October '05 Moms - Third Trimester! 14 boys, 9 girls, 8 surprises - Almost There!!! [Archive] - Page 5

nancy drew

08-12-2005, 12:46 PM

cartersmommy yes! i feel like he has totally dropped! in fact (TMI!!!) i was peeing earlier and i seriously felt like he was going to fall out. it freaked me out. ive been carrying him lower than i carried stella and now it seems like he has gotten even lower! and he has started banging on my cervix or something. stella used to do that and it felt like someone was stabbing my cervix with a knife. not fun at all!!!

like hmbay said, we will all need something to cover up the car seat. the bundle me is actually NOT safe, because there is fabric between the baby and the seat, which voids your car seat company of any liability should there be an accident, and it poses an ejection risk to your baby in an accident. so you definitely need something like she posted. i actually just made one for The Boy:
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v517/nancydrew811/DSC03212.jpg

stella had one that we bought at babies r us, and lands end sells them too.

sleeping if you are breastfeeding you will most likely either end up cosleeping or sleeping in the glider. thats what happened to me anyway. after getting up every 2 hours then sitting in the glider for up to an hour nursing every single night it just became much easier to bring her into the bed and nurse her and go back to sleep. sometimes i would wake up and move her back to the pnp, sometimes i would just stay asleep til her next feeding time. it was the only way i could get sleep. if you all can manage to do that for months on end then hey, more power to ya. i just recall waking up in the glider with stella hanging off my lap and freaking out that i was about to drop her because i had once again fallen asleep while nursing. just seemed to make more sense to be in bed where she wasnt going to fall onto the floor if i fell asleep. The Boy will be in the bassinet of his pnp in the master bedroom and when he gets up to nurse he will be brought into the bed. its not like dh and i will be having quality time in bed at 3am, you know? so he wont be in the way of anything. it was actually really nice to wake up in the morning and have stella there in bed with us, where we could cuddle her and talk about how beautiful and perfect she is, and we could all just be lazy and half-sleep and cuddle together. i still bring her into the bed in the mornings when she wakes up and we nurse and its really a special time for us. i really look forward to having that kind of special family time again with the new baby. stella did always start the night in the bassinet of the pnp or in her crib, it was just after 1 or 2 wakings that i brought her in bed because, again, i was such a zombie from being up all night. and as far as how to make future babies when youve got a cosleeper, uh, there are plenty of other places for dtd besides your bed ;).

stroller we have the peg perego pliko p3. i have no plans on getting a double stroller yet since i probably wont need a stroller of any kind until spring when the snow melts and we can actually walk around the neighborhood. ill see how it goes. for now i will wear one kid in the sling or mei tai and push the other kid in the stroller.

adoredh

08-12-2005, 12:48 PM

Amanda I have the oposite problem, he keeps going higher and higher and higher into my ribs!!! Right now, I feel like he's right under my boobs! Hard to breath and hard to sit (since I feel like everything get's squished sitting down)

I have two car seats - the Evenflo and the Snug ride. I'm using the Snug ride as our main carseat because it's bigger and my mom bought it ;) (and it's cooler looking, silver and black) Although, we did buy the Evenflo because I loved the one hand release for the handle (to put the handle up and down) I don't see a difference in the release from the bases, but I'll double check them for you when I go home tonight.

Heather I think I asked this before, but how did your Dachshund do with Colin at first? I'm not to worried about Rusty, he loves and adores everyone, but I'm a little worried about Kobe, he's become a clingon since I got pregnant. It's going to be so hard from him to adjust to not getting as much attention. I try to distance myself from him to get him used to it, but those sad little brown eyes look up at you, begging to be loved on, and I can't help myself!!! He cuddles with me all the time now, if I'm sitting down, anywhere, he's got to be on my lap, if I'm laying on the couch or the recliner, he's got to be laying on top of me, with his nose pressed into my neck!
I'm thinking about carrying around a baby wraped in a blanket to get them used to not being on my lap when I'm holding the "baby"
What do you think? Or am I being a worry wart?

ETA - this is my adoreable Kobe - with the big brown eyes
http://images.snapfish.com/3446%3A%3A5523232%7Ffp45%3Dot%3E2334%3D%3A27%3D%3C %3A4%3DXROQDF%3E23239%3C%3A%3A%3B3%3B8%3Aot1lsi

and of course, I have to be fair, here's Rusty
http://images.snapfish.com/3446%3A%3A5523232%7Ffp3%3B%3Dot%3E2334%3D%3A27%3D% 3C%3A4%3DXROQDF%3E23239%3C%3A%3A%3B47%3A9ot1lsi
He also has big brown eyes that are hard to ignore. He uses them to beg for french fries and chicken. :D

Nancy Great job on the carrier cover!!!
Here's a funny fact about me: I just started using my sewing machine, my first project was a pouch style sling - guess who loves to ride in it? My Dachshund Rusty! If I can get a pic to post, I'd show you how cute he looks, hanging out in the sling! He loves to ride in it, esp when I'm making cookies! LOL!

Surftraitor

08-12-2005, 01:02 PM

TGIF!!! Wow--I'm crabby today! Watch out world. I just ripped apart one of my Portugal vendors for screwing something up. They're closing their factory until Sept for holiday. WTF?! I need to move to Portugal. :rolleyes:

where will baby sleep--like Lexy we have a family bassinet that we'll be using. I absolutely adore it. I'm not sure if Flipper will be in our room or his. Eventually, he'll be crashing in his own crib. Timing will depend on how we're sleeping. DH and I are both strongly against baby sleeping in bed with us. It can be a nasty habit, especially when they're older. All the Nanny 911 shows are always against the kids sleeping w/ the parents.

Work--I'm still doing okay in the office, except when cankles reappear. I think I will just go bonkers at home. All I'll do is think about the baby and giving birth, which is what I end up doing as I'm laying down to go to sleep. Work provides a nice distraction.

Clothes--am starting to grow out of clothes too. Pants are worse than shirts. This sucks, as I'd rather have a big belly than a big ass.:mad: Not sure what I'll do. I may walk over to Old Navy tonight for a looksie.

This weekend is our day-long childbirth class. I'm not really looking forward to it, as I suspect whatever they'll teach us could be learned in 4 hours instead of 8. Hopefully I'll be pleasantly surprised.

Another QOTD...
Would you be stressed out if you didn't start your nursery until after labor day (4 weeks before due date)?? We have some friends coming into town to stay with us for a night or two. DH wants to wait on starting the nursery, since its currently the guest room. I say "screw 'em". Make them sleep on the sofa sleeper or aero bed. We aren't painting or laying carpet of anything. Just assembling crib and moving furniture. DH promised me last night that the nursery would be perfect by the time I came home from the hospital. But, he's the King of Half-assedness. I'm sure I'll lay the babe in the crib, only for him to fall right through.

hmbay

08-12-2005, 01:07 PM

nancy drew --we have the same carseat! :)

alisha--he was very clingy but he never got nasty or snappy or anything. I have a picture where I'm burping Colin and there is a dachsie head squeezed between me and Colin. :) He got better once Colin started eating food and throwing it off the high chair. Now he actually likes Colin since he drops food and will try to throw his toys but he will growl at him from time to time as Colin is in a hitting stage and he thinks nothing of walking up to people (or Bongo) and hitting him. I try to not leave them alone because of that--Bongo usually growls and moves away--he has yet to snap at Colin but I also know as a dog he will only take so much before he will retaliate and I'm trying to teach Colin that hitting anyone (especially a dog that doesn't play by the same social rules) is not good. Mostly Bongo only gets growly if he gets surprised (ie if he's asleep under a blanket and Colin comes up and tries to sit on him on purpose) :)

adoredh

08-12-2005, 01:26 PM

EEK! This whole making the boys comfortable with The Boy, may be harder then I thought! Their doggie bed is in the living room, and they also like to burrow under the blankets to take a nap. How in the world am I going to keep a crawling munchkin from sitting on the boys! LOL! I need to find a way for the boys to have a quiet area they can go to get away from everything... any suggestions?
I do know better then to leave the boys alone in the room with him until he's much older (like 5 years old or so) from my K-9 training days...

I just know that it's not going to be easy for my dogs to go from the center of our world to just being the family pet. DH and I adore our boys, one of the reasons why I know DH is going to be a great dad, he's amazing with the dogs...

nancy drew

08-12-2005, 01:59 PM

adoredh id love to see a pic of your dog in the sling! im sure i carried one or both of my cats around before stella was born. im also sure they didnt like it. they also didnt like dh pushing them around in the stroller ;)

one last thing about cosleeping i do agree that there can be problems down the road when parents want the children out of the bed and the children want to stay in the bed. i think we were lucky that stella started out in her own crib or wherever and would only come in with us after she woke up in the night. as she got older and slept longer it pushed back the time she would join us (1am, then 3am, then 5am, then i decided that even if she started waking up at 3am again i was not letting her in the bed until after 5 or 6am, and now she wakes up at 8:30 or 9 and thats when she comes in). that made it easier for her to "transition" to her own sleeping place, since she was already spending most of the night there. we have some friends that had a really rough time getting their son to sleep in his own place. so please dont think i am vehemently opposed to crib sleeping, or that im saying that ALL babies should cosleep, im just saying that sometimes it really is easier to cosleep for at least part of the night and the transition away from cosleeping *can* be really easy too. i remember my mil saying "once you let them in the bed youll never get them out" and that just isnt true. so anyway, i felt like my last post came off snotty and i hope im making myself clearer this time. i just hope everyone knows that many times what you say before baby is born goes completely out the window once baby arrives. i was vehemently against using cloth dipes until s was 3 months old, now we use more cloth than disposables. so you never know whats going to happen. just remember to keep an open mind or you may drive yourself crazy trying to stick to your rules that were made before you knew what was going to happen. and i say that from experience as a previous "i will not cosleep or cloth diaper" advocate ;)

shushyk

08-12-2005, 04:05 PM

Hey ladies,

I think someone mentioned sheer exhaustion the other day and I am right there with you. does anyone else feel like they could sleep all day all night? I hardly feel like doing a thing :(

I think I mentioned that our bedroom was painted and that feels so good. I thought I would be able to sleep in there by now, but it STILL stinks how long do you think I need to wait?

nancy drew good point on keeping an open mind. I told DH that I don't plan on cosleeping, but I don't know how I will feel once the kid gets here. I know from friends who did it they are having a hell of a time and now with two its worse. I can't say I will be the crib nazi either... I "plan" on having the pack n play for a month or two, then in the crib. But I want to try to do naps in the crib so the baby gets used to it ????

adoredhyour boys are TOO cute!! we have a little baby girl http://im1.shutterfly.com/procserv/47b5da28b3127cce9172ecb78fd300000016109AcNGThkzaa named Lulu. And we adopted her 1 yr ago this month. She really helped me get through my m/c. She is my first baby. I don't know what to do with her when my other baby gets here though. She takes naps with me on the couch, she is totally my sidekick. She stays in the living room ALL day all night. SInce she is so small she can't get up on the couch, but nonetheless I worry that the baby might actually hurt her by accident :o :rolleyes: because she is so small. her legs are smaller than chicken bones.

Surftraitor - if all your talking about with the nursery is JUST the crib and furniture, I think MAYBE it would be OK. In the Jewish tradition you dont do anything till the baby comes home anyway. I STILL haven't even ORDERED the crib or changing table. But I have to say the best thing is what YOU feel most comfortable with. If its making you uptight and stressing you out, then just ask you DH to make the changes now. Can you fit the crib and maybe just the mattress on the floor or a blow up?

amtaylor in our bradleys class, they say that the baby can move up to delivery, and there are some natural ways to get the baby to move. Did your dr. say when they wanted to see the baby in position. My dr said not to worry till I am further along, maybe after 36W?? I will see if I can get more info on how to naturally move the baby. How many weeks are you now:?

cartersmommy for a day or two I did, but I again can't breath so I am sure the baby has not dropped yet. maybe just moved positions for a couple days.

shoot gotta run pick up DH - happy weekend everyone!!

sdmama2be

08-12-2005, 04:36 PM

Hi Girls
Thanks for all the stroller suggestions I just have to make a decision and stick with it. My biggest requirement is handle extensions. Tony's sisters are getting us a jogger stroller I think it is the same one as you have Lex, so this is more for mall use etc...

Everyone's dogs are too cute...We have a cocker spaniel/springer spaniel mix named Oliver who I inherited from my mom when she moved back to Scotland. He is super spoiled thanks to her. We also have a black cat named Gabriel who Tony resued from a barn when he was a kitten. After a very bumpy start they are now inseparable. It will be interesting to see what happens when we add another member to our family
http://im1.shutterfly.com/procserv/47b5d633b3127cce9336b01718d600000016109AYuGLRyzaS

work I plan on working as close to my due date as possible. I need to keep myself occupied otherwise I start worrying (like the stroller issue :rolleyes: ) and I knwo I will think that every twinge etc "is it"...

baby position Kaelyn (I love writing and saying her name :D ) is still booty down and I am carrying her pretty high, at least that's what people tell me. amtaylor I asked the NP at my last appointment about her turning and she said that she can still turn around and around. They don't get concerned until about 36 weeks and then will talk to me about it a little more.

I hope you all have a great weekend..
~Susan

godsgift77

08-12-2005, 05:11 PM

Lorialys They were unsure of my date but based on my lmp, im due 10/11

Sleep i think baby chris will sleep in his own crib in his own room. I want him to have his own space and understand from the beginning that mommy and daddy have their own space… I co-slept with my parents until I was 7 :eek: WTF were THEY thinking?!?! I don’t want our son to do take after his mommy in that respect… I will be bfing and he won’t be in the room with us. Yes I am sure I will be a zombie but a I gotta make some sacrifices…

Stroller We registered for the same stroller as Lorialys – the MetroLite in Colby! Not only do we have the same due date but the same stroller too! :D

registries I’ve peeked at mine for the first time today and someone bought one of the baby bags that we registered for as well as one of the LeapFrog toys!! And my shower isn’t even until 9/4!

baby moving I feel like adoredh – baby chris is totally in my ribs. I keep saying that he wants to be close to my heart :)

Surftraitor My DH must be the Prince of half-assedness! So I made sure everything was finished when he started it! Keep in mind that I am TOTALLY type-A personality and have to have everything done and done RIGHT way in advance. We changed the guest room to the nursery too – and had guests coming into town. They fully understood why they had to sleep in the office! :p

