Any mamas out there over 35 or 40!?!

[bjunkie]

Just found out I'm pg.... I just turned 44 (right after conception most likely ; )
I have a large family.... but children all spaced out.... except my last (a HBAC!) a daughter that just turned 2. I am pretty numb, as I thought we were done. Still nursing my daughter constantly day and night, a little nervous about how this will affect my ap with my daughter. Most of my other kids were purposely spaced apart.

Just wondering if could connect to other like mamas here?

bjunkie, 5wks? still early but those betas i took are a rising ; )

[ASusan]

bjunkie - it sounds like you have a great family life. Congratulations on both parts - your new pg, and your family.


I am 35, will be 36 in Sept. I am nowhere near you in terms of family accomplishments. This is my first (second, if you count last winter's mc at 5.5 weeks) pregnancy, just married last September. Although DH and I have been together over 10 years, we barely live together at this point. We will by next month - it's just a huge year of transitions.

Here's my situation, in relation to what you posted regarding your family ---

I can pretty much tell you that we won't homeschool or anything similar (DH's thinking, among other reasons, is, "What do we pay taxes for?" and "Teachers have their expertise and we have ours. Let them teach, and we'll do the rest."). I will continue to work, unless we have a child with significant special needs.

We will also vax, or selectively/delay vax, if I have anything to say about it. DH is pretty mainstream when it comes to modern medicine. He's a scientist and has had his life saved by modern medicine more than once. He has been tolerant of my acupuncture treatments in the past 8 mos. However, anything non-mainstream or alternative that I do, I'd better have scientific explanations/data/study to back up. I see many challenges in the upcoming months for us on this issue.

If it's a boy, we will not circumcise. DH has a huge rant on that. I'll post it sometime for fun - it's a good read.

I used to be vegetarian/low meat. However, DH is a big carnivore, and is allergic to most fruits and vegetables. He does at least half the cooking, so, it's another area we compromise. We do a lot of fish, and when we live together, I expect that I will be serving him a lot of high-protein veggie dinners when I cook. He'll probably heat up left-over chicken to put on the top, though.


I do plan to breastfeed as long as possible, although I will be returning to work fairly quickly. However, my work is flexible, and I could even take the babe into my office, and DH and I work in the same building (so he can take the babe into his office, too).

I do hope to CD.

My birth will be in a hospital, as I have some of my own medical issues that make me "high risk." (and see above note on DH's full endorsement of modern medicine). I have lupus, and I have kidney anomolies that may decide to act up when a fetus pushes them around.


That's a LOT about me...

[Elizabethmidwife]

bjunkie and asusan, so glad that you started this thread! I am 35yo pregnant with my 1st, but step-parenting 2 young boys. I am divorced, and remarried only 2 months, but have been with dh for >4 years. We have primary custody of his ds (age 5 and 7). So I like to think of myself as a mommy aready (but this pregnancy stuff is really new to me).

Professionally, I am a certified nurse midwife, practicing for 8 years. Have worked in a variety of setting--from a birth center to high-risk hospital practice. I can't decide what type of birth I will be planning. DH is mainstream (and a physician) but generally supportive of my philosophies re:birth and parenting. Asusan, you and I seem to have similar dh (re: scientific data, studies, etc for alternative approaches. He still doesn't "understand" accupuncture! ).

I really am wanting a homebirth but finding a midwife to do this here is difficult. Considering birth center, but not absolutly opposed to being at the hospital. Believe it or not, dh is supportive of hb, but only if midwife is someone I know and trust (well, duh! That is the issue for me exactly). I am planning on delaying vax, but will eventually vax. If this is a boy, we will not circ. Our ds's are in public school and we are very happy there.

So glad to share some time and space with other women near my age. Juggling kid, career, and new pregnancy is interesting journey for sure.
-Elizabeth

[kerikadi]

I am 37, expecting #5 - you can see the ages of my children in my siggy
The boys were born with my XH and pretty mainstream though I did nurse for 8 & 16 months, my first was in cloth diapers and I did use a sling.
My girls were both born at home, are unvaxed, never wore a disposable diaper I nursed #3 for 43 months and #4 is still nursing occasionally at 33 months, we co-slept for over a year with each girl and I wore them more than not, at present we are planning to homeschool. My boys are in public school, one of the best school districts in our state and their education is a grave disappointment They excel at school but it's all about teaching to the test in Texas :

We were trying for three months to conceive this one but had decided we would likely stop in September or October if it didn't happen because of my age. Not that 40+ is too old, it's just too old for *me* kwim? We look forward to the time when we can be alone again - like go away for a night or a weekend We know it will be a while now but hopefully in 5 years or so.

