Week of May 24th

[Piglet68]

October Mamas Roll Call :belly

momtol&a
snugglebutter 10/01
mirthfulmum 10/03 BOY! Harrison Eliot Smith
TracyK 10/04
mhurst 10/04
kraftykathy 10/04
Jillerina 10/04
water 10/06
Proudly AP 10/08
mayasmama 10/08 GIRL!
FutureMama 10/09 BOY!
bluehalo 10/10 BOY!
allformyboys 10/11
Lucysmama 10/12
bendmom 10/12
momadance 10/13
Mandi 10/14
rhemp 10/14
wannabmommie 10/15
krnflwr 10/16
gmvh 10/16 TWINS!
Piglet68 10/18 BOY! Sasha Adam
MommyMuse 10/19
BeansMomma 10/20 GIRL!
CourtneyandLogan 10/21 BOY!
EmbersMOM 10/21 BOY! Oakley
Stanleymama 10/23 BOY!
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
BeauGeek 10/30
AnnR33 10/31


Good morning!

Ugh, I wish this insomnia would go away. I was so wide awake last night from 3 am to almost 6 am.

On the bright side, Emily slept through the night without asking to nurse ONCE. Even though she stirred several times. That makes two nights in four days. Yay! :banana

Question of the Week: how are your hair/nails/skin doing?

My hair always grows fast, so I don't notice a difference there, although it seems to be oilier than usual. My nails are growing fast - I have white on all fingers and toes (just in time for open toe shoe season!). But my skin...I have PIMPLES! On my face and my back. It's like being 15 again. Ugh!

Have a great day!

[blessed2bamommie]

ur so quick! I was tryin to figure out the QOTW. I am a bit earlier than u (est), so I started! I'm too slow tho in the south, huh? :LOL

Mine was relaxing, no ministry meetings, sooooooooo hot! I was stifled just hangin out clothes and didn't go out until the later part of the day, didn't stay out long and was ready to come back. Friday, mil and I went maternity shopping! Her *treat*! She offered on Mother's Day! :D I got a bra! :banana Maaaaaaaaaan this balookas are gonna swell! 42E now and 42F :hide: when the milk comes in! :shake Sunday we had church and I wore my new dress I won on ebay, :D and we went to try to catch up with our baby's uncle from the service and he *left*! :rolleyes: He just showed up and then when mil came back in from an errand he was packed to go and we were tryin to get there from church! :shake We had dinner with ils instead, and it was good! Mil has been behavin herself! My mamas best friend says isn't it about time! We've been married almost 6 yrs.


QOTW: My hair is growin like weeds and doin real well! :banana Which is a treat; because black hair don't grow fast! To have all this growth is nice; but, yesterday, one of the members of the worship team cut hers and I was tempted. I know that all the baby hair will go, so I figured I better not because I will :bawl if my hair is cut and then I lose some. I'll let it continue to grow;but, I might braid it this summer again and *definately for birth! I stopped relaxin it so I don't want to have a fro! :scared That smiliey would be my hair! Nails...I don't know...I guess they have been growin pretty good. I think I seem to be havin to file them down. They keep breaking. :rolleyes: Pig, you have white? That's not so great is it? :confused: Wonder what u can do about that....

Now, who can still paint their toes? :LOL ( I use the non-toxic stuff) I liked to made us both oxygen deprived the last time I tried to paint. Last weekend, dh changed the polish before a dinner party and I just filed the broken :rolleyes: one.


Skin has improved! :thumb I had the teenage thing goin on and now its improved. I have the glow. :D Folks are tellin me that and its been really clear! My beautician said this baby is helpin me, as opposed to breakin me down. Something along those lines. That's nice to know. :D Must not be a girl! :LOL

Well :blah: :blush :bolt

[momadance]

Hey Mama's!

QOTW: My hair and nail are doing great! I have to clip my nails every couple a days though. I don't like them to have any length! My hair is super thick and wavy to begin with, and it's now growing faster, and thicker and looking fly ;)

Skin, well, it's great aside from this awful sunburn! Dh took Ds to the driving range yesterday, and Mama laid out for an hour and a half in her black bikini :rolleyes. Needless to say, my tummy is like a big RED basketball! The pool opened thursday, and we've been living down there! Swimming is wonderful ;)

On Thursday, we head to my mom's cottage on Lake Huron (canadian side) we'll be going between there and her house in michigan, so if I don't check in for a while, No Worries! (i'm sure I won't be able to stay away that long though ;) )

Well, my pregnancy symptons I had with Miles are back :eyesroll They consist of EXTREME dizzy spells, (passed out once) heartburn (treatable with papaya enzymes) and charlie horses while sleeping (only if I forget a banana befor bedtime)

The scary part is the dizzy spells. I'll ask MW about it on Wed. I suspect it has a bit to do with low bp. We will see though!

Scored 36 CPF'S off of ebay last night for a buck a piece. I now have 4and a hallf dozen, completing my stash. I only need about 2 small diaper covers. Miles was 9lbs7oz, so I won't be messing with the newbie size covers, plus, I find they don't really need a cover when there teeny tiny, not with the CPF's anyway!

Sunny days!
maureen

[blessed2bamommie]

:( reflux....I showed the perinatal coordinator who's also an rn my papaya, and she said she had read something about it threatening a pregnancy. It was some time ago; but, having been there...I stopped them. Just what *I was told and wanted to let you know. She suggested antacids and I was concerned about aluminum and she said she though that just MOM had it. I have something that's herbal that I take not pg and I took at the beginning of my first pregnancy. I *have* to ask about it next time! Or, maybe I can call...I haven't called anybody but the peri coord in between. I'm on *fire*! I wonder this *can't* be good for the esophagus. :shake

[stanleymama]

Had a nice weekend. Went to a wedding Saturday and then danced the night away!! MIL watched the boys and it was so fun to have the night to myself. I was pretty tired Sunday though--not used to staying out til midnight anymore:) Yesterday went to a wi diaperpin get together. So fun!!! TOday I am busy finishing packing for our trip. We leave on Wed. for IRELAND!!!!! I can hardly wait!!!!!

QOTW: Hair and nails doing well, but my skin is just starting to clear up from breaking out. I hated it. I felt like a teenager again.

BTW: I have my u/s tomorrow. I noticed someone marked boy next to my due date. I won't know until tomorrow what we are having--so this could be wrong. Just wanted to make note of it. Although--- I would love to have another little boy!

MIL arrived this past week. She is soooo wonderful!!! I am so blessed to have her.

Well everyone-- if I get a chance to post about the u/s tomorrow I will. If not I will chat with yall when i get back in a couple weeks!

Take care everyone!!!

[OakEmber]

It's Victoria Day here in Canada so it is still weekend for me and it's a bright sunny day out, yay! Dh is home today and it will be a stay at home work on the yard day, we have to plant our garden today.

Thanks to everyone who congratulated me on last weeks thread about my boy...And Congrats to you too CourtneyandLogan on yours too! C&L, you asked about wether or not Ember was right, well she waivered a bit between girl and boy so I couldn't really say, LOL. Piglet, I think that you gave my boy to Stanleysmom by accident :LOL Wow, so far that's like 5 boys...all the rest of you must be having girls!

I wanted to go out on a limb and answer Piglets question near the end of last weeks thread....I don't know if I'll be doing cloth or not. I was planning on it, at least for at home but I have recently tried them for DD at night and we've been having leaks so I've become frustrated! I will probably start out with newborn disposables until the mec. is gone then maybe do part time cloth. I worry about the laundry issue because I am bad enough with it already, I'm quite the social butterfly and don't spend much time at home (although that might change a bit having two ;) ). I don't think there is a diaper service in the area, but if there was I'd go that route. A good thing for me to look into today! I'd like to use Tushies or Seventh Generation Diapers but so far even the bulk buys per case I've found work out to like .50 per diaper, :yikes

QOTW- Not really much noticable going on with my hair or nails. I did have a phase of pimples but thankfully it didn't last too long! No Linea Nigra (?spelling) for me.

[Piglet68]

Sorry, EmbersMOM and stanleymama: i was put "boy" next to the wrong name, lol. (they are close together!)

Letia: the "white" on my nails was referring to the tips, as in they aren't chewed off, lol. So yeah, it's a Good Thing. They are long enough to have tips on them! I am going to paint my toenails when I get around to it. I rarely have long toenails so I want to show them off!

EmbersMOM: when I first started CDing Emily, nothing worked for us at night, so I used sposies at night for months. It wasn't until she was about 13 months that she stopped peeing so much at night. just do what works for you! :)

momadance: have a great vacation! I get dizzy sometimes too if I stand up too fast. pregnancy makes my blood pressure low (better than high, I keep saying!). I actually fainted two days before I took my PG test, what a cliche! but it was enough to make me go and buy a test, lol.

stanleymama: Ireland! wow!! have fun!! I bet it's gorgeous there this time of year!

