May 2002 Hipmamas - Page 2

[esperanza]

ooops!

forgot to do a stats update so here it is:

*23 years old
*married to spike, 27, for four months
*we met in grad school when we were both getting our master's
*he works with a nonprofit, i am not working for the first year after the babies*having twin girls, sofia and lucy
*hoping to go get my PhD in women's studies starting fall of 2003
*sweating profusely here in baltimore

[islandgirl]

may moms?
Me too...3 more weeks, all I can think about too is the little one. Sucks when you are still working! I am taking off eight weeks and really nervous about that and how everything will pan out after going back to work. I plan to take the baby with me and my schedule is pretty flexable but everything is baby dependent. My husband doesn't make nearly enough to support us so he will be Mr. mom. Baby has been moving so much, I have such broken sleep.

[Katey-Kat]

All you overheated sweaty mamas should come visit me!

We had a high of 47° yesterday. And it snowed. (it didn't stick, it all melted, but yeesh!) I'm really wanting to get out and work in my garden, but I am still to worried about it freezing...

[CosmicMama]

Hi Mamas!
Okay - I'll jump on the complaining of the heat bandwagon. It will be 96 here in NY today - and living here - we have no choice but to go into the hot subway tunnels and then on the crowded trains- it really is the pits- not like we can jump in airconditioned cars... Also since we recently moved I hadn't hooked up the air conditioners in my new apartment yet - that is due to be done this weekend (we need professionals to come do it) so tonight I will be VERY uncomfortable. I am debating sleeping at a friends. Yesterday I went and bought a few clothes that were a bit cooler - I hate to spend more money on maternity clothese when I only have another 4 weeks (maybe less?) left but no choice so what are you gonna do?

Other than that - the usual... Baby obsessed too. Paranoid about what could go wrong and the future - all that fun stuff.

Oh - my office always has collections for people expecting a baby or getting married or whatever - and then we usually have cake and present them with a gift (or gift certificate)....So of course now that this should be happening for me - the office coordinator who usually handles these things was let go about 2 weeks ago and I don't think anyone else is thinking of it Which sucks because of course I always chip in for everyone else. I actually said something to the receptionist yesterday - who is supposed to be a friend and has taken over some of the ousted guys duties and she "jokingly" said I was greedy and that she'd pass it on if she remembers - gee thanks b*tch. Oh well. I only have another 3 weeks of work scheduled - I'm out of there 5/10 - woo hoo (for a few months anyway).

The stats were a good idea- I had forgotten everyone's...Here are mine:
I'm 31 - DH is the same - we've been together almost 12 years (almost didn't make it a few times but I guess we are meant to be)!!!
I'm an Admin Asst. w/ a financial co. - boring job but decent pay and great benefits. DH is HR recruiter.
First baby- Max - expected 5/15 - we are both very excited although I'm quite nervous too. It's been just DH and I for so long it is definitely going to be weird at first but great once we get in the swing of things.
Just doing a hospital birth w/ my regular ob/gyn but hoping for the best - pretty nervous about the whole birth thing. Going for ultrasound tomorrow so at least hope to hear he is in position!

Well, that's all for now- again - Happy Birthday everyone - there are so many of you I can't keep up!!!

[Electricita]

Yay! The head is in place, I'm ready to pop says my midwife! And it does seem like my cervix is starting the practice session, so hopefully it won't be long now!

[AnnaRed]

Hi islandgirl and violet - welcome!

Elec - Wow!! I'm sure the internet isn't gonna be foremost on your mind but keep us posted - how exciting! My heartburn is flaring up now too...pretty irritating. And yes, you are right about how the US treats maternity. Crappy. Its like, "We dare you to try to have, and raise, a child." I could go on and on......

Cosmic - i dont' think you're being greedy...i think we are all sort of unsure and anxious about all sorts of things, and excited too, and getting the support and celebration from your co-workers was something you were looking forward to. Makes sense to me...i really look forward to that sort of thing because its not like you have a baby every day!

I'm with katey-kat - here in Oregon its been on the cool side and sometimes sunny, sometimes overcast/rainy. Which is fine since i don't feel like working too hard in the yard and i CERTAINLY don't feel like walking around in small summer clothes at this point. People say, "you look great, its all just in the tummy" but they are grossly misled by my baggy clothing.

