Pregnant with #1 in our 30s ~November~ - Page 2

[~minnow~]

Emily, he is too cute! So glad he's more enjoyable.

Originally Posted by dctexan

Well, Benjamin is 2 months old as of today. We had our 2 month ped visit. He is now 11lbs 5oz (birth weight was 7lbs 4oz) and 23.5 inches long (length at birth was 21 inches). I cannot believe how fast these little babes grow!!! Amazing.

Gah. Ada, at 5 weeks 4 days, weighed 10 lbs 8 oz (up from 6 lbs 3 oz at birth) and was 23 inches long (up from 20). I knew she was growing fast but this makes me feel like she's growing REALLY fast.

Pie, that sucks about about the meds and the LLL meeting. Please vent here. I feel the same way about doing a freaking yoga DVD (although 14 minutes seems like a decent amount at once!)

Hello, everyone!

[dctexan]

Originally Posted by ~minnow~

Gah. Ada, at 5 weeks 4 days, weighed 10 lbs 8 oz (up from 6 lbs 3 oz at birth) and was 23 inches long (up from 20). I knew she was growing fast but this makes me feel like she's growing REALLY fast.

No, I think Benjamin might just be a bit runty (which I am totally fine with, I was a "smaller" kiddo, always in the bottom percentiles for weight and height, but I caught up with everyone once puberty hit).

Pie - Ack. So sorry you are having LLL and ped trouble.
Re ped: I see no problem switching peds within the same practice. I've done that with doctors and vets (not that I am comparing our children to pets or anything) and it has always been fine. I think most doctors understand that you might "click" better with one of their partners. Plus, they'd rather you stay and switch to another doc rather than leave the practice entirely (it's still money in that way). So, if you want to switch, I say go for it. Just tell the nurse/receptionsit person that you would like your primary doc changed.

Re LLL: I honestly don't even know what to say about this. I can relate to how frustrating it is to not be able to express your "shameful" feelings. Almost all of the mama's I've met are SAH. Once I made the mistake of saying that I fantasize about going back to work and leaving Benjamin at daycare ('cause I'd really like to not be at his beck and call 24/7) and the look of horror (absolute HORROR) that creep over their faces made me feel like I was a terrible mom. It sucked

[Dee-Groovy]

Thanks for hosting this month Melanie - the thread looks great!

Xenon :! Thanks for asking about me. I'm still here, still preg, fighting off the cold that DH is trying to share with me. It's not nearly as bad as he had it. It jumped on me yesterday evening but I'm feeling a lot better already after sleeping all day. He's better too, even made it to work tonight.


Julia it must be fun and scary at the same time to review au pair applications. I know what you mean about people with different first languages phrasing things differently. For a while I was the only American in my lab and was constantly called upon to to English to English translations. Is it much cheaper to sew your own cloth diapers? I'm thinking about asking my mom to bring her sewing machine with her when she comes to visit but 1) I suck at sewing and don't have the patience for it and 2) I'm sure she'd rather hang out with the baby than make diapers.

Welcome back Jen (MoreThanApplesauce)!

Emily, Benjamin is too cute! I love the "chillin' on the couch" photo. Sorry you had a rough time with the doc and DH ganging up on you about vax. That would push me over the edge. Luckily my DH is more anti-vax than I am, but I'm not looking forward to that confrontation w/ the doc. Glad to hear that Benjamin is more fun and interactive now. Intentional smiles must make your heart want to explode!

Pie, I think that level of (in)attention from your ped is miserable. Your baby is sick and the ped isn't doing her job to make your baby feel better. Switching docs within the practice sounds a little hairy but I'm sure you wouldn't be the first one to do it. Would the formulary cover prevacid if the script was for you instead of Lorelei? Have you considered a partial elimination diet, like starting by eliminating dairy & going from there? The LLL meeting sounds weird too. It's good that the mamas had a vent session afterwards - that was probably more helpful than the meeting itself! I was surprised that they told me not to pump for a couple months when I went to a LLL meeting too. I guess they thought I'd be overwhelmed but it's pretty important to have a freezer stash for when I go back to work. I haven't really decided when I'll start pumping. When did everyone else start?

Lane! Sounds like your super-spraying boobs are filling up Ada quite well!

