Cooking our little Christmas cakes - late Dec babies

[Meerkat]

Jaydee - Shame LO didn't want to play again. He must know you're watching him, bless. You're right he is cute, and it's amazing how much detail you can get on the 4D scans isn't it!

You said you're baking a for your hubby's birthday. I am also very proud today - I baked a cake last night. First time in about 10 years. Truly! DH's parents are coming for the weekend (if they can get here with the M5 being closed!) so I thought I'd make a porter cake. My friend went over to Ireland and had some porter cake there and then made some for us in the office. It was gorgeous, so I hope mine is too. DH was very amused when he came home after work and found me baking!

 

[DaisyBee]

Good for you being all domestic like Meerkat! Cake sounds yummy! Have a fun weekend with the inlaws! Im sure bubs is all safe and fine - isnt it weird how our bumps get in the way - I keep thinking I can squeeze through somewhere - yep not even close! I didnt know that about the milk coming out like a sieve - hopefully I learn more details at the breastfeeding class next week - I am so clueless! DH is dreading going - but they told me that he should come too - so he's getting dragged along. LOL

Happy bday to your dh JayDee! Im hoping to eat some kind of cake this weekend - my baby shower is sunday. I was told that they were considering NOT having cake!?!! It was my only request besides the no deli meat. So I restated my position on how important cake is to a pregnant woman! LOL We'll see if they get one or not - otherwise might have to go buy one myself on the way home - Ive been looking forward to the cake for weeks!

Jaydee - sorry your little man didnt want to play - but your pic looks really good! Maybe he likes to cuddle with things by his face - something to remember after he's born.

My boobs havent really grown either -not in cup sizes anyway - Ive had to go up # sizes but thinking that is from the fact that I seem to have gotten a fat back - uck!! I went shopping yesterday for something to wear at the shower as nothing I had seemed quite right. I actually went down a size in pants & up a size in the top. After trying on everything in the store I finally found something I really liked. So im opposite of my normal body - i'm usually bigger on bottom than on top - so shows wear my weight is going- Ive gained not quite 20 lbs so far & most of that was 1st tri when I was having ms & the only thing that sounded good was pastries & breadsticks - lol.

Emma - so glad your friend isnt stealing your favorite names! What a relief huh? Not sure about the flaky boob thing - havent noticed that - but my skin is really dry lately (all over) Is it like that??

Hope everyone has a good weekend!!!

 

[amerikiwi]

Jaydee, your little man is such a cutie!! Shame he didn't want to play more, but great profile pic! Happy birthday to your DH. How was the cake?

Daisy, congrats on the leaky boobs! When making my 3rd tri milestone list, I forgot to add that one. They say that those who leak during pregnancy generally have their milk come in faster. I haven't had any leaks, but would like some before bubs is born just to let me know that plumbing is working!

Meerkat, how did your cake turn out? Hope you're having a great weekend with the in-laws.

Emma, congrats to your friend and so glad she didn't steal your chosen name!!

I told DH yesterday that I was going to bake a cake today and that was before coming on here and reading about all the cakes of the weekend!! Daisy, hope you got a huge cake for your baby shower!

It appears this weekend is all about for the Christmas Cake mums.

 

[Emma1980]

awwwww Jaydee, looks like youve got an awkward lil bugger in there!!

I also wondered about the milk, im gutted my boobs havent grown at all! still a freaking A cup, NOT FAIR!

Nah Daisy its not at all like that, they kinda look scabby, like theres blood (well its not blood cos it wont wash off) in every crease? they look all bitty, like theyre disintegrating, not worried about it, i know our bodies are weird during pregnany so i'm just accepting it!

Geeez, get you all being domestic goddesses baking cakes! think you should all send me some!

 

[PieMistress]

Hi Chicks!

Hope you have all had fab weekends! Back to work tomorrow but it's getting scarily close to my finish date (ok, well not that close - 4th Dec, but close enough!!). When are other people finishing? This is 2 weeks before my due date - i'm not sure how optimistic i'm being leaving it that late though - ho hum!

Picked up a 2nd hand Bednest Crib from a lovely lady on here on Friday then spent the night in the camper van (near Edinburgh). It was absolutely freezing and we woke up to frost inside & outside the van!! Had a lovely touristy day in Edinburgh on Saturday then went to Ikea on the way home (also plumping for the Leksvik range JayDee - it's really lovely - what pieces did you get??)

