week of April 26!

[Piglet68]

October Mamas Roll Call :belly

momtol&a
chrissy 09/28 (honorary October mom!)
snugglebutter 10/01
mirthfulmum 10/03
TracyK 10/04
mhurst 10/04
kraftykathy 10/04
Jillerina 10/04
water 10/06
Proudly AP 10/08
FutureMama 10/09
allformyboys 10/11
Lucysmama 10/12
bendmom 10/12
momadance 10/13
Mandi 10/14
rhemp 10/14
wannabmommie 10/15
krnflwr 10/16
Piglet68 10/18
MommyMuse 10/19
BeauGeek 10/20
BeansMomma 10/20
CourtneyandLogan 10/21
ScooterMama1 10/21
EmbersMOM 10/21
Stanleymama 10/23
gottaknit 10/24
3boyz4us 10/24
Ctmom70 10/24
aspiring mama 10/25
truebluexf 10/27
Soogie 10/27
ameliabedelia 10/29
flitters 10/30
AnnR33 10/31

Good morning mamas!!

Hope you all had a great weekend. We went to the Kiddie Museaum yesterday and had a real scare when someone took off with our diaper bag, leaving their very-similar-looking bag behind. The guy had gone home before he realized what he'd done, but brought it back. Phew! My wallet and keys and some favorite diapers were in there!

Question of the Week:
Have you thought of any names yet? DH and I have pretty much picked out the names for boy or girl. I haven't told anyone yet, so I'm going to announce it here first amongst you mamas.

girl: Sofia Marie
boy: Sasha Vincent

Marie is my maternal grandmother's name, and an aunt. "M" names run in that side of the family. Vincent is my maternal grandfather's name and my late brother's middle name.

[blessed2bamommie]

:greet to Kristina! I replied to her intro in our group and invited her over.

Well, they moved me back three days a couple weeks ago, so Piglet and I don't share the same day, at least according to the calendar They need to check me actually since I had a faint line hpt at the beginning of January but af came. Yet, I was pg a couple weeks later. That would be a trip if I had to change months midstream! :shake

Hope everybody had great weekend! We hosted my Pastor and his wife, since he had to fly out to his homestate. The airport is up here in Raleigh, and they live 45 minutes away. It was an early flight and then she had to come to the county anyway to drop off her grandson, and we spent Friday evening together. Saturday I vegged because I *knew Sunday would be busy! Sunday was AM service and then we had our Citywide Gathering of Believers, a group of Bible believing, Holy Spirit filled churches which has gathered together and meet quarterly and the city and surrounding areas are invited at the convention center. It was our turn to lead worship. It was great. Its the biggest group I have led for. It was fun b/c the congregation is so on fire for Jesus, it makes my job easy. It was tiring and I made it through without our ENT sound man coming up to give me oxygen, because my little passenger is making it hard to breathe.


We've at least got a first name for both genders. I'm working on the middle for the girl. Dh is mulling over the boy's name, he's not sure he likes the name we'll call him as opposed to the first and he's not sure about the middle. I emailed his aunt to find out his dad's middle. He died in 2000. I want to honor my daddy who would died in 1987 on the 28th with a child whom will be living on this side of life with us. Jordan's middle is daddy's first name, Edward. Our family name is Arrington and I like Aaron, so that's what our next child will be called. dh's father's last name was Hughes and I like that. A girl would be named Mikayla. I'm did have Lynn as the middle; but, not sure about that now. I feel a bit country. :blush (although I come from country stock ) Maybe Ashley. That's acutally my niece's name. OK, I'm shuttin up now! Your turn!

Have a blessed week! I have my first appointment with the mw this week. (this is my third practice ) Maybe like Ann, they can check and see if I'm have another setting of twins in the Arrington family. As long as they are different sex! Then, I'll be done!

Maaaaaaaaaaaan limitin smilies? I couldn't post! What will I do? (eek)

splat I *still can't post!

finally, cept my wag smiley has wigged out.

Thanks, Piglet! It took *forever for my thread to post and your's must've posted before mine! *totally funny! the *same* question!

[momadance]

Hello! Hope all is well with the mama's!
QOTW: Yes, we have our girls name. Lilian Margaret. Lilian is Dh's great granny and Margaret is my moma and my MW!
We have nothing for a boy! I liked Noah but there seem to be alot of those popping up these days. (or out I should say)

Embers mom: we went through the same decision process about having a homebbith. It's not legal in my state. The 2 MW's I would have LOVED to attend me are out of town for 2 weeks in Oct. and my due date falls right in those dates. It also would have been a HUGE out of pocket expense for us. We have alot of traveling scheduled for the summer, and a homebirth would have left us scrapping for $. I also would have had to forfeit Doula, pre-natalt yoga, massage's etc. We found a hosp. 25 minutes away. It only has 6 delivery rooms and my mw's been there a long time and say the nurses "understand" the needs and non-intervention methods of herself and her clients. THe rooms have big wonderful birthing tubs (we're going water birth) and she discharges after 12 hours. I feel comfortable with all this and the idea of no clean-up ;) It took me a little while to get there, but financial stress=anxiety for me, and I am a cool calm collected mama who can't handle the idea of STRESS!

to my twin: so far no show's lined up for us due to the afore mentioned traveling. We'll be gone 3 weeks in June to mom's beach house on Lake Huron (canada side). 10 days in July (same spot. we have a big aids benefit every july there) and then NY for 4 days for my sis wedding. Yikes!

and I noticed you have a beach house on a great lake also ;) things are getting strange :yikes: heehee

[kraftykathy]

QOTW - We have had names picked out for quite awhile already!
Girl - Willow Cerridwen
Boy - Cirdan River
The C's in Cerridwen and Cirdan are hard C's.

I had a fun Saturday. Spent the day at a basketweaving workshop. Wow, it takes quite a bit of work to make those things! It was a lot of fun too. The workshop was put on by the group of ladies that I spin/weave/knit with, so they are a very krafty bunch, lol!

My mom is a pretty krafty sort too so I thought she might think it was cool that I was going to this workshop. When I told her about it she made a crack about babymaking and basketweaving which even though was meant as a joke completely irritated me! (the joke implied that these are great things to do for people who are intellectually challenged!) Grr! I was going to give her the basket for her birthday this week too!

But the day was great. It was nice to see everyone. Most of these women are quite a bit older then me and many of them hadn't heard that I am expecting again. They were so sweet when I told them and they spoiled me plenty! The weather was beautiful so we could work outside. The host of the workshop has a beautiful little farm and her own sheep which are also very spoiled. So cute! One of her ewes even had a set of triplets!

While I was at the workshop my hubby took our kids to a birthday party, so they had lots of fun too and had so much to tell me when I got back. It was a very nice Saturday!

I am so jealous of those of you who have access to a pool! I am soo looking forward to swimmming! We have a great beach on Lake Erie just 20-25 minutes away. But that will have to wait until June when it is finally warm enough. I can't wait!

Kathy

[kraftykathy]

Here's a link to a page about my spinning group. We're called the 'twisted sisters', LOL! Sort of a joke about the twist you put into the wool when it is spun, hee-hee. I'm the one with the purple hat, black sweater, bright coloured skirt and braids.

http://warmandwonderful.com/twisted_sisters.htm

Kathy

[Piglet68]

I've always wondered how you pronounce "Cerridwen". Is it just as it looks (the hard C part I didn't know either)...

[True Blue]

Finally got to hear the heartbeat this morning!! :love 147-150bpm. It was hard to find, the little bugger was swimming all over the place. But it was fabulous to finally get to hear!!

As for names...Ella Mae for a girl, Jackson ? for a boy. Mae was my great great grandmother's name. Ella is my substitution for Emma (which has always been my favorite name) which has become waaaay too popular for my taste (growing up Amy, at one point there were 3 Amy's in my fourth grade class....sigh). I'm still open to changes, but as of now that is what we have picked out.

[stanleymama]

Well this is my second attempt at posting. I have been having trouble since they have the new setup, which I like, but have been feeling frustrated. Anyone else having problems?

QOTW: We do have our names picked out. Well it is down to two for a boy. For a girl we have: Annaliese Mae. Mae is my grandmother, mil's, and dh grandmothers middle name. For a boy: Either Ethan Craig (Craig is dh's middle name) or Quinn Carrig (Carrig is the Irish form of Craig). I personally am leaning towards Quinn Carrig.

trubluefx: I love your girl name choice. I too always loved Emma, but after having three boys and seeing how popular it became we are letting it go. I think Ella is bearutiful!!!!