Shushyk I know this sounds weird but try putting a bowl of white vinegar in the room and closing the doors/windows. The vinegar acts and an absorbing agent and eats up the fumes. It should be all clear in a day or so…

~~~~

I cant wait til tomorrow!! I get to have a pre-natal massage -- its part of DH’s early Push Present. :D

Hope you all have a great weekend!!

amtaylor

08-12-2005, 06:24 PM

Shushyk & sdmama2be: Thanks for your help with the baby's position. I will be 32 weeks on Wednesday, so she still has some time to move. The ultrasound we had was just the "for fun" 3D, so nothing was mentioned about the position. I might ask the doctor about it when I go back for my check-up on Tuesday. :)

amtaylor

08-12-2005, 07:32 PM

"Borrowed" from the September mom's thread :D

Chocolate During Pregnancy May Make Mom and Baby Happier

Expectant mothers who are chocoholics can take heart in a Finnish study that finds chocolate appears to reduce maternal stress and produce happier babies, the online version of New Scientist magazine reported. In a study of 300 women, babies born to those who had eaten chocolate daily during pregnancy were more active, smiled and laughed more, and showed less fear of new situations, University of Helsinki researchers found. The researchers - while cautioning that their study does not prove a definitive link between chocolate and happier infants - speculated that chemicals in chocolate associated with positive mood may be passed on to the fetus in the womb, the magazine's report said.

hmbay

08-12-2005, 07:34 PM

33 week belly shots. (Hmm I think I've taken 3 belly shots all pregnancy...)

http://im1.shutterfly.com/procserv/47b5d633b3127cce93d122a978cc00000016108IZt3Lhm3Zy

1_mommy

08-12-2005, 07:42 PM

amtaylor funny you should post that. i am eating choclate wafer cookies as i type. :)

adoredh

08-13-2005, 12:49 PM

Oh Boy, I have a ton of S/O's to get caught up! LOL!

Nancy Thanks for your advice, I agree with you, all my idea's are going to change once The Boy gets here. I do know that for me, I want him close by at night to make my life easier. Here's a thought, right now, at this very moment, our babies co-sleep with us, they are with us 24/7. Maybe by having him in the bassinet attatched to our bed for a couple of months, is actually a way for us to wean him from having co-slept with me for 9 months!

OPPS gotta go, my parents are here for my sister's birthday!

BBL!!!

Kanga

08-13-2005, 01:34 PM

PHEW!!! I just got caught up reading all TWENTY pages I have missed this past week :eek: Needless to say, I have no idea where to start.

Cosleeping I'm still undecided on what we will do, but I do know that dd will not be sleeping in the bed with us. Dh is a sound sleeper, and I'm too scared that he would roll over on her and not realize it. As of now, If i have a normal vaginal delivery, she will sleep in her crib. Her room is just down the hal. I plan on bfing exclusively, so we also have a full sized bed in her nursery. This will be her bed when she outgrows the crib. If I end up having a c-section, then we will look into a bassinet or cradle. Her nursery is right down the hall, so it won't be a huge pita to get up to get her. I think if her nursery was farther away, i would do the pnp thing or a cradle.

Stroller We bought the graco quattro when I was 3 or 4 months along I think. The next day, a neighbor of ours was having a garage sale and they had one almost identical to it. It had all the features that we wanted and had only been used for one child. I think we bought it for 1/2 the retail price. So we ended up returning the quattro. I'm at il's right now, but when I get home I'll have to see what exactly it is. I believe eliezrah has the same stroller for JP.

Daycare I am still undecided. I would really really like to have dd in a center, as my sister and i were physically abused in a home daycare center when we were younger. I understand that there are some home daycares that are extremely good, but I would feel much more comfortable having dd at a center where there is more reliability. If I could swing it, I would love to stay home with her, but I just don't think it will be possible. I guess we will find out when I take my maternity leave. The only thing holding me back from reserving a place at a center is my and dh's hours. We both work weekends and early hours. I have to be at work by 5:30, and he needs to be at work between 6 and 6:30. None of the centers around here open until 6:30. I am going to look into different jobs on my maternity leave as this one is temp to hire anyways. I'm hoping I can find one that is 7a to 3:30 or 4 m-f. Right now I am researching state certified home day cares that are open weekends and early hours. I have heard of some in home day cares that are open 24 hours a day, but again this scares me.

Work I will work up until the day I go into labor or until my doc tells me enough is enough. Ideally, I'd like 3 days off before I go into labor for "nesting" and such, but we all know how that works.

diaper bags I'm thinking I will go with a small sling style for everyday use, and a larger one for overnite trips, etc

hmbay

08-13-2005, 06:44 PM

I just had a wandering thought. I've read a few people say if they end up with a c/s they'll keep the baby in the room/cosleep etc but not if they have a vaginal delivery? Can I ask why? yes it's a PITA to get out of bed at first with a c/s but the reality is the baby is most likely going to need his/her diaper changed every time you feed them the first few weeks which means having to at least sit up as it's hard to change a diaper laying down (plus you need to dispose of the dirty diaper somewhere). Once you've gotten to a sitting position walking is the easy part! :) That is unless you all had planned to have DH get up and change the baby and bring them to you so you didn't have to get up at all. Just a thought. Colin didn't come home first at all so maybe I'm missing something since I had to get up every 3 hours to pump even though he wasn't home but I know once he was home diapers needed to be changed with nighttime feedings and I just think that would be easier to do sitting up.

nancy drew

08-13-2005, 07:55 PM

ok silly question time: is anyone else both starving and full at the same time? i swear tonight i could not eat another bite of my dinner, yet not 10 minutes later i was starving. my stomach was growling like i hadnt eaten in weeks. and right now i had a giant pretzel and some mini-brownies and a bunch of water and im feeling full, like i have to sit back because my stomach is so full, but im still hungry. crazy, i tell ya!

1_mommy

08-13-2005, 11:51 PM

nancy drew YES! in fact i didn't want to make dinner tonight because i was still full from lunch (ate a foot long sandwich from subway)
when i started eating dinner i was full, but wanted some more. then as soon as i cleaned up dinner, i was looking in the cubbard for a snack. what the.... i thought i was full. i seriously could eat all.day.long.
last night i ate an entire package of mothers checkerboard wafer cookies. and i want more tonight. they were SO good.

Astara

08-14-2005, 07:56 AM

Wow.. lots of pages to go through~ :)

lml What a great idea! Thanks! I think I will use the bassinet for naptime and just put the baby in her crib from day one.

sdmama2be hope your glider comes in fast! we got our glider from BRU also and we absolutely love it!

Stroller We got the Graco Quattro in Windsor as well as the matching infant seat to make it a travel system.

http://images.amazon.com/images/P/B0002ISF5W.01.LZZZZZZZ.jpg

http://images.amazon.com/images/P/B0002U1TRG.01.LZZZZZZZ.jpg

Feeling Full YES! I seem to be feeling this way more and more~ I too will eat dinner or lunch or whatever else and be nice and full, but then like 20 minutes later the hunger starts again and I am starved!

We went to BRU yesterday to pick up our stroller and infant seat that my DH's nana is buying for us. I love that store, I could just sit there and look at clothes all day! I love how they have little halloween onesie's but they all seemed to be too big for a newborn. I think we saw some at Toys r us that are smaller. Dh just couldnt help it and had to buy some pumpkin socks. He is obsessed with halloween and is trying to urge me to wait until the 31st to have her! lol I guess being born in October just means lots of halloween themed bday parties for her lol. I also bought a preemie onesie that is a gown and ties at the feet. That way when she is born, we can see if either the preemie or NB clothes fit better so she isnt swimming around in them!

Hope everyone's having a great weekend!

sdmama2be

08-14-2005, 08:09 AM

hmbay I never thought about the diaper part..I have a lot to learn ;) I have decided that this is going to be the biggest learning experience and I have to be flexible...I will definitely be learning from my mistakes :)

Astara I get lost looking at baby clothes too!!! We were at BRU yesterday and I "lost" Tony. He found me, in the clothing section which is not where I was supposed to be :p We were there to order the glider and then leave (Tony was hungry) So what should have been a 30 minute max visist turned out to be about an hour..needless to say I had a grumpy & starving DH on my hands.

Feeling full and then hungry 20 seconds later Yes that would describe me..I have been eating half of any meal (at the most) beacuse I get so full and then 5 minutes later I am searching for munchy food, which is usually never healthy food. Last night we went to dinner and I ate maybe half, so of course Tony ate the rest, he is loving this situation ;) We got home, after stopping at Cold Stone and I was starving :rolleyes: The only meal I have to eat is breakfast..which is so strange because I was NEVER a breakfast eater, now I can't imagine not eating breakfast.

Is anyone else waking up super early in the morning and then tired a couple of hours later??? This has been happening for the last few days and it is so strange. I wake up with all of this energy (at 530ish) and then by 10 I need a nap.

LexyLou

08-14-2005, 08:54 AM

Wow! i don't think I can catch up with the shoutouts but can I just say that I LOVE how active this thread is. I just love how much chatting we all do with each other. It's really cool. :D

surftraitor-Like Shush said, in the Jewish tradition (I'm obviously a bad Jew ;) ) the nursery isn't even put up until after the baby. Plus, if she's sleeping with you in a cradle in your room for the first couple of weeks then you can even work on it after she comes and really, the most time consuming part for us was the painting so if you aren't painting then set up will be a breeze. :)

Great belly shot, hmbay!

Full and hungry-Yup, count me in. It's such a crazy feeling.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

The wedding was beautiful. It was so fun, my DH and I were the MOH and BM so we did a tag team speech. It went well...people cried and laughed. :) Now I'm off to work on the nursery a bit more and then head to the mall.

The girl who's mom made my chandelier told me at the wedding that she has it! She's bringing it over today. I'm dying to see it ladies. I'll post pictures as soon as I get it.

alicia-beesha

08-14-2005, 09:03 AM

Hey everyone!!

I was apart of the WC Oct mommies thread and have been debating on coming over here too.... so I caved and here I am.

CC Name: alicia_beesha
Real Name: Alicia
DH's Real Name: David
Married: Dec 27, 2003
TTC Date: We were waiting for this fall.....
BFP Date: Feb 23, 2005
EDD: Oct 17, 2005 (Dr is still counting 10/25, but I'm not!! )
Gender Prediction: girl
U/S Says: IT'S A BOY *Gabriel David*

Ultrasound pictures:
June 6, 2005

http://im1.shutterfly.com/procserv/47b5d827b3127cce924b5cd888e500000016108AbNXLRu0cMz

http://im1.shutterfly.com/procserv/47b5d827b3127cce924b522b881100000016108AbNXLRu0cMz

And here is the most recent belly shot - I think this is around 29 wks:

http://im1.shutterfly.com/procserv/47b5d906b3127cce936183281dae00000016108AbNXLRu0cMz

http://im1.shutterfly.com/procserv/47b5d906b3127cce936183001d8600000016108AbNXLRu0cMz

My next appointment is tomorrow (August 15) and this is the first appointment that *daddy* will be attending!!

I am having 2 baby showers - each being given by the future grandma's. My stepmom's shower is Sept 11, and MIL's shower is Sept 25. We are under STRICT orders to NOT buy ANYTHING for Gabe until both of these showers are over with.

We did, however, buy the crib, but my parents gave us cash to cover the cost after they found out we bought it. MIL and SIL bought us the matching change table, Great Grandma A bought the crib mattress and my co-workers bought us the bedding set.

The nursery is not at all put together. It has paint on the wall and new carpet, but when we went to put the crib together, the headboard was broken. So we contacted the manufacturer and will have a new headboard in *2-3 weeks* (just praying that it comes sooner!!)

Well here is what our nursery looks like sans furnature:
http://im1.shutterfly.com/procserv/47b5d906b3127cce936183e79c5100000016108AbNXLRu0cMz

http://im1.shutterfly.com/procserv/47b5d906b3127cce936183e41d6200000016108AbNXLRu0cMz

That's about it for now!!

lorialys

08-14-2005, 01:02 PM

hmbay Cute picture of baby Colin in his carseat with your dachsie looking in. :D I don't think it gets cold enough here for us to need something like that. A blanket around the babe and maybe a blanket over the carrier should do. Cute belly shot, you are looking great!

amtaylor I don't think you need to worry until 36-37 weeks, about the baby not being head down. There are exercises you can do after that point to get her to turn. My next door neighbor is 39 weeks and her baby is still doing flip flops so her doctor won't induce yet!! She is very frustrated.

nancy drew Cute coverup you made for The Boy!

adoredh Love the pictures of your boys.

Surftraitor Hope your class went well. I wouldn't worry too much about setting up the nursery, since you aren't painting or anything. That is what took us the longest. Everything else went together very quickly.

sdmama2be Awww, cute cocker!

godsgift77 Well I'm glad that I have a due date buddy now!! :D Nice stroller choice. Yay for first items being bought off the registry! Hope your massage was nice.

LexyLou Glad the wedding was fun! Can't wait to see the chandelier.

Welcome alicia-beesha!!!

Baby Dropped? Nope not yet, I'm still getting a lot of kicks to the ribs. From what I've read though, the baby drops anywhere from 2-6 weeks before delivery for most first time moms. For second time moms, baby doesn't drop until just before delivery.

Starving and full Not exactly. I'm actually amazed at the amount of food I can still pack in, with my huge tummy and the baby up in my ribs.

Having a good weekend. Yesterday we went to see Sky High, it was a cute movie. Today we went to Sams Club and bought our first big box of newborn diapers. We also got a bunch of board books for Lucas, which makes me happier because I was worried we'd have nothing to read to him.

Astara

08-14-2005, 01:22 PM

sdmama2be hahaha that is so funny!!! That sounds exactly like me!! I also made a detour into the clothes section telling dh "I promise I just want to look at one thing" well of course you know one thing turned into like 300 things..oops!

Welcome alicia-beesha!!

cartersmommy

08-14-2005, 03:56 PM

welcome alisha-beesha!! :) glad you came over!!!

nothing new here.... got a bunch of new stuff for the baby last night.... i'm so excited! we got our chaging pad and cover, so newborn gowns, so mittens for the first week or so, so he doesn't scratch himself, a big ole' thing of diapers!, an extra crib sheet, waterproof mattress pad, and an adorable fleece one piece sleeper that says "daddy's #1 little boy" with footballs on it! so cute!! he loved it!!

just found out yesterday that the last shower we are having on sept. 4th is a book shower. now, don't get me wrong, we need lots of books, but if anyone looked at our registry, WE NEED SO MUCH STUFF that we don't have yet! i knew that SIL was throwing a shower, but she said that it was all going to be a surprise, and SURPRISE now we have to buy everything else we need. we were kinda prepared to do this, but NOT EVERYTHING!! my mom is pissed too.... we don't even have bottles or our swing yet! DH was kinda upset because this was the last chance to get gifts for larger things we need. oh well...... it'll still be awesome to have books, and my mom is buying our monitor b/c she's pissed and wants to show the IL's that it was a poor choice! HA! gotta love moms!

ok, enough venting!

mcl

08-14-2005, 04:34 PM

welcome alicia-beesha!

adoredh- just like you, i feel like my baby boy is trying to climb up to my ribs. my lower abdomen is soft, but my upper abdomen is so hard. i noticed that i am out of breath more and it is HARD to sit lay down. i constantly need to be sitting up because the heart burn kills me.

i don't know about you guys but there ar times when i feel like my baby is totally where he shouldn't be. sometimes, i'd feel movements radiating all the way to my back (literally behind) and sometimes radiating to my upper thigh :eek: one time, i had to feel my back and my upper thight to see if i'd feel a body part. i didn't. it's probably my baby's VERY STRONG KICKS just radiating.

i also have been feeling stabbing/sharp kicks down there from time to time, but nothing too painful.

i have my next appointment on AUGUST 20TH. maybe i will see if my sweet boy is now head down. our baby shower is that day also. my hubby and i are so excited. it's going to be so much fun!

hope that everyone had a great weekend.

godsgift77

08-14-2005, 05:18 PM

Hi all!

Welcome Alicia:D

I decided not to have the massage because my usual theapist was out adn i dont trust the other lady... ah well...

My MIL came by today with gifts for baby Chris -- keep in mind that he will be the first grandchild on BOTH sides...

she bought him 3 outfits and the CUTEST halloween pumpkin costume and this...

http://images.amazon.com/images/P/B000302A9G.01.LZZZZZZZ.jpg

OMG! :eek: I was so shocked! It was off our registry but she said it was not part of our shower gift! WOW!

I'll have to post pics when we get it set up - and pics of that adorable pumpkin costume!

GREAT weekend! Hope everyone had a good one!

jenjen0713

08-14-2005, 05:46 PM

cartersmommy - A book shower??? Uh, that's certainly different and nothing I've ever heard of. I'm sure her intentions were good, but geez, come on...you are a first time mom....bottles and swings (things you need right from the start) don't just grow on trees.

godsgift - What an awesome gift! Lucky you!

I dug through some old things this weekend and found some stuff to sell on ebay. Hopefully I can make some $$ so I can go get some more baby stuff or save up for the medical costs.

I currently commute one hour each way to work each day...just found out I might be able to get a transfer to the town I live in and it would be a 15% payraise!! :eek: I've already talked to the supervisor of this position and she knows when I'm due and that I'm going to take 12 weeks off and she is ok with that and ok with me pumping at work when I return. I have to interview tomorrow, so I'm hoping things go well. I would be so excited to not have to drive 2 hours each day, pay $50+ a week in gas and get a payraise that would more than cover daycare costs.

Lvella43

08-14-2005, 05:56 PM

Hi!!! I am on vacation, but had a minute to stop by so I could say hello.

Have a great week!!!

Lisa

Astara

08-14-2005, 05:57 PM

cartersmommy A book shower?? I have never heard of this before... your just going to get a lot of books? I dont see why anyone would throw a shower like this for first time parents.. I am sorry! like jenjen said.. im sure it was a good intention but... books?

jenjen Good luck at the interview tomorrow!! I hope everything works out! :)

amtaylor

08-14-2005, 06:15 PM

JenJen: GOOD LUCK!

Alicia: Welcome back :)

hmbay

08-14-2005, 07:01 PM

starving and full--yes. for about the last week. I'll be starving. Eat 4 bites and be full. Then be digging around for something else to eat an hour later.

cartersmommy

08-14-2005, 07:28 PM

yes, that's what the gifts are.... books. B.O.O.K.S. WTF?! I'm glad i'm not the only one that hasn't heard of this! i shouldn't be liek that, but really. we are first time parents and need stuff!!! :(

lml41981

08-14-2005, 07:41 PM

I was actually hoping someone would throw us a book shower, but I didn't want to just ask for it. I place high importance on reading (though I don't read nearly as much as I should) and know that reading to babies and toddlers can foster a love for reading. I think a book shower is really cool. I'm jealous. :)

eta: This is coming from the chick who picks up a children's book or two everytime she goes to Barnes and Noble these days. I'm really trying to build our daughter's library...

1_mommy

08-14-2005, 07:48 PM

a book party would be fun. but for first time parents they do need stuff. to bad they wern't asked to just bring their favorite childhood book along with the gift.

i too place reading very high. before my dd was even born she had a entire book case full.
sadly, we havn't carried that on this time around. guess i should get going on buying the boy some good books

lml41981

08-14-2005, 09:32 PM

I guess my opinion is biased because MIL has dangled a shower hosted by her friends (apparently the group gives a bridal shower and one baby shower for each friend's child) over our heads for so long that we aren't counting on a thing and we've budgeted to buy everything ourselves. Some days we're getting a shower and some days we aren't, so we just decided, "Screw it...we're buying it all ourselves. If they decide to give us a shower, we'll just return any duplicates and get store credit." To tell the truth, she's used the shower as a manipulation tool for so long that we've pretty much decided we don't want one. So, since I'm not counting on getting necessities from anyone else anyway, I think something fun like books would be really cool.

I'm sorry you're disappointed, though.

cartersmommy

08-15-2005, 05:11 AM

don't get me wrong.... i LOVE reading, and will read to Carter ALL THE TIME, so the books we get are great..... I just feel like there is SO much we need that go in front of the books, that it seems kinda strange that they didn't atleast ask me if it was ok to do a book shower, kwim? we will def. use the books we get..... we just don't even have a swing yet! or a car seat! or a bottle! :eek:

adoredh

08-15-2005, 06:50 AM

Amanda I know what you mean about the book shower - I would love and be so greatful to start a collection of books. That's one of the things I'm looking forward to, but not have a whole shower be about books. I have heard of them before, and think they are a great idea for 2nd time mom's or for a small group of friends to do. But not a whole family shower, that's the shower that you hope to get most of the things you need.

Right now, as much as I love books, I'd rather get a tube of Butt Paste then a book! (right now, diaper rashes are more on my mind then books, I can read The Boy one of my romance novels right now, and he'd be happy as a clam, as long as his butt was rash free! LOL!)

Full/Starving So glad I'm not the only one!!! I made DH pull over to get me Wendy's yesterday, and then only ate half of the burger! We got home a half hour latter, and I was getting into the Pringles!!! I've become a junk food junkie! Really, I need an intervention! I'm afraid of my Dr's apt this week!!! The scales will surly show that I've gained weight!!! :(

My weekend I tried to do S/O's on Sat, but the family showed up early for my sister's birthday. We had the BBQ at our house, such party animals we have in my family! LOL! Everyone stayed until 730pm and then left! (my sister for a romantic date with her boyfriend, and my parents were just tired)

On Sunday, Todd and I went to Burlington Coat Factory and bought the bassinett that I wanted! Yea! First brand new purchase we made for the boy (not counting the outfits I've been getting on the side! LOL! ) Todd actually ended up picking out two outfits for The Boy all on his own!!! One is a Carter's sleeper with a couple of dogs on it (one of the dogs is a Dachshund so of course we had to grab it, on sale too!) and another outfit that came with a cute little pair of shoes. Both are 3 to 6 months so will be great for this winter.

dragonfly_71

08-15-2005, 06:56 AM

On the subject of a book shower I'm not sure how I feel. I guess it depends on the situation. If this were my only shower and nobody had bought us anything then it would probably not be such a good idea. But if this were our third or fourth shower then I guess it would be okay. Also it would depend on who the people are that are invited to the book shower. I mean if they had already been invited to the other showers then I would feel bad trying to hit them up again for more stuff. Not that books are cheap but you can get a few books for about 20 bucks while a swing or a car seat would be quite a bit more. So with a book shower guests don't have to spend an arm and a leg.
But then again I am not from this country so the idea of any kind of shower still seems really strange to me since we don't do that where I come from. We are being given two showers by two of DH's aunts and even though we really appreciate it, it still makes me a bit uncomfortable.

On another note, we have a whole other issue with books. My side of the family all lives in Germany and some of them, like my grandparents and my mom don't speak English. And we are planning on having Alexander spend the summers in Germany once he is about Kindergarten age so he gets to bond with his German family as well. So I would really like for him to speak German. Now we decided that I will only be speaking German to him so that he will be at least able to understand the language even though that will probably not be enough for him to speak it. And so I'm kind of torn on books. My mom has been sending me my old children's books so that is a start but then I would also like to read him the American children's classics like Dr. Seuss etc. DH thinks I can use American books and then just tell the story in German rather than reading it. I'm not sure on that. Does anyone have any experience in raising a child bilingual with only one parent speaking a foreign language? I would appreciate any suggestions.

Astara

08-15-2005, 06:58 AM

I also place reading very high, but in my opinion, it's a little inappropriate to get first time parents books only. Especially without their consent first. That just seems like something you would do for second time parents who already have all the stuff. Or if you were in lml's situation..I def. understand being disappointed.. I would be too. like someone else said too bad they cant bring a book with their gift.. that would be really cool..

lml I am really sorry your MIL is doing that to you! That's horrible~ I dont understand why some people are that way.

sdmama2be

08-15-2005, 07:38 AM

Hi all
We had a pretty busy weekend. We finally, completly cleared out the office..we moved last year and yet there was SO MUCH JUNK...so it is now referred to as the nursery :D It is a completely blank slate, except for all of the unbuilt nursery furniture in boxes. I don't think we are going to paint so it's just a matter of setting it up and putting pics on the wall. I am ordering hanging letters today and am taking in my dad's lithographs to get matted and framed. We went to the mall and spent more money at PBK, oh yeah and Tony got the new Madden football Playstation game so he was of no help as of Sunday at 3pm ;)
Book Shower As a teacher of kids that read significantly below grade level I have a very strong opinion about reading to your children etc. In fact I read to Kaelyn every night :) I think Book showers are a great theme idea. I have been to a couple where you are asked to bring your favorite childhood book and the registry info is included as well. I thought that the mom would be getting eight copies of the same book but she ended up with a ton of different board books etc along with gifts from the registry
dragonfly Friends of ours are in a similar situation. The mom is German and the dad is American, slowly learning German. They really want to raise their little boy to be bilingual and aren't sure how to do it. I think for right now the mom is speaking German to him and the dad is speaking English to him. They read this research and one of the kids who had been brought up like this thought that all men speak Spanish and all women speak English :D However for right now that is what is working for them.
Okay I have to go run what feels like 500 errands. Have a good day
~Susan

EJM

08-15-2005, 07:49 AM

OMG, I'm gone a couple of days and wow :eek: so much news!!! Boss is out of the office today, so I've been skimming along but I have to go back and catch up. Just wanted to drop off a few comments before they get lost.

Amanda: Our last shower was a book theme, but what that meant was that people brought their favorite children's book and also gave us a regular gift as well. Maybe that is what your SIL is doing? I'd never heard of it before, but I think it is a great idea and hopefully that will happen with you too :)

Does anyone have any experience in raising a child bilingual with only one parent speaking a foreign language? I would appreciate any suggestions.

I don't have experience raising a child, but my DH only spoke French from ages 5-7. My FIL is a college French professor and ran a study abroad program for a university for a few years when my DH was young. He moved my MIL (no French at all) and DH to France. DH only spoke English when he moved there, and picked it up really quickly. He then only spoke French from ages 5-7. His mother would speak English to him, but he'd answer her in French which she eventually understood and could speak well enough. He hardly speaks French anymore on a regular basis but most native French speakers think he is French when he talks because he has zero accent. DH plans to teach our children a little French just for fun. It's definitely doable!

Also my ILs have friends with a 3 year old daughter. Mom is American (college French and Italian professor) and Dad is Austrian. They are teaching her both lanuages, right now she responds to her dad in German and her mom in English. She talks up a storm in both languages so I don't think learning two has slowed her down any.

cartersmommy

08-15-2005, 08:15 AM

yes, you would think that was a wonderful idea to include a book with a regular gift.... but the invite specifically says "other gifts optional".... which makes it sound like we have everything we need. NOT THE CASE!
I hate sounding ungrateful, and I hope it doesn't sound like that to you all.... I was just excited to have this last shower to finish up getting what we need. i'm glad that you guys understand! my mom and coworkers all agree with me.... at first i was afraid i was being irrational.
GIFTS OPTIONAL!

jh124

08-15-2005, 08:56 AM

I would be peeved if it were me getting the book shower. Of course, we are only having one shower, and it's still a month off, so a book shower would totally screw us.

Question: How many of you are either not having a shower or having a really small one, so you aren't getting much in the way of gifts? I'm a little {ok, a LOT} envious of those who are having multiple showers. We haven't bought much, and are trying to plan/budget for when we need to buy certain items.

1_mommy

08-15-2005, 09:03 AM

qotd we are only having 1 shower. about 20 people were invited, and probably only 10 will show. so i guess we are having a small shower.
it would be nice to have multiple showers, especially the first time around. but since this is #2 for us, i am not big on the shower. i mean it is really nice getting to have one. but i told my friends i felt weird having another one. but since i am having a boy this time around, it makes it a little different.
it really was hard the first time around trying to budget for the things that we needed. we went ahead before the shower and bought the crib and dresser, got the 2 most expensive things out of the way. and we were plesently suprised that we got the rest of the big stuff at our shower (we had about 8 couples there)

amtaylor

08-15-2005, 09:04 AM

We are having one shower and it will be pretty small... well.. maybe 20 people, but they are the tightest people I know (my family!) :rolleyes: I'm not expecting to get all the big stuff, so we are going to have to try and figure out what we can change and reduce to make sure we have the "essentials." I may get a shower at work, but it won't be anything big either...

Tulip

08-15-2005, 09:05 AM

QOTD, we're only having 1 shower and I think 40 people were invited. I have no idea if we'll get what we need. Since it's our first baby I'm hoping that all our big items will be taken care of. I know for sure we're getting our change table and crib. Other then that I have no idea. The shower is 9/11 and nothing has been bought off the registeries yet.

c j

08-15-2005, 09:16 AM

Shower(s) We are having one with about 55 people invited (both sides together). I am hoping to get a lot of our bigger items. I may have a second shower from the ladies at work. If not, I know that I will at least get a gift card from them.

EJM

08-15-2005, 09:17 AM

QOTD: We are having 3 showers. One is thrown by my work, so I'm expecting BRU gift cards, nothing too major but it will help us get essentials. For the other 2, they will be attended by about 20 total for both together (10 people each) so they are very small. We've gotten a few of the major items, but I have planned on purchasing most of the big items ourselves (crib, mattress, PNP, glider, car seat etc). The PNP and car seat are our own fault since we wanted a pattern that BRU didn't carry. My parents did contribute to the glider and we are getting a HUGE wardrobe and tons of toys as hand me downs from my siblings.

We had one very tiny wedding shower, so I was pleasantly surprised by having any baby showers and its great we are getting items off our registry. All in all, I feel lucky to have anything and even luckier they are buying stuff off our registry.

DianeCourt

08-15-2005, 09:20 AM

Geez, I've been gone since last Friday and I can't believe how much I've missed! We had our first, smaller shower out-of-state with my in-laws over the weekend, and I am amazed at how generous everybody was. Here are some highlights of what we received:

Peg Perego Pliko Stroller & Primo Viaggio Infant Seat
Baby Papasan
Sony Baby Call 27 Channel Nursery Monitor
Lamp from my Wendy Bellissimo Starlight Nursery Collection
Basket from my Wendy Bellissimo Starlight Nursery Collection
Aveeno Bath Products
Plus lots of toys & clothes

I was blown away, and it just made me even more excited for our big shower here at home next month!

We got home yesterday & hung the window treatments that go with our Starlight theme. I got my curtain rods from Pottery Barn Kids because they had finials that matched our decor. The valances & sheer panels look better than I imagined, so I'll get some photos up to share. The only thing we have left to do now is to install the new ceiling fan! :)

Here's my attempt at catching up:

Stroller: We have the Peg Perego Pliko & matching Primo Viaggio infant seat in Black Sable:
http://images.amazon.com/images/P/B00067X0Q8.01-A1F83G8C2ARO7P.MZZZZZZZ.jpg
http://images.amazon.com/images/P/B00007LP11.01.MZZZZZZZ.jpg
One of the neat features on the stroller is that it has adjustable handles! This was important for us since DH is 6'5"! :eek: I also loved how lightweight the stroller was, and I could truly collapse it with one hand. The infant seat actually snaps into the stroller (instead of being just held down with some clips), so the travel system felt very stable/secure. The infant seat is also top-rated for safety, right up there with the SnugRide. Once we're done using it as a travel system, the stroller is light enough & easy enough to store that we won't need to buy an additional umbrella-type/convenience stroller. Both pieces were expensive, but they had all of the features we're looking for and I'm counting on them being around to use for Baby #2!

Co-Sleeping: I don't know yet. I'll be BFing & the nursery is on the 2nd level (master bedroom is on the first level), so I'll have to play it by ear. We can put the baby in the Pack n' Play's bassinet if I decide to have him/her room-in. I don't have strong feelings either way. Our baby will definitely NOT be sleeping in our bed, however. I don't think that's safe.

Full/Starving: Yeah, my appetite is getting weird again, kind of like it was in my 1st trimester, minus nausea! I can tell that Baby is starting to use up some of my stomace space!

Baby Dropping: Quite the opposite - Baby R is sitting WAY high, so I find myself getting out-of-breath very easily. All of the pressure I'm feeling is right under my diaphragm/ribs, and I'm getting bumped by Baby's butt & heels a lot up there, too.

Baby Turning: Baby R. wasn't head down at 27 weeks, but my Dr. said they start to become concerned about this only @ 36 weeks. At that point, they'll discuss doing an external version (attempting to turn baby from the outside of your belly), or just scheduling a c-section. My SIL was at my shower this weekend (she's an OB/GYN), and I had her check the baby's position Saturday night. She's pretty confident that Baby is now head down, with its back along my right side. That helps me interpret some of the movements I've been feeling - and he/she better not flip again! :)

Book Shower: Our next shower is actually a combined book/gift shower. Here's the poem that my friend put in the invites to explain:

As "DianeCourt's" due date is coming near,
We're inviting friends and family dear.
To choose a favorite story or fairy tale
That you would like Baby R. to hear.
Instead of card, please let "DianeCourt" look,
At your special choice of a book,
and then to Baby R. she will read
With all the love a newborn will need.
So with a personal touch, please choose a book,
And in it then your name do put.
It need not cost more than a card
Just a pick a favorite, it shouldn't be hard.

cartersmommy: I can't understand why you're a little taken aback by a "book only" shower. Did they put your registry information anywhere in the invite? Personally, if I were invited to a shower like this, I probably wouldn't show up with JUST a book. I just couldn't! I LOVE shopping for baby showers, so I would find the mom-to-be's registries & also purchase something she's hoping for to bring along. (Usually moms register at BRU or Target, so it's not to hard to figure out where to look!) I think you'll find that other guests may do the same - people can't help themselves!

Phew! Sorry for the lengthy post, ladies. I hope you all have a terrific week.

lml41981

08-15-2005, 09:23 AM

QOTD - As I said last night, we're really not counting on anything from anybody. We went into the pregnancy expecting to buy everything ourselves and knowing that if we received a shower, we'd be grateful...but we weren't going to count on a shower for anything. Part of that is due to how I was raised...I was consistently promised things from my parents and then they never followed through and I was on my own. I guess I just don't want to rely on others for anything I need. I hope that doesn't sound judgmental or anything, but that's just the way I am. I went into the whole wedding thing with the same opinion...if we get gifts, great...if not, we'll buy it ourselves.

That said, as I said last night, some women at work are planning a small shower. I'm a bit concerned about it because the people doing the shower are bakers and cooks. There are always sweets galore and I have such a sweet tooth. I'm not going to be able to eat anything at the shower and I'm afraid they're going to think I just don't like what they made. I've tried to keep the GD under wraps at the office cause I think it is kinda weird, but I know my supervisor, my office-mate and one secretary know...the secretary because she saw me putting my insulin in the fridge the other day and asked what it was. Usually, at the office showers, they just pool money and give a gift cert. If the entire floor were being invited, the mom could generally hope to get around $500. It won't be the entire floor because my office-mate knows I don't like big deals, so I won't get a lot. That's perfectly fine with me, though. Less is more for me. ;)

cartersmommy

08-15-2005, 09:52 AM

DianeCourt-- No, they didn't include our registry anywhere on the invitation. And don't get me wrong, if we had everything we needed, I wouldn't be put off. I hope you're right, that people will bring other gifts, but it specifically says "other gifts optional", so a book is what they're expecting people to bring. You gots TONS of stuff at your shower! Which is great.... but we are still missing our swing, carseat, stroller, PNP, carrier, bottles, etc. Which we can budget for and buy ourselves if we need to, but I was really hoping that for our peace of minds we didn't have to because we were having "2" showers. I really hope you're right and that people bring gifts. My aunt just emailed me and said that they want the entire family to go in together and get us something bigger because she saw the invite and realized we still need lots of stuff. So that's helpful!

WHEW! I really hope I don't sound greedy. You guys, I'm really not, i promise! :(

LexyLou

08-15-2005, 09:58 AM

