of their babies.

My little one turned 6 weeks old today! The GREAT news is that she is being released in the hospital tomorrow and COMING HOME! We cannot believe it and are so happy she will be home. She is doing great and thriving. She went from 2lbs 15 oz when she was born to 5lbs 6 oz tonight! She is having a little feeding issue in that she chokes and stops breathing when she is feeding but we are working on pacing her. She is being sent home on a heart/breathing monitor but I am ok with that...it is a little reassurance for us. She is on this medicine called Caffeine Citrate for her heart to help avoid these episodes where her heart rate goes down and she stops breathing (very common in preemies). I went to the pharmacy today to pick it up...it was $1000 for a 20 day supply! :eek: Luckily, insurance will reimburse us.

Here are a few pics of my little one. I ordered her coming home outfit from Janie and Jack in a preemie size...I tried the hat on her and it is huge on her. I am not sure she will be wearing that tomorrow!

http://im1.shutterfly.com/media/47b8d903b3127ccec4f84258d91100000040O00AaMnDlo0aOG IPbz4Y/cC/f%3D0/ps%3D50/r%3D0/rx%3D480/ry%3D320/

http://im1.shutterfly.com/media/47b8d903b3127ccec4f8d632d93100000040O00AaMnDlo0aOG IPbz4Y/cC/f%3D0/ps%3D50/r%3D0/rx%3D480/ry%3D320/

Good luck as you prepare for your babies to arrive. The most important thing I have realized in the last 2 months is that it does not matter what color their car seat is, or how many sleepers you have. What matters is that you have your little one safe in your arms. Children truly are a miracle...enjoy the birth experience and all the joys that will come after it!

[Annette]

strawberry-thats wonderful that your daughter is going home. She's so cute and tiny. I hope that her breathing gets better.

[cayso]

strawberry - She is beautiful! Congratulations! Your last words moved me to tears. There are a lot of reminders here lately for me to be so grateful for so much. We are all so blessed! Thank you.

[alootikki]

Congratulations strawberry - she is beautiful, and I'm so glad she's home safe with you!

[lindengraphics]

strawberry I'm so happy that you get to take your little girl home. She's so adorable. I hope everything goes well with her once you get her home.

I feel super behind with my congrats postings. So CONGRATS to: Chocolate Cake and MSH as well on the birth of your babies. I'm getting so anxious for mine that I can hardly stand it.

Had an appt. on the 16th that reminded me just how lucky I am. My OB/GYN had to see me an hour later than she was supposed to because 2 emergency miscarriages came in the clinic. I felt so bad for the other women that weren't going to be able to have those children they were so excited for, and it reminded me how lucky I am to be so close to the end.

Baby Wish My thoughts are with you. I cannot imagine how stressful that must be for you. I would probably curl into a ball and cry if it had been me. I hope everything turns out well for you.

Have my last shower today at my DH's work. I'll be glad when they're over, because I've been really antsy to just make sure everything's in order so we can finalize the nursery and everything. We're almost done. I'll post pics once we have it completed.

On the 30th I start my weekly appts. When do they start giving you an exam to see how you're doing with your dilation? My last two appts. they've said that I'm carrying about a week further along than my due date suggests, and her head has been "in position" both times I went in. I'm curious to know if I've started to dilate at all.

I think I've had some BH contractions, but I guess I just don't know because I don't know what they're supposed to feel like. Sometimes I wonder if it's just DD moving around and pushing really hard on my organs, but other times it doesn't really feel like that at all.

What have they felt like for you? My DH is freaking out and being super motherly now that we're so close. It'd be nice to be able to reassure him whenever I grimace in pain. I hope everyone else is doing well. Take care!

[Lizzy]

strawberry - I'm so glad you'll be able to take your daughter home soon. That must be such a relief.

Chocolate - congrats!!!

lindengraphics - I've just recently started to notice BHs. At first I thought it was just the baby stretching, but now I can tell that it's something different. They feel like a tightness all over the belly. You can also tell it's a BH if your belly feels harder than usual.

[lindengraphics]

Lizzy - thanks! I hate to sound horribly dumb by asking what it's supposed to feel like, but I guess I just don't know. I mean, my mom said that with both my sister and I she didn't have any contractions whatsoever until after her water broke -- BH or otherwise. Maybe I'll be as lucky. :rolleyes:

[MSH]

Thank you!!
for all of the congrats, we are totally smitten with our little guy and I am so happy to have two little boys!! DS2 has totally spoiled us and has slept at least 6 hours straight per night since he was born. He is eating great, mind you mommy had forgotten how BFing works and due to a bad latch we are dealing with some soreness but it is healing up nicely. DS1 LOVES his little brother, always wanting to hold him, kiss and hug him. It is the sweetest thing. He also shares his toys and sippycup, lol. Here is a picture of our little guy.

http://i4.photobucket.com/albums/y137/mrs_natalie/DSC_6749.jpg

BH I am not sure what they feel like. It seems crazy to say since I have 2 babies! From what I have been told they are most often not painful and just a tightening of your uterus ... this I have felt a few times but only if I happened to have my hand on my belly. Others say they can be almost as painful as real contactions. I was 100% sure I was just having BH last Thursday and was kind of annoyed when I was asked to go to the hospital to be checked out ... I was 4cm when I arrived, DS2 was born 3 hours later!!

lindengraphics by being "in position" they mean the baby is engaged, this can mean you will be dialated, but not necessarily. DS1 was engaged at 35 weeks and I carried him to 41 weeks. DS2 wasn't engaged at my appt the day before he was born, mind you many 2nd babies do not engage till active labour. You may be offered an internal from (usually) full term/37 weeks on. Some OBs/MWs do not offer them till your due date due to risk of infection, so I would just ask them what their stand is.

strawberry4 Congratulations on bringing your DD home. I am sure it will be wonderful to have her in the comfort of your own home. She is just such a precious little girl!!

Chocolatecake Congratulations!! What a beautiful name!

{{easy labour}} vibes to those of you who will be meeting your babies so soon!

[cayso]

OMG MSH - what a cutie! AND he sleeps 6 hours at night??? That's a keeper!;)

BH - I haven't had any in a while - I had them while biking late 2nd/early 3rd trimester quite a bit. At first I didn't know what was going on, but then I snapped. It's just a tightening - definitely didn't hurt and I might even go so far to say they felt kind of good...when I snapped they were contractions and I felt my abdomen there was a definite hardening of the entire uterus too.

[jeninef]

Strawberry-I'm glad you are able to take your precious DD home!

MSH-Thanks for sharing the pic...he's too cute! I'm glad that DS1 is dealing so well...that is my hope too!

I had my GSB test today and the Doc did an internal. I am one cm dialated and she said my cervix is very soft, but still very high. So, I guess we're starting...but with DS1, I was 3 cm for 4 weeks! So, I'm not holding my breath, but would love it if he came around 39 weeks or so!

As for BH contractions...I agree with everyone else...you can feel a tightening around your whole belly/uterus. Mine are painful as well...I had them more up until about a few weeks ago, and haven't really been having many since.

My next Dr. appt. is July 30th.

[Annette]

MSH-Awww, he's so cute! Thats great that he slept 6 hours. I thought when they were newborns, your supposed to wake them up to eat.

BH contractions - I'm definitely feeling them now. Last night I had a few and they were somewhat uncomfortable.

[strawberry4]

http://www.inventiveparent.com/cgi-bin/shopper.cgi?preadd=action&key=SLEPHFSS


Just a product we LOVE and has been helpful. These halo blankets with a swaddle are great. The hospital gave us one. DD would not settle down last night so I put her in this, she slept 4.5 hours and then 4 hours. They are a miracle! Plus they cannot work themselves out of it!

[MrsBrownie]

Congrats to MSH, Strawberry and Chocolate on your new little ones.

I'm so envious of those who went early, quickly and naturally...not too much longer for me (I hope anyways!)

I'm READY...I pretty much have everything ready for this baby to arrive any day. I have lot's of stuff that CAN be done, but everything that HAS to be done is done. (Except to have the carseat installed, but if it was absolutely necessary, I could do it myself!)

MSH ~ I was going to PM you, but figured this information might be helpful for others too. When you used the Evening Primrose Oil vaginally, did you just insert the capsule, did you snip the end and insert it, or did you just squeeze the contents of the capsule inside? I'm just curious on how you used it. I'm going to start using this on the weekend and wanted to see the best way to do it. Congrats on your little Boy...he is adorable and glad to hear he's such a great baby so far.

[MSH]

Evening primrose Oil I was instructed by my MW to take 3 x 1000mg daily. 1000mg with breakfast, 1000mg with lunch and 1000mg vaginally at bedtime. Now I only ever took one round of the capsuls before going into labour but for nighttime I poked a hole in the capsule to allow the liquid to leak out. MrsBrownie I hope that answers your questions otherwise please do PM me :)

strawberry4 that is awesome you were able to get two such great stretches of sleep.

Annette It all depends on the person. I figure as long as DS is healthy and gaining as he is supposed to there is no need to meddle with a good nights sleep. If however there was reason for concern in him not eating enough or low supply I would wake him to feed.

jeninef I believe most 2nd babies won't drop/engage until you are in labour. So things may move really fast once your body starts to get ready to give birth.

cayso yeah I think we will keep him, lol. Mind you he doesn't always sleep when I would prefere to sleep but thankfully DS1 likes to sleep in so we end up getting a good stretch each night.

_____________

Nothing much new to report here. DS2 is a week old today!! Crazy how time flies. We are still doing good. DH went back to work yesterday, so far being home with the two boys on my own hasn't been too bad but I am sure there will be good and bad days.

[Red'sGirl]

Due date: Two weeks from yesterday.

Baby: Hanging on to my ribs with both hands, feet, and mountain climbing rope. :rolleyes:

I can't get comfortable, I'm exhausted, and I'm ready. Thankfully, my MIL arrived yesterday, so we have DD covered if I should go anytime soon. Plus, she's babysitting DD tonight so that DH and I can go see Batman.

Watch, I'll go into labor in the movie and will be trying to see the end before heading to the hospital! We see so few movies, I'd have to try to stick it out.

[Annette]

Went to the doc today. I had my GBS test done. I am about 1cm dilated, but it seems like my cervix is still high cause she had to reach pretty far up there, ow. I also got a quickie u/s since she couldn't tell where his head was. It is down and it looked huge on the u/s machine. I don't know how he's going to come out!

[ez2luv]

...I am GBS pos this time ....and was 2cm dilated, 50% effaced at my appt a couple days ago...

Anyway...Ladies...
I am going into the hospital in the morning and will have a quick u/s to check the position of the girls, get my waters broken and then get put on the drip (pitocin)

Couldn't come any sooner - I am so swollen I can't walk and people can't recognize my face.
Maybe it's the real-deal or nerves - But I have been having contractions as well for the past hour....

So, I should meet my babies tomorrow!!!
Yaaa!!!

I am so happy, I can't stop smiling!!!

[Annette]

ez2luv-I'm so excited for you. Good luck!! Can't wait to see pics.

Is there going to be anyone left by the time August rolls around?

My BFF had her baby last night after being induced in the morning. Her DS did not want to come out, but finally he did.

[lindengraphics]

ez2luv - congrats! Not about the swelling and the contractions, but about the having the babies part! That's awesome! I am so ready for my DD to be out it's crazy.

Had my last shower on Wednesday, and we now just have a handful of items to pick up for the baby off our registry. My waddle is in full swing, and my ankles haven't been their normal size for the last couple weeks now.

