First Time Mom's - Due March/April 2013

[MrsHippo]

Hi Alex your job must be hard. Mine is quite emotional (I work with cancer patients). I couldn't imagine what it would be like to work with poorly babies
As for size... Not really had anything said to me other than 'your still so slim' ect. A couple of people say 'your getting bigger' but EVERYDAY!!! Surely I don't get noticeably bigger over night, every night??? I'm sure they say it because they have nothing else to say to me!

I've had a runny nose on and off for a while now which is a common pregnancy symptom but I worry I'm getting a cold everytime I get it!

I'm bored at work, am ... No sorry, was on my lunch. Was supposed to start working again 10 minutes ago hopefully my afternoon won't go too slow then it'll be home time

 

[doggylover]

Hi Alex! Congratulations on your little yellow baby to be! Your job must be so hard all the time, never mind now. My bro is a dr and he always said the one thing he couldn't do is neo-natal, and how much he admires the people who do.

Afm - duvet day. Sadly not an ounce of enjoyment in that as I woke at 4am being sick and didn't stop for five hours. So I'm still in bed, have been sleeping all day, but luckily haven't been sick again in the last few hours. Feel awful as I had so much to do at school today and I've out loads of kids behind in their work. Although then I remember I probably to his from one of the wee beggars and don't care!!! And because I am in bed still my back is killing me. But every time I go to get up I start to heave...

 

[I Love Lucy]

Hayley, I still get the occasional MS. It went away mostly at weeks 15-16 and then returned weeks 18-19 but haven't really had it come back too bad.

Lauren, I crave all kinds of things. Mostly foods that aren't really good for me. Right now I want a box of Kraft Mac and Cheese.

Alex, welcome! I'll add you to the list on the first post. Sorry about the negative comments you get from people, I haven't had people comment on my size but I have found that most people in general tend to annoy me whenever they do make a comment about my pregnancy.

 

[MrsHippo]

I can't believe you're still getting ms Hayley. I've been out with my friend this evening whose baby is three months old now and she was telling me how she had ms all the way throughout her pregnancy... BUT now is thinking about baby number 2 lol. So it must be a distant memory for her now I hope your up and running again soon though.

One problem I have had recently and sorry if this is too much info for people!! I don't usually talk about this problem.... Well not at all if I'm honest. I'm a very private person, even with OH. For a little while now I will occasionally have an upset stomach but it's manageable. But more recently I have been waking up in the middle of the night in agony and have to run to the toilet. Last night however, I woke up in agony again and ran to the toilet as I had the urge to go... Very quickly too! But instead it was just trapped wind and lots of it but the toilet issue is driving me mad, for days i am constipated as hell to a point where it hurts to go then all of a sudden it comes like I've eaten something funny... Then back to being constipated. It's driving me mad as I feel as though I've got stomach ache all the time!! I'm sitting here now and all i can hear is my stomach making awful noises!! But I don't need to go now... Or feel as though I need to 'release' gas lol. But I bet you any money I'll be up in the night. It's sooo embarrasing. In a way I am grateful it comes at night as I'd do anything to prevent it from happening in the day because of how embarrassed I'd be if I had to do it at home with Adam here or at work! Please tell me someone else is going through it too lol??!!!

 

[baby_nurse]

They do say no one does gas like a pregnant woman!!

 

[LiverpoolLass]

Laura- Thanks! I feel much better today. I hope your cold doesn't stick! Maybe it was walking in the rain to get the supernoodles that did it?!! lol. I hope they were nice though! Mmmm I love super noodles....

Alex - Hi and welcome! Congratulations on your little yellow bundle! Have you got any feelings on whether baby is pink or blue?
Being a neonatal nurse must be a tough job, I imagine it can be very rewarding at times too when things work out well! Thank goodness for people like you being able to do it!
Ugh the rude comments....I've had lots of them too. Its usually the ones where women make comments comparing my size to the size they were at my stage in pregnancy that get me most....along the lines of "WOW you're SO big for xxx weeks....I didn't even start showing until I was xx weeks!"...SO?! Do you want a badge or something?! lol. WHat kind of comments have you had?