I had a really nice weekend. I had a rummage sale with some of dh's family and we sold 97% of our stuff!!! What a blessing that was! Other than that I relaxed, went to a wedding shower yesterday and feel ready to hit the new week:)

[flitters]

hi mamas!

i hope everyone had a nice weekend!

it sounds like it was busy couple days for many of us with museums and rummage sales and heartbeat hearing!!!

our weekend was nice and mellow.

i think it's very funny that the QOTW in the alternate thread that wannabe started that overlaps with this one from piglet.

we have something of a list of names we like but not really close to narrowing it down. i think we might be last minute namers.

oh!!! and when i'm naked my tummy finally looks slightly more round although the roundness is still quite low, like below my belly button. we've been taking weekly pictures and the changes have definitely begun (albeit slowly)! yay tummy!

[Lucysmama]

QOTW: We have our names pretty much picked out, but I'm not tellin' anyone, even you MDC mamas! :D
I like a lot of your names....
Amy, I just wanted to let you know that I know 4 baby Ellas!!! All of their mamas had no clue it was rising so fast. One of them said, "We are naming her Ella cause we want a name that isn't very popular," and dh and I laughed cause we already knew 3! I bet when this year's list comes out in January, it will be in the top 25. It is getting super popular. Just thought I would mention it, since you said you want to avoid that. I still think it's a lovely name though! :)
Kathy - I LOVE the name Willow for a girl. It sounded funny with our last name, otherwise it would have been on my list for Lucy and this baby.

If Lu had been a boy, she would have been Jonah or Kai...funny how your tastes change. Those weren't even on my "considering" list this time 'round!

Can I just say I :love talking about names!?!

[momadance]

Kathy: My top boy name is/was Willow, but Dh didn't like it. Your little babe is gonna be the best dressed with the fine creations you must make! Nice website. Your hat is super cute!

[MommyMuse]

Hi everyone,
I think I've figured out how to reply to this thread, but just in case this doesn't end up in the April 26th thread...oops!!

My EDD is 10/19. Today is day 1 of week 16, and our next (second) prenatal is next Wednesday...looking forward to it!

Right now my main objectives are to get my hands on a few pregnancy-related items (I think my own undies are starting to feel a LITTLE tight at times, even though I'm not technically "showing"), register for baby gifts (we have NOTHING...not that we plan to get most of the baby gear offered on the market), and do more research on this whole soy/plant estrogen/genital development thing. I'd appreciate it if anyone having information on that last topic would contact me. I read the article in this month's issue, of course, but I had already been researching it for a few months to no avail...very scarce information out there! I'm particularly concerned because of my vegan diet and the fact that I probably consume one or two soy products per day, minimum.

Looking forward to getting to know everyone!
Kristina
:)

[Lucysmama]

Welcome, Kristina! :wave Congrats on your baby-to-be...I take it this is your first?

[blessed2bamommie]

Good you found us, Kristina! :wave I know the soy is :confused:! I just decided to avoid flax and soy when we started ttc. It stank because I relied on soy to replace meat when I would make vege dinners, and I drank soy milk and did wholesoy yogurt. I imagine its harder when your vegan. Now, I just eat anything that isn't nailed down! :LOL Wonder what weight gain will be tomorrow. :scared I don't think I see any difference except my belly. I think that cycling class is burning off the booty again! No complaints there! :thumb I'm *so excited about my appt tomorrow!

Hey yall can I ask since its about that time? Who's doing the AFP. I have mixed feeling and if there's a high rate of false positives. I don't want to put myself through it.

[Piglet68]

Kristin, I'm glad you found us here! I've added you to the list. We're not vegan, but we don't eat much meat. While we do eat a lot of tofu, we also eat lots of beans and lentils. Could you maybe boost that as your main protein supply, instead of soy? And I can't believe you aren't showing, lol. I've been out of normal pants for at least two weeks now, and I'm only one day behind you! :) I do look pregnant. And speaking of underwear, I really need to go get some. I have only 3 pairs of maternity undies and my normal ones are starting to get uncomfortable!

mammawannabe: you know, you're going to have to change your name now, lol! I moved your EDD back 3 days. I think you'll probably still be an October mama (I'd miss you if you left us!). Besides, I don't have alot of faith in estimating baby's gestational age to that small a degree. Within a week or two I might imagine, but three days?

I'm going to do AFP, but if there are any "positives" I'm going to do careful research. My OB understands that I want to avoid amnio at all costs and he is (so far) supportive of that. My feeling is that I'd much rather expect the worst and end up surprised with a healthy baby, than expect a healthy baby and end up with a nasty surprise on Birth Day.

[Lucysmama]

I'm not doing the AFP....
I wouldn't terminate no matter what the results.
And I don't want to unnecessarily put myself through the stress of worrying, worrying about the results being accurate, about what they may suggest, etc...I don't think knowing results from the AFP would give me any peace of mind whatsoever, given the rate of false positives. Either way, you still could end up with a baby who is/isn't "perfect."

I also don't see having a birth defect as a "nasty surprise," I see it as a part of my child to love and accept.

:hippie

[AnnR33]

Hey Mamas! I finally made it back in, for some reason it won't keep me logged in?? Oh well!
Made it to 13 wks and so ready for this m/s to be done. It's better but not gone by any means and I'm still so tired. But it's been cold and rainy here so maybe that's part of the dreary tired feeling... Anyone else having lots of muscle pains and pulls on the sides? Mine are killing me but I'm already popped out pretty good sooo...guess that's why.
QOTW:
My DH and I have a heck of a time agreeing on names...My first wasn't named for 2 days because we couldn't decide LOL We're not doing much better this time. After the first 2 I know what my DH doesn't like which is most of what I like! :mischief
I really like Ella myself but it's getting more common here....who knows!
Have a good week!
Ann

[mirthfulmum]

QOTW: We have a boy's name picked out, Harrison Eliot Smith (Smith isn't our last name) but have yet to settle on a girl's name. DH and I have been "discussing" girl names since we were pregnant with Alias. Fortunately he's a boy and we could come to an agreement on his name fairly easily. But I don't know if we'll be able to ever truly agree on a girl's name. Dh prefers more traditional names (wierd considering Alias I know) and I like names that are unusual. We were actually discussing for the hundredth time my preference for a girl's name (aw heck, I'll just come out and say it, Honalee) and Dh said in an exasperated tone "Name her what ever you want. If it's that important to you name our daughter Honalee go ahead. But I'm telling you right now I don't like the name and I never have". Well I don't want to win like that. I hate to think that for the rest of his life DH would be silently complaining about his child's name. But then again this could be a moot point as we could be having another boy. Oh, by the way, Dh's top girl name pick is Astrid. I really like the name but I like Honalee more!

:w MommyMuse. As to your soy question. I am lacto-ovo vegetarian but get most of my protein from soy products. When I was preganant with my son I was feeling pretty paranoid about they whole soy/plant estrogen/genital development thing too. But what I discovered was that if I cut back on my soy intake, especially the veggie meats, I began to crave meat during my preganacy. For me, eating meat was not an option. Did research on the subject and decided that from the little that's out there the correlation between soy/plant estrogen and genital development (esp. in boys) was inconclusive at best. So I figured that my body was telling me to up my protein with its meat cravings and I just ate what I thought my body was asking for, which ended up being a lot of tofu and veggie meats. My son was born with a completely normal penis and two healthy testicals. So in my case, the whole soy/plant estrogen/genital development thing didn't effect us. When I think about all the estrogen and estrogen mimicking chemicals out there in the environment (plastics, non-organic dairy etc.) I worry a lot more about trying to decrease my exposure to those estrogen sources than from soy.

[Soogie]

Phew...I'm glad to be back. I've been offline for almost 5 weeks because we were moving. We are finally settling in and my fingers are back on the keyboard at last!

My weekend was spent unpacking boxes. Not very exciting. But I did spend Sunday morning, sitting on my deck with a cup of hot tea, watching a blue heron on our dock fishing for his morning meal. It was very peaceful...I love living on the water.

I had my second appointment with my midwife last week and got to hear the bean's heartbeat, briefly, as he/she was playing hide-and-go seek. I've been feeling the tickly wiggle for about 3 weeks now, but last night I got a little thump. love it.

As for my choices in baby's names, if it's a girl, she will be Moira Elizabeth, and if it's a boy, Duncan Thomas. The girls name is definite but the boy's is still in the "discussion" phase.

Piglet: Can you update the due date list for me? My ultrasound puts my edd at 10/27. But since both my babes were late, I'm still betting on a November arrival. Thanks.

Susan

[Piglet68]

I'm not doing the AFP....
I also don't see having a birth defect as a "nasty surprise," I see it as a part of my child to love and accept.

