sick of waiting for bfp - come on October

[RCAFWife]

Awwww!! That's such a nice birth story Brit!! I loved reading it, thanks for sharing! What a blessing to have such a quick labour and delivery! My goodness! It was so nice that you were able to be awake and have energy to bond with your baby once she was born too! Amazing! Congratulations to you and your family!! Did you even get to use any of the things you had packed in your hospital bag?? haha. Vayda is beautiful! She looks really healthy too -- nice and pink. I bet she had a good strong cry too. So how many weeks were you when she was born? It's kind of unfortunate that you didn't get to have the full effect of the epidural, since you were ready to push by the time they got the epidural set up, but at least you didn't have to endure the pain and discomfort too long before Vayda was born!

 

[brit3435]

Thank you rcaf things are going so great with Vayda she is such a good baby and Tay is loving her new baby sister. How did your ultrasound go?

Trytofind I can't wait to hear some news from you!

 

[RCAFWife]

That's great she is fitting in to the family nicely
Ultrasound in about 9 hours. I can't sleep, baby is moving too much and it kinda hurts! Praying for healthy kidneys later today! Will update ASAP after the appointment!

 

[brit3435]

Good luck today rcaf!

 

[RCAFWife]

So Ian's kidney enlargements have shrunk, so the doc is hopeful that by the last checkup (33 week u/s) it will have gone back down to normal size. She said if his kidneys measure the same at 33 weeks as they do now, then it will be considered normal, but she'd be very surprised if the kidneys didn't get smaller by then. So she said I shouldn't lose sleep over it or start looking for specialists to see him after birth. If it comes to that, they have a very good specialist they highly recommend that's right on staff and can visit while we're in the hospital if needed. But she said it'll be very rare that we'd need to get that far. So yay! She also checked his amniotic fluid levels and they were fine as well as visible proof that his kidneys are working (ie he had a full bladder and stomach, so the kidneys are doing their job as the "middle man" between the two organs lol) so I'm not worried as much. I'd love to see perfect kidneys at 33 weeks, but as long as they're functioning, it's all good with me!
Baby LOVES the head down position! Every ultrasound since 12 weeks has shown his head nestled between my bladder and his placenta! It explains why he gets so restless when I have the seat belt on too long or if i have tight pants on lol (he doesn't really like the bella band). hopefully he just turns to have his back to the front by birth time and it'll be all good. I think the u/s tech sensed my worry over the kidney issue, because she gave me some free 3D ultrasound pics!! He's definitely more filled out than at 23 weeks when I had the last 3D u/s and he looks SO much like my husband! At least, the parts of his face he'd allow us to see. I swear in one picture, he has a smirk on his face cause he knew we were trying to get a shot of his full face and he didn't want us to haha! I'll upload a pic for you.

 

[brit3435]

Great news about the Ian's kidneys RCAF! So happy for you! Now maybe you can relax and enjoy the best part of pregnancy only a few weeks until you are holding your little boy!

Trytofind how are you and Oli doing? Would love to hear the birth story

Afm we are all doing well, my recovery has been much easier than it was with my first and it has been nice having DH home for the past two weeks. I'm a bit nervous about being left all alone with two kids once he goes back to work though. I'm nursing Vayda, but she will only nurse off the left side because my right side got a scab on it and also became engorged, and now it feels different to her than the left, so I have to pump the right side and its a lot of work! She nurses every 2/3 hours for 45 mins and then I have to pump the other side right after. I'm not sure how I'll do it with a 2 year old to take care of as well.

 

[RCAFWife]

That's interesting that she won't accept the right nipple even after it had healed! Babies are funny At least you can pump off the right one to help you out. Has your DH been feeding Vayda the pumped milk? I want to pump mainly so that DH can bond with baby through feeding. And also to help with engorgement Glad to hear you guys are doing so well. Feel free to vent to us about taking care of two kids alone!

AFM - I had my first prenatal massage today! It was wonderful! I was totally soothed and relaxed. Just what I needed, especially with my hips and now lower back as Ian gets heavier. It was neat that the massage table had special cut outs for belly and boobs hehe. I'll try to go back again before my pregnancy is over for sure. It was DH's birthday today so I took him for a massage with me as well

TrytoFind I'm anxious to hear your birth story and how Oli is doing!! Hope you guys are well!