Sarah[ - Oh no! I hope you're feeling better. I've been reading on Facebook that TONS of people across the UK have been struck down with a winter vomiting bug....I'm thinking that my constant vomiting yesterday was maybe down to that rather than pregnancy, and it seems funny that you've been vomiting and having back pain too...Thats exactly how I was yesterday. Maybe it is something going around?
It's so easy to blame everything on pregnancy, I forget it could be other general illnesses too lol.
If it is what I had, it shouldn't last as I'm feeling much better today....no more vomiting and just mild back pain now, much more mobile than yesterday!

Lauren - yep it SUCKS! lol. Though in all honesty, as tragic as it sounds, I'm actually getting used to it! Yesterday was particularly bad but in general its become pretty much a standard part of my life now that the first job of the day is to throw up. I actually can't imagine not doing it lol.
We've already planned when we're going to try for numbers 2 and 3, so I'm obviously at peace with it lol....although I'm hoping like crazy that its not so bad the next time around!!!!

Aww, the toilet issues sound awful :/ I havn't had anything THAT intense but I have certainly had the upset tummy/sudden urge feeling more than normal and more so in the past week or two....and the gas has been an issue throughout the pregnancy for me! I am usually very embarrased by that kind of thing, but I have had to let that go and now OH is used to it! I'm sorry, there's just nothing I can do...it has to come out or I will literally explode!!!!
Constipation hasn't bothered me yet though.

I vaguely remember my Dr mentioning it though, when he was first discussing the pregnancy symptoms with me...I'm sure he was telling me what to take if it happens but I can't remember. Maybe its worth mentioning to your Dr or midwife? Embarrasing but they'll be used to it and they might be able to help you find some relief!

 

[linzylou]

Hi, Alex! Welcome and congrats! Your job sounds amazing -- it must be tough, but I'm sure the care you give to those babies is so appreciated!

I have mixed feelings about sex these days. I want it more now than ever but most the time my body doesn't cooperate and I end up feeling uncomfortable, tired, unattractive, etc. It's so frustrating. And now DH tells me he's worried about about the baby - that if we can feel her move, then she should be able to feel us. There's only so much I can say to make it less weird for him.

I'm craving all of the wrong things right now. I can eat whole-grain Cheerios, fruit, a handful of almonds, salad, etc., and not feel safisfied until I've had that bowl of ice cream or a cookie! I try to limit myself to one small treat a day but it's hard. The only "healthier" alternatives that satisfy my sweet tooth are strawberry jam and low-fat vanilla yogurt with cinnamon. My GTT is coming up and I'm a little paranoid as diabetes runs on both sides of my family.

Lauren, I'm the same. I'm either constipated or have diarrhea. Or sometimes I feel like I really, really have to go and then (TMI!) it all just ends up being gas. It's worse at night, too. So you're not alone!

AFM, I have a doctor's appointment tomorrow. I'm also wondering when we can register at the hospital and start taking prenatal classes. We ordered the glider for our nursery and have been picking up some of the more "boring" things on our list such as mattress pads, etc. DH and I found our baby books and it's been fun to compare birth stats, whether we were late/early, milestones, and everything.

Oh, and DH is stuck on the name Sarah. He loves that it means "princess" (she will no doubt be his princess) and that it shares his first initial. Even though the name isn't my first choice, I can really see our LO being called that. What do you ladies think of Sarah Lynn? Honestly, does it sound too much like Sarah Lee (the desserts)??

 

[doggylover]

Lindsey I think your dh has WONDERFUL taste in names!! And he is just right about it meaning princess- and I think it's so lovely that he wants to use it because of that! I actually used to know a girl called Sarah Lee (lee was her last name) so Sarah Lynn doesn't sound bad to me at all.

Hayley my mum said it was front page in the daily mail yesterday about this vomiting bug- the rest of my family have had it, apart from dh who will presumably get it later this week. I didn't get too much ms but this was totally different than ms for me - I'm hoping you had it and your ms isn't coming back. Feeling much better today but of work again to fully recover.