Oh yeah, just FYI, if you have heartburn and are looking for a commercial antacid you aren't supposed to take Bepto (or any of the pink, bismuth-containing antacids). I love Maalox. Tums do nothing for me.

edited to add: HOORAY, courtneyandlogansmom!!! I added your BOY...this is wild...who will be the first girl??? :wink

[OakEmber]

Thanks Piglet! No problems, I am just happy you are doing it! CourtneyandLogan just posted yesterday that she is having a boy too.
As for the diapers, Dd is 3.5, she spent about 6 months dry at night and now...sigh, oh well..it's out of my control!

Stanleysmom! How exciting! Enjoy your trip!

[AnnR33]

What weekend? LOL I packed boxes, cleaned and tried NOT to raise my voice at my kids too much (remember-DH has been gone for the whole week!-thank goodness he gets back tonight) I don't have to pack everything but it's bad enough having to pack anything that's not in a dresser or cupboard for the open house. By next weekend it should all be done though.
I'm at 17 wks and still get a little nausea in the late afternoon which I could do without and lately if I don't eat every 2-3 hrs I get the shakes-not good.

QOTW-thank goodness my hair is growing fast since I want to grow out most of my bangs (from a previous bad haircut) and my nails have always grown fast so have to cut them once a week now or they look witchy. My skin is good and haven't even been wearing make-up which is mostly laziness but at least my skin is clear.

Debating about the U/S dr said I could have due to my "advanced maternal age" of 35. If I was staying here I would pass but since I'm moving and don't know when I'll get hooked up with a midwife I rather eliminate extra worry (of course, it could cause more too) With my first trimester of spotting it makes me wonder....So who knows-I still have time to decide.
Take care
Ann

[krnflwr]

so many boys! it's making me a bit nervous, wondering if I'm going to buck the trend. I've been feeling very "boyish" this whole pregnancy, although DH is sure it's a girl. I really don't mind either way, but I sure do hate it when he's right. :irked:
pls excuse my one-handed typing, one heavy sleeping toddler is hampering my style here. ;)
speaking of toddlers, mine has been hardly nursing at night anymore and i can barely contain myself. a full nights sleep....i hardly remember such a thing! of course this is coinciding w/ me starting some serious insomnia. I pulled out the big body pillow last night, though, and that really seemed to help. Anyone else starting to get too uncomfortable to sleep?
hair/skin: skin not so hot. lots of breakouts, esp my face & chest. still waiting for my rosy glow. hair, thick, getting thicker. i have pretty thick hair to begin with, so pregnancy just seems to make it go outta control. better than it all falling out, i suppose.
i found a prenatal aquacise class finally. i love being in the water, and it felt so great to float (and get a workout to boot) when I was preg w/ Hannah. Normally I'm pretty much a slug when it comes to organized exercise so committing to this is a big deal for me. Anyone else like to splish-splash? What do you do for exercise?

[mirthfulmum]

QOTW: My hair and nails grow so fast when I'm pregnant. I try to keep my finger nails very short (long nails and toddlerhood just don't seem to go together) and I am finding that I have to cut them once a week. I just cut my hair really short yesterday. I have a lot of thick hair and for the past month or so no matter what I did with it in the morning, no matter how hard I tried to style it, it always wound up looking like a wild, untamed rats nest by lunchtime. So I took the plunge yesterday and cut it off. And I am loving this short hair thing! This morning it took me about 2 minutes to brush, style and dry my hair. And the best part is that I've been getting compliments all day. I am guesing because my hair is growing so quickly that I'll have to go into the salon more often, but right now I feel like it's worth it.
And as for my skin, it is finally starting to clear up. When I get pregnant, my first indicator is that I get terrible breakouts on my forehead, chin and chest. And it is finally starting to look like the pimples are going away. I definately am not experiencing pregnancy "glow" yet but maybe soon.

We have our u/s tommorrow. It isn't until 6:30pm so I suspect that tomorrow will really drag by. But I'm so looking forward to seeing a healthy baby. I just love getting a preview of the little fingers and toes. I guess I'm a bit of worrier and seeing my babe all safe and content will give me the peace of mind to relax and enjoy the rest of the pregnancy. And if this baby is as much of an exhibitionist as his/her brother was during his u/s then we'll find out the sex too. Can't wait!

[mirthfulmum]

Oh wanted to add a big Wohoooo to all you mommas whose toddlers are night weaning.
:carrot :banana :carrot :banana :carrot :banana :carrot :banana

Wishing you all a good night's sleep tonight. :zzz We deserve it!

[Piglet68]

krnflwr: no no no no no!! you aren't allowed to ask about exercise (because that was going to be my next QOTW, lol) it's hard coming up with something new every week! :D

[bluehalo]

Wow! All these boys! We have our U/S this Thursday and hope to find out. The first part of the pregnancy I was thinking boy (I've already sewn up a bunch of gender neutral, but leaning towards boyish tiny clothes) ... now I'm not so sure and have even been having some girl thoughts. Who knows, who knows...

QOTW: hair, nails and skin... my hair is already long and thick and unruly (read impossible to tame and frizzy...) but I do think it's growing more quickly. It's been so hot hair that I've had it up in a ponytail/bun most of the time anyway. The first few months of this pregnancy, I had horrible problems w/ the skin on my back, always breaking out. It seems to have cleared up, thank goodness! I haven't noticed much unusual growth w/ my nails either ... I keep them pretty short, so I just don't pay much attention to them I guess.

[True Blue]

Going to the midwife in a couple hours, hopefully we'll set a date for the U/S, yeah!!! Can't wait to see my baby!!

QOTW: Nails are growing like weeds. Hair I am sure is too it's just a bit harder to notice. Strange thing is, my hair and skin are so DRY this pregnancy. I usually have to wash my hair every other day...now I go every third to keep from drying it out too much. And my skin on my face is dry and peely a lot, but still breaking out :eyesroll, my legs always need moisturizer. You'd think it was winter in New England not almost summer in South Florida.

Speaking of weaning, DS is almost done! I can't believe it. He has done most of it himself. I cut him back a couple months ago, and since then he has moved himself down to one or less a day. There's not much left in them now anyway....I can't even express anything out! THough I do notice a colostrummy crustiness now and then. Gotta run!

[Soogie]

I'm jealous of all you mama's going for u/s's! We're still debating whether to go for one or not.

QOTW: My hair is growing out of control!!! I just had my hair cut less than a month ago and it is already unmanageable. Not to mention that my "nether regions" have turned into a jungle. Rapid and thick hair growth happens *everywhere* for me. I'm getting ready to take a machete to the jungle and tame the wild beast!!! My nails are growing but they are still as brittle as always and break. So I am keeping them short.

Lots of boys on this board...I'm wondering who is going to announce the first girl!

[ameliabedelia]

DD is nightweaned as well! WOOHOOO. Of course she nurses like a fiend during the day sometimes, but at least at night she doesn't nurse. The night nursing was driving me CRAZY..., so we stopped it. It really wasn't that hard, she gave it up pretty easily.

QOTW: I haven't really noticed anything for nails or hair. I did notice that I have lots of thick hair down there. I never really cared before, but I just noticed it and actually thought about waxing or shaving or something. I doubt I will do it, but I did think about it :LOL

My skin was breaking out, then it cleared up, now it is breaking out again (but that is mostly due to the weather. It is already hot and humid here in TN, and when I go on my walk in the wee hours of the morning, I am still sweating a lot).

[gottaknit]

I just got back from Ireland last week. The weather was wonderful (for May in Ireland, anyway!) Mornings started out a little cool and misty, but by afternoon it was sunny and warm. Have fun!

As for QOTW: Hair and nails are growing like crazy. Skin is actually better than usual, but really really dry and itchy on my legs! It wakes me up at night.

I have an u/s tomorrow, but don't plan to find out the sex. Everyone's guessing it's a boy, though, including me. (This based on absolutely nothing; just a hunch!) :)

[stanleymama]

Gottaknit---which part of Ireland did you visit? So coooolll! I am really excited.

Today we had our u/s--go ahead and put BOY next to my name again!!! YAY!!!! We were hoping for another boy!

See ya all in a couple weeks!

[bluehalo]

Congrats Kimberly :) Whoo hoo, another boy!

[Piglet68]

kimberley....FOUR BOYS??!!! WOW! :bow

You must be responsible for all the boy vibes going around here, LOL.

Congratulations!!