Had a minor panic attack/scare on Wednesday night. Was reclining against DH watching TV when I went to get up, and felt this scraping/popping sensation below my left ribs. Freaked out thinking I'd snapped the baby's foot (she didn't move crazy afterwards, so I'm assuming she's fine). Took DH a while to calm me down after offering to take me to the hospital several times.

Anyone else experience a sensation like this? There's been a dull ache in that side ever since, and it's painful to get out of sitting positions and walk sometimes now on my left leg. Should I be concerned, or is it possible I just pulled a muscle and am overreacting?

Hope everyone else is doing well. Here's to hoping some of us have actual August babies. :p

[Lizzy]

ez - Good luck today!!

Annette - I'm sure I'll be here through part of August (I'm due mid-August). I have been mentally preparing myself to go late. However I am feeling more BHs and I am also feeling HUGE so there's a small voice in my head that keeps reminding me it could be any day now...

linden - I can't recall experiencing anything like that. But pregnancy is such a weird state, and I've definitely have had my fair share of odd experiences. It sounds like it could be round ligament pain but that's odd that it hurts to walk on your left leg now.

[cayso]

EZ - Whoo hoo! I'm thinking about you today! Man, this is getting very exciting...

As for anyone giving birth in August, I'll go for that since I'm due August 30th! I think it would freak me out still to give birth in the next couple weeks - too early. Although...

WE FINALLY GOT OUR NURSERY PAINTED! :):):) Not furnished yet, mind you, that stuff is still in the garage, but I will do that this weekend and then try to post a pic. I've got everything I need, I just need to put it in there and then buy a couple more basic things like a changing pad, etc. I'm sure it will feel good to be ready.

Linden - it sure sounds like you strained a muscle or ligament in your ribcage. Those little buggers can cause serious pain for how small they are. A lot of people swear they've broken ribs when they have in fact, just strained the muscles.

I will think I will try to update again once we have EZ's news - post up anything coming up for y'all. My next appt. is July 31st.

[Baxter78]

I haven't posted in awhile - I feel so bad! But, I have been keeping up with reading and all the happenings with everyone! I am so excited about all the babies that have arrived and are continuing to arrive. I don't have time to reply to everyone individually - so here's a group "Congratulations!" to everyone who has delivered!! :)

Things are going well on my end. I am now going to my OB/GYN every 2 weeks. My next appointment is July 31st. I'll be nearing the end of my 35th week at that time and will be getting the Group B Strep test. For those of you who have had this already, what is it exactly that they do?

I am pretty positive that I started with Braxton-Hicks contractions a week or 2 ago. They don't involve my whole belly at this point. I get localized tightening and hardening on different smaller spots on my belly. It is pretty uncomfortable, but not painful.

DH and I took a 5-week childbirth course through our hospital that we just finished last week. We are going to an all-day parenting class tomorrow. I think we are becoming hospital class junkies - we love going!! The woman who teaches all of the classes we have signed up for (also going to a breastfeeding class the first week of Aug) is the sweetest person I have ever met.

I am getting really nervous and anxious just like many of you. At this point, I am most scared about the labor and delivery process - not knowing what to expect really rattles my nerves. I have moments of being terrified of actually having a baby and being a parent, but I am better able to control that fear than I am able to control my fear of child birth.

Nursery is pretty much done, except for hanging a few things on the walls. We ended up having to paint it twice. The pale green we originally picked came out terrible - it had a weird neon quality to it. So, we have now painted it a nice sunny yellow color. I think we have mostly everything that we could possibly predict needing for a baby. I keep asking friends of mine who have recently had babies for advice, and as I learn things from them, I have been picking up a few additional items here and there.

And, in an attempt to control my anxiety, I have already started packing my hospital bags/suitcases. I know I am not due until the end of Aug (Due date is Aug 30th - which I think has to be changed on the first info page of this thread), but it helps calm my nerves to prepare early.

I think that is everything! I hope everyone continues to stay well and to have healthy and happy babies!

[Annette]

EZ-I hope everything went well with the delivery.


At this point, I am most scared about the labor and delivery process - not knowing what to expect really rattles my nerves. I have moments of being terrified of actually having a baby and being a parent, but I am better able to control that fear than I am able to control my fear of child birth.

I feel the same way. The big thing is when will I go into labor? Is it going to be next week or 5 weeks from now. I have a friend that was due the same day as me and she had her baby this weekend.
I think we finally have everything ready for the big day. We went shopping yesterday and got some additional items and we stocked up on diapers and wipes since we had coupons. I still have to finish packing my hospital bag. We have a tour today, so I'll hope to find out more of what I need to bring. I don't think I slept good last night. Woke up tired with a headache.

Hope everyone's doing well.

[Sue]

More info to come later... Ryan Matthew was born on 7/24 at 3:03am!! Hope everyone is doing well!

[cayso]

OMG, Sue!!! Congratulations and Welcome to Baby Ryan! I will look forward to hearing what happenned...I notice by the date that he was born after that next u/s you said you were going to have....I hope all is well with both of you.

Wow. Who was it who asked if there were going to be any babies left to actually be born in August??? I'm starting to get nervous!:eek:

[Annette]

Sue-Congrats and welcome Ryan!

I think it was me that asked if anyone would be left in August.

[Lizzy]

Congrats Sue!

[alootikki]

Congratulations Sue!! :)

Yikes, can't believe how everyone is going so early! I'm holding strong (I think!) at 39w1d today, and feel no rush - still have to order the glider and pack my hospital bag!

[cayso]

I think it was me that asked if anyone would be left in August.

Well, Annette, I'm with you on that question! :) But also what you said about not knowing when you will go into labor. I have become very *aware* of the fact that although I supposedly have 5 weeks to go, he could come any time now! That's a bit unnerving, I guess.

As to anxiety/nerves in general, mine are starting to decrease, thank god. I've gotten a lot of things done recently that were causing some stress and that helped. I also feel much more confident about labor and birth than I did before - I think my hypnobirthing classes really helped with that. I've noticed though that some of my anxiety has transferred to "what's going to happen to the baby?" Or "what is he going to be like?" Maybe since I'm getting close, I'm thinking more about him. I worry that something might happen during delivery (what if he gets "stuck"?) or that something could still be "wrong" with him that tests didn't reveal.

[August2008Moms]

Updated to Here

Let me know if I missed anything...linden, if you like, repost your info and I'll get that up on the first page, I noticed we still don't have it there.

[lindengraphics]

CC Name: lindengraphics
Me: Name, age: Lindsay, 24
DH: Name, age: Thomas, 25
Married: September 22nd, 2007
TTC Date: Early November, 2007
BFP Date: December 16th, 2007
EDD: August 23rd, 2008
Gender Prediction: Originally thought we were having a boy, but...
Finding out the gender? Having a little girl.
Other children: This is our first.

[lindengraphics]

Congratulations Sue! How exciting!

My side is starting to feel better, but is still very tender. Went swimming for the first time yesterday since I got pregnant, and it was very relaxing and alot of fun... until I got out of the pool and gravity set in again, yowza!

Start my weekly appts. on Wednesday, July 31st (sounds like a couple of the rest of you are going in on this day as well). I hope they do an exam of some sort, just so I can get an idea of where I'm at. I mean, it's great and all that she's in position, but it'd be nice to know about how soon she may be popping out. I'm adamant she'll be here earlier than the 23rd of August.

Quick question for the repeat mommies out there: For those of you that didn't BF, how long did it take for your milk to dry up? I know I probably sound horrible for not wanting to BF, but I just don't think it'll work for me based on where I am right now with my job and everything. Was it really painful during the process, and were there steps you took to try and relieve some of it? Just curious... :rolleyes:

Good luck to everyone else that is getting closer and closer to their due dates. I am so antsy I can hardly stand it sometimes. We still have a couple things to hang up on the walls in our nursery (meant to do it yesterday, but we went swimming instead). Will post pictures when everything's up. Take care everyone!

[jeninef]

Congrats to Sue and baby Ryan!

It really does seem like we are going to have all July babies, huh??? ;)

[ez2luv]

Hello all....
I am pleased to announce that

Katelyn Elizabeth (5lbs, 7oz)
&
Sophia Danielle (6lbs, 5 oz)

were born on Fri July 25th.
We are all home now and doing well.

The induction didn't go as planned. During it, Katelyn decided to sneak past Sophia's head and stick out her toes and cord (prolapsed cord).
So - I was rushed to the OR and had a section under general anesthesia.
They are born just before noon.

Katelyn had a (nasal) feed for a few hours, because she vomited up a meal...(??? still not understanding that one). The next doc that came on ordered it to be taken out, stating the obvious, "babies do that once in a while..??!"
She's been fine since.
Sophia had an IV in her head giving her glucose for a day.
They both had their 'tubes' taken out by the next afternoon and we were all sent home on the third day.
And, yippee - no jaundice!!!

They are beautiful and we are thrilled!!!
I think they must be fraternal. They look similar, but are indeed different. Our DD (who's 3) can tell them apart with hardly a glance!

I still cannot believe that they both fit in there...??!!!

[marathongirl]

Coming out of lurkdom to say Congrats to a fellow Sept '04 mom on her new arrivals! Congrats ez!!! Welcome to Katelyn and Sophia!

[cayso]

Congratulations EZ and a big Welcome to Katelyn and Sophia! Sorry to hear about the emergency C, but sure glad everything turned out okay.

[jeninef]

Congrats EZ and welcome Katelyn and Sophia! I love their names! I hope everything is going as smoothly as possible at home!

[Annette]

Congrats EZ! Sorry to hear about the emergency C-section, but I am glad that you and the babies are alright.


What an adventure I had yesterday. Was feeling under the weather at work, had the runs, then threw up what little of my lunch I ate. Throwing up at work is unpleasant. Came home and started having abdominal pains. Drank fluids and couldn't keep it down. I ended up going to labor and delivery to get checked. You should have seen DH and I trying to get the car loaded with stuff, because we thought he was coming. They hooked me up to an IV and the monitors and I was contracting every 3-5 with no cervix change. That was a relief, but man those contractions were really uncomfortable. I came home last night, but I'm still feeling a bit achy.

[MSH]

Quick question for the repeat mommies out there: For those of you that didn't BF, how long did it take for your milk to dry up? I know I probably sound horrible for not wanting to BF, but I just don't think it'll work for me based on where I am right now with my job and everything. Was it really painful during the process, and were there steps you took to try and relieve some of it? Just curious... :rolleyes:
Well I BF DS1 and am BFing DS2 but I will tell you the day your milk comes in is not comfortable. I made DH run out in the night to get a pump because I just couldn't handle the pain any longer (and I had just had a NCB!). My guess would be you could use many of the same techniques as dealing with engorgement. So hot showers and hand expressing, pumping, raw cabbage leaves in your bra, hot/cold compress ... just make sure not to express/pump more than what is needed to take the edge off. You are essentially trying to teach your body it doesn't need to make milk.

ez2luv Congratulations on the birth of your baby girls!!!

Sue Congratulations and welcome baby Ryan!


_________________

We are doing great here. DS1 LOVES his brother and hardly ever shows any signs of jealousy. DS2 is being a complete ham. He STTN and has since we brought him home. He is exclusively BF and cloth diapered, growing like a weed and starting to be more alert and have longer periods of wakefulness. We've been really lucky.

