November 29th Due Date - I need a buddy!

[desiwannabmom]

How cute Allie. I am going to ask my Dr. at my appt in two weeks if I get another scan ! I really really want to see her. Some friends here have gotten 3rd tri scans but that is because they either were measuring ahead/late and/or the baby was breach...but other wise they do not do any scans..I just wish they did one just to check on the baby !

 

[Allie84]

Oh, I know what you mean. I pretty much had to beg for this scan and that's even with gestational diabetes but I'm grateful I got it. It was just nice to get confirmation baby is head down, my cervix is long, etc, in addition to the reassurance from the growth scan and the BPP aspects. It just seemed like soooo long since I'd seen him at 19 weeks.

 

[BumpHope123]

Glad to hear baby is doing well Allie! Looking forward to my NST's and ultrasounds starting next week.

I feel like all the big stuff is done for the baby...with the exception of installing the car seat. Now just waiting for the next 8 weeks to pass by. We got our pack n play, which has a bassinet and newborn napper and changing table, this weekend. The box was soooo damaged that we were afraid the pack n play would be damaged too so we ended up opening it all up to check it out...and then just ended up putting it together. So now it's ready to go, sitting by our bed, two months early.

Was thinking I'd do some baby laundry today or tomorrow but now I'm feeling rather lazy to get it started.

 

[desiwannabmom]

Did you all start packing the hospital bag yet? DH is out on a work trip next week so I thought I would get that done since I don't need his help for that. If you have already packed, what "list" did you use?

 

[Allie84]

I'm not getting NSTs with my BPPs, BumpHope...just the u/s part. But I guess I can't complain (and they will add in the NST if the BPP u/s results aren't good). It took awhile for them to see my little man practice breathing this time, for instance, and he has to practice breath to get those 'points' (which he did in the end).

Aww so cute you have the pack n play all ready! Ours is sitting in the trunk of our car in the box still hehe. Ours has the changing table and bassinet but no newborn napper. Sounds like a nice feature!

I haven't started baby laundry yet, but I have put the clothes in the drawers by size already...just have to take them out again to wash them (I really just wanted to see what he had so far and organize it). I still have 3 bags of donated clothes from friends to sort through as well, though and it looks daunting.

Haven't thought of a hospital bag yet, Desi, so no idea about a list. If you come across a good one can you let us know?

 

[BumpHope123]

No, I haven't started packing it but we got a list during our child birth class, which took place at the hospital we will be delivering at. So we have an idea of what the hospital will and won't be providing and what we will need to bring. I'm going to wait on packing the hospital bag for the moment since I'll have more last minute stuff to pack (like toiletries and clothes that I use now) than anything else. I have watched some you tube videos on what people pack and honestly, it seems like people overpack soooo much! I'm going more of a minimalist route since the hospital will really have everything the baby will need. So I'll pack a going home outfit for baby (hospital is only 10 minutes from our house so she won't need much) and then things that will make labor and postpartum more comfortable.

Allie - what exactly is a BPP then? I thought for a BPP they hook you up to the fetal monitors AND do an ultrasound? But it sounds like you are saying they only do an u/s...in which case, how do they monitor the breathing? It's all so confusing! My dr/hospital uses the term NST meaning they hook you up to the fetal monitors to monitor baby's movements/breathing/heart rate/contractions. And then the u/s checks if the amniotic fluid is at an okay level. I'm not expecting then to give measurements with the u/s that go with the NST since I have a formal one at 36 weeks. But who knows, I guess I'll see what all is involved in a week.

 

[BumpHope123]

I like this list...it's pretty close to the hospital list I have. One thing that's not on this list though, that I think is a good idea to take, is a baby book for foot/hand prints.

https://pregnant.thebump.com/pregna...cklist-packing-a-hospital-bag.aspx?MsdVisit=1

 

[Allie84]

Allie - what exactly is a BPP then? I thought for a BPP they hook you up to the fetal monitors AND do an ultrasound? But it sounds like you are saying they only do an u/s...in which case, how do they monitor the breathing? It's all so confusing! My dr/hospital uses the term NST meaning they hook you up to the fetal monitors to monitor baby's movements/breathing/heart rate/contractions. And then the u/s checks if the amniotic fluid is at an okay level. I'm not expecting then to give measurements with the u/s that go with the NST since I have a formal one at 36 weeks. But who knows, I guess I'll see what all is involved in a week.

I was confused by this until I looked it up. So a traditional BPP measures your baby on a score system out of 10. Using the u/s it's 2 points each for:
adequate movements (large and small movements),
muscle tone (flexing of hands, etc)
practice breathing (which is seen with an u/s watching baby's lungs)
amniotic fluid level,
and then 2 points for the NST

But my practice uses an 8 points system instead of a 10 points system and doesn't do the NST as well unless the other signs are not reassuring.

I'm guessing this is because NSTs take a lot longer? ETA: I think I had a formal u/s as well today though because they measured him, my cervix, looked at his organs, measured his heart rate, my placenta, etc...and was told I'd get that again in 4 weeks.

Great list! It looks like we'll need next to nothing for the baby, though I have been told to bring scratch mittens and nail clippers. But I think the hosp provides most things for the baby like diapers, creams, etc.

