The First Timer Scardicats!!!!!

I think ECV has more of a bad rep than it needs to. It can be v successful but it can also be quite traumatic. Most women say it's over in 5mins. I just want her to flip round again and she's been perfectly behaved up until now!
 
Sooz: Sorry to hear about this! :hugs: The ECV sounds unpleasant to say the least. Time to give your girl a pep talk to get her to cooperate! :hugs:
 
Hello everyone :flower: Sorry for being quiet over the last week, it's all been a bit manic to say the least!

So I was discharged from hospital on the Monday afternoon, only to be readmitted on the Tuesday evening with more of the same again :dohh: This time the contractions were every 5 minutes, and more intense than the first time I was admitted. My cervix wasn't any more dilated than on my previous admission though, which was a really good thing. Again, things settled in hospital, and I finally got out on Thursday evening after a chat with my consultant. I've been told that unless the contractions become as frequent as every 2-3 minutes, or if they become painful, that I can stick things out at home for the time being - otherwise I could be in hospital for the next 5 or 6 weeks, which is not tempting at all! I feel very on edge about everything, and am constantly checking that my waters haven't gone/I'm not bleeding etc etc, but am glad to be home for the time being. The midwives on the ward advised bed rest as far as possible at home, as the slightest bit of activity seems to set things off, and that seems to be keeping things reasonably settled which is good (I'm still having fairly frequent contractions throughout the day, and they can be quite intense at times, but I'm downing lots and lots of water which seems to be helping). I'm feeling really emotional about it all (don't think it helps that I'm sleeping badly so am so tired!), but glad that I'm now almost 31 weeks and my girlies are still safe inside :thumbup:

Sooz - any more clues as to whether your little one is breech or not? Just to make you feel a bit better, I think it is really hard for the midwives to accurately tell the position of baby without a scan. From the heartbeat and feel of my Twin 1 the other day one of the midwives was absolutely convinced they had turned head down, but a scan only half an hour later proved they were still in exactly the same breech position they had been the day before - the heartbeat was just lower than expected as they were sat bottom down and very low! So try not to panic too much - she may well have got it wrong, and if not there is still time for baby to move around. I'm sending head down thoughts your way :hugs:

Annaki - I'm pleased that your little man seems to be behaving at the moment! Hope you're enjoying the beginning of maternity leave and taking things easy :hugs:

Mojo - you poor thing with this sickness! I can't believe it's still going on :nope: At least you're getting into the third trimester now, so the end is in sight! That's great that you've finished work now, as you can at least get all the rest and relaxation your body must so badly need :hugs:

Kismet - sorry to hear your body is playing tricks on you again :hugs: Hope you're managing to stay positive and keep your chin up lovely lady.

Luvbug - I just love baby shopping, so exciting! Have you pretty much got everything now? Hubby and I sorted out some last minute bits and bobs on the internet yesterday, and are now pretty much ready for whenever the girls decide to put in an appearance (or they'd at least have all the essentials!). How are you feeling generally?

CC - how is early pregnancy treating you?

Snuffles - same for you, are things going ok? Hope the sickness isn't too rotten :hugs:

Jo4nn4 - how are you and your lovely little man?

Trying - I see from having a quick nosey at your journal that you've been away. Hope you've had a lovely time, and that you got in lots of baby dancing!

Mini - how are things going lovely lady?
 
Banana Hi Honey I was just thinking of you, I'm glad your girls are still hanging in there. You make sure you take things easy those little girls of yours still need a bit of cooking.

Thanks for asking about me, I doing fine, a bit of MS but not bad at all and I'm very tired especially in the afternoons but to be honest I'm loving it. Just knowing that my little nugget is there is blowing my mind. I have my first MW appointment on Thursday so really looking forward to that.
 
Hi girls!
Oh banana you've been through a horrible time. Thank goodness they've recommended bed rest! Tell those cheeky girls to stay in there for a bit longer!

I'm doing ok but had a bad night last night. I'm feeling so angry about everything but just broke down and couldn't stop crying. I just want it back and I don't want to hurt anymore.
It's not helping that I've been working all hours to prepare for the inspection at my school. It starts tomorrow and goes through to Friday!! So tired!!

Sorry I'm not doing individual messages but hope you're all ok!
 