Of course, Lucysmama, you are right. Very poor choice of words on my part. I'm sorry if that offended anybody. I was referring more to the fact that the false positive testing was nasty...but that wasn't clear, I can see now! I would love my baby no matter what!!

I would not terminate either, no matter what. But I'm the sort of person who likes to feel prepared. If a test came back positive for DS, for example, I would start researching like crazy. When I research things, I feel so much more confident (like all the research and learning I did here at MDC during my first PG made me very confident going into motherhood for the first time). So I think, rather than making me crazy with worry, it would help me alot to have something to work with.

[momadance]

Hey mama's! Is anyone else having issues with being a little ahem...leaky? I pee, and then a few minutes later a giggle or sneeze will result in some leakage. I've resorted to wearing a cloth pad. My mom thinks I need to do more kegals, she's probably right. I've also developed a major aversion to cooked veggies. I can handle cooked corn and beans, but other then those it's gotta be raw, and alot of them. That's resulted in 4-5 #2's a day (if ya catch my drift) I feel like the majority of my day is on the pot :shy Oh well! They say that's a good thing.

:OT Dh's last day of school for the semester is Friday! :banana He'll be off for a few weeks befor summer semester starts! It's so exciting to think I'll have Mr. Momadance home in the evenings! He works full time as an intern architect and then goes to school full time working of his prof. degree in architecture. We always get his full attention on the weekends though!

[OakEmber]

I also declined the AFP, never had it with my DD either...actually I don't even think it was mentioned, either it wasn't as routine in 2000 or my Dr. didn't feel it was necessary since I was only 22...hmm, I dunno.

We have picked out a name for this baby already, middle names could end up changing but the first name will be Oakley. Oakley was our boys name when we were pregnant with Ember, and still when we had the m/c last Nov. A few things happened due to the m/c that made us decide on using it for a girl too, one being that this will quite likely be our last and I can't imagine not having my Oakley and two, Ember started reffering to the baby as Oakley on her own...when I had the m/c she told me that the next time I had a baby in my tummy it would be the same baby, Oakley, the baby that we wanted...and then when I was 5 weeks pregnant Ember came up to me and put her hands on my abdomen and exclaimed.."Mommy, your baby's back...Oakley's back". I know that different people have different beliefs about this sort of thing but I find it neat that I have always believed that the same soul comes back when a baby m/c, that it just wasn't the right time or genetics just didn't work right so it is really neat that my 3 year old came to the same conclusion totally on her own. Funny thing is last time Ember told me that the baby was a boy, and this time she says it's a girl (who am I to question why the same spirit would decide to come back in a different form)hehe. And she has decide that she wants her sister to be called Oakley Annisty (Annisty was the girls name we talked about in Oct. but I haven't mentioned it since so again, weird that Ember just brought it up on her own). So it probably will be Oakley Annisty for a girl, or possibly Oakleigh but I am not sure if DH will go for it. For a boy DH wants Oakley Joseph, after Grandpa and my Dad, I am not crazy about the OJ initials but it's a family name and important to him. Good thing we liked a unisex name, LOL!

Lots of great name choices you ladies have picked out! KraftyKathy, I esp. love your combinations, I've always loved Willow (and Meadow too...I think I am a fan of the O sound). Mirthfulmum, well you know I like Honalee because I already told you so but I also love your DH's pick Astrid and Astrid Honalee is beautiful together!

[AnnR33]

How's this for putting a pregnant mama in a spin! My DH just calls and tells me he's getting a job offer for Seattle, WA-we're from Iowa-talk about a surprise! He doesn't even have all the details yet but now my head is just spinning with the "what ifs"
He said if he took it we'd move this summer, I hate the thought of having my baby away from a dr I like and my family and friends-yikes!
But I know there are so many more choices for childbirth, education, etc on the west coast. I just wish I knew someone there!
I'll keep you posted.
Ann

PS I found the comfiest cotton knit pants at K-mart that work great for those early popping out wks-I hated their maternity stuff but I got these pants in large and XL and they were only $7.50 on sale! Just wanted to share the bargains.

[OakEmber]

Oh and Mommadance, it is nice to hear about others decisions when it comes to homebirth/hospital birth. It would be so nice if homebirth was really an option for anyone regardless of finances and location. I feel rather lucky knowing that I could be discharged from the hospital in as little as 4hrs as long as there aren't any complications (in that case I probably wouldn't feel up to leaving anyway).

Lucysma, how is Lucy's insomnia...I saw that you responded to me on last weeks thread. I feel for you, and it doesn't even seem like you get an opportunity for an afternoon nap! I hope you get a full night sleep soon! Luckily I slept better in my own bed last night, we had been out of town for the weekend.

[blessed2bamommie]

Thanks mamas! I think I'm going to discuss it with the mw in about an hour. :D The OB med assistant at my church mentioned that its about that time for one, and then I needed to do my research and decide if this is one of those I'm going to decline. This practice is wonderful, in that they don't lord over you what you should do. They encourage us MDC types and they prefer a dialogue and are concerned if you don't. So, I'll tell her what I've learned and talk to her about my concerns. I'm not 100% on a u/s, so I'd hate for a false negative to push me in that direction. I know that you can do surgery in utero for spina bifida so I'd hate not to catch it. I don't understand why they would do such a test though that is so inconclusive! I was reading in Peggy's newest book, that low can mean a younger baby and high can mean more than one! Yet, they start pushing women to u/s or amnio if it comes out that way. :rolleyes: Thanks for weighin in! I'm excited about my appointment. :D Maybe I'll even come back today and tell ya. Wow! and after lunch! I hope they don't try to deliver me because I look like I'm bout to pop! :LOL

:wave Have a blessed one mamas!

Momadance, I was about to suggest kegels! :thumb

The local NC strawberries are out....I ate 3 4 quarts in two days...I feel ya. Saturday am, things were kinda loose. :yikes: But, being a former IBS sufferer and had constipation rear its ugly head earlier in pg, I am just thankful the bowels aren't locked! :eek

[Lucysmama]

Ann-
Just wanted to say Seattle is BEAUTIFUL in the summer! We moved to Ohio a year agon from Olympia, WA (about 45 min. from Seattle) and I really miss it. But if you move, you will be doing it in the best part of the year! And don't worry...the rain in Seattle is exaggerated. It does rain almost every day for most of the year, but only for part of the day most times....like a scattered shower here and there. I thought it was beautiful. I never saw so many rainbows in my life! :love

Amie...we had a good day today! Lu only got up twice last night, and we took a 20 minute nap...better than nothing. :)

[mirthfulmum]

Leaky? Oh yeah. Especially since I am fighting a head cold right now and have been having sneezing fits. Just this morning as Alias and I were getting on the elevator I had a pretty big sneeze, and oh joy! I forgot to put on a panty protector before we left. We had to turn back around to the apartment so I could change my pants. It wasn't this bad the first time around.

So my new mantra: Kegels, Kegles, Kegels, Kegels...

[Wabi Sabi]

We aren't 100% decided on names yet, but right now the top contenders are Ava Pearl and Miles Henry. My husband actually prefers Ella Pearl, but I already know several very young Ellas! Plus, if we ever have a boy he will definately be named Miles and I just think that the possibility of having children named Miles and Ella is just a bit too cheesy...

I'm also declining the AFP. From my understanding it isn't exactly a very accurate test and I'd hate to put myself through all of the emotional stress and turmoil over nothing.

Silly question, but how do you determine how far along you are in weeks? My EDD is Oct. 9th, which I thought made me 16w3d (ish) but earlier someone mentioned that they are now 16 weeks and their EDD wasn't until Oct. 19th. Am I calculating it wrong? Am I even further along than I thought?

Yes Momadance, I know what you mean by leaky! Unfortunately, I've always been one to pee just a couple of drops whenever I sneeze and now that I am pregnant it has just gotten worse. I usually cross my legs really tight whenever I'm about to sneeze! When morning sickness was at its worst, I would gush little spurts of pee with every heave...ugh, nothing worse than vomiting and peeing all over yourself at once! There was one morning when I got out of bed and went naked into the kitchen to grab a bowl of cereal. Just as I was pouring the milk I felt that nasty bile taste in the back of my throat. I threw up into the kitchen trash can and by the time I was done, a puddle had formed on the kitchen floor! :shake

[True Blue]

If I remember correctly, out of 100 positive AFP screen results, only 4 will actually turn out to be a true birth defect, etc. SO it has a 96% false positive rate, though I suppose that is bc it is just a screen, not a definitive test. It screens to let you know if you should test a little more or not (rather than give everyone amnios). I did not get one last time and will not again this time.