Lauren I have never been so gassy in my whole life. It's insane. Luckily dh and I are pretty open about that stuff (although not with anyone else - I'd die of embarrassment!) but it's horrible. My stomach aches so badly sometimes I have to go and lie down.

 

[Cherrybump]

Hey Alex, congrats on staying yellow.

Hey ladies. feel like im in a out of here just now lol didnt even come online yesterday. I had my midwife yesterday but i thought it was half 2 but it was meant to be 1.50 lol lucky she gave us a ring and we ran up lol i stay right next door to it so it aint so bad.

Found out baby heartbeat is 148 and the first time we heard it i didnt know what it was so when she popped the new bit paper in my folder i had a peek it was 140. she sai was little fast but its ok. i think that may have been because i just ran from my house up to see her lol. everything else is all good also.

I think alot of people are ill at this time of year and we all are feeling bit poorly so i do hope you all feel better soon. ive still got this nasty cough that just want shift.

Oooh something exciting. i was in bed last night just watching a youtube video. I layed my hand on my belly were baby normally kick but i never know when she shall do it. I must have been 20 mins in to lil video and i got a nice little define kick or punch lol. told ryan about it think he was little gutted he didnt get to feel it but it was my first time feeling baby from outside xx

 

[Laura91]

DogglyLover - Sorry you're feeling poorly! My mum came round yesterday and told me to start carrying hand gel around with me so that I can clean my hands all the time Apparently if someone who has the bug touches something, it stays on there for up to 8 hours

Lots of hand cleaning ladies!!

MrsHippo - The only problem i've had is (way TMI) that when I do go, it hurts! And (again, TMI) sometimes there's blood on the tissue
Seems to have eased up a bit in the last week or so though (*touchwood*)

LiverpoolLass - Glad you're feeling better! The noodles really weren't worth it I had them last night and ended up leaving them!

LinzyLou - Sarah is a lovely name Especially with it meaning 'princess'!

CherryBump - Glad everything went well at your MW appointment. Yay for being kicked on the outside!

Hope everyone gets better soon!! xx

 

[MrsHippo]

I'm glad you felt baby cherry I only feel movement from the outside once in a blue moon because she goes all shy as soon as we put our hands on my belly!!

I'm glad you said that Laura because I too have had the pain along with blood. It almost feels like I've torn myself haha OMG. It's awful. Not a pleasant experience at all. I read that we should eat certain things and drink plenty of water to help prevent problems. I drink so much water at the moment and I've not noticed any difference.

Lindsey, I like that name its traditional but sweet.

 

[I Love Lucy]

Lauren, I had some serious constipation problems when I was in the first trimester. My doctor basically suggested drinking lots of water, using stool softeners, and eating high fiber food or using a fiber supplement. I really hope you get some relief soon.

Lindsey, it sounds like your DH is starting to feel like my DH. The idea that the baby can feel us moving around too really freaks him out. My body also doesn't cooperate when DH and I do have sex. We basically have to use lube all the time now because even when my body does cooperate it's still not enough. I guess it's true what they say about the increased blood flow causing the vaginal walls to swell a bit making you feel tighter.

I also really like the name Sarah Lynn, it doesn't make me think of Sarah Lee at all.

AFM, DH and I have been trying to feel Aiden move on the outside but haven't had any luck yet. I thought I could feel him but DH says he feels absolutely nothing so maybe I never felt anything either. DH and I have to register for our baby shower soon so that's the next exciting thing we have happening besides just a regular check up on Dec 18.

 

[linzylou]

Sarah, I knew you'd like that name! I wanted Shelby for a long time but now it doesn't feel right. I guess I just didn't want DH to have the satisfaction of knowing I liked his name better.

Cherry, how awesome that you felt the baby from the outside! That's my favorite thing these days. It used to happen every once in a while but now I can feel it pretty much all day long. It never gets old.

