***Lion Cub Mommies-Back In Action!***

[Mary Jo]

thanks spidey and Cleck - and yes I would get Very Hungry Caterpillar wall stickers - these. I would be really nervous about putting them up but Chris could do it, he's more confident and a lot lot more artistic (well, he is a graphic designer). just one thing though, the walls aren't very good, Chris has filled in the worst of it but they're generally not very smooth (though they should be as they're plain plaster). the problem is that they have clearly not been plastered in a long time, so the plaster is old and fragile, and they've obviously been wallpapered and then someone stripped that off, and it took chunks away with it, along with gouge marks from the wallpaper scraper. so I don't want to spend £18 or more on stickers if they don't stick on my dodgy walls! I think they'll look great, though, if I do them.

am being proactive about the iron and taking Spatone, which is a natural form of iron (it's spa water that's high in an absorbable form of iron, which you mix with OJ for even better absorption). so hoping to pre-empt finding out my levels are low. I don't really think I am anaemic, because I do know what that's like, when I had bleeding stomach ulcers a few years ago I felt dreadful, but I know my tiredness now is because of being big and pregnant, and I don't feel dreadful most of the time. but I am going to call. not sure who. maybe my GP, I guess they'd receive blood test results?

Spidey, I'm sorry DH is talking of vasectomies... for what my opinion is worth, I agree with Cleck about the age gap thing. in an ideal world we'd have 3 years, maybe even 4, but it's not an ideal world, I am too old to have left TTC till Adam was almost 3/already 3. I'm going to be 38 on New Year's Eve, and the thought of purposely leaving it till I was about to turn 40 is not a fun one. for lots of reasons, but mostly I would be scared my fertility would have failed by then. so we'll have just over 2 years. and I will handle it, but I'd much prefer - to be the parent I want to be - to have Adam in school when the new baby is small. what does your DH have against a bigger age gap?

I also think that everyone has good and bad stories about every age gap imaginable, so so much must have to do with the personalities of the children and parents. my brother and I are 20 months apart, and I'd prefer it was a bigger gap, simply because coming so close behind I felt the comparisons very acutely, and my brother was (and is) a genius, which I was (am) not. maybe I'd not have felt differently if w'd had 4 years between us, though, there is no way of knowing for sure.

really hope you can get support from a midwife, *if* AF turns up. how long would you leave it before asking for tests/whatever? I was so certain, before Adam, that I'd have messed up my body so badly I'd be infertile (because of being anorexic and bulimic for 14 years, and drinking for 7 years, even though by the time I was TTC I had been in recovery for over 5 years), and that's why I temped. it was mainly so *when* (there was no *if* in my mind) I needed to ask for help, a) I have concrete proof of how long we'd been trying (I thought I'd go after 6 months-1 year of trying actively) b) I have evidence that I do or don't ovulate, how long my cycles tend to be, what my luteal phase is... plus all the other stuff they can gather. I think depending on *what* the actual temps are, they can figure out if you're likely to need thyroid tests done. which would be standard in a fertility work-up anyway, but I was just trying to cover all bases, with the fear/belief that getting referred to fertility specialists in the UK isn't an automatic or quick thing. obviously I didn't need all my evidence as I got pregnant with Adam on the 4th month of temping, but I was glad to have it and don't regret it. OPKs are ok, but they don't tell you for sure you *did* ovulate, only that you were gearing up to, and they don't tell you anything about your luteal phase (which you know for sure by the temps, they rise after ovulation and stay elevated till your period starts, and they won't rise if you didn't ovulate, at least not if you temp carefully and consistently).

Taking Charge of Your Fertility is a really good book, explains it all, and much more.

 

[Shiv]

jelr - I have heard of burning peat from a bog but never heard it called turf before.

Thanks for saying I look all bump but I can assure you there is a good layer fo fat all over - but hey ho, i think i am defnitely slimmer than last time so it is good.

i am absolutely positive that baby has moved again! But trying not to worry about it. I have an appt for a home birth assessment on Friday so will meet the midwife then - although there is no guarantee she would be on call so I could still have the anti-birth one show up!