(see, I was being psychic when I put boy next to your name before).

[blessed2bamommie]

:LOL this boy boom is too much! Kim, I can't remember...:scratch did you *think* or were you hoping it was a boy. Be good to know how mama's intuition is going around here.

*yawn* ate and had a nap....:p

[mirthfulmum]

Way to go team Blue! :storkboy :storkboy :storkboy :storkboy :storkboy
I can't believe we are up to 5 boys and no girls yet.

Well only a few more hours until my ultrasound... and I am hoping to buck the boy trend (I have a feeling the baby's a girl) but I'll be thrilled either way. I love the idea of having two little guys running around together, getting into trouble together, maybe even becomming close friends. But since this is our last one I'd like to have a little girl and experience the joys and delights that girls bring into a family. Like I said, I'll be thrilled boy or girl.

And DH and I have settled the name argument, so in a few hours, if baby is feeling cooperative, our little bundle of joy will even have a name!

[Lucysmama]

I am still on vacation, so I am just popping in quickly to say.....

Congrats on all the BOYS!!! I am amazed! :eek

Hope you all are well....I would say more, but this internet connection is long distance, so I gotta keep it brief!

[BeansMomma]

19 weeks

Congrats on all of the little boys! Surely some one will break the trend soon. We have our ultrasound scheduled for Friday afternoon. For whatever reason we are both convinced that it's a little boy - we'll know soon enough.

QOTW: Hair seems to be growing pretty fast - my nails grow fast too, but are still pretty brittle. I keep them pretty short to avoid splitting, etc. Skin - hate to say it - but I've had great skin so far this whole pregnancy (knock on wood).

Big milestone last night - Little Bean gave me two distinct kicks. The best part was that I had decided to put my earphones to my belly and play classical music - and either Bean loved it or hated it because it was suddenly very active :jammin. Of course, I'm so fearful that it's just wishful thinking - since this is the first time I think I've really felt movement...

[3bees~1flower]

kimberly...we have three boys, too...my mom is convinced this new bean is a boy too....maybe we'll end up with 4 little boys too...we'd love to have another boy, but the older two would really like a sister.....anyway, we won't know till we see his little "junk" (that's waht daddy calls it, :LOL) or lack thereof which will be on B-day!!

QOTW: i have never really noticed a big change in hair or nails when preg. and i only occasionaly break out when preg.


little bean is definitely making his/her presence known these days....i SSSSOOOOO love to just sit and feel the squirming around...since this is our last, movement is definitely what i'll miss the most.

have a good night!!

[OakEmber]

Congratulations Stanleysmom! :boypin I guess Piglet was on to something :LOL You definately know the boy territory so I may have some questions for you in a few months ;)

I had my appt. with my midwife today and it was good. The results of my u/s actually happened to come in during it, she had asked me if I wanted her to phone for the results but I said it didn't matter :LOL It turns out that the reason I haven't been feeling much movement is my placenta is in the anterior position, and it seems that I won't feel much ever in front...as Oakley gets bigger I will feel it on my sides! Kinda a bummer but at least I won't worry about it as I know the reason, I have a nice little cushion in the way ;) My placenta is low lying as well, not covering or anything so it will probably be fine but my midwife may want me to have another u/s after 30 weeks because I am still considering a homebirth at this point. And yep, the baby is breech too :LOL not that it matters much at this point there is still plenty of time for him to settle into the heads down position. I opted not to have the doppler today and try the fetalscope but it was too early to hear, I just had my u/s Fri though so I felt OK not hearing it today, Oakley gave a kick while she was listening so we know he was moving in there. This time I only gained 2 lbs which was nice (in 5 weeks) especially since I already gained 10 in the first trimester. I'll see her again in 5 weeks.

Mirthfulmum, can't wait to hear about how your u/s went!

[mirthfulmum]

Had an absolutely wonderful u/s. Babe is looking fantastic. And :dropjaw it's a BOY! We are absolutely thrilled and excited. It will be wonderful to watch my two boys grow to become playmates. But holy cow! Where are the girls?

Keeping this short as I am very tired and am off to bed. But I wanted to share our excitment with everyone before I nodded off. :love

[Court]

Yay, congratulations! :balloons

[krnflwr]

Boys, boys, boys! Wow you guys! Congrats!! :thumb
I found this little blurb on old wives' tales for determining your babe's gender. From this it looks like Baby Cookie is a girl. :innocent For those of you who know already, or from previous pregnancies, how accurate is any of this? Some of them are pretty wacky!

*Pick up a single key. If you pick it up by the round part you will have a boy. If you pick up the long narrow part you will have a girl. If you pick it up in the middle twins are on the way!
*The Mayans determined the sex of the baby by taking the mother's age at conception, and the year of conception. If both numbers are even or both are odd then it's a girl; if one number is even and one odd then it's a boy.
*Eat a clove of raw garlic. If the smell of garlic seeps out of your pores, it's a boy. If no garlic smell is detected at all, it's a girl. This test is not for the faint of heart or stomach for that matter. Well, can you eat a clove of garlic?
*If your legs resemble tree trunks, it's a boy. If they're trim and fit, it's a girl.
*If you crave the heels of the bread, you will have a boy. If you like the middle, a girl is on the way.
*If your hands start to get dry and chapped, it will be a boy; but if your hands are softer during pregnancy, you will have a girl.
*If you can't tell you're pregnant from the back, you're having a boy. If you look pregnant all over and from every angle, it's a girl.
*A craving for salty foods is a sure sign of a boy, and craving sweets is a sign that a girl is on the way.
*If you experience increased acne break out on the face and chest you will have a girl.
*Here is an experiment straight from Baby Predicting 101. . . urinate in a glass or jar with a tablespoon of Drain-O in it. If the mixture is green you will have a girl; if the mixture is blue, you will have a boy.
*Suspend a wedding ring on a chain over your belly. If it swings back and forth, it's a girl. If it swings around in circles, it's a boy.
*If a toddler boy shows interest in a pregnant woman, the mom-to-be is going to have a girl. If he ignores the pregnant woman, she will have a boy.
*Which side do you lie on when you are resting? If it's the left, then it's a boy. If you're more comfortable on your right side then it's a girl.
*When someone asks to see your hand, if you show them palms up, it's a girl; palms down, a boy.

[blessed2bamommie]

:jaw I thought I read that the boy sperm doesn't swim as strongly that usually girls outnumber boys. :eek Do you know I *just* considered a u/s the other day? :shake Nope, b/c if something happened I would *never* forgive myself! I'd probably chicken out if I made an appt anyway. And the bladder thing...ugh! :rolleyes: I didn't exactly like being miserable full and them takin their sweet time and then I peed all over myself on the table. :hide:

Carrie, you're not havin a u/s? I thougth for *sure* you were! :scratch

:storkboy :storkboy :storkboy :storkboy :storkboy :storkboy :storkboy

[mirthfulmum]

One of the reasons I was pretty sure we were having a girl was that most of the "wives tale" predictors pointed to girl. But there was definatly a penis on the monitor yesterday during the u/s so we're positive we're having a boy. But hey, you never now. Mistakes have been made before. DH's cousin was expecting a boy based on her ultrasound. She was so unprepared when she gave birth to a girl that her daughter went unnamed for three months.
Of course I haven't tried all of the "gender predictors". Although I remember reading that these types of prediction techniques are as accurate as simply guessing the sex. I have always been curious about the Draino test though, some people swear by it, but I don't have any Draino and don't want to buy the stuff just to test the accuracy of the test.

[bluehalo]

Congratulations Mirthfulmum! Wow ... this is almost eerie w/ all the boys!!!

Outing myself as a weird-o here ... Re: the wedding ring gender predicition thing ... this is like using a pendulum or muscle testing for simple yes/no questions. The important thing to do, (if you actually want to try this "new age crystal-packin'-mama stuff" -- as my lovely DH calls it ;) ) is to *ask* your pendulum (whatever it is, your wedding ring, an actual pendulum, pretty much anything suspended from a string/chain) to "show me yes", and then "show me no". You should get a distinct pattern for yes, and a distinct pattern for no. Sometimes this varies from person to person, and sometimes it varies from pendulum to pendulum. My pendulum makes clockwise circles for yes, and goes from side to side for no. Once you've established "yes" and "no" for your pendulum, *then* you ask "Is the baby I'm carrying a boy?", "Is the baby I'm carrying a girl?". Anyway, my whole point was that it depends on each pendulum, so the old wives tale about one motion=boy and another motion=girl, doesn't always work out accurately. Take all of this with a grain of salt, of course ;)

[OakEmber]

I actually did the draino test with this one...or rather a friend of mine was willing to for me as I wasn't willing to be anywhere near the fumes :LOL only the one I had read said if it changes to green it's a girl, if it doens't change colour (remains brown) than it's a boy. Mine stayed brown, so it was right.

