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8K views 183 replies 19 participants last post by  monkeyscience 
#1 ·
This is a thread for all the wonderful mamas from the Infertility ONE Thread who have beat the odds with IF and are expecting their long-awaited miracles! (Stalkers are welcome, too!!)

Due in August

monkeyscience - 28, expecting #1 with dh (26) - after 1.5 years of trying with PCOS - we got our free baby!
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Due in October

wissa19 - with DH, and DS ('07), expecting #2 after 2.5 years, 3 doctors, 1 surgery and 5 medicated cycles.
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gozal - DH and I are finally giving DS ('07) some siblings after 2.5 years of unexpected challenges, including a rare pituitary tumor and a suspected ectopic pregnancy. Two siblings, to be exact! Very excited to be expecting our twins in October.
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Due in November

Gemmine - 28, DH 28, expecting #1 after 1.5 years of trying and 1 loss. EDD: November 4th.
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kparker (27), with DH (34), expecting #1 in Nov 2012 after 3.5 years, 3 failed IUIs, and MFI being the root of all evil
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Due in December

chicajones - 27, expecting #1 with DH (30) - after 1.5 years of trying with PCOS. Metformin did the trick and we're so excited to meet our Christmas baby!
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Due in January

hope4light - Me (32), DH (33), DD (2) and pup (8) happy to give DD a sibling after almost 2 years of NPNT and finally getting the courage to jump back on the IVF train for MFI. After much failed IVF heartache when TTC#1, we were blessed with IVF working on the first try for our second! Very excited to be expecting in early January 2013!
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BABIES!!
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renavoo - Mama to Colin (6 lbs. 5 oz.)
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and Sienna
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(6lbs. 15 oz.), born 6/19/12

Sweet.Bee - Mama to Lyra
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, born 1/09/12

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In our thoughts
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deborahbgkelly - Identical twin boys, Alan and Bruce, lost at 22 weeks

krunchyk - Baby boy, lost at 10 weeks
 
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#27 ·
Hi ladies, just checking in to see how everyone is doing. Gozal, UGH to in law drama!! I hope that everything is resolved and they don't constantly ask you to come over. I find that it's so much better to get DH to tell them to back off. As for having your mIL come to help, i can see how it would be both a good and a bad thing. Just remember that they are YOUR babies and if she oversteps your bounds, you have every right to ask her to back off. (Or ask DH to ask her to back off) :eek:)

It has been a while so I know you're going to have your GTT soon. Hope it goes well!

Everyone else, HI! I would love to hear updates!! How is everyone doing?
 
#28 ·
Okay, so I am so very behind on responding - I am sorry! I do read every post, but often on my phone. And sometimes, I just feel too tired to respond.
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ANYWAY...

renavoo - Hope things are going better for you with all the rash and nursing issues and such! That is a crazy lot of stuff to deal with. Crazy that your LOs are more than a month old now! I would love to read more about how you're doing, but I bet they keep you pretty busy!

kparker - Glad things are all looking good for you! A little jealous that you got to go tubing. How was that? We went two summers ago, and it was a blast. Did you go on the Guadalupe? And I'm still taking iron supplements, too, since I don't want to get anemic again. I take Floravital (same company that makes Floradix) - it usually doesn't taste too bad to me. I did get the suggestion to freeze it in ice cube trays and pop it in some juice, which I have recently been doing. I also mixed the pregnancy tea extract my midwife recommended in with the cubes, and I'm doing much better at taking it since it's all premeasured, as it was a pain to measure it out!

wissa - I also got half my maternity tops from my SIL, which I am grateful for. She seems to have found better-quality stuff than a lot of what I've got. And if I can put in one more rant about maternity clothes... why do skirts/dresses either have to be mid-thigh or ankle length?!? I swear, there is no in between. It is HOT for ankle-length skirts, regardless of the material. I would just about kill for a mid-calf length skirt at this point. That's what nearly all my skirts were before getting pregnant. Sigh. Only a few more weeks, and it won't matter any more! Have you gotten your GTT done yet? I hope it goes well. I don't think 20 lbs of weight at 25 weeks sounds bad to me, but I know it's easier to say that to someone else! And by the way... YAY for being past the point of viability! You're on to your third trimester now, aren't you? And yay for colostrum leaks - I hope it is a portent of good things to come. dh has been asking me for months now when I'm going to start "producin'", after I told him some women do make a little milk before the baby comes. I think his general zeal for (my) boobs has come to include intense curiosity about their milk-making capacity. I, on the other hand, get tired of feeling like a watched cow.
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I've also explained to him that it's totally normal to NOT produce anything before birth, but that message hasn't sunk in yet!

chica - Cute bump! (And cute shirt!) I forgot - are you guys going to try to find out the sex of the baby? If so, that's coming up soon, I would guess! Check in when you have a chance! (as if I have any room to talk!)

milk - Don't know if you're still stalking over here, but interesting about all the drugs. And YAY about the engagement ring shopping - so excited for you!!

hope - Yay for a good heartbeat, and for getting something for your headaches. I hope it's helping. And ??? about your doctor thinking you haven't gained enough weight... and thinking you should gain 30-40 lbs! I think your weight gain sounds totally fine - it's considered perfectly normal to gain NOTHING in the first trimester! It's not even that weird to LOSE weight in the first trimester (as I did early on, though I think I had gained it back by the end). Geeze. I would not let your doctor worry you about it.

gozal - Sorry for the continuing in-law drama. I think you have every right to want a nice, relaxing summer at home before taking on newborn twins and a 4- or 5-year-old. I hope your dh is on your side with this one, because it really is his responsibility to tell his family to back off, if need be. Glad that you continue to be a very boring obstetric patient! I hope your GTT goes well and you don't get sick. I don't know what I would have done with mine if my mom hadn't been there to drive me to get food immediately afterward. At least you can eat an egg! Actually, my mw's office person told me I could ask about eating an egg if I didn't think I could make it fasting, but I ended up just fasting. I would definitely go after that egg if I were you! (Just remember no toast!)

