[shockels]

ok....here is a little chat thread for us to get to know each other, ramble on about anything, etc.

My name is Sandra and I'm cautiously expecting my 3rd baby. I've have 3 losses in the past the most recent in Feb. and all my fingers and toes are crossed it doesn't happen again. My ultrasound is this Friday. Wish me luck!
No nausea so far which is unusual for me. I had my first in a hospital and 2nd at home which was really nice because I'm a labor and delivery nurse and i prefer not having my babies at work!
Right now I'm fighting off a terrible cold and hope to be able to go back to work soon.

Look forward to chatting with you all!

 

[Mommyofalmost6]

Hi there I cant wait to hear about your ultrasound Thinking good thoughts!

We are expecting number 7 for our family. It will be my 6th delivering. I have never had a homebirth but would love one. The OB I found though I think will be wonderful and is very easy going and natural minded. The hospital she delilvers out of is smaller so I think its going to be a good experience. I have another appointment on Friday so I figure one appt at a time

the nausea is slowly getting better for me. I am so bloated though. I hate it. I am so uncomfy.

We had company this weekend. My "sister" and her 4 kids. We had a ton of fun, we hadnt seen them in almost a year. We had 10 kids and 3 adults oy lol. We hit the beach one day and most of us are all burnt up. I kept the kids home from school today cause they are just miserable. I feel so bad. My shoulders are killing me today lol.

 

[montessorimama1]

Sandra, I'll join you in crossing fingers and toes for healthy babies for all of us!

Mommyofalmost6, Woah! When do you find time to type with almost 6 kiddos?? You're my hero! Have you tried aloe vera for the burns? My hubby is white white white and it works wonders when he gets burned.

Hi! I'm Pilar and this is my first! DH and I are super excited and we can't wait to tell everyone (but we're waiting... just a few more weeks!!!). I'm living in Italy because I'm finishing grad school and in 41 days I fly back home to be with my man (but who's counting, right?).

I really want to go home... Living in Europe was nice but now that I'm pregnant I can't drink, don't want to eat most of the food (tomato sauce makes me want to puke right now), and I just want to buy the type of food I'm used to instead of the kind of food they serve at my boarding house.

It's sooooooooo nice to find this board because all my friends think I've been possessed by the devil (even those who know I'm pregnant). I tell them that being pregnant feels like being really hung over with PMS mood swings, while at the same time having eaten some bad oysters and a can of gassy beans. Pretty accurate, don't you think?

 

[Mommyofalmost6]

Quote:

Originally Posted by montessorimama1

Mommyofalmost6, Woah! When do you find time to type with almost 6 kiddos?? You're my hero! Have you tried aloe vera for the burns? My hubby is white white white and it works wonders when he gets burned.

Well there are those few loads of laundry that I need to do and those couple that need to be folded... I ignore the laundry so I can hang out on MDC lol. Ok not entierly lol... I hang on facebook too lmao. I am so tired right now that the idea of moving off my couch is just not there. My babies cuddle up with me and we watch netflix and I chill. I do stuff later when I am semi awake and it all works out in the end. I need to go get some Aloe today, thank you for the reminder!!!!

How is Italy? I would love to visit there. We will never get sent overseas cause our family is to large. I told my husband that he needs to stay in themilitary long enough that we get some of the kids over the age of 18 so we can take an over seas billit lol. He laughed at me. I was only half joking I know what its like to do a count down till you get your husband back 41 days isnt to bad in the big picture! YAY!

 

[thorn]

hello all! I'm christine, expecting our 4th child. So far everything is going well, I feel sick every 3rd day or so which is perfect, often enough that I don't think "where did my symptoms go?!" but not often enough to frustrate me. I'm 9w1d today.

I attended a birth over the weekend that was physically and mentally exhausting. I am still recovering. At least it was on Sunday so I got to sleep yesterday bc hubby was home for the holiday.