Amanda-I don't blame you for being peeved about the book shower and I don't think you are being selfish at all. It's not like you are demanding a shower or expensive gifts...someone is throwing it for you. But it would be nice to get what you need not 100 books.

I think we ALL put reading on the top of our lists...I actually think it's unfair to imply that because someone doesn't want a book shower that they don't think reading is important. It's just that books cost what $5-$15 each? Plus we can get them used or check them out from the library, etc...babies need gear and as much as we don't EXPECT people to buy them for us, if we are having a shower it would be nice to get them. It's one less thing for a new parent to think about.

Hopefully people will still get together and buy you some of your big ticket items.

QOTD-We are having two showers. This first is this weekend at my mom's house. It's being hosted by my mom and MIL. There should be about 30-35 people there. I'm very lucky because my mom's friend's are very generous people. I don't know for sure what we'll get but I'm sure it will be some of our bigger items which is a huge relief for me.

Next weekend our friend's are throwing us a Co-Ed BBQ. It's more like a hang out and there should be around 35-40 people there. I'm not expecting anything big from that but I know all my friends are buying her cute little outfits. Some people might go in together and buy a big item, so that would be nice. Maybe we can get the pack and play or something. :)

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

The chandelier is beautiful. I cannot wait to get it up and show you all pics. It turned out amazing!!!

cartersmommy

08-15-2005, 10:03 AM

Lex- couldn't have said it better myself! thank you for putting it the way you did!

I'm done venting about the shower. sorry i did it for so long, and thanks for listening!! :)

1_mommy

08-15-2005, 10:09 AM

cartersmommy i completly understand your flustration. if this was your second baby it would be totally different. first time parents need so many thing for their baby that just having a book shower wouldn't help out all that much. even though i know you will enjoy the books.
now if this was baby number 2, then it would be completley different. seeing that you would have already had everything that you needed for the most part.
i am glad your aunt is relizing that you guys need big things. the will definetly help you out. :)

things over my way are going pretty well. i am 30 weeks today. so i officially have 9 weeks left ( i am being induced 1 weeks early) i have my drs appt tomorrow morning and i am really not looking foward to the scale. i seriously have not stopped eating all this last week. and this morning i feel really kinda pukey. just wanna go back to bed. but can't do that with dd. :( dh is going to go to my next appt after tomorrow to talk to my midwife about circumsition. we have know that we are going to have it done, just have some questions to ask (mainly dh does)

shushyk

08-15-2005, 10:20 AM

Anyone else feeling very overwhelmed by how fast time is flying by. I looked on our calander because we were trying to make plans with family before the baby gets here and every weekend is crazy booked till the baby gets here :eek:

We had our Bradleys class last night did our first run of practice contractions. They recommend your DH squeeze your upper arm to help distract you while trying to relax. I couldn't stop laughing, it was really funny to me for some reason :o

Amanda-I don't blame you for being peeved about the book shower and I don't think you are being selfish at all. It's not like you are demanding a shower or expensive gifts...someone is throwing it for you. But it would be nice to get what you need not 100 books.

ITA - but do you think maybe they were asked to bring a book and something off the registry? It it were me, I would bring both because I would think it was super lame of someone to only give a book. NOT that if a book was on my registry or that was all they could afford or what ever. BUT GEEZE the moms got a lot to prepare for you don't want her to have to do all the shopping herself. UGH I just read that they didn't even include where you were registered - TERRIBLE. Maybe your mom can call a few people from her side and let them know where you are registered. CAN YOU imagine, like some people like to spend 50-100 bucks on a gift GEEZE HOW MANY BOOKS COULD THE KID NEED? Maybe you will get lots of checks in these books?

QOTD we are having one shower maybe 15-20 people will come. Most of my family (and lots of DH's) are all spread out through the east coast. I didn't put a lot on the registry because of that, just mostly essentials. A friend of mine is letting us use their pegpreggo car seat so I registered for the snap'n'go stroller until we need a bigger one later. and they are lending us the swing to. My awesome MIL gave us a nice check that I already bought all the bedding and some extras with. I should be able to get at least the crib &/or the changing table with that money (depending on how expensive we go)

DianeCourt THat is a great shower book idea. so not in place of the gift but in place of the card!! too late my invites went out already.

OK - off to the DR. I have to get my pap, I am 8 months late getting one and my dr. is concerned so I need to get one. UGH, I am so nervous because when I lost my FIRST it was right after my pap because I wouldn't stop bleeding. I know how important the pap is, but I can't help but feel HUGELY concerned. and even though I know bleeding is normal when your pg after a pap I am worried that the site of blood will really stress me out. Guess its time to practice my relaxation.

Surftraitor

08-15-2005, 10:58 AM

Hi everyone,

cartersmommy--I think Lexy's response was perfect. I've never heard of a book shower. Seems like a cute idea but perhaps best for a 2nd child. How annoyed would you be if you had a wedding shower and all people brought as gifts were cookbooks? Or books on happy marriages? As a guest, I would probably bring a "real" gift in addition.

QOTD: I've already had one shower (my family and ILs combined). I'm having a small girlfriends shower in 2 weeks and work is throwing a joint one for me and another prego I work with. Also, DH's boss just emailed me about a shower at his office. They want to surprise DH so they were asking me about gifts. I mentioned the jogging stroller as a good idea:D. DH's boss has an infant and has VERY expensive taste, so we're in good hands. She's loaning me her breast pump (among other baby items). Its so nice to have such generous people in your life!

full/starving: I haven't had that. Just the starving. :rolleyes:

Weekend Recap
The weekend was good. I stopped into Old Navy thanks to my pants cutting into my stomach all day. I got 3 shirts and a pair of khaki's for under a hundo! Gotta love that, although I'm so annoyed to be growing out of my clothes. I then met up with DH at happy hour with his coworkers. New annoyance: paying for DH's bar tab. He had no cash on him, so guess who got to pick up the tab. That uber-sucks! Paying for drinks that I can't have. Ugh!

Saturday was our marathon childbirth class. We learned a lot, but the videos scared me. I cried! I'm blaming it partially on my recent emotional rollercoaster. The good thing wasn't the actual birthing part that scared me, but instead the emotions these women were going through. Actually, only one woman scared me. I'm convinced she was playing it up for the cameras ;) . I mean, she was wearing a ton of makeup too.

Sunday I awoke to find that I had slept 10 hours!! DH made me b-fast and then I did laundry, straightened the house and went for a 2 mile walk. After that, I decided to go to the grocery store to buy fruit. While in the checkout line I got really lightheaded. I started to sweat and I couldn't focus. It was super scarey. I was able to pay and get out of there and called DH right away. I got home and just crashed out. DH made me mac & cheese to get something in me and I chugged a Vitamin Water. I was outta sorts the rest of the day. So weird. I'm wondering if it was dehydration? I've had episodes like this before (pre-pregnancy). Hypoglycemia?

adoredh

08-15-2005, 11:18 AM

How annoyed would you be if you had a wedding shower and all people brought as gifts were cookbooks? Or books on happy marriages?

LMAO!!! That's what I got at one of my wedding showers!!! LOL! :D

Surf That episode that you had, is totally normal. At least it is for me, and according to my OB, normal for her during her PG's too :) I can tell you exactly what happened, after you walked for 2 miles (you go girl!) and then went shopping, standing in line, stoping that movement of walking, is what made you light headed. I get it EVERY time we go shopping, DH goes with me now, and when we stand in line to check out, I just stand there in a daze, trying to just breath. My OB said that I should actually just sit down when that happens, but for me, just concentrating on breathing and a cold water help big time. I've had it a couple of times where I thought for sure that I would fall down (not faint, just that my legs got shaky too)

What it is, is your blood pressure droping sharply. From being in movement, to standing still, it can sometimes drop, that's what causes the light headness and the shakey sweaty feeling. Some times you get it just from standing up, or singing in church, then sitting down. It's weird, but normal. If you started to black out, that's not so normal - fuzzy on the edges of your vision is fine, but a total black out is not, that's when you need to call your OB.

HTH's! - It's something I have everyday, mostly after lunch hour, when I'm back to sitting at my desk, and in the mornings too. That's why it takes me so long to clean the house too (and my aniema doesn't help) once I get one room done, stop to grab a new cleaner or something, I get really light headed, and lay down on the couch for 20 mins or so, and cat nap. It's just another way for your body to help remind you to take it easy and slow down for the next couple of weeks (can you believe that we only have a few more weeks to go! 7 more for me!!! EEK!)

lml41981

08-15-2005, 12:04 PM

[B]I think we ALL put reading on the top of our lists...I actually think it's unfair to imply that because someone doesn't want a book shower that they don't think reading is important. It's just that books cost what $5-$15 each?
Ouch...if that's what I get for biting my tongue, then why hold back?

Honestly...I'm gonna be blunt. Getting pregnant and having a baby was a decision that we each made with our husbands. If you didn't plan to get pregnant, you at least agreed to have the baby. For that reason, I can't understand why one would go into this entire thing that we all know will be insanely expensive with the expectation that others will provide for us. These are our children and our responsibilities. If people want to give us gifts, then that is great! It is a blessing...but I do find it a bit ungrateful to be peeved about getting books instead of "necessities" (I use that term loosely because many of what we deem necessities these days are, in fact, not necessities).

Just be thankful that someone wants to throw you a party to celebrate this event and be grateful for what they choose to buy. They don't have to spend their money on you at all...it is an honor that they choose to, not an expectation. If you don't get all that you need, then buy it yourself.

I'll fully admit that awhile back on WC when there was that thread about people getting only clothes at their showers, I got myself into a hormonally-induced worry about not getting all that I need. But then I reminded myself, "Woah...wait a second here...whose child is this anyway? Whose responsibility is it to provide the necessities? If I can't provide the necessities, then what am I doing having a child?" That was the turning point where I decided to hell with MIL dangling her friends' shower over our heads and using it to try to manipulate us. We'll just buy it ourselves and not have to answer to anybody else.

So...there's my opinion. Take it for what you will. Ask me to leave the pregnancy party if you want or just ignore me...or hopefully see some value in what I wrote...it isn't anybody else's job to furnish your nursery, your toy supply, your diaper supply or anything else. You signed up for that task when you decided to have a baby. The fact that these people want to celebrate your baby is awesome...and should be appreciated...regardless of the gifts they bring.

And FWIW, I would have *loved* a cookbook shower for my wedding. It would have thrilled me. But I love cookbooks, so maybe I'm just weird.

LexyLou

08-15-2005, 12:12 PM

Ouch...if that's what I get for biting my tongue, then why hold back?

Oh the drama!

I wasn't even responding to you LML. I was talking to Amanda in response to all the posts she got. You posted your feelings about the situation as did I and other people. I don't know why you feel the need to make it about you or take it personally. It has nothing to do with you. You are entitled to your opinion but I don't have to agree and I don't feel that I in any way called you out or said that you were wrong...lord.

shushyk

08-15-2005, 12:21 PM

ahhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh STOP come on girls we are all adults here. OK LML we gotcha ya, and every one has an opinion and can share it, but for some of us the time on CC/WC has been super helpful and I certainly don't want anyones feelings hurt in this group. After all my losses, I SO enjoy being here and hearing/seeing all your progress. I don't want to see anyones feelings hurt, and being that we are all prego that might be easier to do than normal ;) :eek:

I didn't go to the dr, got bummped for the first time because my dr. had to deliver someone. Its funny because I was just commenting on how I had not had that happen yet :rolleyes: spoke too soon. I am still quite nervous about the pap :confused:

I have an apt. for Lulu (my dog) today at 2, and then after I am going to head to the baby store for some much needed searching for the crib.

I have a question did anyone buy their crib from Target? I thought that a crib from target would be so cheap and I would never do that, but then after looking it up in baby bargains, ya know it got a good rating, but they want 100 bucks just for shipping :eek: but one thing I did LOVE was this changing table. http://images.amazon.com/images/P/B0002ISZPC.16._AA384_SCLZZZZZZZ_.jpg so far I haven't found anything like it in the stores and I really wanted to order it. but they don't have it on display its online order only... any personal experience? I would be out 60 bucks in shipping alone if I didn't like it.

EJM

08-15-2005, 12:34 PM

shusyk: Do they have to do the pap at this point? I've had 2 because my first was abnormal, but the doctor said it wouldn't change anything about my treatment of the pregnancy unless I had full blown cervical cancer. With your history, I would have a serious discussion with my doctor what good waiting a few extra weeks would make.

Lisa (Elizerah) I believe has a Target crib and loved it. I've had good luck with Target furniture in general for some of the more expensive items (non-baby). Do you have a newer Target around? We have a brand new one (not a Greatland or anything) that had a few baby furniture pieces even if it is listed as on-line exclusive. Even if it isn't the exact same thing, you could still gauge the quality. Did you decide against the Pali?

In general: I guess I see this as somewhere I can safely post my opinions/venting that I might not say in real life to people. Sometimes I come in here and post about my crazy MIL and what a b*tch she is before I've had a chance to think about it. But in reality I know I don't have it that bad, she keeps buying us the expensive things for the baby and has given us a bunch of money to purchase other stuff on our own -- of course I'm still going to complain about her, just not to anyone other than DH or you girls on CC. Oh well, I hope nobody is judging me in the process. But as my mom used to tell me "Opionions are like a**holes, everyone has one" ;)

shushyk

08-15-2005, 12:43 PM

EJM I have a "history" myself... that is why she was really upset when she realized I didn't have an anual. Its been a long time since I had an abnormal pap, more than 5 or 6 years. I feel the same way whats 6 -8 more weeks right? I might talk her out of it if I can :rolleyes:

Thanks for the info on Target, we have a new one and they don't have these exact peices but the cost for shipping is really detering me all together from ordering it. Ahhhhhhhhh who knows.

EJM

08-15-2005, 12:47 PM

Oh, I forgot my favorite suggestion! Sign up for Ebates, you get 3% cash back at Target and I have an e-mail at home (no work access to Yahoo) for 10% off a Target purchase. You could probably find the coupon code through Google. Those two combined would cover a good chunk of the shipping cost.

DianeCourt

08-15-2005, 01:03 PM

Shushyk: Hey, we have Target baby furniture and so far, so good. I really liked that we were able to get a brand name (Bassettbaby) crib & changing table for under $500 for the set! All pieces came out of the box in perfect condition and assembly was a breeze! Here's a tip for you: They originally told me that I could only buy my pieces online, but I didn't believe it. If they don't sell the piece that you're looking for in your local store, INSIST that your local store do an inventory search to check other stores within a certain driving distance. (Go to the customer service desk - all they need to do the search is the SKU from the furniture flip book w/bar codes in the baby section where you can scan stuff for your registry.) Their shipping charges are RIDICULOUS, and depending on where you live, you may be able to drive 30 minutes - 1 hour and find a store that has what you're looking for. In our case, a 45 minute drive saved us $150 in shipping! Good luck.

cartersmommy

08-15-2005, 01:20 PM

oh boy, i didn't realize that i was going to cause such a stir when i posted about the book shower. gimmine! everyone is entitled to their opinions, but i agree, i use this and all you wonderful ladies to bounce frustrations and joys off of, and i'm sorry if i offended anyone in the process. i fully plan to take care of and provide for my child, and just because i am frustrated with my SIL about this book shower doesn't mean i "expect" anyone to provide for my child. and we can afford the necessities for this baby, it's just nice to be able to "cross things off the list" when you have a shower, which i THINK everyone in here understands. LML, i'm sorry to have ruffled any feathers. WOW.

scubasam

08-15-2005, 01:27 PM

Happy Monday everyone!

Hope you all had a good weekend. We had a busy one as always....went to a shower for one of my best girlfriends who's due a week before me which was a blast and did some shopping on Saturday. That night we had dinner w/ MIL, FIL & GrandmaIL. I ate too much food and had my second piece of cake for the day. :rolleyes: :o Sunday DH and I went looking for a glider AGAIN. It's like our 3rd trip out and we at least narrowed down a couple of options but it stressed me out. In fact, I had my very first (and hopefully LAST) pg breakdown. I just broke down in tears because we can't find a stupid rocking chair that we both like......our vision & ideas about what features it should have, how it should feel, how it should look, how much to spend, etc. are completely different. I never in a million years thought that so much emphasis would be placed on a rocker......vs. a crib or stroller, etc. DH and I tend to agree on most purchases so it's hard when we don't. In the big scheme of things, it's not that big of a deal but when pg hormones are involved, different story! LOL! It didn't help that it was super warm here yesterday and 1/2 way through the day my acid reflux kicked into high gear. Gotta love acid puke in the mouth everytime I got in or out of a chair! :rolleyes: So, poor DH, watching me cry and trying to console me in the car......and we still don't know what chair we want. Sigh.

So, I know we've talked about gliders/rockers before but those of you who purchased one, would you be willing to share which one & if it's not too invasive, share the cost?

Is anyone else having issues w/ acid reflux? I have a prescrip and use Tums whenever I need to but it doesn't seem to help. I end up sleeping sitting up every other day or so and I'm afraid to eat or drink anything!

QOTD - We have our co-ed bbq party/shower coming up on Saturday. I'm really excited to have everyone together. We're expecting about 50 people + all their kids! :eek: I also just found out that some of the ladies at our church are planning a shower for us and work is having one for me as well but I have no idea when either of those are. I've pretty much told people to not count on me to be out and about in the world after Sept 15th so hopefully both will be before then.

Back to work I go!

cartersmommy

08-15-2005, 01:28 PM

acid reflux---- OH YEA! every night i seem to wake up and have to get up to take some tums. what a pain! it doesn't even seem to matter what i eat.... i had some jello the other night and had it! JELLO! ha!

amtaylor

08-15-2005, 01:33 PM

So, I know we've talked about gliders/rockers before but those of you who purchased one, would you be willing to share which one & if it's not too invasive, share the cost?

I'll share... we have the Natural Glider-Ottoman Combo by Jardine Enterprises (http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/tg/detail/-/B00068O1LU/qid=1124137791/br=1-2/ref=br_lf_ba_2//102-7191697-2350562?v=glance&s=baby&n=542382). It was the right color, very comfortable, and affordable! (Especially compared to others :eek: ) It was a gift from my in-laws and they paid $150 for it from BRU

cartersmommy

08-15-2005, 01:36 PM

i have the same glider that amber has, only in dark pine, and i love it! great great great!! :)

nancy drew

08-15-2005, 01:42 PM

acid reflux and how!!!!! i eat tums like they are candy (not literally, if youve ever seen me eat candy you will be glad to know that) and then i get reflux with the tums. nice.

glider i think this is the one we have, it looks kinda like this anyway:
http://www.littlecastleinc.com/dpchairs/slice.gif
it is by little castle (http://www.littlecastleinc.com/index.html) and while it was costly we figure we can use it in other rooms in the future because it looks like a normal armchair type chair. and we got the ottoman too, i highly recommend having *something* for your feet to rest on. it can be anything, doesnt have to be a matching ottoman, but it really helps having something there.

sdmama2be

08-15-2005, 02:16 PM

Glider/Ottoman We just ordered a Dutalier (spelling???) through BRU It was a ridiculous amount of money(about $700 for both) :eek: but it was by far the most comfortable one for us. I am 5'11" and Tony is 6'3". He had back surgrery a few years ago, as in he was unable to walk due to severely rupturing a disc and now gets major sciatica when he sits too long. We got the natural wood with a sage green fabric. It should be here in 4-6 weeks.

QOTD We are having 2 showers. One is a super casual, co-ed bbq with our friends. The other is more of the traditional, girls only theme. I am not big on being the center of attention so I was hoping that we would just be having the casual one, but I seem to have 2 circles of friends (friends we have known forever and then new friends that I have made through work etc) that don't quite mix. I know that there will be a work one as well. There are 5 teachers due between late September and late November so I know that will be a combined shower for all 5 of us at school.

acid reflux Not too bad as long as I stay away from garlic, onions, basil, etc. However I don't leave home without my tums :) and if we ever go out to eat I have tums for desert just in case

Is anyone else looking into new cars?? Tony drives a jeep wrangler and we know we are going to have to get a new car sooner..I think we will survive the winter with the top up (We are fine with him driving Kaelyn to daycare up the street) and we will use my 4 door civic at any other time. If you are what are you looking at etc?? We looked at and fell in love with the Honda Pilot (I am such a Honda person, I have only ever driven Hondas) to replace the Jeep but are looking for anything else SUV-like...afterall Tony is replacing his jeep :rolleyes: ;)

EJM

08-15-2005, 02:24 PM

Glider/Ottoman: I probably ordered the same one as sdmama, except in white. It's the Dutalier that reclines/locks with the matching glider. It was about $700ish on sale for both pieces and free shipping. It hasn't arrived yet, should be any day now! Don't stress, you definitely aren't alone in having a hard time deciding, I think DH and I sat in various gliders for 3-4 hours over a few trips to BRU and another baby store, and I spent lots of time on-line researching them.

Reflux: Thank goodness no!

Cars: Well, we just got my MIL's old 4Runner, so it is new to us. DH and I only have 1 car and never drive because we live in the city, and safety is of course important, this is fine for now. At least it has airbags, a major step up from our Explorer.

lorialys

08-15-2005, 02:26 PM

cartersmommy I totally see where you are coming from on the book shower. I think that would be a wonderful idea for a 2nd time mom who already has a lot of stuff that can be re-used for baby. Still, it is a thoughtful idea for her to throw the shower in the first place and there is probably not much you can do. I think from what it sounds like a lot of people will bring other gifts as well in addition to books. Hope that is the case, at least! I definitely don't think you are ungrateful.

godsgift77 Wow, what great gifts! And what a surprise!

jenjen0713 Sounds like a great new job situation, I hope that it works out for you!

lml41981 Sorry to hear that your MIL is trying to manipulate you with the offer for a shower. I totally understand. My mom wanted to throw me one this summer, even though I live on the opposite coast and would have to travel 5+ hours on an airplane while 7 months pregnant and without my husband because we couldn't afford it. I know some other ladies on here have done similar things, but I just didn't feel like it would be a good idea for me, you know? So I asked if maybe she would throw the shower after the baby was born and while we were visiting for Christmas? She got all pissy and decided that we weren't getting a shower at all, because that was a silly idea. :rolleyes: She just says these things to try and get me to cave into what she wants, and I don't know if your MIL is the same way, but it sounds like it.
I know it is difficult to deal with the on-again-off-again shower plans, so I applaud you and your DH for deciding to just go ahead and get stuff. I totally agree with you that having a baby is a choice (I know there are some people that get pregnant totally on accident, but having sex at all is a risk one takes, you know?) and that responsible adults that are ready to be parents need to be able to financially plan to handle the extra expenses. One things the culture of human kind suffers from the most right now is a lack of responsibility for ones actions, don't even get me started on that because I'm sure I'd upset some people with my opinions!! All shower gifts are wonderful and blessings, and I don't think anyone on here meant otherwise. It's just human nature to be disappointed when you don't get what you are expecting, and I'm speaking of both you and Amanda here.

adoredh Glad you got the basinett you wanted!

dragonfly_71 I think it is so cool that your child will be bilingual!! I wish I knew a foreign language well enough to teach our kids.

Tulip I wouldn't expect anything to start coming off your registry until closer to the shower date. My shower is just under two weeks away, and the first items weren't bought until last Thursday. I was freaking out about it, but now that stuff is coming off slowly I'm happier. :D

DianeCourt Glad your shower went so well, and you got a lot of stuff! Can't wait to see the nursery pictures, the starlight bedding is so adorable. I love that poem your friend put in the invite, so cute! I also think that books instead of cards are a great idea!

LexyLou Good point about checking out books from the library, I hadn't thought about that. Of course, then you can't exactly let your little toddler chew on them, LOL! Ewww... Not that you should encourage chewing on books either, hehe. ;)

1_mommy Why are they inducing you at 39 weeks, if you don't mind my asking? Just a wonderin'. I hope you feel better soon!

shushyk Umm, yeah I'm totally overwhelmed by how fast the end is approaching! Not to say that I'm not totally excited though, because I can't wait for Lucas to be here! Glad your bradley class was good. Sorry they couldn't do your pap but maybe it was for the best? Cute changing table! I think Target stuff is pretty good quality, but that shipping cost is horrendous!

Surftraitor Sorry the birth videos scared you! Hopefully when you're going through the emotions, it won't be so difficult. That dizziness thing has happened to me before. Last time was in the doctor's office right after giving blood for my GTT, so I know what caused it then, LOL. But yesterday at Sams I could not stand to be standing in line! Walking was okay, but standing still was bad. My guess is you were experiencing low blood pressure or low blood sugar.

Showers? I am having a small-ish work shower on the 25th, there will probably be 10-15 people there max. And our larger shower is on the 27th, I have no idea how many people are invited. But I do know it's most of the ladies from my IL's (and our old) church, a few family friends, and my husband's family. We're hoping that most of the stuff off our registry will be bought by then, but if not we'll buy the rest of the really necessary stuff on our own. We've been saving a little each month just in case we had to buy a lot all at once. We've also bought some things along the way already, like our bedding set. And the parents and in-laws have already given us some major items (like the crib, glider, and dresser).

Glider We have this one from Dutalier:
http://images.amazon.com/images/P/B00008US28.16._AA260_SCLZZZZZZZ_.jpg
The Ultramotion. Glider is $199.99 and the Ottoman is $79.99. My parents bought it for us.

Reflux Yes, horrible. I woke up at 2:30 this morning and couldn't sleep, so I got up for a glass of water. Worst, mistake, ever!!! I had heartburn pretty bad for an hour after that.

We have our second baby basic class tonight, so I gotta run!

jh124

08-15-2005, 02:36 PM

re: QOTD Ok, I stirred up the pot when I expanded on the book shower post. I take responsibility for that. Mostly, I just wanted to express my envy that I'm having one small shower and that we have to buy a lot of our stuff. That said, the second part of my QOTD was how people were budgeting those large expenditures. Buy as needed? A new piece every paycheck? THAT was the purpose of my post, not to compare the have's to the have not's.

I agree that having a baby is a decision my DH and I made together. Throwing a shower is a nice gesture that someone may or may not generously offer. No one owes anyone a shower or a gift, but IMHO it's good to give people things they need at showers - so, if you are having one shower and it's your first baby, a book shower isn't the most practical theme. Again, IMHO, it sucks that cartersmommy is getting a book shower. lml disagrees. BFD, we have differing opinions. World still rotates around the sun. No need to have to defend your choices or your showers.

1_mommy

08-15-2005, 02:55 PM

lorialys 3 weeks after having my dd i developed a blood clot in my leg. it was due to having my daughter. so this pregnancy i have been on an injection twice a day called lovenox. it is to keep my blood regulated so that it will not clot. my midwife is inducing a week early for 2 reasons.
1 -so that the delievery can be controled. meaning i have to be off the medication completly for 12 hours in order to have any kind of pain managment. or even pitocin. a c-section is pretty much out of the question unless a absolute medical emergency because of the risk of my bleeding and a clot forming. being induced they can monitor me from beginning to end more closeley

2- my dd was 7lbs 12ozs. not to big, but i did have an episiomoney (sp) and i had third degree tearing. i guess my am kinda narrow. they don't want this baby getting to big, so they will induce a week early to help out with that too. so i don't have the risk of clotting after delievery. and since i had the clot after the last delievery. they will be keeping a careful eye on me this time to prevent it from happening again

sdmama2be

08-15-2005, 02:56 PM

Okay now I am GRUMPY!!! I just went to my car to go run even more errands and my car won't start :mad: :( It won't turnover nothing and to make it worse I have to turn in some paperwork to the school district to get a much needed raise today...and Tony is in a meeting until 4pm and no one can help ARGH!!!!! :mad: So I am now stuck at home for the rest of the day and have left a voicemail with the district pleading with them to let me turn it in tomorrow first thing in the morning. Think positive thoughts that they will let me turn it in tomorrow and that there is nothing seriously wrong with my car. Thanks for letting me vent...

jh124 We are pretty much buying things as we can afford them(usually with each paycheck) We are buying the basics (crib, bedding, furniture) ourselves, of course I have a terrible addiction to PBK for bedding which isn't helping too much. ;) My mom is insistent on buying us a stroller and car seat and Tony's sisters are buying us a jogger stroller. Other than that we registered for things but aren't sure what to expect. Tony is a huge budget freak and so this has been stressful for him because you can't really create a budget until you know what you need.

nancy drew

08-15-2005, 03:05 PM

sdmama2be we bought a honda pilot when i was pg with stella. looooooooooooove it! cant say enough good things about it. :)

LexyLou

08-15-2005, 03:13 PM

I also ordered a Dutalier through USA Baby in the white chenille fabric. I think it was also around $700 for both the glider and ottoman.

FYI for all the Dutalier girls: They take a LONG time to come in and their factory shuts down for 2 weeks in August. We ordered our on June 3rd and they are telling us it won't come in now until the middle of September! :eek: Originally it was supposed to be the beginning of August so I'm hoping they are just saying middle of September to CYA but I'm not happy with this amount of time. Oh well, they are very comfy and worth the wait. :)

sdmama-So sorry about your car. If I didn't have to work I'd come pick you up so you could do your errands. ;)

EJM

08-15-2005, 03:13 PM

jh Here was my plan. I put everything on the registry that BRU carried and we would like and it ended up being about 45 things. A few larger items (that we need immediately) we picked stuff that BRU didn't have, so I have a running list and have slowly been purchasing those. I try to keep it under a certain dollar amount a month, while giving things enough time to be delivered pre-baby. DH and I have sub-divided (in our minds) the registry, so there are items on there we need ASAP so those we will buy with the budgeted money if we do not get them as shower gifts. Some of it can wait until the baby is a few weeks old, and others months old. Other stuff like toys, I plan on directing people to for the holidays. I'm due the end of Oct, so in reality I won't need some things until the baby is a few months old and the holidays will come at a perfect time for baby's 1st Christmas. That's for the gear. For clothing, I've bought 5-6 outfits and a couple packages of pjs for the first few weeks. Since we don't know the gender we'll just wait on clothing until the birth and see how much we really need.

sdmama2be

08-15-2005, 03:18 PM

Thanks lexy!!! The district just called and they said anytime tomorrow will be fine so I am feeling a little better..Dutaliler closes in August ARGH!!

nancydrew We have heard really good things too...I will definitely pass on your comments to Tony who needs more convincing that it is truly worth the money

Okay off to surf some more..I am sure that I will be back. Can you tell that I am fidgetty???

Surftraitor

08-15-2005, 03:34 PM

Here's our Dutailier glider http://babycatalog.com/dutailier/05/94805.jpg

Its awesome!!! We knew it was too late for us to order one direct from the factory, but we lucked out and someone had returned one. The cushions are a lightweight denim. We got it for $500 and they paid the sales tax. :)

Unfortunately, it did not come with an ottoman, so I'm ordering that from www.babycatalog.com Someone else on these boards recommended them. They also have some "quick ship" models that may work for those of you who cannot wait 10-12 weeks (which is pretty much all of us at this point).

Budgeting? We're buying stuff as we go. I keep my eyes out for sales and have been fortunate enough to save $$ thanks to my company discount. My company is having a sample sale the Saturday before labor day, so I can get stuff dirt cheap (and same quality). Am zeroing in on an area rug and nightstand/end table for nursery. I've also put together a monster list of final necessities: bottles, diapers, breast pads, wipes, lotions, first aid kit, etc. Basically its a list of things that I don't expect anyone to buy me for a shower gift--odds and ends.

scubasam

08-15-2005, 03:35 PM

Thanks for the feedback on the gliders guys! I really appreciate it. Helps to know that the range I planned on ($400-500) wasn't completely unreasonable.

jh124 - We're waiting until after our shower this next weekend to see what/if anything we get and will then assess the registry and buy the things that we really need when the baby first arrives over the next 6 wks. Then, we'll buy things as we need them. Ideally, I'd love to have everything by the time Carter arrives but really, I'm only concerned w/ the things that will make life easiest in those first few weeks after birth. With my birthday shortly afterwards (Oct. 31st) and Christmas a couple months later, I'm sure that we'll get baby-related things then too.

scubasam

08-15-2005, 03:53 PM

Oh yah, meant to comment on one thing from a few pages ago:

Astara - Being a Halloween baby myself, I'd have to agree w/ your hubby that having a Halloween birthday is awesome! ;) Not that I want you to be tortured by going over your due date by 10 days! ;) It was always so much fun as a kid to have a Halloween birthday......to dress up, get tons of candy (people actually used to give me extra as a bonus bday gift!) and there was always a celebration going on somewhere. Actually, I have to say that turning 21 on Halloween rocked! :D

mcl

08-15-2005, 04:26 PM

sdmama2be-- we have a honda pilot, too and i also LOVE, LOVE, LOVE it! it's perfect for us because you can actually seat 7 and we have the navigation system, which to DH is important. i am very bad with directions and he wants me to have it for safety purposes.

lex- i can't wait to see a picture of your chandelier. it seems like your baby's room is going to look straight out of wendy belissimo's catalog. i love her stuff.

i'm so glad that we can post so openly on this thread and be respected for our opinions. i know that a lot of people use this site to vent and share great things that are happening in their lives and i appreciate that. ladies, can you all believe that we've all been doing this TOGETHER since our babies were conceived. i can tell that everyone here is kindhearted and have been so supportive of each other. i hope that no one here is taking things personally.

have a great night everyone!

godsgift77

08-15-2005, 05:56 PM

QOTD – Shower We’re only having one on September 5 and its HUGE – about 70 ppl. Its My fam/friends/co-workers, DH’s fam/friends/coworkers, and church members! I am so excited because lots of stuff has already come off of our registry!!

On the note of showers – and please excuse me if I offend – but showers are meant to “Shower” the expectant parents with necessities for the first few months after the birth of their child. Yes we all made the choice to have a child but if someone offers to shower our child, then at least ask what the parents need. Books are great… but I can think of at least 20 things that baby will need BEFORE he will need a book. I totally understand where Amanda is coming from – especially being a 1st time mommy. I bet if she had not offered to have a 2nd shower for her, they could / would have planned accordingly *stepping down off my soapbox* LOL @ EJMopinions are like @ssholes :D and at jh124! You ladies crack me up!

acid reflux YES! My goodness. I thought it was just the first tri but BOY is it back with a vengeance!

glider We registered for the same one that Amber & Amanda have.

shushyk I started to freak out today when I realized that as of tomorrow, we have exactly 8 weeks :eek:

sdmama2be Hope all is well with your car!

Budgeting We are using the money we would usually put into a savings acct to buy the big things but we started about 2 months ago. Just call me Type A :)
ETA
YES i am starving/full all the time! I can eat a side salad and be full but not 30 minutes later, im starving again!

Kanga

08-15-2005, 05:59 PM