I'm doing great also, we have been all over the place since DS2 was born, my bleeding has almost stopped and I never needed to take anything for PP pains. I cannot wait to get our double stroller when my mom gets here in 3 weeks so we can start going for more walks to the park.

[lbs27]

I've been lurking in here waiting to see Sue's good news and it's early!! :D Congrats, Sue and welcome Ryan--cute name!

[jeninef]

Annette- Sounds something similiar to me 2 weekends ago, but we didn't end up at L&D. Totally stunk though! I started freaking out too thinking that the baby was coming!

Well, I had a Dr. appt. today and am now 3 cm dialated and 70% effaced. I have been crampy all day, but nothing timeable. We'll see if anything happens! I'm not counting on it after my experience with DS1, but I guess you never know! They say number two's come sooner, right? HA! I guess I better pack my bag for the hospital and have it waiting!

[cayso]

Annette - What an experience! Were you sick with like a stomach flu or something and having GI cramps or actual uterine cramps? Gosh that would have freaked me out!

MSH - I am half jealous and half relieved/hopeful to hear how well you are doing and that your baby is easy-going and sleeping through the night! All you hear are the bad stories, I guess - kind of like we all do with regard to pregnancy and childbirth too. I'm glad to hear some positive and maybe I could hope to be so lucky too???

jenine - now, being 3cm dialated and 70% effaced...is that normal stuff for the final few weeks or does that mean childbirth is imminent? Did the doctor give you a guess as to how soon? I've been wondering if there is a way to predict ahead of time and if so, how far ahead. My DH and I are going to try to make an overnight getaway to a location about 1:15 from town/hospital next weekend - I'll be 37 weeks at the time. I have two doctor visits before then so I'm hoping if it looks like I'm going to go early (like is the trend here!) she'll be able to tell me!

As for me, my nursery is DONE and I finally feel like I have everything I *need* for a newborn to be around. BIG relief. I feel like I'd like to have a few weeks to adjust to being ready and a chance to enjoy the last segment of my pregnancy and really allow myself to get excited about birth and having a baby. And I'd like to have that one last getaway with my DH - we need it and also our anniversary is 9/4 so not likely that will get celebrated as it usually would be.

[Annette]

MSH-Thats great to hear your DS2 has been easy going. Several ppl I know have mentioned that the 2nd one was easier for them as well. I wonder if it's because you've been there done that and are more relaxed and the baby senses that?

jenine-ooh, 3cm, how exciting! Hopefully it will be soon for you.

cayso-Yay for the nursery being done!

How is everyone else doing?

me: I'm feeling much better. It was a stomach bug, but the dehydration brought on the contractions. I couldn't tell if it was my stomach or my uterus until I got hooked up to the monitor. I've just had the intermittent BH since getting rehydrated. At least I'm familiar with the hospital now. We actually had the tour on Sunday. How ironic is that?

We are still indecisive about a name. DH wanted to narrow down our list of five, but I'm making him wait till we see LO first.

[lindengraphics]

MSH: So excited for you! That's super awesome that DS2 has been so great as far as sleeping and everything, and that DS1 hasn't exhibited signs of jealousy. Congrats!

jenine: Holy cow, 3 cm? I am way jealous. You'll have to keep us posted for sure!

cayso: I know what you mean about being excited for your nursery being done. Granted we don't have our decals up yet, but I'm not that concerned about it. I just wanted the major stuff on the walls, and now that that's done, I just feel so much better about everything. Every day I just go sit in there in the rocker and relax and envision what it'll be like when she's FINALLY here. I'm so excited I can hardly stand it.

Annette: That sucks about your stomach, but at least you were able to get it checked out, right? I've been super paranoid lately because I started having BH's as well, and my DH is in panicked "SHE'S COMING" mode now. Just glad to hear you're feeling better.

Had my first of my weekly appts. yesterday, complete with the GBS (sp?) swab. Even though DD is definitely growing (he thinks she's between 6-6.5 lbs right now based off my measurements), I haven't started to dilate yet. :( Little sad about that cause I want her OUT! But she's healthy from what he can tell, and that's all that matters. Will keep you updated and hope everyone else is doing alright. Take care!

[jeninef]

O.k. so I packed my bag for the hospital last night, just to be prepared. I'm still here, but still feeling a bit crampy and my back is killing me!

Cayso-I think because it's my second child, that might be why I'm progressing quicker. With my first, by the time I was induced, I was 60% effaced and about 3 cm. dialated. All that happened over a 4 week period though, not in one week like with this pregnancy! With my first I had him induced 8 days late. So that's why I'm not holding my breath! I really just think it's a crap shoot! I say as long as you're feeling well, go on your overnight and maybe mention it to the Dr. before you go to see what they say. Enjoy the last few times you two will be alone for awhile! ;)

[lindengraphics]

Just had a surprise baby shower with my work. Had no idea because we were (as far as I knew) just supposed to have a company lunch today. Pleasant surprise. Got even more cute clothes for DD. She's gonna be so spoiled (most of the population of my office building is female).

Hopefully this is the last one, though. I'm afraid of running out of room for all her fun clothes and whatnot.

Ladies: What's been your favorite shower gift so far? Just something fun to talk about. Take care everyone!

[Annette]

linden-Thats awesome that you had a surprise shower.

jenine-8 days late! Oh boy, I would be so impatient.

linden-Thanks! Thats great to hear your baby is healthy.

me: I am now 50% effaced and still 1cm. I still have no idea how they can tell by feeling up there. He hasn't dropped yet though. Although now when I walk around, I feel like I have to pee. According to the nurse practitioner, whom I saw today cause my doc is on vacation, she said I'm progressing nicely. I still don't know when it will happen, but maybe he'll come sooner rather than later?

[August2008Moms]

Updated to here

[Red'sGirl]

I THOUGHT I posted here on the 30th after my Dr. appt, but I guess I didn't. :confused:

At the appt., my Dr. finally checked me and I was 3 cm and 70% effaced (sound familiar Jenine? :)) My Dr. said it might be that day or the next, but it might be another two weeks. Ugh. Plus, she mentioned that she had concert tickets Thursday night, so try to avoid that. :rolleyes:

Well, I managed not to screw up her plans, as I'm still here. But seemingly not for long. I've been having contractions since 10pm last night and now they're 5-6 mins apart and last 1 minute. It's 6am and I guess I'll get DH up when they're closer to 5 mins or so. Handling it o.k. for now, but we'll see. Might walk in to emergency screaming for an epi! :D Will try to keep posted.

BTW, Congratulations ez, and welcome Katelyn and Sophia!!!

[cayso]

Hi Ladies

Went to Dr. yesterday, had my beta strep test (let us pray...) and my boy hasn't dropped yet either. I told Dr. about my plans to be out of town next weekend and she said she could check my cervix, but I said "Nah - if he hasn't dropped and I'm not having BH, forget it." Then, later in the day, I had 3 BH! Maybe I'll have her check next Thursday before I go!

Shower Gift - Besides the shower itself, I would have to say my faves were my BG dipes - especially the two friends that each got me a dozen! Such generosity on something I needed. I also like the handmade stuff that I've gotten, like blankets.

Anyone noticing we haven't heard from Red's Girl in a while? Kinda makes me wonder....;)

[cayso]

Whoa! Red's Girl, I think you were posting the same time I was! Wow, sounds like this is it though - very exciting!

[jeninef]

How exciting Red's Girl! I am jealous! I know I will be here till my due date, 3 weeks from now! HA!! Good luck and can't wait to hear about baby boy!!!

[Baxter78]

Just popping in to say a quick hello...

Annette: Glad you are feeling better. And, it seems like you are making progress towards the start of labor. I feel like I have to pee, too, when I walk around.

Red's Girl: Such exciting news! Good luck, and I hope your baby boy comes soon!

EZ: Congrats on the arrival of Katelyn and Sophia!

Favorite shower gift: I may be better able to answer this after baby arrives and I see what things are most useful. But, as of now, we love the stroller my mom gave us, along with the matching stroller blanket that she crocheted.

---
My OB/GYN appointment was yesterday. Things are looking good (measurements are on track and baby's heartbeat is strong - it amazes me each time I hear it). I had the strep test and will find the results out next week (I am now up to weekly OB appointments; next appointment is Aug 8). I am nowhere near showing any progress towards labor/delivery, though. My OB reported that my cervix is still closed and very high. She recommended lots of walking and "nipple stimulation' to get things moving.

Speaking of nipples, after I got out of the shower yesterday, I had my first experience of leaking milk! It just happened that once and it wasn't much, but is was quite shocking and amazing to me!

I hope things continue to go well with everyone. Such an exciting time!

[Lizzy]

Favorite shower gift - Probably my Moby wrap. I received a lot of nice things though, so it's hard to choose.

My baby dropped a couple of weeks ago. My husband could tell that I was carrying lower, and I also got stretch marks on the lower part of my belly at the same time, presumably from the drop. However, I still feel like my lungs are squished, so maybe he has a little more dropping to do. The midwife has confirmed that his head is down really low, so that's a relief. I am constantly thinking about his position and spend a fair amount of time looking at spinningbabies.com. The midwife today said that the baby is in almost ideal position.


I've had a few BH and some general crampiness, but nothing to write home about. I feel so ready to have the baby, but I am still mentally preparing myself to go late. I am trying to think of fun things to do in these final weeks to take my mind off the anticipation.

[MSH]

favorite shower gift we didn't have a shower for DS2 but my favorite gift from DS1, which we are also using for DS2 is our video monitor ... I would have never bought it for myself but I swear that thing is worth its weight in gold! My most sentimental gift is probably the handmade blanket my mother made, the boys have one each. With DS1 i was so afraid of anything getting on it but now I am trying to remind myself my mom made it with the intention of it being used so I am trying to be less over protective of it, lol.

leaking milk isn't that something? In the past couple of days we have had spraying accidents when DS2 is nursing. I think I got him in the eye yesterday :eek: I strongly recommend getting some breastpads to bring to the hospital if you are planning to BF as the side the baby isn't nursing on will often let down also and it can get messy.



We are still doing great. We had our 2week WBV yesterday and DS2 is above his birthweight!! yay!! On his 5-day visit he had lost 4oz from his birth weight but he is now 2oz over ... so he gained 6oz in 9 days, go DS2!! I'm almost down 20lbs already, so half way to my prePG weight, however I have been able to fit into my prePG pants for about a week now ... not a flattering fit though, it seems my behind has moved south, lol. Yesterday was also the first time I seen the MW who delivered DS2 since the birth. It was fun chatting with her again and she said to me she still didn't believe I would be having a baby when I walked into the hospital and she thought the other MWs would think she was crazy for having me come in, lol. She said I was just so calm no one believed I was in active labour but 4 hours later sure enough there was a baby.



Happy baby month!!!

[cayso]

Ooo, Lizzy, I have a Moby too! I didn't get it as a shower gift, I bought it for myself because I really wanted one. I can't wait to use it - I might even take it to the hospital with me.

Nursing Bras - I may have brought this up before - I keep thinking I have it figured out but I am SOOOO confused. I have gained one cup size from pre-preg and that's all. BUT, I was, ah...generous before. And I have heard that you buy nursing bras one size bigger than what you are wearing now (during preg.) So. What all this means for me is an odd/large size that I cannot find locally in stores and I must order online. That said, I have also been given the advice that you won't know how big you are going to get until your milk comes in so only order ONE nursing bra. But I have also heard that ordering a sleeping nursing bra is pretty critical for comfort too. So, do I order one? A regular one that I can leave the house in? A sleeping one? More than one? More than one size? I don't want to waste my money, but I don't want to be stranded and unable to be decent or leave the house or even be comfortable because I have no nursing/fitting bras either! HELP! Advice???