That is so cute about Natasha getting her belly rubbed when she is having a poo, and super cute that she tells you she is alright!

have a lovely time at the wedding and I hope you aer feeling better.

MJ - the stairs look great - i can't believe how useful all your husbands are, David wouldn't know one end of a hammer from the other! You'll have to post more photos when the carpets are done as i bet it will look great.

The bedding set is really cute. We have decals on Sophia's wall and they were dead easy to put up, they do say not to use on bad walls though - although i think the walls would have to be pretty bad for them not to work.

I had my iron levels tested off schedule also and was told they would only sen dme my results (as opposed to just telling me at my next appt) if they were low.

I think it is a good idea to get Adam looked after for a full day by your MIL. It will be good to know that he will be fine with her for that long, so that in future you can get a bit of a break.

In teh last week or so I have just started offering Sophia the option of having her nappy changed downstairs as it is just easier than traipsing upstairs. I have bought an extra change mat to have downstairs (although not using it yet) for when new baby comes as I won't wanting to be going upstairs 10 times a day to change nappies with Sophia trailing behind me!

Spidey - yes i would say pregnant would be a good way to describe how I look! I have been using some cocoa butter stuff twice a day religously, but have got new stretchmarks all above my belly button. I only got a couple on my hips last time, where I carried out at the sides, so I am definitely carrying more out front this time. I really worried about having a saggy pouch afterwards.

Fingers crossed that you get your BFP soon, I agree with MJ though that the more info you have to take to a specialist the quicker they can help you.

Oh and age gaps - I truly believe that how close you aer to your siblings has everything to do with how close your family is in general, how your parents behave, and very little to do with the gap. We are not a particularly close family, so we could have been twins and we probably would still not have been close!

As for us, well David goes to Holland again on either Sunday or Monday - until Friday (when I will be 37 + 4) so I need you all to keep your ifngers crossed that baby stays put until at least 38 weeks!

 

[spidey]

Thanks girls for listening to my whine... I'm feeling much better everything Me and DH originally planned to have them 24 months apart and neither of us thought it would take this long. My brother and I are 24 months apart and are very close, but looking back I think it worked out well because I'm very bossy and he is very passive DH and his brother are exactly 6 years apart and aren't very close, but I think their parents always babied the younger brother whereas DH was forced to grow up very fast. Personally, I would love a 4 year gap so Kira would be in school and I would have more one-on-one time with the baby. I could also get a nap if I needed one When Kira was younger I had many days where I felt like I was barely hanging on to sanity. I need a certain amount of time to myself- to play on the computer and watch tv, and if I had 2 very young kids I wouldn't have me-time and that scares me. Maybe my inability to get pregnant is a sign that I'm not ready yet Cleckner, thats interesting about living shorter if you have kids very close together. Growing and feeding a baby sucks a lot from our bodies.

MJ, thats a good idea to start doing more to track my fertility. Right now I keep a calendar for when we , when my nips hurts, and any opk results. I haven't tried temping yet, but I know that'll be next. My health insurance is very good and I doubt I'll have to prove that I've been TTC at all to have them look into my fertility. I think they cover up to 100,000 worth of invitro too Right now I'm thinking that next summer is when I'll get desperate and seek help. I know my mom took clomid to have me, and she was 20 I think. They hand that out like candy

MJ, it's funny because I always assumed I wasn't fertile either. Thats why I didn't take birth control too seriously. I guess because my mom had trouble conceiving me and I was always very skinny and had irregular periods. I was also sick with unknown gluten intolerance for many years in my late teens and early/mid 20's so I thought my body had been drained from any nutrients it had left. It's amazing how quickly we bounce back from things like that though

ack, I just got an IM from my mom that my Aunt died. She's been battling breast cancer for years and then it had spread everywhere but she has been hanging on despite the constant chemo. She owns the place where my Dad works. I took Kira to see her a few months ago and I knew it would probably be the last time as she was going downhill pretty fast I hate having to see anyone suffer like that. Ah, makes me put my own tiny problems into perspective.