Mom took me shopping yesterday and she dropped a load of cash on a WONDERFUL glider/ottoman - it reclines and has cushy yummy head support and everything. What a treat. By far the most comfy one i'd tried.... And she bought a baby dresser with a changing table top. She is a CPA and tax season just ended so she thought she'd splurge. I felt guilty all night long over what she'd spent but friends keep reminding me that this is her first grandchild after all and she can afford it and we can't. My mom kicks ass!

Hopefully dh's mom will buy the carseat. Its her first grandchild too.....We are sad because baby doesn't have grandpas. My dad would love this....i get sad about that sometimes and wish he were here. (He died of a heart disease in '93 and we were close...he was a crazy Scotsman with a great sense of humor and twinkly eyes.)

Playful/Lisa d- you got your birth tub! how exciting....i won't get mine for a while but i'm not due until may 26th. That must make it seem more real, having the tub there.

Staley - what kind of sling do you have? (A friend is giving me a maya wrap and i have a baby bjorn that another friend bought us.)

Huey - dh is executive chef at a private chi-chi country club. He trained on the battlefield too. This job is okay..... He really misses his old job which was at a gorgeous inn on the Oregon coast, where he chatted with the guests after they were done with dinner and he really had a lot of creative leeway. This job pays better but is clearly more corporate and less funky. However, the restaurant situation here slumped pretty badly post-sept 11th and he was thankful to have a solid job that pays well and has great benefits, esp with the baby on the way.
He's love to open his own place. He's a fabulous cook and i'm spoiled rotten.
Do you and your dh work at the same place? you must throw great parties! I'm NOT a cook but i am a really good eater!! And congrats on the digital camera! Thats what i want but i think its at the bottom of the list.


OK, I am babbling and have to go get something done....more later...

[FiberChick]

Hellooo All

Hi everyone,
I thought I'd drop in, even though technically I'm not pregnant anymore. It's great to see everyone here and even some new folks.

My stats:
31 years old, archaeologist, but for now a SAHM

Family unit: DH, Dcat and Ddog (and now Dbaby)

Planned birth: due date May 3, midwife in hosp., no interventions or drugs

Actual birth: March 30, via C-section due to preeclampsia. Every intervention imaginable, ugh.

Healthy pregnancy vibes go out to all of you.
Sleep while you can!!

FiberChick

P.S. BattleAxe watch your mailbox (sorry so late,unforseen circumstances)

[peggy]

Welcome May Mama's!!! I was very sorry to hear about your boards and am so glad you could all re-connect here!
How awful it must have felt to lose your on line support system in the last few weeks of your pregnancy!

If you'd like to connect with even more May Mama's here's a link to a thread that was started awhile back:http://mothering.com/discussions/sho...=Spring+Babies

Again, welcome to all of you!!

peggy

[Serenity]

Count me in too! I feel so much better reading other's posts about this stage of pregnancy. I had such an easy time before and ever since I hit 35 weeks have been feeling really uncomfortable, whiny, and irritable.

Here are some of my stats:
Age 31, dh 32, plus 2 cats
Due May 13th
First babe, gender unknown
Plan homebirth with a midwife
Currently on maternity leave, yippee!

I'm so looking forward to meeting new baby. Have to get my cat used to seeing me with babe in arms (may try a doll for practice). He is very attached to me and very fussy, likes to be dominant in my attention.

Glad to have so many May mommas to go through this experience with!

[Mneek]

Hi, all. I've been lurking on the hM May 2002 mamas thread for months! Haven't had much time to post (start maternity leave next week, so you might hear more), but I'm so glad to see y'all here.

Stats:
Me: 32
DH: 35
2 cats, a skinny black one with extra toes and a fat, fluffy orange & white one.

EDD: April 29, but I think it'll be 1st week of May. Expecting a boy. Planning to spend most of labor at home, but birth at birth center with midwife & doula.

Plan to go back to work at the end of June, with dh as WAHD. We'll see how long it lasts.

I've had a pretty uneventful pregnancy, but the last month or so has been a doozy -- til tomorrow I'm still at work (rant sure to follow sometime in the next week), and it's kinda like working with my brain soaking in a pool of molasses.