So, man, Ella's on it's way up....dammit!! I knew it when I saw that movie "Ella Enchanted" coming out. I really hope I can find something else I like. It's so ironic, growing up, I always loved Emily/Emma and my sister loved Hannah...now they are among the most popular names out there (2 years ago, they were #1 and #2!!).

[momadance]

FutureMoma

I know! We have a Miles and a boy name we both really like is Davis, we'd sound like some kind of fanatics!
We've been feeling our way around the name Theo....
Really makes me think of the cosby show though.....

[Lucysmama]

I'm not leaking at all....but I suspect I may after this babe. I had a c/section, so I didn't have the bladder pressures that most mamas do after they have a baby...I also kegel a lot (every red light I am stopped at!) so that may have something do with it.

[ameliabedelia]

Well I have major bladder issues. I leak so badly, every cough, sneeze, sometimes just while walking or running I will leak. Aaaaargh. It is so annoying. Of course I need to kegel more, I just can't get into it. I don't like kegeling. It seems sillly to me.

Are your names are really nice.

Our names are
boy: Isaac Joseph if he is born on Oct. 19 (which I think he will be :) ) or John Paul if he is born any other day.
girl: Kateri Anne (Katie for short)

I am pretty sure I am having a boy, but we will see.

I started wearing maternity pants last week. I couldn't fit into my jeans or anything which buttons and zips, but I didn't want to just wear elastic, so it is into the maternity I go. However, maternity shirts still look ridiculous on me, because I don't have enougth belly for them yet. Sooo, I am wearing maternity pants with dh's shirts, they are long enough to cover the elastic panel on the pants, but not hugely wide in the belly. I hate this stage. I can't wait to be big enough to look good in maternity pants and shirts.

[blessed2bamommie]

:splat

***warning vent ahead*****


Well! I am *too fat to hear the hb through the fetoscope until 22 wks, according to the mw! Aaaaaaaaaand....I guess I'm not *so unappealing that folks want to put their hands in my vagina! She *really wants to get up there! To check cervical length, pelvic size and check for STDs! She doesn't believe that my husband has no had any indiscretions and I could be a carrier! I think she said I could sign off on that; but, she stopped short of saying if I had ptl don't come cryin to her! :splat I'm measuring 16 wks, so looks like I'll be with you; but, since she didn't get her hands up there and I was dx with diabetes with Jordan, and I want to wait on the fetoscope, then she wants to do a u/s. I did *not* like her!! And, she mentioned a program that they have that is group based prenatal care and she suggested that I might want to do that b/c I do my own weight, put down wks gestation, etc all myself and then I have a class with the clinician. And, why she talked about trust and the practice I left and apparently, so did she, that they sometimes get to the point that if you question everything they did then they would drop you. She also mentioned that the wanted me to refuse on the basis of 'intellgence instead of fear, ie the internal. So, that's not valid! :splat :splat :splat And, my grounds for the false positives and not terminating for the AFP was valid, my reason of avoid u/s b/c of my concerns for it were not. This practice has a prenatal team. I have two male residents, I think and one female and they put the mw on my team for another woman. I'm not thrilled about the men, and have apprehensions about the other woman residents repore with me. Granted, we are planning to move east and I don't plan to deliver here. So, maybe that I need to think of that. Yet, there are more choices here and what if I don't like the practice there.....where is the provider I click with! This is my *third practice! :splat :splat

[momadance]

Well wannabe, keep looking. It's apparent this is not the place for you. If the MW you had your visit with you can't excersise some tact when there's not a problem, imagine the level of insensitivity you can and may encounter when it comes time to rely on this person to assist you in labor. The right person is out there for you! Keep searching. Head to the finding your tribe forum for your state and post for some referals for MW's other's have used.

Sorry, I know it's stressful trying to find the right person :thumb

[mirthfulmum]

Letia: :bang Some people just don't get it. And unfortunatly it seems that many of them chose pre-natal care as their profession. When pregnant with Alias I really came to understand that pregnancy and birth are still a miraculous mystery. The good doctors/midwives will admit that and allow their patients to trust in their newly forming mommy insticts to guide them. The bad ones get pushy when questioned and will resort to intimidation, guilt and fear to prove how *right* they are. Hang in there. The right caregiver for you will come along.

Just wanted to add my 2 cents... I also love the name Ella, but am so disapointed at how popular it is becomming.

[Lucysmama]

Letia - :hug
I feel for you, hon!!! Keep looking! I can't speak for anyone else, but I don't think you're nuts for having been thru 3 care providers. I switched around till 22 weeks when I was pregnant with dd. (And I ended up settling for a practice like the one you just described. I had a terrible birthing experience.)

You need someone who will empower you, NOT take your autonomy for you! And how rude of her to suggest your decisions were not based on "intelligence!" I would have stormed out. :angry

I do hope you find a care giver you like....it makes all the difference. My new mw is awesome, and from what I have heard, people have wonderful births with her. I heard about her thru word of mouth - I know 10 or so people who have had births with her, and they were all SO enthusiastic about her. I agree with the previous poster, ask around for recommendations.

Any chance of you doing a homebirth? Most homebirth midwives are very laid back about testing, procedures, and are big on informed consent. I was skeptical at first of a homebirth, but I am a research-driven woman, and after reading and reading and reading, I came across not ONE scrap of evidence that hospital birth is safer. Of course, it comes down to your personal comfort level....but it sounds like a homebirth midwife would be a lot more in line with your beliefs about pregnancy.

[BeansMomma]

Happy Spring to everyone!

I haven't posted in a while because our life has been an absolute whirlwind. My wife Sheryl and I had been working with architects and contractors looking to add an upstairs to our house. The heartbreaking estimates came in way too high to warrant proceeding. We decided last week to buy a new house instead (our current house is just too small!).

To catch up on last week's question: We'll have a baby room to store clothes and changing space; but little bean will sleep with us initially. This will be our first child, so we're going to be feeling our way through all of this as we go.

As for names, Sheryl and I are going to choose one gender-neutral name for our baby. We have a list that's as long as a yardstick so far but haven't yet finalized the name. :shrug

FutureMama: As for calculating the number of weeks, I had the same question on that post; I entered my EDD into the calculators at the Babycenter.com website of October 20th and I just entered my 15th week today according to their calculations.

[blessed2bamommie]

Thanks Mamas. I'm still really bothered by that appointment, and the more I think I become more :angry. She really gave a blow to my body image, which for her information has been *extremely fragile for most of my life. I was really embracing my pregnant body. No, I'm not the weight I would have like pre-pregnancy; but, after losing Jordan, I really didn't much care. I can't believe she would be so insensitive. I mean, women are more sensitive about their bodies at this time. She even called me overweight! :splat I want her off my prenatal team at best. I've been in FYT and asking all over the place about providers. I'm running out of choices. I'd love to have a hb; but, I'm *not quite comfortable with that. I want all the choices available to me for pain relief at the hospital, yet, I have every intention of having a wb. I was thinking a hb mw too....:rolleyes: . Don't the ones who deliver at the hospital have any sense. :angry Well, I think at 2:30 am and reflux, (who knew frozen yogurt and an apple would set me on fire) I'll check out the rest of my inbox since I went to bed. :wave :hug

[Piglet68]

I am loving the names. Mirthful: I really like the name Astrid. And Astrid Honalee does have a nice ring to it! I totally dig the name Oakley, EmbersMOM (and, not that my opinion should matter, but I really don't like it spelled "Oakleigh", just my thing). I also think it's WILD what your 3 year old was saying. I've heard stories like this from many mamas and they always make my spine tingle! I totally love the names Ava and Ella, but yes they are becoming so popular (and this from a woman who named her kid Emily - yeah, I regret it sometimes).

Ann: that's very exciting! Seattle is a beautiful city, and a wonderful part of the country to live in. And it's close to Vancouver, where I'll hopefully be soon! You will love the ocean and the mountains. And it's a very hip place to be an AP mama!

wannab: I'm so sorry about your experience at this practice. Mirthful is right: some people take your questioning as a questioning of themselves, and in their own insecurity they become belligerant and rude. Keep searching, hon - you'll find someone out there who you "click" with!

My bladder leakage hasn't happened yet, though I do remember it happening during the last few weeks of my last pregnancy.