As for some of the others, with Ember I craved fruit (sweets) this one, I don't really crave anything but I guess it would be more salty than last time.

Another "new age crystal packing mama stuff" that I did was used my Tarot Cards to do a one card technique, asking if it was a boy or girl and I did this with DD too, both were right. With her I got a Queen and this time a King.

And yet, I didn't KNOW it was a boy until my u/s, :LOL

Just had too add, legs that look like tree trunks, LMAO! So if I had been carrying a girl would my legs have miraciously become toned? :LOL

[True Blue]

Wow boys everywhere.

Just wanted to add a couple things about the Drano test. One, different websites contradict each other on what indicates boy or girl. Two, PLEASE do not hold the cup of Drano in your pee stream...some wicked stuff happens when the two mix!!! Pee in a cup then add it to a cup with Drano in it. And do it outside...really really bad fumes result! :puke

[blessed2bamommie]

I was told I was carrying a girl b/c I was so sick in the first tri. None of the mothers of the church have weighed in yet, though. I'd be interested in that.

:LOL I wasn't sure *where* you were going with not puttin it in your pee stream, Amy! I thought...strong chemical near my parts....:LOL

I'm getting excited about all these revelations! :D Is it really Aaron or is it Mikayla? :scratch

[flitters]

oh my gosh!!!

congratulations on all the boys!!!

i've been sooooo busy at work lately, this will be quick.

QOTW: the only real change i've noticed in my hair is that about 3 weeks ago my tummy suddenly grew a coat of fine, downy hair. it's blond and short and soft and flat like normal body hair, there is just more of it. actually, it's slightly darkened just above my belly button which is kind of funny, but you can't see it in pictures still (we've been taking weekly shots). my happy trail may be slightly more visible than normal too, but only barely. more tummy hair is not something i would normally want, but i actually like it.

oh - also, we got the fetoscope in the mail on monday. it's fun! i've listened to all sorts of things with it including dh and our dogs! the ear pieces are pretty uncomfortable though. as for listening to the baby, the first day i couldn't hear anything, not even the whooshing of the placenta. i listened again last night and had much better results. i can faintly hear the whoosh of my pulsing uterus, but it's so quiet still i'm sure it will be a couple weeks before i can hear the baby's hear which is even quieter. the cool thing is that while i was listening to my uterus, i heard a couple little thumps that corresponded to when i could feel little thumps from the baby! they are still generally too soft for dh to feel on the outside, but i think he'll be able to hear one soon! it's harder for him though to tell what bubbling is gas and what is baby. neat stuff though!

:grouphug

[3bees~1flower]

Letia....yes, i'm going to have an US but i don't want to know the sex...:shrug...i want it to be a surprise!!

[blessed2bamommie]

ohhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh...shoot, if I was up there on the table already I'd be sooooooooo tempted to find out!

Wow! the willpower of you and Amy!

[bluehalo]

I'm getting excited about all these revelations! :D Is it really Aaron or is it Mikayla? :scratch

OOooh, are those the names you've chosen?

Anyone else chosen names and wanna share? (sorry if I'm stealing a future QOTW ;) )

We're not 100% sure, but so far we're leaning towards Niah Grace for a girl, and Noah Daniel for a boy. I'm not in love with the boy name, but we haven't been able to come up w/ anything that we both like better.

We've decided not to share w/ people IRL b/c my mom already told me she didn't like the name "Noah", and that was before we came up w/ "Niah" which is even weirder. I'd rather just wait, name the baby what we like, and then people won't be as likely to say they don't like it ... or so we hope :lol

[Piglet68]

Haven't had time to read through the latest posts yet. Just scrolled through to see the results.

mirthfulmum: we're having boys, we're having boys!! :banana :carrot :banana :carrot :banana

won't they have fun together? :love


i'll check in tonight if dd goes down early enough.

PS - we've finally decided on a name. I went through about six naming sites the other day and still Sasha was my favorite. I've added it to the list, and added Oakley's as well. anyone else who decides on a name "for sure", let me know and I'll add it. can you tell I love lists? :D

[krnflwr]

We've decided not to share w/ people IRL ... I'd rather just wait, name the baby what we like, and then people won't be as likely to say they don't like it ... or so we hope :lol

We're feeling the same way. People keep asking me about names, but I'm not sure that I want their opinions on the matter. And I've found myself in quite a circle of pregnant people lately (IRL) and a few seems like "name poachers" to me. They are due before me and I don't want to loose a name we might really want to use. Do I sound totally paranoid? :eek
We also can't agree on any one or two names, so we've decided to hold off on negotiations until a later date, or until the U/S gives us some clue. I'm hoping to schedule the u/s soon, as the girl or boy suspense is really getting to me. I don't know how those of you not finding out until b-day can stand it. I'm just too impatient. Kudos to you!! :thumb
And sorry, Piglet, for runing a future QOTW. Didn't mean to be a "question poacher". :o

[Lucysmama]

I'm with you, Karin....

I'm not tellin ANYONE our baby names. We got a lot of negative feedback when we were naming dd. We wanted to name her Sage originally, but everyone wouldn't shut up about how much they hated the name, so we decided to find something else. I'm glad we did, cause dd is SUCH a Lucy, but it was still a major PITA.

Plus, I don't want people taking my baby names. Yes, I am nuts. :nut

[bluehalo]

I don't think you guys are paranoid about the "name poachers". My all-time favorite girls name was one that a RL friend of mine chose for her DD. I was a little put out, but so be it. It's turned out to be really popular lately, so I probably wouldn't have chosen it this time around anyway.

Lucysmama, I *love* the name Lucy :) I don't like how it goes w/ our last name, otherwise it would be at the top of our list. I really like Lucia too, but DH thinks it would be too hard for most people to pronounce correctly. Ah well, I'm in love w/ our girls name now, so I'm happy ;)

[OakEmber]

Piglet, I noticed that you added names to the list! Sasha Adam is great BTW! Thanks for adding Oakley. As for a middle name we are undecided, DH likes Joseph after my dad and grandpa but I don't like the initials OJ. I've been thinking Nicholas after DH (well his name is not Nicholas but a name derived from it)... on the other hand Ember's middle name isn't after anyone so I don't know if I want one kid after someone and one not, KWIM...(her mn is Trinity incase you are wondering). I'd like something with a little more flair like hers, and Joseph and Nicholas are just a little too common for me (no offence). As for letting people know about my name choices, I'm not really worried about people stealing them on me, not with my choices....they just aren't for everyone ;)

Bluehalo, funny that you should bring up the name thing, as you have E. in your signature line which I am always trying to figure out, is it an Ethan, or an Emily(not even sure if you have a DS or DD)...hehe! You brought up the name thing so I thought I'd ask :)

[mirthfulmum]

We didn't tell anyone Alias' name until he was born. We knew going in that his name was going to get some negative reactions so like some of you, we choose to wait until he was born to let people know. Well it didn' t really work. While some people loved it, we still got negative reactions from some family members. But because Alias' name was a done deal people were much more passive aggressive about it. We had family members right away giving him nick names and telling us that his real name just seemed "too adult for such a little guy" (by the way I do not come from a family that gives nick names. My son is the only one.) My mother was the worst and for weeks after he was born continued to make alternative pronouciation suggestions. Drove me nuts :splat. So as a warning to those of you who are hoping that people will be kinder about the name when the baby arrives, just prepare yourself for some rudeness. For some reason, when it comes to naming a baby, everybody has an opinion.

As for our newest little guy, we have named him Harrison Eliot Smith (Smith isn't our last name). We started telling people our name choices a while ago so that there were no surprises. And with a name like Harrison (significantly less out there than Alias) I think the more conservative element in the family is so relieved they've chosen to keep their oppinions to themselves :thumb.

Oh and Bluehalo, I've also been curious what the E. stood for. For some reason I love to hear about what people have named their children, and why. It says so much about them.

[gmvh]

Wow! A girl goes out of town for a few days and misses so much! I think I may have started feeling tiny little thumps on either side of my abdomen which has been pretty wild. My next u/s is Saturday and I think we may have decided to go ahead and find out what gender these babies are. So many decisions!

QOTW: It's difficult for me to tell what's going on with my hair - we moved less than a year ago from desert-like conditions to the ultra-humid midwest and I have naturally curly (almost corkscrew) hair that is just going wild these days. Maybe it's growing faster but it's really hard to tell. I do, however, have a linea nigra showing up very lightly and some weird skin shading on my face. Hopefully the shading on my face will go away!