 

[cleckner04]

Oh no spidey. I'm so sorry about your aunt.

 

[spidey]

I was looking through my closet to find something suitable for the funeral and I was getting dressed on the floor infront of the floor length mirror. I haven't looked at my lady bits post-Kira, but I got up the bravery and finally took a peak. Oh gosh, it looks scary down there! There are things I don't recognize and extra lumpy things too. eeeek! I'm traumatized for life now I'm going to google vagina close-ups now for comparisons

 

[Shiv]

Sorry to hear about your Aunt Spidey - also sorry to hear about your vagina! I haven't dared look at mine in a mirror and can't see me doing so any time soon either, I'd rather not know!

 

[cleckner04]

@ scary vaginas. I never realized they would change that much looks wise after babies. I know some people end up with scars from tears and such. I wonder if anyone ever takes before and after pictures.

 

[overcomer79]

I just wanted to pop in and say hi. Been a bit down and out so just been keeping too myself

 

[spidey]

Cleckner, don't rub it in that your vagina is still virginous looking Shiv, take a peek, it can't be that bad Did you have a tear with Sophia? I didn't see a scar from my 2nd degree tear, but perhaps I was too distracted with all the mystery things to notice

 

[cleckner04]

I'm sure mine doesn't look the same as it did years ago. I've never really looked too much at mine. Vaginas are gross. I would be a horrible lesbian.


Overcomer- Hey hun. :wave: Sorry you've been feeling down lately.

 

[Shiv]

If I am honest i wouldn't know what it looked like before I had Sophia, and I am not sure how I would actually get to see it at the moment - I would need about 10 mirrors all lined up to get past the bump! And yes I had a 2nd degree tear too

 

[spidey]

there are a serious lack of real life, non-sexual images of vagina's on google

I guess the biggest difference is before Kira things seemed symmetrical down there, but now it's just a jumble of unknown parts

I would be an awful lesbian too

oh, and overcomer

 

[Shiv]

major feeling sorry for myself rant coming up................

So having been told bubs was head down at my last appt, I went ahead and booked for a midwife to come to the house for a home birth assessment. Sjhe was lovely and very positive (and shcoked when I told her that the last woman was very anti- home birth, apparently she attended her last home birth with this midwife and she is generally very happy and pro-home/natural birth)..............anyway, we went through all the paperwork and had a chat etc and I was feeling really good about it. Foolishly (or not) i asked her to check the position of bubs as I feared s/he would go transverse again. So she did and baby is now BREECH and their bum is well wedged apparently! SO either the doctor got it wrong or bubs did a flip. So i am booked in for a scan on Tuesday, if baby is breech then they will book me in for an ECV (If I want it, which I think I do as I want to avoid a c-sec if poss), then if that doesn;t work a probable c-sec or depending on teh consutant their is a slim chance they would let me try to deliver naturally. I am so disapointed. I know there is still time, but I had just relaxed a bit and started considering that I might actually get my home birth. What makes it worse is that David goes to Holland on Sunday. My friend is down but she will have to watch the children (Sophia and her little boy) while I go to hospital for a scan. The scan I can cope with but if they schedule my ECV for before David gets back (Saturday am) the i will have to go through that on my own..............I feel neglected quite frankly, I know it is nothis fault but it is all just pants!


HURRUMPH

 

[cleckner04]

Oh hun!! I'm so sorry the stubborn LO flipped again. If I remember correctly you posted recently saying you swear you felt him/her turn again. I wish I could say something that would help but I know if you had your heart set on a home birth than it's probably very devastating for you. I will just keep my fingers crossed for you that he/she decides to flip around again. Just try to remember no matter what, the important thing is a healthy baby and how it comes into the world is just a tiny thing in the grand scheme of it all.



