Due Sept 2017

[Savasanna]

Aww - is that the pic from your avatar? Was this a private scan you booked?

 

[AshNAmber]

The 3D scan photo is the best thing I've ever seen. Can't wait to meet my little boy thanks guys

you have me so excited for mine now!! EEK!! I booked mine last week for the 8th I'll be 16wks as well .. Seeing yours just has my heart melting!!!

 

[peach81]

Oh man... I'm so jealous of all of you already knowing the sex of your little ones. I won't find out until mid-May! I had a scan yesterday, but my doctor won't send me for another one until I'm at the 20th week. I'm so impatient!

Anyway, here's my little critter at just shy of 13 weeks. Very active; bouncing up and down, waving its arms, and then stopping to arch its head back and gulp down some amniotic fluid. I just know that this kid is going to be kicking the hell out of me for the next 6 months!

 

[Babybump2017]

Yeah that's from my scan the avatar pic! It was so real it honestly felt like my baby was laying right in front of us! SO clear too. Best £50 ever spent!

 

[Babybump2017]

Congrats peach!! Your pic looks so similar to my first scan pic at 12 weeks! Even the way the hand is positioned! Congrats I have to wait until April 19 for my 20 week scan, I already want to see him again!

 

[Savasanna]

Peach - how cute is your scan photo! My last ultrasound was 10w and they didn't give us a photo there. I can't WAIT to see our little bean again in 2 weeks and 2 days. But who's counting.

We found out the sex from the MaterniT21 test. If we hadn't had that test, we wouldn't have found out until the 4/7 scan (I'll be 18w5d then), too. The weeks are both picking up in speed and still feeling so slow!

I did tell my work, though. So check that off the list! I'm meeting with my boss' boss to work out my maternity leave on Monday. Excited for that and hoping I'll be able to take a full 12 weeks. (cross your fingers!) I *almost* wore a dress today that showed my bump.. but I chickened out and opted for another over-sized sweater. lol.

 

[peach81]

I told my boss today. He seemed pretty happy for me. I'll be taking the full 12 weeks that my job offers as well... unfortunately, it's unpaid leave.

 

[AshNAmber]

my jb doesn't even offer me 12 weeks. We are only allowed 6. However since I only work 2 weeks a month anyway I'll get 12 weeks.

 

[Babybump2017]

Where are you guys from? We get 6 months full pay, 3 months 3/4 pay and the final 3 months half pay in the UK, go back after a year.. sucks you have to take it unpaid.

 

[Savasanna]

The US. We don't have a maternity leave policy. Even when people talk about maternity leave - it's not leave like you're thinking of/have. My "leave" is really just banked sick time and short term disability. Most people just take the time unpaid, if they're able to. Those who can't, often return to work as soon as they can because they need the money. It's pathetic and disgraceful. (the lack of a policy - not the women doing what they need to to make ends meet)

 

[Babybump2017]

Yeah that's awful !!

 

[kittykat7210]

Baby bump I think that's your company not standard maternity!! Standard maternity in the UK is 6 weeks 90% pay and 33 weeks £140 a week then the final 13 weeks unpaid I'm jealous that you get so much!! But I agree that the U.S. Is awful for maternity!!

 

[Dani_b]

Does anyone know anything about being self employed and maternity pay/allowance in the uk ?

 

[Savasanna]

It really is. Even using short term disability only gives you 6 weeks at 60% pay.. AND you have a two week period where you're in a waiting time. So I'm approved for 6 weeks but I have to wait two weeks for my benefits to kick in. So really I'm only getting 4 weeks at 60% pay and the rest is either unpaid or I use my personal sick/vacation time to make it work.

Wanna know the best part of it? I'm one of the lucky ones because I have short term disability benefits. THAT'S the US' huge benefit. eye. roll.

 

[AshNAmber]

Yep. My first 2 weeks of "Maternity Leave" is my vacation time that I have saved up which is included in the 6 weeks of short term disability. So actually they are giving me 4 weeks and they will pay me 60% of my pay unless I have more vacation time saved then they will use that so I get 100% pay. Yeah our government is shitty when it comes down to this. I bet if men had babies they would get a year off with 100% pay.

 

[kittykat7210]

Dani I don't know specifically but there's loads of info on the government website, you might be entitled to maternity allowance being self employed but I don't know that for a fact

 

[Dani_b]

Dani I don't know specifically but there's loads of info on the government website, you might be entitled to maternity allowance being self employed but I don't know that for a fact

Thanks I'll take a look when I get a bit of free time

 

[peach81]

Technically, new parents are guaranteed up to 12 weeks unpaid leave by the Family and Medical Leave Act of 1993. It's a federal law that applies to full-time employees of companies that employ at least 50 employees within 75 miles. It's designed to protect peoples' jobs from being given away during their time off. But for people like me, who are the family's breadwinner, 12 weeks without pay is a hardship. I'm looking into other options: taking out a personal loan, working from home, short-term disability,... I'm hoping that I could possibly collect unemployment, but I doubt it, because I won't really be unemployed.

Only four states offer paid family leave: California, NJ (my state), Rhode Island, and NY (where I work). Unfortunately, NY's paid family leave law doesn't go into effect until January 2018... it'll be too late for me. And because I don't work in NJ, I won't be eligible to collect family leave from my home state.

Yeah... the U.S. really sucks in this department.

 

[Savasanna]

My old employer used to offer the full 6 weeks STD AFTER the 2-week waiting period. That's my biggest question for my current employer. If they go about it like AshnAmber said, then I'm not sure I'll be able to swing a full 12 weeks. But we'll see.

And yes. FMLA is kind of useless as it's unpaid. There's no way I could take 12 weeks off truly unpaid (i.e. without using banked sick/vacation time). I'm also concerned as I've heard that some employers won't let you use sick time past the initial 6 weeks of a maternity leave. So I suppose if that's the case then I won't be able to make the full 12 weeks either.

Ah well.. things to discuss on Monday. Glad I'll at least be able to make a plan then.

 

[Savasanna]

well alright then.. looks like my employer's waiting period for disability benefits is 30 days. So of a 6-week benefit, it looks like I'll qualify for 2. woohoo..