Brittany, it's just not fair. My minds want sex but my body doesn't. Especially on days where even taking a shower makes me tired. Hopefully it gets better soon!

I don't know if the baby is going through a growth spurt or what, but all I've wanted to do for the last 2-3 days is eat and sleep. Doctor's appointment went well and I scheduled my gluscose test for December 27th (guess I'll have to watch myself around the Christmas candy). V-day is Saturday! 16 weeks to go... it's going by so fast now! Does anyone else feel that way?

 

[doggylover]

Cherry yay for feeling baby from the outside!!! Now it's happened once you can be sure it'll be pretty much constant. My dh now prefers to watch for kicks rather than feel, and he goes "ooohhh!!! Was that one?!" Every single time there is a kick (so at the minute roughly every 5 seconds! Sounds like all our babies are very active at the minute!)

In terms of people suffering from tough BM, I would recommend lots of tinned or dried fruit. I love fruit because its so sweet (real sweet tooth here!) and it helps so much in the bum region too!

Laura some of our kids at school bring hand sanitizer with them and use it non-stop! Unfortunately surrounded by those little germy so-and-sos all day I haven't a hope of ever staying germ free!

Brittany, try getting dh to watch for kicks. I saw that myself before I know I felt any from the outside. And it's so hard for us to tell isn't it? Where are you registering for your baby shower? That will be so much fun, I can't wait to see the stuff you pick and get, how are you getting on with the craft projects you had begun?

Lindsey I've heard a lot of people mention the glucose test but I have never heard of it here...is it for gestational diabetes? I also can't believe you are almost 24 weeks!! That just seems insane! And I'm jealous since I just turned 21

Afm, I am totally better from my vomiting bug, but I think I may have very mild sciatica. For weeks I have had a shooting pain down my left butt cheek if I move in certain ways. It hasn't been too bad before now, but today it was so bad. My sister has sciatica so I asked her and she said it sounds like it may be. So I must add this to my ever growing last of things to talk to my midwife about next Wednesday!

 

[LiverpoolLass]

Linzy - I think Sarah Lynn is a lovely name. It doesn't remind me of Sarah Lee at all! It reminds me of a friend of mine who lives in the US...she has a Saria Lynn. You don't hear Lynn used much for children in the UK, it seems more popular in the US...I think it works well as a middle!
Isn't one of us having a little Lynn Marie??? I swear I saw that name mentioned....

Sarah - I'm glad you've over the vomiting bug! Is sciatica something thats treatable? I've heard of it but I don't know much about it really. Hope your midwife is able to help!
I have to have a glucose test too, I think at 25 weeks but that may be because I have a family history of diabetes? Did you midwife ask you about a history of diabetes at your booking in appointment? If so and you didn't a history, you probably won't need the test.

Brittany - I only felt a kick from the outside myself for the first time yesterday. I'm not getting CONSTANT kicks yet - I tend to have an hours worth of activity at a time, usually at night, but I don't feel much at all throughout the day unless my bladder is full!
Last night I just happened to put my hand on my stomach at the right time and I felt it. You and DH should hopefully get to feel it any time now!

AFM - I'm in the process of getting my ante-natal care changed over from Devon to Liverpool now. I found out today that I basically have to have the original Booking In appointment all over again and fill out alllll those forms again like we did right at the start!
I hope it all goes smoothly.
I'm also hoping they are more pro-active with my care here, as today I FINALLY received a letter referring me to the birth choices clinic to discuss the option of a c-section - the meeting I had about this was almost a month ago, and they've only just sent through the appointment....for the very end of JANUARY?!
I am NOT waiting until the end of January to even have the discussion with anybody about it! One of the complications of my disease is the possibility of early labour, and an elective c-section should be scheduled for around 2 weeks before due date anyway, so I'm sorry but leaving the birthing discussion until 10 weeks before my due date is just not good enough in my opinion....by 10 weeks before, I want to KNOW exactly what my birth plan is...not only just be starting to talk about it!