[MrsSpencer]

delurking* I was never "blessed" but you will WANT a sleep bra..it was so essential to me at the hospital and home majorly when my milk came in. Even though bfing didn't work out for me I still wear it cause it's so comfy. I only bought one bra..and another after my milk came in. Hope that helps! :)

[jeninef]

You will definitely want something to sleep in, so I would recommend either a nursing tank you are comfortable in or a comfy wireless nursing bra that you can sleep in. So far I bought one of each and will use them until my milk comes in and then buy some more.

[Baxter78]

First, I have to ask: what is a Moby wrap?

Nursing Bras: I have a very similar problem to you Cayso. I am very well-endowed (I'm only a 34 or 36 band size, but I have grown to an I cup :eek: during pregnancy and cannot image how much larger I will get while nursing), and I cannot find nursing bras in my size in any store. So, I will also have to order my bras online. I have spent the past several weeks researching all of the brands of nursing bras available that carry larger cup sizes and the websites that sell them. I don't have my list with me at work, but if you are interested, I can post the info when I am at home.

I decided to order one nursing bra now. Since underwires are not recommended for nursing, the one I am getting does not have an underwire, so I am hoping it is comfortable for sleep. I ordered my regular size, but the brand that I got (Goddess) runs large, so I am hoping it will leave room for when my milk comes in. I will order more bras after my milk comes in, and I know my new size better.

I am not planning on getting a separate sleep bra, unless I find it necessary later on. I'm not planning on getting a nursing tank, either, because the ones I have seen are not made with enough material to fit my girls (even ones that are supposed to be for large chests), and I know that a tank will not provide me with enough support.

[Lizzy]

Moby wrap:
http://www.mobywrap.com/images/PRODUCT/medium/20.jpg

I am also still trying to figure out the nursing bra situation. Baxter, if you can post your research that would be great. I am also well-endowed to begin with, but I've only gone up about a cup size during pregancy. Not sure what will happen when my milk does come in...

[jeninef]

Is it just me or is anyone else super anxious??? Like every little BH or pain or anything could be IT???? This is driving me nuts! I keep telling myself to try and enjoy this because it could be the last time I'm pregnant, but I am so anxious to get the show on the road! Uugh!!!

I've heard great things about the Moby! I would have gotten one too, but with the 100 degree weather here, and warm temps well into Nov. sometimes, I had to forgo one. I got a Hotsling instead. I'm hoping baby will like it!

[cayso]

Thanks for the input and I'm glad I'm not the only one struggling with this situation!

Baxter/Lizzy - Yes, yes, small band/large cup is the situation I am in - I would love to see your research too Baxter! I will pass on for both of you the one site that I have found that looks good: birthandbabyorders.com. Again, I just hesitate to order not knowing what size I am really going to end up!

Jenine - I did manage to find both a nursing tank and a sleep bra that fit *okay* - I can sleep in both, I just wouldn't want to go out in public in either one - ill-fitting and not enough support! But, if I can use them around the house until I see what happens to my size and then order...maybe that will suffice.

And I'm getting anxious too! "Was that a BH? Did the baby drop?" I am also starting to get anxious again about something going wrong, or something being wrong with him that we don't know about - I wonder if this is just nerves/anticipation of *finally* meeting this *mystery* that I have been solely and unbelievably responsible for for 8+ months?

[Red'sGirl]

Hi all,

SO, Julian Mitchell was born on Friday, August 1, 2:14pm. He was 8 lbs 13ounces, and is 22 1/2 inches long.

My contractions started on Friday morning around 3:30am, though pretty far apart. By 7am, they were 5 minutes apart and lasting a minute. We got to the hospital around 9am, with contractions building but decent. Yet when the checked me, I was STILL 3cm!! :confused: So they gave me Pitocin and within a half hour, I was in need of an epi (it was 11am). By 1:30pm, I was 9cms and moving fast. By 2pm, I was ready to push. 15 minutes later, he was here.

Let's see if I can post a picture.
http://i20.photobucket.com/albums/b215/redsdeltagirl/Redsboy/Juliansfirstpictures019.jpg

[jeninef]

Congrats Red's Girl and Welcome Julian!!!

[cayso]

Congratulations Red's Girl! My Gosh, you look radiant and beautiful! Could I hope to look so good after childbirth??? A big welcome to little Julian, he looks adorable! (I love that name, and although we did not select it, my friend Julia calls my belly "little Julian". :) )

[lindengraphics]

Congrats Red's Girl and welcome Julian! What a great name.

I have been having sporadic BH's for the last few days. Sunday I had a couple that weren't that far apart (about 15 minutes) that both lasted for about a minute, but then I didn't have any more until later that night. :mad: I want my baby, gosh darnit!

Just to double check, does anyone else's "stomach" (I know it's your uterus, but calling it belly seems weird as well) stay tight for a while after a BH, making it a little hard to tell if you're having another one? I've noticed that sometimes I'll have one, but then my belly will stay hard for what seems like forever afterwards (3-5 minutes).

I asked last week about measures to take to deal with my milk coming in/drying up since I'm not BFing, and was curious to know if anyone would recommend investing in breast pads until I stop leaking? I know a friend of mine, who's due in September has already purchased some and she's not planning on BFing to my knowledge. Just wondered if I should go the same route.

My DH is so eager for her to get here that he's trying to think of ways to get me to induce naturally. He forced me to eat pineapple the other day because my cousin swears that's what made her go into labor when she was a week overdue. I'm not convinced, since I just thought it was gross and wanted to gag the whole time (I'm not the biggest fan of pineapple). All I know is that she's getting really heavy, and I'm having a heck of a time sleeping at night.

Hope everyone else is doing well. Take care, ladies!

[Lizzy]

Congrats Red's Girl! You both look great. :)

Pineapple has prostaglandins which are supposed to help the cervix ripen. Semen also has prostaglandins in it, which is why it is suggested that sex can help induce labor.

[Jenzen01]

derluking ...

lindengraphics - I'd get breast pads. No matter if you're BFing or not, you're going to leak until you dry up. It's just good insurance so you can avoid those embarrassing wet-circles-over-your-boobs while out in public. :)

[Sue]

Congrats Red's Girl and welcome to the world Julian!

The past 2 weeks have been interesting... I'm sorry I haven't been around more, but I have been reading along. We had our 2 week WBV today and Ryan is already up to 8lbs 1 oz from a birth weight of 7lbs 6oz :eek: He does eat like a champ :)

So here's the birth story... I got home on 7/21 and laid down to rest a bit, nothing unusual. I got up to make dinner about 6:30 and DH walked the dogs. I'm standing there making rice when all of a sudden my water broke. Just a trickle to start, then a bit more. I waited for John to finish and told him what had happened. I just had an appointment the week before and I wasn't dilated at all and was actually going for another ultrasound on Tuesday so they could check the baby since I was borderline having too much fluid and they wanted to check the baby's kidneys to make sure they were functioning right. We called the office and headed off to the hospital. Needless to say, we didn't have a bag packed or anything :) Looking back, I wish we had stayed at home and waited for labor to start, but I kinda expected it to once at the hospital!

Got to the hospital, confirmed my water broke and waited... I never started having contractions, but was told I wasn't leaving till the kid was born. I went to sleep and started having some mild contractions the next morning, but then they stopped and I still wasn't dilated. Since they don't like you to go longer than 24 hours after your water is broken to deliver, the next step was to try Cervidil - to soften my cervix and help me dilate. So we tried that Tuesday night. Wednesday morning I was a whopping 1 cm!! So the next step was Pitocin. It worked but very slowly, I was only 4 cm. after a few hours and then it took another few hours to get to 6-7 cm. I couldn't take the pain, so I started with some Stadol to take the edge off. It worked but didn't last as long as my labor was so I wound up getting an epidural. What an odd feeling, to feel something actually being inserted in your back... I finally was about 9.5 cm around midnight, so I started pushing. And after 2.5 hours he still wasn't coming out or moving much at all. By this time the epi was wearing off and I just couldn't take the pain - they had upped the pitocin to increase the contractions - so they only thing left was a c-section or more pushing. If they thought that he might come out with more pushing I would have, but it didn't look good. Through all of this, the baby was fine, heart rate was great, he was a happy camper right where he was! So at 3:03am, Ryan Matthew was born via c-section - 20", 7lbs 6oz.

Recovery has been so-so, better since I got my staples out - I think it was more in my head than anything...

I hope everyone is doing well and we start seeing some more babies!

ETA - TM, DS' name is Ryan Matthew, it's backwards on the first page :)

[Red'sGirl]

Thank you all for the kind words. We're enjoying our little boy. Even Arrena seems intrigued by him, but wants him to hurry up and "get big" so he can play. :)

Congratulations Sue and welcome Ryan Matthew!!

[August2008Moms]

Updated to Here

[Annette]

Reds girl-Congrats! And welcome Julian.

Sue-You must have been exhausted after laboring that long and then having a c-section. He's 2 weeks already?

[Baxter78]

Congratulations Red's Girl!! Thanks for posting a picture - I love seeing new little ones. He looks adorable! I cannot believe how long/tall he is! Oh, and others have said, I love the name Julian.
--

I am getting ready to post some info on nursing bras that come in large cup sizes - I apologize for it taking me so long - it has been a busy week!

[Baxter78]

Here is the information I have collected about nursing bras for women with large cup sizes. In my search for where I could buy bras for myself, I was looking specifically for NON-underwire bras that went up to at least an H, I, or J cup size. So, I left out any bras with underwires or that came in large sizes (e.g., E, F, G) but did not go up as far as I needed. If you want an underwire or are not quite as well-endowed as I am, then there are likely even more choices.

I would encourage you to read customer reviews on each of these bras - according to what I read, none seem to be the absolute perfect bra and have a variety of pros and cons.

Also, since you cannot try on bras when you are ordering from the internet, I'd recommend reading the sizing information regarding each of the brands. Many are in UK or European sizes, which are different than American sizes.

Oh, and be prepared to spend a bit of money (although if you are already used to the struggle to find regular bras in large cup sizes, you are probably already used to paying an arm and a leg!)

Bra Brands and Style Names:

Goddess Comfort Zone Nursing Bra (Style 2050)
- Available in White, Nude, and Rose

Goddess Cotton Soft Cup Nursing Bra (Style 511)
- Available in White only
(This is the one I ordered, so when it arrives next week, I'll let you know how I like it)

Anita Cotton Nursing Bra (Style 5051)
- Available in White only

Royce Jasmine Nursing Bra
- Available in White, Black, and Light Beige

Freya Rosalie Soft Cup Nursing Bra (Style 2033)
- Available in Barely There, Black, and Petal (a floral print)

Fancy Me Wire Free Nursing Bra (from JC Penney.com)
- Available in Nude

Fancee Free Extra Support Nursing Bra
- Available in White only


Websites:
These are the sites where I found these bras (all are not available on all of the sites). Many of these sites have excellent information on the sizing of each of these brands. I have only ordered from Bare Necessities and Fresh Pair in the past (both good experiences), so I don't have any input on the reliability of the other sites.

www.barenecessities.com
www.freshpair.com
www.figleaves.com
www.herroom.com
www.jcpenney.com
www.ladygrace.com


Okay, I think that is it. I hope this is helpful!