AFM... 37 weeks today!!! I am at term, and cleared for a birth center birth!! Nothing is ever a guarantee, but this is a big milestone for me. I never thought he would come early, but now I don't have to try to plan for what if. At my appointment on Friday, the mw (the most experienced one) said she thinks he's in the 6 lb range, which is a huge relief after the 32-week 5 1/2 lb estimate by the student midwife! I know it's still a guesstimate, but it reassures me that he's not destined to be 12 lbs. Anything that remains in the single digits I think I can handle. Double digits scare me. But we will find out soon! I'm 1 cm dilated and 25% effaced, and my cervix is very soft. Baby hasn't dropped yet, and I'm starting to wish he would. My uterus is literally up to my sternum, and my boobs and tummy are fighting it out for space. My mw says that she thinks his due date is going to end up being pretty accurate, which I take to mean about a week either way. I'm hopeful now that I'll make it to my brother's wedding on August 3rd after all. Birth classes are going reasonably well, though we haven't spent much time practicing outside of class due to dh's crazy work schedule. We actually only have two more before it will be our due date - there's a chance of making it to one more if he goes past his due date by several days. We'll see!

As far as baby shower loot, we have our car seat (Maxi-Cosi Pria, which will hopefully last us several years!), our cosleeper (they discontinued the style I wanted, much to my great sadness - it would have matched our bedroom stuff perfectly, but oh, well), far fewer clothes than I would have guessed, a custom scrapbook my friend put together, and other assorted toys and things that are currently escaping my mind. We have gotten NO normal, every day blankets/receiving blankets! We're supposed to have four flannel receiving blankets to take to the birth center, and we currently have none. We have several very lovely hand-made blankets of various types, but only one thing I'd consider using to wipe up spit-up. Speaking of which, we have a few burp cloths, but not many. I did get two of the swaddle blanket thingies with velcro, where it doesn't actually become a blanket, just a swaddler. However, one of the ladies from church is actually throwing me another shower on August 4th, just for people from my new congregation. She was actually the second person to ask me about it Sunday - the first person said she really wanted to throw one for me, but when she found out my exact due date, said she was going to be out of town most of the time between now and then. I'm still just really surprised by it. I'm happy, of course, and it's super nice for someone to do it for me, it just seems a little out of nowhere, since we've been going to this congregation for 2 months now. Anyway, I am hopeful that I will get some receiving blankets and burp cloths out of this shower. A bunch of people have already RSVP'd that they're coming, and the evite just went out Sunday night! I actually went back through my registries and added stuff and updated some stuff just for people to have something to buy. Unfortunately, a lot of the stuff I still need (like cloth diapering stuff) is not readily available at major stores. But anyway, it should be interesting. Hopefully this will help me get to know some more people, too.

The bad thing that happened last week is that dh's car overheated on his way home from Dallas, and now needs a new engine. Luckily, my dad and brothers were able to come to the rescue and tow him home (he was over 100 miles away when it happened), saving us the $400+ of hiring a professional tow truck. But we're still trying to figure out how the heck to pay for repairs, or if we even should repair it - we just bought it in January, it's a 2008 with low miles, but because it's a salvage title, it has no warranty - and apparently, they might not warranty any new parts they put in, either, which leaves us in a bad place. But we can't afford a dependable car without a loan, and we really, really don't want a car loan. We can't afford to buy something that's just going to break down, either, though. So we shall see. The good news is that, besides the money already paid, we should only owe the mw $300 more after the birth, so we should be able to use some of our medical/baby savings on the car. We'll find out in the next week or so if our in-network appeal is granted, in which case the birth center will ultimately end up owing us a small refund. That would be awesome!
 
#29 ·
Yay for 37 weeks, monkey!

Tubing was great - we didn't go down a river after all. Went to Landa Park and I essentially floated around half in my tube, letting my belly dangle in the water. I joked it was inception, with my kid floating in fluid with me floating in fluid. That water felt GREAT. I even climbed up a rope and went a couple grips across a net strung over the water - something that very few people were able to do! I had on my superwoman He-Man arms, or something, that day. Let me see if I can get a pic of my husband and I to show up on here...as well as myself in my tube (with the rope thingy in the background somewhere). Wow, I look so small in these. I was about 20 weeks. I've really gotten HUGE since.

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#30 ·
YES!! Just checked my chart online and found out I am GBS negative!!
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(If you don't know why I'm so excited, refer to past posts about how incredibly difficult blood draws are for me - I can't even imagine trying to get an IV while simultaneously dealing with contractions!)
 