Hope everybody's cakes turned out well! I'm on a soup mission this afternoon (Winter Ministrone & Spicy Lentil).

Boobs wise i've gone from a 34A to a 36C/D (!) I can't remember what they were like before! Have had no 'leakage' yet but got some nursing pads for my hospital bag today, along with a couple of emergency cartons of formula milk just in case the breastfeeding takes a while to kick in (likewise wouldn't mind a wee bit of leaky boob just so I know my 'plumbing' is working, that made me chuckle Daisy!)

My friend had a baby girl 2 weeks ago weighing a whopping 11lbs 15oz (!). She was 2w 4 days overdue and was induced but it didn't work so ended up having a C-Section but at that size am sure she is glad she did!!

Glad you managed to get a couple of scan pics JayDee - at least you got to see bubs on the screen again and know everything is ok, even if he wouldn't play ball

We are totally sorted with girl's names but struggling big time with boy's names. OH likes Ethan (i'm not so keen) and longer names that can be shortened whereas I like a shorter name (!) Don't like the strong Scottish ones too much (Angus, Hamish etc) but would like something with a celtic feel (but then again love simple strong names like Tom, Sam, Luke etc). Also like Fergus, Flynn, Finn, Frank and Freya but because OH's surname begins with an 'F' they are kind of no-goers.

Shame we all didn't live in the same place so could have a Christmas Mum's meet!!

Sorry for my usual long winded weekly posting! Time to hit the kitchen and get the veggies chopped for soup!

xx

 

[Emma1980]

I love the name Finn, Pie, i think thats gonna be my choice, well, i'll give him the option and go for Finley.... but Shay is also high up on my list, much to everyones dislike, bleh! funny but, i'll only really discuss names here after my issue with my friend stealing names lol, i dont mind whats yous steal its not like ya live close by lol!

So jealous of your boobies!!! was that a gradual thing, i remember when i first got pregnant and a lot of comments were "well at least you'll get boobs now!" how wrong were they? lol

what have you gone for for a girls name? top of my kist was Kadie, Cerys & Keira... i love them all so much, why cant i find a boys name i really love?! ARGH!

 

[amerikiwi]

Pie, congrats to your friend and thank goodness she had a c-section--that's a huge baby!

As for boobs, mine have grown and are also looking really dry--think i may get some nipple cream to keep them in shape. I'm following in your footsteps on the growth Pie: I've gone from 34A to 36C! Emma, there's still time for boob growth--I read some people don't grow until their milk comes in which is a few days after bubs is born.

It's Monday morning here, so back to work for me...

Hope everyone had a lovely (cake filled!) weekend

 

[JayDee]

Wow - it really was a cake filled weekend for most of us wasn't it - how odd! My cake was good, there is still about half of it left. Coffee cake with chocolate filling. I was also feeling arty so made a monkey face out of icing (DH likes monkeys, it's not just completely random) and used chocolate buttons to decorate. He seemed to like it anyway.....

Emma - I like both your names, but won't be stealing because my cousin already has a boy called Finlay, and neither that or Shey sound right with our surname. We didn't really think about names until we knew he was a boy, but I do think girls names would be easier to choose, I keep hearing loads I like, why is that?

Pie - we got the cot, wardrobe and changing table/chest of drawers thing. I think it looks really nice and a lot more expensive than it was Names-wise, can you agree on a boy's name that DH likes the long version of and you like the short one? Once baby is old enough he/she will decide whether they use the long/short version anyway, and you can still call them what you like. I had a friend at school who's mum always called her Victoria, but she choose to be Vicky for example.

Daisy - hope you had a great baby shower and a massive cake, I can't believe your friends were even considering not having a cake, it's not a party without one in my opinion (but then I like making cakes so am happy to provide it!)

Meerkat - I don't know what a porter cake is? Is it a regional specialty or do I know it by a different name? Don't want there to be part of the cake world I am missing out on Hope you had a good weekend with the in-laws.

DH and I are going away for a few days this week. Baby got him (ha ha) a tour of the Lotus Cars factory for his birthday. It's near Norwich which is miles away (we live in East Yorkshire - if you want a landmark think the Humber Bridge) so I got us a couple of nights in a nice hotel nearby. He seemed pretty pleased with this, but did say he'll want one of the cars after he's been (they are 2 seater go karts and I've already said no)!