Banana- so nice to hear from you! That's terrible what's going on though. I hope those little girlies can hang tight just a while longer! But good thing you get to go home, that always seems to make things a little better being in the comfort of your own home. We have about everything. My work threw a surprise baby shower for me on Thursday and I got a decent gift card that we put towards our travel system and so that has been ordered and is on it's way! Really we just need a monitor and a pump. I want to wait to get the pump until after baby is born though to make sure that I am going to be able to breast feed. Not far after baby comes, but just soon enough after to make sure that it's something I am going to be able to do it! Other then that, minus a few select things that it wouldn't hurt if we don't have them when baby comes, we really have everything. Of course I want more clothes haha, but that will come with time! I have washed all his clothes, and they're put away. All the towels and wash cloths as well, and I just have one more load of bedding and then that will all be done!
I'm feeling good for the most part. I had a breakdown the other day because my ankles have been so swollen and they hurt terribly. Other then that, I've been getting along pretty well!

Aw mini, I am so sorry. I can't even imagine the pain you're feeling :hugs: times a million.

Glad to hear from those of you that have posted- glad to know you're doing well.
And hope those of you we haven't heard from recently are doing alright as well :flower:
 
Hi ladies, I'm a rubbish BnB friend I've been MIA for a bit! Hope you're all ok :) xx
 
Any ladies know when a sweep is offered in the UK?

Just looked at my plan of care in my Mat notes and I will see my MW next week (38 wk apt) and then only only more apt at 40/41 week. I read somewhere it won't be offered until after due date. Is this right? Or could I possibly have it at my 40 wk apt (when il actually be 39+4 days). Hopefully I won't need it but all this Mat leave time is giving me way too much time to think! Haha.

My lovely friends threw me a Suprise Baby Shower on Sunday. It was lovely! Got tonnes of goodies. Don't think il need to buy anything for a while.

Hope your all well xxx
 
Cake Hi there I have been wondering where you have been. Hope you are doing OK honey.

Annaki - Sorry honey I can't help I have no idea. I have been think of when to stop work and was thinking of 38 weeks but taking 2 weeks leave before that what do you think?

Mini - Thank you honey, I'm doing fine a little sick but I refuse to complain I will take it all. How are do doing honey? Sending you loads of hugs XXX :hugs:

To all of you that are about to POP good luck and keep us all posted. I'm relying on you all to be my best friends guide to pregnancy :haha:
 
I'm doing good thanks CC, in the TWW so we'll see if I get a nice little Xmas present hehe xx
 
Will be keeping my fingers crossed for you, what do you think your chances are?
 
I'm doing ok this week apart from a bit of a breakdown on Monday night! My school have an inspection at the moment so have been working ridiculous hours. Absolutly knackered! I've been testing my ovulation and I got a positive yday and today! At least I know my bodies getting back on track. X
 
Annaki - So glad your little monkey seems to be the right way up now! My MW thought Felix was breech multiple times but he just had a particularly bony bum :haha: I even got sent for a scan to check it out at 39+5 and all was well. As for the sweep, they're not allowed to offer them before 40 weeks, and some districts not before 41 :nope: I got one at 39+5 after I complained about being summoned to the hospital/consultant's office (80 miles away) for no more than a blood pressure check :haha: I had to ask for it though and sit around for ages waiting for a consultant to OK it, and it was only because she happened to be in the next room and could preform it herself that I got approved. I went into labour 10 hours later :haha: I would definitely not have been given one here until 40+1 though.

Mojo - I can't believe you're in the third trimester already! And yay for finishing work, how exciting :happydance:

Sooz - Yes Felix and Daddy got me the gift of not having to look after Felix all day! I had a lovely long lie in, a bath, and watched some films whilst OH did all the feeding and changing and I got all the cuddles :haha: How did your baby shower go? Any news on that little lady's position? As I said above Felix was suspected to have changed position multiple times, to the point of being sent for a presentation scan two days before my due date! Needless to say I crapped myself but everything was OK. FX yours is too :hugs:

Banana - How are you doing? Hope your little ladies are still tucked up nice and safe inside. My auntie was induced with twins at 34 weeks (they wanted to do it at 33 but she wanted to attend my wedding instead :haha:) and they arrived absolutely fine. They were little and spent a week or so in special care but they were never in any danger or anything.

CC - good luck at your appointment today! You'll have to let us know how it goes!

Mini - Good to hear you're ovulating again! Does this mean you're back on the TTC bandwagon or are you just keeping track of things for when you do? Sorry to hear things are so stressful at work, that's all you need when you've had such a tough time, you poor thing. You're being so strong :hugs:

Cake - good luck to you! What a lovely little Christmas present that would be. I found out I was expecting on April 10th and he arrived on Dec 15th so you'd be looking at a similar timescale!