Budgeting We have been buying things as we go. As far as I know, I will not be having a shower, so we plan on buying just the bare necessities, diapers, crib bedding, etc before the baby comes, then waiting to see if we have a shower/see what people give as gifts and then buy any extras ourselves.

I finally decided on the crib bedding tonight. We went with the Brandee Danielle Froggy bedding in pinkhttp://www.babysupermall.com/main/products/brd/brd314plfg-big.jpg

I now feel a little more relaxed. That was the last of the major purchases/can't live with out things we had left. We still plan on getting the Pnp, and a swing. Dh spent the last week and half in his home town for the Sprint Car Nationals, so we are low on funds until next payday, but plan to buy about 100-150/paycheck worth of baby stuff until we have all that we need, just to make it easier on the budget.

dragonfly_71

08-15-2005, 06:15 PM

sdmama2be and EJM thanks for your input. It will be really hard for me to only speak German to the little since I hardly ever speak German anymore. I have been living in the States for 14 years now so I think and dream in English. I have been trying to talk to my belly in Germany and it feels really strange. That's why I think reading him German books will help since I know whenever I read I don't care if it's English or German I don't even notice which it is.

QOTD: We are having two showers. I had the first one the end of July and there were 17 people invited. I got some of the bigger items like the crib and mattress, the Pack'n Play and the Infant Car Seat. I also got a bunch of smaller items from my registry but somehow the registry didn't update. So I had to go in and delete the items manually. It seems like it only showed the things as sold that people bought online. When they went to a BRU store it didn't update. We will have a second shower on August 27th and from what I understand that one will be huge. DH has a really big family and they will all be invited to that one. Actually all the people that were at the first shower will be at the second shower, too. It was really silly to even have the first one but one of DH's aunts really wanted to to give us a shower after MIL and her sister and another aunt had already said they were going to host the shower. And it ended up being really really nice. DH's aunt and two of his cousins put a lot of effort and thought into it and it was awesome. We haven't bought anything yet except for a small toy that I bought for the baby right after we found out we were having a boy. I just somehow wanted to be the first to buy him a welcome to the world present. I don't think we will have to buy a whole lot. We are really really lucky. MIL is going to buy us the dresser/changing table for the next shower and she also said that whatever people don't buy from the registry she will buy us. With all the hoopla everyone is making of this baby you would think it is the first grandchild. But he is actually MIL's 5th. I think the reason everyone is so excited is that, number one, this was totally unexpected since we had been telling everyone all along that we didn't want any kids and also because our son is the first one that will actually carry on the family name.

hmbay

08-15-2005, 06:46 PM

gliders--no idea what brand it is. Bought it at a furniture store out of the clearance section after hating everything in their "regular" section. $180 for it but no ottoman. It's quite comfy.

cars--we currently have a 4 door civic, a 4 door accord and a quad cab truck. I'd like to move up to something bigger (the Civic is mine and the accord is 14 years old) and newer but we just can't afford it right now plus the price of gas is just insane. I'll stick with my civic until financially we can afford something else or we decide to have a 3rd child (which we may or may not).

budgeting--well I did get about half of the big stuff at my showers first time around but we didn't really buy much big stuff. My dad made the crib, we bought the glider and everything else was cheapie hand me down stuff because we figured the kids would wreck it eventually anyhow (and Lord Colin has entered that stage and I'm so happy he's not banging sippie cups on a $300 dresser when he's supposed to be sleeping and that instead he's wrecking an already beat up 30 year old dresser we got from Jon's uncle)--we didn't buy new furniture or anything. I'm an only child so needless to say my parents have been very generous with supplying any necessities we might need--I bet I've spent less than $150 on clothes for Colin and he's 21 months old. However we have bought all our own diapers and formula and that alone can kill a budget. Actually I'm frightened of having two in diapers soon--we're on a tight budget anyhow since we built a new house last year that put us at the absolute fringe of our budget and now our renters decided not to renew the lease on the other house we own (they were renting to own and we were positive they were going to either re-rent or buy this year) so if we don't find renters ASAP we're going to be scrambling to make two mortgage payments as of Sept 1st and honestly I don't think we can afford it. So more stress on top of everything else. Joy. Anyway if someone isn't opposed to used baby gear I was told Once Upon a Child and places like that usually have almost brand new stuff like pack n plays, high chairs, etc for half price or less. As much as we were hoping for a girl this time around I'm kind of glad now it's a boy--at least I don't feel compelled to buy all new bedding and clothes with another boy! :)

c j

08-16-2005, 05:20 AM

Good Morning!

Doctor's appointment went well yesterday. I've gained a total of 20lbs in 30 weeks. Measuring right on the day :D The baby kicked the doctor a few times. He said "must be a girl... a feisty girl". And I responded "it's that or a linebacker!" Next appointment is August 30

This kid kicks and pushes all day, then at night it's quiet. Although last night the baby was REALLY active during the Steelers/Eagles game especially when DH got excited :p

I am getting VERY excited. We should be able to move our furniture out of the baby's room and into out new renovated Master bed/bathroom by this weekend. DH has said he would like to start the baby's room sometime this weekend or next week. We have to replace windows, carpet, paint and trim before I can start putting up the crib and decorating.

Tonight is our TOUR of the hospital and 5th Lamaze class. I sort of know how the labor/delivery rooms are since my sister gave birth there a year ago, but I am exciting to see what information they are willing to tell us. Plus maybe we'll be lucky and some babies will be in the nursery :D

* * * * * * * * * *

baby's room A few pages back, I forget who mentioned it (sorry) about not starting the baby's room until after labor day. I wouldn't worry about it, we probably won't have ours done until the last week of September.

New QOTD... Gift for the new Dad I thought about getting DH a few personal things for the baby and either giving it to him when we have our shower or after the baby is born. I have two items already... a bib that says "I love my Daddy" and a onsie for the "Pittsburgh Steelers". Is anyone else thinking of doing something like this and any ideas of what to give DH??

jh124

08-16-2005, 06:50 AM

Liz Your bedding is adorable!

QOTD - I'm pushing this kid out of my vagina, so I figure I deserve the gift. Besides, I'm a diehard Dallas fan and my husband roots for the Chiefs. :rolleyes: We're a mixed marriage. I think I will probably add "I Love Daddy" bibs and stuff as time goes by. When we got our BFP, I bought DH the "Everything Expectant Fathers" book and he has not cracked it. And I went shopping over the weekend and bought a ton of stuff at Carters (like his coming home outfit). DH was more interested in the military channel than Hank's fashion show. So at this moment in time, I think a gift for DH would be unappreciated.

Tiger

08-16-2005, 08:16 AM

Good morning everyone! I am finally back from our trip and it looks like I have a lot to catch up on around here so unfortanately, no SO's right now.

Our shower was great. My family really went all out on the food and decorations. Everything was so cute! We got a lot of nice things...our travel system, monitors, thermomater, diaper bag, diapers, breast pump, lots of burp clothes, onesies, blankets, etc. I was surprised that we didn't get one single dress or cute little outfit. All of the clothes that we got were either sleepers or onesies, which is good, I was just surprised. Unfortanately, my camera wouldn't turn on so I didn't get any pics, but my SIL is supposed to be sending me some. It was so great to see all of my family and friends. I had a great time.

We still have several big items that we need to buy now...a swing, pnp, crib bedding, and bouncer. I am hoping to start getting those things little by little.

Question for everyone....are you buying both a swing and a bouncer? Is it worthwhile to have both?

I am off to catch up on the past several pages now!

cartersmommy

08-16-2005, 08:18 AM

morning girls!! :)

had drs. appointment this morning, and everything was perfect! I've gained 16 lbs. total, and BP was perfect. Baby's HB was around 154 so he's looking good! we're having an u/s at 36 weeks to see his weight and position and also just for fun! :) next appt. is in 2 weeks on August 30th at 8:40am

had our 3rd birth class last night.... 75% done! i can't believe it! we talked alot about epidurals last night.... kinda scary. so now i'm leaning towards just seeing what happens and if i need it or not. i'm not going to have a pre-set decision about it. so we'll see what happens :)

i had better run and get some work done! talk to you lovely ladies later!

love,
amanda

lorialys

08-16-2005, 08:22 AM

jh124 My hubby has been taking a little out of our paychecks every week and setting it aside just in case we need to buy a lot of the bigger stuff ourselves close to the end of this pregnancy.

1_mommy Ahh, those are very good reasons to induce early!! I hope that it all goes smoothly for you this time around and the medicine does it's job.

sdmama2be Hope your car gets fixed soon!

LexyLou That stinks about Dutalier's factory shutting down in August! I hope the glider arrives in time for you.

EJM We are very lucky that December is just around the corner and we can get a lot of the gear that you don't need right away as 1st christmas gifts for our kids! Thanks for reminding me of that!

Chad and Liz Cute bedding!

cj Glad your appointment went well! Hope your tour was exciting.

Gift for the new dad Haven't thought about this much. DH and I aren't big gift givers, so I can't imagine I'll get anything and I don't expect anything from him other than lots of kisses and hugs and maybe flowers. We didn't get each other anything for our wedding or our anniverseries, and usually don't get each other much for birthdays. But that's just how we are.

Had our second baby care class last night. Learned a lot about safety and feeding issues. Well, most of it I already knew, but it's always good to hear a refresher and some good tips. Babyproofing is going to be a real challenge for us, I already know. Both DH and I got into a lot of trouble as kids, and I'm sure our kids will try to out-do us. I will probably go all out with babyproofing the kitchen, living room, and the kiddo's room and just do the basics in the other rooms. But not until after he's here and starts to scoot around.
Our instructor mentioned that the FDA is considering pulling syrup of ipecac (that's the stuff that induces vomitting when your child swallows something) off the market. Didn't know that, and I wonder why? She told us to get a poison emergency kit (you can find them at any baby product store) and keep the poison control number handy because at some point your child is going to swallow something, and you need to call poison control to find out what to do (i.e. give them ipecac/charcoal from the kit or take them to the doctor/emergency room).
We also had a little introduction to breastfeeding, though she said that the hospital's LC covers much more in her breastfeeding class (which I'm taking next week!). And she talked about formula feeding as well. Didn't know that you shouldn't use bottled water to mix with formula, because some bottled waters can contain a lot more contaminants than regular tap water! There's a study that backs it up. She suggested that if you are formula feeding and you are going to be out, like at the mall, to bring along your can of formula and put the required amount of tap water in your bottle before you leave. So that way you don't have to use bottled water or questionable fountain water. Pretty good idea! Lastly we discussed solid feeding, I learned a lot about when and how you should introduce what types of solids.

Got my new nursing bras in the mail last night. They aren't the most attractive things ever, but I guess that's the point, right? They are very supportive and pretty comfortable, so I'm happy.

Also got our cord blood donation packet in the mail. So I'll get to sit down tonight and fill out all that paperwork! They need the paperwork back by 3 weeks before my due date, but I should be able to get it in sooner than that.

My order from the Gap should arrive today, I bought the little "welcome home" kit that hmbay posted last week. It has airplanes on it. :D Don't know yet whether we'll use it as his coming home outfit, but we might.

Our pack 'n play should arrive sometime today or tomorrow too! I can't wait to set it all up and play with it. :D

ETA: We already have our bouncer, and there is a swing on our registry as well. I think it is worth it to have both.

EJM

08-16-2005, 08:30 AM

Morning girls!

Liz: I LOVE that bedding, we were going to go with the Froggy Yellow but decided to order the African Safari instead. Not sure if you remember my crib bedding saga, couldn't find anything we really liked or were satisfied with. I ordered the African Safari hesitantly, not everything shipped but we got the 4 piece crib bedding on Friday and I LOVE it. We are so happy with it for both quality and design!

Daddy gift: Not sure yet, DH just had a birthday so he did get a present from Bean. I was also thinking about ordering a hand print kit from Red Envelope (supposed to be the easiest one to use, you just push the hand in with no plaster mixing necessary). He mentioned he wanted to do one, and I thought it would be a good gift idea.

Swing/Bouncer: We are planning on buying/registering for both. I've heard it is one of those things that either you cannot live without or you feel like it is a waste of money. Unfortunately you won't know in advance if your baby will like them. We received the swing at our first shower, so that is a definite yes and I plan on buying the bouncer just in case. MIL told me DH was a colicky baby, GREAT, so I'm on a hunt for anything to keep our child soothed just in case.

My update: Nothing with the Bean lately, so DH and I talked last night about post-baby visitors, co-sleeping, and parenting methods. Co-sleeping we are in agreement, we'll try to avoid it but if it happens for a bit at first we'll try not to make it a habit. As for post-baby visitors, he's definitely on board with me but not so adament that I feel like he'll stand up to his mom yet. He has me worried when I mentioned that all his mom is going to want to do is hold the baby and not help around the house -- to which he says "well isn't holding the baby helping?" :rolleyes: I explained it wasn't in my mind, so we'll see how it goes but at least I put my concerns out there.

jh124

08-16-2005, 08:31 AM

Question for everyone....are you buying both a swing and a bouncer? Is it worthwhile to have both?

We have registered for a swing/bouncer/toddler seat combo. Tightrope Smart Stages 3-in Swing by Fisher Price
http://images.amazon.com/images/P/B000A7JLB2.01.LZZZZZZZ.jpg

hmbay

08-16-2005, 08:38 AM

swing/bouncer --we only had a travel swing the first time around. We might pick up a bouncer just because I'm more wary of letting G2 lay on the floor with G1 running around at high speed and I don't want G2 dependant on a swinging motion to entertain him.

She suggested that if you are formula feeding and you are going to be out, like at the mall, to bring along your can of formula and put the required amount of tap water in your bottle before you leave
This is how I handled all formula bottles once we switched over to formula. You can buy divided containers to hold the powder. I measured it out (most have 3-5 container areas) and set it on the counter and measured out appropriate water into just as many bottles and left them out on the counter. Just had to grab the container and a bottle of water whenever you needed to pack a diaper bag or needed to feed (by then I had Colin drinking room temp bottles so I didn't have to warm it). Works great instead of making up each bottle every single time.

lorialys

08-16-2005, 08:46 AM

Heather also reminded me of something else that was said at our class last night about feeding.

Our instructor said that you only need to sterilize bottles and nipples once, after you buy them. And you can use a pot full of hot water for that, no need for the fancy sterilizers. After that you can put stuff in the dishwasher as long as you do the regular, hot wash cycle. Not the power saver cycle. Bottle warmers are not necessary either, because babies can drink cold milk or room temperature milk if they'll take it, otherwise you can just run the bottle under the hot tap water to get it warmed up. You don't need to warm up baby food either. Just thought some of you ladies might want to know, in case you've put sterilizers and warmers on your registries, they aren't really necessary!! (I didn't know, and had them on just in case we have to bottle feed, but took them off this morning)

cartersmommy

08-16-2005, 08:49 AM

we registered for both, and i think we'll probably use both. i guess we'll just have to see!! :)

LexyLou

08-16-2005, 08:51 AM

Hi Ladies,

I feel like poop this morning. Just super light headed and out of it. I'm working from home right now and just waiting to get on a conference call and then I think I'll take a nap and see how I feel.

I did read all of your posts and want to say hi to everyone.
Chad and Liz-I love that bedding. Too cute.

Budgeting-I'm a major budget maker. Right now we are saving a little more than half of my paycheck each paycheck and additionally putting a couple (few) hundred per paycheck towards baby purchases. We have been very lucky and out family has purchased most of our big ticket items but we have still spent a good deal of money on the decor as well. Totally worth it. :)

Thanks for the tip on the sterilizing, Lorialys.

Off to sleep.

adoredh

08-16-2005, 08:57 AM

Shower expectations
In my family, it's a rite of passage to have a shower, be the center of attention, and unwrap all those gifts that family members and friends have lovingly picked out, just for your baby. It's a celebration to welcome in the upcoming arrival of a new family member. It's a way for everyone to get together and be excited just for you. So yes, I do have expectations, but they are the ones I was brought up with. Every new baby in our family, has been welcomed with a shower, with a gift, and with love. I've been looking forward to my shower, with joy and anticipation. I will be grateful for every little gift my family gives, and my family is not rich by any means. 3/4ths of my registry is all things under $10, I wasn't kidding when I said I wanted the Butt Paste off my registry! LOL!

Scuba Hello fellow acid reflux suffer! I feel for you! I am taking a scrip called Aciphex to help with the acid, it doesn't help with my reflux though, since according to the Dr, I have a weak sfecinkter (sorry on the spelling) and it'll just get worse as The Boy gets further up into my ribs. Every time I eat, no matter how small a meal, I have to fight to keep it down afterwards. I'm OK with it though, since the acid isn't as bad (acid is horrible!!!) I'd rather deal with the reflux any day, over the acid reflux!

BTW - not much help on the glider sitch - my mom and dad had one with an ottoman from the 80's that they gave me. It's been in the basement collecting dust for 10 years! DH and I can't argue over free! LOL!

New Car Todd just finished the GMC Jimmy he bought that had the whole front end wrecked. He fixed everything, and now we have a $6000 suv for $2500. :D I *heart* being married to an auto body tech. It's a 4 door, with LATCH, air bags, air, power everything, child safety locks, remote starter, the works. I couldn't be happier! It's a blast to drive too!

Bilingual Does teaching my son to say Hola count? LOL! I hope that my sister, who is fluent in Spanish, will help teach our son. Esp. with how many people from Mexico, Columbia, Puerto Rico and so on, are moving in our area. It would be a great tool for him to have. Unfortunately, Todd and I don't know that much!

Dianecourt What a great poem your friend wrote for the shower! Sounds like you had a blast and I can't wait for my co-ed shower. My dad thinks co-ed showers are a conspiracy against men, since now he has to help with the set up of the shower, run the games, and do the clean up. He says he should be in a bar drinking beer and watching a game with Todd! He was totally kidding, but it was funny (this is the man that also tagged along on my bacherlarette party, he has a blast with things like this)

Lorialys Ha! I'm having my small work shower on the 25th and the large one on the 27th! LOL! It's going to be fun and over whelming! :D
Another funny thing (since I seem to be copying you) DH and I also have our second Birth class tomorrow night! And I've also filled out our cord blood donation kit, it's packed in the diaper bag and ready to go!

JH124 I like how you word things (re-shower drama) To answer your question. Here are the following items that I have bought used or have been given free.

Glider and ottoman - free
Crib - $100 (they had one child in it, and bought it for $500)
Dresser - $150 solid oak, can't even tell it's used - also will use it as the changing table
PNP - free from cousin
Swing - free from cousin
Walker - free from cousin
Diaper bag - free from OBGYN
2 hot sling style pouches - $10 for both, made them myself
2 huge packages of diapers from Sam's club - Hugies - $24.99 each
Bath set - free
A ton of clothes for 0-3 and 3-6 months - free - honestly, we don’t need any more
Receiving blankets - free
Sleep sack - free
Winter coat - free
Car seat - free
Car seat cover - free

DH and I just bought a bassinet that is brand new for $79.99 from Burlington Coat Factory, it's the only thing I really wanted to make my life easier at night :)

If we don’t get everything we need from our showers, our plans are to buy the following prior to DS's birth:

Nothing

He has enough basics to bring him home. Clothes, car seat, a place to sleep, and two parents who love him.

1 Mommy Thank you for sharing! It sounds as though they keeping everything under control for you! I'm glad that you are getting great medical care!

Godsgift
showers are meant to “Shower” the expectant parents with necessities for the first few months after the birth of their child
Well said!
Chad and Liz I love that bedding! It's adorable! Can't wait to see the finished product!
Heather LOL at Colin and his sippy cups! Our dresser is a used one too, but it's a solid oak dresser, so I *hope* I can keep it nice! DH and I have already checked out Once Upon a Child - we totally plan to shop there if we don't have the things we need. I'm a total bargain shopper! :D
BTW - seems that DH is very attached to the name Colin - not 100% yet, but it's looking that way! The neat thing is that DH seems to also really like the idea of Colin Wayne as a name - Wayne is after my dad, who is an amazing man, and I would so love to honor him in that way!
I hope that you're able to find renters ASAP for the house - you don't need that added stress!

CJ Great idea about the gift for the new dad! I did get an outfit that said "Daddy's Pride and Joy" on it with a golfing Teddy Bear - DH loves to golf. But I think that's all that I will get him. Both he and I will be too busy getting used to being a family of three!

JH124 I also think a gift for my DH would be unappreciated, he just has never been into gifts. In fact, we really don't give each other gifts for Christmas or anything anymore. Instead, we do trips! (not that we'll be taking any of those in the next few years!)

Tiger Another great shower! Sounds like you had a lot of fun! I have a swing from a friend, and I plan on getting several bouncers from my family. I have NO idea why, but every shower we have, there is at least two or three bouncers the new mom gets! LOL!

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Ok - I give up on getting caught up the rest of the way! I'm pooped! LOL!

To share - last night DH and I were cuddling, and he said that he was 90% sure that he wanted to name the baby Colin Wayne (Wayne after my dad) He's not positive yet, and wants me to keep it to ourselves for a while. I'm so glad that I get to come here and tell you guys, because keeping this from my Mom, is killing me! LOL!
Also, I spooned DH, so that he could feel how very active The Boy was last night, he couldn't believe it and asked me how I sleep! And to think, just two weeks ago, I was calling this baby lazy! :p

Tulip

08-16-2005, 09:04 AM

Swing/Bouncy seat, we were given a bouncy chair and have registered for a swing.

I had my 2 hour GTT test today. They had to draw blood 3 times and then the second time the girl couldn't find a vein so I got poked a total of 4 times. Not good for a needle-phobe. *shudder* Hopefully the results will be good.

nancy drew

08-16-2005, 09:20 AM

tulip ouch! hope all is well with the 2hr test. when do you find out the results? my 3 hr wasnt as bad as i thought it would be, but then again i had harry potter to keep me company. :)

--------
ugh i am so unmotivated today! we are supposed to be off at playgroup, and someone is coming to look at the house later today and i need to clean, yet all i want to do is sit around and be lazy. plus, i have some weird thing going on with my left ankle. it has been sore and swollen for a few days and it just seems to be getting worse. i just woke up with it sore one day and it hasnt gone away. it doesnt look bruised, doesnt look like i got bitten by a bug, just a big sore spot and some swelling. weird.

DianeCourt

08-16-2005, 09:24 AM

Glider: I'm glad to hear that I'm not the only one who was stressing about the glider! It was the absolute LAST thing we decided upon & purchased. We tried out a bunch of them, & decided that this was the one piece of furniture we wanted to spend some $$ on. I'd like its life to extend beyond when we have babies to rock, so I wanted something that's comfortable & high quality! I ended up ordering this one from USA Baby:
http://www.bestchairs.com/bcassets/prodimages/C4137.jpg
The manufacturer is Best Chairs Inc, and all of their products are made right in Indiana. I'm getting the natural finish shown on the left, but with beige microfiber cushions, and it's setting us back $500 for glider & ottoman. No offense to anybody, but we tried the Shermags & Dutailiers - I felt like they were too narrow and the cushions weren't as plush as I'd like. (Plus, $700 was more than we wanted to spend.) As soon as I sat down in the Best Chair glider, I knew that was the one! The store said they ship way faster than Dutailier, so that sealed the deal since we don't have much time left! I hope they live up to their promise!

Bouncer/Swing: We registered for the Fisher Price Nature's Touch Baby Papasan Cradle Swing & Baby Papasan Seat:
http://images.amazon.com/images/P/B0001IU5HY.01.MZZZZZZZ.jpg
http://images.amazon.com/images/P/B0000CBGBS.01.MZZZZZZZ.jpg
My 8 month old niece has that swing, and it's the coolest thing ever! She adores it, so it was one of the first things I knew I wanted to try. We also got the Papasan seat for our shower last weekend, so I'll put it together this week. Both look so comfy - hopefully Baby R. can use each!

Budgeting: With the exception of our mortgage & car payments, our policy is that we won't buy something unless we have cash for it. So we put all of our expenses on our credit card each month (so I can rack up the givebacks that the card entitles us to), but we pay the balance in full each month so we never pay finance charges. We had enough money saved to purchase all of the nursery furniture, but with the exception of the glider/ottoman, we picked out pretty inexpensive stuff from Target. We also repainted an old dresser instead of shelling out the $$ for a new one, which helped. The only other thing I splurged on were the window treatments - they were way overpriced, but so perfect that I couldn't help myself! I waited until I found sales to buy my initial stock of diapers, my breastfeeding supplies, & a few cute clothes. ;) FYI - TJMaxx is a great place to find baby supplies - for example, I found the Baby Bjorn Original Carrier in city black there last week for only $43! That's half the cost of BRU, so I snatched that up. We'll go to BRU after my next shower & purchase any of the necessities that weren't given to us as gifts.

Gift for Dad: Probably not. I already got him the Diaper Dude Bag for Father's Day and I really don't think he'd be expecting anything, so I think I'll just get him a card to capture some of my thoughts & love for him when our child is born.

Cars: DH & I are both employed by two different U.S. automakers, so we buy one vehicle from each company to keep it fair! (That's why you'll never see me recommending a Honda - sorry!) I've been driving a 4 door sedan & DH has been driving a sport utility, but our leases are up next year, so I may switch to an SUV & let him drive a car for a while. If any of you are looking for discounts on domestic cars & trucks, just let me know - I can hook you up if you're interested in something we make! :D

Bottle warmers/Sterilizers: I agree, not required, but they can make your life easier. For example, we only run our dishwasher once a week, so I'm definitely going to get an inexpensive microwave sterilizer for my bottles & manual pump.

cj & Amanda: Glad your appts. went so well! Great job on the weight gain. :) Amanda, if it makes you feel any better, I'm not preparing a formal birthplan. So don't feel bad about not knowing EXACTLY what you want ahead of time in terms of pain relief! There's no way of knowing how things are going to go, so my way of preparing is to educate myself about everything now & make decisions with my doctor as they're needed.

We had Childbirth class #4 out of 5 last night, and it was VERY informative. Learned a lot of about c-sections and also watched the infamous "childbirth video." The video was good, minus the fact that it was clearly filmed in the 80's! (DH & I were awful - we kept snickering at all of the outdated clothing, hairstyles, & glasses on each of the 5 couples in the film.) Did anybody else happen to see this one in their class?

Tulip

08-16-2005, 09:27 AM

nancy, I had HP to keep me company with my 1 hr but now I'm done it. I had a new book though so it wasn't that bad. The killer thing was the clinic opened at 7:30am and I got there at almost exactly that time and was #12 in line! I start work at 8:30am so I was using my lunch hour to make up the extra time but with the line up I didn't end up back at work until 10am. :mad:

Glider, we've decided not to get one. We don't really have the room for one. We're moving up another chair from the living room instead. I hope I don't regret it.

Dad gift, I'm getting Dan mock fighter pilot lessons. There's a place here that does virtual reality dog fights like Top Gun. It's his fave movie so I think he'll like it.

jh124

08-16-2005, 09:57 AM

Glider - We went the Lazy Boy route, so that it will for sure have a life post-babies. Although, we bought a Lane rocker/recliner, so it isn't the La-Z-Boy brand, but whatever. DH and I were too tall for gliders, they just weren't comfortable for us. AND we got our Lane for $250!!! Very excited about that.

Cars I have a small Saturn sedan (I'm very pro-labor, buy American) and DH has a Honda Accord (I can't covert everyone :rolleyes: ). DH just paid his off last week and mine will be paid off next week, so we plan to keep them around for awhile, God willing. Our car payment $ will be earmarked for baby stuff for the next month or two, then to savings, then to daycare. We hope between saving $300/mo on the dogwalker while I'm on maternity leave, my $200/mo communte, and $700/mo on car payments, we should have a nice cushion in a few months. But life laughs at you when you plan too much.

c j

08-16-2005, 10:03 AM

QOTD... I should add to my question of the day. The reason why I am wanting to get DH a little "daddy bag of goodies" is because I haven't bought anything for him this whole pregnancy. So I thought it would be nice if I collected somethings just for him that he can relate to. My mom suggested adding clothes pin s(for his nose when changing dirty diapers), goggles (if it's a boy in case he gets peed on), and ear plugs. I may add those to be funny.

swing/bouner We registered for both. If we only get one of them, I'll just borrow the other from my sister.

glider I don't know what we will end up with... my parents are getting us that.

Astara

08-16-2005, 11:05 AM

scubasam~ That sounds awesome! I too think it would be pretty neat.. I bet you loved getting extra candy! Turning 21 on Halloween does sound like a lot of fun!!

Shower We are getting one shower and Im sure it will be about medium sized. It's going to be thrown by MIL and My Mom. I am sure no one else in my family will show since they all live in Michigan. :( I hate living so far away from my family~ So it will mostly be DH's family, and friends... which is cool! It's also going to be a Jack & Jill shower. I hate being on the spot by myself (im even like that at christmas) so im really excited! :)

Glider We have the Bergamo Glider & ottoman in natural/beige from BRU. It cost us about $420.00 for both. I absolutely love it.. its the most comftorble glider ever!

Cars DH has a Hyundai Tiburon (def. not practical! its his play car so he wont give it up) and I have an Impala which is pretty good sized but I dont think its enough room for what we need. We are probably going to buy a Saturn Vue this Fall.. I get a nice family discount (unless that sale is still on.. which is still good cuz ill still get the $$ off) and also Saturn is going to be bidding on having DH's work use the vans as company vehicles.. so there's another couple of thousand off if they win the contract! Hopefully everything works out~

Swings & Bouncer I also have registered for the baby papasan swing from BRU and bouncer. If no one buys it for us, my mom will probably get it for us. She said she is going to buy us stuff after everyone else does so she can buy us stuff we didnt get.

~Hope everyone is having a great week!~

1_mommy

08-16-2005, 01:04 PM

i had my 30 week appt this morning. i am up another 5 pounds, and i am measuring at 36 weeks. yup 6 weeks ahead of schedule.. so i go in thursday morning at 9am to check the size of this boy. so after thurs we will see whats going on.
my next appt is sept 1

Tulip

08-16-2005, 01:18 PM

Forgot to mention my next appt. is tomorrow at 3:15pm.

jh124

08-16-2005, 01:50 PM

Forgot to mention my next appt. is tomorrow at 3:15pm.
That's impossible!! My appointment is tomorrow at 3:15pm. {grumble...trying to kick me out of my appointment....grumble...}

Kanga

08-16-2005, 01:50 PM

ejm I was actually set on the african plains bedding for the longest time, but for some reason never ordered it. Then about a month ago I saw this one and immediatly changed my mind. I must say that you do have great taste! :p

Tulip Hoping that your 2hour turns out fine, which I'm sure it will.

1_mommy 6 Weeks! :eek: Does that mean that your technically 36weeks along now? And have only 4 more weeks? I can't believe how close we all are to the end of this.

swing/bouncer We have a bouncer already, but I haven't decided on a swing yet. I figure if we don't get it, we'll be rushing out to buy one, and if we buy one, it won't get used :rolleyes: I think we'll wait closer to the end and see how much money we have left in the budget and go from there if we don't receive it as a gift.

lml How is everything going with you? Hope your gd is treating you better.

cars I have the absolute worst luck with cars. Before I got my BFP, we had a 92 2d civic and an 88 2d accord, and also a 98 4d sephia which needed a new transmission. Needless to say we were in bad need of a new car, even without a baby on the way. We found a friend to put a new tranny in the sephia for pretty cheap. I was planning on driving the kia and dh the civic, but the day after we got it back, it started leaking more tranny fluid. (See my luck) Dh traded it off the next day for an 94 alero. We really didn't want a car payment and a new baby but really had no choice. So far the only problem we've had with the car is that the transmission was having problems shifting, and left us stranded in Chicago, but it was covered 100% by manufacturer warranty and GM also re-imbursed us for the rental car. All in all it's been a good car and exactly what I wanted.

Tomorrow we have our first childbirth class, which I am way excited about. And then on Thurs I have my breastfeeding classl, which I am still trying to convince dh to come with me :rolleyes: He's afraid he'll be the only guy there and feel uncomfortable.

lml41981

08-16-2005, 02:30 PM

I'll do updates tonight after infant CPR lets out (at 9:45...two long nights in a row with Bradley class being last night).

Liz...thanks for asking. Ready? ;) GD is a heinous bitch. I'm testing my blood 4 times a day and giving myself 4 shots of insulin a day. I get to eat 30 grams of carbs for breakfast, 15 for a midmorning snack, 60 at lunch, 60 at dinner and another 15 either between lunch and dinner or after dinner. Of course, I'm a carbaholic, veggies don't fill me up and I don't really care much for meats or cold-cuts. It has been really tough restricting my carbs. I'm almost always hungry...never really feel full. Oh...and I get cranky if my blood sugar gets too low...though I'm sure nobody in this thread would have ever guessed that.

nicks

08-16-2005, 03:56 PM

Nancy_Drew,

Can you give me an idea of how much your glider cost? I love that style and have not really been able to find anything like it. I have called a few stores in my area that we can order through but they are all closed. I just wanted to see if you could give me a ball park figure.

TIA and thank you for posting it!

Brooke

amtaylor

08-16-2005, 04:51 PM

Today was my 32 week appointment. I really like going for appointments now because they are always good news :D My bp was awesome, her heartrate was great at 144-148, and I'm measuring at 31 weeks. She felt for the baby's position and said she was head down. That's wonderful since last week at the ultrasound she was transverse. I told her about my big baby fears and she said there was no way I would have a 10 lb baby :) She's guessing more like 6-7lb. Yippie!! Of course the ultrasounds aren't accurate, but we are having one on September 13th to check her size and growth. She said there's a margin of error of about a pound either way :rolleyes: I also learned that I've had BH contractions and didn't even know it. She said that when it feels like the baby is pushing out and things get tight, that's a BH. So... I've had those... even had one today!

My sister was thrilled to go with me to my appointment and I was happy to have her. It's nice to not go alone. My next appointment is in two weeks.. Aug. 29th. We spent the rest of the afternoon hanging out and running last minute errands before she starts classes tomorrow. We walked halfway across campus to the bookstore in the 90 million degree heat, but I survived!

Tomorrow's my first teacher workday of the new year. It's all planned events at my school, so it shouldn't be too bad. I have missed most of my co-workers, so it will be nice to see them again. But... on the other hand... I'm worried that I'm not going to be able to keep up. I'm so scared that I will be a big, fat, swollen cow and not be able to make it through the school day!

lorialys

08-16-2005, 05:08 PM

LexyLou Hope you feel better!

adoredh What a great deal on the GMC Jimmy! I love those, and the Chevy Blazer. We almost bought a used one back in the fall, but it didn't work out (credit is dumb, and that's all I have to say about that :p ). How funny that our showers are on the same day!! What a coincidence! Sounds like you guys are doing great, baby product-wise. Glad you guys are pretty close to a name decision!! I think Colin Wayne is a great choice.

Tulip Ooooh, ouch!! Hope your arm feels okay and you pass the test!

nancy drew Sorry about your ankle, I hope it feels better soon.

jh124 Congrats on paying your cars off!! Isn't it a great feeling to be able to use that money for something more productive?!

1_mommy Wow, six weeks off?! That's crazy!

lml41981 I'm so sorry to hear that the GD is being so difficult for you. That really stinks. (((Hugs))) I hope these next few weeks go by really quickly for you and you can start eating like normal again sooner rather than later.

amtaylor Glad your appointment went so well! Good luck tomorrow!

32 week belly pictures!

http://im1.shutterfly.com/procserv/47b5d637b3127cce932bcff09b3d00000036108AcsmjZw2cNc

http://im1.shutterfly.com/procserv/47b5d637b3127cce932bcff31a0e00000036108AcsmjZw2cNc