 

[writinglove]

Hi all. I'm Kay and a first-time mom-to-be living in Seattle. I'll be 6w on Thursday, feeling alright, slightly queasy every now and then, bloated, favoring bland food, emotional. I'm a writer and editor and develop organizations and publications. Thinking a lot about balancing motherhood and career and hoping this lil' embryo will stick.

 

[MidwifeErika]

Hey all. I am Erika and am quite unexpectedly pregnant.... found out a few days after my husband and I decided that we were actually done having children and discussing scheduling a vasectomy for him. This will be our 4th kid, our other kids are 5, 7, and 9 so there is going to be a big age gap here. We are excited about it, but I just wish I didn't have to feel so crappy during this first trimester! It makes it hard to work and care for my family when I am often holding back gags and falling asleep mid-sentence.

 

[milomama]

Hi all! I'm Jennifer, I'm almost 7 weeks with my second. My son is 26 months and really wearing me out these days! Morning sickness hit early with this one, and I have been feeling nauseous, repulsed by food, and totally exhausted since 4.5 weeks. Sigh, nothing is getting done around here as I sleep anytime my son does and he otherwise keeps me running around!

 

[AfricanQueen99]

I'm Angela and six weeks with my third. Like Erika, we (well, rather, my husband) thought we were done and had a vasectomy consult scheduled for a few days after the BFP. It has since been cancelled as I'll now be infertile for a good 1.5 years.

I go back in tomorrow for another round of blood to make sure the betas are rising and then I'll have a dating ultrasound toward the end of June.

My five year old hasn't been told yet. My guess is we will tell her at the u/s, but that's TBD still. The one year old couldn't give two hoots about this. Well, I take that back...I'm considering night-weaning to get more sleep and he might have a thing or two to say about that!

 

[chely7425]

I'm Rachel and pregnant with our 4th Another VERY unplanned pregnancy here but I think I am starting to get excited, or I am still in denial. One of the 2. I am *very* nervous about having 4 under 4, but 3 under 3 turned out to be surprisingly easy so here's hoping that trend continues!

 

[lactatinggirl]

I'm Claire and I'm 7 weeks and 3 days. This is my second and I'm very excited. My DD is 26 months and I swear she's having more attitude just because she realizes I can't handle it! She's being a little pill lately. On top of that, this pregnancy has been a lot more taxing than the last. Morning sickness, so tired, very irritable. My husband keeps saying he wishes this pregnancy was like my last one! I run a blog about breastfeeding and natural parenting and am doing posts about having a natural pregnancy. DD is still nursing (though night weaned thankfully).

 

[mamasmoman]

Hi! I'm Lara. 6w4d here. This is my fourth pregnancy(two blighted ovums and DS 19mo.). DS, DH, and I have recently moved back to the States after spending most of our lives in Europe. DH is active duty Army and I'm an LPN -turned-SAHM. Nausea just arted a couple of days ago, but the fatigue has been around since 3w5.

 

[kismetbaby]

Rachel--Wow, 4 under 4. You are one strong mama!

Don't have time to respond to each of you by turn, but I am enjoying learning about everyone! Much more fun to know something about each other.

I'm expecting #2, still BFing and co-sleeping with my 20mo. A little nervous about making the transition to 2 kids, especially since my son is still a super-clingy-mama-monkey. I'm 35 and will be just 36 when this babe is born, so we were feeling a little time pressure to have the next one, or I might have waited a bit longer. Anyway, I'm a SAHM and love it. My "past" life was as a photographer and an art historian. I'm 6 and a half weeks, I'll feel much better after my u/s this coming Monday when I will hopefully see the heartbeat. I had a lot of spotting early on and it made me really nervous, so even though I feel plenty pg now (nauseated, bloated, irritable, etc) it will be good to have that confirmation that everything is fine.

 

[montessorimama1]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Mommyofalmost6

Quote:

Well there are those few loads of laundry that I need to do and those couple that need to be folded... I ignore the laundry so I can hang out on MDC lol. Ok not entierly lol... I hang on facebook too lmao. I am so tired right now that the idea of moving off my couch is just not there. My babies cuddle up with me and we watch netflix and I chill. I do stuff later when I am semi awake and it all works out in the end. I need to go get some Aloe today, thank you for the reminder!!!!

