****September Stars!!****

[becs0375]

Hope you get something sorted Louise!! Sounds painful xx

 

[opticalillus5]

Thanks ladies...

They said that I might be able to pay it back off my future benefits payments. So, instead of £10 per week, I'll probably get £5. I guess it's better than having to pay it all back in one go, but now i'm having to wait AGAIN for the decision about how much I actually owe them!

I've decided to budget without any help from them at all, and whatever I get will be a bonus.

I'm starting to get angry about it now, rather than upset. I must say, they have a nasty phonecall coming if they do try to get me to pay it all in one go. Yesterday, i think i was too soft as i was crying down the phone! Now it's all sunk in, I'm getting .

But then I think of baby going to a childminder and I just get sad again. I know that there's nothing wrong with it - DD has amazing social skills etc from going to nursery, and she loved it most of the time. I just wanted to look after my baby myself

 

[opticalillus5]

Aw Louise FX you feel better soon! My docs are the same - you have to call up at 8 to get an appointment, but they are all gone by the time you get through! If i gets any worse, go to a&e

 

[MrsJ08]

Optical - please don't take this the wrong way but do you really have to go back to work for the £400 a month you won't be getting now? Surely your child-minding fees would be more than £400? I know it's really difficult and everyone has different financial circumstances but if you don't want to go back to work could you not manage if you tightened your belt a little? You will definitely be able to pay the money back in instalments, especially as it was their mistake. Trust me I do know how hard it is, I'm not saying this because I'm rolling in money,since I was made redundant our income has dropped like a stone, I didn't even get the £12k redundancy payment I was entitled to because Baugur the Icelandic company I worked for went into administration. I used to earn £60k a year, from September we will be living on £25k as I'm not going back to work. It is amazing what you can do to reduce your outgoings when you have to. Feel free to tell me to mind my own business, just trying to give a different perspective. xx

 

[opticalillus5]

Thanks MrsJ... I'd love to be able to not go back. We could manage, because we're managing now and we'd be earning the same. OH gets about £29k a year, and we get the Child Benefit that everyone gets.

Thing is, at the mo i'm o.k. not to work because i have an 'excuse'. I have genuinely tried to get a job (I quit my teacher training in march as it was too much with DD and bump), but I haven't been successful - as soon as they see the bump they don't wanna know.

But, after bubs is about 6 months, I have a feeling that OH will get peeved with me not working. We're engaged, and really want to get married... So would need to put some money away. Maybe he won't push me into getting a job. Maybe he'll be happy to let me stay at home. But I just can't help but feel that he'll want me to work as soon as I can... I've always worked/studied full time and it's never been part of the long-term plan for me to be a stay at home mum. I just thought that, as we were getting an extra £400 per month (or so I thought), I could put it to him that it'd be pointless me going back to work when we were already getting so much.

I dunno if that makes sense, but now that we'll have less coming in, i'll feel more pressured to get a job. I see what you mean about the nursery fees though, it makes sense as they were a fortune for DD!

 

[Fish&Chips]

Louise, I've been getting something similar to what you're described today. I broke down in tears at work today as someone asked how I was feeling!! I just feel so tired as well which isn't helping.

Optical, the whole tax credit thing is crazy. I hear about all sorts of companies making these sorts of mistakes and then expecting the person to sort it out when it comes to light. Someone should be accountable and they should bend over backwards to make it as easy for you as possible to pay back. We don't think we will be able to afford to live on just my oh's salary as we have a large mortgage. We were hoping to change it to interest only but not many companies are offering them at the moment and those that are are charging as much, if not more, than our repayment mortgage!! We will do what we can and just see how it goes but we are definitely going to have to tighten out belts.

Happy V day Teeny and Drazic!

Anyone heard from Brigitte (Mamabird) recently?

I'm soooo tired... can't wait to get home. x

 

[babythinkpink]

Louise, hope your feeling better soon xx

Becs, I had syatica in my other pregnancies and it has been miserable, I get twinges of it now but nothing much so far, just the need to turn over in bed at night quite a lot to get off the painful side!
So i can sympathyse from previous times, and it is horrible xx

Teeny, Happy V day

Cravings...yes, boiled eggs, can't get enough of them!!