[ez2luv]

Hello - Been MIA for a while...I have so much to catch up on
Congrats Red's and Sue and welcome to your new sons! That's wonderful!
That's about as far back as I've had time to go right now, sorry if I missed anything major with anyone...

The girls are 2 weeks old tomorrow - time does go by fast!!!
DH went back to work after a week - not too impressed.
Having twins and a 3 year old isn't very easy.
I've had friends stop by with food and they've cleaned and such - but it's no where near the help I need at night and such, especially with having a section.
But - I'm managing...

I got the girls' pictures taken already - they turned out beautiful!!
I need to wait til DH get home with the scanner so I can post...
but here's a pic for now, the day they came home - 3 days old...

Sophia and Katelyn

http://i524.photobucket.com/albums/cc324/tammiroy/b076.jpg

:)

[Baxter78]

EZ: Oh, your girls are so cute!! Cannot wait to see more pics!

I hope things get easier for you, as your recover from the C-section and get used to taking care of 3!

[Annette]

EZ-Awwww... they are too precious. Are they identical? I forgot if you mentioned that.

[jeninef]

EZ- The girls are totally adorable! They do look identical to me, but I'm not sure either if you said they were! Thanks for sharing the pic! I hope you get some more help, but things will get better as you get into your routine!

[Sue]

EZ - the twins are beautiful!! Congratulations!!! I hear ya on the c-section recovery, I'm right there with you... it sucks!

Here is a pic of Ryan the day we were discharged. This kid has the longest fingers and toes I have ever seen!
http://i6.photobucket.com/albums/y247/misssue23/DSC01101.jpg

[ez2luv]

I doubt they are identical, it's pretty easy to tell them apart, maybe just the pic makes them more similar.
Katelyn has dark hair, a thinner face and a chin dimple.
Sophia look sto have lighter hair and a rounder nose.
But, there's no way to tell for sure unless we do DNA testing...

Sue - What a precious boy!!
Look at all Ryan's hair!!
And so awake for this pic, I have hardle any pics where the girls are awake!!!

[lindengraphics]

Everyone's babies are so adorable! Sue, Ryan has the most hair I've ever seen on a newborn. So cute!

Wednesday I had a "scare" -- was having what I thought were contractions every 6-7 minutes, but they lasted about 3 minutes apiece and were just a general tightening of my uterus without any actual pain (more of an annoyance than anything). I went in to check things out anyway, since I had an appointment scheduled for Thursday anyway.

My NP said it was just uterine cramps, but she also said that I'm 70% effaced, but my cervix is still tightly shut. :mad: What is up, DD?

Last night I had what I am now guessing are closer to real contractions. 4 times during the night I woke up with a sharp pain that went all the way from my back to the front of my uterus, and it would last for around a minute each time. None of them were remotely close to one another, but they hurt enough to wake me from a dead sleep. Not sure if that's progress or not.

Everyone at work seems to think I won't be in on Monday because I'll have had the baby sometime this weekend. Here's to hoping!

[Baxter78]

Sue: What a cutie Ryan is! And, wow, those ARE long fingers :)

Linden: Sounds like you could be close! Here's hoping that your little girl arrives soon and safely!
---

As for me, I had an OB appt this morning. I found out that I got a positive Group B Strep result. I am kind of upset about it, only because I am such an anxious worry-wort. The OB did not make a big deal out of it - just told me I'll have to get 2 doses of antibiotics in the hospital before I deliver. Has any one else gotten a positive GBS result?

Everything else is good. Baby's head is low, however my cervix is still closed and thick. The OB estimated that she is 6 lbs right now and that she could be expected to be in the 7-8 lb range if I deliver at 40 weeks. One thing I am excited about - my OB practice does not let anyone go further than one week past their due date. That iss reassuring to know, because now I feel I have a limit - I know that my baby girl will be here no later than Sept 6th!

[ez2luv]

baxter - I was positive. (wasn't with first DD)
Just got antibiotics...no biggie

[cayso]

OMG, so much going on here...

Sue - What a story! I think I got exhausted just reading it! But, what a result! Your Ryan is absolutely preciously adorable! I keep looking at these baby pics of yours and falling in love with all of them, and then thinking "If I'm loving THEIRS so much, how am going to react when I see MINE???" I cannot cannot fathom.

EZ - All I can say to that pic, is OH MY GOD - such cuteness! I can definitely tell them apart in the pic - I noticed the different chin right away. But, they sure look a lot alike and so preciously adorable. I do not envy your trying to negotiate caring for them AND a toddler. Again, I get tired just thinking....

Linden - Something's happening! Again, I get so excited and anticipatory about reading about all of YOUR experiences going into labor that I wonder what my reaction will be to my own...can't wait to hear!

Baxter - I was negative on the B-strep, and I'm thankful for that, NOT because it is a such a serious thing medically but because I am so wanting to do this delivery in the hospital without medical intervention. I was going to consider refusing the IV antibiotics had I been positive. Very rarely would the B-strep cause problems for a newborn, but if it does, in a very small percentage it *can* be fatal, and so they want to avoid the whole thing by testing and giving prophylactic antibiotics to mom during labor, since that is safe and easy enough to do. The biggest pain will be having to be hooked up to an IV pole for several hours during your labor, which is the only thing I was so concerned about avoiding, other than that I don't think a positive is anything to worry about. Hope that helps.

Me - Dr. said Thursday that baby boy is still getting BIG. She wants to do *another* u/s next Thursday even though she just did one 3 weeks ago! She measured and felt and is guessing his weight to be 7-7 1/2 pounds right now. I do the math and that could mean 9+ pounds at 40 weeks and that's if he's growing averagely, which it would seem he is not! :eek: So, I'm like, well, what is she thinking? Is she going to try to induce early or something if he gets too big??? I don't want that!!! But she claims not, she just "doesn't want to be surprised." OK...more news next Thursday I guess. Meanwhile, I am finally joining the ranks of the physically uncomfortable. Maybe going back to work this week has something to do with it. Sleeping sucks. My hips hurt. I'm freaking tired.

Dr. appt. and u/s 8/14.

[Sue]

cayso try to take the weight with a grain of salt. They estimated Ryan at 7lbs 9oz by u/s a week and a half before he was born and he was 7lbs 6oz. Chances are he isn't as big as they think. I also was measuring 2 weeks ahead...

baxter GBS was the only thing I didn't test positive for :) but I wouldn't worry too much about it. Try to labor as much at home as you can before you go to the hospital that way you won't be confined by the IV and definitely ask for a hep lock so you can move around between doses.

Linden hopefully there is something going on and you little girl will be here soon!

[Annette]

Sue-Ryan is absolutely adorable.

baxter-Sorry to hear you are GBS+.

cayso-I've heard the weight estimates aren't that accurate. They told my friend her baby would be 8.5lbs but he came in around 7.75 lbs.

linden-Maybe it will be your turn this weekend. Pls keep us posted.

me: I am such a klutz. So I was leaving work and heading down the stairs and I got to the last 2 steps and somehow lost my footing and rolled my ankle. It's sprained and now I have an aircast and crutches and have to be off my foot for at least a week or two. It is sooo hard getting around and I feel like I can't do anything myself cause I have no free hands. And then since I'm carrying all this extra weight around, it makes it harder to hobble around. At least I'm not in much pain, just some discomfort. I had quite an audience though cause I was in the middle of the staircase and some of my coworkers thought I was going into labor.

[ez2luv]

Annette - I tripped down the stairs twice while Pg, I feel for you..
Funny how much changes when PG, it's like you aren't in control of your entire body!!!
Hope you recover quickly before your little one comes!!!

went out in public today with the girls (they are 2 weeks now)
went to the farmers' market.
I was stopped so many times by strangers gawking and wanting to touch the girls!!
I am so annoyed already!
I have never stopped a stranger with opinions and comments on their children! Some people!!!
It's 2 babies, not a 2-headed baby!!!
C'Mon!
And If I get told one more time, "Oh, you have your hands full.." I'll scream!!
Do people really think that comment is original???
Ahhh...and then there, "Is that twins?"
NO! Triplets, just waiting for the 3rd to come out of my ass!!!!
**^^%#$@

Sorry, rant over.....
:rolleyes:

[alootikki]

Hi ladies - just a fly by to announce that our beautiful baby girl arrived last night - 08/08/08! :) She weighed in at 8 lb, 10 oz! We had to have a c-section, but it turned out the cord was knotted and around her neck. She is doing beautifully now, and we are head over heels!! :D

[ez2luv]

Congrats - i knew there'd be a baby yesterday!!!
Can't wait to hear the name of your daughter!
:)

[Annette]

alootiki-Congrats on your baby girl! Whats her name? What a cool birthday for her.

[cayso]

Alootikki - Congratulations! I agree - what a cool birthdate! If only she 2oz lighter! Ha ha!;)

Baby Weight - You know, I didn't think that u/s was a great measure for weight when last time the weight estimate varied from 5.5 to 5.12 depending on a couple of different measurements. *I'm* relieved to hear u/s exaggerated weight for some of you. I just hope my doctor doesn't make a big deal out of it and try some stunt.

Annette - I am so sorry to hear you are negotiating a bum ankle and crutches while pregnant. I can't imagine... I can soooo see why you would have fallen though - I have been listing right and left and have stumbled a lot on flat ground!

EZ - What a story - you absolutely crack me up!:D

[Red'sGirl]

ez ROFL! Yes pregnancy was just the thing to remind me how much I hate people. :) Good luck with the third - I hear that's a doozy. :D

alootikki Congratulations on your lucky baby girl!

I have a TMI issue. Maybe not for the squeamish.
Through the week, since having Julian, I haven't had much bleeding. BUT, every day or so, I'd get some red blood. Not a lot, not really clots, but..... Then, yesterday, I actually passed some ............ material. It was the size of a silver dollar, and kind of brownish-pink. Nothing that would normally be there. And since, I've had more "new/red" blood, though not as heavy as AF. I plan to call the office tomorrow and ask the Dr. what she thinks, but.... any ideas? My placenta didn't come out right away, she had to work with it, and I'm wondering if this was a piece that didn't come out right away. But then, is the bleeding a bigger problem?

I'm just putting it out there. I know no one's a doctor, so what can you all say. But it's freaked me out a little.

[ez2luv]

Red's - this may be too late - but, I was told by the nurse before I left the hospital that if it's a largish clot that alarms me, to put it in water and mix. If it dissolves, fine. But, if not - bring 'er in...
??? Not sure if this'd help you now

[cayso]

Red's - I was wondering the same thing as EZ - wondering if you thought to save it? I think the biggest concern would be if that was a piece of placenta (and that was my first thought too when you described it) is not bleeding so much as infection. That's why they are *supposed* to check the placenta for intactness when it delivers. Definitely call today!

[lindengraphics]

alootikki: Congrats on the baby girl! Can't wait to hear what you named her.

ez: LMAO. That's totally how I feel whenever people look at my belly funny and then are like "you pregnant?" Uh, no, I just like to stuff bowling balls in my pants for the attention. ;)

Annette: Sorry to hear about your ankle. I totally almost biff it like every day that I go to work. I have to navigate a flight of stairs to get to the break room for lunch every day, and it never fails, at some point I stumble on a stair, catch myself, and then mutter about how happy I'll be when I can actually see my feet again.