Guess that will officially be our last trip before bubs comes along. 9 weeks still seems a long way off, but I think we are about ready for him now that his car seat and base turned up the other day (isofix is SOOO simple to use, I love it). I just need to wash and put away all of the clothes/bedding we have and we're there - yey!

 

[DaisyBee]

Happy Monday everyone - sounds like everyone had good weekends! I did get my cake & it was yummy (even if I only managed to get one piece!) There was so much food there - it was crazy! This baby shower was mostly family - and a few friends - & my brother was the host. It was at the firestation (he is a volunteer fireman in his town) Both my brothers have been so awesome - supportive - and the brother who lives closest was the one who put on the shower. The other one lives too far to come (arizona). Well - my brothers bought my expensive crib & the mattress - which they had already given me. Well after that + all the work and expense of the shower that my brother had I didnt expect any more- well one of the first gifts dh & I opened was from the brother that did the shower & his gf. I broke down crying in front of everyone when I opened the card & then I couldnt stop crying. I was completly sobbing for minutes- and couldnt stop - it wasnt just a little cry - I have never cried so hard! I finally got it together after being so embarrassed & was trying to explain why I was so emotional. Its not that often that a 26 yr old "guy's" guy would even be wanting to put on a baby shower let alone go so far above and beyond which he did. The whole place looked awesome with decorations & there was so much food which my brother and his gf made - with a beautiful bakery bought cake. To top it off I found out one of the presents was something my brothers gf made. It was a MASSIVE diaper cake made of different sizes of diapers & had tons of toys, socks, spoons, etc. all pinned on - it was so beautiful it looked like a professional made it! We got lots of presents from everyone which was fun but weird to open in front of everyone: clothes, toys, diapers, blankets & quilt, bouncer seat, books, and our stroller/carseat combo (from my parents). It was such a fun afternoon - but by the time we got home (it was 2 hrs away) I was sooo exhausted!

Pie - congrats to your friend! Such a big baby! I found out yesterday that my grandma (dads side) had all large babies (she had 7). My aunt (3 kids) told me 2 of her babies were over 10 lbs! I am built like my dads family (not like my petite mom) - and look very similar to all my dads sisters - so now Im worried!!! Not much I can do I guess! Soup sounds good - thats what Im going to do this afternoon! Thanks for the idea!

JayDee - sounds like a good bday present - hope you 2 have lots of fun! Weird thinking about a "last trip" isnt it? I realized yesterday it was my 2nd to last trip to my parents house - the last will be at the end of Nov. when we are planning an early xmas party. So after that we wont be there again til we have a baby in the backseat!

Amerikiwi - good idea with the nipplecream - I might try that too - maybe help my itching problem! Thats interesting - about the milk coming in faster if you leak ... maybe I should start researching more - sounds like you have been!

Emma & Pie - good luck with your baby names! They all sound lovely to me! DH & I have decided on a name (Megan Elizabeth) but I keep asking him if he is sure - it is such a big decision! I somehow feel that the moment she is born I will somehow totally change my mind on her name or some crazy thing! Is that weird?!?

 

[JayDee]

Daisy - sounds like your baby shower was fab, glad you had a great time.
I love the name for your little one, Megan was one of the girl's names in my head before we found out he was a boy so you get the thumbs up from me (not that it matters either way). I know what you mean about thinking you'll change your mind, I keep thinking I'll do that, whatever we decide now won't be able to make a final decision until we see him.

 

[Meerkat]

AK - Ahh yes the cake was good maybe I'd go so far as to say it was a success as DH's dad had 2 slices! But I have to say it wasn't as nice as my friends version of the same cake. But to be fair, she does want to open a cake shop whereas I just want to be able to cook one once every ten years or so!! How was yours hon? PS I've heard that there's a particularly recommended nipple cream which actually numbs any pain or soreness. I'll find out and let you know unless someone else knows off hand which one it is?

Emma - Don't you worry hon there's still plenty of time for your boobs to grow! Oh and I think Finn is a cute name, and Flynn too.

