Long Cycles TTC #1 & Need a buddy!

Yay merry he is sooo beautiful! Congrats!!!!
And congrats Stacey on your pink bump!!!
I was hoping for some updates!!!
Nothing new with me. But oh felt baby kick last night so that was exciting!!!
 
Thanks ladies. Life with a newborn is all kinds of terrifying, but it's also so rewarding.

Isn't it fun to feel the baby kick? It took me a few days to figure out that's what I was feeling.

Stacey - I love the name Ava Grace. It's beautiful! Congrats on the girl!

To be honest, I don't remember much about labor. That day is kind of a blur. I can only remember bits and pieces. I know that the pain was excruciating before the epidural, but I can't actually remember what it felt like. I think that's the amazing thing about our bodies. We are just able to block out these unpleasant memories. What I remember about the epidural is that the first shot is meant to numb the area so you don't feel the larger needle. I don't remember it hurting at all.
 
OMG haven't been on here for ages and all good news. Merrymint well done and welcome to your baby, gorgeous. And Stacey congratulation on your pink bump, live the name. Oh wow our first long cycle baby.,and Sunkissed ahw baby scan and it's kicking :)
Nothing new for me, been very busy and working away, just got back. The last cycle didn't even have time to chart, nothing and am still shocked that my cycle turned to out to be 33 days which I think it's pretty much what it was before I knew about charting. Who knows, will see what happens this cycles.. xx
 
Sorry I've been so useless in terms of keeping up to date with replies, I haven't forgotten about you all I promise, just been crazy trying to sort out baby things as well as DH's birthday (next week) and Christmas.

Merry, he is so, so gorgeous, you must be very proud :) How are things now you've been home for a while? Is he settling down into a routine yet? How are you feeling after the birth?

Stacey, perfect choice of name :) Love it! How you feeling?

Sunkissed, made up your little wiggler is making its presence felt - it's ace isn't it :)

In terms of news from me. I think I'm jinxed! My wonderful job that I loved so much (not) made me redundant at 28+3 so I was in limbo to say the least. I couldn't claim any benefits so I'm now just toughing it out until my maternity is due to start next month.

I'm currently on 33+3 and the time is just absolutely flying by! More or less organised now and we're picking up the pram and the last bits of the nursery stuff tomorrow so it's exciting times :) :)

Got the hospital tour next week and my antenatal classes (finally) start the week after.

We got a 3D scan done at 28 weeks so I've attached some pics. We're still team yellow so lots of white baby grows at the moment ;)

https://i1108.photobucket.com/albums/h403/lindasummers78/S22C-111093009110crop.jpg

https://i1108.photobucket.com/albums/h403/lindasummers78/BABYBONDMANCHESTER_20crop.jpg

https://i1108.photobucket.com/albums/h403/lindasummers78/BABYBONDMANCHESTER_3crop.jpg

Hope everyone's doing okay :) x
 
Oh Fallen - you are so close. I can't believe it! Your 3d pics are amazing...

TK - that's great that your cycle seems to be getting shorter. I know I often felt that the pressure of TTC was in part responsible for my long cycles. I hope this is a good thing for you.

Wow. I knew parenthood was going to be a lot of work, but I had no idea how much of your life is consumed by caring for a little one... Especially the first few weeks when all they want is to be snuggled by mommy. It's wonderful and desperately exhausting all at the same time. If any of you are planning to breastfeed, let me know if you want some pointers ahead of time (for me, this was the most difficult part of caring for the baby)... There's a lot that I didn't know that I wish I did.
 
Thanks hun :) Can't believe where the time has gone!

Oh, yes please - any tips very much welcome! x
 
Okay, let's see - first things first. After you give birth and they do all the vitals on the baby, you will have your first breastfeeding session. I don't think I realized this, or forgot about it with all the labor business going on, but it totally caught me off guard. You're beyond exhausted, emotional, and (if you had any drugs) still a little loopy in the head. This is not a great combination for breastfeeding since it is not easy at first (for you or the little one... neither of you knows what you're doing). Be prepared for this.

Second, even if the hospital has lactation consultants, chances are good that you will give birth outside of their "consult" hours. This makes it very important to have a nurse with you during that first session that knows what they're doing. Don't be afraid to ask for help for this first session.