I don't feel like this baby is coming any time soon. It's really weird to watch my ticker count down (it says 2 days left today) and know that it doesn't mean much. I have a pineapple and RRL capsules but I just don't feel ready to start all that. She must not be ready yet, right? Or is it me that's not ready yet?

[dctexan]

Listen up graduates. I actually got my act together and started a new thread for us in Life with a Babe (come on, you know it is time to move on). You can find the thread HERE
Of course, I will still be stopping by over here to hang out and visit (there is always someone to stalk over here!).

[hazieluna]

Thanks Emily.... I still want to hang out here too...

Dee - I can't wait! I have a theory that girls come late, so maybe in a week?

Julia - I completely understand about funny ways of saying things in English... in fact living over here I feel like my own English has become Dutchified.

Btw I'm at my pre-pregnancy weight since about 2 or 3 weeks ago. It melted away although my belly is jelly and my boobs are huge so I guess it's been redistributed somehow.
AND I'm eating like a fiend, I'm hungry all the time and man chocolate never tasted soooo good.

Okay it's late here and all the personals I was thinking about have mysteriously evaporated.

Oh I totally miss Halloween!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

[Grace24]

Emily, you guys BETTER visit us! It's nice hearing from all of you. The pics of Benjamin are sooooo adorable. I'm getting impatient to meet my little boy! Sorry about the vaxing. I have a real issue with the Hep B too, I think I'm gonna fight it. I'm so lucky I don't have to worry about daycare, but I may be forced to revisit the issue when he's school age. It makes no sense to me, some of those shots.

Pie, Wow, your doc is really not concerned about her patients! Switch, switch, switch that primary care. Do what's best for baby AND your sanity. If you have to see her occasionally (like a weekend visit) you can still hold your head high knowing you switched because your daughter wasn't getting the medical help she needed, not for any other reason. And I'm appalled by your LLL leader's comment about not exercising for three years! That does not sound like it makes for a balanced mama. One of the reasons we're getting an au pair is because I know that even though my work hours are "part time" I still need to exercise, go to my AA meetings, see my therapist, basically keeping sane for me is my other part-time job. And I will NOT feel guilty about it! I'll be a better mom! I'm glad you guys had a post-meeting vent session with other members. Sounds helpful.

Dee, I know what you mean about being hesitant to try to start labor. She's dropped though, right? Head down, ready to go? I feel weird about doing anything to induce too, even though it's still only 37 weeks so I shouldn't anyhow. Maybe, in a week if there are no signs of labor starting you'll be more willing to try something. If you're not feeling like it's time, then she's not ready, is how I feel. You seem to be listening to your body and your baby... it's a good thing!

Hi Xenon nice to see you! I don't know what to look for in an au pair application... they all try to come off sounding really great, emphasizing how much they love their families, blah blah blah... how can you possibly tell if you're going to click with someone on paper? Ack. We're just narrowing it down to those with experience with infants and stuff like that. We'll see. Once we find some we like, we can interview by phone, so maybe that will get us a better idea. If it's a disaster, it's only for a year. (A really really long year...)

Had a massage.... aaaaahhhhh... I highly recommend it to all my pregnant friends... I'm baffled, though... I thought with all this relaxin hormone running through my system, I'm supposed to be looser, not tight all over! I'm a mess! I think I must be getting nervous for labor. I was feeling totally confident in my ability to do this naturally, now all of the sudden I seem to be starting to doubt myself. ?? Well it's too late... I'm gearing up for a homebirth, I've allowed myself no out, although it does turn out that my midwife carries narcotics if someone really starts to lose it. I hope I don't. Did any of you grads have pre-labor jitters? I don't want to psych myself out here...

[cmu204]

Another 34-yo December Mama popping in! I can't believe we're so close now.
(Julia, you can do it without the drugs - I know it! For goodness' sake, you make a living as a professional musician, which is a much more difficult thing to do!)
(That said, if you want 'em, take 'em. But you can totally do it.)