I've been feeling like we're having two boys for a long time now and it seems they would certainly fit in around here! Or maybe my two will rock the boat and both be girls. Hopefully we'll know soon!

[bluehalo]

My E. is an Ethan. Of course, when we chose it, it was nowhere nearly as popular is it is now :( Ah well. At least all the Ethan's I've met/heard of are smaller children or babies, not "big four year olds" ;) (that's how E. describes himself). DH & I just kind of fell in love w/ the name ... it was common but not "popular", so we thought people would know how to pronounce and spell it (Ha, we get "Eathen" all the time. Oops! *lol*). I just hated how everyone would say, "Oh, like Ethan Allan". Usually I'd just roll my eyes (or wish I could roll my eyes) and say, "Yup, just like that". His middle name is Michael, which is both DH's and my dad's middle name, plus it just goes really well w/ his first and last name. DH's dad's name is Daniel, so that's why we're considering "Noah Daniel" ... I don't mind the name, otherwise I probably wouldn't be so egalitarian ;)

Now with the girl's name that we've chosen for this baby ... I don't even know how it came to me. I know of several "Maya"s, and while I don't really love that name for my own child, I was thinking of that name while also pondering "Nilah" and "Nadia" and somehow came up w/ "Niah" (pronounced like Maya w/ a N). It really resonates w/ both DH and I (which surprised me b/c DH isn't a "weird" name guy), so we've stuck with it. What do you guys thing, will people figure out how to pronounce it?

The whole name thing really makes me wonder if this new baby is a girl ... when we were coming up w/ names for Ethan, we came up w/ his name, the boys name, very quickly and didn't waver. We were so indecisive w/ the girls name, and couldn't even make up our minds at the last minute (we didn't know his gender before the birth). So, if confidence w/ a name is any indicator, maybe I'll be the first to have a girl in our group :) Our U/S is tomorrow at noon, so keep your fingers crossed for a crotch shot, will ya? :thumb

So far, I really love all the names that have been chosen, both for these new babes and the older siblings (and if I don't in the future, I'll keep my mouth shut, don't worry :W ). Alias and Ember are my favorites ... very evocative (and I *do* mean that in a good way) but not "too weird" (IMHO, FWIW :D )

[Jillerina]

Oh, I love name talk! DH and I waited until much later in the pregnancy to think about names last time so I think we're doing the same thing this time. I have started browsing some name sites and reviewing the two books we own for boys names becasue I find it MUCH harder to find a boys name that fits our criteria and that I love. Girls names are pretty easy, there are lots of names I like that sound great in both French and English. Since I won't be finding out the sex of this baby we have double the work to do this time. Poor Dh really wishes I'd agree to finding out the sex - in fact I'm feeling a bit guilty about running the show on this issue. He doesn't want to know for naming but to help him bond with the babe.

QOTW- Hair and nails are not noticably different from before pregnancy. I'm a little more prone to breakouts but I won't complain, they are nothing like the breakouts I suffered until I was about 21. Now body hair is another story! I feel like a sasquach (sp??). I HATE it!!! I've resorted to using DH's clippers on my belly because it is so dark with hair (my skin is very pale by the way). I hope it gets better and not worse as the pregnancy progresses.

[OakEmber]

Yay! I was right, it does stand for Ethan...E. seemed like a fitting nickname for Ethan :LOL I've been a fan of Ethan since I was in Gr. 6 when I fell in love with Ethan Hawke :love (so about 15 years ago). And I would think that Niah will be figured out by people, at least that's how I pron. it on first glance...very sweet! I'll keep my fingers crossed for your crotch shot :LOL

Thanks for the compliment on Ember's name BTW!

gmvh- Good luck with your u/s...I can understand not wanting to find out the sex as I didn't want to know with my first pregnancy (and yes I did have an u/s and not ask to know so it can totally be done :LOL) but having twins is a big enough surprise, I'd have to know the sex! Do you know yet if they are fraternal or identical??

[mirthfulmum]

Thanks bluehalo on the name compliment. I guess it was kinda obvious from my post that I still have some issues around my son's name. I also really like the name Ethan and it is popular here with the new babes too. And you know, now that the name has a new found popularity that makes you a trendsetter :wink. BTW, I thought the spelling of Niah made the pronunciation obvious. But I have a name that is spelled differently than it is pronounced, sure it's annoying sometimes but I love that I have an uncommon name.

Good luck to all of you who have your u/s coming up. Some one has got to add a little female presence to our upcoming brood of boys. I am so impressed by some of you gals' will power in not finding out the gender. I am so terrible when it comes to that sort of thing. I even open a couple Christmas presents early every year (and no, I've never felt disappointed by ruining the surprise).

[Court]

Hey, has anyone consulted the Ancient Chinese Gender Chart (http://mypage.direct.ca/j/jfeng/gender.htm) for this pregnancy? I know we're probably all diff. ages, but it looks like if you conceived in January, you're more likely to have made a boy. It's just fun to look at. It was right w/ both my kids. Maybe it explains all the boys around here so far.

oh and QOTW: nail and hair growing really fast - just cut off hair really short. Skin is a daily battle, but is okay right now.

Right now for our son's name we've decided on Zander and I've been looking for other Greek names for the middle name. I was just at babynames.com and found these that I think would sound cool for middle names...
ATALO -Youthful
AVEL -Breath
CALIX -Very Handsome
HIERO -Holy
JULIAN -Youthful

I don't know. I'm sick of family members asking if we've thought of names and then giving their opinions about names we're considering. It's such a sensitive subject.

I LOVE Niah by the way, bluehalo, and it doesn't seem hard to pronounce to me at all.

[bluehalo]

Thanks for all the reassurances re: "Niah" ... it wouldn't really matter if y'all hated it, b/c we love it so much, but it does make me feel better :D

Courtney, I really, really like Xander ... and of your list of middle names, I think Xander Julian is a beautiful combo. I know you didn't ask for opinions, but I was really struck by it, so felt compelled to respond :W

[Jillerina]

Talking abour name poaching, I just read your list for possible middle names CourtneyandLogan and I have to admit I think I've just added Calix to my own mental list of names to suggest to DH when the time comes. I've never heard it before and I think it is pretty darn cool. Hope you don't mind. Anyway, with my luck DH will veto it, he does that a lot!

[Lucysmama]

The Chinese gender chart says I am having a girl....and that is what I am leaning towards....

Mirthfulmum, don't admire me!!! :LOL I can't stand not knowing the gender, it is driving me a bit nutty, but we are against non-medically indicated ultrasound, so there is no way of knowing, obviously. But if I could find out in some way, I would.

I do think it's a girl, though.

[momadance]

20 weeks

all went well with mw today! According to the chart, Ds should've been a girl, and this should be a boy... Ds has not wavered in his idea that we're having a girl, and I feel the same. The names we have so far are Esther Margaret, Iris Margaret, Ruth, and Millicent. NO boys have come to us, and we'd never choose a name without first meeting the little love bean! Sex to be determined at birth. My mw was telling me about a nurse she works with who went to one of these "fetal photoshoots" and the minute they put the transmitor to her belly, the baby imediately covered it's head and ears, as if in pain. Gives me the willys just thinking about it!

Out of town tomorow, but i'm sure i'll check the boards in the am with my morning cup o jo!

[Lucysmama]

momadance---

I like your names! I have a thing for old-fashioned names. Dd is Lucy Elizabeth, and this baby has equally older-sounding names picked out for either gender.
Some of the first names we considered, but ruled out are:
Girls:
Helena
Hero
Viola
(yes, I have a Shakespeare fetish:LOL)
Boys:
Silas
Everest
Sebastian
Hugo

[Court]

bluehalo- Julian is my favorite for the middle name as well, I'm glad you like it too! I don't mind you giving your opinion at all, it's just certain members of my family ;) . Oh, and poach away Jillerina! We're probably not using that one anyway. I saw a lot of cool Greek names that I'd never heard of on babynames.com. Don't know why I'm so into Greek lately, I'm Irish myself. Oh well.

[Piglet68]

Love the name talk. :)

mirthful: Harrison was on my "short list", lol. But I knew my family would call him "harry"! (and, like you, I always peeked at at least one Xmas present, lol)

I don't think my mum is crazy about the name Sasha. But she was cool about it, and I'm not letting it bother me b/c it is OUR child, kwim? I love it b/c it's not too "manly" and it's slavic, which ties in to his heritage (DH is croatian). i like that it is a soft name, and very international. our other choices were Luka (also croatian) or samual or william. i decided with a DD named emily we just had to find something a bit more unique, lol.