http://im1.shutterfly.com/procserv/47b5d637b3127cce932bcff91a0400000036108AcsmjZw2cNc

Lucas spent the last 45 minutes of work today way the heck up in my ribs!! Ugh, so uncomfortable!!! I was so glad to get home and be able to lay down and stretch out.

shushyk

08-16-2005, 05:22 PM

Hi! Hope everyone is having a great day. I wanted to see if you ladies could help me. I am having a really difficult time choosing my crib. Here is a small pic of the bedding. Notice how it has a lot of white in it. I was originally planning on getting the white crib, but looking at this pic, with the natural/honey colored crib, I wonder if that would look better than the white. Do you think the white would just wash out the bedding??

http://www.babysupermall.com/main/products/kli/kli1500beds.jpg

amtaylor HEY ME TOO. I am 32 weeks, measuring 31 also! :p

lml41981 - How do you like bradleys so far? I thought I was the only one doing infant CPR our class in mid sept. I took a long time ago, but I am worried if I ever needed it I wouldn't remember it.

Chad and Liz have fun at your class

1_mommy WOW 6W ahead :eek: OMG ya know they say its really hard to tell with out the u/s and even then they can be off by 15%. Please let us know how it goes.

Astara I know its hard having family so far away. At least your mom is there with you.

c j oooh I like that idea. I haven't gotten DH anything yet. I was going to buy a few different outfits (since we don't know what it is yet) that says daddys little boy or girl. and get a few books about daddys, I love the goggles, nose plugs, and ear plugs idea.

cars I want a minivan. we want at least 2 but maybe 4 kids. So I figure why not get the car now. I haven't begun going in and negotiating with them, I will probably try in the next few weeks since the 06 comes out soon. I want to see if they will give me a deal on an 05.

1_mommy

08-16-2005, 06:44 PM

i will definetly let ya all know how things look after the ultrasound thurs. it is just crazy that i am measuring 6 weeks ahead. and when i start thinking about it, it kinda freaks me out that he could be here way earlier than expected. it really is making me realize that i am not ready for him to be here yet.
i am hoping the ultrasound shows good things! maybe just alot of fluid

sdmama2be

08-16-2005, 06:55 PM

Hi Girls
I am in a significantly better mood today :D My car is being fixed right now, Tony is installing a new battery. Thank goodness that is all that was wrong with it.
I spent the day hanging out at one of my friend's houses. She has a 3 year old girl and a 10 month old little boy (born Ocotber last year). They are such beautiful children and it was kind of exciting to see what Kaelyn will be doing this same time next year. She gave me all of her nursing bras, I think there is one in every size known to man. We all went to BRU (for different reasons) and I got Kaelyn's "coming home outfit". It's so cute and soft and exactly what I was looking for. I got it in 0-3 months because the newborn size went to 20 inches and I know she is going to be much longer than that..and in any case I can always roll up the legs if needed. :) I also think I have decided on a stroller..after much debate we are going to get the PP3 and the Graco Snug Ride car seat. I also added a couple of things to our registry (such as a high chair..I didn't think to register for one but my friend who has kids said to). Then I came home and the sample pack for our birth announcements arrived from inababycarraige... they are so beautiful and I can't wait to see ours with all of Kaelyn's info/pics :D

shushyk I think either would look good, but the maple color might stand out a little more. There is also a lot of green and blue in the bumper etc that would look really good against white. Aren't I helpful?? :p Beautiful bedding by the way

1_mommy 6 weeks ahead!!! WOW!!

amtaylor I hear you on the going back to teaching thing. I am concerned that I won't be able to keep up with my crazy class. My biggest fear is that my water breaks in front of the class..ever since watching 6 Feet Under on Sunday I just can't get that out of my head. When are you planning on starting your maternity leave?

tulip I hope you pass your GD..thinking good thoughts

lml sorry to hear the GD diet is tough..hang in there. Also thanks for updating all of the updates

adoredh Love the name!!!

lorialys Cute belly shots...you look great

dad's gift I honestly haven't thought about it. I got him a Diaper back pack, some parenting books, "daddy's little girl" stuff for Father's Day. We talked about him getting me a gift and I know this sounds really cheesy but the best gift is a healthy baby and an easy'ish L&D.

swing/bouncer Some friends are giving us their swing (slightly used by their first child but not used at all by their second) and we registered for the FP Baby Papasan bouncer. We would have registered for both because you never know...

okay I have to go I think I just heard my car start YEAH :D
Have a great evening
~Susan

hmbay

08-16-2005, 07:44 PM

I'm too tired and crabby for full s/o's but I just wanted to do a few:

adoredh--I love Colin Wayne. Actually our Colin is Colin Ronald with Ronald being MY dad's name like Wayne is your dad's name. Everyone else in Jon's family did the father's name for the first boy but we didn't. Colin Jonathon would have been fine but I just wanted to use Ronald because my parents only had one kid and my dad never made me feel bad I wasn't a boy like some dads might have and he's been so wonderful and generous to me and Jon and I just wanted to honor him that way and Jon didn't have a problem with it at all. If we go with the name I'm toying with for this baby his middle name will most likely be Jonathon although Jon actually wants me to pick something else.

lml--sorry gd is such a pain. :eek: It would be hard enough doing all that without being pg.

oh and here is a picture of the formula dispenser I was talking about. I got it at Target for like $3 or something. I highly recommend one if anyone plans to formula feed at any point:
http://store.babycenter.com/MEDIA/ProductCatalog/19735_104662_md.jpg

bottle warmers--I just heated bottles up in a sink of hot water--only takes a minute or two once the water is hot. One thing I didn't know was if you are using the disposable liner bottles like playtex etc you actually can't use the bottle warmers--they're only for non-liner bottles. I only know that because I considered buying one of the travel ones you use with the cigarette lighter in the car because Colin wouldn't drink cold milk at first and we had a few melt-downs while traveling when the bottles weren't warm. According to the box I couldn't use my playtex bottles with the travel warmer so I'm guessing you can't use them with the regular warmers either but I might be wrong.

nancy drew

08-16-2005, 09:18 PM

nicks Nancy_Drew,

Can you give me an idea of how much your glider cost? I love that style and have not really been able to find anything like it. I have called a few stores in my area that we can order through but they are all closed. I just wanted to see if you could give me a ball park figure.

well, my mom bought it for us, and it was a while ago, so my memory is kinda hazy. but i think it was about $500-$600. kinda costly but i figure it will last a loooooooooooong time and be used so much that its worth the extra cost. :)

sdmama2b we have the snugride and p3 and its a great combo. the p3 is a great stroller.

1_mommy measuring big is kinda scary, huh? maybe we are both measuring so big because its the 2nd time around and our bodies are already stretched from baby #1? im just grasping at straws here... ;)

shushyk it depends on what color you are painting the room. if the room is white too then yeah, it would look totally washed out. but i dont think it would look bad with a white crib in a room with color on the walls.

amtaylor good luck at work! i was a first grade teacher until stella was born and i taught up to the day i went into labor, so if i can do it you can too!! :D

Oct05Moms

08-16-2005, 09:41 PM

Updated to here!

Please put updates in red. We scroll through looking for red, so if they're in regular text, brown or some other color, we may miss it.

c j

08-17-2005, 04:54 AM

Last night was class #5. We are down to 4 couples. The one couple that was due Aug. 30 had their baby last Wednesday. The tour of the hospital was interesting. I was there for my sister's labor but it was different seeing it from a pregnant women's point of view. I think I will opt to keep the baby in my belly ;) :p Last class is Thursday night

lml Ugh... sorry to hear that the GD is not pleasureable. Although I can relate to the not feeling full all the time.

amtaylor glad to hear that your little girl is head down. I have had this feeling that mine is breeched (call it mother's intuition), but the doctor says he won't check until 36 weeks, because the baby can still turn and not to add stress to me if the baby isn't head down before then.

U/S FYI. Our instructor told us last night that u/s past 30 weeks are not too accurate for the weight of the baby. She said our 20 u/s is the most accurate when calculating the baby's weight. She warned us that a lot of times when u/s after the 30 weeks say it's a big baby, it really isn't. Meaning, a lot of women have to go through induction (adding more stress) for something that's not true.

lml41981

08-17-2005, 05:30 AM

lml41981 - How do you like bradleys so far? I thought I was the only one doing infant CPR our class in mid sept. I took a long time ago, but I am worried if I ever needed it I wouldn't remember it.
So far I'm loving the Bradley method. I have learned lots of things that I hope will be useful.

Yeah...I didn't care much for my infant CPR class last night. I mean, yes, it is great to know how to do CPR and how to help a choking baby, but the instructors (nurses from the hospital) rubbed me the wrong way. I gave them a heads up that for a moment during the class I may be distracted and might make a bit of noise while I test my blood...they were fine with that, but then started talking about GD with me. It was mentioned that my baby will almost definitely have to be given a bottle of sugar water to bring her blood sugars up. I said, "Won't they let me try colostrum first?" I got a very firm, "No." I don't know if these nurses just didn't know what they're talking about and were talking out their rears or if I really won't be allowed to try a natural remedy first. I did some research last night and found that colostrum is so beneficial to humans that there are supplements for it...and often diabetics are told to take colostrum supplements. If it would work for a diabetic adult, then surely my colostrum would be a good thing to at least try. Then they started in on me about how nipple confusion isn't real and how I should just accept the fact that my baby will be given a bottle and that I probably won't even be allowed to supply the bottle I'd prefer she use in the event she has to have a bottle...it will be the horrible hospital nipples that teach the baby to pucker instead of open wide. :(

So...I was pretty upset last night and started reconsidering our decision to use a hospital. DH and I were talking about seeing if we can switch to a birthing center...but when I talked to my mom about it, she was incredibly nervous because of the GD. She said that if there are any complications at all from that it would be best to have a doctor there instead of midwives...I see her point, too. But darn it I don't want to be told I can't try a natural remedy before resorting to sugar water, which will just give her a blood sugar spike that she'll end up coming down from anyway.

Tulip

08-17-2005, 05:59 AM

That's impossible!! My appointment is tomorrow at 3:15pm. {grumble...trying to kick me out of my appointment....grumble...}
Guess we'll have to share Dr. Hottie. :p

lml41981

08-17-2005, 06:26 AM

Astara

08-17-2005, 06:46 AM

Astara I know its hard having family so far away. At least your mom is there with you.

Shushy Sadly, she lives in Tennessee. I'm just hoping everything goes right and she can make it here for the delivery~
I think either color of the crib would go with the bedding..if it were me deciding, I would probably go with the natural/honey colored but thats just me~

lorialys Beautiful Belly Pics!!!

1_mommy 6 weeks!! :eek: :eek: That's all I can say!

lml I am sorry your GD is such a pain~ like lorialys said hopefully it will go away as soon as you deliver and you wont have to deal with it anymore. I dont think those nurses were right. If I were you I would let my DR know and/or write up a birth plan explaining that you want to try bringing her sugar up naturally first before they give her anything else. Let the DR's at the hospital know that as well even if you do give them a birthplan. You do have rights and this is YOUR daughter. I dont understand why some nurses feel the need to be this way. It's rediculous and unprofessional. I understand you wanting to go somewhere else for L&D especially if your going to be treated like that. Just make sure to let your DR know, I am sure they will be able to put your mind at ease. I am sorry you had to go through that!

Gift for the Dad I am not getting DH anything! I have gotten him enough on fathers day.. and like someone else said he never even opened those books.. I have bought little outfits and bibs that say "I love my daddy" I bought him a picture frame that says "My heart belongs to daddy" and I also made him a coffee mug with that phrase. lol so... the only present he's gonna get is hopefully a beautiful healthy little baby girl~

Tulip

08-17-2005, 06:48 AM

Tulip, is today your 2-hour GTT? If so, I wish you the best! Let me know how it turns out...I've got some great recipe books if you need recipes for diabetic-friendly foods (including desserts!!!)...hopefully you won't need them, though.
Thank you that's so sweet. It was yesterday actually but I won't have the results until next week. Fingers crossed!

lorialys

08-17-2005, 07:26 AM

shushyk I think the bedding would look great with either white or the natural colored crib. If you wanted white originally, go for it! I totally want a minivan too! Everyone thinks I'm nuts, but I've wanted one for years. We had two kids in my family growing up, so the justification wasn't quite there for my parents and I always wanted us to have one so bad!! We probably won't get one until we have 2 and another on the way though. We're enjoying the no car payment situation right now. :D

sdmama2be Thanks!

lml41981 So sorry to hear about your frustrations with those silly nurses!! Just so you know, our baby care instructor told us that they will give a bottle of glucose water to babies whose moms have diabetes or GD, or to babies under 6 lbs and over 9 lbs, but only if mom is not breastfeeding, or doesn't want to breastfeed right away, or if the baby is having a hard time latching on right away. But they do urge trying breastfeeding first. I hope your hospital is the same way, and those nurses just had old information.
And about the bottles, I have heard that nipple confusion is a myth when it comes to pacifiers. But for bottle feeding, it is real.
Also, our instructor told us that we can refuse any medical procedure for ourselves or our child.
After all this, I don't blame you for being turned off from a hospital birth!! I think you should talk it over with your doctor, and come up with a birth plan that will express your wishes. He/she should be able to tell you exactly what the hospital policies are. I think with GD, that puts you at a higher risk and most birthing centers and midwives would not legally be allowed to let you deliver there, nor advise it.

Nothing new, just wanted to respond to lml!!

ETA: Oh yeah, lml, I also wanted to remind you that just because your baby gets a bottle at some point during his/her hospital stay does not mean that you will not be able to breastfeed. I know, it can cause problems with some babies, and it certainly would be better for him/her to get the colostrum. But the majority of babies will do okay with breastfeeding even if they get one bottle during the first few hours. Nipple confusion is more often found in very young infants (less than 3 weeks) who get a bottle or two a day because mom is supplementing, or in premies.

Kanga

08-17-2005, 07:29 AM

lmlSorry to hear the nurses were anything but helpful towards you. Maybe hiring a doula to be by your side while you deliver at the hospital would be the best of both worlds. (Dr and all the "just in case" equipment right there, and also someone who shares your same reasoning and stick up for you) If a doula is out of the question for you, I know of some people asking a friend of theirs with a slightly pushy personality to be there for the delivery to better communicate the mom's wants/needs. With all you've been through, you certainly deserve the L&D you want as much as nature allows. Not that everyone doesn't, but you know what I mean.
Those nurses would definately make me upset as well. I would maybe try talking to the head of the L&D department and see if they give you the same response as well, or if the nurses are just full of crap. Or maybe they are just talking about in extreme cases?

I think I will opt to keep the baby in my belly

This was my thinking after our tour of the hospital. Especially after seeing the c-section room. And that was when Daytona was just a few cells in my belly.

Gift for the Dad I'm giving dh a beautiful healthy girl and 18 years of sleepless nights :D I don't expect to get or want anything from dh either. I would rather him spend the money on a gift for Daytona instead. ;)

sdmama2beGlad to hear it was nothing major with the car.

lml41981

08-17-2005, 07:49 AM

Thanks for the thoughts on the nurses/breastfeeding/colostrum/sugar water issue. I think I'll talk to my OB about it and let her know that I *really* want them to put the baby on my chest for skin-to-skin contact and breastfeeding as soon as possible - provided the cord is long enough to reach my chest. Then, maybe I can try breastfeeding right away and pull the whole, "Just give me a couple more minutes" schpiel.

I cannot hire a midwife, as midwives don't have birthing privileges at the hospital (though I am considering asking DH if we can hire our Bradley instructor as a doula...I think he's worried that she'll replace him, though). Fortunately, I have a really cool OB, so I'm sure that she'll work with me (as long as she's the one on call when I deliver) for what she can. The sugar water issue will be up to the pediatrician, I think. But I have an appt. on Friday with my OB and I'll ask her about peds who are pro-breastfeeding. She already knows I'm a pretty natural person anyway...she knows I charted because I didn't want bcps anymore, she knows I want a drug free childbirth...she's cool with all that, so hopefully she'll know someone who is also cool with letting me try colostrum first. ;)

Also, I know it doesn't mean we won't be able to breastfeed, but I want the colostrum to be her first and main source of nutrition and medicine because of the other benefits it has.

I can be a really pushy and assertive person, so maybe I'll be able to hold my own... We'll see. Maybe I'm worrying too soon...

Gift for Dad - Umm...we just paid a buttload of money to have a cottonwood tree cut down out of our front yard. This tree dropped leaves last year like you wouldn't believe and was rotting from the inside out, so it was soon to fall anyway (and probably would have crashed into our house). So, I just gave him years of easier yardwork and more time to spend with his daughter on the weekends. What more could a dad want? ;)

jh124

08-17-2005, 08:58 AM

QOTD: Do you have a birth plan? Are you militant about it? Or do you have a general idea of what you want but are willing to go with the flow? I fall into the "I have an idea of what I want, but I'll go with the flow" category, but was surprised last night in my childbirth class that so many moms-to-be have extensive lists of what will and won't happen during their delivery. Just wondering if I was abnormal.

jenjen0713

08-17-2005, 09:01 AM

Wow! This thread seems to move faster and faster each day. No way I can do individual SOs, but wanted to thank everyone for their well wishes on my job interview Monday. It went well and hopefully I'll hear something soon.

Gift for Dad - Geez, I hadn't even though about that! It has all been about me and the baby, I sometimes forget that he was a key player in all this. :p I figure giving him a healthy son will be gift enough as it is for me. He has been eyeing a BBQ grill though, so I might have to splurge and let him get it and justify it as a gift for the birth of our child.

Cars - DH has a quad cab truck which he won't be giving up anytime soon. He uses the back end a lot in the summer when he does odd and end construction jobs. I bought a Chrysler Sebring convertible a year ago. It is only a two door, so now I'm worried how hard it is going to be to get a car seat in and out of the back seat. :( I drive my cars until the die, so will probably be a few years before either of us change cars.

Swing/Bouncer - I'm planning on getting both. I figure I can easily move the bouncy seat from room to room with me if need be (like when I need to take a shower, cook dinner, etc), while I plan on keeping the swing in the living room.

Co-sleeping or crib - My plan at this point is to have baby in his own crib from the get go. However, I know things can change in a heartbeat, so if for sanity sake and self-preservation I have to co-sleep for a while, then I'll do that.

Tulip and jh124 - Hold on just one pickin' minute....I have an appointment today at 3:25 with hottie doctor. He called me Monday and cancelled my appointment set for Friday and rescheduled for today. I sure hope the two of you don't have many questions for him during your 3:15 appointments because I really hate to wait! :D (By the way, is it wrong for me to be excited that I'll get to see doctor hottie more in the next few months? He's just so darn cute and he is so sympathetic to my aches and pains. :p )

EJM

08-17-2005, 09:04 AM

QOTD: I don't have one yet, but will be writing one. I fall into the same category as you, but feel better if I have it on paper. Lists are my friend ;) There is no way to predict what will happen, so I plan on having one and being ok with having to throw the whole thing out the window. I see it more as a reference for DH and the doula in case I cannot answer a question about what I would want, they can just refer to the plan instead of asking me.

shushyk: What color are your walls? The reason I had such a hard time with crib bedding was because everything we liked had more white in it, and we have all white furniture. I don't have a link, but ordered Brandee Danielle African Safari print. It has a ton more white than your pattern does, and looks GREAT in a white crib. Our walls are a bright yellow. In the end I'm glad we went with this bedding.

cj: That's really interesting what your doc said about u/s and size.

nicks

08-17-2005, 09:20 AM

Thanks Nancy_Drew! I think they are well worth the cost! :)

1_mommy

08-17-2005, 09:21 AM

sdmama2be

08-17-2005, 09:26 AM

QOTD I don't have anything written down but pretty much plan on going with whatever happens. The only two things that I am insisting on are as of right now are: An episiotomy ONLY if the baby is in danger and I want her to be placed on my chest as soon as possible after she is delivered. I'm not sure how I feel about the bottle feeding in the hospital, but I am having concerns about my ability to breastfeed anyway so I will probably say that's fine. We have a breastfeeding 101 class tonight so I think I will have a better understanding after that. Our baby classes are in September so I will probably have more things on my list, which I also love to make and don't survive without ;) In fact I am making a list right now :)

jenjen Hope you hear good news soon

OKay I have to go to the district in my own car with the brand new battery :D
Have a great day
~Susan

Tulip

08-17-2005, 09:35 AM

Birth Plan, my is pretty lax. I want to be able to move around as much as possible. Use the tub and shower. Have the baby on my chest afterwards. No episiotimy. That's all I can think of.

jenjen0713

08-17-2005, 10:08 AM

sdmama2be - I'm glad to hear your car only needed the new battery and the district would let you turn your paperwork in later.

Birthplan - Don't have one and don't plan to write one. I just don't want to have this idea of what my birth experience is going to be and then have it be totally different. For me personally, I think I'll do better without a plan since I won't go in with any preconceived idea of the type of birth I'll have. I tend to follow lists and things on paper to a T, so I don't want to put something in writing only to have the doctor tell me during labor that might not be in the best interests of things. I can just see my anal self saying "But it says on the birth plan, this is how it is going to be. It is on paper." I can see myself being totally irrational and trying to stick to the plan no matter what once I'm in my labor induced insanity.

TMI alert.......Has anyone else thought about labor and the possibility that you might....uh, well....number 2 on the table when you are pushing? A friend of mine told me this happened to her and I'm just horrified that this might happen. I know it happens all the time, but I'm dying of embarrasement thinking of it. I need to ask my doctor if they do enemas or not.

LexyLou

08-17-2005, 10:25 AM

I'm not really planning on doing a birth plan. I figure I have a voice and it's a very modern hospital so I know that they won't do anything without my consent anyway.

I have a friend who did a hard core birth plan and of course there were emergencies and everything changed...plus our birth class teacher said that most nurses find the birth plans annoying and I do not want to piss of the nurses. kwim? :)

hmbay

08-17-2005, 10:29 AM

birth plan i had one with dd and it pretty much got thrown out the window due to complications. dd had to be transfered to a childrens hospital after deliery, she was given formula and a paci. and there were so many other things that just didn't go like we had wanted it too.
dh and i joke now how absolutly nothing went the way we wanted it too. but it really wasn't funny then.
i think this time we will have a general idea and put our wishes on papers, but knowing that it may just be thrown out the window.
could have written the exact same post. I wasn't militant about expecting my birthplan to be followed anyhow but between a breech preemie baby that necessitated an emergency c/s and a 2.5 week hospital stay let's just say this time around I wrote one but I know it's all going to happen how it happens anyhow. I think it's good to know what you would LIKE to happen but you need to be flexible to just LET it all happen--one of the biggest reasons labor stalls and ends up in c/s I've been told is because the mom won't relax either from her own expectations or the hospital staff putting their expectations on her for how things should be done, how quickly things should be progressing etc. My best advice for all the first time mom's is "have a plan but be prepared to throw it all out the window and don't beat yourself up over it later if nothing went the way you wanted--it's your first great parenting lesson as the baby isn't going to always do what you want either" ;)

DianeCourt

08-17-2005, 10:36 AM

shushyk: I don't think a white crib will make things look "washed out" at all! I love your bedding!

Birth Plan: I'm normally a very A-type sort of planner (I think it comes with the territory when you're an engineer!), but I won't be having a formal birth plan. I think this pregnancy has already taught me a lot about being comfortable with the unknown & trusting my body to tell me what I need. Not knowing everything that's happening inside me every single second, nor having control over it, has definitely taken some getting used to! My only "plan" is to prepare ahead of time by educating myself, then making decisions with my husband as they need to be made. I have no way of knowing how things are going to go that day, so I'm going to do what my Dr. thinks is in mine & baby's best interest. After all, I trusted them enough to choose them to be my Dr. in the first place, so I would hope I trust them to do what's best during delivery!

#2 during pushing: I know it can happen, and I'll be the first to admit that I don't particularly enjoy the thought. But if it happens, it happens! (I've already warned DH that it's a possibility so that he can get used to the idea & not completely freak out.) Doctors & nurses see it ALL the time & just quietly deal with it. Sometimes, I've heard, you don't even know that it happened. I figure that I will be so focused on pushing & worrying about what's happening at "the other hole" that I won't give a damn! ;)

c j

08-17-2005, 10:56 AM

Birth Plan I've decided not to do one because I am trying to be open minded about L&D. I am such a planner and if I get one thing set in my mind and it doesn't happen that way... I know I will feel let down or a failure. I don't need that on top of the baby blues afterwards.

#2 during pushing My saying is "I am not the first woman to have done it and I am sure I won't be the last either!" Although I've read and heard that most of the time our bodies gets rid of that days leading up to delivery.

shushyk

08-17-2005, 11:00 AM

1_mommy were you charting, is it possible you have the date of conception wrong? Did you have any early u/s? Just one more day till the u/s

sdmama2be hmmmm THANKS :confused: ;)
Post a pic of the coming home outfit! I noticed you said your taking the b/fing class. Please let me know how that goes. I was thinking of taking one, but then decided to just sit in on a L.L. meeting instead. but if you think its super worth it, maybe I will take it???

nancy drew well the room is pale green like a very very light lime green. I will post a pic in a few. I am sure both will look fine, but I can't seem to make decisions right now :(

lml41981 OMG :eek: that is terrible. I am sorry that they were mean like that. Does your hospital have a sleep in option? Ours does, and when we did the tour I asked how strict the nurses would be with wanting to give the baby a paci or sugar water, since I want to nurse. The guy said you might have to remind each nurse, but they are very interested in getting you to B/F so they should be supportive. CAn you talk to your pediatrition about what possible reasons your baby MIGHT need sugar water ect.? I don't think they can give those things to your baby with out your concent. SORRY about the bad experience. Oh and don't you feel closer to your DH from the bradleys classes? If nothing else, I love them for that reason. :)

Posting because I have too many pics or something

LexyLou

08-17-2005, 11:01 AM

#2 During Pushing-Ehh, sh*t happens, right? ;)

shushyk

08-17-2005, 11:01 AM

Tulip are you guys REALLY seeing the same dr :p

Astara when is your mom coming out? Mine wont be here for the shower, but she REALLY wants to be here for the birth. My EDD is 10-10 (but the last u/s said the 7th) I don't know when to schedule her ticket, she only has 2weeks. How about you? Part of the reason I was thinking maybe the honey color was because we can then go back to using our ould furniutre ast the changing table. Not the cutest for the baby room, but most cost effective :(

lorialys Thanks for the advice, I guess I don't really have a crib preferance, I just want the room to look ok, ya know :confused: . As for the minivan, we have a lease ending in Jan. so we HAVE to make a decision on buying something or leasing again. So that is the only reason why we are even considering getting anything. And since we have to make a decision, why not go for what I REALLY want

jh124 we are putting together a birth plan, just so we both are on the same page about things. But Idon't know how militant we will be. I am doing bradleys and would like to go all natural, but I am OPEN to the idea of an epidoral if I need it (say like marathon labor and I need to sleep) I guess the most militant I will be is b/fing. Since I really want that to work.

EJM thanks for the info on the bedding. OK, I am feeling a little more confident that what ever I go with it will be OK. Did you post a pic of your nursery yet?

Has anyone else thought about labor and the possibility that you might....uh, well....number 2 on the table when you are pushing?
I was VERY concerned, but my friend is an OB nurse and she told me its not like you think. Most woman by then have cleaned out their system during the enitre labor process, its more like a TINY bit. and they wipe it away so fast most people NEVER even notice. I always pictured the nurse getting out the bull horn screaming CLEAN UP ON AISLE... but I guess its not like that.

I was a BRU and couldn't resist this cute lobster halloween comstume. There is an inside lobster joke with my DH, so when I saw this, I HAD to have it. it says its for 0-9months but its HUGE we might have to exchange it. well see.

Here are a couple pics of the room with the existing furniture as a changing table. I think it might be hard to find a crib to match this, but I think it would be worth trying to save 3-400$ on a changing table. Thanks for all the opinions, it helped me make my decison http://im1.shutterfly.com/procserv/47b5d636b3127cce93cb4d87838700000015109AcNGThkzaa

http://im1.shutterfly.com/procserv/47b5d636b3127cce93cb4037c3a900000016109AcNGThkzaa

alicia-beesha

08-17-2005, 11:44 AM

Fly by posting... will read all your posts once hubby brings home laptop!!

CC from my LJ:

so - nothing too spectacular happened at this appointment. Dr A. is the delivering dr and this was the first time I have met him. I am now exclusively seeing him for the remainder of my appts. I now start my bi-weekly appts for the next 3 appt's then I start weekly after that.

Dave came to this appt - I think it was to see what happens at the appts and he wanted to hear the heartbeat. The dr openly told me that I am not having a small baby and he doubts if I will be early. So - here's looking forward to a big baby boy... After he told me that, he said this:

"I've delivered a few 12 pounders in my day".... and this dr doesn't sugarcoat ANYTHING - so I have a great chance of having a 12 lb baby.

He also said that I could argue to have another ultrasound as my cycles prior to conceiving were not normal so we really don't have too good of an idea when my due date might be... but he said that the margin of error from my last ultrasound is +/- 3 days, but he thinks that the 25th of October +/- 3-4 days is what my due date is. But he doesn't want me to have another ultrasound since I've already had 2, and too many isn't good for the baby. So that's about it. My next appt is Aug 29.

Last night Dave and I went to 7-11 for slushies and Doritoes and they have cigars on the counter. Dave said that he needs to get some cigars for the birth... this is another thing that he is saying/doing that shows me his excitement to becoming a father. Seeing is excitement makes mine grow. He's so damn cute!! He has also done a lot to prepare for this baby - he's done everything in the nursery as I can't lift or paint. It's coming along. Right now, he's taking the white paint off of the baseboards to stain them to match the furniture.... (the previous owners liked to paint real wood for whatever reason *rolleyes*)

But I need to get going - it's my lunch hour and I must EAT!!

nancy drew

08-17-2005, 11:52 AM

lml i read your post about the nurses and bfing in the bfing thread and i really wish i had some good advice for you. maybe hiring a doula would be a good idea. is there another hospital you can use? if it is the pediatricians decision to give or not give the sugar water then i guess its time to do some bigtime ped interviewing. if you can find a ped who feels the way you do then maybe he can make sure they dont give her any sugar water.

birth plan you guys all seem to have the right idea. its important to have an idea of you "ideal" plan, just so you arent totally a deer in the headlights when you go into labor. its important to be on the same page as dh about pain meds and what happens to baby after birth. but its also important to expect and prepare for the unexpected. maybe formulate some sort of "birth plan" for every scenario, one for pain free birth, one for pain med birth, and one for csection birth. that way at least you can try to stick to a plan if thats important to you (And as a total anal planner who HATES surprises im thinking this may be a good idea for myself as well).

#2 on table well not to be gross, but it happened to me. i was paranoid about it beforehand too. but once you start pushing you see that in order to push the baby out you have to push like you are trying to poop, so if theres poop there, its coming out. yeah its embarassing, but it happens. or, as lexylou said, sh*t happens ;)

ACHEESE

08-17-2005, 12:26 PM

Hi Ladies!
It's been a long time - crazy busy at work right now, so I will make it short.
Next Dr. Appointment - Wednesday, August 24th

I had a doctor's appointment last Wednesday and I am now measuring 3 1/2 weeks ahead of schedule. I didn't get to see my regular doctor - my appointment was with the nurse. She talked to me about what our next step will be. If I still measure ahead at my next appointment, they will order an ultra sound at the 36 week mark and see how big this baby is. If they estimate a large baby, they will schedule to induce me between 38 and 39 weeks. Who knows. My last appointment I was measuring only 1 week ahead. Now I am at alomst 4 weeks ahead. My appointment before that I was measuring 5 1/2 weeks ahead. What a crazy pregnancy I have had! But, at least I know this baby is growing!!!

Baby Showers - I have had one with my family a couple of weeks ago. I will have another baby shower hosted my my co-workers on August 29th. My last baby shower will be after the baby is born on October 29th hosted by my girlfriends. We are planning to re-look our registery after August 29th to see what we still need.

Birth Plan - I don't think I want one. I have no idea what I want now, let along what I will want while I am in labor. I will just play it by ear and see how things go.

#2 on the Table - Don't even want to think about it. I know it may happen, all well. SH*T HAPPENS!

We have our breastfeeding classes this week - DH will attend with me.

Our birthclass was last weekend - I liked it - I felt like I learned a lot about the whole labor process. We also had our hospital tour last week - It was very informative.

Have a great day!

1_mommy

08-17-2005, 01:25 PM

shushyk we wern't charting so it is possible that we concieved earlier. but i have already had 2 previous u/s and he was measuring right on. so who knows what is going on. guess we will find out in the morning.

hmbay it is crazy how things can go so differently at birth. i am sure you are with me this time with wanting for everything to go so perfecly. i want to know what it is like to be able to hold my baby right after delievery, and have him stay with me in the same room, and to take him home with me when i get discharge.
we kinda make a joke about what happened with the first pregnacy/delievery. but at the time it was the hardest thing to go thru

#2 i feared this, but when it came down to push, i was in pain, and just wanted her out, that i don't think i even thought about it happening. and like it has been said before, they have seen it so many times i am sure they don't even think twice about it. just a natural part of delievery

LexyLou

08-17-2005, 01:39 PM

but I'm heading off to Labor and Delivery. I've been having low back pains and cramping and some dizziness and heart racing. I know everything is fine but the nurse is telling me I have to go to L&D. I feel like I'm being a baby and I know they'll send me home and tell me I'm ok but I guess I better go...better safe than sorry, right? Especially since I'm driving up to the Bay Area this weekend....uggg.

shushyk

08-17-2005, 02:06 PM

LexyLou hope everything is OK let us know when you get back.

sdmama2be

08-17-2005, 02:10 PM

Lexy I hope everything is okay...thinking of you and your baby

adoredh

08-17-2005, 02:24 PM

Lexy Thinking about you and baby girl - I'm sure she's just trying to get her mom and dad ready for future pranks she plans to pull!
Let us know soon!

amtaylor

08-17-2005, 02:51 PM

Lex: I'm thinking of you... keep us posted!

sdmama2be: Today's workday wasn't too bad. I think I might survive! I'm planning on working up until I go into labor. I'm probably going to have to take a month of my time without pay, so every extra day helps! :rolleyes:

Birth Plan: We wrote one.. but it's call our birth preferences.. hopefully we can get some of it, but I'm not expecting to get everything the way I want it!

EJM

08-17-2005, 02:52 PM

Lex: Thinking of you! Hope all is well. :)

nancy drew

08-17-2005, 03:20 PM

lex thinking of you... come back really soon and let us know all is well :)

cartersmommy

08-17-2005, 04:39 PM

lex--- thinking of you!! come back and let us know what's up!

godsgift77

08-17-2005, 04:40 PM

lex hope all is well!

Birthplan The only thing i am sticking to my guns on is that I want my son to be given to his father as soon as he is delivered, then cleaned up, then DH can give him to me to bf. I've had him for 40 weeks and DH hasn't really had the opportunity to bond with him the way that I have so this is my "gift" to him :)