Keri

[bjunkie]

Hi Keri!!!

hello.....

Congrats on the pg! You have quite a family.

bjunkie

[Mindi22]

Duplicate post deleted - sorry!

[Mindi22]

I am! I just turned 35 in March, and I got a call a few days ago from the Midwives offering me an extra genetic counselling appointment because of my "advanced maternal age"... HA! I almost hung up, but I declined (mostly) politely... advanced maternal age my a$$!
-Mindi

[zora]

Let me introduce myself. I"m Zora, pg with my first and 38!. My partner and I are excited. No m/s but my stomach feels like I'm suffering from motion sickness.

This is one club I am glad to be in.
Zora

[tmlynn7]

Hi, I'm new here and pretty sure I'm pregnant
with #8. I will be 43 in September.

Wishing us all much happiness,
Tammy Lynn

[MamaCAS]

39! And expecting the second before my 40th (barely).

[bemommy]

I don't quite reach the cut off. But can I say, "hi"

I'm 34. This is my 4th pregnancy (1 birth, 2 m/cs). I'm hoping for a homebirth this time around.

With DD I breastfed until just after she turned 3, CD for almost all of her diaper career, selective/delay vax, co-sleep (just part time now). I was going to return to work part time, but now I'm not sure.

Looking forward to getting to know everyone.

[audeesmom]

Hello mamas! I am 36 and this will be baby #2. I am already feeling pretty uncomfortable : and clothes aren't fitting! We co-sleep, breastfeed (29 months but recently night weaned...what a difference!), eat healthy, no vax, and are hoping to afford a waldorf education. With baby #1, I didn't even know how to change a diaper, let alone anything about kids, but slowly learned and am excited/terrified/overwhelmed and every other emotion about baby #2. We are really excited for dd to have a sibling. Dh doesn't say too much in the parenting dept. so I make most of the decisions. Only time will tell which ones were right and which ones weren't. (I suppose that is what counselling is for when the kids grow up )! Hoping for a wonderful birth center birth with a fantastic midwife!

[Alisa]

Hi. Nice to see all of you that are "advanced maternal age"

I'm 39 (dh is 44) and I am pregnant for the second time with our second set of twins.

This time, I am so much more tired than last time, which doesn't seem fair to our 3.5 year olds. I don't know if it's because I am older or if it's just because I'm chasing around to "preschoolers" all day. I can't wait until the 2nd trimester when I suppose I'll feel less ill and have more energy.

We co-sleep but I'm not sure how we'll do that after the babies come. I'm still working out the logistics. Somehow, it's gotta work because our girls are not interested in moving into their own room until they're "big, big, big!"

[Frannyo]

I'm 37, will be 38 when the little stinker is born...My partner will be 40. This is our first, though I'm the oldest of seven and my sister and her two-year-old and six-month-old live right around the corner. I feel like I have a pretty good lock on the child-rearing part (hah!) but pregnancy is a very interesting mystery. So far at 8 weeks I feel great, even though my pants size has gone up two times already!

[Savmay]

I am 35, dh is 40. I have a 14 year old boy so I was in my early 20s the first time around and i do feel so much older, more tired! (and wiser )
I think it is funny how fast they label you "senile" once you hit 35 as if it is a magic moment when everything changes... I think that each woman knows her own body and we all age very differently..
For example, I sort of bought into (a little bit) the idea that I might be or my hubby might be less fertile b/c we are "older". so I thought it might take us a few months to get pg. well low and behold the very first time we had unprotected sex (and we only did it once) we got pg.
my dh is very proud of his marching sperm and I am smiling a bit at my still youthful follicles!

[EvolvingMama]

I'm 37 and will be 38 when the baby comes. I have a son who will be 11 when he becomes a big brother. I'm single and work as a special ed teacher in a TINY community, so this is going to be interesting, having such an "unorthodox" family in the middle of a fishbowl. However, I am thrilled. It's nice to see so many mature mamas!

[bluebird68]

Hello, everyone! I will be 38 this Sept, and my hubby will be 42 in Jan... how time flies! I do not feel my age at all, and generally people think I am younger, but I have to say that since my 27 mo DS has arrived, I have gained quite a few white hairs! Pretty funny that our bodies do their own thing, regardless of how we feel on the inside. That being said, I am really thankful to be in good health and able to be pregnant again. Good luck to all of you further-in-life-experienced mamas! Michelle