Well, no baby yet. I tried everything I could think of this weekend: walking, rocking, eating spicy food, eating pineapple, walking on all fours, riding in the car on bumpy roads. This baby is thwarting me at every turn. :p

However, I do feel like she's a bit lower than before. Now I feel it more in my hips when I walk, where before it was more in my lower back and sides. I have an appt. on Thursday scheduled for my exam, so we'll see. I'll also find out the results of my GBS test that I had a couple weeks ago. Hopefully all is well with that.

Couple BH today. Come on baby... mommy wants you OUT!

[jeninef]

Annette - I hope your foot is feeling better. I had a friend who had the exact same thing happen to her her last month of pregnancy...I hear ankle injuries are common with pregnant women.

Alootikki -Congratulations on the birth of your baby girl! Very cool birthday!

EZ- That story you told was too funny! I was cracking up! People can be so stupid sometimes!!

Linden- I feel the same way as you and tried the same things this past weekend! I am sooo ready to have this kid it's not funny! It hurts just to walk around anymore, but I keep trying so this kid will come out!!! No such luck!

I talked induction with the Dr. last week, but I won't schedule it until after my due date. So, I'm still hoping I can go into labor on my own. I'm almost 4 cm., so you would think it would be soon, but it certainly doesn't seem like it. Oh brother!

[Lizzy]

Add me to the list that is DONE! I am ready to go. I actually don't feel too terrible - just huge. I'm working at home and that is such a relief... I can stay in comfy clothes all day and I can take a quick nap when needed.

I've been walking at least a mile a day. Baby is already low so I don't know if it helps from that standpoint, but it's nice to get out and it really helps with my circulation - my feet usually look about normal after a walk.

I still have a few chores to get done before baby arrives... but nothing that can't be done afterwards.

I'll go to 42 weeks at least before I consider any type of intervention... that's a scary thought but I feel pretty strongly about it. Right now I don't have any signs of impending labor, not that lack thereof really means anything. My due date coincides with the full moon, so here's hoping he'll be on time. :)

[Annette]

My ankle is much better. I'm still using the brace, but I don't need the crutches. Anyway gotta run to work. More shout outs later.

[MSH]

We had Ronan's 4 week WBV today and he is up 1lb 11oz in 12 days!!! I am so proud of my little guy ... who isn't so little anymore I guess. He is still such a wonderful baby, very calm, sleeps great, hardly any fuss. DS1 LOVES his brother. It is really sweet how he always wants to kiss and hug on him.

I'll be back later for SOs, gotta feed the family :)

[Red'sGirl]

cayso and ez I thought about saving it, but by the time you "find" it, if you don't already have a container, you're in a bad position to get one. :o I did call the Dr. and they said that one clot - even on the biggish side, isn't for concern. If there's a lot of them, call in, and especially if it's accompanied by a fever. No fever usually means no problem. So if it was placenta, I should be sicker.

I also asked my BF support group (a nurse runs it), and she said basically the same thing. Expect it to keep up for 4-6 weeks, and it's only a problem if there's excessive clotting and a fever. So, I guess I'm alright.

Also, BF has become easier!!! Thank goodness. I guess I've toughened up a bit, and the kid has a slightly better grip on it. The nurse did say that he's a tense kid - maybe from having a quick birth and/or circumcision, but that he should relax a bit in a couple of weeks. It could also be his personality. He's hard to BF because he tenses up, flails his arms (and doesn't like the swaddle), and barely opens his mouth. They also suggested baby massage with olive oil. I just ran out of OO, so I need to go get some more.

[lindengraphics]

Had the craziest day yesterday...

Went to work as usual, since I'm still training my stand-in, and at 9 am started having cramping sensations that would gradually worsen into what I *thought* were contractions. Started timing them the best I could given that DD was also doing somersaults and digging her feet into my organs at the same time. When I was finally able to time them, a few in a row lasted about a minute with a time in between of about 5-6 minutes. So you know, I get all excited, but decide to wait and feel it out.

At around 3:30, I just can't take it anymore and head home. They keep up, but I'm still having a hard time timing them because even when the contractions stop, there's still that underlying cramping sensation that stays behind. Finally around 7:30 I get fed up and call the hospital help-line to see if I should come in, or what's going on.

She suggested I stay put and wait till they're 2-3 minutes apart, and until the pain is so intense that I can't talk or do anything but wait the contractions out. So I wait, and at 9:30... they stop all together. :confused:

Feeling defeated, I went to bed, and woke up at 3:30 this morning with the same thing. Waited it out until 5 when I was finally able to go back to sleep.

I hate you BH. Can I have this baby already?

[Baxter78]

Don't have time for proper replies, but I just wanted to drop in quickly with an update from latest OB/GYN appt...

Finally my cervix is doing something...I am 50% effaced and slightly dilated (less than 1cm). Baby's head continues to be very low and in place. I spoke with OB more about GBS+ test results, and I was assured that it is nothing to worry about. I really don't mind having to be on IV antibiotics during labor - I will do whatever it takes to make sure baby arrives and stays healthy.

Hope all continues to be well with everyone else. So nice to read updates about the babies who have already arrived!

[jeninef]

Well, I had yet another Dr. appt. today and found out I am now almost 5cm dialated and 80% effaced. I swear, I can't believe this kid hasn't fallen out of me! I could have swore yesterday that I was going to have him, but no such luck...I was having contractions all day, but not really timeable. Then in the evening , warning TMI ahead...while I was laying in bed watching tv, my underwear got all wet. I thought for sure my water had broke, but no such luck. The doc said that my bag of waters is still in tact, but that didn't mean I wasn't leaking from the sides. So, anyway...she said if it happened again to go to L&D and have it checked. It was the weirdest thing because I had just gone to the bathroom, and the baby wasn't moving, so I didn't think he hit my bladder causing me to pee, but I don't know if it was urine or what. No more leaking today so it probably was urine. Too weird!

Linden- I think you're going to have this baby soon!

Baxter -yay for progress!!!

Red- I'm glad bfeeding is getting easier for you! Stick with it!

[Annette]

MSH-Yay for Ronan and his weight gain!

Red- thats great the BF is easier.

linden-It sounds like you are really close.

Baxter-Looks like you've made the same amount of progress as me.

Jeninf-5cm!!! Thats great! Hopefully you will go into labor soon.

me: I have a doc appt today, so hopefully I have made some progress.
I really don't feel like going to work next week. Who else is sick of work?

[Lizzy]

Jenine - sounds like you are making good progress!

Annette - I am sooo tired of working, but I've been trying to hang in there because I don't want to use up too much of my leave before the baby is born. I don't think I can handle more than a few more days.

My midwife offered to check my cervix but I declined. I knew that no matter what the results, they would just make me feel even more impatient. I thought it was better to be kept in the dark. Now I kind of regret it because the curiousity is killing me! Oh well. I told her she could check next time... but I really hope that the next time is when I'm in labor, not back in the clinic.

[lindengraphics]

Had my appt. today. DH decided at the last minute that he wanted to come.

Good news. I am 1 cm dilated but my NP told me that my effacement last week was incorrect. I am actually 50% effaced so I have a little ways to go. I won't get my hopes up, but I am more than ready. And going back to work each day sucks more and more.

[Annette]

No progress at my appt today. Still 50% and 1cm. My doc discussed induction with me if he's late, so it looks like it will be scheduled for the 4th. I am hoping it doesn't come to that since I really want to try the NCB approach.

[cayso]

Well, I had my appt. today too...had a pretty bad experience. My Dr. checked my cervix (Lizzy, if it makes you feel any better, I REALLY wish I had declined...I thought about it and I wanted to...) Anyway, so she checks and this time she can feel it, says baby is still above my pelvis, then she says "Your cervix is soft, but I can't get a finger into it or anything..." then a big jolt and she says "OH! Yes I can!" I continue to feel these crampy pokes and I'm grimacing and grunting and thinking "What is she DOING?" So, she concludes that I'm about 30% effaced and 1 1/2 cm dialated. OK. So what did it matter? Then, I get home, and I'm bleeding, and I don't mean spotting, its like I've started my period. On my undies, on my jeans, and three wipes that are smeared with blood. I put on a pad and there is still spotting. My lower uterus/cervix is getting more and more sore tonight. I tried to call and got the answering service and the on call doc has not bothered to call me back. I'm sure baby is fine - he is moving around as usual, and what's the worst it could be? Labor? I just had an u/s right before the appt. so I would think if there were anything weird happening, it would have been noticed. I think she just totally traumatized my cervix. I'm pretty upset about it! :mad:

Has anyone else experienced pain/bleeding after being checked like this???

[MSH]

Has anyone else experienced pain/bleeding after being checked like this???

Did she maybe strip your membranes? I never had pains after being checked (mind you I was only ever checked in labour) except when I was 8cm and 15 mins before DS was born.

[jeninef]

Cayso - I know my doc says you could experience some spotting after an exam, however, I never have. I do know that since this kid of mine is nice and high, it does hurt when she pokes around in there. I wonder if she stripped your membranes too???

[cayso]

MSH/Jenine - Do you guys mean she could have stripped my membranes by accident??? She certainly wasn't *trying* to do anything like that. I don't know anything about stripping membranes - how it is done or if it could be done accidently. I've heard that is something you shouldn't let people do to you though, so I hope that's not what happened!

[MrsSpencer]

cayso..when I was in triage (my water was leaking) after she checked me (I was the same dialation as you) I bled bad enough for a pad, and they induced me. (for low fluid) that was the only time I bled during the entire preg.

[jeninef]

Cayso- I wouldn't think she would have stripped your membranes without asking you first...but I was just wondering based on the way you described it...I do know that it hurts me badly when my Dr. checks me, but that I haven't had any bleeding. I just know that it is possible to bleed afterward.

[MSH]

MSH/Jenine - Do you guys mean she could have stripped my membranes by accident??? She certainly wasn't *trying* to do anything like that. I don't know anything about stripping membranes - how it is done or if it could be done accidently. I've heard that is something you shouldn't let people do to you though, so I hope that's not what happened!

The way it was described to me is the Dr/OB/MW will use the tip of their finger and run it between the cervix opening and your bag of waters to seperate the two ... this is a common method of starting labour, however it is usually only successful if your body is naturally ready to go into labour in which case it generally happens within 24-48 hours. As jeninef said I wouldn't think she would have done this without consulting you first. Many practices won't even consider it till you have reached your due date, others will so long as you are full term.

[lindengraphics]

cayso, I know that when I had my appt. yesterday my NP told me that some spotting is normal after an exam, because they do get up in there and it does hurt... ALOT. I know I was grunting something fierce and trying to not think about it as she poked around down there (sorry, TMI). However, if you bled THAT BAD, I would be a bit concerned.

I know my NP said that if you bleed bad enough where it's like you're on your period, you need to call the hospital. Even if you had an u/s beforehand that showed that everything was hunky dory, something could have happened during your exam that changed that.

Perhaps your membranes are really thin and she scraped up against them and that's what's causing the bleeding, but if I were you I would error on the side of caution and just at least call to get a second opinion.

[cayso]

Thanks for all the feedback everyone...it was nice to get a response from *somewhere* since I wasn't getting it from my doctor's office! :rolleyes:

I talked to the nurse today - she said since I wasn't bleeding much today I was fine. She was surprised as well that I had bled that much and said she would tell my doctor she needed to chill out a bit.

That said, I will still be refusing the cervical exam next week. I will find out that my cervix is dilated the old fashioned way...by going into labor!