~~~~~

I just found out that DH's aunt purchased the swing for the baby and has decided that it is not to be considered a shower gift either. I am a bit overwhelmed by our families generosity. I know baby is the first grand child and great grand child on both sides but WOW -- our fam is being great!

I get to see my son tomorrow!! We are having another u/s because we have measured 2 weeks ahead from day one...

Hope you are all doing well...

scubasam

08-17-2005, 05:06 PM

Lex - Hope you are doing ok.......thinking of you and Ella.

Birthplan - We filled out the one the hospital gave us but it was really hard to be specific. I don't have any particular wants other than I'm trying to go for a water birth (or at least spend as much of my labor in the tub) and that there is one specific OB that we refuse to have do the delivery. The only other thing is that I have a rare hereditary condition that makes me allergic to most anesthetics so we have to make it very clear that if I end up in an emergency situation or w/ a c-section that there's a certain procedure that they follow. Honestly, other than the request for not having that OB, I'm pretty flexible. Who knows how we'll feel when we get to the point of labor....I may not even want to be in the water.....I just want to go w/ the flow and figure it out as we go along. One thing is for sure....it's been impossible to predict how the pg has gone so it's even harder to predict what L&D will be like.

Cars - I don't think I ever answered this. I have an '02 Explorer which we bought w/ future kids in mind. I had a 99 Explorer which I loved but it didn't have LATCH or other safety features that the 02 has. I love my SUV and it'll be fine w/ 2 kids eventually. DH has a company vehicle, an '05 F150 SuperCab. It has plenty of room for carseats in the back and has LATCH as well. He trades it in for a new vehicle after 66,000 miles so who knows what he'll have in a couple years (probably another F150) but even w/ 2 kids it'll be fine.

mommycal

08-17-2005, 05:22 PM

Lex, sending prayers your way. Better safe than sorry. Hopefully your princess will stay put for a bit longer. Looking forward to hearing your update.

LexyLou

08-17-2005, 05:45 PM

Hi guys-

Thanks for all your well wishes. We're ok. Turns out I have a bladder infection that I've been ignoring for awhile. I've never had a bladder infection before so I don't know what it feels like. I did feel the stinging, etc...but I just thought it was because the baby was so low.

I also had 3 contractions in an hour which is ok but I have uterine irritation which aren't full blown contractions but blips that show up on the monitor...they think it could be cause by the bladder infection.

Anyway, no big deal...still tightly closed but I'm 50% effaced. The nurses were awesome and I'm glad we went. We feel better now. The Dr. told me not to go to work tomorrow but I think I'm going to go in for just 3 hours in the morning to get the sub-cert letters out then I have to meet the pediatrician and then I'll go home.

Thanks again for all your thoughts.

godsgift77

08-17-2005, 05:48 PM

Lexy glad everything with Ella was ok!

sdmama2be

08-17-2005, 05:57 PM

Lexy I'm so happy to hear that everything is okay..Take care and rest :)

nancy drew

08-17-2005, 06:07 PM

lexy glad to hear everything is ok. :)

alicia-beesha

08-17-2005, 06:12 PM

Lexy Glad that things turned out okay. Bladder infections are not fun... hope you feel better soon!!

Birth plans Funny that this is a topic. We just got back from an hour labour and delivery class at a prenatal fair. I've read about people making birth plans, but didn't think that I was going to do one. The nurse that was in charge of the class told us that it was a good idea to have one when I pre-register at the hospital. Nothing too specific, but if there are things that we want (ie: hubby to cut the cord) then it's a good idea to have it written for them to know. I also found a good guide on-line (if this was already posted, I apologize) http://www.babycenter.com/calculators/birthplan/

I finished as much as I can the cross-stitch I was making for Gabe. All I need to do now is put his name and due date and his foot prints!! But that will be a few months from now!! :)

hmbay

08-17-2005, 06:14 PM

Lex--glad everything is okay with Ella

1_mommy--well I had my heart set on a VBAC this time and instead I'm getting another c/s so my "wants" already got shot in the head so right now I'm just going for "not a preemie" as my main "want". :) DS did get given to DH right after birth for a few minutes before they took him to the nursury but I didn't hold him until he was a day old. He was baptized in the nursury when he was a few hours old (since my parents had called the minister who rushed up to the hospital to pray with us) and I wasn't even able to attend as he couldn't leave the nursury and I wasn't able to leave my recovery room (it was my choice to do the baptism even though I couldn't view it so I'm not upset about that--more sad really). This time I agree--I want to hold him and I want him to come home when I come home. It was such an aweful feeling walking out of the hospital with a bunch of stuffed animals and a balloon that said "it's a boy" and no baby in sight. :(

scubasam--I'm so jealous of getting to try a waterbirth. My first pregnancy I really really wanted to try one but I couldn't find a clinic/birth center that offered them although my hospital did allow laboring in the tub but DS ended up breech.

My spotting started up again but it's very very minor. I have an u/s appt on Friday and meet with my dr on Tuesday. I'm actually going to talk with him about scheduling the c/s for week 37/38 instead of week 39. I figure if they can't tell for sure how my previa is it's better not to dilate and if I went into labor after 37 weeks with a "textbook pregnancy" they'd not stop it anyhow so why can't I just schedule the c/s for that same time frame? We'll see what he says.

Astara

08-17-2005, 06:23 PM

Shushy Your so lucky that your mom has 2 weeks! that would be awesome. My mom only has 5 days off so we are going to have to go by when I actually go into labor. She wants to be here really bad, and I really want her to be here.. but we dont want to risk her coming up and have me not go into labor and then she wouldnt have anytime with Gigi at all.. Its so sad.. I just hope she is able to get a plane ticket and everything really quick or she somehow gets to come at the perfect time so she doesnt miss anything. I know I will need her~ Using the furniture you already have for the nursery is a great idea.. I saw your pictures you posted and I think the honey color looks really good in there.. especially since the paint and everything is so light. :) I really love your bedding!

Lexy Thank goodness everything is baby ella is ok!!! :)

Birth Plan I do have a birth plan.. lorialys actually gave me the addy to the site that helps you set it up. I am very open to things changing and not being the way I want them.. I dont have an idea as to how the L&D is going to go.. So I guess I am very open to what happens esp in a situation of emergency. I do know however if everything is great and the baby is safe, I want to be able to hold her immediately after delivery, and keep her with me in my room. If I have to have a c-section then I want DH to be able to hold her immediately after presuming everything goes wonderfully. but i dont have anything down to the tee.. bc I have no idea whats gonna happen! I suppose what im trying to say is I have an idea of what I would like.. but I am open.

#2 during pushing Whatever happens, happens.. I dont care.. Im sure when we are in the pain of labor... pushing out a baby.. crapping on the table is gonna be the least of our worries! lol :)

~I hope everyone is having a great night~

amtaylor

08-17-2005, 06:29 PM

I used birthplan.com (http://www.birthplan.com) to get the basics and then changed a few things in Word :)

cartersmommy

08-17-2005, 06:34 PM

hey girls!

LEX-- so glad that you and ella are ok! bladder infections aren't great, but atleast they're better and more management than premature labor! i'm so happy you went and feel better!

not much new here. last night i got this horrible headache right under my left eye that just wouldn't go away! i still had it today, so i came home early from work to nap and see if i couldn't get rid of it, and sure enough that did the trick! i hate headaches, and haven't had hardly any this pregnancy, so i guess that's lucky, but man when i get them they're not fun!

i hope that everyone is doing great! i've been so tired lately, no energy for SO's! but know that i'm reading everything and thinking of you!! :)

amanda

1_mommy

08-17-2005, 08:08 PM

lexy-glad things with the baby are fine. sucks that you have a bladder infection though. yuck :(

Surftraitor

08-17-2005, 08:11 PM

Hi ladies,
Sorry I've been incommunicado. That stupid computer virus that was going around hit our office--that's what they get for still having Windows 2000. Good God, live in the NOW! So, on Tues we had no PC access from 1:00 on. They didn't even let us go home until 4:00 :rolleyes:. At least I can say that my desk is totally clean. I'm an office packrat, so it was good to have the time to clear through things--especially since a temp will likely occupy my desk while on maternity leave.

Lexy--so glad to hear it was just a bladder infection. Get well soon!

LML--sorry to hear about the crappy nurses. I'm sure you'll get everything straightened out.

shushyk--my vote was for the stained wood crib instead of white. I thought it looks slightly better with the bedding. Also, a light stain is more versatile. Some people think white furniture is more girly. I think its unisex, but some people lean towards it being more feminine.

birthplan--our hospital gave us a "birthing preferences" form to fill out. Its rather vague, but like many of you DH and I have an outline of what we'd "like" to happen, knowing that anything can happen.

acid reflux--raises hand. I've never had indigestion or anything--never eaten a tums, maylox, etc. Yikes, it sucks! I feel like I have a trapped burp or something.

cars--we have an Audi A6 and a Lexus SUV. Currently DH drives the Lexus, but I may swap once baby is born. He's not taking this too well right now. Oh boy.

#2--DH is more frightened by this than I am. I know that I'm going to have zero control over it, and besides that I've got more important things to worry about. :)

Moreso than #2 issue, I get freaked about being topless during birth. This is SOOOOO not my thing. I told DH that I'm wearing a tank or sportsbra. I can't stand to have the ta-ta's hanging down. The other day I was bra-less and they were resting on my belly. Made my skin crawl. Anyone else feel this way? I'm not that into the "skin on skin" contact.

I had my docs appt today. It went well. Everything is on par and I gained another 5 lbs--rats! I'm feeling more basketball-esque this week. Ugh.

1_mommy

08-17-2005, 08:15 PM

surftraiter you shouldn't have to go topless during delievery. when i had dd i wore my bra the entire time. same with the gown the hospital probided. i never took those off.
it does feel weird to have boobies touching tummy. dh likes to laugh that they do this.
whatever :rolleyes:

godsgift77

08-17-2005, 09:39 PM

LOL @ boobies touching tummy! Sounds like a Ya-Ya name! I hate that too *sigh*

dragonfly_71

08-18-2005, 04:38 AM

I'm with you all on any kind of "free-flopping." I like to wear a bra at all times. So much more comfortable so I definitely don't want to be topless during delivery.

I don't have a birthplan. I had my childbirth class and the nurse that taught it stressed that flexibility would be the key. She was all into natural childbirth but she also said that until you get there you have no way of knowing how well you can tolerate the pain of labor. We also toured the hospital, well actually the birthing center. It is completerly separate from the rest of the hospital. They only have private rooms and you stay in your room from start to finish unless you have a c-section. So you labor, give birth and then recover in your room. And they also leave the baby with you the whole time. They have a nursery but it was empty, all the babie were with their moms. They even bathe the baby right after birth in your room. So that is all really cool.
The nurse also suggested to bring two people with you for support. I know I definitely don't want that. I wasn't even sure I wanted DH there since I prefer to be left alone when I'm in pain. But I did change my mind on that, I definitely want him with me now. Not that he would have been deterred anyway, he is a registered nurse and has assisted during labor and delivery when he did is hospital rotation in nursing school so he knows more about this than I do.
But besides DH and I there will be no one else. We won't even call anyone until the baby is here. My parents are planning on visiting when the baby is about 3 weeks old. I feel and my mom agrees that I should have some time with just DH and the baby before we have guests. And I am also glad that my parents are not planning on staying with us. They will be staying in a hotel. The only bummer is that they weren't able to book anything yet since we don't know when the little bundle of joy will arrive.

Tulip

08-18-2005, 06:01 AM

Lex, I'm glad everything is okay.

Doctor's, head was down. BP good. Still measuring 2 weeks ahead. Gained 22lbs. at almost 30 weeks, he said that was excellent. Still going every 4 weeks until next appt. will switch to every 2 weeks. So next doctor's appt. is Sept. 15.

adoredh

08-18-2005, 06:20 AM

Lex So glad everything is OK! I had a bladder infection at 12 weeks and they made me come in too because the cramps actually came in waves! I've had a bladder infection before, and it felt so different that it never occurred to me that was what I was having. It's a good thing that you went in, since those can travel to your kidney if you don't get it taken care of.

Heather I'm sorry to hear that you're spotting again! Sounds like Colin's little brother wants to keep you guys on your toes!
I'm glad you like the name! I suggested Colin to DH one day after reading one of your posts and so far, that's the one he likes the best. I also wanted to honor my Dad, he's an amazing man, and I know it would just be so special to him to have his first Grandchild named after him. DH isn't too sure on using my Dad's name, he doesn't want to hurt his father or upset his mom, but to be honest, The Boy will get to carry on his family's last name, why can't he have a part of my family too? We're still keeping it to ourselves, and not positive on the name yet, but so far, we both really like it :)

Birth Plan I had posted my birth plan a while back in the LJ thread, but after going over it with my Dr, I've decided to let labor happen, and do a short birth plan for afterwards. Such as Bfing as soon as possible, no bottles/paci's/sugar water, baby staying in the room, cord blood donation, DH to stay with The Boy during his exams, and my mom to have full access to our medical situation (in case something happens)

I hope to use the hot tubs they have in the room, I hope to go natural, I hope to be able to move and walk around as much as I can. But totally understand that all of it could change. It's going to be interesting to look back afterwards on what actually happens!

Birth Class - Part 2 Last night we watched a more in depth video - up to date one too, that was pretty cool. Lets just say, we got to see EVERYTHING! This woman labored at home at first, then at the hospital, did it all natural, and when I mean, natural, I mean natural! She was also in the buff for the last part of delivery (no bra for her, and she was large on the top!) The instructor stopped the video, put it on pause right when the head was crowning, I thought DH was going to faint, but he did great! He watched the whole thing! Very proud of him! Then we learned how to do the breathing, and massage - I love massage. :D
Over all, it was a much better class then the first one. It's just that it seems so long, since we don’t get out until 930pm and home until 10pm.

"Free Floating"

I'm so in the minority! LOL!

I would have been one of the first women to burn her bra in the 70's - heck - I'd start doing it now if I could! I hate hate hate bra's - I'm so glad that I'm small chested (very very small when not PG) - so small, that in the winter, with a sweater and shirt on under, no one can tell I'm "free floating". I have a love/hate thing going on with my bb's now that I'm PG - I love that they touch my tummy, having never even had the crease under the bb's before, that's kinda cool, I love that they are finally a hand full, instead of just a mouth full (per DH LOL!) I hate that I have to wear a bra full time, they're not huge, just a B now, but big enough that I can't get away with my hippy tendencies.

I would rather free float during labor, then have an annoying bra on that makes me feel strapped down.

Peace and love my flower girls!

ETA - that may have been a bit more information then you may have wanted to know about me... :o

DianeCourt

08-18-2005, 07:01 AM

LexyLou: I'm SO relieved to hear that everything is OK! Take care of yourself & tell that little girl she has to stay put for a while longer! ;) I'm paranoid about bladder infections...so much so that I probably go to the bathroom way more often than I really need. I'm just tryin' to keep my shrinking bladder empty!

Toplessness: We saw a lot of this in the birth video we watched this week in Childbirth class - apparently the hospital promoted immediate skin-to-skin contact between mom & baby, so as soon baby was born, they would yank mom's hospital gown ALL THE WAY UP & put baby on her tummy. Our instructor told us that our hospital doesn't do that automatically, but they would if we really wanted them to & if baby is not in distress. I was glad to hear that - I, for one, don't want my boobs flashed without my permission, thank you!

I have a funny story about one of my shower gifts! Last night I unpacked the lamp that we got that coordinates with the Wendy Bellissimo Starlight theme we chose. There was a small card in the bottom of the box, so I opened it up, thinking it was just the greeting card from my Aunt that was originally attached to the gift. It wasn't, though - it was addressed to somebody else I've never heard of! It said something like "To Light the Nights - Love, Mom & Marci." I guess somebody got that lamp for their baby shower, but then returned it & left the card right in the box! That was a good laugh for DH & me. :p The lamp was still completely packed & it worked fine, so no big deal.

EJM

08-18-2005, 07:17 AM

Morning all! I got GREAT news this morning. My sister maintains a weblog for my nephew and sent an e-mail this morning telling everyone to check the entry from last night. She attached a few photos and it took me a few minutes, but then I realized he is wearing an "I'm the Big Brother" shirt. She told me when we made our announcement they were going to try again soon, and asked me a weird question about morning sickness a few weeks ago so I had my suspicions. This makes grandbaby #10 for my parents! :p

Diane: That is so funny about the gift!

Exposing the girls: I bought some nursing tank tops last weekend at Target. They also had a sports bra type as well. For those worried about exposing yourself, you might consider those (although it would probably be ruined) during L&D so then you could still BF immediately without having to remove the bra but would still be covered during the labor. By the way, they run sooooooooooooo small. I have to take mine back to exchange them.

Lex: Glad to hear Ella isn't planning on making an appearance any time soon!

hmbay

08-18-2005, 07:25 AM

target nursing bras--I lived in the sports bra type ones last pg. They were the most comfortable for me and didn't cause plugged ducts like the underwire ones I had did. However the tank tops worked at first for me but then they got tossed in the drier and shrunk slightly and then everytime I wore them they caused plugged ducts--they fit a lot tighter than the sportsbra type ones so if you buy some of them make sure sure sure you don't dry them.

c j

08-18-2005, 07:36 AM

WooHoo!! We moved into our Master bedroom last night!! :D This means we can FINALLY start on the nursery. :D :D

We have class #6 tonight. Our final class. We are going to practice breathing and then learn about new borns and the first few weeks with them.

This carpal tunnel is really starting to kick my butt. It's just in my right hand and of course I am right handed. I can hardly pick anything up with it and forget about writing! :rolleyes: I finally told DH last night that this is what's going to want me be done being pregnant. I can deal with the back aches, tiredness, etc... but this is annoying. I hope the rest of you don't have this problem.

* * * * * * * * * * * ** ** **

lex sorry about the UTI, but glad to see your little girl is staying put for a while.

hmbay ugh... sorry that the spotting has started up again. take care of yourself.

topless never thought about this. i guess i figure i wouldn't wear a bra under my gown so i could bf after delivery. hmmmm.

EJM congrats to your sister!

EJM

08-18-2005, 07:42 AM

cj: My mom had carpal tunnel really bad, and eventually had surgery to correct it. Prior to that, she would wear a hand brace at night which really helped. I think she just got it at the store, nothing too fancy. It had velcro to close over her hand, holes for her fingers/thumb, and a metal plate along the wrist to keep it stable. She wore it for almost a year before finally having the surgery.

adoredh

08-18-2005, 07:45 AM

CJ I have carpal tunnel in both wrists, but mainly my right one (typing and using the mouse for 8 years will do that to you) the brace that EJM mentioned, works well for me. I'm supposed to actually wear it while I type - but I can't type as fast (which is important when you sneak on to CC during work!) I wear it when I get really sore and it does help.

c j

08-18-2005, 07:47 AM

ejm & adoredh Thanks for the advise about the hand brace. I may have to look into getting something like that. My sister is a PTA and maybe they have one at her work I could borrow. The doctor said that it would go away once I deliver and was something third trimester can bring on (i never had it before)

jh124

08-18-2005, 07:49 AM

I've been having bad sciatica and have been trying to rest and stretch it away.

I have gained 31 lbs during this pregnancy and the dr is pleased. Told me I'm right on target (I'm taller/bigger than most, hence the bigger weight gain.) Shooting for 1-2 lbs/wk for the next 10 weeks.

Everything else is fine. Baby is currently head down, but he can change in the next couple of weeks, since he's still pretty small. Weird/fun thing is we can now feel limbs when we touch my belly.

cartersmommy

08-18-2005, 07:50 AM

hey girls!!

LOL about the girls touching your stomach..... is it bad that mine seem to be gravitating that way NOW when i'm standing up with no bra on?!?!?! ugh, i hate that! makes me LOOK like a cow! HA!

i think i will be leaving the bra on during labor. i don't want to feel any more OUT THERE than i have to! KWIM?!

LEX--- SO SO glad that Ella is good and that you're not having an August baby!! sorry about the bladder infection though! :(

not much going on here.... just working! i'm going to get nails put on tonight i think.... i need something to make me feel pretty again! I really need a haircut also, but that's next week! :)

hope you all have a great day!
amanda

sdmama2be

08-18-2005, 08:02 AM

Morning all

hmbay Sorry to hear that your spotting has started up again...rest and take care

ejm congrats to your sister...cute way of announcing it

diane funny story

tulip glad you had a good appointment

cj sorry to hear about the carpal tunnel in your hand..ouch

lexy How are you feeling today?

Exposing Honestly, I hadn't even thought about this..hmm I have no idea what to think because after last night I really want to try to breastfeed as soon as possible. Everything else will be visible to all so I think my breasts are not going to be anything new.. I will probably just go with whatever happens. I am adjusting to having larger breasts..I have always been small and happy with that. I am not used to wearing a bra all the time but know that I need the support, these girls are heavy and they are going to get bigger

Last night we had breastfeeding class. I thought it was really good, I learned a lot of common sense ideas and more importantly I feel more confident. Tony suddenly realized how demanding the first 4 weeks are going to be and is now considering taking more time off work to help me out :) He is definitley taking the first week off, then his sister is coming out for a week so we are thinking about him working half days at the ofice, half days at home the third and possibly fourth week. What are your DH's doing re work?

The instructor was very down to earth and honest: It is going to be hard, it does take patience but it is worth it. We spent a lot of time talking about nursing bras and pumps since every mom in the class was going to be going back to work around 12 weeks. She recommended getting the Medela sleep bra about a month before the baby is due and to wear that for the last month at night and first 10 days after until your milk regulates (you can sleep in these bras at any time). She said to go and get fitted for nursing bras at 9-10 days after since that will be your true size..did you know that Nordtrom has people who are specially certified to fit moms for nursing bras?? She talked a lot about how underwire or non fitting bras can cause clogged milk ducts..so much to think about.

c j

08-18-2005, 08:21 AM

What are your DH's doing re work?
DH is planning on 3-4 weeks off after the baby is born.

Tulip

08-18-2005, 08:28 AM

What are your DH's doing re work?
DH is taking his final week of vacation once the baby is born. Unfortunately that's all he can take without being let go for "other" reasons at this company. :mad:

LexyLou

08-18-2005, 08:55 AM

Dh has a very flexible work schedule since he's a manager at a big accounting firm. He spends most of his time out at different client sites. He's planning on taking 1 week off before my due date and 2 weeks off after and then he'll work from home a little bit during the next couple of weeks. Then at Christmas time he's going to take another 2 weeks off. :)

EJM

08-18-2005, 09:05 AM

Pre-birth, DH may take a day or two. Post-birth he gets 2 weeks paternity leave, at which point I'll probably be ready for him to go back to work ;) and then he has scheduled a bunch of vacation time for 3 and 4 day weekends until I go back to work. He may work from home a bit too, we are going to play it by ear.

cartersmommy

08-18-2005, 09:16 AM

b/c dh and i own our own business, he's got a flexible schedule too, but has to get back to work soon after. i think he's going to take 1-2 weeks off after the baby comes.... we'll see how long that lasts... i think he'll be back to work after a week! :)

adoredh

08-18-2005, 09:19 AM

DH has two weeks vacation, we used 3 of those days for our babymoon. He wanted to save the other 2 of that week for after the baby is here, but I talked him into taking a personal day just for himself. He's been working so hard and been so very supportive, I think he deserves a "me" day. So guess what he's doing for his me day - he's driving down 3 hours with the neighbor to pick up their new race car!!! He's really excited about it (he's part of the pit crew) so even though that sounds like a crappy time to me, I guess that's his idea of having fun! LOL!

Then he'll have a full week paid off after the baby is here. He might also be able to take a week of half days so that we can get some more time together.

lml41981

08-18-2005, 10:13 AM

Flashing boob at birth - I dunno...after showing everyone in the room my crotch, my boob seems a bit tame. Plus, if I hope to give her colostrum asap to hopefully nullify the need for glucose water, I will need to be showing some boobie. We plan on it being just DH and me in the delivery room (plus nurses and doctors, of course), so that modesty issue isn't really a problem.

Gift for DH - We just paid a boatload of money to cut down a tree in our front yard. This tree would shed leaves worse than anything I've ever seen. So, I figure I gave DH the gift of more time with his daughter because now he won't have to deal with raking. ;)

DH's Time Off - I don't think I shared this over here...you guys knew that he got a new job in July...well, he hated it. Absolutely dreaded going to work each day. So, he kept looking. He got another new job last week and will start on 8/29. He qualifies for 4 weeks of vacation and 2 weeks of sick pay, which will accrue at a rate of 1/12 per month. I haven't done the math, but I think he'll be able to take a week off between vacation and sick. That's much nicer than before because he wasn't going to get to take any time off except unpaid time off.

Birth Plan - We're doing one. It won't be long because I don't want to annoy the nurses with a huge 8-page birth plan, but I will be very clear about what I want and don't want (no offering of drugs, don't even tell me what my options are...I don't want to justify accepting narcotics because "at least it wasn't an epidural," perineum massage even though I probably just butchered the spelling before resorting to episiotomy, glucose water as a 3rd resort - not first - after colostrum and then formula, no artificial nipples, want to room in). I also plan to emphasize that I am willing to be flexible, but I don't want to be the only one giving. I expect the staff/patient relationship to be give and take...just because I am not a medical professional doesn't mean I don't have my own opinions about what is best for our child. Naturally if there were an emergency, I'd defer to them, but if I have time to try my way, I expect to be allowed to try my way. Mainly, I guess I am using my birth plan as a way to emphasize that I have strong opinions and won't be walked over by nurses who may want to think that I don't know what I'm doing or that my daughter is "their baby." In the breastfeeding support thread, it was mentioned that sometimes the nurses act like all the babies are theirs...I'm hoping rooming in will eliminate any confusion as to who the baby belongs to (I'd have thought that pushing her out of my body would have eliminated that, but I guess there is still sometimes confusion. ;)).