Had a little baby shower at work tonight - somehow we timed it badly and most of my department were gone! But they very kindly sent presents even though they couldn't attend. I think I prefer the smaller get-together, anyway.
(I will confess to being a little bit bummed: at the last baby shower, we all knitted squares and put together a blanket for the baby. DH pointed out that I organized that project, so of course it got done. )

At any rate, the best part was not the pressies, but the chance to just hang out and chat about birth, what to expect, what we want to do v. what other folks did, etc. Lots of fun.

Cher
34.5 weeks with biokid #1; loving aunt to N (8) and T(6)
Married to the cutest code monkey in the world

[cmu204]

Oops

Forgot to mention that I met with a potential ped yesterday. I liked her quite a bit, and am seriously wondering if I should just go with her and cancel my next appointment. She strikes me as being very much a scientist, and is pro-vax, but will be flexible if I want (which I do).
She was also very reassuring, reminding me that
(a) I will probably be emotionally wacked post birth,
(b) that is normal;
(c) it is okay to need help, and
(d) asking for help(from someone other than DH) is probably the most important thing I can do for myself.

Cher

34.5 weeks with biokid #1; loving aunt to N (8) and T(6)
Married to the cutest code monkey in the world

[hazieluna]

Originally Posted by cmu204

She was also very reassuring, reminding me that
(a) I will probably be emotionally wacked post birth,
(b) that is normal;
(c) it is okay to need help, and
(d) asking for help(from someone other than DH) is probably the most important thing I can do for myself.

Cher

I completely agree with this ped!!! As someone who has a definite problem asking for help and accepting it - I'm very independent! - this was a very important lesson for me. And what is so lovely is that everyone is just waiting to help either by bringing food or shopping or whatever. Btw I didn't do any frozen meals so for the first 10 days postpartum were eating what my sisters and friends brought us. I felt so well taken care of and grateful.

btw I guess I'm the only one around that didn't get a baby shower :

Julia - don't let yourself over-think your decision... it's normal to get the jitters! When my 'real' contractions really started I panicked! I was like what's wrong with drugs? Why did I decide this was better? Luckily my DH and my sisters were with me to help remind me to breathe and the reasons I wanted it natural. You can totally do it at home and without any drugs! And afterwards you can have a shower in your own shower with all your products and get into your bed with your little one and DH! That is what is so wonderful about a homebirth.

[Down_to_Earth]

Elizabeth was born on Sept. 17, not 18.

Hi! For those who are still waiting, I'm doing fine. I just don't have the opportunity to get on-line the way I used to, but I figured things out. My daughter has her head on my left arm while I type normally. When I'm nursing her, I have to peck.

Anyway, I'm headed to the graduates thread.

Happy day,
Laura

[k9sarchik]

Hi Ladies,

Thought I'd share a holiday photo of Gavin. I need to put more on here, hopefully this weekend.

[phillybama]

Oh Laura, that photo of Gavin is adorable. Love Halloween!

I picked up my Happy Heinys yesterday. They are so cute--one is a cow-print. I have to say that I do get a little teary-eyed when I pick up these little cloth diapers. I am not a very sappy person, but it still gets me.

[Jujubie]

Gavin is adorable!!

Laura (downtoearth)--good to hear from you and that all is going well!


I'm 24 weeks today, 6 months--Wow!

I started to think about interviewing some peds and see if I can find one I like. I'm debating on just taking babe to my family doctor who I really like and she also will see newborns and children. Is it really necessary to see a ped or do you think a family doc would be fine as well?

I had sushi for lunch today (well the non fish kind) and it was just wonderful! I am also scheduled for a massage tomorrow morning and I am so looking forward to that!!

How are our November Due Date Mamas doing? Who is due first?

[veganone]

jujubie - i think a family practitioner is fine. if my pcp was a family doc, i'd go to her... i actually have heard that they are more amenable to delayed vax, etc. I can't wait until January when our PPO coverage kicks in so we can switch peds. I am not thrilled with anyone we've seen so far, and we've worked with 3 out of a six ped. practice.

Thanks for the new thread, Emily!!! I'll go visit!

Pie - I can't believe your peds! That's just awful. You should change. Again, I'm not loving ours and switched to a more expensive insurance just to find one we really like. Sorry about the the LLL experience. I want to go, just for some companionship, but I'm so scared because I've always heard about how judgemental they can be. That sucks. YOU know your baby. Oh, and as the mother of a baby that cannot be put down except for maybe 20 minutes twice a day in her swing, I feel you on the need for me time. I'm hoping that when she's old enough to play with toys things will change for us. I wear her a lot, but even that's not good enough sometimes.