[Baxter78]

cayso: So sorry about your experience! I am glad that the bleeding is less. I have not experienced anything like the type of exam you described. When my OB examines my cervix, I don't have any pain nor have I had spotting or bleeding afterward. I'd refuse another exam, too, if I were you!

Annette: So tired of work! Unless I go into labor early, I will be working until Aug 29th. It is quite taxing to get through each day!

It seems like everyone is still hanging in there like I am. I am enjoying the suspense of waiting to see which one of us is "next" :)

[Annette]

Here's my almost 39 week belly

http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3202/2771059229_a3e27c4563.jpg?v=0

[lindengraphics]

I am almost at my wits end.

Going to work every day is really starting to get uncomfortable. Sitting for extended periods of time is super uncomfortable, and even though I'm due this Saturday (we'll see if she decides to show up before then), I hate to take off on maternity leave before I have to just because I don't want to waste any of my 6 weeks.

I've also noticed lately that the joints in my hips hurt really bad at night, making sleep near impossible. I've started taking warm baths before bed to try and loosen up the muscles in my hips, thighs and lower back in the hopes it will help once I lay down, but inevitably once I start tossing and turning, the pains return. It's gotten so bad that some nights I have to spend part of the night sleeping in a semi-reclining position on the couch propped up against pillows just to give my aching joints a rest.

Has anyone else had this problem? Any pain management suggestions? At this point I'll try anything just so I can get a few extra hours of sleep. So tired...

[Lizzy]

Linden - have you thought about seeing a chiropractor? It's made a big difference for me. Supposedly it is also great for when you are in labor - everything is aligned and labor goes more quickly. We'll see about that, for now I'm just glad not to have pain in my hips.


So... am I the first to go overdue? I guess I am not surprised, given that this is my first baby. I myself was a first baby and I was born 10 days late. I've felt pretty crampy at times but haven't experienced anything that makes me think labor is imminent. I keep telling myself "maybe tomorrow". That mantra has gotten me through the past week. :rolleyes:

[Baxter78]

Linden: I get the same hip pains at night when I am sleeping. I have actually had them on and off for several months now, but it is considerably worse now. Happens every night now. I have not figured out a way to make it better. I have been seeing a chiropractor for about 6 weeks now, due to back pain (which has helped so much!), but I never thought to let him know about the hip pain.

[cayso]

Linden - I, too, have had a lot of hip/sacral area pain due to sleep issues. Some nights are worse than others. I have been using a body pillow which helps a lot and walking and yoga help relieve the pain during the day. I've heard the chiropractor can be a miracle worker for this sort of thing - I haven't tried it but I am going to get a massage this week and next! :)

Lizzy - Overdue! No, I guess that is not a surprise. I still have almost 2 weeks to go and I think that's a strong possibility for me too. Just no sign of anything going on. My only fear about being overdue is that those doctors (grrr..) will start threatening to induce or something like that! Hopefully you won't be too much longer.

Annette - Cute belly!

[Annette]

Thanks!

I am almost at my wits end too. I was on my feet for a part of the morning and my ankles and feet swelled up. Its so uncomfortable standing and sitting and I feel somewhat stiff.
No sign of anything going on here either. The doc wants to induce on the 4th. I really don't want to be induced. Sleep has not been an issue, thank goodness except the occasional charlie horse will wake me up.
I just want him out now!

[jeninef]

I'm glad we're all still hanging in here together! I feel like this will never end!!! I sooo want this kid to come on his own, but fear I will end up with an induction. My Dr.'s appt. on Wed., she will tell me what day the following week we are scheduled. I am paranoid that this baby will be huge if I wait too long. It's funny, I never worried too much the first time and now I'm scared I'm going to have a 10 lb. baby because of all the crap I've been eating!

Last night I thought I was going into labor, but it ended up stopping, yet again! My stomach would get hard as a rock! It was sooo painful, but it felt really gassy like! I'm so frustrated and feel like a failure because I can't seem to go into labor on my own. Weird, huh? Today I haven't had many contractions. Oh well.

Linden - I also use a body pillow and find that helps the hip pain too. I would think a chiropractor would be a great idea! I should have looked into that myself!

Annette- Your belly is adorable!

I wonder who will be the next to announce in here!!!??!!

[lindengraphics]

Thanks for all the suggestions. I do use a body pillow (that or DH's legs depending on how I'm laying).

It's getting very hard to not get frustrated and feel like a failure when DD keeps deciding she doesn't want to come out. She's getting so heavy and everyday tasks like just getting out of bed in the morning takes longer and is super painful. I'm running out of Tylenol to combat the migraines.

I hope one of us gets to deliver soon, just to boost morale. ;)

[Lizzy]

cayso - what have they said about induction? They should really let you go to 42 weeks before they worry about it. I have to start doing non-stress tests but otherwise no talk of induction until I hit 42. Hopefully that talk will NOT be necessary... ugh!

jeninef - how big was your first? I think I will have a big baby... I feel like I am growing a toddler. On the other hand, I had a friend who gained 50 lb. and her baby was only about 7 lb.

Linden - you are so not a failure. Unfortunately we're just out of control at this point. I think these last few weeks are by far the toughest. I expected it to be hard but I couldn't have anticipated that it would feel like this terrible limbo land. Do see a chiro if you can, mine has been awesome. Maybe a massage would help too.

[August2008Moms]

Updated to Here

[cayso]

Lizzy - No one has mentioned the "I" word yet...and I know they better not until 2 weeks after, but call me paranoid, I almost feel like the stage is being set. My doc says I have a "biggish baby" - last u/s on Thursday guessed 7lb 10oz...so in 2 weeks could be 8 lbs 10 oz...no problem, but in 4 weeks 9 lbs 10oz and that combined with being late...I don't know. I create so many possible problems in my mind that never come true - I really need to stop that! :rolleyes:

What is a non-stress test?

Jenine/Linden - Hang in there ladies!!!!!!!!!!

[Sue]

Non Stress Test - I had these weekly for about a month... All they do is hook you up to a fetal monitor to check the heartrate and movement of the baby - when the baby moves, the heartrate should increase. It will also measure any contractions you may be having.

[Lizzy]

Yeah, what Sue said. Pretty typical to start these once you are post date.

Ultrasound is really unreliable for weight prediction. I can understand your concern. I hope they don't try to push you to do anything you're not comfortable with.

[jeninef]

Lizzy-My first was only 7.7lbs. but I feel like this one is soooo much bigger! That's why I'm starting to get paranoid! I'm hoping because DS1 wasn't that DS2 won't be, but you never know. I thought pushing out 7.7 was hard, I really don't want to experience much larger! ;)

[lindengraphics]

Just a quick update...

Have my exam today at 1 PM, and I am super hopeful that things will be progressing smoothly and that this baby will be out of me before my due date on Saturday.

Yesterday afternoon while I was pulling a late night at work (my trainee is still a little slow since she's new to the whole paper production thing) I noticed that when I would walk around the office transferring edits and proofs that she felt MUCH lower than she has in the past. There was this weird (TMI alert) pinching/needle-like stinging sensation I'd get real low in my uterus whenever I walked that lasted for about a couple hours whenever I'd get up from sitting and walk around. Does this sound normal to anyone when you get closer to delivery? Could she just have been moving down lower?

Also, my DH pointed out last night that he thinks my hips have moved. And by that I mean they seem wider apart (I've noticed this as well. Perhaps that would explain all the hip pain?). Could this be a sign that, gasp, she's coming?

At this point I am looking for any sign or indication that she's going to get here soon. In my head I keep imagining that the next time I get up to move around the office that my water will break and I'll have to be whisked off to the hospital. *sigh* In a perfect world...

But I am happy to report that I was FINALLY able to get some sleep last night. Not sure if I just passed out or what, but getting a night of sleep where I only had to get up to go to the bathroom once as opposed to my usual 2 times was nice.

Hope everyone else is still handling everything okay. It's only a matter of time...

[Lizzy]

Linden, I'm not going to be a beacon of good news here, BUT... I have pretty much experienced all of that and it hasn't meant a thing! It sucks. Hopefully you are making progress though. Are you getting a cervical check today?

I've heard that the average gestation for a first-timer's baby is 41w1d. If that's the case then maybe I'll have this baby on Sunday or Monday...

[lindengraphics]

:(

Lizzy, yes, I'm getting my cervix checked today. Last week I was 1 cm dilated. Hopefully there will be more progress to report today.

OH! And I forgot to mention that my swab test came back negative. Phew!

[Lizzy]

Linden - how did it go?

[lindengraphics]

No change. I am still 1 cm dilated and 50% effaced. But my NP did say that DD is definitely lower so I wasn't just imagining things.

She doesn't expect me to deliver by my due date, and I'm tired of being hopeful about it each day. It's too depressing when she doesn't show. So I plan to continue working until Aug. 30th (unless something changes obviously), which is the earliest they would consider inducing me if I go over.

[Lizzy]

Bummer. :( I'm sorry.

Being hopeful is hard. Honestly, I've given up hope. ;) But do remember - things can change very quickly.

[Annette]

linden-I feel the same sensations also especially when my bladder is full. I hope he's lower too. I find out tomorrow if I progressed any. Hopefully this weekend will be the big day.

[jeninef]

O.K. ladies...I also had my appt. today and am a full 5 cm. , -2 station. She told me not to wait around if I start to feel anything and go straight to L&D. I am also scheduled for an induction on Monday at 8am. I am a bit scared about that, actually still more of in shock. I can only hope that if I make it to Monday that it goes as smoothly as my first one did. I can't believe in less than a week this kid will be here whether he likes it or not. ;)

Here's to hoping this weekend brings us some new babies who decide to come on their own!!!

[sdmama2be]

Hi girls

I am officially the worst poster ever, but know that I have been trying to read along. DH got a new job in Jan (out of town) and I have been a single, full time working, preggo mommy of a potty training toddler...we chose to wait for me to move until the school year ended (in July because I teach at a year round school) and then after I had the baby. So we are moving in 2 weeks :eek: :eek:

I am excited to say that Kendyll Stephanie FINALLY arrived on Sat August 16 at 1228am..she weighed 7lbs 7 ounces and so far seems to be a pretty mellow little girl. She LOVES to eat and listen to her big sister talk:) Labor was VERY fast once it started...lets just say that I am glad that we went to the hospital when we did...

I promise that once life settles down again I will be a better poster.

~Susan

[Lizzy]

I had a good appointment today. The non-stress test went well and everything looks good. My midwife checked my cervix and it's 2 cm and 70% effaced. Baby is down low, lower than last week. I'm happy that my body has some clue of what it's supposed to be doing.

We discussed induction, as my midwife says she likes to have a plan. Neither of us are induction-happy but at some point this pregnancy must end and I don't really want to go past 42 weeks, though I know there are people out there who do go past that without any issues. Anyway, the plan is that we would induce next Friday the 29th. That would put me at 41w6d. She explained her method of induction, which would involve a slow and sparing pitocin drip. Then once labor is going/I hit transition we would turn the pitocin off and I could labor and birth in the tub. I would not be thrilled about inducing, but if it's got to be done, then I really like this conservative approach.

I still have a week to spontaneously begin labor, so I'm hoping that is what happens. But now I can see the light at the end of the tunnel!

[Annette]

SDmama-Congrats on your baby girl!

jeninf-Looks like your really close. I think you might be next.

lizzy-I hope you go into labor soon. Like you, I don't want to get induced either.

me-No progress at all. Still 1cm and 50%. Arggg. He's still not fully engaged yet either. I think he's going to be late.