Opticallillus, that is crap about the money, yes you can pay it back out of what you get like you say £5 a week, but still a shitter, you should queery it as far as possible before you pay any back though, my friend was overpaid and because it was their mistake she questioned it and got to keep it, but it was only that she challenged it because it was their mistake, if she had agreed to repayments they would have just accepted.

Anyway, I am off to see the clothes louise put the link to yesterday b4 i loose the pages all together, actually i think i bookmarked it! Love the baby looking down the hole, so funny! My son didn't like it! Women humour i think!!
Baby been quiet again, I hope these baby's are so sleepy when they come out, and we can all chat on her because they are such well behaved babies

Time to go, not long b4 school run and things to do, had lunch at mcdonalds though, yum yum! xx

 

[becs0375]

I too am also feeling tired!!!! Its like I haven't slept for ages and feel so grouchy!!

 

[x-amy-x]

Hey Girlies!

happy V-day teeny! it's so great to see everyone becoming viable - can't wait to say I am!

Louise - i LOVE that t-shirt website. I could spend SOOOO much on there - i've seen 2 baby vests which I am definitely buying for OH for father's day.

Great to see that people's scans & appointments are all going well

As for me... well, I had a bad day yesterday. I moved in with OH in March, and because I'm not working (and he is), we had to re-apply for tax credits. I didn't think we'd get them (he earns quite a lot) so was really surprised when they gave us over £100 a week! I called and questioned it, but was told everything was fine, and that's what we were entitled to (inc. all the back pay to march).

Yesterday, i finally got the paperwork through. Whoever processed my claim has got my OH annual expenses and salary mixed up, and based it on him earning £103 a year. So now, not only are we eligible for only £10 per week, but we owe them over £1000 what they have given us already (most of which I've already spent in mothercare / ikea).

I cried all day, especially as I'd called up twice before and were told that it was definitely correct. I didn't worry about the paperwork, as I know that they are busy with the renewals forms etc.

Apparently now you don't need to be able to tie your own shoelaces to work for the inland revenue. My OH works for the Police, yet whoever processed our claim didn't query an annual salary of £103.

I still feel like crap today, it really shook me up and put me on a major downer. I had financial difficulties when I had dd, but I thought it would be different this time We'll manage fine, but it just hurts to have my hopes raised and then shattered like that. Plus, now I can't be the stay-at-home mum like I wanted to be I don't want anyone else looking after my baby like they did my DD - she was in nursery from 5 months old

Sorry for the rant ladies. I know i'm in a much better situation than some, and I can't wait for bubs.

I advise you launch a formal complaint. Send them a complaint in writing... try and resolve it that way. If not, write to your MP. We had trouble with tax credits and it only got resolved when our MP wrote to them, we got paid what they owed us and an extra £200 in compensation. It was not your error, so you shouldnt have to pay for it. Dont let it lie xx

 

[MamaBird]

Ann I'm here! lol! There is just so much chatter going on in this thread that by the time I get to the end I forget what it is I wanted to write so I just don't write anything.

Tenny: Happy V Day!!! 2 more days for me!

Mrs_N: Happy 20 weeks!! Isn't the half way point exciting!??

Optical: Hope you can sort all of this out without too much stress.

So, I have a bit of news...I have FINALLY started seeing my belly move!!!! I thought I saw it poke out once this past Friday, but last night I had my shirt up while sitting on the sofa with DH and we BOTH saw it move!! It was so exciting!

Hope all you ladies have a great day!!

xo

 

[Louise3512uk]

Mamabird congrats on seeing your belly move! Amazing isnt it! x

 

[x-amy-x]

Has anyone else got a teeny bump? my bump showed up for a whole day. Then its gone back to being really unnoticable. And when i look at my bump with caitlyn i start to worry! and im not a worrier! I'm starting to think maybe theres not a lot of water in there, ive been feeling less movement over the last few days too. Hoping theres a few more of you out there with teeny bumps!

 

[Blob]

Amy i think we all worry...with Tabs i honnestly had no bump at all... It wont let me copy my photo from FB else i would show you i was wearing a bikini at 21 weeks and nothing.

This time my baby is measuring 5 weeks behind what Tabs was (she was 3 weeks big) and i have a bigger bump I dont think your bump makes a difference.

I know you wont believe anyone though as you're so worried

 

[x-amy-x]

i just see pics of everyones bumps including my own and everyone seems to have something! Mine doesnt even look like flab im a slim person and i just assumed everyone would have a bump by now... surely itd show more in the slimmer people... apparently not anyway haha...

im not overly worried anyway, will see what its like at my next midwife appt when she measures me xx

 

[Mrs_N]

maybe she's hiding towards your back amy?