How is Italy? I would love to visit there. We will never get sent overseas cause our family is to large. I told my husband that he needs to stay in themilitary long enough that we get some of the kids over the age of 18 so we can take an over seas billit lol. He laughed at me. I was only half joking I know what its like to do a count down till you get your husband back 41 days isnt to bad in the big picture! YAY!

Italy has been great! I've been here since August 2010 and it's been amazing to be able to travel around Europe, learn Italian, eat delicious food and explore their history. Living in Europe is very different from visiting, so if you can wing it down the road when your kiddos are older, I say go for it!!

It's so nice to get to know everyone and to know that we're going to be on this roller-coaster ride together for the next 9 months... And then the real fun starts! It's also comforting to have some veterans, because I know close to NOTHING about this whole birthing thing... Kids, I can handle (I'm a Montessori teacher) but the pregnancy and birthing makes me queezy (wait, maybe that's m/s??).

I wish everyone a light-symptom day!

 

[thorn]

I'm hoping for a light-symptom day too. I was SO nauseated yesterday and I had a headache and I got a big deli pickle with my dinner, i knew that it was going to be the perfect cold crispy vinegary thing for me, and my husband ate it!

I was like "why would you eat a pickle you didn't order?" "I thought you ordered it for me!" ummmm... no. but thanks for eating my pickle. hrmph.

 

[kismetbaby]

Pilar--I'd love to live in Italy someday! I lived in London for a year after my undergrad and my DH is from Israel (where is family still lives) so we travel often. Although a little less often now with a toddler! Anyway, I know the urge to be home must be strong now though. Just thought I'd mention that I felt a lot like you last time, not nervous at all about taking care of a baby/child (I was a nanny for years), but really nervous about the whole labor and delivery part. Turns out that I LOVED giving birth! Yes it was intense and yes it was painful, but as soon as labor started for me I was transported to this place of trusting my body and being totally in the moment. I never had a moment of fear once labor started. Of course then I found the first 4 months with a baby and BFing really difficult and wished I had prepared better for THAT! Just my experience, but thought I'd share. My advice (even though it's early) is to avoid bad/scary/sad birth stories and to surround yourself with positive ones. Anything that reaffirms your own trust in your body is good--Hypnobirth, prenatal yoga, any book by Ina May Gaskin, the movie "Orgasmic Birth", etc.

Christine--ugh, I hate it when DH eats something I was specifically saving/craving!

Hope for a light symptom day myself. I find if I make myself eat a big breakfast then that sets the day up better. But sometimes it's hard to choke it down. . .or it tastes really good at first and then halfway through I feel like, YUCK.

 

[thorn]

i'm totally the opposite, even though i wake up starving, if i eat a big breakfast I am sick the rest of the day.

 

[montessorimama1]

Quote:

Originally Posted by kismetbaby

Pilar--I'd love to live in Italy someday! I lived in London for a year after my undergrad and my DH is from Israel (where is family still lives) so we travel often. Although a little less often now with a toddler! Anyway, I know the urge to be home must be strong now though. Just thought I'd mention that I felt a lot like you last time, not nervous at all about taking care of a baby/child (I was a nanny for years), but really nervous about the whole labor and delivery part. Turns out that I LOVED giving birth! Yes it was intense and yes it was painful, but as soon as labor started for me I was transported to this place of trusting my body and being totally in the moment. I never had a moment of fear once labor started. Of course then I found the first 4 months with a baby and BFing really difficult and wished I had prepared better for THAT! Just my experience, but thought I'd share. My advice (even though it's early) is to avoid bad/scary/sad birth stories and to surround yourself with positive ones. Anything that reaffirms your own trust in your body is good--Hypnobirth, prenatal yoga, any book by Ina May Gaskin, the movie "Orgasmic Birth", etc.

