Really late comer....
Hi all,I'm joining the group late because I've been a member of a group on another site, but have had such a hard time feeling like a part of it because I simply don't fit in.
My name is Tracy and I'm turning 42 in just a few weeks. Right now, I'm around 28 weeks pregnant with my 6th child. My other kids are 20, 16, 14, 9 and 3, and they're 3 boys and 2 girls. This new one is another boy, too.
My SO and I have been together for 4+ years and the 3 year old is ours together. We're terminally engaged and probably will get married at some point.
He's 48, so we're definitely "older" parents.He also has 3 older kids that are 20, 15 and 13, but unfortunately, he does not have contact with them. His ex has some issues and has worked hard over the years to poison the kids against SO. It's a shame because he's a terrific father to our son and is great with my kids. BTW, my ex is remarried to a wonderful woman and the four of us get along reasonably well. It's just SO's side that's difficult.
Anyway, we decided when our son was a little over 1 that we should try for another since my older kids go back and forth between their dad's and here, so our son is almost like an only child. I charted and temped for about 5-6 months, got frustrated and gave up. It took us approximately 15 months to get pregnant with this one.
It's been a pretty easy pregnancy, except for all-day sickness in the first trimester, an episode of bleeding that scared the crap out of me, and now horrible reflux. Otherwise, it's been smooth sailing. I only opted for the first trimester screening that's the combo of blood work and an ultrasound; my risks of having a baby with Down's or Trisomy 13/18 were the same as a 23 year old woman, so I felt fine about not doing further testing (except the 18 week u/s).
Our son was born at home with a midwife (after 4 hospital births for me), and it was so wonderful that we're planning another homebirth with the same midwife. I love the care I get from her and I love not being in the hospital. This time, I'm planning a waterbirth, so I'm going to order a La Bassine tub soon.
We co-sleep, I breastfeed and pump because I work, we do disposables simply because of my work schedule but I'd prefer to CD. I decided not to circ our son, even though my older boys are. Things have changed between when they were born and when the 3 year old came along, so I really put my foot down about it with SO. Luckily, I think now he sees the wisdom of my ways. We vax on a standard schedule, but I don't do extras, such as flu shots, and some of the various testing, like for lead.
Sorry this is so long -- I feel like I have a lot of catching up to do!!