#31 ·
Gozal - Oh my! 3 months of MIL! Bless you. I love my MIL and she is great about doing things, but I can't imagine 3 months. When my DS was born and she came to help, it was DH that was the problem and not her! He didn't want his mommy doing all the housework, which is what she said she came to do. When I complained about being tired or breastfeeding he actually said just let my mother watch the baby....He will totally deny that now!!

Maybe you could make a list before the babies get here of things that would really help you out and post on the fridge or something...

Otherwise, I'm glad thing are boring for you! It would be interesting if your babies were identical. I guess you won't get an accurate answer until they are born and they can look at the placentas??

As for tips on swaddling...blanket size is all I know. My DS was a frank breech and his legs wanted to stay in that position after he was born, so swaddling was a challenge. Plus, you had to leave one hand out by his face so he could get to his thumb.

Rena - So good to hear from you! I hope all well in baby land for you. How the breastfeeding going? I hope things are better now that you don't have that rash.

kparker - That's looks like so much fun. And you look good for 20 weeks in the pictures.

Monkey -Yeah for no GBS...that can be very serious. The ladies at your church sound so nice to be giving you a second shower. If I have know you needed some receivng blankets I would have shipped you some. I just gave away about 8 baby boy flannel blankets! (I think I still have more some where.) It seems that's what everyone gave us.

Wow! 37 weeks!!! It sounds like your body is getting ready. I know you want some relief, but when the baby drops you'll just have a whole new set of discomforts.

Hope - Are your headaches still a problem? I hope things go better for in the 2nd trimester.

Chica - How's the planning for your move coming?

Me- I'm at 28 weeks!! Baby seems to be feisty and doesn't like intrusion in her space these days. I passed the GTT
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. My iron is not low, but it is borderline. So, I need to take some iron, but not everyday. Heartburn has finally made an appearance for me and the baby is already up in my ribs (petite, short torso, thanks!).

Anyone else struggling with names? So far, we haven't been able to come up with one we can agree on. I had the perfect boy name! So, I should have known it was a girl.
 
#32 ·
Quote:
Originally Posted by wissa19 View Post

kparker - That's looks like so much fun. And you look good for 20 weeks in the pictures.

Anyone else struggling with names?
Thanks ;) Names were easy-peasy for us, we had them picked out long before we were even engaged LOL and we haven't even had any changes of opinion that whole time. Sorry you're stuck a bit! I bet you'll think of a great one.
 
#33 ·
kparker - What a cute pregnant lady! Glad you had fun. And lucky you for no mind-changing on the names. We picked out our top boy name while we were engaged, but now dh just isn't sure any more. All our other baby names we picked out a few weeks after we got married, but we both are sort of iffy on many of them now. I still love our top girl's name, though.

wissa - lol - my SIL said the same thing about blankets, except she just put all of hers into storage before their move. I've actually been very surprised by the lack of blankets. Well, there actually ISN'T a lack, per se, but people have given us quilts they have made or blankets they have crocheted, or the swaddlers I wanted, which are all great, and will have their uses, but just aren't good for things like being an extra-big burp cloth, or a nursing cover, or a diaper-changing pad, or whatever. My mom and SIL have said they're going to work together to make me some receiving blankets, too, but they've both been busy with all sorts of moving and wedding craziness, on top of church craziness (my mom is a leader with the women's organization, and my dad was recently asked to take a pretty big leadership role in their congregation). But I'm sure it will all work out. Worst comes to worst, when we're on our way to the birth center, I'll ask MIL to run to Walmart and buy a package and wash them and bring them over to us. :) I have been glad my baby hasn't dropped so far, since I understand it's got its own discomforts. But since I ought to be delivering sometime fairly soon, I think I'm ready to trade in for a new set of discomforts - I'm bored with this set! Anyway, yay for 28 weeks! That was a big milestone for me, too, because there's a big jump in viability right around then. Hooray for no GD, boo for borderline iron. If you do have to supplement, I definitely recommend Floravital - I haven't gotten any of the constipation that others have mentioned getting with tablets. I got mine for half the price of what it was at my local grocery store through Amazon. I was going to link to it, but it looks like the seller I got it from doesn't have any more right now. :( It was from England, and said it would take 3-4 weeks, but took more like 1 and a half. Good luck with figuring out names!

AFM, finally started packing my birth bag - not much in it yet but diapers, pads, and underwear. Seriously, the pads I bought for me are about the size of the newborn diapers! Those diapers are sooooo tiny! It's crazy to think they'll fit him. I'm used to my beefy 7-month-old nephews, who wear size 3 diapers. Still so much to wash and get ready, but I did also get the cosleeper (mostly) assembled, so progress is being made. I'm in the process of trying out my new home-made laundry soap right now - fingers crossed it works as advertised!
 