 

[desiwannabmom]

Good list Bumphope. I agree the Youtube ladies over do it. I mean we are not preparing for a nuclear disaster...just a baby. Baby book is a good idea. I am yet to purchase one. Where did you all get yours?

 

[Allie84]

I haven't gotten a baby book yet either. I'm trying to find one with a decent 'pregnancy' section as I feel this has been a really important part! Most of them just seem to have a few pages. I saw an actual pregnancy scrapbook at barnes and noble but I don't know if I remembe the past 7 months well enough to start from scratch haha.

 

[BumpHope123]

This is the memory book I'm getting:

https://www.amazon.com/C-R-Gibson-L...s=baby-products&ie=UTF8&qid=1317746179&sr=1-2

This brand has some really cute ones if you just search "C.R. Gibson memory book". This one in particular matches my bedding set and owl theme and I like that it is expandable so I can add pages or plastic inserts to house things like her hospital band, etc. But they have regular bound memory books as well.

 

[BumpHope123]

So yesterday I spent an hour and a half cutting tags off of everything baby that needs to go in the wash. Took me forever! I didn't throw the stuff in the wash, but just left it piled up on the changing table and rocker so I could throw it in today. Then, DH came home, took one look at it, and said, "What if it's a boy?? You should have waited a few more days until your next ultrasounds so they can confirm."

 

[desiwannabmom]

Bumphope - Thanks for the link. Now I know what to look for. Regd. boy/girl I am worried about that slightly. I have all clothes that are very girly and heave forbid I have a boy!!! I will have to just dress him in pink !

 

[sparklebunny]

Hi guys !!!

Can't believe it, I went for a growth scan today and apparently I'm already measuring 35/36 weeks and they estimate that baby is already 6lbs??!!!!! So it all depends on tomorrows glucose test, then they said they'll decide if I need to be induced or if I need a c section I've got my fingers crossed that the growth rate slows down and it'll only gain a couple more pounds and then i can deliver it naturally?? But at least I'm ready now I have a cot, changing table, pram, endless clothes!! And a baby shower in a week!

 

[BumpHope123]

Desi - Same here...if we have a boy, he will be dressed in all pink! I only have a handful of neutral sleepers. Hope they can confirm at one of the ultrasounds I have next week. I feel kinda bad asking since that's not the purpose of the ultrasound, but I'll have to ask just for my own peace of mind.

Sparkle - I would take the growth scans with a grain of salt. They are notorious for being off by 1-3 lbs (as I've learned from my GD reading...you can even check out the GD Support Thread where women were pushed to induce/c-section b/c of these scans and ended up not having "large" babies)! Good luck tomorrow!

 

[sparklebunny]

Oh Bump, that is really good news about the scans being wrong sometimes!! I was freaking out?! She said that the stomach was already measuring above the 95th percentile!!!!

 

[Robyn321]

Hi everyone!

Glad to hear everyone's progressing! Sorry to hear about your anaemia Sarah - I've been taking iron as part of my pre-natal vitamin since I found out I was pregnant but still managed to get anaemic so now I'm on additional iron and B-vit tablets. Apparently taking vit C at the same time as iron is supposed to help your body absorb it?

I have a scan tomorrow which I can't wait for - was supposed to go in last week but then (would you believe it) a typhoon came by so of course the dr office was closed. So haven't seen/measured the babies since the impromptu hospital stay.

For the hospital bag I am trying to sort out two piles of things - one of the 'essentials' to take on the day, and then a second of things that I might need later on (if I end up having a c-section I'll be kept in for 5 days) - I figure that dh/family/visitors can bring them over if needed. When I was taken in a couple of weeks ago the nurse seemed shocked that I didn't have my hospital bag with me....I was only 30.5 weeks!

We've got the pram out of storage and assembled as we wanted to check it was ok, and rearranged some cupboards so that they've got baby stuff in them but everything's still in the packaging. Am thinking I'll start unwrapping and laundering next week... And at some point I'm going to have to learn how to use the steriliser, breast pump etc...which are also all still in boxes!

Sparkle - definitely don't take growth scans too literally. I've had scans done a couple of days apart (with different drs for different things) which not only seemed to show the babies changing weight significantly in only 2 days but also changing who was bigger (i.e. on Saturday the boy was bigger than the girl, by Monday the girl was apparently bigger than the boy!)

 

[sparklebunny]

Well, had it confirmed today you guys, i have full on gestational diabetes Have to do the same monitoring of food as you guys, its so wierd that we nearly all developed it??! Wish it wasn't so late in the day so that i could have been watching what i was eating sooner.

 

[BumpHope123]

Aw Sparkle, sorry to hear it! It is hard at first, but it'll get easier to control your diet once you figure out what you can and cannot eat. I have found that I can eat a lot of the stuff I thought I couldn't have anymore...it's just a matter of portion control and timing of when you are eating what carbs. Have they referred you to a nutritionist to help you get started?

 

[sparklebunny]

I have to see the nurse next thursday, hopefully she'll give me some tips I feel awful, and keep wishing i'd known to modify my eating b4.... i'm sooo uncomfortable and i'm massive (bump wise), i just want my LO to be safe.....