I'm doing well, Felix is bigger and more lively than ever and is so smiley and starting to giggle. It's so cute. We had another rough time with his jabs the other day but all is well apart from that. The infant Gaviscon seems to be really helping his silent reflux and has literally changed our lives! I don't think I could have coped if things had carried on the way they were. I'm going to take him swimming for the first time next week which I'm really excited about and his other Nanna (my MIL) is coming up to meet him for the first time over Easter weekend. A couple of friends are coming up too and then my dad's parents - Felix's great grandparents! I can't wait and neither can they.

Now just to add to my epic post I have finally found time to put together my list of newborn tips which I have attached in a spoiler below. I hope some of you find something helpful in amongst them :hugs:

Arrange clothes in size order before baby is born
Not just 'Newborn', '0-3' etc. Look at each individual label and arrange by size. For example Tesco's 'newborn' only goes up to 7.5lb and its '0-3' up to 12lb, whereas Mothercare's newborn goes up to 11lb and 0-3 up to 14.5lb. I have wasted a lot of clothes by not sorting them properly and assuming all newborn is the same, and Felix has grown out of them before even wearing them once :( Also be prepared to continue doing this sorting every week or two as your baby grows. And don't save the best outfits for special occasions as they grow so quickly they'll end up not wearing them at all!

It's always wind
My Dad told me this before Felix was born but I didn't realise quite how true it is. If they're full and are still complaining, it's probably wind. If they're fussing at the bottle/breast, acting like they're still hungry but won't eat, it's probably wind. If they're OK on your lap and whinge when you lie them down, it's probably wind. If they're clean, dry, warm, fed and generally should be perfectly fine but they're not, it's probably wind. You get the picture.

Baby boys pee everywhere
Be prepared from that first change! They will wee in places you never thought possible. Felix filled his own ear with wee once and we had to tip him up to pour it out :sick: have a muslin handy to dump on top of them and always point their willy down when you change their nappy otherwise when they wee it will shoot out of the top/back/side of their nappy and they will end up with damp patches in the weirdest places and often manage to miss the nappy entirely :dohh:

Moistness indicator on Pampers
Not to be a brand snob or anything but I found these invaluable, particularly in the early days. The midwives are seemingly obsessed with how often your newborn is peeing and in the early days when they pee such small quantities and well, you just don't particularly know them and their habits and what to look for, the wetness indicator thingy saves a lot of stress (by all means use a different brand but as far as I know Pampers are the only ones that have this at the moment).

Wait 5 minutes after you hear them poop!
I have been pooped on SO MANY times after being a little too eager to change Felix's nappy when it turns out he wasn't quite done. Give them a minute after pooping to maximise the chances of you remaining poo-free.

Don't worry about routine
Your life will be absolute and total chaos for at least the first month, probably two. Don't worry about it. I stressed so much about getting Felix to have a proper bedtime etc etc when he just wasn't ready and neither was I. Until he was just over two months old he was always with us, he'd just sleep in his chair downstairs until we went to bed and then we'd take him up with us. A routine will come naturally eventually. We now do bedtime (a story, a bit of a play, baby massage, a feed) between 7 and 8 and he is asleep by 8 every single night, and has been for a good few weeks now. We had absolutely no routine for ages and he's still taken to it so well so please don't worry about this.

Baby>sleep>food>shower>housework
This one is simple. No matter how much you want to keep the house clean and whatever you will fall into this order of priorities within a week or so as your tiredness takes over. Give in from day one and you will feel so much better! Also stock up on dry shampoo/body wash wipe thingies to make you feel a bit more human when you haven't had chance for a proper wash.

Remember how important your own physical and mental health is
Obviously baby's basic needs come first but remember that if you're physically and mentally exhausted baby won't be getting you at your best either. I can't emphasise how important this one is. I tortured myself to the brink of post natal depression with the whole breastfeeding thing and whilst I am proud of myself for persevering for so long, I do regret it in many ways. They were Felix's first precious few weeks and I spent them in utter misery, and I can never get that back. When it comes to #2 I will give it a fair go but also be happy to give up much sooner. Try your best to take yourself outside of that very intense experience of having a brand new baby and look at the bigger picture. I would rather have had a baby on formula and enjoyed those first weeks more. But at the same time hindsight is always 20:20 and you can only do your best. As long as you and your baby are healthy and happy you are doing amazingly and try not to feel bad about any of your decisions.