#34 ·
Monkey - Wow, I can't believe how close it is getting! I agree that the drop will bring new discomforts, but it's so exciting too because you know it's getting closer. I am so excited to have another new baby on this board!!! How sweet of your new congregation to do something for you - to me it's things like that that show what community is all about, you know? Even if it was just an afternoon get together with a bunch of the ladies and some snacks and nothing else, that's so stinking sweet!!! I also can't believe you've gotten no receiving blankets though.... we got a TON of them the first time around, which is nice because I don't think we'll have to buy anymore this time. Yeah for GBS Negative!! (GBS positive sucked - I really hope I'm negative this time around LOL). We saw a little baby at the peds office yesterday and DH looked at me and then looked at DD and said 'I can't believe she was that small' I had to laugh, becuase she was, but I agree with him. Everything seems so tiny for them in the beginning!!

kparker - awe you are so cute! Let's see a more recent picture too!!

wissa - My headaches are slowely getting better. I'm still getting them, but the frequency is slowing down as is the intensity. I'm hoping in a couple more weeks they'll be gone gone gone. I can't believe you're 28 weeks already!!! That's so exciting! Awesome for passing the GTT, and boo for the borderline iron. Lucky you that heartburn is just now showing up :) We haven't even begun to talk about names. We had a 'short list' of both boy and girl names from DD, so we'll probably pull that out and see if any of them left on the list still catch our eye. DH has mentioned it a few times, but I just have no idea at this point. So I'm not stressing about it yet.

AFM - not much going on. Stressed about work, but trying not to let it get to me too much. Headaches are still there but getting better, but I am still struggling with heartburn and some m/s. Ugh, I'm almost 17 weeks - the m/s so should be GONE!! LOL. It's OK, I'll take it. I just hope I start to feel more and more movement soon. I've started to feel it now and again, but not often. I can't wait for that :)
 
#35 ·
Monkey - I got some free samples from the doctors office, so I'm going to try those first. I didn't really get too much too constipation problems when I took them with DS. My doctor said if you get constipated it means you are taking too much and back off a little. Apparently, once it gets to that point your body's not absorbing the iron. lol - Bored with this set of discomforts...I promise you won't be bored once baby monkey makes his appearance.

Hope - It's not fair that you still have morning sickness. I think it should be a rule that women who have gone through infertility treatments should have wonderful easy pregnancies. I know you are just happy to pregnant, but sometimes I just think when you have so much trouble getting the baby in...getting out should be easier. ;)

I have made a list of names, but we have scratched off most of them...We still have a few weeks and I'm sure once she gets here we will have to call her something besides baby girl.

Hope everyone has a great weekend!!!
 
#36 ·
Laundry soap experiment seems to be going well so far - yay! So baby clothes from newborn-3 months are washed. My bag is a little more packed. I am swelling like CRAZY... I weighed 8.5 lbs more this week at the mw's than last week.
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Not comfortable! My ankles seem to hardly be joints at all at this point. But my blood pressure is fine, my urine is protein-free, and baby is still doing great, so I will be thankful for that. I was terrified I was going to walk out of there with orders for an induction, even though I had my mom check my blood pressure earlier in the week and have had zero as far as symptoms of hypertension. And yeah, I know - drink lots of fluid (I'm on day 4 of 3 quarts of water daily, TYVM), elevate my feet, don't go crazy on the salt, etc. I do need to try getting back in the pool today. Soaking in the tub has had basically no effect, as far as I can tell. But, like I said - I'm glad we're both healthy. The swelling-induced carpal tunnel syndrome (which really only is an issue at night/when I first get up) is pretty awful. I didn't really know/understand what carpal tunnel syndrome was before, and I now have a huge amount of sympathy for anyone who deals with it on an ongoing basis. Due to traveling by both me and my midwives, next appointment is on Wednesday, and I'll get another cervical check. Hopefully all will continue to be well, and I will go to my brother's wedding Friday!
 
#38 ·
wissa - I second that LOL. Although, I'll take it :)

monkey - Yeah for everything going great, but boo for the swelling. Thats hard to deal with. Can't wait to hear how this weeks appointment goes!

kparker - you look so stinking cute!!! I wish I could get a picture to upload and actually show. Is it all feeling more real for you now?
 
#39 ·
I'm still in a daze. Had an L&D scare but even that only made me slightly better. Most days I'm in huge denial and/or have conspiracy theories about this "pregnant" word everyone throws around directed at me. ;P

It's the most real when kiddo is kicking me to death. Of course, it does it all day and all night nearly 24/7 so it's hard to appreciate when I'm being karated from the inside out!
 
#40 ·
Kparker - ?? L&D scare?? What happened? It's way too early for you to have that. I'm sorry the denial is still getting in your way, but I still feel it sometimes too. When people ask me questions I get all weird and I don't want to talk about the baby....they probably think I'm nuts. It seems the only one that does understand that I'm just quiet about it is my doctor, who just always tells me I'm doing good and everything looks good, but never pushes more than that.

My first little buddy was kicker too. I can remember talking about how they would get to the end of the day and freak out because they couldn't remember if the baby moved. I could never understand that!! I was always asking him to please just be still and let mommy rest. :) I found cutting out caffeine and sweets helped, but not much.

You look adorable in your beach picture...remember everyone shows differently.

Monkey - I hope you are hanging on...and get to go your brother's wedding. Sorry to hear about all the issues the swelling is causing you. ;(
 
#41 ·
Bleh, I had some pain in the middle of the night, and my midwife suggested a few things and if it still bothered me as much as it was when I called her, to go to L&D. Needless to say, it kept bothering me (to the point of crying) and then I panicked and it just snowballed. I spent 6 hrs at L&D then the ER and no one would let me eat or drink ANYthing during the whole thing. I came out worse for wear than when I went in, due to dehydration, and all for nothing (pain wasn't determined, kid was fine).