Well, ladies, I'm off to my OB appointment in about an hour. I'll get to hear the heartbeat again, yay! I think they'll be drawing blood for the AFP (apparently this is not a requirement at our practice, but they do encourage it for us "older mamas"), and I'll get to schedule my next U/S (the one I where I find out the gender!!). What's really cool is my mum will be in town during that time, so she will get to see the baby! I'm holding off ordering diapers until I know the gender, so I can pick out some cute prints, lol. How shallow am I? :D

[Lucysmama]

Piglet- Sophia is getting super popular, too. Just thought I'd letcha know...I really like Sasha. Did you know it's a familiar for Alexander? I have only known one, and he is an ex-boyfriend. Sweet guy. :)

I am a name-a-holic and really watch the name trends. I think the rise and fall of a name is so interesting. It really has a lot to do with socio-economic trends, interestingly enough, which I also watch. There is an upper-class naming trickle-down effect. Once a name trickles to the "lower classes," it falls out of favor with upper and middle class parents. Also, a lot of research has been done on education and naming choices....what parents who have PhDs choose (usually classic names such as Caroline, Margaret, Emily) is so much different than what parents with little education choose (a lot of made-up names, creative spellings, and names that end in a long E sound, such as Hailey, Jazzmyn, Kylee.) Anyway...sorry to get :OT, I just find it all interesting.

I think one of the best parts of being pregnant is knowing you get to name someone at the end. It's such fun. :D

Letia- My homebirth midwife also does hospital births with women. So she does prenatals, and goes to the hospital with you as a monitrice in labor. So even if you aren't comfy with birthing at home, maybe you could find a great mw who will attend your hospital birth...

[Piglet68]

Piglet- Sophia is getting super popular, too. Just thought I'd letcha know...

I was worried that was the case... :crying
...does it help that we're spelling it with an "F"? :love

[Lucysmama]

I only know 2 Sofias, though! (They are both under 2, though.)

It's so sad...I think so many mamas grew up loving the names Emma, Sofia, Isabella, Hanna, Emily, Lily....then we all wanted to name our children that. :( I don't think there is anything wrong with doing it anyway. A lot of us grew up with popular names, though - Amy, Jennifer, Jessica, etc (I'm a Katie myself.) and we wanna avoid it.

Lucy is creeping up the charts, and it makes me nervous. I have a serious problem with popular names. :LOL

[kraftykathy]

Wow, so many great names! I love Oakley, Astrid Honalee, and so many of the other names! Very creative thinking going on here!
wannabmommie - wow, that midwife sounds so insensitive! I wouldn't want to use her either. I told my midwife that I don't want to focus on weight and she is fine with that. I've had 2 appointments and not a mention of weight. I hope you can find someone who will listen to what YOU want.
Leaking - That's happened to me occasionally. I couldn't help laughing at couple of the stories everyone has been sharing, lol! Don't worry, I'm laughing sympathetically since I have been there and done that, hee-hee!
Besides leaking, I'm also getting that ligament pain on each side of my pelvis when I sneeze, stretch or roll over too quickly. I'm suprised that it's happening so soon this time. I don't know how I will get out of bed by the eighth month!?!

Kathy

[Jillerina]

Hi All! Glad to hear everyone is doing well these days save for some "trickling" and the tail end of morning sickness in some cases!

I'm thankfull to say I've never experienced the leaky bladder I've heard so much about so I am hopful that I'll get away without it this time too.

I'm so jealous when I hear you all talking about midwife appointments - I want a midwife too!! Looks like there is going to be no chance of that happening for me though, I'm on a waiting list for the birthing centre and the list is SUPER long. I've started researching doulas instead and having an appointment next Monday evening with a woman who has come highly recommended. I'm totally excited to meet with her in person and find out what service she offers. I'm going to my OB tomorrow and will test the waters with him on a doula attended birth. I'm hoping he will be open and positive about it.

Momadance - I used to vacation every summer at Sauble Beach on Lake Huron. Was thinking of heading back to see family this Summer but it looks like a no go fo now. I'm so jealous of a beach house!!

QOTW- LOL names, we are so not there yet! DH and I have very different tastes in general so we've always thought picking names for our children would be next to impossible. I still sort of feel that way even though we did manage to come up with Clara's name without too many arguments. We'll wait a couple more months before starting the naming game. I can tell you what we won't be naming our son (if we have one) even though I love it - Gus. Apparently when you say this name with a french accent it is the french word for testacle! DH will have nothing to do with it as a result (I guess he has good reason). Whatever names we come up with have to be bilingual as we are raising our family in English and in French.

[flitters]

hi everyone!!

i love hearing all your name choices. we haven't really found any that resonate completely but we've been trying some out that seem to be growing on us.

sorry to those who are a bit leaky... sounds like a bit of a pain at times. this is my first but honestly i expected to be leaky cause i normally have to pee so often and i tend to ignore it until i really have to go. i actually had several friends who would joke about how i'd never leave the bathroom once i got pregnant. so this weird thing happened at around 5 or 6 weeks that i actually had to pee less frequently and when i do pee it doesn't come out with such force. i'm still drinking tons and am well hydrated, but i think my uterus actually moved off of my bladder where it normally sits. it's strange. i'm only peeing more at night where i used to just sleep through. i do kegels normally but i did before getting pregnant too so i think something inside me just reorganized to actually be more bladder friendly, at least for a while. unexpected but nice!

i've also been having those searing pains along my sides, but up a bit higher than my pelvis. i guess that is round ligament pain? mine started at 5 weeks. i get them when i sneeze, blow my nose, move funny... pretty much anything where i go from relaxed to tense too quickly. they don't hurt when i exercise at all though. someone suggested that if those ligaments are very tight in the beginning the loosening pains start earlier. kinda makes sense i guess. i mostly can avoid them if i'm careful but i forget and i can't help sneezing. i seem to sneeze a lot lately.

good luck to those still searching for a care provider!

:grouphug

[krnflwr]

Hi Mamas,
I'm Karin and I'm so glad I found you here. I'm preg w/ #2, due Oct 16. I have so much to say but am hampered by my very heavy, sleeping, nursing toddler who is hogging my rapidly-shrinking lap. Hannah is 29 months and an avid nurser. Anyone else still nursing while preg?
I'm just getting over the total exhaustion and m/s of the first trimester and starting to feel *really* good. I never felt like this the first time, the stereotypical glowing earth mama happy pregnant woman, but I'm loving it now. My belly is definitely showing (at least to me) and nothing is fitting anymore. Lots of searing pains in my side and belly stretching pains, which I don't remember happening the first time until much later. No leakage for me, so far, and I'm keeping my fingers crossed. I've felt some butterflies that I'm sure were the baby moving. I never felt Hannah until 21 wks, so this seems awfully early to me.
We haven't really discussed names but I'm partial to Bailey and Kinsey right now. Hannah has been calling him (her?) Baby Cookie, and that has pretty much stuck so far. I suppose we'll wait until we find out the sex (if we can) at the 20 wk u/s to really start the name negotiations. I'm seeing a new OB in our area, who has a really progressive practice and she even studied with Ina Mae on the Farm for several years when she was a midwife. HB is really risky (leagally speaking) around here, so I'm trying to find the right balance for us of a hosp water birth w/ as little intervention as possible.
Anyway, I'm looking forward to meeting you all.
~blessings,
karin & hannah & baby cookie (edd 10-16-04)

[Court]

Just wanted to check in and say hi! I feel like I've been too tired to even post lately, although I have been lurking here a lot. I love the names discussion, that's been my obsession lately. We cannot for the life of us think of a boy's name that we love. We've had the girl's name picked out for a couple years and that one is Lana Belle. (the middle name is not 100 percent) Though I'm afraid people (esp. my southern relatives) are going to pronounce it as if there were 2 n's like "Anna". I found another spelling that is slavic - Lonna - so maybe that would be less confusing. Also I had a very vivid dream before I got pregnant (we weren't trying) that I had a beautiful baby girl in a purple onesie and we were all calling her "Cali." In my waking life I don't really want such a popular name, so I was thinking maybe there's an unusual name that had cali as a nickname, like Kalista or something. With my luck it'll be a boy and we won't have a name, though I would love another boy. If Ella weren't so popular I'd be using that one too!

My uterus seems to have risen up too in the past couple weeks, thank goodness, cause it felt like I had a UTI, I was going to the bathroom so often. Embersmom - I loved the story about your daughter sensing your baby, I'm such a believer in that kind of stuff. Oh and my belly finally popped out, it'll still be a while before I invest in maternity stuff since I have so many stretchy big things around to wear for now. Well Logan is insisting I join him under his blanket fort now, so I gotta go! Take care everyone!

[momadance]

:bouncy I love my mw! I had an appt. today, it went well. She's so cool. Baby sounded awesome. Lots of compliments on my urine! Nice to know people notice the little things :clap Miles is such a cutey and fun to bring along. He asks questions and interjects little silly things!