[cayso]

sdmama - Congrats on your baby girl, Kendyll!

jenine - this is sounding good! Very exciting!

Annette, Linden, Lizzy - I'm not doing much either...all I can say is that I am having more BH and they are starting to come in clusters - they seem to be triggered when I am walking around more - at work or running errands. I haven't noticed anything else that you all are describing, although I have noticed my pants fitting tighter in the last few weeks so maybe that is my hips widening. I thought maybe I was just putting on fat but I haven't gained any weight in weeks and in fact at my appt. today I was down 3 pounds. ??? Of course I know nothing about my dilation because I refused the exam! :)

[LoveandLaw]

I am competing with sdmama2be for the world's worst poster. I too have not been posting, but I have been following along. This pregnancy was hard on me, and my life has been really busy and full of stress.

But, it's done! I gave birth to our second daughter, Alexandra, at 12:52 pm on August 19th. She was 7 lbs. 3 oz., and 19 1/2 inches long at birth. I am still in the hospital, and we are still working on the middle name. :o

Congrats on all the new babies, and I hope those still waiting have smooth deliveries. Now that I am finally off work for awhile, I hope to start posting more frequently soon.

[Baxter78]

Congrats sdmama2be and LoveandLawon your new baby girls!

Like many of you still, I've been experiencing some of the same symptoms you've been mentioning. I have sharp, needle-like sensations in my vaginal area pretty much whenever I walk a lot. It feels really odd, almost painful. My OB says it is a result of baby's head pressing down on nerves and blood vessels.

Also, my BH contractions are becoming more frequent and organized. There are some times when they come quite regularly. They typically are less frequent or stop when I am rested, relaxed, or sleeping. My OB says I will know it is real labor pains when these contractions start becoming more painful. So far, no painful contractions; just lots of uncomfortable tightening.

As of my latest doctor's appt (yesterday afternoon), I am still 1cm dilated and 50% effaced. Seems to be a pretty common # combination here! My OB practice typically does not recommend that woman go more than 1 week past their due date. To be prepared, she set me up with an induction date of Thursday, Sept 4th. I know that many of you are more cautious about inductions, but I am quite comfortable with this (of course, I hope that I go into labor naturally!) and am really relieved to have an official "ending" date if I don't progress naturally.

DH and I have been having fun taking care of last minute baby preparations. We just installed the car seat bases in both of our cars yesterday. Driving to work today, it was so exciting to look back and imagine the carrier holding our little baby! We also took care of securing the changing pad to the dresser top in baby's room.

I think that is all that is new on my end as of now. I'm so anxious to hear about all of your little arrivals! :)

[Red'sGirl]

Hey everyone. Even though my little man is keeping me busy, I've been by here to check on everyone else.

Congratulations to LoveandLaw and sdmama2be on your Girls!

I've been managing well with Julian. He's fairly easy - he just wants to eat and sleep, so far. We are getting more awake time, where he stares intently at us - as if trying to figure out who the heck we are. :rolleyes: BF didn't go as smoothly as with DD, but it's going well now. That said, he's gaining weight a little slowly, so we're checking to see if I'm going to need to suplement my milk with formula. I hope not, but he is a voracious eater, and I'm not sure I'm making enough milk. I haven't had a chance to pump much at all.

Other than that, the only notable is (and I tell only you all - my Aug. mommies this as it's TMI), I got hemorrhoids after the birth! :eek: Not cool! Luckily, it wasn't too painful, etc. and it seems to be going away pretty quickly. But MAN, that is disconcerting. :o

Good luck to those who are on the brink. Esp. jeninef as you seem ready to go!

[Baxter78]

I'm back again. I have to ask you ladies, what do you know about passing your mucous plug?

When I was at the OB yesterday, she tried to "loosen things up a little" during my cervical exam. Today (within the past couple of hours) the sharp, shooting pains I've been getting in my vaginal area have been getting worse and worse (every few minutes, regardless of whether I am sitting or standing or walking, and they hurt quite a bit). And, each time I have gone to the bathroom today, I've had a lot of discharge - one time a pretty large brownish stained glob. I work in an elementary school, and when I told her about it, the school nurse seems to think I may have passed the mucous plug.

What I do know is that I am certainly torturing myself, hyper-focusing on every little symptom!

[jeninef]

Baxter-That is too funny...I was just coming in here to post that I lost my mucous plug this morning! It sounds very similar to me. Big huge glob of gelatinous goup that was brown. It could have fit in the palm of my hand there was so much! Also, TMI ahead, mine also had a bit of harder looking stuff in there. But the only thing about this is that it could mean hours, days or even weeks, which I don't have! HA!! I'm hoping that's a good sign for both of us to progress on our own.

LoveandLaw and sdmama2be- Congrats on your new baby girls! We can't wait to see pics and hear more!

Red's Girl - I'm glad things are going smoothly for you all. How is big sis adjusting to the new addition?

Well, I just confirmed that my mother will be in the delivery room with me along with DH. I'm happy that will be the case since she was there the first time, but was behind the curtain for most of it. I think my dad and her will come down to the hospital with DS and dad and DS will just leave when things start to get rough. All of this is assuming an induction as scheduled on Monday.

[Lizzy]

I lost my mucous plug today, too. :) It didn't look like anything else that I've expelled before - it had a different consistency. "Glob" is right!

Anyway, who knows what it means... I'm just taking it as a good sign that my body is continuing to progress.

[lindengraphics]

Hi ladies. Quick update. Went into labor around 9 pm Friday night with minute long contractions every 8 minutes. Went to the hospital around midnight when they were 5 minutes apart. Was there till 2 am when they sent me home cause my dilation had only progressed to 2 cm and my contractions were spreading out. Given a drug to help me sleep.

Went back in today at 5 pm with more intense contractions that were every 3 to 4 minutes. Still no change in dilation. Had me walk the ward for an hour to try and speed things along. No such luck though the intensity level definitely increased. Was instructed to fill the prescription since the contractions are the intensity they need to be but my body is so exhausted that they can't do their job. Hopefully tomorrow will bring baby. Will post more in the future.

[Annette]

linden-good luck! Hope all goes well with the delivery.

lizzy, baxter, jeninf-I'm so jealous that you all lost your mucous plugs. I guess that means labor will be soon for ya'll.

redsgirl-glad to hear everything is going well. hopefully you won't need to supplement.

me: no change for me at all. I'm getting a lot more BH contractions but thats about it. He's still not fully engaged yet either. I think he's going to be very late at this point. I was hoping it would happen this weekend because I really don't feel like going to work on Monday. It is so frustrating not knowing.

[Sue]

Good luck to everyone... hopefully there will be some babies in the near future!

[cayso]

Congrats LoveandLaw!

Hi Red'sGirl- Glad to hear Julian is doing well.

I'm hoping/assuming Jenine is off having her baby - here's some good vibes your way, hoping you will miss out on that induction tomorrow!

Linden - Doesn't sound like your far behind at all...how weird to have such regular contractions like that and then be sent home! I thought once you were having regular contractions at short intervals you were in labor, period. I guess anything is possible in this business...

Baxter - sounds like you are showing more signs than me, perhaps you will beat me (aren't we both due 30th?)

Annette - I'm right here with you...nothing. I was having some more BH in series but I haven't even really done that in the last couple days! ???

[cayso]

Hmm....awfully quiet around here today....

Linden, Lizzy, Jenine...off having babies, perhaps????:D:D:D

[lindengraphics]

Still in early labor. Contractions are getting really intense but aren't at the time interval they want (3-5 minutes apart). Am struggling with the pain.

Passed a palm-sized amount of mucous this morning. Hope that means something. So tired. Hope baby shows up soon.

[Lizzy]

No baby here yet. :( I swear, I am going to be the last one!!!

I had eggplant parm for dinner tonight, supposedly the oregano/basil combination is a good labor-inducer.

[jeninef]

Just wanted to announce that Logan Michael was born on 8.23.08 at 8:42pm. He was 7lbs. 4 oz. and 19.5 in. I ended up with a completely unmedicated, natural childbirth which was totally unplanned, but things happened a bit quicker than I anticpated. I will post a birth story and pics later! I hope everyone else is hanging in there and can't wait to hear more news!!!

[Sue]

Congratulations Jeninef and welcome Logan Michael!

[lindengraphics]

Congrats jeninef and to the other ladies who have delivered (I have been reading in between contractions).

Passed a handul of mucous again this morning and am just waiting for my contractions to get closer together before we head back to the hospital. Will post more once I know more. Wish me luck that today is the day!

[Annette]

Jeninf-Congrats!!! And welcome Logan!

linden-Hope you are doing well with those contractions. Hope to see an update tomorrow!

No contractions yet for me. I went to work today instead :( I'm making my last day Friday no matter what since I have vacation time to use to cover me till my induction next Thursday. Please cross your fingers for me that I don't have to get induced.

[ez2luv]

I've benn MIA for a while - but congrats to all the new moms!!!

Having twins and a 4 year old is so tiring.
Plus, I've had complications in my recovery.
My incision got infected and doc decided to re-open and pack it.
So now, I have a home care nurse coming in every day to change the packing.
It's been a month now, and I have a fresh wound and still house ridden - going out of my mind!!!
DH went back to work 5 days after the girls were born, came home after a week for 2 days - and has been gone since then.
So, it's been me and only me....I am sooo tired!!!

The girls are doing well, but very cranky in the evenings - a time when I am the most exhausted.
Isabelle has been acting out, most likely b/c DH is away too and that lessens the attention for her even more.

<<sigh>> I keep telling myself it will get better...

But - until then, I lurk from time to time and hope you all are doing well
:)

[cayso]

Yaay, Jenine! Sounds like things went pretty well, that's awesome! A big welcome to Logan Michael!

ez - sorry to hear you have had such complications on top of having your hands so full. I hope things get better soon.

I have developed some serious back pain in the last couple of days and that, in turn, has made it hard to sleep. Only 3 more days of work... Still no signs of labor for me. I want him to come on his due date - I'll be a little bummed if he's late, even though I know that is statistically very likely.

[Lizzy]

Congrats Jenine! That's awesome.

linden - Are you off having a baby? :)

ez - rest up, that sounds tough.

cayso - don't hold your breath. :) I know it's hard not to be inpatient.


Well, I am now 9 or 10 days past 40 weeks. It sucks. I am scheduled for induction on Friday. I am nervous about it... nervous about being able to handle pitocin contractions and also nervous about the possibility of a failed induction. My cervix seems to be fairly agreeable to induction, so I am holding on to that. And I really am ready for this baby to make his appearance. But... I would so prefer to go into labor before Friday. Friday seems so close and yet so far away.

[Annette]

Lizzy-Good luck with your induction, but hopefully you will go into labor before then.
I'm scared of getting induced too and have the same worries that you do.

I am officially overdue now. Anyway gotta run to work.

[cayso]

Lizzy - I don't blame you for being nervous about induction...I would be too (and kind of already am, anticipating that I could well be late too). Will you still try to do the birth without pain meds? I don't know what my plan would be - I still wouldn't want an epidural for no other reason than the fear that it would slow things down and work against the pitocin or cause them to have to give me more. Have you read "Thank you, Dr. Lamaze?" It's ancient, but she does use lamaze to get her through an induced birth so its inspiring. I'm impressed that you did hold out for the full two weeks after. I would like to do the same thing. The only thing that makes me nervous is all this talk about my baby being "big." But I really want to believe our bodies know what they are doing! I'm sending you labor vibes!;)