So yeah, that sucked royally! I do NOT want to do that again. Ever.
 
#42 ·
Aw, guys! I feel so behind! Hoping I have some time later this afternoon to update everyone, but I will say that moving is craaaazy. So much to do still and I leave for Jersey next week. Also, our anatomy ultrasound is tomorrow (boy or girl?) and I'm super excited but also suddenly so nervous that everything will be ok.
 
#43 ·
kparker - Glad everything turned out okay, but sorry about the scare! You are definitely pregnant, lady, and have the belly to prove it! I hope your LO decides to stay in for quite awhile longer, though!

hope - Sorry the morning sickness won't let go. I know it's a reassuring thing in some ways, but UGH is it miserable! Hopefully baby will content him/herself with just kicking up a storm for reassurance sometime soon!

chica - Thanks for dropping by... can't wait to hear how the ultrasound goes tomorrow! Hopefully, it will be a very reassuring experience. I know I felt a lot better knowing my baby had all his organs and was growing well.

AFM, met with the midwife again today. She is still concerned about my swelling, and would like the baby to come sooner as opposed to later (I'm 38w1d today), but she doesn't think he will, and I'm cleared to go to the wedding! The one stipulation is that I keep my feet up on the drive. Honestly, I don't think keeping my feet up makes much of a difference, but I'll do the best I can. Blood pressure is great, a couple of points lower than last week, even. Nothing at all in my urine. (Though the midwife said she'd actually like to see a little blood, as it could be a sign of impending labor!) Weight gain has stabilized. I've only gained a pound or so since Friday, which could realistically mean I'm actually less swollen. I still can't really bend my ankles or wear anything but flipflops, but I'm glad everything's looking so good. Oh, and I'm now 50% effaced, and she said the baby had dropped a little, though not much. So he's getting ready, slowly, which I think is great. I really doubt he'll show up more than a few days before his due date, but who knows? Next appointment is Tuesday, so we'll see. But no more cervical checks until labor - those suckers hurt!
 
#44 ·
Renavoo, no fair not giving us more amazing twin photos to swoon over. What, are you busy or something?
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Totally kidding, but anytime you have a second I would love to hear how YOU are doing!

Monkey, I seriously cannot believe you are so close. I'm just so happy to hear that everything seems right on for the birth experience you want, swelling notwithstanding. Let me tell you, that's great that you're starting to efface and dilate because I was pointed to inductionville with absolutely no effacement or dilation at nearly 41 weeks. Yay for being able to go to the wedding, and for getting that big car seat purchase as a gift! You're not doing the baby bucket, huh? I have to admit I am totally partial to them. It's not like I left DS in there much (high needs baby, wasn't going to happen even if I had been okay with that), I promise. Yeah, decent baby blankets are surprisingly hard to get. Everything is either tiny and thin or fleece, which to my mind isn't warm enough for winter. It is so hard to find basic woven cotton or wool baby blankets. The Company Store (which I never buy from because $$$, but I do like to look at their kids' quilts sometimes for quilting ideas!) does have some nice cotton woven ones. I have heard a lot of raves about those aiden + anais muslin swaddles, which I just spotted at target. The basic flannel receiving ones should be fine for swaddling a newborn, though, so I think your plan is right on and you can figure out what you like later.

I don't even have an appropriate adjective about the car thing...that must be so stressful. I completely understand your views about car loans, we are the same way. We have always bought our cars outright in cash, though one was a very generous hand-me-down from family. We are pretty fanatical about not having any consumer debt. You wouldn't believe how many friends/family have told us... just finance a minivan! Um, no. We can fit three car seats in the newer of our cars, and that's just fine. Would you consider buying a car at auction? I have not done this myself, but my parents have gotten their cars this way for years and have always been happy with the process and their purchases. You get the whole history of the car at the time of the auction and I it's ceritified in some way.

kparker, how absolutely terrifying. I am so, so glad everything turned out okay. I don't get why the medical establishment keeps thinking it's a good idea in all but the most exterme circumstances to restrict food and water for pregnant women. It is downright dangerous not to be able to drink water for any more than a very short time. In any case, I think you look incredible!

Chica, hey you! I can imagine moving is insane. Can't wait to hear the update today! I was also very worried before my anatomy scan, so I understand and am directing tons of positive thoughts in your direction.

wissa, that never occurred to me about swaddling a frank breech baby - somehow it seems like it would so funny and cute! Probably not so much for you when all you wanted was to comfort him. Thanks for commiserating - yeah, sometimes my DH gets that way too - "Why don't you go rest and let my mom watch the baby/kiddo?" Maybe because no matter how short a nap I take, she always tells me how terribly worn out she is when I get up, and immediately goes to take a three hour nap herself. I am definitely thinking of posting a list on the fridge - even simple things like "wipe down countertop and table." Otherwise I know I will get tons of "where does this go" type of questions while I am trying to comfort two crying babies...