Somebody I know with the same condition as me just went into labour 6 weeks early, and she had an awful time and ended up needing an emergency section....it terrifies me, I just want somebody to listen to my concerns and agree to what I feel is best for me and the baby

 

[BStar]

Hiya Ladies, wow I am am terrible at keeping up to date on this forum, it's ridiculous I tell ya. I always feel like I'm behind on the info I'm replying to and that i'm missing out on congratulating people. I promise I dont do it intentionally I just have a brain like a sieve at the moment and I can only reply when I'm at work hehe. So I shall try and remember everything i have read. But if i miss you sorry it was un-intentional. here goes...

congrats on your pink bundle Cherry and that is such a cute scan pic!!

Liverpoollass sorry for your family's loss and sorry it took me so long to say so and i think what you are going say to your friend once your son is born is brilliant!! Also I hope you can get someone to sort out about discussing your c-section option. It seems some people are a bit lax about things when they see and/or deal with pregnant women a lot, they seem to think they know everything, which is very frustrating when it’s your first child and you just want someone to listen to you. Goodluck and kick some butt

Linzylou, i have also noticed the cone shape, mine is just above my belly button though. i noticed it a few months back and was freaked out by it until i mentioned it to my mum and she said she had noticed she had it with me. then one of my mums friends said it's just my muscles or something so that put my mind at ease hehe. I think the name Sarah Lynn is very pretty and doesn’t make me think of the dessert company

Doggylover i have no idea which position my baby is in or where my uterus starts or ends either. I was starting to get worried as i hadn't felt many definite movements but yesterday and today feels like my bubba has learnt to do flips, and I can tell it's definitely the baby because its much to low to be my stomach flipping over. Also I have been meaning to mention that Isabelle is the name that we have pretty much chosen if we have a girl and Alex was one of the names we had down for a boy. I think we have settled on Max for a boy now though. But until we meet the lil bundle we can't know for sure, cos i believe that the name has to suit the baby. Only a few more months until we know now though

Laura91 your baby room is looking awesome!! we haven't started decorating ours but we have decided it is going to be a pale green paint on the walls and a jungle theme. i'm just having troule deciding what cot set to get and now i'm even debating about trying to make it myself guess i'll see what i can find since I didn’t find much yesterday when I went looking and how lazy i am hehe

Baby_nurse Hi and welcome and yay for another team yellow I think there is only the 3 of us in here

I know what you girls mean about the sex thing, i feel like i want it but once things start i get uncomfortable and cranky. i feel bad cos hubby always says how long it has been since we have but most of the time i just can't be bothered, i would much rather sleep or watch tv. I'm such a terrible wife aren't i?

I have been pretty lucky with receiving things from relatives, I was given a lot of girls stuff from my cousin and a bunch of boys stuff from my aunty. I also got a secondhand cot from a girl at work for $80 which is soooo much cheaper than alot of the new ones out there, I just need to buy a cot mattress. Baby furniture is so ridiculously expensive!!

I had a terrible cold for the past 2 weeks and have only finally started to feel almost normal again. I went to the chemist to find out what i could take for my sore throat as it felt like i was swallowing razor blades and i got told all i could have was panadol, non medicated throat lozenges and a nasal spray.... how a nasal spray was going to help my throat i have nooooo idea!!

It's been a while since I had my scan and I got some alright pics but the sonographer wasn't a very nice lady. i'm pretty much over it now and i found out i have a low lying placenta so i have to go back for another scan at 32 weeks, so i will make sure to ask for the nice lady i had at my 12 week scan . It's a lil scary but it's a good excuse to get more pictures and another dvd. has anyone else had the opportunity to get a dvd? it's pretty cool coz you get the heartbeat on their as well so can play it and hear the heartbeat which is nice. I was almost tempted to find out the sex but as the lady was so horrible it made it easy to stick to the surprise idea, and I’m very glad we have it makes it so exciting, kind of like Christmas morning. She also said that our lil one was sitting in my pelvis, which matches up with what I had been thinking, coz I get a lot of discomfort/movement down low.