Next week I hope to start all my seeds for the veggie garden, and I hope ds-to-be will be okay with hanging out on the porch while i dig weeds.

Hugs & good labor vibes to all of you, especially Hueylene and Ruhiel for keeping it all together.

[AnnaRed]

Serenity-
I feel a little whiney these days too, which is pretty unlike me.

And i am pretty concerned about my cat too- we are TWINS, he follows my every step, he is 15 and i've had him for so long. He sleeps cuddled up at my side and snuggles against my face all night. He is the ruler of the house and i adore him - he's old and needs meds every day - i can't imagine what he'll do when the baby replaces him in bed and takes up all my time.

I was worried about my dog too but she is so easy to please and docile, and has been bonding more with dh lately anyhow.

OK - back to work.....

[BattleAxe]

Hi, Mamas-

Glad to hear from all of you - and Fiberchick, welcome back!!! How's bebe doing? I wish I could take your advice to sleep all I can now, but (like the other mamas, I presume) my sleep patterns suck now. I woke up this morning at 3:30 and didn't fall back asleep until almost 6:30; less than two hours later DH decided he wanted to "discuss" (argue about) stuff from last night. ANYway, one good thing about being awake was that the babe was very active - he was quiet all of yesterday and Thuesday night, after I fell on my butt out in the yard. It was not a serious fall at all, but Laz all but stopped moving and, of course, I got very nervous. Being such a calm, level-headed person and all.

Cats... yup. Georgia is 14; I've had her since she was a week old and, especially since her mom and then sister died a few years ago, she's become very clingy (not that I mind, most of the time!). She'll sleep by my face, or wherever she can find space, and now that I'm home almost all the time she wants attention all day, too. Will she hate the baby or be indifferent? Will she start peeing all over the place (already becoming a sporadic problem as she ages), or will she adapt? Guess we'll find out soon enough. Serenity, I like your idea of practicing with a doll....

Electricita, I hope you're doing well - how exciting!!! I'll send great birth vibes your way. And sometime soon we'll definitely talk about the US approach to maternity - family values, my ass.

I've been bitching to my IRL friends about how cool it's been here (SoCal) - cloudy and damp and upper 50s/low 60s... you know how Californians love to turn minor weather variations into crises... but I remember those hot, humid east-coast days (being a Philly native) and do sympathize. Big, achey, AND sweaty is a pretty rough state to be in, especially when you hadn't planned on it (isn't that why we got ourselves knocked up at the end of last summer???). We'll be sure to send you back your real spring weather just as soon as possible... :-)

Well, I have some stuff to do (pressing tasks like folding laundry) - happy final-month (or final weeks) thoughts to all of you!!!

-love, anna

[Electricita]

Thanks, battleaxe!

The head is in position now is the latest from my midwife, weight slightly above average for 39th week, the last supplies including diapers were secured in a shopping frenzy early this week - we're ready to rock'n'roll!

So I am sure that means I've got at least 3 more weeks to wait...

Saw my friends's beautiful April 8 baby yesterday, so makes me want to get on to the next stage of this!

[staleyg]

hey mamas! welcome to all the new mamas (especially the ex-lurkers!) fiber tell us more! are you up to posting your birth story or a picture?

had my home visit with the midwives last night. i had a mild panic attack b/c the midwife thought the baby might be breech, but it turns out the baby is just reeeeaaaaal low. yay!

last night i woke up with the most intense acid reflux ever! it felt like i was going to puke, my throat was on fire. i went to the bathroom but nothing came up. when i woke up a bit i realizedit was just reflux and popped some tums. woke up a few hours later with the same feeling. ended up sleeping almost upright.

then this morning i felt VERY mucous-y. so now i am convinced my mucous plug is melting or something!

i'm so hyper--i guess i'm trying to convince myself this is almost over. or maybe the heat is just making me extra crazy.

work is throwing a "surprise" shower for me in 30 minutes--i can't wait!

take care mamas, have a great weekend!

oh p.s. did you get the email about mamatron.org? it looks great! (no, i'm not suggesting we move again, just an fyi for the hipmamas )

[playfulmama]

Yeah, it is so nice to hear from all you mamas! Ok, I'm ready to go! 10 more days till my due date! My ankles are swollen from this heat... and I keep going for long walks anyway. Think it will help the baby to come. I was worried about preclampisa (because of the swelling) but I don't have any of the other symptoms so there are no worries. I feel alot of pressure in my pelvis and some twinges in my cervix. Please come baby... but I maybe be waiting 3 more weeks (thanks for the realism Electricita)!