We are having some name issues too. We actually agree on a top three possibilities/spellings and have some combinations in mind. I just feel particularly undecided about it, which is fine, we still have plenty of time. I think DH and I are both having some sadness over names we love that we can't give the babies, because we really need names that work in both languages/cultures. For some reason people are so much nosier about it this time than with DS, which doesn't make it easier. Have you made any headway?

hope4light, uuuugggh not fair about m/s at 17w. Mine finally dissipated at 15 and man, does that feel long. Any relief in sight? I also suffered from headaches during the first half but they have stayed away. I am hoping the same happens for you. And that work stress gets better, bleh!

AFM...oh man, ladies. It has not been the greatest week ever. Turns out my OB uses the "strict" protocol for the 1-hour glucola and I missed their cutoff by three points. I pass by standard criteria. This is the same thing that happened to me with DS and I turned down the 3-hour. Well, they told me if I refuse they would automatically label me GD and would stop treating me if I didn't go to their nutrition lecture. I am beyond angry with this kind of bullying. I am very health conscious and know a great deal about nutrition. I eat very little refined flour and sugar, and my guide has always been my body and how it feels, not grams or calories or hours on the clock. I've never had a weight problem and my blood pressure is low. Finally I negotiated a week-long glucometer instead of the 3-hour, but honestly this hasn't made me less frustrated. Why am I pricking myself 4x/day? And now that they have me in their PITA patient category, I am terrified they've put a red flag on my file as it is. As though it isn't difficult enough as it is getting what I want with a twin pg...now I feel that much closer to constant NSTs, early induction, tons of monitoring during l&d, and a fast ticket to a c-section. I am seriously thinking of changing practices but I don't know that I can find one much different, and certainly not less than 1/2 hr drive from here. My blood sugar levels so far have all been low to normal on the standard scales I'm finding online, but since they use some strict criteria of their own I'm not convinced it's going to be good enough for them. Also, my hemoglobin was borderline low so they did a ferritin test that was really low and put me on iron. It feels like I went from normal and boring to high-intervention in 30 seconds...
 
#45 ·
Quote:
Originally Posted by gozal View Post
It feels like I went from normal and boring to high-intervention in 30 seconds...
That sucks :( What jerks. Keep putting that foot down though, hopefully you don't get too much extra crap from here on to the finish line.
 
#46 ·
Gozal - Crap! Back with more later!

Just wanted to let you ladies know I made it to the wedding and back, no baby in sight. (Which is good!) Didn't have much issue with the swelling getting worse on the way there, but it was more of an issue on the way back. Doing okay, though! Will try to check in after my shower this afternoon!
 
#47 ·
Oh man! Totally wrote out an entire post but it looks like it never went up! Augh!

Let's see, to recap..

Gozal, :( hope they will listen to you. So ridiculous. Have you started looking into different practices? Even if it's a pain now, it will be worth it when the time comes to give birth. If not, remember, they can't force you to do anything, especially when it's delivery time! They have to have your consent. Also, do you have a doula? That might be a big help if you can't change practices, because she can be your cheerleader and help you stand up to them.

Monkey, eeee! It's almost time! Hope your shower goes well, and I'm so glad you were able to make it to the wedding! Hoping your swelling goes down and you don't have to think about it. Can't believe that you're going to be giving birth so very soon!

kparker, how are things with you? Hopefully you're all better and not having any other scares. I can't imagine how much it must suck to have to go in to the hospital, but I'm glad you (and the babe) are okay.

wissa/gozal, any name progress? I'd love to hear what you've got!

renavoo, i would love more photos!!! I bet they're already getting so big. :) How have you been recovering? Anything you totally didn't expect?

Sorry this isn't longer! I still can't believe the forum ate my post. :p

AFM, moving is going well! A little stressed because tonight is really the last night I have to move all of my clothing to my friend's house, and get the kitchen stuff completely packed up. We've made a ton of progress though and sold 90% of our stuff. I'll probably do a wrap-up post on my blog when it's all over. The house is super empty, and I'm really amazed at how easy it's all been. It honestly hasn't been hard emotionally yet, and it's felt super freeing!! The only thing that is a little dicy right now is our UK paperwork. Our sponsor got rejected due to needing more paperwork, so they are re-submitting this week, which means it will likely be another 4-5 weeks before they get approval (praying hard on that!). Once they do, it will probably take a week or so to get our visas processed, so we're looking at a more likely end of Sept rather than mid Sept leave date. Which is fine, I'm just hoping everything goes through smoothly. We're okay with flying any point up until November, but that doesn't leave us a ton of fudge time. It's totally out of our control though, so we just have to wait and see.

In other news, we're having a boy! We found out Thursday, and it was really fun and exciting. The ultrasound was good, although I feel like the tech wasn't super informative. They also didn't really give us a "run down" at the end and just said they'd fax my results to my midwife on Monday (today). Everything seemed to be measuring right on though, and it seemed to go well, but I'll feel better when I get the 100% okay from her.

Here's our silly string gender reveal:



We had so much fun!
 
#48 ·
Monkey - Yeah to getting to go to the wedding...yuck on still having to deal with the swelling. At least it doesn't appear the swelling is due to your blood pressure or anything serious. You're so close, I can't wait hear all about the baby....let us know how the shower goes...fingers crossed you get some of those things that are left on your list.

kparker - So sorry about your scare and how frustrating. However, it is always better to be safe rather than sorry...So, hopefully no more scares.

chica - Congratulations on your little boy! I know it's frustrating not getting much information form the tech, but I don't think they are allowed to give out the results.