Study up on what good latch looks like now. If the baby has bad latch during these first few sessions, you will end up with lots of nipple damage that will take weeks to heal. I'm not sure if I could have avoided this anyway, since it really is a little trial and error to see what works well for you and baby, but I did not know what good latch even looked like beforehand.

Along with good latch, be patient. If the baby's mouth is not open wide enough or the latch isn't good - take the baby off immediately and try again (break the suction with your finger). This most likely will result in the baby crying/screaming. Breathe, relax, and do it right. I tried to just "tough it out" and keep the baby latched, because the crying seemed so awful. Again, this only resulted in lots of nipple damage that took weeks to heal.

If your baby will take a nipple shield, you may want to use this for the first several sessions until you start to get more comfortable. This could save you lots of unnecessary nipple damage also.

Have the nurses or lactation consultants show you how to execute all the different breastfeeding holds. I almost left the hospital without someone showing me the proper way to do the lying down hold, and this one is a lifesaver for middle of the night feedings!

If you have a lazy eating baby (meaning they will nibble for a few seconds and then fall asleep), have the nurses show you different ways to wake them up. Better yet, you can wake them up beforehand with a diaper change or stripping them out of their jammies (if they're colder, they won't be so quick to fall asleep). I avoided this, because I thought it would be easier to let the baby fall asleep on the breast so that I could maybe get some sleep also. This does not happen - that sleeping baby will just wake up in 20 minutes still hungry.

By the same logic, I was also afraid to burp the baby at first, because he was fast asleep and I wanted to catch some zzzz's also. Again - this won't last. Baby's with upset tummies that need to burp don't stay asleep very long. So, do your best to keep baby awake for the full feeding session and burp afterwards. Some rocking or cuddling should help baby fall asleep later (and with a full satisfied belly, will stay asleep long enough for you to get a nap).

Lastly (well maybe not - I'll probably think of more), if breastfeeding hurts after a week or two (and your nipples are healed up)... talk to your Dr! I mentioned this to the lactation consultants and got blown off as "oh, you're just getting used to breastfeeding... that's normal." Pain - other than initial latch on - is NOT NORMAL. It took 3 weeks before I was in enough pain to cry through each breastfeeding session to finally talk to the dr. and get us both diagnosed with thrush. Miles and I are both on medication and things are only slowly starting to get better. I hope that none of you gets this, but it is more common and more overlooked than I realized. If you get this, let me know. You will most likely have to be your own advocate to get the right diagnosis and medication (I can give you lots of info to help).

Wow - sorry for the novel. There really is a lot to breastfeeding. And whoever said it comes naturally, is lying :) But, it is an awesome bonding experience and so rewarding to see baby rack up the pounds after a few weeks of breastfeeding.
 
Thank you Merry! I am planning on bf and hopefully I can be semi prepared!

No news for me just hanging in the second tri almost to the 3rd!

Fallen! Can't believe baby is almost here! Can you all believe we have been talking through a couple of us to have babies already! Crazy!!
 
That's awesome Merry, really appreciate that :) Any more piccies to share?

Thanks Sunkissed :hugs: just can't believe where the time has gone, it's crazy!

It's great everyone has kept this thread going and so exciting we've already had one gorgeous little munchkin arrive :)
 
Hi ladies, I'm so glad to have found a thread on long cycles. I was hoping for your advise.

I usually have around a 32 day cycle but currently I am on cd 43 with no idea where I am in my cycle. I decided this month to take a break from temping, opking and unlucky for me my cycle decided to go wrong this very same month also!

I have been checking for the last 4 days since I realised my cycle was too long this month. So far temps are low, opk negative and HPT negative.

I previously thought I may have already o'd and have AF around the corner but after 4 days of low temps that doesnt seem right. I usually get AF the day or the day after a low temp.

Now I'm working on the assumption that I may have not even o'd this cycle. What do you ladies think? Your advise would be really appreciated! x
 
Hi hugsy. As you can tell we don't update on this thread very often. But did you ever figure out what happened last cycle?

Fallen- any updates? Stacey?? How's everyone out there?

We just moved into our own place. Been cleaning, unpacking, and decorating. Not much new. Just belly getting bigger!! Gonna get baby's room set up. Just has some maternity pics taken. I'll post some when I get them back. But here's a bump pic from a week ago (28 weeks)
https://i1084.photobucket.com/albums/j412/Lildana1655/4fb12608.jpg
 
Just got my maternity pics back. Thought I'd share some:

https://i1084.photobucket.com/albums/j412/Lildana1655/5a0872ea.jpg
https://i1084.photobucket.com/albums/j412/Lildana1655/1f99ca3a.jpg
https://i1084.photobucket.com/albums/j412/Lildana1655/452c1257.jpg
https://i1084.photobucket.com/albums/j412/Lildana1655/8fb25379.jpg
 
They're stunning hun, you look fab!