Don't panic about sex
It will be OK! I tore quite badly (oh yeah, and it turns out when the midwife is stitching you up and you ask how bad it is they lie to you! My notes and my own poking and prodding about down there said I'd torn a lot worse/had a lot more stitches than she told me I had at the time) and had sex 5 weeks later. It was quite uncomfortable but a few times after that it was absolutely fine and now I can't tell any difference apart from (TMI) still being a little bit dry due to the hormonal changes. My OH says it doesn't feel any different either so I just hope he's telling the truth :haha:

Don't clear out your maternity stuff just yet
I am STILL in my maternity clothes :cry: Also if you have any under-bump trousers or PJ bottoms keep them in case you end up with a C-Section. At the moment I don't even bother putting my clothes away as my shape is still changing daily. I just have piles of clothes all round the house which I try on and update every week or so :haha: It seems to be working for me but then I'm a lazy git and hate hate hate putting clothes away.

Don't be surprised if you feel very broody very soon
If your birth went as planned, you may well be excited to do it all again as it was amazing. If it didn't go as you'd hoped, you will probably feel you can't wait to do it all again 'properly'. I am broodier now than I ever was when WTT and am seriously having to rein it in. I suggest getting a type of contraception that you have to go to the doctor to have removed :haha: I have the implant now and wouldn't trust myself/us to be using something self-administered!

And finally, my #1 top tip - enjoy it!
There will be moments where it feels like hell on earth. There will be moments where you think 'what the hell was I thinking?' and think you're not cut out to be a mother. You will get through it and this is totally normal. But enjoy those cuddles, take lots of pictures and make the most of them being so tiny. You will never ever experience the first few weeks of being a first time parent ever again and it is incredible. When you look back you will remember this time with joy. Even now only 3 months on it is like I have forgotten the absolute chaos of the first month or two and I can't picture our lives without him like he is now. Those desperate tearful nights when you don't know why they're crying and you just want to sleep will be forgotten or at least will pale into insignificance, very soon, I promise. Before you know it they will be smiling, giggling, crawling, walking... in those first weeks when everyone tells you it goes so fast and you're just hoping to get through the day so you can go back to sleep you won't believe them, but it's so true. Every day brings its challenges and rewards but you will still miss each stage that has passed so treasure it.

I am so jealous of you ladies embarking on the adventure of a lifetime. I can't tell you how much I would love to go back and do it all again but of course I'm so happy to be where we are now. I know I'm no expert having just got a 3 month old myself but if there's anything at all I can do or any questions I can answer I'll try my best. I felt terribly lonely in the beginning, don't know what I'd have done without this place and I'd love to be able to help someone else out the way others have helped me :cloud9:
 
Jo, just wanted to say your tips are AMAZING!! :happydance: Sounds like you and Felix have settled into life!
I love reading your posts as they are so informative of what is going to come!

AFM we had our scan at 13 weeks yesterday. I'd had some icecream a few hours before and bubs was wriggling about all over the place, walking on the spot, waving and sucking its thumb! They even moved me forward 2 days.

We've now started to tell people and its been so nice. Was great to have a secret but i think you do get to the point when you want to start telling. At least my team know and since i work in the baby department i'm in good hands!

Hope everyone is well xxxx
 
Thanks CC, I'm 3DPO and we DtD on O day so I'm hoping ha!

I know Jo, I worked out that 'IF' we conceived my EDD would be 9/12/13 but if i went over it could be up to the 23rd x
 
Jo- oh my gosh I loved your tips! They're all so amazing and I'm so glad that you posted them!! It's so nice to hear that you guys are doing good!!

Mini- aw dear- I am so sorry things are stressful right now :hugs:

Cake- My fingers are crossed for you- Christmas baby would be so exciting!

Jaynie- I was so excited when we finally started telling people as keeping that huge secret was getting difficult haha.

CC- I'll definitely be here to give any advise I can!

AFM- will be spending the weekend getting ready for baby. I've been in crazy nesting mode this week... probably driving dh nuts as it's driving me nuts! :haha:
We had another birthing class last night, it was very interesting learning about contractions and the different types of pain relief!
Hope you ladies we haven't heard from lately are doing well! And sorry if I missed anyone, I'm tired as I haven't been sleeping well this week.
 

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