I'm super impressed with how calm and together you are about the big move. I hope it works out and doesn't run into November.

Gozal - I hate that you are so upset. The 1 hour GTT is just screening test, which why my OB now has everyone do a 2 hour test. I think the 2 hour makes so much more sense because either you pass it or you don't. (I definitely would not want to have to drink that drink twice and how does it make sense to have a pregnant women with possible GD drink that stuff twice?) I agree the new levels are really low. I figured I wouldn't pass it because the fasting glucose for the GD test is lower than what my fasting glucose was before I got pregnant! Crazy! I think from what I've read the reasoning is that pregnant women tend to have lower glucose levels???

I'm sorry you feel like you have a red flag hanging over your head, but I'm sure you're not the only patient to have issues with the GTT. I mean 3 points really ? I have no doubt you don't eat junk food, but keep in mind that your OB office sees everyone!! They can't tell the health conscious from those that eat a candy bar for lunch. (Also, I'll remind you the GD is not caused by your diet!! It's just your pancreas is overworked right now. ;) )

It sounds like if you are only over by 3 points that if you do have GD you'll be able to control it by watching your diet (something already do anyway).

As for finding a new ob you may be right about not finding one that thinks any different. I think if you work with your doctor and they can tell you are serious about watching your diet then they will work with you too.

AFM - 30 weeks! I've discovered I'm going to have to cut back on my activity levels. Doing too much tends to make me really sore and cause all kinds of contractions! Not fun! Just taking DS to the store and pushing the buggy with groceries is enough to cause me a lot discomfort. In fact, it almost felt like the day my water broke with DS. So, I'm going to talk to my doctor about it this week...I'm guessing a lot of it may have to do with scar tissue.

Also, little girl has been quiet today. She was rocking and rolling all day yesterday and it seems she normally takes a day off after being really active. However, that doesn't mean I'm not just a little concerned.
 
#49 ·
Chica that video was SO AWESOME. My face hurts from grinning :)

wissa - Yeah no more scares, everything is fine. Kid's an overactive jerkface, punching me all over. Crazy how we can dislike the constant activity (esp if it hurts) but the minute it slows down or stops there's the red flags of "hey what're you doin' in there?!" heh.
 
#50 ·
Hi! I'm back on the boards after a couple of years away... back in 2005-2008 I was a regular on the TTC boards. I had 6 mc's due to LP defect between 05 and 08.

I divorced hubs #1 in 08, and got a SURPRISE BFP in March 09 with ex-bf (oops!). Turns out, losing 40lbs of fat enabled my body to make progesterone, and fixed my estrogen dominance... so, ex-bf became hubs #2, but we only did it for our family's sake, and divorced after the baby came.

So, DS is 2.5 now, and I have been with an amazing BF for a little over a year.... third time is the charm, perhaps? :p

I am starting to think about baby #2 - thinking of all of the incredible women I met here, and how loving and kind they were to me through my TTC journey and mc's.

My love to you all, and may you all be blessed with the babies waiting to join you :)

Valarie

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#51 ·
gozal - Blehhhh for all you are going through with your OB. Hope things have continued to go well with your at-home monitoring. It does suck, but it is probably still better for you and your babies than the stupid 3-hour test. I hope it shuts your OB up. From what I understand, anyway, you're going to have a little higher blood sugar with twins, because they need more to take in! 3 points is really such a tiny amount to fuss over, especially if they're using the 'strict' criteria. But I suppose there's no point in their choosing the 'strict' criteria to begin with, if they don't follow through on it. Siiigh. I'm sorry your iron was low, too. At least that's much more straightforward and fixable than the whole GTT thing. I wouldn't think they'd label you high-risk just based on that. I would ask them to retest you, though, after you've been supplementing for a month or so, just to get an idea if you're getting the right amount of iron, because overdose is bad, too. I had them recheck me, and now I'm down to 1x day iron instead of 2x day. I can see why you might want to consider switching practices. Have you made any connections to other twin mamas in your area? I'm just wondering if you might know anyone who could point you to a practice where you'd be more comfortable. If you were having just one, it would probably be a lot easier, but twins just make doctors go nuts for some reason, and usually rule out things like just going with a midwife.
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Anyway, I'm glad it sounds like you and the babies are doing well overall, iron and blood sugar notwithstanding. I hope you get back to being boring very quickly!

As far as baby seats, yes, we're skipping the bucket - sort of. SIL gave us one that their twins just grew out of for dh's car, since convertibles seem like a pain in the butt to move between cars, and are too expensive to have two of. My mom and MIL have both looked at us like we're a little crazy for not using the bucket (along with several other people), but after talking to them, I've realized neither of them had that kind of seat available when they were raising their 9 kids, and they survived JUST FINE. So I think we will make it. If not, well, we have the one from SIL, and we'll use the convertible later. I did finally get a bunch of simple receiving blankets, which is a big relief. They are the thin, cheap flannel kind, but that's really what I wanted. I have have swaddlers and some other things, and plan to get some of the muslin blankets, too, but I really wanted something for quick diaper changes or covering during breastfeeding or whatnot. I think I'm finally just about set on baby stuff, other than diapering.