Cars - We've got a Ford Escape that is our "dog car" and a BMW X3. She'll ride in the X3 the majority of the time, but if we visit my parents, the dogs will ride in the far back or in the floor board and she'll be in the Escape. We'll see how they do the first time we try to take the whole family out. We may end up taking separate cars. ;)

Bradley classes - Loving them. I am really starting to feel prepared for this. We've only had 3 classes and we still have 5 more, but I think this is something I can do! Just gotta work with DH on his massage technique. He jumps all over my body and sometimes uses too much pressure and then not enough.

Lex - glad ella decided to hang around for awhile longer. Bladder infections aren't fun...but at least you caught it before it went to the kidneys!

hmbay - sorry about the spotting. :(

Tulip - glad your appt. went well.

cj - sorry about the CTS. :(

jh124 - isn't it totally bizarre to be able to feel the arms, legs, hands and feet? Our girl was head down at the 28 week u/s...I have to have one more later on to see how big she is, so we'll see if she turned again. I don't think she has, though.

****

QOTD - What are you putting in your hospital bag? Right now we're planning to put Gatorade/powerade so DH can sneak me liquids, swimsuits for the shower, clothes for both of us, toiletries for both of us, clothes for Baby...probably the same outfit in both 0-3 month and Newborn size...just because we don't really know what size she'll be. I'm also putting in our Bradley workbook, some cds that *I* like (DH doesn't get to pick), some baby powder because I like the way it smells and might want to smell it during labor, my birth necklace, which will hopefully have beads on it from family members who are close to me (that way I can have something to fiddle with), DH's PSP so he has a game to play while waiting, my laptop so I can post after she's born...frozen water and a hot water bottle because the frozen water bottle felt so good when DH massaged my back with it at class the other night, and of course a digital camera. Cell phones are a given.

hmbay

08-18-2005, 11:00 AM

dad's time off--since DH is a SAHP working pt nights and weekends he really isn't taking any time off. I'm sure he'll get the few nights off right after the birth but otherwise didn't plan on taking any really. My mom is planning to come for a week after the birth to help out.

bbs at delivery--can't really speak from experience but I have to agree with lml--after your whoo-ha has been hanging out and all I don't think you're going to care much for whether or not your bb's are hanging out. Then again I've gone to a few nude and topless beaches when I was younger and didn't balk at "going native" so I'm probably not the best person to comment on whether or not it would bother me to have them hanging out. However the drs and nurses see both body parts all.the.time so they aren't going to be embarrassed if you aren't.

hospital bag--if no one had it mentioned in their classes bring some snacks for DH. My hospital actually has a "pantry" stocked with premade sandwiches, frozen dinners, bread for toast, poptarts, grahamn crackers, soda, water, juice etc for the expectant fathers (and mothers after they give birth if you really want any of it) so they don't have to worry about running out for food or having change for the vending machine but I don't think that is the norm. Since we had a c/s last time and will most likely this time DH won't be using it during labor but it came in handy when he'd be visiting me and want a snack! :)

1_mommy

08-18-2005, 11:43 AM

went in for our ultrasound this morning. i figured since kai has been bundled up in a ball the last 2 u/s, and didn't want to move for us, that this time i would drink soda before going in. ya think that worked--YA RIGHT.
he stayed so bundled up tight, we still didn't get a good face shot. this is so not meant to be to see a little of what he might look like before he was born. and yes, he is still all boy :)

everything measured within the week of my due date, so nothing big. he is weighing about 3 pounds 8 oz. and the fluid level is perfect. so, maybe he was just laying in a really weird position when i was measured. oh, and he is still head up! this kid better turn head down, he has 4 more weeks to do so, the u/s tech just said he is so comfortable where he is at :)

it was so cute to see kaimis reaction to the u/s too!! she kept yelling baby kai, baby kai. and getting really excited, and when the tech turned the machine off she asked "where did baby kai go?" so cute! she loves he little brother :)

hmbay our hospital has the same things for dads, the fridge full of drinks and sandwichs. so we won't have to bring much for dh. and they also cater to alot of what a dad needs. blankets pillowsk toothbrush, and things like that. :) makes it really nice

dh time off dh is saving all of his overtine hours right now for time off, he has over 60 hrs right now. so he has about a week he can stay home with us right now.

shushyk

08-18-2005, 11:45 AM

1_mommy way to freak you out :eek: glad everything is just fine!!!

Astara

08-18-2005, 11:54 AM

Exposing the girls during delivery My girls are big and need to be tamed. I will def. be wearing a bra during labor and I am sure I will be wearing one during the delivery. It isnt about modesty, cuz during that time im sure i wont care.. its all about comfort for me.

DH time off DH is taking 4 weeks off after delivery.

Hospital Bag ~ I have only just started thinking about this!! a couple changes of clothes for DH and I, coming home outfits for Gigi, snacks for DH, DH's PSP, Cards, slippers, drinks, Cd's, Probably laptop, Digi camera, hmm.. I may add more later.

Today I went with a friend and her 6 1/2 mo. old to a Gymboree center. That place was awesome. The lady gave my friend all the enrollment info and so she signed up. The owner was really cool and told me I could come with my friend to a couple of classes to see how they were. I'm def. going and Im sure I will want to enroll genevieve in classes around january when the new classes start up. Does anyone have any kids that went or know anyone who went to gymboree classes?

Tiger

08-18-2005, 12:25 PM

DH time off I am not for sure what DH will do yet. He has a very flexible schedule so he can go into work whenever he wants. He also has 500 hours of sick leave that he can use for paternity leave if he wants (same as my maternity leave) so I think he will definitely take advantage of that.

Hospital bag I haven't even started thinking about this yet.

gift for DH I would like to get a Philadelphia Eagles outfit for our baby girl. It is DH's favorite team so I think he would love for our baby to have an outfit to wear.

Lex I am so glad to hear everything is alright with you and Ella. She needs to stay put for a few more weeks!

I had my appt this morning and everything was great. Baby girl's heartrate was 157 and I had put on another 2 lbs since 2 weeks ago, making the grand total 26 lbs so far. My dr. felt around for the head and said she was head down...she has been ever since the u/s so I am hoping this doesn't change at all. My next appt. is on Sept. 1st

I think I had my first braxton contractions last night. My stomach got so hard! I had a pretty busy day yesterday so I am sure that contributed to it. Who knows, maybe I have been having contractions and not knowing it. Today when the dr was trying to feel for the head, he said he thought I was having a small contraction and I didn't feel a thing.

I found out that DH's mom is having a baby shower for me next weekend. She invited everyone from my work to the shower but it would be a 2 hour drive so I don't know if anyone will go or not. Hopefully this will be our last trip until the baby arrives. I am tired of driving!

jh124

08-18-2005, 01:30 PM

I found out that DH's mom is having a baby shower for me next weekend.

Nothing like a little notice... ;) "Oh, yeah, you're having a shower next weekend."

Tulip

08-18-2005, 01:34 PM

I found out that DH's mom is having a baby shower for me next weekend.
I love that kind of notice. I just found out that I have to delay my maternity leave by a week b/c they're throwing me a party at work and some people won't be there the week before. It's okay though b/c it gives me 2 weeks off before the baby instead of 3.

Tiger

08-18-2005, 01:35 PM

Nothing like a little notice... ;) "Oh, yeah, you're having a shower next weekend."

I thought the same thing, but this is how DH's mom works so I shouldn't be too surprised. Planning is definitely not her strong point. She is about as scatterbrained as they come. The funny thing is, I saw the invitation that she sent to my work....she has the time for the shower listed as 11:27. i have no idea where that came from!

EJM

08-18-2005, 01:38 PM

The funny thing is, I saw the invitation that she sent to my work....she has the time for the shower listed as 11:27.

That just made me laugh out loud! Sounds like something my MIL would do, it would have some significance to her but nobody else would know what it was.

Kanga

08-18-2005, 01:51 PM

hospital bag I plan on bringing a couple of changes of clothes for dh and I, a coming home outfit for Daytona, some snacks for me during labor (jello, suckers, etc) digital camera, cell phones, all our personal hygeine stuff, a nursing bra, the laptop, my own pillow, and um, i think that's everything. Oh, and a photo of my furbabies for my focal point, and maybe a couple of extra snacks for after the birth incase the food really sucks.

dh and time off Dh gets 3 weeks of pto including sick days, vacay and personal days. So far he is planning on taking off 1 week, and he can take that from the day I go into labor, so we don't have to worry about wasted time off. I kinda wish he would take more, but he insists that another 10 days go towards the Sprint Car Nationals in August of 06 :rolleyes: And then he wants to save some if we decide to take a vacation together and for emergency

Flopping bb's/modesty I have to agree with adoredh. I'd rather be "free flying" than wear a bra any day, and pre pregnancy I used to wear those camisoles things as bras and go braless around the house. Sometimes in the winter with bulky swearshirts, I could get away w/out a bra But now thanks to leaking bb's, and their new size, i have to wear a bra with breast pads all the time. During L&D, I think i will wear one of those nursing tanks to prevent my bb's from soaking me :rolleyes: For the whole modesty part of it, normally I wouldn't be very comfortable having my hoo ha shown to the world, but ever since my belly started blocking my view, I could really care less. Wierd. I definately think it will be wierd to look down the first time after I give birth. I'll finally be able to see my feet again as well as my hoo ha, not to mention how "skinny" I'll look.

gymboree We don't have one around here, so we won't be enrolling in it. I don't know if there are other stores that do that kind of thing, but it's really not my type of thing. I think if I were a SAHM, I would do it for the socialization

Birth Plan I filled out the vary vague one the hospital gave us, but I plan on giving a more detailed one with the things that are most important to me (i.e no episiotomy unless baby is in danger, rooming in, etc) I don't really care if the dr.'s/nurses are annoyed with my plan. I know it is just that, a plan, and that things will not always go my way. Plus they work for me, not the other way around, so they can just deal :p I hear horror stories about how some moms are treated during the hospital stay, and can't believe the nerve of some of the staff. Nothing less than professionalism and mutual respect will be tolerated.

We had our first birth class last night, and our teacher is wonderful. She had a great sense of humor, so even though i knew most of what she was talking about (dilation, effacement, etc) I wasn't bored stiff. (She referred to the hospital pads as "mini mouse mattresses" I'm still lol about it. The only part I hated were the seats, if you can call them that. They were half empty bean bags, leaned up against these back support thingys. The bean bags were terrible, so i finally just got rid of it and sat of the floor and leaned up against the back support, but then of course my a** went numb after about 10 seconds :cool: I'll have to remember to bring more pillows next time.

I have my breastfeeding class tonight. I'm not sure how long I will be breastfeeding, or if i will pump when I go back to work, but at least I'll know the information if I need it.

adoredh

08-18-2005, 02:06 PM

I'd rather be "free flying"

I knew I couldn't be the only one! LOL! I love those tank tops!
I can still get away with out a bra in the tanks - no leaking from the girls yet, but they do have to have the built in shelf!
I had a sad thought though, what if I don't go back to being small after birth - there goes my rebel ways of not wearing a bra! Oh well, BF'ing is good for the babe, I've already sacraficed my belly and hips, why not the boobs too! LOL!

LexyLou

08-18-2005, 02:26 PM

I'm a free flyer too adoredh even if they are DD's now. The second I come home from work, the bra comes off!
I forgot to mention that in addition to PTO DH's company gives him 2 weeks of Paternity leave at 100% so that's awesome. His company also gives us a free double electric breast pump and a lacation consultant. I guess working your ass off for a Big 4 Accounting firm does have some perks. ;)

Chad and Liz-Did I miss where you announced the baby's name or did you just slip it in incog like in that last post?

cartersmommy

08-18-2005, 02:31 PM

HEY GIRLS!!

did we ever figure out a "buddy system"?? I can't remember, and if we did, i can't remember who my buddy is :(

LOL about the unexpected shower! nothing like some notice, that's for sure! :)
but awesome that you're having one! :)

HOSPITAL BAG: let's see, haven't started packing it yet, but i'm thinking this is what we'll take:

~for DH: snacks and drinks, some magazines (probably football, he loves his fantasy football), a change of clothes, toiletries, camera, cell phone, phone numbers and a pillow :) he has to have his pillow. and money to buy me a big dinner after the birth! HA!

~for me: boppy pillow, tank tops and pajama pants, my own pillow, toiletries, hair dryer, makeup, Carter's coming home outfit, diaper bag, etc. car seat, etc.

i'm sure there will be more!

sdmama2be

08-18-2005, 03:54 PM

My name is Susan and I need to stop eating!!! I have been hungry for the past two days non-stop. She must be growing or something...if this keeps up I am in some serious trouble.

Hospital Bag We haven't really thought about is but here are some things I know we will be bringing
DH~snacks, snacks and more snacks..oh yeah and some Gatorade :rolleyes: We seriously don't go on any trip without packing Cliff Bars and Gatorade for him. A change of clothes/toiletries. His blackberry (he is addicted to it), the laptop and camera.

Me~My own snacks ;) pillow, socks, pjs, toiletries, Kaelyn's "stuff", good idea about the boppy carters mommy, a comfortable outfit to wear home and I'm sure more things will be added. I have a tendency to over pack "just in case" :)

I can't believe we are now talking about this...it seems like yesterday we were talking about buying our first maternity clothes :D

Kanga

08-18-2005, 03:57 PM

LexI don't thinkI ever officially announced the name, but I've mentioned it once or twice. We have decided on Daytona for the first name, but still not sure about the second name. We might go with Bailey, but dh is still undecided about it.

lorialys

08-18-2005, 06:56 PM

lml41981 I'm glad you're thinking of hiring your instructor as a doula, that might work out best for you! I hope your OB and the pediatrician are accommodating.
after showing everyone in the room my crotch, my boob seems a bit tame
That cracked me up!!!

shushyk I'm sure the room is going to look great!! Hope you get the minivan you want!

alicia-beesha Glad you had a good appointment!

acheese Glad your appointment was good!

amtaylor Glad your first day back wasn't too bad.

LexyLou Glad you and Ella are doing alright!! Take it easy. :D

hmbay Sorry the spotting is back, but I'm glad it is minimal.

cartersmommy Sorry to hear about the headache!

Tulip Glad you had a good appointment.

EJM Congrats to your sister!

cj Sorry to hear about the carpal tunnel. I have a touch of that normally when I'm not pregnant, so I'm surprised I haven't had any problems yet!

jh124 Sorry about the sciatica, that's no fun!

sdmama2be Thanks for posting about what you learned in breastfeeding class! Sounds like it went well.

1_mommy Glad the ultrasound went well and you aren't having a huge baby!

Tiger Glad your appointment went well!

Chad and Liz Sounds like your birth class went great!

Birth Plan Yup, we have one. I have some changes to make to it though. I'm pretty flexible about it though, most of what I want is the "typical" experience and I know that it all can go out the window at any time. I think I will enforce my wishes as far as breastfeeding goes much stricter though, except for any extreme medical situations that might arise (God forbid!!).

#2 on the Table Haven't thought about it, and I don't plan to worry about it. If it happens, it happens and I'm sure nobody will say anything to make me feel embarrassed. It is totally normal. I'm hoping that my body does the "natural" thing and cleans it all out before I go into labor though.

Topless during delivery Add me to the list of girls who hate bras!! I take mine off as soon as I can when I get home, and I live in shelf bra tanks (even when I wasn't pregnant). I have no qualms about the docs/nurses seeing my boobies, they've seen them before in my yearly exams. And I'm sure they've seen a lot of moms boobs in their day too. But I'm not a very modest person.

DH's and work Mine is taking 2 weeks off. But some of the time he may have to go into work for a few hours for important meetings.

Hospital Bag Haven't even started to think about that yet!!

Childbirth class last night was good. We talked about medical interventions, including induction/augmentation, artificial rupture of the membranes, fetal monitoring, IV's, epidurals and other drugs, episiotomies, and forceps and vacuum deliveries. I learned a few things I didn't know before. Like, they will sometimes do second and even third day inductions if it doesn't "take" the first try. The hospital has standard policy to put IVs in all patients, but they can take it down to just a little vial on your hand so you can walk around without carting it everywhere and go in the tub and such. The pressure catheter that they use for internal contraction monitoring also doubles as the tool they use for amnio infusion. And spinal headaches, which are a possible side effect of the epidural, are actually caused by leakage of spinal fluid from the epidural space!! :eek: Good thing is, they have a quick and very effective treatment for that. So that's good to know. Our instructor also brought out some of the equipment, like the amniohook, internal monitors, and the epidural catheter for us to see up close. After that we did some more breathing exercises and positions. Mostly standing and squatting positions. I didn't care too much for any of them, but it may have been because I get really tired in the evenings from carrying the weight of the belly around all day, and it makes my feet hurt to stand for too long. I'll keep them in mind though, because who knows what is going to feel good when I'm in labor!!

Last night when we got home, I had a whole bunch of stuff waiting for me!! The package from The Gap came, as did our Pack 'N Play, and our changing pad. I opened everything up, and even set up the Pack 'N Play. I was so proud of myself when I was done. Here are some pictures:

http://im1.shutterfly.com/procserv/47b5d639b3127cce93dd7c9d8c1d00000016108AcsmjZw2cNc

Close-up of the basinett part
http://im1.shutterfly.com/procserv/47b5d639b3127cce93dd7c480df800000025138AcsmjZw2cNc

Today I had a doctor's appointment. I got there early, and was able to relax and eat my afternoon snack before they called me back. Helped a lot I think, my blood pressure was normal. Weight is up a bit more, I've gained 30 lbs total so far. Urine fine, baby's heartrate was 152, and I was measuring fine. I asked the doc to tell me what position the little guy is in now, she felt around and said his head is down low, back on my right side and butt up near the top. :D So that's good news!! She said I'm fine to travel to Atlanta next weekend for our shower. We discussed the cord blood thing again, she was glad to hear that we've got all the paperwork already. I asked about her induction policy. She said she would not let me go past 41 weeks. Studies are showing that a small percentage of women spontaneously go into labor after that point anyways, so they typically do inductions after that point. I asked for a pediatrician recommendation, and she gave me the name and number of the guy her kids go to. She says he is fabulous.
At my next appointment we will get an ultrasound to check on the baby's position and size!! I'm so excited, I can't wait to see him again.

Next appointment is September 1 and it is also an ultrasound.

nancy drew

08-18-2005, 08:29 PM

boobs during delivery im not sure you all will have a choice to wear a bra. im pretty sure they insist that you take off *everything* under your gown. if there is some sort of emergency they need to have access to everything and wearing a bra could get in the way. you might want to check with your hospital if it is really going to bother you to not have a bra on under your gown. but you will most likely be wearing the gown (unless you choose to get in the shower or tub) so its not like your boobs will be "out there" for everyone to see. and since your hoo-ha WILL be out there for everyone to see, i cant see how anyone will even be looking at your boobs anyway :p

gymboree stella has been going to gymboree since she could sit up, so since she was about 5 months old. we looooooooove it. its great for socialization (for me, mostly, though she does interact with some of the kids), and it is WONDERFUL for those awful, cold winter days or hot, dreadful summer days when it is too icky to go play outside. our gymboree has "open gym" three times a week, and there are 2 other gymboree locations nearby with different open gym times, so theoretically we could go play at gymboree 5 days a week. in the winter we were there at least 3 times a week, including her classes. seriously, just being able to get out of the house and let her crawl and climb on safe things was soooooooooo nice. we also joined 2 local playgroups and she is in a playgroup "class" at the local park district. i highly recommend joining classes like gymboree, kindermusik, music together, or local mommy and me classes, or joining a new moms group or something at your local community center or park district.

godsgift77

08-18-2005, 09:57 PM

DH's time off He has 1wk of vacay saved and is going to try to work from home for 2 weeks.

Hospital Bag Here's what I have packed so far: PJ's for me, nursing bra, massage oil, Sanitary Napkins, baby's coming home outfit. I know there is a ton more and i'll get to it in the next week or so...

Boobies I have always hated clothes -- including but not limited to bras but since my girlies have been a C-cup since I was 13, i will have not choice but wear a bra :( ah well...