Pie - I'm leaving work on 20 Nov and it can't come soon enough. I've been feeling so tired this last week or so. Congrats to your friend! And wow what a huge baby, made me wince just reading about it!! Was there any reason why she was so big?

JayDee - Ha yes the porter cake is made of a strong stout called Porter, but I used Caffreys for mine. I love coffee and walnut cake maybe I'll have a go at making that next. You sound like you're quite organised now and wouldn't be too caught out if the turned up early. I have 10 weeks to go and it seems ages but I know it isn't really. I have so much still to get...

Daisy - Ahh it sounds like your family did you proud at the baby shower. They sound lovely! Do you have any pics of the diaper cake?
And you will let us know how you get on the BF lesson next week won't you, I'm keen to find out more about leaky, seivey boobs or any other news!!

We had a nice weekend with the inlaws thanks, but like JayDee and Daisy said, it was strange saying goodbye knowing that next time we saw them the baby would be outside of my tummy!

We took the boat out for a couple of hours sailing on Saturday for probably the last sunny day before it comes out of the water for winter. Hmm actually I wonder how well sailing and babies mix? DH reckons he'll be sailing alone next year. He may be right!

 

[JayDee]

Hi all

I'm back, DH loved the trip to see all the cars, which was the idea. Was nice to have a couple of days away.

Think we timed it well as well because all of DH's family (who live nearby) seem to have come down with some sort of bug/suspected swine flu. DH was panicking because we saw them all at the weekend, but so far we both seem to be ok, hopefully they will be too.

Meerkat - yes, I think we'd be ok if baby decided to make an early appearance, the only major thing we don't have is a baby monitor, and we're deliberately waiting to buy that so the guarantee doesn't waste away with the thing sat in the box. Even if you have a lot to get, I'm sure you could get it all quick enough if you needed to.

I'm not sure how well babies and sailing mix either, I'm sure you'll be able to figure it out when baby arrives and decide for yourself.

Given the amount of people we know who are ill at the minute, think we're planning a weekend in watching the latest series of 24 on dvd - what an exciting life we have these days - haha.

 

[SnailPace]

Hey, I'm due December 20th. I feel like I fit in here!

 

[DaisyBee]

Well, I had my breastfeeding class wed. night. I learned some good things - & was glad I went. They showed us technique for latching & how to hold the baby. (If anyone wants all the details let me know) We were right about the sieve - it all comes out the nipple but in little holes throughout the nipple - not just one in the middle. Which after paying more attention to my leaking makes sense. She said that some people leak during pregancy but not everyone will have it happen. After the baby is born you can have issues with leaking esp. if you hear ANY baby crying or if you are excited sexually. LOL Not good news for our dh's!

Advice that I found interesting: #1 we should not be wearing underwires - now or after the baby is born! I bought maternity underwires when I was shopping last week!! GRRR! She said that it could affect the milk ducts.
#2 Do not use nipple shields - unless your dr or lactation specialist tells you to - they could damage your nipples!
#3 Breastfeeding should not hurt - even a little - & if it hurts its because the baby is not latching on correctly. She said to have the nurses watch me nurse while Im in the hospital until I go home to get feedback on how they think it looks (latching & position). I should call if when at home I have any pain.
#4 Breastfeeding is like a dance between you and your baby - that neither of you have tried before - you may step on each others toes -but the more you practice the easier it becomes.
#5 You dont need a pump until you plan to go back to work - they didnt give any advice to what kinds because they said we would need to schedule an appt. with a lactation consultant for 1 on 1 - because everyones needs are different.
#6 The first 4 weeks you need to breastfeed often - every 1-3 hours & sometimes you will feel like that is all you are doing - but it makes your brain realize it needs to make more milk.
#7 Dont use pacifiers or bottles during the 1st 4 weeks - it can confuse the baby.


Good idea with waiting for the baby monitor JayDee! I hadnt even thought about the warranty part - so will be waiting too.

Hope everyone has a good weekend!! I was excited today - realized I'm in the 2nd to last box on my ticker...... Crazy!

 

[Meerkat]

Hi Snailpace and welcome! Hope you're well.

Hey Daisy, thanks for sharing your bf'ing info with us. I particularly like the idea of the dance between mum and baby learning how not to step on each others toes! And I'm pleased to see my friends weren't teasing me about the seive although it still seems a bit odd!!