Fiberchick, how is your litttle one? Are you breastfeeding or bottle? Are your blues still blue? As you can tell from my whinning, I'm dying to be with you on the other side!

I had all this stuff to comment on but am too tired and braindead! You are all in my thoughts as we get closer to knowing our little ones better!

[AnnaRed]

Wow Playful - 10 days! That is pretty damn exciting!

I still have 5 weeks....my shower isn't even until next weekend.

How was the suprise shower Staley? Did you score? Thats nice of them to do that for you.

My boss made me get all teary the other day. I work part-time at the University (I quit my other part-time job at a non-profit so am down to 3 days a week total) - ANYHOW, in the office where i work its just me and two other women who i've grown to know very well. I get 3 mos maternity leave, unpaid of course but with benefits, and can cash out my vacation and sick time for pay.

My boss asked if i really thought i'd come back after the 3 months off -I said only if dh and i can swing it so that when i am gone he is with the baby - we can't afford to pay someone else for childcare and i don't see myself wanting to do that anyhow. She said that she didn't mind at all if i brought the baby to work. Can you believe that?
My other co-worker has a 9 yr old daughter and she can't afford after-school care and has to leave her alone and worries ALL the time - there have been several abductions here lately and she hates to leave her home alone. So our boss said to bring her too and she could help us with the baby (the 9 yr old really wants to babysit my baby.)

Whether any of this is even feasible or not makes no difference to me at the moment- I just thought it was a very nice gesture and my main thought was WOMEN ROCK!!!!!! and my boss doesn't even have kids - she can't, yet is still so supportive of us who do/will.

Anyway - i am babbling ad nauseum....

Battle- I would worry a ton if i fell and baby was quiet after, even though i know it should be just perfectly fine. I worry over the smallest stuff now - i think its just anxiety funneling into whatever outlet it can. I'm glad you are both OK though!

Mneek- is this your first baby? That is interesting that your dh will be a SAHD, are there any others in the May mamas group who are doing that? For us it isn't even an option since dh makes a lot more money than i do (and we're still broke), but i am interested in hearing about it.

OK - today is my day to clean the entire house and maybe work in the garden as well - I look forward to hearing from everyone, esp those who are so close to birthing!!

[staleyg]

hey mamas!! guess who's water broke this morning? MINE!! actually it is just trickling out...the midwife came and confirmed it so all that mucous yesterday must have been my plug. cool huh?? only thing is that i don't have any contractions yet. so mamas send me some good birthing vibes because it looks like i'm in for a long haul!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

if you don't hear from me for awhile don't worry. i'll check back asap.

wish me luck!

(p.s. looks like my vision of a baby girl aries might come true after all )

[Electricita]

Holy Smokes, Staleyg!!!!!

All the best of vibes to you for a good birth - and we can't wait to hear the details!

[AnnaRed]

Oh Staley!!

Good luck and keep us posted!! - the suspense is too much.
I'm sending good strong healthy birth vibes your way!

[Mneek]

Yay, staleyg!

AnnaRed, this is our first. Dh works at home and STILL makes more $ than I do, but he's a contractor and doesn't know how long the job will last, while I work for an evil corporation and therefore get us health insurance. He figures there's enough slack time in his sched to watch the baby and still work ("uh-huh, sure there is" I bet you're all thinking) . We've agreed that if that's not the case then he should quit, since we've been socking it away as DINKs for a couple of years and could still live fine on my salary.

From the trenches: I just finished my last week at work and promptly had a semi-panic attack, I think because I haven't been away from my job for more than a week in several years, and am feeling somewhat unhinged. I definitely don't love my job, but I'm used to it, y'know? To cope with this sense of raging uncertainty, I started on a cleaning project this afternoon, only to unknowingly suck a sock into the vacuum cleaner and have it begin to spew forth nasty, toxic smoke. I think I might have killed it! Now how will I get rid of all those balls of cat hair that lurk in all the corners and threaten to engulf our newborn as soon as he gets here??? EEeeek!