Question When are you all beginning your maternity leave? I am thinking of going out the last week of Sept.

~~~~~~
Had an appt today. I am measuring 4 weeks ahead :eek: The doc said she wanted an ultrasound to have a better idea of how big he is so I get an ultrasound next week - no exact date yet since the ins has to approve it *sigh*

Hope everyone is well!

dragonfly_71

08-19-2005, 04:26 AM

lorialys: nice pack'n play. I love the color of the room. We picked light blue color as well, but haven't painted yet.

hospital bag: I have no idea what to pack. I don't know what size PJ's I should bring since I have no idea what size I will be after delivery. Since I have to go and buy something to bring I need to figure that out at some point. I also don't have any nursing bras yet. Same thing there, I'm wondering what size I will be after. Other than that I don't think I'll need a whole lot of stuff for myself, they have everything at the hospital. I will need an outfit for Alexander to wear home, probably just a sleeper or onesie. It will probably still be hot here in FL in October.

maternity leave: Right now the plan is to work up until the end. I will only change that if I get too uncomfortable to work. I don't have a very stressful or physically demanding job, I'm an underwriter for an insurance company, so I just sit at a desk and work on the computer or talk on the phone. I think I can handle that til the end.

DH's time off: DH is self employed so he has some flexibility there. But then of course self employment doesn't come with perks like paid time off. So we will play that by ear.

Gymboree: when I first came to to American I was an Au Pair and I took "my" baby to Gymboree all the time. She loved it and I liked getting out of the house and interact with other adults. I probably won't take Alexander there though since he will be in daycare and they do similar things with him there. They have a room that has the same equipment in it as gymboree and they take the babies there for a few hours every day. So in the evenings and on week ends when it is my time with him I will probably do more "unorganized" things like going to the park or just playing at home rather than taking him to classes or playgroups. I agree though that Gymboree would be great for SAHMs.

DianeCourt

08-19-2005, 06:15 AM

lorialys: I like your Pack n' Play! I registered for one with a bassinett & changing area, too - I think it will be nice to have downstairs so we're not always running upstairs to change diapers or put the baby down for naps. :)

godsgift: Good luck with your u/s! Maybe he's just laying a funny way & causing your measurements to be out of whack?

Hospital Bag: Hmmmm.....haven't thought about that one too much yet. I'll probably get serious about that in 4 more weeks. Some things I learned from Childbirth Class are to pack swimsuits for DH & I in case I want to labor in the jacuzzi or shower, some nicely scented lotion for DH to massage my back with, a CD player, relaxing CDs, my glasses (our hospital will not let you labor with contact lenses in!), and a good picture of my sweet dog to focus on during contractions. Does anybody else's hospital have a "no cell phone" policy on the patient floors? Ours does, which is annoying. I'm thinking that we'll have to use the phone in my room to make all of our calls, or else DH is going to have to go down to the cafeteria if he wants to use a cell phone.

Time off for DH: He has 3 weeks of vacation left this year, so he's planning on taking as many as 2 of those right when the baby comes home.

Maternity Leave: I'm going to try to get my Dr. to pull me out of work at 37 weeks. If I can get a note from him, my company will fully cover up to 4 weeks of disability before I deliver, and it won't cut into the 6 weeks paid I get after the baby is born. So hopefully I'm not working any later than September 30th!

Does anybody know how to measure yourself for nursing bras? I'm asking because I got a "Motherwear" catalog yesterday, and they have a great selection of nursing bras at REALLY good prices (plus free shipping for new customers!) They tell you how to measure yourself, which I think I can handle, but I'm wondering how much "extra" size you should account for when your milk comes in. Let me know if you can help!

Also, has anybody else been afflicted with stretch marks yet? I'm noticing that I'm developing three small ones on the left underside of my belly. :( I can't say that I'm surprised because I got them when I was a teenager on my legs & hips from growth spurts. Ah well.

cartersmommy

08-19-2005, 07:40 AM

stretch marks: yes! i have lots, and they aren't pretty! :( i hope they fade quickly after this kid is born!!

CANKLE ALERT!!!: I have major cankles today.... but only on one foot! whats up with that?!?! Only one ankle is swollen.... and that's been the norm lately. i don't get it! it's my left ankle! too weird!!

Lorene-- love the PNP! We got ours also, and I'm excited to set it up! DH won't let me because we're going to keep it in our downstairs family room for diaper changes and naps, and he thinks it'll take up too much room! :( but i love the colby pattern! very cute!!!

Here is our PNP: (it's Jeep!!)
http://images.amazon.com/images/P/B0002MPVIM.01.PT02.LZZZZZZZ.jpg

that's with the changing station and bassinet feature, and then it also has a cover you can put on for going outside. i'm excited to get it up!! Maybe this weekend?!?!?! :)

not much else going on here! TGIF!! I hope everyone has a great day!!

I'll be back later on, i'm sure!!

amanda

c j

08-19-2005, 07:47 AM

31 weeks today! Where is the time going??

Tomorrow we start putting new windows in the baby's room :D :D

Last night was to be our last lamaze class... but the one couple, his father was in a serious accident just an hour before class. Since they couldn't make it, she postponed it. So we have to wait unitl the 30th to finish up class.

* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *

Does anybody else's hospital have a "no cell phone" policy on the patient floors? Raising hand! Yup... cells phones are only to be used in the lobby on the first floor. They say that cell phones can mess with all the equipment and such. Who knows??

maternity leave hopefully i'll be able to work until the day I deliver.

stretch marks "knocking on wood" none yet.

EJM

08-19-2005, 07:47 AM

Morning ladies!

Hospital Bag: I'll think about it in a few weeks :D

Time off: Not sure yet, up until delivery unless the doc says I have to stay home. I see my regular OB at my week 37 appointment so I'll be asking her then. Originally I thought I could work until this kid pops out, but I'm a zombie by Fridays anymore. Hopefully the cooler weather, which I'm praying shows up soon, will help.

Stretchmarks: I'm afraid to comment, don't want to curse myself :cool:

Gymboree: I plan on taking the little one if we can squeeze it into the budget. I think I'll give DH priority first for a Daddy/Me class, so they can have quality time together.

shuskyk: I never answered your question, sorry. Our nursery isn't anywhere near done, so I haven't posted photos since we painted. You would have a hard time finding the crib ;)

lorialys: Look at you go! I held the stop watch and timed DH during the set up and tear down of our PNP.

godsgift: Let us know how the u/s goes!

Nancy Drew: Do you belong to NPN? I got the latest newsletter yesterday and read it on the train to work this morning. Your website is mentioned in the babywearing article as highly recommended :D

PNP sheets: FYI, I had heard the Graco sheets aren't the softest so I ordered two Kooshies brand. They are so soft, even after washing them. You cannot pick the pattern, but just designate gender (or neutral in my case). I ended up with a very cute green/white stripe and a yellow duck pattern.

Cell Phones: It wasn't mentioned, but I'll put it on my list to ask. DH might get a Crackberry from work before October (that's my dad's name for them because they are so addictive :p )

As for me, I started washing baby clothes and sheets last night. I'm hoping to really get the nursery organized this weekend (and DH's stuff out) so we can finalize the furniture placement and settle in a bit more. We finally start our childbirth classes tomorrow, its 4 hours/day for the next 4 weekends for a total of 16 hours. Bean has been kicking me hard, and I think turning :o It worries me because he/she was most likely head down. Oh well, I guess I don't know for sure. I told DH last night I'd like to finalize our name choices by the time we get to 36 weeks. I thought for sure we'd have names by now.

Happy Friday!

Tulip

08-19-2005, 07:56 AM

Buddy System, I was wonder about this too. I don't think I ever got a buddy officially.

Hospital bag, I haven't even started to think about this yet. I have no idea what to pack in it.

Time Off, my last day is Oct. 14 which give me 2 weeks off before my due date. Since I get a year off I'm not worried about eating up all my time before the baby.

PNP, we registered for one but I never thought about sheets for it. I guess I'll have to add those.

Stretch marks, none so far. Knock on wood. My mom never got them but I do have some on my hips from a growth spurt when I was 18 so I'm not holding my breath that I'll escape them.

Gymboree, I don't think they have anything like that up here. We are planning on getting Lumpy into swimming lessons as soon as we can. 4 months is the earliest. Dan wants to go with Lumpy alone for bonding but I may join them as well.

adoredh

08-19-2005, 08:02 AM

Good morning girls!

I don't have time to do S/O's only because I spent my morning loading up pics a friend took this past week.

Also just got back from the Dr's. I gained 1/2 pound in two weeks (yeah, cause I thought it would be more with birthday cakes, italian food and all kinds of bad things! LOL!)
Also, I've been having a ton of contractions, even had one while she was trying to get the heart rate. The Dr's kinda concerned about it, but not overly so, I may have to go through the NST after my first internal next apt. She wants to find out if my cervix is starting to thin.

Anyways, here's pics! :)

Here I am at Girls night - we have it every Thursday
Check out da belly!!!
http://images.snapfish.com/3447692323232%7Ffp47%3Dot%3E2334%3D%3A27%3D%3C%3A4 %3DXROQDF%3E2323%3A4552%3B484ot1lsi

This is my friends son, Parker. He has colic and I shocked everyone by flipping him over my arm. He stopped crying right away and just laid there. Poor little guy. But he's sooooo cute! :)
http://images.snapfish.com/3447692323232%7Ffp3%3Enu%3D3243%3E936%3E%3B%3B3%3E WSNRCG%3D3232%3B3643%3A577nu0mrj

http://images.snapfish.com/3447692323232%7Ffp63%3Dot%3E2334%3D%3A27%3D%3C%3A4 %3DXROQDF%3E2323%3A4552%3B695ot1lsi

And my fav pic, from my sister's surprise birthday party for her boyfriend (yes, I am wearing the same outfit! LOL!)
This is my hansome hubby, and my washed out self. (no makeup allergies were really bad that day)
http://images.snapfish.com/3447692323232%7Ffp54%3Dot%3E2334%3D%3A27%3D%3C%3A4 %3DXROQDF%3E2323%3A4552%3B6%3A6ot1lsi

There, I've gotten brave and posted finally! LOL!

ETA - anyone notice that my wedding rings are around my neck? My fingers are too fat to wear them anymore!!!

nancy drew

08-19-2005, 08:14 AM

Does anybody else's hospital have a "no cell phone" policy on the patient floors? yup! no cell phones in the hospital at all. it seems to be pretty standard procedure for most hospitals, so i highly recommend buying a cheap phone card so you can call out from your room. at our hospital you have to go outside if you want to use a cell phone.

Nancy Drew: Do you belong to NPN? I got the latest newsletter yesterday and read it on the train to work this morning. Your website is mentioned in the babywearing article as highly recommended yup! my friend wrote that article. i had no idea she mentioned my site until another cc/lj friend brought it to my attention when the online version came out. now that the print version is out im getting busy!!! :)

adoredh great pics! you look wonderful! thats great that you were able to help your friends son, too. what a natural!

1_mommy

08-19-2005, 08:21 AM

stretch marks i got 3 small ones the week before i delievered dd. they are deciding to make an apperance again, and bring a few friends with them.

godgifti measured 6 weeks ahead this last week and my ultrasound showed him within a week.
hopefully your little one isn't to big. baby could have just been laying funky. thats the conclusion we came to at the u/s yesterday.

adoreah looking good. how great you got the baby to stop fussing :)

ejm we havn't finalized names either, dh wants a long traditinal hawaiian name, and i am just not sure. i have a feeling we are taking this debate to the hospital

we went in and traded our 4-runner for an 04 pathfinder, it seats 7 and is just more of what we need. our old car wouldn't fit 2 carseats in it, and that just won't cut it for us. so we went out and bought a car. and it actually kinda stressed me out doing it, thinking about higher payments, the negotiating with the dealers. uggh glad its over. now today i have to take it back to the dealer to get it detailed, washed, and some other finilized things, then take it to the insurance company to get it on the policty.
all of this with an almost 2 year old. not looking foward to it. blech

lml41981

08-19-2005, 09:15 AM

I feel so much better about everything after my doctor's appointment this morning. The whole thing with the nurses telling me that my baby would definitely get glucose water and that they wouldn't let me try colostrum first ticked my doctor off. She's going to call and complain for me. We also went through my pediatrician list and chose a probable pediatrician...the same one my doctor will probably end up using.

Also, I was concerned about not being able to eat or drink...my doc said, "More than the anesthesia thing, it is that you *will* throw up when you're in labor and pushing. So, if you've got a bunch of food in your stomach, it is worse." I asked about Gatorade or something and she said, "Technically you're supposed to only have ice chips. I came from a place that allowed Gatorade and I am personally fine with it, but this hospital is pretty strict on just ice chips." So I said, "But what you're telling me is that if there's not a nurse in the room, John can sneak me some?" She said, "Small sips. Very small sips."

I love my doctor. :)

Oh...and I lost 3 pounds since my last visit 4 weeks ago. To tell the truth, I lost three pounds since two weeks ago. Gotta love the diabetic diet. My doctor wasn't concerned...she actually congratulated me. We know it was just "cushion" that I lost, so it won't hurt the baby.

About the buddy system...Only two (maybe 3...can't remember) people have emailed phone numbers. I am willing to match people up, but we gotta get phone numbers! If you want to participate, email october2005moms at gmail dot com.

Stretch marks...had them since before pregnancy. Not worried about them at all. They will fade.

adoredh - you look great!

adoredh

08-19-2005, 09:17 AM

Nancy and 1 mommy Thanks! I've had a lot of practice with colic baby's - when I was 14, I baby sat every day after work for 2 hours, a one month old who had colic really bad. I found that a combo rock/bounce worked, or flipping her over my arm like a foot ball worked too (I could pat her back at the same time) I guess the girls didn't know you could hold an infant like a foot ball, my friend (the mom) was a little worried at first, but when he stoped crying, you could tell she was relieved. I think one of the reasons he has colic right now, is because she keeps switching formulas on him. I've told her, and her Dr's told her, to keep him on one brand. She says this is the brand they are going to stick with, so hopefully he'll start feeling better. At least he's able to keep most of the formula down, he only spits up a little bit.

It'll be intresting to see if The Boy has colic. I would not be surprised, since both his mom and his dad have reflux and heartburn issues! :(

LML Thanks! I picked only the flattering pics to show!! LOL!! :D

Surftraitor

08-19-2005, 09:19 AM

Hi everyone,
Another week under our belts. Okay, maybe not our "belts" since I haven't worn a belt since the 5 month mark :D.

Stretch Marks--None, yet. Crossing all crossables. My mom never had any so there may be a chance...

no cell phone rule--not sure. Taking our hospital tour next week, but I suspect its enforced.

PNP--my DH is anti-PNP. He sees them as "cages" for babies. Whateva. I'm sure he'll change his tune when he's home alone and needs to go outside or take a shower or something inconvenient. I guess I'll just let him learn that lesson on his own.

Big weekend ahead, and all I want to do is nap. Last night we entertained some friends from NY for dinner. DH took the reigns on cooking. All I had to do was make the salad. Unfortunately, the marinated steak he made caused my ankles to "marshmellow" so I got out of cleaning up by sitting on sofa with my feet up. :D Tonight DH is going to a Jack Johnson concert with a buddy so I have plans to hold the sofa down, watch a chick flick and eat some fro-yo. Saturday we have an evening wedding to attend. Black Tie--ugh! Pregos should have a "Get out of Jail free" card when it comes to black tie. DH said he'd wear flip flops with his tux to make me feel better. I've got 2 dress options, but my big fear is shoes. If my cankles act up, there's no way I'm wearing a strappy heel. Sunday we are having some friends over for a BBQ lunch and then we're off to another friends for a dinner party. Weekend is chock-full. It makes me tired just typing about it...

I just talked to one of my best friends who's due in 3 weeks. I'm really worried about her marriage. Apparently her DH is always out at the bars. Last wkend he went on an out of state camping/bender with his buddies while she stayed home. Tonight, they were supposed to have a date night (probably the last one for a while) and he's already flaking saying that his office is having happy hour and he needs to buy a couple of rounds for his team. I feel so bad for her and don't know what to say. They're having a honeymoon baby, so their dealing with their first year of marriage/living together on top of being pregnant. It was so hard to give her advice. I just told her that maybe he's getting it out of his system since he knows the days of happy hour are numbered. Any other advice I should give her? I don't want to bash her DH.

EJM

08-19-2005, 09:36 AM

now that the print version is out im getting busy!!! :)

Well good thing I pre-baby ordered ;) I'm so glad I got the girly pocket because DH took one look at the tail and asked if I really expected him to wear the sling :rolleyes: Predictable! I got him a Hotsling in black as a compromise, and he's been wearing that around the house to practice.

Adoredh: You look so cute!

lml: Great news on the appointment!

Surftraitor: Aside from being pissed off on her behalf, maybe he is having a hard time adjusting to so many changes and is in denial about the birth being so close. Hopefully once the baby is here, he'll step up to the plate. DH and I had lived together pre-marriage and we still had a lot of first year marriage adjusting to do (not sure why since nothing really changed, but we did).

cartersmommy

08-19-2005, 10:01 AM

LML-- awesome! I must have missed the instructions on emailing you! I just sent one your way with my info and stuff, so I'd love to be part of it if we do indeed decide to do one! thanks for doing it! :)

alisha-- you look great!! love the belly!! :) LOL about DH and the PNP! you're right, he'll learn!! :) oh well, gotta love 'em!

LML-- we got the same bouncer seat as you (i saw on LJ that you bought some stuff at BRU last night) and i think it'll be great! I wish they made them for adults! they look so comfy!!

alisha-- i can't wear my rings anymore either :( i am very very sad! I went and got fake nails last night because i'm so used to seeing something pretty on my fingers, that i couldn't stand looking down and seeing my stubby fat fingers with no ring! so nails it was!! HA! :)

c j

08-19-2005, 10:16 AM

lml I am so glad to see you have a wonderful appointment and it helped put your mind at ease!

adoredh You look great!

Surftraitor I wish I had some advice to give to your friend. Hopefully once the baby comes, he'll have a different mindset on his priorities.

hmbay

08-19-2005, 11:18 AM

Alisha--you look great!

stretch marks--yup. Didn't really get any last time but DH pointed out to me a few nights ago I have 5 of them and they're kind of "gross". Thanks honey. Like I can do anything about it. :(

cell phones--I think it's standard policy in all hospitals to ban cell phones. You'll need a calling card or to have DH go outside to use a cell.

my little hospital adventure pt 2..... So I wake up this morning and the spotting is heavier and starting to turn red. I call the hospital and they tell me to keep my 8:30 u/s appt at the radiology place then to come over to L&D triage. u/s goes well. Still spotting but the tech noted it was dark brown now and that my placenta has FINALLY moved.!!!! It's still around 2cm away but it was 1.5 last time and it is just over 2 this time! She got a great shot of it and said with certainty it has moved away. And the baby is weighing in around 4 pounds 13 oz (Colin was born at 4 pounds 11 oz). So I go to L&D and they actually check the spotting this time and do a hesitant internal since they know for sure where the placenta is. They can't find the cervix without getting more agressive so tell me that's a good sign and leave it at that. NST test looks great so the dr stopped to chat and sent me back to work. No bedrest. Just keep doing what I'm doing. Explained exactly what will happen if I have serious placenta problems and what I need to do but said most likely I should make it several more weeks and since the placenta does appear to be moving she feels I might spot more but it shouldn't turn disasterous. She also informed me only about half their drs fully support vbac's out of the 11 who might be on call but that their policy is if you've only had 1 c/s and your placenta is at least 2 cm away (which mine now is) I can demand to try a VBAC and don't have to automatically have a c/s. She did warn me that I will most likely lose more blood than someone with a further away placenta which might necessitate stopping the vbac attempt--she gave me a 60-70% chance for a successful vbac if I attempt it. I also have the option to just schedule the c/s or stop the vbac attempt at ANY point in the process (I don't have to wait until a certain hour or dilation point) and switch to a c/s. So the bad news is I wasted half a day I really needed to be at work but the good news is the placenta has moved and the dr was very positive about this baby making it to at least 37 weeks! :D About time I get some good news! ;)

cartersmommy

08-19-2005, 11:22 AM

oh heather!! GREAT NEWS!! I'm so glad that things are going in the direction you wanted! and the chances for a VBAC are great! congrats!!

jh124

08-19-2005, 11:23 AM

Roxanne just ordered me a Rosiebaby Carrier! I chose the brown bamboo brocade and black twill. I thought it would be a good choice for fall.
http://www.rosiebaby.com/photogallery/photo24954/brown%20bamboo.jpg

jh124

08-19-2005, 11:26 AM

Heather - That's great news! WTG!

jenjen0713

08-19-2005, 11:59 AM

hmbay - Sorry to hear about the spotting, but what excellent news about the placenta and the chance you might get to do VBAC!

cartersmommy - Love the PNP. Yea, for getting nails!!

Lexylow - Glad you and Ella are ok. Can you take any medicine to clear the infection?

shusyk - I took a b/f class and was glad I did. I learn a few new things and helpful hints. I love your lamb bedding...we are going with a lambie bedding from PBK.

alicia-beesha - 12 pounds...are you serious?? :eek: I love to cross stitch too and am currently working on a baby bib.

godsgift - I loved your idea about letting DH hold the baby first....I told DH about that and that I want the same thing for him and his response is "Well, I don't want to hold him if he is covered in blood and stuff? I'll wait till they clean him off." :rolleyes: Geez, thanks honey....you are worried about getting a little blood and goo on you instead of being overjoyed with the birth of your child. Men!

DianeCourt - That is too funny about finding the card in your lamp!

EJM - Congrats on being an aunt again!

sdmama2be - awesome that your DH can take more time off.

Tiger - 11:27 for the start of the shower. LMAO. Makes me appreciate my MIL so much more now.

loriallys - love the PNP you got. Good job putting it together!

adoredh - Love the pictures. DH taught me the football hold a few months ago. We were babysitting our little niece and I couldn't get her to stop crying. He took her from me and put her in the football hold and she immediatly stopped crying and even fell asleep!

surftraitor - Sorry to hear about your friend. I have no advice but hope her situation gets better.

tatas - Since there will be so few people in the delivery room with me, I don't think I'll really care who sees the tatas.

DH time off - Right now, he is planning on taking a week off.

Hospital bag - Haven't even started to pack yet. I'm thinking I'll probably pack the camera, camcorder, baby book (to get foot prints taken), change for vending machines, clothes for going home, toiletries, outfit for baby, sanitary pads.

Maternity leave - My due date is October 12 and my last day will be October 14 if I don't have the baby before. I want to keep as much time for after the baby is born and try not to use it before.

cell phone - Don't know about this and our hospital. Will have to ask the doctor next time.

nursing bra - Our b/f instructor told us to get one that is one cup size bigger than what you are now. She recommended maybe only getting two to start with and wait to see how big you get before getting anymore.

stretch marks - none that I can see. Doctor made a comment on Wednesday that I must be using my Vitamin E lotion. :D

Had my doctor appointment on Wednesday. Gained 2.5 pounds in a months. This is the lowest weight gain for me in a month's time period so I was pretty happy. So far at 32 weeks, I'm up 32.5 pounds. Baby heartbeat was 143. I go back September 7. They said they will probably start the internals then and probably do the strep test. I thought that test was just a vaginal swab, but I thought I read in another thread that it is a rectal swab. Any of the 2nd time moms care to fill me in...is it vaginal or rectal?

c j

08-19-2005, 12:05 PM

hmbay HUGE congrats!!

nancy drew

08-19-2005, 12:48 PM

jh124 Roxanne just ordered me a Rosiebaby Carrier! I chose the brown bamboo brocade and black twill. I thought it would be a good choice for fall. :D i just got that order. glad to know its going to a fellow october mama :) btw i took the photo off the website since that was the last of that fabric. here it is, though, so everyone can see how pretty it is...
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v517/nancydrew811/brownbamboo.jpg

ejm lol about your dh!!! mine wore the ring sling with stella at costco once while i was getting my eyes checked and by the time i was done he was so pissed off. he hated that thing. he loves the kangaroo korner fleece pouch and, of course, the mei tai i made ;) i wonder what he will do as far as wearing The Boy? he didnt really wear stella too much til she was older.

heather i am soooooooooooo happy for you!!!!!!!!! and spending the morning in the hospital is a small price to pay for such good news. you must be so happy!!! :D

jenjen0713 mine was like a pap, i think. i guess it varies by dr.

sdmama2be

08-19-2005, 12:54 PM

hmbay I am so happy to hear that..YEAH for great news:D

adoredh Cute pics...you look great.

cartersmommy cute PNP :) I hear you on the "fat fingers" I haven'tbeen able to wear my wedding band for about a month and it makes me so sad...I wear a cheap silver band that I used to wear on my other hand (my right fingers are chunkier than my left hand)

surftraitor I'm sorry to hear about your friend...you are being a huge support to her just by listening and not husband bashing. I'm hearing you on the busy weekend coming up...

stretch marks I can't see any. I have some from a huge growth spurt when I was younger so we shall see. My mom sisn't get any and I am the Vitamin E oil and Palmers Stretch Mark cream freak.

I am tired..we went to a concert last night, The Gypsy Kings who I absolutely love!!! Kaelyn was dancing all night long and I swear I felt her kick me in the ribs :D So I shouted to Tony "I think she's turned!!! Feel..." Of course at this moment the song ended and everyone around us heard me as well :eek: Tonight we are going to dinner with friends. Tomorrow we are going to friends' house for a bbq (all day) and then the Tom Petty concert (I get to be the DD lucky me :rolleyes: ). Sunday we are going to the Charger Game, Tony is the biggest fan and we have season tix..He has decided that Kaelyn's first Charger game will be on Dec 31st. We are also planning to put the crib together (finally) and pick up the mattress...What mattress did you get? We are looking at the Sealy 150 coil one (I think it is $70) that Baby Bargains recommended...

lorialys

08-19-2005, 01:17 PM

nancy drew Our hospital allows you to wear your own clothes to labor in if you want, so I'm sure they'd be okay with wearing something under the gown.

godsgift77 4 weeks ahead! Hope the ultrasound goes alright and you find out that he's not really that big.

dragonfly_1 Thanks!! I love the blue. :D It's my favorite color.

DianeCourt Thanks! I love it already, it is going to be so useful to have the changing table and wipes and diapers right there for middle of the night diaper changes.
As for nursing bra measurements, I think I read that you should get at least one cup size larger, and about the same size band that you currently wear. Though, if pregnancy has caused you to increase in band size already you will probably eventually go back to your old band size.

cartersmommy Thanks! I like your Pack 'N Play too, the cover for the top will be really useful! I wanted to keep ours in our bedroom to get used to it being in there, but DH made me move it to the baby's room. We're selling our house right now, so he wants everything to look perfect in the house, all the time!

cj Sorry your class got cancelled!

EJM LOL about timing your DH. How did he do? I took forever, but it is hard to crawl around on the floor and bend over to pull on things and stuff when you are 8 months pregnant!

adoredh You look so great! I love that shirt on you, very flattering. Yay for a good appointment, and great weight gain! Little Parker is too cute. Good job in soothing him. Actually, doctors are realizing that not all colicky babies are that way because of gas/reflux/food issues. That's only the cause in about 10-15% of colicky infants. Check out "The Happiest Baby on the Block" book for more info on that.

lml41981 I'm so glad your appointment went well and your doc is on board about trying colostrum first, and with the fluids.

Surftraitor Sorry to hear about your friend and her difficulties. I hope her DH straightens out soon!

hmbay Sorry to hear that the spotting increased and about the hospital trip. But what great news about your chances for a VBAC!!! That's awesome.

jenjen0713 Thanks! Glad you had a good appointment. I think in some cases they do both a vaginal and a rectal swab. Not sure though.

sdmama2be I have that mattress, and it works just fine, for the price. It isn't the firmest mattress ever, but 150 coils is the minimum you should have so I think it will be fine, SIDS-wise. I just know we're going to have a jumper who will ruin his mattress, so I didn't want to get one that is too expensive, you know?

Maternity leave Well, I'm not taking any since I'm quitting my job to be a SAHM. But I haven't decided yet when I will stop work. I'm trying to take it a week at a time until it gets too difficult to work anymore. My job isn't physically demanding, but it is hard to sit for long periods of time these days.

Gymboree I really wish we had one here. I'm sure there are other places and groups like that, but I don't exactly know how to find them. I hope I can find a playgroup or something to be part of. I'll be a SAHM, so I think it will really be helpful to have something to get me and DS out of the house from time to time.

No Cell Phone Policy Not sure, I guess I should ask next week in childbirth class.

Stretch Marks I have two little ones on my boobs, and a few small ones on my hips. But none on the belly, yet!

amtaylor

08-19-2005, 02:15 PM

Cell Phone: We can use them and the nurse even recommended that we use it to call the family and announce the arrival. That way Marc doesn't have to leave, they will know she's here and safe, and I can have some time to breastfeed and recover before the family comes back :)

Stretch Marks: I have them on my hips and butt... most can be covered by the undies, so I'm not too worried... we'll see if they start to migrate :rolleyes:

Astara

08-19-2005, 02:58 PM

Ahh! Too many S/O's to write.. I dont have time so I will have to try to play catch up later.

Thanks to who replied about Gymboree classes. I'll be a SAHM too so it will really help for me as well as gigi for socilization purposes and bonding. I've really only heard good things about it so im def. doing it. :) I cant wait~

Great pics adoredh!!!!

I love everyone's PNP too!

Have a great weekend ladies!!

Lvella43

08-19-2005, 03:04 PM

Ok, I've been gone a week and you ladies were chatty!! Some days there were over 50 posts!! I don't have time to catch up now, but I thought I'd pop in and say hello. I hope you all have a spectacular weekend.

Lex Let me know if you want me to post the pic here too :D

Cheers,
Lisa

Kanga

08-19-2005, 04:21 PM

Heather Glad to hear that your placenta has finally moved :D Nothing like waiting til the last minute and making you worried sick :rolleyes: Crossing my fingers for a very successful vbac for you, but i'm sure it's reassuring to know you can switch to csection if you want to.

Maternity Leave I will hopefully work until the day I deliver. I sit all day long at a computer, so if it gets too much for me to take, then I will leave early or if the dr. suggests that I stop working. I am still not positive if I will go back to work afterwards. I will only be bringing home about $400/mo after daycare costs, so we will see if we can swing it on just dh's salary. I would love to be a SAHM, but I think the budget cuts would be too much for dh.

Cell Phone I'm not sure about this. I really hope we can though, as most of the calls we make will be long distance. I'll have to remember to pack a phone card in my hospital bag.

Stretch Marks None yet, but I hope i don't jinx myself now :rolleyes: I'm not getting my hopes up yet, as I still have about 9 1/2 weeks to go.

Adoredh Great Pics! I have a friend with an 18 mo old daughter, and she had heartburn/acid reflux during her pregnancy so bad that her dd had acid reflux. She didn't cry (anymore than a normal infant) but spit up constantly. They had her on special formula, and it helped 110% and very much worth the high price tag.

lml Glad to hear your doc is on your side. I'm sure you're relieved. Hopefully your doc can get the point across to avoid this from happening to somebody else.

godsgift 4 Weeks :eek: Hopefully your doc is right, and that baby is just laying differently this time.

DianeCourt I just had my bfing class last night, and the LC said to just buy a couple, 1-2 cup sizes larger than you are now, and only open one of them so you can return the other one if need be. She also said that whatever size you are a 8-9 days pp is the size you'll stay.

Lorialys Great PnP. We are actually getting the same style, but dh just has to pick out the color. I personally could care less on the color, only the features are important to me...I never knew a man could be so picky about something like that. :rolleyes:

TigerLol at 11:27. She must have very important plans that cannont run late.

Surftraitor I'm in the same situation as your friend - still trying to adjust to newlywed life, although my marriage isn't in any danger. Dh does tend to go out a lot, but I just keep telling him he might as well get it out of his system before baby gets here. Although he'd never skip date night again if he had the nerve to try it once. Hopefully your friends dh will come to his senses when the baby arrives. Maybe you could offer to baby-sit one night to give them a date night out after their baby gets here?

I had my breastfeeding class last night, taught by one of the hospital's LCs. I couldn't convince dh to go but I really wish he would have gone. He now has his homework of reading the flyers that were sent home with me. :p The class was very informative, she had several pumps, nursing bras and other supplies for us to look at, and she even ran the pumps so we could hear how loud they were. Also, if any ladies in here are thinking about buying a pump/have recently bought one check with your insurance company to see if they cover any part of the cost. The LC said that many companies are starting to cover the cost to encourage breastfeeding.

I also got my bedding the other day. It only took 2 days to get here, instead of the 2 weeks they said it would. I will post pics once we get the mattress and the crib put together. Dh is on vacation all next week, so his job is to get the nursery ready. Now that my sister is off to college, my dad is planning on working on the crib so we can get that set up. It seems so surreal that everything is finally coming together.

QOTD Shortness of breath anyone? The last couple of weeks I've noticed that I'm breathing a lot heavier and am even short of breath. I know this is normal after walking up the stairs, walking a lot, etc, but it happens to me if i'm just sitting on the couch once in awhile.

scubasam

08-19-2005, 05:25 PM

33w 6d 34 wks tomorrow! Yay!

Happy Friday!

Took the day off of work and it's been sooo nice. Had lunch w/ a couple of my gf's, did some shopping and then just got back from my dtr appt. Up 4.5 lbs in 5 wks - not too bad! I think it's a total of 25 so far....and w/ 6 wks to go, if I can keep it to a lb per wk, I'll be happy w/ 31 total. I'm measuring about a wk behind but he wasn't concerned. I commented that everyone says my belly is really small for the stage that I'm at and that it concerns me that the baby isn't growing enough or something but he assured me that everything's on target. :D I hadn't heard this before but he said that a lot of it has to do with ab muscle strength/toning.....meaning most likely my muscles are staying toned enough w/ the workout I'm doing and that combined w/ where the baby is hanging out = smaller belly. Hhhmm. I just hope that muscle strength comes in handy in L&D!! ;) Carter is head down currently....which I kinda of figured anyway......he almost always seems to be except for a few flips here and there. We also talked about my wish for a water birth and I was glad to hear that my OB was supportive of it....although he's never personally done one.

Had some different contractions yesterday......BH has never been painful but twice yesterday I had significant pain w/ them and it totally freaked me out. They weren't consistent or very long by any means but man, made me seriously think about what will be coming my way soon!! Speaking of which, today was my last monthly appt - my next one is 2 wks and then every week after! :eek: :eek: :eek:

Next appts:
Sept 2nd
Sept 12th
Sept 20th
Sept 27th
And Oct 3rd (if I haven't delivered by then)

Hospital bag - So funny you guys mentioned this. DH was freaked out by my painful contrax yesterday and said "we need to get our bag packed asap." Made me laugh. I'm all concerned about getting the nursery done and he's concerned that I'll be preterm. lol. We haven't talked about it too much but we've mentioned the following things: slippers & socks (my feet are always cold), lightweight robe, magazines, DVD's, CD's, digi cam, camcorder, snacks, newborn & 0-3 mo outfit for Carter, personal toiletries, my own pillow, going home outfit for me, cell phones (which we can't use in the hospital but DH will just go outside), and probably his laptop. I know there are a bunch more things we'll end up taking because we always overpack! lol.

Stretchmarks - None yet, knock on wood. I have a few old ones on my hips from when I "blossomed" as a teenager but nothing else so far. Mom & sis both got them so I expect to but I'm being very good about lotioning up twice a day so hopefully that helps!

DH maternity leave - Todd started a new job a few months ago so he really doesn't have any significant vacation time accrued - his boss is being really sweet about our upcoming birth and has told him he can take 2 wks no prob. I'm sure, knowing DH, that he'll "work from home" for some of that time.

nursing bra - Um, yah. Haven't given it one thought yet. Suppose I should get on that, eh?

Shortness of breath - I had this really bad for a couple of weeks and then it got better. Not sure why. Maybe I just learned to adjust to it? Who knows!

Our big family/friends co-ed bbq/shower is tomorrow - I'm so excited! I have a lot of cleaning to do tonight but it'll be awesome to have everyone here. I peeked at our registry and some major things such as our stroller, high chair, convertible carseat, etc have been purchased which is so generous and a weight lifted off our shoulders. Yay!

Ok, I'm done taking up space here w/ ramblings. ;) Have a WONDERFUL weekend everyone!!!!

DianeCourt

08-19-2005, 06:15 PM

hmbay: So happy to hear your good news!

Here's how the nursery is coming along! DH did such a wonderful job on the wainscoting, don't you think? I absolutely love it! :D Since we took these photos, we rearranged the furniture & hung window treatments. Those are in the next roll of film. :rolleyes: Now all we need is our bedding, a few things hung on the walls, a ceiling fan, and a baby! Thanks for letting me share!

http://www.imagestation.com/picture/sraid182/pbe6ba47a035d732558c5d04ddce87e8b/f2be8589.jpg
http://www.imagestation.com/picture/sraid182/p2f4c946c72802f021a3c26bda8f704a1/f2be8393.jpg
http://www.imagestation.com/picture/sraid182/p78e7ea3a6851dae30906f3761bc5ee48/f2be82a9.jpg
This photo didn't turn out the best, but it's the closet organizer that I got at Target:
http://www.imagestation.com/picture/sraid182/p2edf197ed44a1211a1b1c6a218a2c127/f2be8220.jpg

cartersmommy

08-19-2005, 06:45 PM

Diane-- the nursery looks GREAT!! I love the wainscotting and the color and everything! :) very exciting!!!

hope you all have a great weekend!

nancy drew

08-19-2005, 09:29 PM

dianecourt the nursery looks great!!! my dh would be so jealous, he loves wainscoting. he wants to put it in every room of our new place :rolleyes:.

Shortness of breath anyone? oh yes!!! im getting to the point where i feel like i have to lean back or sit waaaaaaaaay straight just so i can breathe.

i went for a really long walk with stella today, and although it was supposedly pretty mild outside i was sweating and feeling like i was going to pass out. the rest of the day i have been feeling not quite right. i know i just overdid it this morning, i havent been walking in a week or so. but its scary. so why am i still up at this hour of the night?????? im a dummy! :p

lml41981

08-20-2005, 06:18 AM

Diane, the nursery looks fantastic! Now I gotta show mine. We haven't received our furniture yet (haven't even ordered the dresser yet. :o ), but here it is anyway. We still need to paint trim around the doors and the windowsill. DH and FIL worked three half days on this...MIL is making the bedding for the crib, which will coordinate perfectly with the glider (the glider is the exact same shade as the lavender paint by coincidence and the paint is the exact same shade as the quilt MIL is making and the fabric for the quilt and glider have the same diamond quilting pattern). The big dog is Patrick the Pup from FAO Schwarz...my cousin received one as a gift for her son and they cuddle up in it to read. I loved the idea, so we bought one off eBay because they are discontinued. We spent way too much money on it, though, so it is my push present. ;)

Anyway...the view as you are looking in and slightly left:
http://im1.shutterfly.com/procserv/47b5d601b3127cce93d9c88951c600000016108IbuHDlm1aE

View of the paints touching, Patrick and my attic door, which we attempted to disguise as much as possible. Still gotta find a white door knob:
http://im1.shutterfly.com/procserv/47b5d601b3127cce93d9c97111a600000015108IbuHDlm1aE

View of the alcove area where the crib will go. We'll also hang letters on the wall here, most likely. I don't know whether to do white letters because of the wainscot or do lavender letters...
http://im1.shutterfly.com/procserv/47b5d601b3127cce93d9c974909300000016108IbuHDlm1aE

I think we'll move that lamp to the dresser when we get a dresser (which will also be where we put the changing pad) and I'm gonna find a new lamp for that table. I think this one stands a little too high.
http://im1.shutterfly.com/procserv/47b5d601b3127cce93d9c960908700000016108IbuHDlm1aE