Well ladies - Bob the bump has arrived. Yellow bump turned blue at 01:16 on Wednesday 14th December :) Gorgeous little boy that I love to bits that we've called Ethan William.

Full details and pics to follow when we finally get home (long story) :) :)
 
Hooray for Ethan William! Welcome to the world, little guy :) You will love having a little boy. They are so sweet and snuggly.

Sunkissed, those pics are gorgeous! I can't believe you're in 3rd tri already. Did you move back to Hawaii yet?
 
Yay Fallen I waswondering about you!! Congrats on your baby boy!!! Can't wait to see pics and hear about it!

Yes I'm back in Hawaii! Just got our own place and started moving in last week! Thank you all for the compliments! 30 weeks tomorrow! Can't wait !!

Merry how is your little one?
 
Hi Ladies :)

Firstly, MASSIVE CONGRATS to Fallen on the birth of Ethan William - he shares his birthday with my father in law :) Also in perfect time for Xmas!
Cant wait to hear about his birth story - hopefully wasnt too bad for you :flower:
Also, what a coincidence with his name - i'd chosen Ethan or Rhys for a boy but then found out i was having a girl!!

Sunkissed - pics are amazing hun - looks like you've had a good share of pregnancy glow although i bet living in Hawaii helps and not cold rainy Britain!!!! Hope everything is progressing well for you :)

How are you and little one Merry? You all ready for Xmas??

Im doing relatively well although was signed off work early as i've got SPD :(
Have good days and bad days although sleeping, walking and sitting can be difficult some days! Apart from that im well and baby is growing as expected. Cant believe im 30 weeks already, everything is in place at home and have everything i need, also picked up my pram yesterday and so now just need baby Ava - cant wait for her arrival now!
 
Stacey and Sunkissed - I didn't realize you two were due so close together.

Stacey, sorry to hear that things are getting tough for you. the last week or so before my due date and the two weeks I was late were so uncomfortable. Hang in there!

Sunkissed - how exciting to be back in Hawaii! I hope the moving in is going well.

Fallen - we need birth story details! And lots of pics!

Miles is doing so well. He is such a wonderful baby. The only real issue we've had with him (other than dealing with thrush), is some mild colic. He has a lot of trouble passing gas, and it really seems to hurt him quite a bit. This can cause some intense crying (both of us) until he can pass the gas and settle down. Of course, as soon as I typed this, he started screaming his head off poor thing :)

Here's some of my favorite pics of the little guy:

Screaming while we tried to take Christmas pics
DSC_0434.JPG


Giving mommy BIG smiles
11%2525208%25253A15%25253A57%252520PM.jpg


Perfect sleeping angel
11%2525207%25253A28%25253A03%252520AM.jpg
 
I didn't realize we are due so close either! I hope you feel better Stacey. We are almost there!

Merry- he is so perfect!!! Very cute!

Today we put the crib together and I started decorating :) getting excited!

I hope everyone has happy holidays!!!!
 
Merry Christmas and happy holidays everyone! I hope everyone is enjOying their holidays today! Here is my Xmas bump at 31+2 :)
https://i1084.photobucket.com/albums/j412/Lildana1655/2b4fa210.jpg
 
Hey Ladies, hope everyone had a good Christmas and New Year, Just thought i'd check in with you all and see how everyone is :)

Me and bubba are growing well, had a scan last week and she is head down and is bigger than expected so ive gotta go back for another scan on 17th Jan and they may consider changing my dates :0 Im all ready for her now so she can make an appearance as soon as she's ready. if im honest i hope it sooner than later as this SPD is killing me, im currently getting max 3hrs sleep a night lol i'd probably get more with a newborn here!!!

Fallen - hope everything is ok with Ethan - am looking forward to hearing your birth story n seeing a pic!

Merry - glad to see Miles is doing well, he looks a very happy contented little boy :)

Sunkissed - how you doing hun? Not too long for us now hey! Your bump looks amazing, i look like someone has scrammed my belly on both side of my belly button (stretch marks galore!!)
 

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