Thinking of trying a mommy and me group at a local church that we like, but haven't ever gone to consistently. (We just never get up on Sundays!)

Shots - I think we're going to get push back from our ped, but I want to put the off until we get dd's tummy stuff under control. She has mucous in her poop, which means something's not right in there. We've stopped all formula (which means I have to pump again because she just cannot get full before bed) and I dropped all dairy. We're also turning down the Hep. B until she's older unless her daycare insists. Not that we're getting in.. Thank God for parents! I also heard about someone wanting to share a nanny (one week on one week off) so we may try that if my parents can't take it. I wish we had money and room for an au pair!

[Grace24]

Laura, Gavin is so cute! Great pic, thanks for checking in with us!

Judy thanks for asking, this November due date mama isn't doing so well today! I WANT THIS BABY OUT but he hasn't even dropped yet. Still three weeks away from EDD. I think Dee is next. Then me, maybe?

Today the pain in my pelvis (which I have hereby dubbed Crotch Ouch) is excruciating. Usually, it hurts when I first stand up and then I steady myself and can walk. Now, just, ow, all the time, however long I walk. Sharp shooting pains in my girly parts. No fun. I had a total breakdown today looking at all the clutter in the house, wasted my whole therapy hour on how much of a slob my husband is, and then finally called a de-clutter specialist and left a message. How can I nest when there's nowhere to put my straw and hair????!!!! So I cleaned out a closet and two random boxes of *crap* in the basement, and I'm feeling better. It was almost all garbage. Amazing.

Then DH got me out of the house and bought me white chicken chili from Don Pablo's... my fave... so I chilled out a bit.

Guess I'm nesting now.

[Dee-Groovy]

Natalia hooray for getting back to your pre-preg weight while eating chocolate! Sorry you didn't have a baby shower - I can sympathize b/c mine almost didn't happen and I really mourned not having one.

CM glad your shower was fun, if poorly timed. It's good that you found a ped you like too. I wasn't able to interview my ped b/c it's not customary where I live. Apparently it varies widely by region. I'm incredibly nervous about meeting her for the first time in the hospital! I don't have a family doc (just go to the on-campus nurse b/c it's easy and free) so that's not an option right now. Hopefully the ped will be great - she comes highly recommended by my almost-crunchy-OB.

Julia I'm sorry you're so uncomfortable and stressed. TBH I felt pretty bad until about 38 weeks and went through similar emotions & physical complaints - pre-labor jitters, feeling surrounded by crap, needing to clean but not having the energy, yeah. It gets better - I just don't care any more! I'm trying to stay on top of the laundry and dishes and keeping the fridge stocked but otherwise I'm conserving my energy for labor. Relaxin! Thank you for reminding me of that. Totally explains why all my joints hurt all of a sudden. I think I'm gonna sched a massage for Tuesday after my next OB appt. No way will the baby be here by then. Are you full term now? Congrats!

Laura (k9) the pic of Gavin is absolutely adorable! Thanks for sharing.

Aimee I got some Happy Heinys from DiaperSwappers and they are mind-bogglingly cute. So small! Just hanging out with them makes everything more real.

Judy congrats on 24 weeks! Oh I love shrimp tempura rolls & could totally go for a few right now. I think Julia and I are the only November moms that post here & I'm due tomorrow. At this rate she might go first though!

Elizabeth the mommy & me group sounds like a good idea. Let us know how it goes! How hard was it to give up dairy? Is it making a big difference?

I just got some really bad news - my lab's funding didn't get renewed. We run on a huge multi-year grant that pays for lab supplies, and my entire assistantship including tuition and stipend. The The boss always stashes away enough $ to last for a year without funding, and she can resubmit the grant proposal after tweaking it, but at this point the initial news is just sinking in. I haven't talked to the boss about whether or not my assistantship will be renewed for the Spring semester & now I have to. :

[CowsRock]

Originally Posted by phillybama

I picked up my Happy Heinys yesterday. They are so cute--one is a cow-print.