Well I've had days of highs now on my monitor. Five days of highs actually. Which is unusual. Normally I only get 3-4 days of highs and than I peak. So I'm hoping I peak tomorrow. We've managed to have sex monday, tuesday, yesterday, and hopefully today we can too. The only reason we skipped wednesday was because DH had duty otherwise we woulda tried than too. I think this is our last month to try so we are gonna make it count. If not, I guess I should start focusing on weightloss instead again because I've not budged since DH returned.

 

[Shiv]

I think you've done so well to maintain your weight with Corey back - and I hope that this is your month for a BFP. Enjoy your evening

Oh and Cleck - I know you had to supplement Emma with formula when she was first born, do you think this had anything to do with having a c-section? I hear a lot of women say that they struggled with supply becasue they had a c-section????

 

[Mary Jo]

ack, Shiv, I hope this is just temporary and baby swings back round. I know you're running short of time but I have heard of babies moving at the very last minute. don't lose hope! also, until you have a scan it *is* just guesswork. very educated guesswork, sure, but you can't be 100% certain. (that's why I was so down when I was told my LO was breech, because it was seen on a scan, and why I don't really believe he moved, despite what the mw said).

massive hugs. you know I understand how this feels, it's scary and depressing. fingers tightly crossed that s/he will settle down head first, and is just not ready for the exit yet. at least s/he *is* moving a lot, and hasn't been sitting breech for 8 weeks or something. my baby moves so much I think he's been head down, head up, head bloody everywhere.

 

[cleckner04]

Shiv- I think I didn't actually HAVE to supplement. They told me to of course so I did it without knowing any better. My milk didn't come in until Day 6. Which I'm sure did have something to do with the C-section. But keep in mind that I had a really rough labor first so that may have contributed to the delay. I think I could've just kept at it and Emma would have been fine without the formula. If I could do it again, I would've ignored their advice because the doctor just wanted her to gain, gain, gain and Emma ended up being a slow gainer in general even with the formula top ups for those 2 weeks. You've breastfed before so I think you won't have any issues with this new baby. Regardless of how he/she is born. I know it must be so scary to even think about C-sections when you had a vaginal the first time. I do promise you it isn't all that bad. I have my fingers crossed that you will get the birth you want though.

 

[spidey]

Shiv, I'm so sorry to hear the baby flipped a full 180 I would be devastated too. I belong to a yahoo group for people who used the same hypno birthing course that I did, and I have read MANY successful version stories! I'm so happy they're going to try a version before jumping right to a section. And for all you know, baby will make a flip head down before then. Fingers crossed that any version you need is scheduled for when David is back. Would they do a version and then an induction? After reading version stories, it seems like if you can totally relax your chances of success are high. Instinct will be to tense up.

Cleckner- I have a feeling this could be your month! Theres no excuse for the eggy not to find a sperm My milk took 6 days to come in too but I bet our milk will come in much sooner next time!

MJ- is the baby still transverse you think?

We're in the middle of a busy weekend. We had the funeral for my Aunt on Friday and I think being to 3 funerals this year has finally gotten to me so I overbooked this weekend for fun things. I didn't really talk about the other funerals on here, but my Grandma died in February after a fire accident and DH's grandma died 2 months ago. So today we took Kira to the go cart racetrack and she got half way through the course with DH and then started to cry. But me and DH were able to take turns and get some laps in Tomorrow we're going to a park with a river that is actually clean enough to swim in and we're going to wade in it and catch fish with a net! And since Monday is a holiday, we're heading to another park to rent a rowboat!

I ovulated on Friday last week, so today is 8 days post ovulation. I'm not planning to test right now, but I suppose I can test soon. I don't have any symptoms, although my nips are a different kind of sore which I think is from teeth rubbing rather than pregnancy sore. But I can't be 100% certain so there is still some hope. I would love for this to be my month but I'm trying to mentally prepare for another negative.