How many Kegals do people do and how often? I've taken for granted a strong pelvic floor. I pushed Miles out in about 4 big umph's, and haven't done many kegals since! (shame on me) I'll do 'em! I promise! Somebody give me the scoop ;)

[OakEmber]

Oh Wannabemommie :hug, I'm with the others...find a new midwife (or even an OBGYN, you are likely to find one who's more sensitive than her!) I'm reading Ina May Gaskin's Guide to Childbirth right now and all I could think reading your post is what a tough time you'd have having her attend your labor! Ina stresses that feeling comfortable with your attendants is of the otmost(gosh not a word I use often so I don't have a clue how to spell it :LOL, someone give me a tip!) importance, otherwise if woman feel uncomfortable their labor may stall, etc.

Thanks for the compliments on my baby's name, of course a mommy never tires of them :love! And I am glad that some of you enjoyed my story, I guess if I have a boy I won't have to share it as it was always our boys name! Piglet, my Dh will probably appriciate your comment, hehe...I think I am moving away from the 'leigh' thing anyway but I sometimes think I need to soften it up, make it look more feminine...I did see Oakley on a shirt written in pink writing, that makes it look feminine, LOL! But I feel like this baby knows it will be an Oakley and wouldn't choose to be a girl if she couldn't pull it off :thumb

[Lucysmama]

I saw my MW on Monday....she is great. We didn't do the doppler, uternine growth is normal. Uterus is about up to my belly button.

She heads the local ICAN chapter, and my chapter's sterring committee decided to give me a gift subscribership to ICAN for a year, as a gift and vote of confidence. :love

I have a cold, so I am feeling really run down, esp since my pumpkin has such sleep issues. I just hope she is sleeping well by October!

Anyone else going to have a toddler and a newborn and a dp and you in one bed? How do you plan to arrange everyone?

[OakEmber]

Lucysmama- Ember is still in our bed with us and I don't want her to leave before she is ready so we will quite likely be four in a bed, queen sized but I am not sure yet how the arrangement will work. I am contemplating getting a bedside co-sleeper so that we have more room, either that or getting Dh to build (invent??) a way to add a toddler sized bed to ours using the same concept as the arms reach...anything to extend the bed! Dh has already complained much about space as it is, although DD and I slept for about a week in her room on her twin bed and he realized he missed us so he hasn't complained since :LOL but I don't think that he'll be happy about 4 of us in there! Another thought that has crossed my mind is DH in the other bedroom for awhile and the three of us in ours but that would be a last resort.

Ember has told me she wants the baby to sleep in her room with her, which is a nice thought when it comes to transitioning her, but how could I sleep away from my baby?!! Maybe I'll take her up on it after a year ;) So I guess I didn't really answer your question except to let you know you aren't alone in trying to figure it out, I will be interested to see what others, esp. BTDT moms have to say.

[True Blue]

DS still sleeps with us. And Katie, I feel for you on sleep issues. Mickade has never slept through the night. We finally this week cut down his nap from 1 hr 15 min to 30 min....I just set an alarm and wake him up...and you know what? He sleeps almost the whole night! He only wakes up once; granted it's for 10-20 min, but it is better than every couple hours. I'm starting to feel like a human being again LOL. So anyway, like I said, he sleeps in bed with us but we have his toddler bed (his crib converted) on the floor touching the bed. We start him there and then he joins us in our bed sometime in the middle of the night. Before we converted it, we had his crib next to our bed, on some lifts to make it even with our bed, to add size to our bed. It was a huge help!! I do plan on trying to get DS to sleep in his own room by the time the baby gets here. There is just no way 4 of us can sleep in the bed. Plus, he is a light sleeper...if he stays in our room even in his bed, I am afraid he will be up all night with me and the baby. But I'm going to cry when he stays in his room.....I'm hoping he still comes in our room in the middle of the night!!!! But for now, we are just working on sleeping period!!

[Jillerina]

I'm also not sure what we're going to do about sleeping arrangements once the new babe comes. DH already does not sleep well with Clara in the bed - she tends to sleep sideways and kicks him a lot. So for the past 1.5 weeks we've been trying to get her to sleep in her own bed all night. This is not a problem as long as either DH or I are in there with her!! Yeah, so basicially we are doing shifts sleeping with her in the single bed in her room. She sleeps until about 1 or 2am then I go in and lay with her. I usually fall asleep too and only leave about 2 hours later. Then she wakes up either at wake up time or an hour or so earlier (6am) and Dh tries to get her to fall back asleep for a little while. Anyway, I don't know if we are making any progress by doing this but DH really wants us to stick with it for now. I think he's hoping that she'll eventually start sleeping through the 2am wake up and he wants to do it now while I can still be of help. Eventually I'll be no help at all since I'll be needing so many pillows to sleep myself!!
I know this is no help but I thought it would be nice to know that other people are struggling to figure out sleeping arrangements too.

[momadance]

There may be all 4 of us on any given night! That's why we upggrded to the King size. It's heavenly! Miles comes and goes. He starts usually in his bed and if he wakes, comes in our bed. If he asks to start in our bed I oblige him.

New bean will start out in a sidecar pushed up and even to my side of the bed. I don't feel comfy when there that tiny "in" the bed with the 3 of us. I wouldn't sleep well..

[krnflwr]

Good Morning Mamas,
My DD (29 months) still has yet to sleep through the night, although things are slowly getting better. At this point it's DD and I in the big bed and most night DH on the futon in the other room. That way at least one of us gets some reasonable sleep. DD is going through a period of nightmares/night terrors....lots of crying and screeching in her sleep. It's quite unnerving. And she seems to be weaning herself somewhat, refusing to nurse when she wakes up, wanting other comfort. I'm not sure it this is just a phase or the start of true weaning. My hope is that by the time Baby Cookie arrives, DD will be either sleeping through the night or able to have DH comfort her. Perhaps the two of them can sleep together, leaving me with Baby Cookie. I'm struggling with these sleeping arrangements, as well. Can you tell? I'd love to hear what other mamas have done/are doing. I love co-sleeping and am happy to have all my kidlets in my bed. But at this point I'd just really like some decent sleep, yaknow? Between the night nursing, the frequent potty trips and the nightmares, it seems as if peaceful rest is just a faint memory of mine. Hope everyone else had a good night! :zzz

[mirthfulmum]

Alias sleeps in a toddler bed pushed up against our bed. Our bed frams is quite low to the ground and it just happens to be at the same level as our bed. We stuffed some towels to fill the small gap between the beds so Alias can roll in and out as he wants. But he mostly spends the night in his bed. He really likes to sleep spread eagle and like me, dosen't like to be squished up against another person when sleeping. He sleeps much better in his own bed than in ours and if he's come into our bed at night for a snuggle, will usually crawl back into his bed when he's ready to fall back to sleep.
Although right now things are a little wonky as DH and I have switched sides of the bed. We think that'll be easier if Alias is used to sleeping next to dad instead of mom when the new baby comes. That way baby can sleep in the middle of the bed and I can nurse her/him as needed through the night and Alias can sleep as spread out as he likes and have his dad give him any needed night time cuddles. But right now, Alias is just crawling over his dad to get to me in the middle of the night and I am waking up precariously dangling over the side of the bed while Alias is comfortably sleeping sideways with his arms and legs spread out as far as possible. It's amazing how much space a 29 pound 23 month toddler can take up!

[Lucysmama]

Oh......My.......Goodness!

Speaking of sleep.....my 27 month old slept through the night for the first time in her life last night.
:bouncy :bgbounce :clap :jammin
I'm trying not to get to excited, it could have been a fluke. But we put her to bed at 9:30 last night and she woke up at 7am. This has never happened before to us, and it was amazing.

I think we are going to get a Snugglenest to put in our bed for the first month or two of the new baby's life, until I start feeling more comfortable and less like one of us is going to roll over and smush the baby. (That's how I felt when dd was an infant. As a result, she slept on me, with her head between my breasts.) But now with a toddler, I will need to put the baby down sometimes to do nighttime parenting, I'm sure. This seems like a good solution. We have no room for a sidecar, our bed goes wall-to-wall. It's a queen and a twin pushed together. :)

Have a beautiful day, mamas! It's 72 degrees here and the sun is shining...we're going out to play!

[ameliabedelia]

We will probably be a co-sleeping famiy of 4. DD still sleeps with us, although about 1/2 the time DH sleeps on the living room couch because he likes to fall asleep watching movies, (and he goes to bad later than I do), and we don't have a TV in our room.