Christine--ugh, I hate it when DH eats something I was specifically saving/craving!

Hope for a light symptom day myself. I find if I make myself eat a big breakfast then that sets the day up better. But sometimes it's hard to choke it down. . .or it tastes really good at first and then halfway through I feel like, YUCK.

Kismetbaby - I loved your advice! Thank you! That's exactly what I wanted/needed to hear. I have a strong trust in my body, which is why I'm planning a home birth and minimal interventions during the pregnancy. And yes, I'm totally staying away from those scary stories everyone seems to want to share. And yes, I'm freaking out about the breast-feeding, and about how my relationship wth my husband will change when the baby comes... But I'm going to enjoy every minute of it at the same time because it's something I've wanted for so long!

Christine - Oh no, NOT the pickle!!! I can totally understand your craving; I have been putting vinegar on EVERYTHING these days. You should have sent your husband out to get you a whole jar of them!

OK, you guys want to hear something funny/messed up/ironic? The whole year that I've been in grad school I have been hoping and praying for a job at my dream Montessori school when I got back to San Diego. By April, it was pretty much certain that it wouldn't happen this year, which is why I went ahead and got myself knocked up. Well, I've been pregnant for, oh, three weeks now, and what do I get in my inbox today??? AN AMAZING JOB OFFER at the dream school.

Yeah. Uh-huh. Talk about bad timing... I mean, I'm thrilled that I'm pregnant because if I had gotten the offer before April I probably would've taken it and then I would've postponed having kids for at least 2 more years, which would've put me at about 37 years old and all that ... And we really really wanted to start a family! But yet, it's such a shock... Just when I was starting to wrap my head around my new pregnant/mommy identity, here comes my other identity to haunt me... *sigh*

Is anyone else struggling/did anyone else struggle with switching "identities" when they got pregnant/had kids??? I know I did the right thing in getting pregnant, but I'm feeling so torn... Oh well, the school's director loves me and she'll love me two years from now when I'm ready to go back to work, right? I just needed to vent and work this out in my head...

Thanks for reading ladies!

 

[AfricanQueen99]

^^^ You want to talk about identity crisis wait until your kid is older and you no longer have a first name...you're just known as "C's mom" wherever you go. It's an odd feeling. And, dammit, I used to be a known professional in my community!

I went to the OB for my second batch of bloodwork today and was instead pulled into an ultrasound. We have a heartbeat!! Woot! Now, the whole thing was weird as I had both kids with me and we haven't told the daughter yet so everybody was all covert during conversations and a pap. My lord it was nuts. But now I feel like it's official and I can start being excited.

 

[writinglove]

Pilar, I totally hear you about the whole identity changing roller coaster. I am on track to get promoted at work and now that I am pregnant, I have no idea how that is going to happen. I told the dean of the school where I work, which some of my friends said was a bad idea not to wait until I was further along, but I didn't want them to go through all of the work to promote me only to have me announce that I am going on maternity leave. I'm hoping the timing Goddess will work in my favor. Every time I see the dean in the hallway, I wonder if she is disappointed in me. Yikes, I must work on promoting more positive vibes about the sisterhood at work. I hoping to go back to work 4 days a week after my FMLA time is over, but time will tell. Good luck with your transition. And the one thing I know about job offers, is that if you get selected for one, you will get selected for another when the time is right.

Kismetbaby, thanks for the wise words about trusting your body during birth. I'm so excited to learn more about putting trust in my body using hypnobirthing and taking classes. I'm lucky living in Seattle in that I get to attend birthing classes that are taught by Penny Simkin. I made sure to sign up almost as soon as I was pregnant because they fill up so quickly. A good friend of my is going to hospital birth route and likes to quote statistics about the dangers of birthing at home or at a center. It's hard not to listen to all of the fear out there.

AFM, I'm a hormonal mess. God bless my DH as he helped me work through some work-related crap yesterday. How are the rest of you handling the hormonal craziness that is the first trimester?