 

[cleckner04]

Well it's day 7 of only high readings on my monitor. No peaks at all. We've still been every day just in case but DH is gone tomorrow and than for the entire week so this was my only day to do it during a peak time. And it didn't peak so we won't be able to try if it does. I don't think it will even peak this cycle. Maybe I didn't ovulate at all this month. which would be just my luck. I'm feeling very FML lately. And I hate that saying but I've really been feeling it. I seriously hate TTC and being disappointed every month. Why can't I just have an "accident" like the rest of the world and end up pregnant without meaning to.


spidey- I'm sorry you've had so many losses this year. I'm glad you guys are having fun this weekend! Go-Karting is so much fun! Although I've never done it at an actual track. My SIL owns them so we go all over their yard. I wish DH got monday off! His ship is awful though. They don't care if it's a holiday.

 

[jelr]

Hey girls

MJ: I'm so glad you are feeling a lot better, I knew it was just exhaustion. It is so hard to deal with a toddler when your exhausted, let alone heavily pregnant. The stairs definitely looks much safer, I love the bed set you are getting Adam. We have done a few stickers and DH did them I have to say, most of them though were easy enough, excpet the ones we have in the new playroom as they were ones I got from ebay and the quality was awful, so we had to take them really carefully off the backing so as they wouldn't care. I reckon C will have no problem with them as they are more than likely good quality. Just make sure and be certain on where you are putting them before actually putting them up as I made that mistake with one lot and because I moved them, they weren't as sticky and fell off the wall. How did Adam get on with C's mum?

Spidey: I'm so so sorry about your Aunt and about your other losses this year. I dont blame you for wanting a fun filled weekend, I really hope it was everything that you hoped it would be and more, you definitely deserve it. Fx that AF doesn't turn up this month. Sorry to hear that DH has been talking about not having anymore children too. I definitely think it doesn't matter how many years are between you, siblings getting on or not on, has a lot to do with personalities and also the family environment. There are 7 of us and some get on and some don't and it definitely doesn't have anything to do with age gaps. I am very close with them all and some of the boys say I'm their cool mother as they can come to me with any problem and the age gaps I have with them all varies between 2 years and 12 years.

Overcomer: Sorry to hear you are down lately.

Shiv: You definitely dont look to have any fat at all, you are being too hard on yourself. I'm so so sorry that bubs is breech now. I really hope that the ECv is after David gets back or even better that bubs has turned before the scan. I know I would be devestated too so you are quite entitled to rant.

Cleck: so so sorry you are feeling FML - I do know how you feel though, I was the very same when we were trying with Natasha and even more then after the 1st MC becasue so many others seemed to get pregnant by accident and now even want it when we did so so much. It really is heartbreaking and so cruel when it takes so long for it to happen for people that want children so much and I know it has to be harder when you are on a timetable with DH's job. I really do hope this month is for you.

Well massive massive to you all as it seems like everyone is having a hard time. I really hope it all changes for you all soon.

Well we had a great day at the wedding after, but I ended up at the doctors the day after as this dose was getting worse and I was running a temp and started to cough up horrilbe stuff so he put me on an antibiotic as he reckons I have a sinus and throat infection. Broke my heart to shell out €80 between the doctor and prescription, but I had spent 2 weeks trying to let my own immune system fight it and just want to be better before facing work tomorrow and even though I still feel crappy, I'm much better today than I have been over the past week, so it is all good. So we just spent the last few days lazing around at home which was actually quite nice to just have time for the three of us before heading back to the grindstone. I had a few tears this evening, so hopefully that is out of the way and I wont have them tomorrow as I could do with not having to start the day with my make up down my face and I won't cry before I leave the house as I wouldn't upset Natasha and she will probably be still sleeping anyway, which is probably better as I said it to her today that mammy would be working tomorrow and she actually started to cry, I didn't think she would even take much notice of what I was saying and was sorry I had when she got upset, but I don't like her just waking up tomorrow and I'm not here without any explanation. I know she will be fine in the morning once she wakes up and my mam is here and she will have loads of fun with my brothers

anyway that is my moan over with and compared to what you girls have going on, I don't have much to moan about and I know once this week is over I will be fine, I just need to adjust again