We may try to move DD to her own bed, but for the most part she sleeps really well with me. Lots of times, I can tell when she wakes up a little or starts to stir, if she can feel me or see me or DH than she goes back to sleep on her own. Most nights she does sleep all night, a few nights a week, she will wake up one time and want to nurse, but she seems to be comforted by our presence and thankfully doesn't need to nurse so much at night anymore. We haven't ever tried her in her own bed, she does have a bed ready for her, but I am afraid she will wake up and need nursing and lots of help to go back to sleep in her bed, while when she is in our bed, she will usually go back to sleep as long as she can sense us with her.

[Piglet68]

A big :w to Karin! I've added you to our roll call list!

Sleeping: well, right now we have a king mattress on the floor (no boxspring). I sleep between DH and DD. She pretty much takes up half the bed, lol. But DH and I get to snuggle, and she doesn't disturb him. She generally wakes to nurse about 4 times a night, though if it's "no-nonsense nursing" it's not too bad. Lately, however, she's been having some sleep issue, lots of nightwakings (as in, getting up and playing for hours!). We're trying to see if it's hunger related (I don't think she eats enough before bedtime). If not, it may be time to put our foots down and deal with some night-crying when we tell her we aren't going out to play in the living room! I'm really hoping her night-nursing will dwindle, as I worry about dealing with two at night. I may look into some nightweaning as the months draw on.

Our mattress is on the floor, and we're likely going to add a twin next to it so everybody has some room. I think I'll put DD in between DH and I, and put baby on the end, or maybe vice versa! I just don't know, and I do wonder how it will all be. Mostly I worry about the baby waking her up at night. I just don't want to move DD to her own space, because I'm really sure it would make her resentful of this new baby. Plus, to be honest with you, I'M not ready for her to leave our bed! I love sleeping next to her! :love

I've been having major ligament stretching lately. Also, any of you with C/S scars? Mine's been itchy lately. I think it's stretching b/c of my growing belly.

[kraftykathy]

Jillerina, We had a Doula for our last birth and she was wonderful. The birth was amazing! We had a similiar problem with being on a midwife's waiting list that time. There just aren't enough of them around it seems! I was lucky this time.

Good luck with the doula. They can be such a great help!

Kathy

[momadance]

Embers story inspired me to add something of the nature on my end.
My dad passed away when I was 16. It wasn't a typical daddy daughter type relationship and "hard" to deal with. Dh and I told no one we were planning on another. As far as all IRL people knew, we were waiting to move back to michigan when Dh was done with school (a year or so from now) Well, 2 days after TTC, I phoned my grandma (paternal) just to chat. My uncle answered the phone and the first words out of his mouth were "your pregnate" I said "uh, I don't think so, why?" and he said "oh nothing" and handed the phone off. 2 weeks later, after confirming I was, I phoned to find out what was up with his premonition. He told me he hangs out with my Daddy everynight, and my Dad had approached him and proudly said "looks like I'm going to be a grandpa again!" This floored me and I cried and really felt like Puking (the only time in the pregnancy :shy ) It's crazy how much is really unexplained and open for interpretation. It really felt awesome because growing up he wasn't really involved, and now, on some level I *know* he is, and I see him in my son. It's awesome.

I'd love to hear more storys of this nature! Share away mama's! :dust

[3bees~1flower]

I've been having major ligament stretching lately. Also, any of you with C/S scars? Mine's been itchy lately. I think it's stretching b/c of my growing belly.

Piglet -- my c/s scar has been sensitive to touch since getting preg...just on the outside...don't know if it's hormones or what...

[Jillerina]

My appendictimy scar that is from the beginning of February is really ichy all of a sudden too! I don't know if that is a normal thing for scars as they heal or if it is a result of this ever-expanding belly. As an aside, I went to the OB today and found out I've gained 5lbs in a month! This must STOP ! :).

[OakEmber]

Momadance- that's a cool story! Too bad he didn't also pass on the info of what his new grandbaby would be, hey?!! I hope others share similar stories too.

[mirthfulmum]

momadance & EmbersMOM: I feel a little left out. I have never had an experience like that. Maybe I'm just not hanging out with the intuitive crowd.

[Lucysmama]

Pig - I have really bad ligament pain, too. Esp. at night. Sometimes I roll over or stretch in my sleep and it hurts soooooo bad I have to breathe through it intentionally.
I also feel some pressure behind my c/sec scar.

Ok, I will share my weird intuition story.

We moved from WA to OH last January. Dh and I made the drive, while dd flew back with my mom. One dark and snowy night, at around 2:00am at some random truck stop in Nebraska, dh and I stopped for a potty break and a woman approached me. She was pretty disfigured, and I was startled at first when she touched my hand.
"You have a baby girl," she said.
"Yes, I do..." I replied.
"You're far away from her."
"Yes, I am," I said. I was quite intrigued.
"You are going to have another baby." she said.
"Really? When?!?!" I asked excitedly, as we were just starting to try to get pregnant.
"In one year."
"In one year I will have the baby???" I said.
"No, in one year you will get pregnant," she said.
I said good night, thanked her and started to leave.
"By the way.....it's gonna be a girl." she said.

I left feeling strangely excited. I am a skeptic by nature, but this woman seemed...to KNOW. Anyway, one year later, almost to the day, I got pregnant with this baby.

Weird. So I think maybe it's a girl...

[ameliabedelia]

Okay, I will add my weird intuition stories:

In October 2003, I was doing a self-improvement exercise, whereby I was writing my vision, for my life in the future, where we live, about my family, etc., etc. Well, I wrote the vision to take place in October 2006, and I wrote that H (dd) was 4 1/2 and we were homeschooling, Isaac just turned 2, and we just found out we are expecting our third chld. So, when I wrote that, I guess I "thought" I would have a boy in October 2004.

Well, at the very end of November 2003, I concieved a baby and in the middle of Deceber I had a positive pregnancy test. The next day, my mom called and said that she wrote our Christmas card out to A,B,H and ?. So, she somehow had an intuition that I was pregnant. That pregnancy kinda fooled me, since I really thought I would have a baby in Oct 2004, not August 2004. So, on Chistmas night, when I started to bleed, I just knew that that baby wasn't meant to be, and I was having a miscarriage and that I would get pregnant again in Feb and have a baby in Oct. Furthermore, before I had the miscarriage, when we were discussing names for that baby, one idea we came up with, is to name the baby depending on what day the baby is born. The baby would be named according the the Saint's feast day on it's birthday.

Well, in January, when I looked on the calendar for the new year, the Feast of St. Isaac Jogues is on October 19th (giving me another reason to think I would have a boy in October), and sure enough I am due 10/29, DD was 10 days early and I think this one will be 10 days early as well and I will have a boy on Oct. 19th.

[OakEmber]

Lucysmama- Oh, that's a really cool story! I can't wait to find out if you are having a girl now!!

Mirthfulmum :hugs maybe your turn will come!

Is anyone else that doesn't plan on finding out the sex driving themselves crazy?? I didn't want to know with Ember and that was easy but this time we have decided not to find out yet I am considering calling my midwife and telling her I want the u/s afterall! I don't think I will, because I'd feel really silly for one thing(because I already told her I didn't want it)...and plus DH is not behind it. Please talk some sense into me someone! Only 5 more months to go :bouncy I think it is different this time because with your first, a baby changes your life so much anyway regardless of what it is...but this time it's either a sister or a brother, and since it is most likely our last Ember will either experience having a sister or not so it's weird to think about the impications of it (being that I have a sister I guess). And since we have decided on a unisex name, I don't have the excuse of wanting to know the sex to call the baby by it's name in utero. Ok, that's it for my little rant...please tell me I'm not insane!

[OakEmber]

Amelia, that's pretty cool that it was your OWN intuition...you're good ;)

[blessed2bamommie]

OK. Mine's different. It still amazes me that the Creator of the Universe will take the time to talk to me! (or anyone who ask says the Scriptures) Well, the first discussion of children came when a prophet came to our church and he was telling me what the Lord had to say, and then he started discussing children. Well, mama and I didn't have a good relationship and I had apprehensions about being a mother. Well, through this prophet, the Lord told me I would have children and that I would be a good mother. Well, it took us 13 mos and then I had a m/c. Well, I was disillusioned. I had to have surgery and then I decided to wait until we moved into our house and accomplished some things. I decided to come back to MDC to "research" what we'd need so we could be preparing. Well, the baby longing started; but, I told myself no. Then one of the mothers of the church said to me that she was going to ask me a personal question. Well, what do you say to an 80+ woman? You say OK! She says to me in her street talk which like to blew me over, "when you gon do this thang?" :LOL She told me that I'm all healed up and she feels in her spirit that its time. Well, we had *just* started ttc again. I mean, then the Lord became very vocal about our children! I had wanted to hear from Him and then he just started talking. We came up for prayer, and Pastor said to dh that its good to be a father....a visiting Pastor came and in the middle of the service asked who's believing God for a child? Well, the *whole* church *knew it was me. I couldn't very well just sit there! He prayed for me and I was able to tell him that "we" were fine at our Citywide church gathering last week. He was *so happy!