She is happy about the middle name, Adam, though it was never any contest. my beloved little brother adam died almost 7 years ago now, and I always knew if I had a boy he'd have his uncle's middle name. we almost went with vincent b/c that was my brother's middle name and my grandpa's name, but in the end decided adam sounded better.

bluehalo: I love the name Niah. but be prepared for people to say "nee-ah". I'm wondering if spelling it Naya might be better. but then you'll get "nay-ah". sheesh! :)

my DD is Emily. i think it says "you're boring and unoriginal". :LOL
but it was my grandmother's name and I've wanted it for AGES. not my fault it suddenly got popular! well, at least her middle name ("Yass-na") is unusual (here; in croatia it's like Jane, lol).

Jillerina: are you having an U/S? because one thing you can do is have the tech write the sex down and pass it to your DH if he really, really wants to know.

momadance: love the name Esther! :)

can you believe it is 4 am here? This PG insomnia is killing me. i was just so wide awake in bed i figured i might as well surf! yawn!

[3bees~1flower]

on names....for some reason dh doesn't get into talkng about names a whole lot :confused: .....the boys name we kinda have picked out is Micah Lane (yes, it's the same middle name as all the boys have...it's their daddy's middle name.) the girls name we have had with all my pregnancies excpet my 2nd is Makenna Grace...i still like that, but it gets kinda long with our last name. i was looking in a book the other night and saw the name Trinity and thought that would go great with Grace...Trinity Grace....dh kinda turned his nose up at that, but that has really been growing on me since i saw it. :shrug so i don't really know what we'll go with.


i see my dr tomorrow...it's only been 2 wks since i saw him last, but my BP was up a bit and he wanted me back in 2 wks...i told him it was cuz i was anxious abt feeling movement. i have been taking it every day and it's been really low...he's overcautious with me b/c i had severe Pre-e with my first which is the biggest risk factor to getting it again, but that's ok...better that way than too non-chalant.

[True Blue]

Names....we have Jackson ? and Lillian Nora (was Ella Mae til the popularity floored me :() Lillian was my great-grandmother and Nora was DH's grandmother. Jackson needs a namesake middle name, haven't found one yet. DH wants Kimber but honestly, while a cool name, it is after the company that makes his favorite pistol (don't worry, he's federal law enforcement, not a gun-toting nut...well maybe a little nutty LOL). I just can't name my babe after that!! Loving all the different names on here!!!!

U/S tomorrow afternoon, I am so psyched!! We are not finding out the gender but it will be so fun!!! Plus, the place we are getting it done lets you pop in a video tape in the machine so you can keep the u/s! We couldn't do that with DS, I am so happy we can this time. We have lots of family coming up this weekend for DS's bday party, it will be cool to be able to share it with them.

[Jillerina]

Jillerina: are you having an U/S? because one thing you can do is have the tech write the sex down and pass it to your DH if he really, really wants to know.

Too late, we had our U/S 2 weeks ago! DH had kinda agreed to not find out the sex but as soon as we left the hospital he said he thought it was a mistake :(

Poor guy, he really doesn't feel connected to this babe like we did to Clara (me too to some extent). He figures if he knew the sex then at least he'd be able to start imagining our life together as a new family. Another problem is that DH really did not enjoy the newborn months, he found it overwhelming and frustrating (Clara was quite colicky and cried a LOT). I think he felt left out too as a result of the constant nursing. So the cold hard truth is that he is not all that excited for the baby to come - he is only remembering the hard times. I keep trying to remind him of the amazing moments we spent looking in wonder at our sweet baby but I think the bad days overshadowed the good for him. He'd rather the baby was born at about 9 months old :rolleyes. Another factor that may explain his reasoning is that DH was off work for the first 5 months of Clara's life. He was home for it all. I think it would have been easier on him and maybe even me too if he had been working. We were feeling cramped, overwhelmed and constantly watched (by each other). Ah well, that is enough for my morning ramblings.

Have a great day all!

[3bees~1flower]

Amy, our hospital has always allowed videos during US...i have one for all the boys and will have for the new bean as well...you'll love it!!

[mayasmama]

QOTW: My nails were growing really fast before, but they seem to have slowed down. My hair is growing really fast though and I need to do something with it. IT si growing out of a haircut and a dye job and looks....um well..interesting is a good word lol. My face began to break out this week though and hopefully will stop soon.

My dd (3) is weaning!!! She was only nursing about once a day anyway, but we have not nursed now in five days!!!! She likes to come up and sit on my lap and "give the ummies a hug" and that is fine by me :)

I have heartburn on occasion that kind of sucks, but the thing right now is how bad my feet hurt and the end of the day. I need a massage badly.

The really good news is that last week was our ultrsound and we are having a girl!!!!!! Woo hoo a baby sister for dd :) Now off to think of a name.

[momadance]

Mayasmama: Papaya enzymes are great for heartburn.They begin to sooth right away, and are A O.K. while pregnate! I asked around and MW ok'd them. (I don't see why they would be bad, wannabe had posted something she heard?)

Anyway, planes outy at 3pm! Off to the cottage! My burned belly is turning into a nice tan ;) Black Bikini here I come! (If ya'll her of any sighting's of a beached whale on Lake Huron, it's just me!)

Hahaahaahaha :LOL

No, just kidding, I'm super fly in it! :love :thumb

[mirthfulmum]

:dust :storkgirl
At last we have our girl! Congratulations mayasmama! :banana :carrot :banana :carrot

I am loving reading about people's name choices. I haven't read a name yet that I didn't like. If we weren't so set on our next son's name I would definatley be doing some poaching :wink.

I did the chinese gender chart predictor and it said I'd be having a girl. Like I said before most of the "wives tale" type of gender predictors point to this baby being a girl. Perhaps we are having a boy who will be really in touch with his feminine side :LOL.

[gmvh]

Hooray for a girl! I love some of the names being thought of and it's good to see so many boys names since those are the ones I have the most trouble with. I have recently fallen in love with the name Griet for a little girl, from the book/movie "Girl with a Pearl Earring." I'm not sure how it would fly but I do like it. I think finding out the gender of these two will allow us to focus on figuring out just the names we need and not lots of names just in case. I have been keeping a sticky on my computer screen on which I jot down names that I like as I come across them and then run them by him as the mood hits. My husband has been voting for Spartacus for ages but that won't happen - ha!

For whatever it's worth, my twins are diamnionic & dichorionic meaning they have completely separate sacs and each have their own placenta. My peri said it's the safest arrangement and the one that presents the fewest problems. It does not, however, give us any indication if they are identical or fraternal unless they show up on the u/s as a girl and boy. Even in their own sacs with two placentas they can be identical if the fertilized egg split early while still in the f. tube and the two embryos entered the uterus separately and implanted separately. Way more than anyone wants to know, I'm sure, but this nine-month science "experiment" sure is fascinating!

Have a great day!

[gottaknit]

Had the ultrasound yesterday..... We asked to NOT find out the sex of the baby, but then the tech kept calling it "he, I mean, IT!", so.... :rolleyes We've been assuming it's a boy all along anyway.

Anyone have trouble getting good shots during the u/s? We were there for two hours because the baby kept moving and the tech couldn't get clear pics of the kidneys and heart. Everything looked fine, but the baby is just so wiggly!! :) Is this an indicator of later behaviour? Do we have a little spaz on our hands? DH is starting to worry. :LOL

Last night I was lying in bed and the little guy was moving around so much :bouncy I actually laughed out loud! The baby instantly froze and didn't move again for a minute or so. DH said, "He thinks he's in trouble now." :LOL

[gottaknit]

Gottaknit---which part of Ireland did you visit? So coooolll! I am really excited.

Today we had our u/s--go ahead and put BOY next to my name again!!! YAY!!!! We were hoping for another boy!

See ya all in a couple weeks!


We flew into Dublin and drove west to Westport (County Mayo). We spent about five days exploring the west coast (Achill Island, Connemara National Park, the burren, Cliffs of Moher...) then flew out of Shannon. Ireland was a side trip to our main trip to England for a friend's wedding. The west coast is really barren, rocky, boggy, and rugged. But very beautiful. Have fun! And remember, "Guiness is Good for You. Makes you Stronger." (Something they love to tell the pg women. :) )

[OakEmber]

Congrats Mayasmom! What an honor to be our first girl :LOL I just wanted to say that my DD nursed until 37 months, and she still occasionally gives my breast kisses and hugs(about 5 months later), it's sweet!

Gottaknit, I don't know if I should say congrats or not :LOL

Gmvh- Thanks for the science lesson, although most of it went right over my head! Sounds cool though, and really good for them to each have thier own placenta...I guess that eliminates the worry about one hogging at the nutrients (I'm sure there is a better way to put that but it's not coming to me this morning).