Congrats on reaching your next ticker box, it's exciting isnt it. It's funny to think that in a few months we'll all have had our babies! Will we even have time anymore to come on here and share our stories? I hope we still do

 

[amerikiwi]

Well ladies---my plumbing works too!!

I had my first official breast leak. We're on holiday in Brisbane for my brother in law's wedding. The wedding was absolutely beautiful!! Later that night I was having a cup of chamomile tea before bed and my DH looks over and says "Did you spill tea on yourself or are you lactating?" It was definitely not the tea, and it has stained my shirt. Daisy, have you figured a way to get colostrum out of clothes? I was amazed at how big the stain is-the seive thing makes a lot of sense. One question though, is it OK to leak from only side only? Right boob leaked and left was perfectly dry.

I'm loving the sunshine and beach here in Aussie! How's everyone's weekend?

 

[JayDee]

Wow Daisy, you did well remembering all those tips, or did you get a leaflet to take away?

Sounds like it could be quite hard work, I guess we'll see how many of us end up being able to do it....

Meerkat - I hope we'll still have time to check in and say hello, even if it's not as regularly as we do now. Hopefully our babies will sleep long enough to allow us the odd half hour on the computer - fingers crossed!

SnailPace - hi, welcome along. We're due on the same day, do you know if you're having a boy or a girl or a surprise?

AK - glad you had a good weekend at your brother's wedding. Always good to get some slightly out of season sunshine as well. Also glad that your plumbing decided to wait until you were back in the hotel room to show you it was working, might have been quite hard to hide if it'd happened earlier in the day.

 

[Meerkat]

AK - I think it's normal to happen on one side only. My Mum said she was horrified that nobody told her when she was breastfeeding on one side the other one could leak at the same time!! So I think they just 'do their own thing' from what I can gather.

JayDee - Yes I'm sure we will find time to say hello and no doubt we'll be discussing our baby feeding/pooing worries etc!

 

[Emma1980]

Hey ladies...

Yes i hope we all manage to keep in touch when babies are here, im gonna be getting quite lonely in here arent i, when you all run off to give birth i'll be the only one left!

Is everybody here on facebook? add me if ya like www.facebook.com/emmalou80

Ive had bad braxton hicks the last couple of days, at least i hope thats all they were, not had any yet today so thats a good thing, they were getting a little too regular for my liking!

 

[DaisyBee]

Emma - if you have more than 4 -5 in an hour then I would call someone. Also - if they seem to be happening alot I was told to drink a couple of glasses of water and lay down on my left side. My braxton hicks only seem to happen when my baby is most active - last night I had the strongest one I've had. It was a little uncomfortable - while all the ones I've had before were there - but didnt hurt.
And you never know about being the last one on here to give birth - you might even be the first in our group!

Amerikiwi - my leaking hasnt gotten to my shirts yet - only my bras... so sounds like your leaking lots! I have noticed mine leaking at different times (not together) & seem to notice it the most when I dont have a bra on. (I can feel it) I'm only leaking tiny little amounts though - not sure about the staining? Mine has come out of my bras without a problem.

JayDee - I was making myself remember about the breastfeeding so I could let everyone know what I had learned so that in 2 months when I cant remember what the class was about that I could come ask you guys what I said. LOL Also since I had dh stay home and repaint the nursery I wanted to explain to him what to expect. We (he) had painted the nursery and then we decided we didnt like the color - so now he repainted it pink. I hadnt really wanted pink - wanted something more neutral - but the light tan color looked horrible & dh said pink would look most like a little girls room. So slowly - its coming together... hopefully we will go pick out carpet in the next few days. Depends on dh's work schedule - he's been working tons lately which is typical for this time of year.

Meerkat - Ive been more tired too lately - & I'm not even working anymore! Im sure the next month will fly by and you'll be off work too! I've realized I didnt get hardly any pics of the baby shower - I have it all on dvd though. Im going to ask some of my relatives that had cameras to email me some of the pics - someone has to have a good shot of the diaper cake!

Pie- as long as your still feeling good then 2 weeks should still be plenty of time (getting done with work that is). My mil reminds me all the time that she worked until she gave birth & she is on her feet all day & went 2 weeks overdue. (Think she's trying to make me feel guilty about being on leave already?? Hmmm Yes!! LOL)