Before I realized I was pg, though, this is just how loving the Lord is, He was telling me the verse that's in my sig. No room for its entirety; but, here is it--You have turned my mourning into joyful dancing. You have taken away my clothes of mourning and clothed me with joy. He was preparing me for being pg the *same time as I was the previous year, yet, our child went to be with Him. I was giving up ttc b/c I wasn't sure I could deal with getting pg the same time of year. (yet, I didn't want to go back on bc :rolleyes: ) We weren't ttc; yet I came up pg. I was happy because the Lord had prepared me and that is one of the Scriptures I have put over this pregnancy.

And Amie, I don't know that its driving me *crazy...yet, its a bit difficult. Mine may be even more shallow. :blush I want to gender specific shop. :hide: I can't remember where you are in your pg; but, I think its 4 more weeks left for me for u/s. Dh and I have discussed it. He's got the cultural expectation of u/s programmed into him. I sent him some Mothering articles. For *me, the possiblity of any harm, just makes me uncomfortable with doing it. Dh and I also need to be in agreement. That's important.

Have a blessed weekend mamas! :wave

Thanks for weighin in about my mw :rolleyes: btw.

[Piglet68]

I wish I had some of those cool stories, but not only do I think I'm at the bottom of the "intuition" scale, but I don't seem to be surrounded by any intuitives, either, lol.

I guess the closest thing is my hair stylist, a middle aged Italian woman, does this thing with pregnant women where she holds a threaded needle over your wrist and, based on the way it swings, tells you whether it's a girl or boy. She did it to me, and first it went one way, then the other. She says sometimes this happens - it meant I would have two children. The one I was carrying at the time was a girl, and the second would be a boy. She was right about the girl, and of course I can't help wondering if she'll be right about this one. DH and I both feel strong "boy" vibes. We find out in a month.

I'm afraid I have no advice for you Ember'sMOM - I simply don't know how any of you can stand not knowing, lol! (Mind you, I might be able to handle it if I already had clothes/diapers for both genders). As it is, I have nothing for a boy, and I'm ordering diapers soon and choosing gender-neutral colours and prints really limits your choices, lol!

Hey...has anybody experienced any shortness of breath? Today I was having a hard time talking without feeling like I was short of breath. I am *very* tired today, but still it felt weird.

[blessed2bamommie]

Yes! Try singing! At Citywide last Sunday, I was just glad I made it through w/o the ENT soundman running up to give me oxygen! I've still got a ways to go...:p

[gottaknit]

Hi. I'm new to the board. We're planning a homebirth with a midwife and doula. When DH found out the doula will be giving me massages, he asked if he could have a doula, too. :p Silly boy.

Our baby name picks are Henry and Ruth (but I plan to call her Ruthie). No decision on the middle names yet. Any suggestions? Our last name starts with 'S'.

-nancy

[mirthfulmum]

:w nancy.

I can't believe how much I'm popping out now. It feels lie in the last week I went from a small, privately pregnant belly to... hello baby! My husband looked at me last night while I was changing into my PJs, patted my belly and said, "looks like this baby's going to be big".

I'll be 18 weeks on Sunday. Where has the time gone! In 2 more weeks I'll be half way done :fingersx:. I've been reading for a few weeks now how you all are starting to get things prepared for your new one's arrival while I've done nothing, absolutely nothing to get ready. I have not purchased a single stitch of clothing, diaper cover or bootie for this baby. And it has just dawned on me that time is rushing by. Before I know it it'll be September and I'll be racing around trying to get things prepared. I guess the first step should be to go down into storage and pull out the old baby clothes. See what'll work (Alias is a June baby so all his newborn clothes are a pretty light fabric) and what will be needed. This baby's a commin' whether I'm ready or not!

edited due to smiley face technical difficulties :bouncy

[Lucysmama]

Yeah, it's hard for me not to know the sex, too....but I don't haved a medical reason for having an U/s, so I can't subject my fetus to something that has not been proven safe. It's just a personal comfort thing. So I hang in there, because it's not really an option to me. :) Plus, we have no insurance, so it would cost $400 out-of-pocket. :eek

We had an u/s with Lucy and I really regretted it. She really seemed to hate it...she was not moving when it started, and she suddenly started kicking and thrashing around A LOT when they started. The difference was amazing. She flipped away from the u/s wand everytime it came near her. So, they couldn't get a good read on sex (not the reason we had the ultrasound) but they thought from a brief glance they got it was a girl. The tech said...."I'll give you an 80% chance it's a girl." He was right.

Anyway, I couldn't/can't get that image of her out of my mind....one second peacefully resting, the next second thrashing around. :( That's enough to convince me not to have another. Also, they are linked to an increase in miscarriage, and I have had 2...so I am avoiding it for that reason, too.

But it's still driving me nuts with speculation. :nut I tend to lean towards girl, though...I always saw myself with daughters.

[momadance]

The thought of finding out the sex crossed my mind for a split second! We have already decided that an ultrasound is too invasive and that we don't want one. My mw is so cute. She's like "so, do YOU want an ultra sound?" and I said not really, and told her what I thought about them. I did ask in all her years practicing with an OB how many times it's been useful or productive. She told me for the most part, only cleft palats and hair lips have been found and if that was important to me, by all means get one. She then told me about some of the women coming in and scheduling US for every appt. I guess this practice has the 3D machine. She rolled her eyes and continued to tell me about a conference she went to where she heard about places being set up in the mall, where you can go get "keepsake" ultrasound photo's. Crazy world huh?

Well, i guess I better go do my workout :rolleyes:

[stanleymama]

Why are some of you against having an u/s? I love them!!! I love getting to see my baby swimming around in there. Plus with ds#2 I had total placenta previa and we only knew due to our u/s. For me I like knowing that everything is where it needs to be.

[mirthfulmum]

I also like to have an ultrasound done. I get such a thrill from seeing my little babe all snug and healthy. Getting a preview of their little hands and feet. But most importantly I love that I can see if there are any issues that need to be addressed, placenta previa, amniotic fluid levels, baby positioning etc. I have heard that there is some controversy around the u/s but I haven't heard anything to suggest that one u/s is harmful. I have heard that repeated u/s can have an effect on brain development though. There was a study published out of Sweden, I think, that saw a carrelation in mothers who had more than 5 u/s had a greater likely hood to giving birth to a left handed child. Nothing wrong with being left handed, just demonstrates some kind of alteration in the brain.

[Lucysmama]

In answer to your question, Stanleymama...


I will post a link later to a great u/s thread discussion, with a lot of facts. One study found that one ultrasound delayed speech develpment by up to 9 months. It isn't an issue of left-handedness. It's an issue of effecting your child's development.

The bottom line is, there is no data proving the total safety of ultrasound, and I don't want to subject my fetus to something that isn't definitely safe. Just think, when a lot of us were children, they were still x-raying fetuses. They didn't know it wasn't safe, because the research had not been done. Same with ultrasound. Research is beginning to be done studying the long-term effects, and a lot of the results aren't pretty.

For me, I could never put my child through a procedure that could carry with it a lot of risks, simply because I want to see the baby, or find out the sex. I think (and I'm sorry if anyone is offended by this) that those are totally selfish reasons to have u/s done. We don't know what the fetus experiences u/s like, and what effect it will have on them.

And, most midwives can detect things like placenta previa without the use of ultrasound. They also can tell baby's position by palpatating the belly. Checking fluid levels and weight via u/s is notoriously inaccurate. Sure, maybe physical defects can be seen, but others can be missed, leading people to believe they have a totally "perfect" baby when they do not.

Again, it's a personal comfort level. I'm not going to vaccinate my children, because by reading research I have decided I think the risks outweigh the benefits. Same with ultrasound.

[Piglet68]

Hi nancy!! Welcome to the boards!! and to our little October mamas club. I've added you to the roll call list! We have a new thread each week.

:w

[momadance]

I just feel it's too invasive. I don't want or need the behind the scenes look at the little creature. I had one with Ds and to be honest, it didn't *do* anything for me. At that time he looked nothing like a sweet little baby, and it was uncomfortable.

I'm fine with the 10 seconds of doppler because I personally *need* the reasurance of the heartones. Other then that, I'm not looking for anything else.