 

[RCAFWife]

Merry Christmas Brit and TrytoFind! Hope you're enjoying your Christmases with your new babies and family

 

[brit3435]

Rcaf the massage sounds amazing! Dh was so good about giving me massages every night while I was pregnant but it would have been so nice to have a long professional massage! Was it comfortable laying on your stomach with the cut outs? I was so excited to be able to sleep on my stomach again but I still can't because my boobs are too big and sore lol.

Trytofind how are you and oli doing? Are you breastfeeding?

Hope you ladies had a merry Christmas!

Afm this week is my first week alone with both kids. It's going better than I expected. My older daughter is actually a lot more work than my newborn. Vayda is a very easy baby so I lucked out, she hardly ever cries, she sleeps all night with a quick feeding around 3am and she rarely spits up. Maybe once a day and it's not a lot. My older daughter had reflux and she would projectile vomit 4 or 5 times a day. I hope you both have easy newborns it's a completely different experience!

I've stopped nursing Vayda, it was too much work with my toddler to take care of too. I can't be tied down to the couch for several hrs while my other daughter runs around the house I'm exclusively pumping now, I get around 22 oz of milk per day right now although I'm hoping to increase my supply by pumping often and drinking lots of water. It's so much easier to pump than to nurse. It takes about 10 mins and I pump every 2 hrs during the day and every 3 to 4 hrs at night. I've had to supplement with 2 to 4 oz of formula each day but I feel much better knowing she is getting enough. When I was nursing she lost weight and still wasn't back to her birth weight by 2 weeks. Just this week she has gained half a pound!

 

[RCAFWife]

I was comfortable with my belly in the cutouts. I think baby Ian liked the massage too because his movements were nice and calm for once haha!

That's so awesome you have a cool baby! She sounds great! Sleeping through the night with only one feeding at 3am sounds perfect! And that's a good idea about the pumping if breastfeeding is too much of a struggle. You get so much out which is even better. I think I'll do exclusive pumping if Ian and I can't swing breastfeeding but I would love it to work though I'm also planning to supplement. Which formula did you choose? I have my eye on Similac for Supplementation. Are you using the "closer to nature" type bottles that have the wider and softer breast-like nipple? DH and I have a bunch of coupons for those and have already purchased some. I like how they feel -- totally feels pretty close to an actual breast

 

[brit3435]

We are using enfamil newborn to supplement. Her pediatrician said generic formula was fine but enfamil makes one specifically for newborns and there is no generic so we decided to spend a little more and use that for the first couple of months. I've noticed she sleeps longer at night if we use formula in the evening and overnight so I'm trying that and giving her breast milk during the day. I think sleep is so important for babies brain development. The bottles we use are the Medela bottles. They are expensive but Tay preferred them over anything else and Vayda does well with them. She would go back and forth from bottle to breast easily which was nice. What are you using for Ian to sleep in the first few months? Will he sleep in your room or in his? A crib or bassinet?

 

[Try2findbaby]

Hey both so sorry it's taken such a long time to get back to you! We had a horrific time of it - a week in hospital after an emergency c section. Oliver was and is still fine thankfully. I shall update u guys on the birth story once things settle down - Christmas and new year madness over here! Hope ur all ok x

 

[brit3435]

Glad to hear you and oli are both ok trytofind! Was getting worried about you sorry to hear things didn't go as planned during the birth, I can't imagine having to spend a whole week in the hospital or having to take care of a newborn after a emergency c section! Is your dh still at home to help? I can't wait to hear your birth story

 

[RCAFWife]

Oh TrytoFind!! I was worried about you! Glad to hear from you though, and that you and baby Oliver are doing well now Hope you're recovering quickly! Can't wait to see a pic of the little man!

Brit, Ian will be sleeping in his play yard in our room for the first month or so. It has a napper/cradle thing that's also a change table if you flip it over. There is also a little bassinet-type mattress beside it so we can put him there to sleep too. It converts later into a normal play pen which is handy. I plan to put him in his crib for naps to ease him into the transition to his new room though. But it'll depend largely on him so we'll see!