As for sleeping I find I am most comfortable on my back, especially since I have had a cold. But I have been told that you’re not supposed to sleep on your back because it can squash the vena carva vein (which is on your right side) and can increase the chances of stillbirth. So I sleep with my body/maternity pillow under my right hip/side of my body and then usually through the night I will move to my left side. I LOVE my maternity pillow it is such a sleep/life saver!!
Has anyone else started getting puffed out/out of breath a lot quicker than usual? I get it especially when I walk up the 12 or so stairs at work to the lunchroom hahah by the time I get to the top I huffing and puffing.

As for cravings I am loving kraft chicken flavoured easy mac and beef and cheese meat pies. Plus anything which is generally not healthy/good for me. Oh and iced mochas mmmmm I’d love one right now.

Ok so I am very sorry about the novel I have just written, I promise to try to stay more up to date with reading and comments

 

[Laura91]

LinzyLou - That's all I want to do at the minute too! I get home from work and find myself looking through the cupboards and then once we've eaten tea, i'm back there again

DoggyLover - Glad you're better but boo to the sciatica! My mum suffers from it so I know it can cause terrible pain Definitely ask your midwife about it - although I always make a list of things to ask/talk to her about but forget until i've left!

LiverpoolLass - Can they not just send all your notes and paperwork across for you? That's ridiculous that you have to go through it all again Hope you manage to re-arrange that appointment too, the end of January does seem a little far away..

BStar - Thank you We decided to try and get most of it done whilst we can as both of our jobs are a bit rocky at the moment So at least if it's done now, we won't have to worry about it later. My mum's making my cot set and curtains for me as I couldn't find any in the shops that I wanted

AFM - Nothing really new today. I'm so tired it's unreal and really didn't want to come into work today I'm hoping it goes quick and I will be at home with my jamas on snugged on the sofa before I know it (even if that is 7.5hrs away..). Was it frosted over everywhere else this morning? On my way to work it was freezing!

 

[doggylover]

BStar oh my gosh we also LOVE the name Max! It may actually be my favourite, but sadly our last name is Jay, and we think Max Jay is just too short and clippy sounding We aren't a huge fan of any of the longer verions (Maximillian, Maxwell, Maximus) so we can't even use one of those and just shorten. We're both pretty gutted about not being able to use it as we really love it. I hope a low lying placenta isn't a very bad thing? But at least you get to see your LO again in a few weeks! And well done on staying !

Hayley, I was reading up about sciatica and it says it can be treated within 6-12 weeks, so I'm hoping I'll be able to get it sorted. My sister showed me an exercise she uses, but i couldn't do it because my bump got in the way

Laura I was the same this morning. Just so tired and unmotivated. I'm ploughing through the day hoping it disappears quickly. ANd very frosty and cold with us. Not good since I haven't got a maternity coat. So I wore an H&M hoody over my dress to work! Snuggly though!

 

[Laura91]

DoggyLover - See, we had the opposite problem - OH's last name is 12 letters long so we didn't want to pick a long first name and give the poor thing a mouthful of a name
I do like the sound of Max Jay though, he could shorten it even further to MJ

Glad the sciatica thing is treatable, although 6-12 weeks seems a long time! Saying that.. these 23 weeks have flown!

I didn't buy a maternity coat, I just got a cape style one (picture in my last journal update) so that I can still use it after baby is here I literally don't care what I look like lately (poor OH!) as i'm generally that tired in a morning, I just throw anything on x

 

[doggylover]

Oh i know what you mean, yesterday I looked like a bag lady because I was so tired when I got up I just put anything on!!!

I like that coat a LOT. where did you find it? I don't want to buy a maternity one (ridiculously expensive) but I don't see anything that I like that's suitable! I'm soo fussy when it comes to coats, it must be said.

For some reason when we say Max Jay we run it all together like MaxJay. If we say it seperately it is OK...we are struggling with boys names because we are convinced that baby is a girl (how embarassing when we are wrong!!) and dh isn't in love with ANY name for a boy. Which makes it hard!