And I have a name question for you all...what do you think of Oakley Kai? My DH ACTUALLY PICKED UP A NAME BOOK! and flipped throught it last night! Shockingly he looked at it for half an hour too, remember this is our second baby and he has never done that! In that half an hour the only name that he came to like was Kai...I am not totally sold on it, although I do like it...I was actually thinking Oakley Kaia if we'd been having a girl. I think it's really cool that he came up with something though, that in itself makes me think we should use it :LOL

[Lucysmama]

Amie-

If Lucy had been a boy, she would have been named Kai. It's a great name -- though I am hearing it quite often lately. I like Oakley Kai...sounds very nature-ish.

[bluehalo]

Amie, I like Oakley Kai too :)

Nancy, what a bummer that the U/S tech wasn't more sensitive to your request :( Congrats on your "probably boy" though!

Gretchen, I'm finding all your twin info very fascinating, although over my head :) I'm really excited for you!

Momadance, hope you have a fantastic vacation!

You can add me to the boy list ... we had our U/S this afternoon, and got a very clear crotch shot *lol* ... although now our boy name choice is up in the air ... I'm just not very attached to it, although it may grow on me. We'll still be doing some name searching in the time being :) So glad to see that everything looks happy and healthy though. DH was so cute, got all teary and stuff. *sniff*

[blessed2bamommie]

:yikes: OK, so I'm lookin at my titty, and I see something white on it. I think its lint and I try to get it off. So, I think white crust...and squeeze it. :bigeyes Its now got a drop on it! Woooooooooow....

Dh flips b/c he thought I was leaking amnio fluid. :( So, then my excitement was extinguished b/c I didn't realize how sensitive he still is. (And, well, we had a teen who used to go to our church and got out there and got pg and her bag ruptured a few weeks ago at 18wks)

Yeah, Mikayla is the girls name. I'm undecided about the middle. Dh is deliberating about Arrington Hughes, we'll call him Aaron. Arrington is my maiden. Jordan has his grandfathers first name, who's with the Lord, which I always wanted to use for a boy, as a middle and now that Jordan's gone, we need another boy's name. Hughes is dh's dads last name, who died a few years ago. I *totally* understand Katie. Mama made me so :splat when I told her the names. She also made me :angry about not having a u/s. She wants me to have one so that we can know pink or blue. :rolleyes WHY do folks feel like they *have* to tell you their opinion on your decisions! I am *not* like that to folks! :rant:

Well, that's it for now! Have a safe trip to Ireland! :wave

:bolt

[Lucysmama]

Letia-
Congrats on the colostrum. Isn't it a cool feeling??? My dd is fascinated by it. She wants to try it all the time, which is fine by me. I express a few drops for her. She says it's yummy. :love I am hoping to pump for her once the baby comes. She still has a bottle of milk at bed, so it would make me very happy to give her breastmilk again.

Christine-
Congrats on the boy!!!!!

[OakEmber]

Congratulations Bluehalo :storkboy!

I am glad that you guys like Oakley Kai, it's definately growing on me. Lucysma- glad to hear you describe it as nature-ish, I like nature-ish :love

Wannabemommie that's awesome! Sorry to hear about your Dh flippin though, it's definately easy to forget how sensitive they are...I had no clue that my Dh was feeling so vulnerable until he told me how nervous he'd been as we were leaving our u/s...this pregnancy has definately felt different to me from the one I lost but he doesn't have the same connection. Congrats on settling on a girls name! Arrington/Aaron is super cool, hope your Dh comes around on it!

[Piglet68]

Nancy, do you want me to put "boy" next to your name? or are you not quite sure.

bluehalo: congrats on the boy!!!! :banana

[OakEmber]

Truebluexf- Good luck at your u/s tomorrow! I love both names that you've picked out! I have a close friend Lillian (the only one I know), though mostly she goes by Lilly.

[mirthfulmum]

Another boy! Hooray!!! Congratulations bluehalo :storkboy.

And also a congrats for Letia as well. How exciting to have your first colostrum experience.

Nancy - Too bad about the u/s tech. I would think they'd be better trained to not disclose the gender if the parents don't want to know.

I am so happy that someone on this board is having twins, Gretchen. I've always wanted twins, not in the cards though, so now I get to live vicariously through you! I still find it amazing that a woman's body can accomodate 2 people growing in there. It feels so cramped in there with just 1.

trueblue - Have a great u/s tomorrow! And you are right, they are so much fun. I love the baby preview!

[gottaknit]

Piglet: We're still "not quite sure". Thanks. :)

[Lucysmama]

Anyone else starting to get uncomfortable already...?

[blessed2bamommie]

uhhhhhhhh yeah! where should I begin! Side sleeping, this uterus is gettin heavy, and dh had to paint my toenails b/c I nearly cut off our oxygen supply! :shake He's sweet, he did it though. :love Cycling class is *awful* ugh! I get on that sucker *right* when class starts and after the last working song, I get off and march in place instead of cooling down on the bike.

I got all set up for LLL :D. What a fitting day yesterday! There's a class in a couple of weeks and dh is invited. I met one of the leaders in the nfs this am! :thumb I got some info for classes there too. I guess I'll call next week on that.

[ameliabedelia]

18 weeks

Congrats on the new boys, and our FIRST girl! YAY!

What do you think of the name Isaac Theopholus? The first name will defintiley will Isaac, but DH wants the middle name to be Theopholus :scratch). I think Isaac Theopholus flows nicely, but I don't know.

For girls, we don't know yet. We are pretty sure it is a boy, so we haven't really thought about girl names, although we dont' know for sure yet.

I did the chinese gender chart and it said I am having a boy. I also did it with dd, and it said I was having a girl then.

[bluehalo]

feeling uncomfortable?? eh, not too badly. My main annoyances are having to get up to pee in the middle of the night, and how stinking hot it's been here lately. Although I'm loathe to complain about the heat *already* ... I know by August and September we'll all be moaning and groaning, and even *more* uncomfortable ... so I'm trying to keep that in mind ;)

We met with a prospective doula this morning ... I'm trying to decide if hiring an actual doula will really be all that more beneficial to us than relying on my network of friends. I definatlely want another support person there so DH isn't so overwhelmed. But I really trust my doc and don't anticipate being "bullied" or having to work through any "scare tactics". If I wasn't so confident, I'd probably want someone more savvy and assertive to advocate for me. As it is, I think I'd be just as happy, and definately more comfortable, with one or two of my friends. Most of my friends are pretty natural birth savvy (one is an alterna-minded L&D nurse). What do you guys think?

[OakEmber]

Bluehalo/Christine- About the doula thing, JMHO,I definately think having having a doula is awesome...but I do think that a friend can act as one (esp. your L&D nurse friend). I have taken a Doula training course but haven't gotten certified (or even acted as one yet), if you want and your friend is interested you can find out the required reading to become DONA certified and she can read it...besides attending a weekend workshop and three births that is all that is required to become certified (I think you can choose 3 or 4 books from thier list). For my DD birth I told my MIL she was my doula (she'd never heard of such a thing) because she had 6 children herself and does theraputic/healing touch...it was an awesome experience and she helped me immensely. This time, my mom and sister will be there to act as my doulas (my mom was there for my sister's two births and it will be a first for my sister)...plus having a midwife and perhaps her assistant so I feel I will be well supported (and Dh will get off easy with all those woman around :LOL). I have a friend who used one with her last and will again, she loved the experience, but in her case she has no family near by and no friends to rely on, she is already relying on her friends to watch her other children.

As for feeling uncomfortable, no not yet actually....knock on wood! Just once and awhile I'll get pinched ligament feelings etc. mostly in my hips from standing too long. I went to the Chiropractor a few weeks ago and he straighened me out, maybe that has helped. I am still sleeping pretty comfortably, even with 3 in a bed. I do keep ending up on my back however, so I am making an effort to sleep on my side.

[krnflwr]

Bluehalo, I'm with you on the doula question. I have a great circle of friends and family who will support my wishes and advocate for me (and help DH with his deep breathing!), and my OB is absolutely terrific, so I'm wondering if a doula is all that necessary for us. It would be nice, however, to have someone who is trained to know what is going on and has her bag full of tricks right there, so it's not just everyone asking me "what can I do?" all the time.
The nurses, when I birthed Hannah, were very drug happy and kept offering/suggesting them ALL THE TIME. My sisters and mother were great about telling them "no" and to go away, but I could have used some other suggestions for things to do to help me out. Even with all the reading and the classes beforehand, I just wasn't in the frame of mind to remember everything. I think if you are in a good, birth-friendly atmosphere with knowledgable people around you, it might not be so necessary to have a doula. But if you are not, then that is what she is there for....to help you create the right atmosphere, yaknow?
I think my most uncomfortable-type complaint so far is the constipation. :irked: I don't feel so big yet that I can't get around, or reach things, and it's been very cool lately around here....so nothing to moan about yet. But this pooping business is just driving me crazy. Ugh.