Midwife appointment on Monday, then final kidney check on the 13th. Hope nothing else is wrong with him! I can't believe I can now say that I'll be full term in a month!! I should be getting my completion discount coupon in my email in a couple weeks and then I can finally clear off my second registry. I plan to get the pertussis shot this month too. Midwife suggests 34-36 weeks to be safe, and DH can get his whenever. My belly is starting to hurt from all the weight and stretching. My weight gain is on track, gaining 2-3 lbs every 2 weeks. I'm now at 154.8! Still no swelling or anything so I'm happy about that. My back is starting to hurt now especially if I walk around too long. The couch is my new favourite spot haha!

 

[brit3435]

Hi ladies just checking in to see how you both are doing.

Trytofind how are you and oli doing? I still want to hear all about the birth I hope you are recovering nicely from the whole ordeal

Rcaf how are you feeling? Good luck on your last kidney check, I have a feeling Ian will be just perfect when he is born.

Afm Vayda is nearly 5 weeks old and it's really flying by! A part of me is already missing being pregnant lol that didn't happen after my first until she was 18 months! Doesn't matter though bc we don't want anymore kids at least for several years. My 6 week appt is next week and I plan to discuss an implant for birth control. I'm still pumping breast milk for Vayda. I'm getting around 24oz a day but she eats about 26 to 30oz a day so she gets a few oz of formula as well. She smiled for the first time this week, not a sleeping gas smile but a wide awake social smile. It was the cutest thing. As far as weight goes I ended my pregnancy at 152 and am now at 129. So I've still got 10 to 15 lbs to lose to get to my goal weight. It's coming off more slowly now. A pound a week if I'm lucky. I haven't done any dieting or exercise yet though.

 

[RCAFWife]

Aww baby smiles! I hope you got to catch some on camera Glad to hear you're doing well. Is that a lot of milk for a 5 week old? 30 oz? (I have no clue lol) I can't believe it's been a month already!! They grow so fast.

I asked a lot of questions about labor and delivery at my midwife appointment today and now I don't feel as scared and nervous about it as I did this past week. I like that they won't be forcing interventions on me and they make it really easy for me to keep moving around even with fetal monitoring and an IV. And they have a tub! I wanted to stay at home for as long as I could so I could use my tub, but they have one too so I can use mine and theirs hehe.
Kidney check in 3 days!! They said that 5 weeks ago my waters were on the low side of normal....so we'll see how it is in 3 days.
I've gotta get my hands on A Baby Story. I have this strong need to watch as many educational baby videos as possible! Last night I watched National Geographic's "inside the womb" on youtube lol

 

[Try2findbaby]

Well I finally have two mins to respond... As it is such a long birth story I may need to do it in installments firstly thanks for being patient with me - patience is key to oli's birth!

Well mon 9th dec I finally went to be induced (12 days over edd). They insert a 'tampon-like' (it is more similar to a razor blade than any tampon!) pessary for 24hrs to get things moving at 12pm by 4pm I am irregular contracting, not enough to do anything but enough to make me have little sleep....

12pm Tuesday - I can remove the pessary (not as painful as insertion thank god!) 2hrs later the doc comes to check my cervix and tries to 'manipulate my waters' which had to be one of the worst parts of the whole thing - making me jump off the bed with pain! It had no effect. She inserts the gel pessary at 2.30pm. I am in pain and getting frustrated because I am still 1cm. Ridiculous! I send dh to get a sandwich for himself because nothing is happening yet again... So I start to fix the bed and feel a pop in my belly and start panicking (I'd had the same sensation a couple of weeks before) but felt him kick a few times so knew he was ok. Go to sit on the chair and feel funny so stand up and drip drip drip (I think great I have now wet myself!!) then with that a massive gush of waters! I press the call button (whilst trying to phone dh) so finally at 4.30-5pm we can go down to delivery suite...

By the time we get to the delivery suite I have flooded the bed and the wheelchair numerous times with all the waters(so much for it not being like it is in the movies lol) but we are finally there!

I will do part 2 soon as oli has just woken up!! Hope ur all ok x

 

[RCAFWife]

Yikes! That pessary sounds horrible! But I suppose it's better than pitocin? Can't wait to hear the rest! It's kinda like reading half a chapter of a suspenseful novel hehe

My belly's been feeling stretched to the limit and very sore especially if I'm up and about too long, so now I don't really go out unless I have a midwife appoint or DH wants me to go grocery shopping with him

Speaking of appoints, I had my last u/s Jan 13th to check Ian's kidneys and THEY'RE PERFECT!!! I'm so thrilled! He won't need to see a specialist or have surgery after birth which is awesome So thanks for your best wishes ladies 'cause they worked! The u/s also showed how cramped he is in there. One profile shot showed his nose and lips pressed against the uterine wall LOL! He's also estimated to be 5 lbs 3 oz now.