 

[x-amy-x]

theres only so much space in there to hide though i think its just coz i had evie... and i know this baby is bigger than she was, im wondering where the hell its hiding

 

[lilia]

Louise- I had a lot of the same symptoms as you and ended up being rushed into A&E last week, i had a kidney stone. I had severe back pain, sickness, tummy ache and was struggling for breath sometimes. I would just say drink lots and lots of water, just in case it is a kidney infection, it will help flush it. Its awful feeling poorly when pregnant, as you can't really take anything for the pain Fx you get better soon xxxx

 

[SisterRose]

Lilia - hope you feel better now. My mum had a kidney stone and she was in agony. Not nice

Louise - Hope you feel better soon too

Mamabird - Yay for seeing baby&belly move! I swear I saw mine give a little jump this morning when I felt a kick, but I might be just imagining it



Heres some recent bumpage from me. 21 weeks(ish) and 22 weeks today
https://i2.photobucket.com/albums/y11/CyanidexBarbie/dsfsdf.jpg?t=1273598131https://i2.photobucket.com/albums/y11/CyanidexBarbie/Snapshot_20100511_4.jpg?t=1273598202

Excuse the mess in the second, I was in pyjamas and a huggeeee t.shirt, I had to tie it back with a band to actually show the bump.

 

[babythinkpink]

Mamabird, congrats on seeing bump move, its such wonderful thing! And that dh saw it too, my bump has only really kicked me and a tube of cold cream on my tummy, as soon as dh goes near me all is quiet! Its like baby thinks, shhh its Daddy, lay stil til he's gone!!
Bless, I know what you mean about lots being written, I get a bit lost too, and tend to take so long to reply that loads of other posts are written in the meantime!

Amy, I am a lot smaller than i have been in previous pregnancies, I do have a bump but also have no muscles strong enough to hold my belly in so its more food than baby! I prod about and can't feel much tbh, certainly nothing that feels like a baby but it must be in there, the scan says so!!
I am small (8 and a half stone and 5ft 3 ish or there abouts!!Although I was 9st when i fell pregnant as i had been trying for 9 months to get pregnant and eaten pretty well to encourage being pregnant))but have always piled the weight on in pregnancy and carried all over, then i have a real struggle when baby is born to come to terms with my body how its left!
Baby grows every day, and she can't hide for much longer, I think your having a small bump day, as opposed to a bad hair day!!

Well I am uber (?) organised today, everyone eaten, kitchen cleaned, washing up done, 2 out of 4 children clean 1 de nitted, bedrooms hovered and landing and son hovered lounge and cleaned kitchen floor, and washing machine on spin as i type!!
Pile of ironing i choose to ignore for now, just leave that to grow a bit more!

Time to go, still one more child to bath, one to push in the direction of the bathroom, then an early night for me, in bed with my tv, bliss, just facebook to check!

Back tomorrow xxxx

 

[MrsJ08]

Louise - really hope you feel better soon you poor thing.

Optical - that makes complete sense, I understand your predicament now. I think if you are used to working it's hard to get your head around anyway. My DH got cross with me a few weeks ago and said "look, I think you need to get your head around the idea that you probably aren't going to be working for the next couple of years, we are going to be pretty skint but you are going to be able to look after the baby yourself, just try and enjoy it". I was feeling guilty at the prospect of not working but also the idea of having no income of my own. That's probably the hardest part for me because I'm used to being the major breadwinner, having plenty of money and being the one who was working 50 hour weeks. I think having been made redundant and not having worked for a while will probably make the transition a little easier because when it happened out of the blue it completely knocked the wind out of me and dented my confidence. In other ways it's helped me because I've had to live through my biggest fear happening and I've realised that as long as you stick together you can get through anything. Good luck, whatever happens xx

Mamabird - how exciting that you saw your tummy move - I've felt a couple of kicks from the outside but not seen anything yet and DH hasn't felt the baby move.

Amy - your bump will come. My SS has just had her second, she's a size 6-8 and didn't start showing properly until she was 25/26 weeks. You baby is measuring well, perhaps you just don't have a lot of fluid at the moment to pad it out? I'm sure my bump is mostly water and fat.

x