chica - Wow, you guys are ridiculously creative! How fun! And congrats on the boy... seems like boys are in the water this year! Glad moving is going pretty well... boo about the paperwork and uncertainty! Hopefully that will get straightened out quickly. I'm glad getting rid of your stuff has been freeing. I tend to get too attached to things, and have a hard time letting go. I'm still a little sad about leaving behind the first bed I ever bought... and that was over 4 years ago! Yeah, need to move past that. I did get rid of a ton of stuff in our last move, though, and that felt pretty good. Oh, and hooray for being halfway there in your pregnancy!! Hope you got good news from your mw on Monday. I know that was a little nervewracking for us, too, waiting on that report. But since I'd seen the tech labeling a lot of the pictures (like "3-vessel cord", "4-chamber heart", etc), it made me feel better.

wissa - 30 weeks, huh? You realize you're next in line after me, right?
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Although you and gozal are pretty close together, especially since she's having twins. Sorry you're getting all tired and contraction-y. Hopefully your doctor will have some good reassurance for you. Grocery shopping through contractions is bleh... my uterus sometimes has the same reaction to the grocery store. Speaking of which, I really need to get rolling on going to the store!

ValarieR -
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AFM, so, baby shower... WOW... there were about 15-20 people who came. I finally got the Boppy I've been wanting, which was exciting. My mom had actually just found one at TJ Maxx that wasn't the pattern I wanted, but was cheaper, so I was fine with that. But now I have the cute monkey one! I also have an assortment of clothes for when he's older (since we told people we already had a bunch for 0-6 months), some more burp cloths (yay!), and some more blankets. We also got several baby board books, which I hadn't really thought to register for until a few days ago. I'm excited about that, even though I know they're not "necessary" - I definitely want to start reading to him right away! We also got some other toys and randomness, some of which I'm more excited about than others, but I'm still just shocked that so many people who barely know me made time to come to my shower and bring me gifts. A couple of people who couldn't come dropped off gifts beforehand, and not one but THREE people brought me gifts to church the next day! Like I said, pretty floored. Now I really just need to get on to writing thank you notes! The only thing I'd really like to get settled now as far as baby stuff is some more cloth diapering stuff. Right now, we have some newborn disposables and one package of disposable wipes, as well as 6 prefold diapers and two covers. I'd like to get a couple dozen more prefolds, a few more covers, reusable wipes, and a diaper pail before the little guy gets here. And I need to re-read my EC book, too! I think either my mom or grandma is going to get me the additional diaper stuff. Oh, and I decided I'm going to rent a ring sling and try it out before I buy one. I need to get that order set up, too. If anyone else is interested in renting a carrier to try (they have several kinds), the website is www.tagalongbaby.com. Prices seem pretty reasonable to me. They rent by the month, and a month seems like enough time to me to figure out whether or not you like something enough to buy one. Still need to get the darn carseat installed, maybe tonight?

Oh, and speaking of cars, an update on dh's... not sure the last thing I said, but we decided dh and his friends were going to try to diagnose and possibly fix the problem themselves. It's become dh's new obsession. Which is bothering me a little because between that and work, he's barely spent any time with me, and this our last chance to be just 'us'. But we are planning to go out on a date on Friday, at least. And we have gotten at least a little time together these last few days. The whole car thing has been way, way more complex than dh anticipated. He's learning a ton, but even with all the hours spent researching, and working, and buying more tools, he still hasn't gotten to the point where he knows what's wrong with it yet. So we've been making do as a 1-car family, which hasn't been too bad so far. We shall see. But less stressed about it than previously.

In happy financial news, I just got a letter from the insurance company today saying that I got my in-network exception for my midwife! I'm not sure from the letter if that just applies to the facility fee, or to everything, but either way, it's good news. It should mean that the midwife will actually end up owing us money, when all is said and done! So we're excited about that. I just had a visit yesterday, and am sad to say that their scale now thinks I weight 200 lbs.
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Luckily, the bathroom scale at home is a little more merciful. But still, weight gain is back to normal levels again. BP was actually lower than it's been in quite awhile... probably due to being dehydrated (I was laaaaaaaaazy yesterday, and that included being lazy about getting adequate water). Unfortunately, there was also a small trace of protein in my urine. The mw isn't too concerned, since BP is excellent and I have no other pre-e symptoms, but she does want me to come back on Friday to have my swelling, blood pressure, and urine checked again. If there's still any question, I'll go in for bloodwork after that. (I got brave and asked them to send me somewhere else if I needed blood work, instead of them doing it, since it hasn't gone well there.) So we'll see what Friday brings. My guess is nothing, if I do a better job of hydrating, which I will. Baby has gotten really chill - the initial HR in the last two visits has been in the 120s. But once they start poking at him, he has really good accelerations.

So it's just a waiting game now. 39 weeks and 1 day today. I honestly don't think I'll ever have a baby. It's just to crazy to imagine. And I'm in no hurry for him to come. I'm sick of the swelling, etc, but being responsible for a newborn sounds pretty intense. I'm content to continue pretending he's not really coming. (Well, not entirely - still working on getting the birth bag packed and such.) I'm definitely not feeling impatient for labor, which I think is good. I think he'll probably cook for at least another week, but we'll see!
 
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