 

[brit3435]

Hi ladies how are you both doing? Rcaf your almost there! Any signs of labor yet?

I can't believe it but Vayda is almost 2 months old now. I'm 5 lbs away from my pre pregnancy weight and being pregnant seems so long ago lol.

 

[RCAFWife]

2 months already??? She's growing before our eyes, huh! Love your pic btw! Cute!

It may be all in my head, and we'll see on Wed at my midwife appointment, but I think I may go early. All along this pregnancy, I've had the feeling that I wouldn't make it to my due date on the 24th. I always felt I'd go around 38 weeks, but now i'm hoping to go this week! I'm at the point where I just want this pregnancy to be over. Actually, I was at that point 2 weeks ago and so getting to 37 weeks is HUGE for me lol! Last friday, the skin on my belly felt SO itchy and when I lifted up my shirt, my skin was all red and full of hives and I thought "what am i allergic to? I can't even take an allergy pill to help!" And so I just rinsed my belly with cool water and it helped, but when the redness went away, i noticed on either side of my belly where it meets the hips, there were these "stretch marks"! I say it in quotes because they looked more like lacerations than stretch marks. They had light coloured centers and on that light part were broken blood vessels, looking a lot like bloodshot eyes! and OH did they ever hurt and sting! And guess what? They're in exactly the two places little Ian LOVES to push on! He pushes his butt out about at least 4 inches on the right side, and his feet on the left. If he keeps this up, I will tear in half I swear! As of a couple days ago, I've been getting period-like cramping and TONS of pressure down in my pelvic area. This week, it is very noticeable that his head is far down because when I sit down on a chair, I feel his body move up into my abdominal cavity, and I never felt that before. And then when I get up and walk around, it feels like there's something between my legs. I told my DH that Ian is giving me lady balls because it feels like my lady parts are hanging down low now! haha! And BH are getting more noticeable now, and more frequent, especially after using the bathroom. Midwife says getting rid of the pressure from a full bladder on the uterus causes it to contract. I'm having some period-like cramps right now, but it could be constipation. I don't know. I will believe it's labor-related when it's consistent and gets more intense. I've also started to have cm and lots of it, and it's kinda watery at times. Since I got pregnant, my lady bits have completely dried up (even when we try to dtd). And only since 35 weeks have they started to get the lubrication back. I didn't have to wear any panty liners until now so maybe this is another impending labor sign? We will see.

I'm just SO done and SO uncomfortable and irritable! Some of our friends don't seem to get that I don't want to hang out or go out because of how badly i feel. They don't have kids (or seem to want any because they make a big show of telling everyone how they are career-minded and DON'T have any interest in having kids) so they won't understand why I feel this way. They aren't even making an effort to understand, they just keep hounding me to go out/try to invite themselves over. Before I was pregnant, I NEVER did that to any of my pregnant/new mom friends. I always thought, if I were in that situation, what would i want? And that was my guide, but not everyone is as considerate as I am, I see And so I get a bunch of text messages and facebook messages not-so-subtly asking to be invited over, saying things like "i can come over in my pjs so you would feel more at ease." That's not the issue. If you come over, I'll not only want my house to be presentable, but also I'd have to make small chat with you and I can't be as relaxed as I could be if I were alone! Am I unreasonable to want that in my last trimester? Especially the last weeks?? And when I keep turning down these requests, I get a message like the one i did this morning: "So...what do you do all day then?" Seriously?!?! Who asks that?? Only an insensitive person! I found it to be really rude, especially since it's not like she just met me and has no clue, she's just trying to figure out why I won't make any plans with her to "hang out". Ugh! So rude...call it pregnancy hormones, but it's still an unnecessary thing to say...
OK rant over!
Hope you guys are doing better than I am! I can't wait to update you with my birth story!! Hopefully it'll be soon. I had another prenatal massage this afternoon and I don't know what she did, but I've been feeling REALLY drowsy all day! I'm glad for it though because I haven't been sleeping well these last few weeks and I'm going to take the rest when I can get it before it's too late haha!