[CowsRock]

Originally Posted by Grace24

Today the pain in my pelvis (which I have hereby dubbed Crotch Ouch) is excruciating. Usually, it hurts when I first stand up and then I steady myself and can walk.

This is where I'm at...sharp pain upon standing, first walking and sometimes first sitting and just a dull ache the rest of the time. Not looking forward to when I get to where you are with the crotch ouch all the time, but I do have to say I love the term. I always just whine to hubby, "my stuff hurts".

Originally Posted by Grace24

I had a total breakdown today looking at all the clutter in the house, wasted my whole therapy hour on how much of a slob my husband is...

I'm also right here with you on this too. When I realized my shower was this Saturday...well today...I also realized that meant November was almost here. That was a very sobering thought! I had been so focused on my last day of work that I was like, come on time hurry up...then I realized what it truly meant to be November (only two months left til EDD) and I have to say I felt pretty panicked. Not baby-wise, baby-wise I'm still feeling good, but my house is a wreck. I've been keeping myself calm by reminding myself that by ending my job I'll be gaining lots of time and will still have time for naps, but this last week it was extremely hard to not start the nesting, it was all I could think about. I crammed a bunch into last weekend and I'll probably start doing more now since apparently I'm done sleeping for the night : I'll have to take a nap before my baby shower though or else I'll be the grumpiest lady there. I just complain to my mom about all the stuff I have to do though because I gave up my therapist to my hubby I was pretty much done with him anyway and I reserved the right to steal him back.

Originally Posted by Grace24

How can I nest when there's nowhere to put my straw and hair????!!!!

I'm so out of it that I spent a good chunk of time trying to figure out why you have straw and why you need some place to put it. (why the hair made sense before I understood what you are saying is beyond me)

[CowsRock]

Originally Posted by MajorGroover

I just got some really bad news - my lab's funding didn't get renewed. We run on a huge multi-year grant that pays for lab supplies, and my entire assistantship including tuition and stipend. The The boss always stashes away enough $ to last for a year without funding, and she can resubmit the grant proposal after tweaking it, but at this point the initial news is just sinking in. I haven't talked to the boss about whether or not my assistantship will be renewed for the Spring semester & now I have to. :

Oh no! I have to fully admit to not truly understanding how all of that works, but I'm understanding enough to get that this is very troubling news. I know it is probably impossible, but try not to worry too much. Things always have a way of working out even when it seems like they aren't...at least that's how my life has been. I'll be sending funding resolution vibes your way, thank goodness you have a boss that plans well enough to have a stash.

[Grace24]

Dee, I'm so sorry to hear about the funding. I hope it all works out too... are you going to talk to your boss now or wait til after baby? How stressful to have to worry about this now. I am glad to hear you started feeling better at 38 weeks tho! I just try to remind myself, it's the homestretch, it'll all be worth it soon when I'm holding baby in my arms. That got me through last night's several hours of heartburn because I stupidly had TWO bowls of Don Pablo's white chicken chili (can I ever have just one?) It repeated on me all night. Baby drop please so I can eat more chili!

Ooh, Kripa, sorry you're not sleeping. Sometimes I take Benadryl : which my midwife told me was safe, but I try not to take anything. I have a harder time getting to sleep than staying asleep in pregnancy... once I fall asleep, I can put in a good 12 hours sometimes, but then that makes it harder to sleep the next night. I have pregnancy narcolepsy, rather than insomnia. It's a nice switch, after suffering from the latter most of my life. It cracks me up that you gave your hubby your therapist! I wonder if I'll EVER get to that point! I think hubby could use someone to talk to someday but I'm not nearly done with mine!

I'm feeling better now after DH took my nervous breakdown seriously... he's going to get a U-Haul and get rid of all the extra furniture cluttering the garage today YAY!! And go to Home Depot and get a start on the other projects I have assigned him. What a good hubby. It would have been so easy for him to say "Oh you're just hormonal and weepy, snap out of it, I do so much around here" (cuz, well, he does, it's just there's always more to do) but he never patronizes me that way. He just took me out for chili, and we made a plan. Love him... yes, we are still newlyweds I guess!

Bye ladies, lots to do today! Julia