[Piglet68]

I'm not uncomfortable. I'm actually loving my shape right now. I'm most definitely pregnant, without being ungainly yet, lol.

I painted my toenails the other day, Letia. For sure it is the last time I will be able to do that, lol!

Baby kicks alot. I love it. I'm feeling very bonded to him lately. Got more fluffy mail. Life is Good. :)

[blessed2bamommie]

:nod good discussion. I thought about it; but, then again, Bradley seems like he'll be all set, so maybe I won't. I wanted mama for the I've done this before support and I asked her best friend b/c she's the its their decision support. And mil I *know* she wants to come. Maybe she can be in the background with mamas best friend. If dh had the intestinal fortitude, he could tell the women the ground rules before coming as coach. Because I won't. :LOL

Hot...oh yeah....NC is on fire! Grape juice worked for me Karin! :thumb I haven't had so much problems as I expected except the first little bit.

[mirthfulmum]

My lower back is just aching! When we had the u/s on Tuesday, Harrison was on his way into the head down position, he was kinda at a down ward angle across my belly. But beginning yesterday, I have been experencing this constant feeling of pressure on my hips and tail bone. So I think that Harrison has completed his turn and is now head down. I am just hoping that this aching dosen't get worse as this boy gets bigger.

But other than that I am feeling really good. I can usually sleep pretty comfortably and get around easily. The only time I really notice the extra weight and growing belly is when I have to carry Alias. It's getting tough to find a spot that he can comfortably rest on and that dosen't make me winded after half a block.

Speaking of toenails, I'm going to a Spa baby shower for a friend of mine tonight and I have a pedicure scheduled. Oooh, I can't wait!

[BeansMomma]

19+ weeks

We have Girl #2!!!! I was so shocked since we were both so sure it was a boy - guess that Chinese calendar wasn't all that accurate after all :)

We're super thrilled, though - and can't wait to see her little face when she arrives. We're still debating names, but are striving for a gender-neutral first name.

Man - is she a squirmer too! Looked as if she had her own little dance going on inside me - so awesome. Heading to the OB now to discuss results.

Only blue news is that my placenta is setting pretty low and close to the cervix. While the tech reassures me that the placentas usually move into place later in pregnancy, it's still a small damper in an otherwise joyous day. :guilty

[mirthfulmum]

Hooray!! Another girl! That's wonderful BeansMomma. Congratulations :storkgirl.

And ameliabedelia, I just realized I hadn't commented on your middle name choice. My first reaction to Theopholus was "boy that's a mouthful", but when I said your son's full name out loud two or three times I really liked how it sounded. Isaac Theopholus has a great prescence. Is it a family name?

[OakEmber]

BeansMomma- Congratulations on your girl! :girlpin And I found out the same thing about my placenta, just so you know your not alone.

Ameliabedilia- I agree with Mirthfulmum, the name sounds really cool together. And I think it is pefectly fine for the mn to be a little out there (I am assuming that's why you used the :scratch icon).

Mirthfulmum- have lots of fun tonight at the shower and enjoy your pedicure!

Everyone else, have a great weekend:exclaim

[True Blue]

Ameliabedelia -- I like it too. :)

U/S was great!! We have a healthy little baby in there, we could see him/her touching his head, waving, kicking, the works. Very cool. DS slept through his u/s LOL so it was cool to see the movement.

Check out my awesome wins today!!! I'm about done newborn dipe shopping!!
http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&item=4303795703&ssPageName=ADME:B:EOAB:US:6

(seller told me these are new and just washed!! I won two sets of these!)http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&item=4303768593&sspagename=STRK%3AMEWN%3AIT&rd=1
My Kissaluvs came out cheaper than Snapdragons and Nanipoos.....

[mirthfulmum]

Hooray truebluexf on the great ultrasound! (and on your diaper find) :thumb.

Is anyone else really feeling their Braxton Hicks? Lately it seems almost everyday in the early afternoon I get them. I don't remember feeling them this early with Alias. Is it commom to be more aware of them or experiencing Braxton Hicks earlier with subsequent pregnancies?

[krnflwr]

Is anyone else really feeling their Braxton Hicks??

I certainly am. Maybe not everyday, but when they do start...boy do they get going. I don't remember having any this early with Hannah, either, or this intense.
The one day the B-Hs lasted for almost 2 hrs and got so intense I had to breathe through them (couldn't talk), I called the doc. They really didn't seem too concerned, said it sounded normal, and told me to lay down & drink water and call them back (or go to ER) if they didn't stop or I felt "seriously worried". Sure hope this is just normal preg #2 stuff. Anyone else?

[bluehalo]

What exactly do Braxton Hicks feel like?

DH and I spent a few hours in L&D last night b/c I had been experiencing a steady low back ache and menstrual like cramping all afternoon. Called my doc and she told me to take a hot bath and eat dinner, and if it didn't go away, come in to be checked. There was no dialation, and my urine sample turned out fine (apparently a UTI or kidney infection can cause similar symptoms?) ... so I still have no idea what was going on. Woke up this morning feeling fine, so I'm much relieved.

[Lucysmama]

So I guess I should answer my own question... :LOL

I have started to get a bit uncomfortable...I can't bend over at the waist anymore. I am getting out of breath easily. I toss and turn trying to find a comfy spot. I am peeing ALL NIGHT LONG.

I shouldn't complain now, cause it is only gonna get worse...I guess I am just surprised to get all this so early. Although some of us are getting close to Trimester #3!!!! :banana

[Lucysmama]

Oh, and congrats on the girls, mamas!!! :love

[Piglet68]

beansmomma: congratulations!!! another girl, yay!

I'm not sure I would know a BH if I had one. Sometimes I feel what is like a menstrual cramp, but they are very isolated (only one, not very often).

mirthful: funny you mentioned Harrison being downwards. My U/S report noted that Sasha was breech. I didn't think much about it b/c I figured they do a lot of moving before the end.

trueblue: glad your U/S went well. did the tech know the sex and ask you, or just not say anything. I just SO don't know how you do it, lol! I have no patience. :D

[mirthfulmum]

Souds like you both have experienced some Braxton Hicks bluehalo & Piglet.

For me they feel like menstrual cramps with a slight tightening of the uterus. I haven't found them very painful but they are uncomfortable.

[ameliabedelia]

18 weeks

Thanks for the input on the name. I think we are going to go with that (if it is a boy). DH picked the middle name, I don't know why and at first it seemed a little pretentious and out there to me, but it has grown on me.

I haven't felt a ny BH at all, I never felt a single contraction until I went into labor with DD, don't know what will happen this time.

I have been feeling pretty comfortable. I am not that big yet, can still wear most of my regular shirts (but defintiely need maternity pants).

[True Blue]

Thanks. :) Actually, we told the tech up front we did not want to know the sex, and she said fine. There is nothing down there for her to check out anyway, so she really only goes there when people want to know. :) I told her about the tech who kept saying "he I mean it" and she said she generally just refers to them as "he" so we shouldn't read into it. ;)

Not feeling too many b-h, felt some very early on (like 6-8 weeks) but not so much now.

You know, I was feeling really sore at night and definitely by morning in my back. It was awful, I woke up feeling like total crap. Then I went to the chiro bc my hip was bugging me (chronic problem) and you know what? I haven't been sore at night since (this was Friday). So big thumbs up for chiro visits!!! Give it a try, I wish I had last pregnancy!!!

[krnflwr]

Then I went to the chiro bc my hip was bugging me (chronic problem) and you know what? I haven't been sore at night since (this was Friday). So big thumbs up for chiro visits!!! Give it a try, I wish I had last pregnancy!!!

Me, too. Starting at about 7 wks preg., I was having a lot of hip pain, and numbness in my leg and arm, and for the first time in my life went to a chiro. It's been wonderful, not very expensive and has helped tremendously.
Prenatal massage is great, too. But nothing has offered me this level of relief like the chiro. Totally recommend it.

[mirthfulmum]

My lower back has been just aching for almost a week now. I think I'll be making a chiro apoinment. Thanks for putiing the idea out there krnflwr & truebluexf.

[OakEmber]

I'll third that! I've been once this pregnancy and am thinking about going again very soon, I am starting to feel stiff again.

[BeauGeek]

Just letting ya know that my due date changed to October 30th from October 20th :)