Hello ladies,

Thanks for the input about the birth plan. I am not sure that we will really write one out. However, we have taken the time in the last week to talk it all out. We have set up a few portions of the plan that involve other people. Just need to work out area other things. One being the issue of our parents and hmmm some jealousy issues that seem to be a common factor.
Any tips in that area? We had thought about making them draw straws for who gets to hold the baby first. Yet that seems so childish but we are lacking any other ideas on how to handle something so simple so feelings aren't hurt.

This past week I have been getting so very uncomfortable and had some issues with swelling. I think I have reached the point of being sick of being pregnant. Too bad I still have over 8 weeks left I am ready to have my beautiful little man in my arms and being able to get back into running. Hopefully this funk ends soon!

Your family sounds similar to my family on the jealousy thing... It is more of a grandparent war to see who can out do the other. I am sick of it and she isn't even here yet!

I hope your swelling goes down soon... I haven't had problems with that so I really have no advice except keep your feet up, drink lots of water, and perhaps try compression tights?

We will both be running again soon girlie!

Happy Monday! 38 weeks! This when I hand my first so my fingers are crossed any day now! Took my daughter to the zoo on Friday and was getting a lot of sharp twinges. at nothing. Really and then a few yesterday. My daughter stayed at Nana's last night so i Have the day to myself. I walked yesterday on the treadmill for 30 mins yesterday and wow! That took a lot out of me. Anyways should start my day, take care ladies

Tara
38 weeks!!!!!!

Ha – towards the middle of week 28 and finally posting on this thread! Gonna jump in and drop some commentary – y’all need to pick up the pace in here LOL:

Kelley – long time no see. I can definitely identify with the twinges to leave nearer to family and the Caribbean time. I still remember my family being stunned when they realized the true meaning of the Jamaican saying “soon come”. Congrats on your garden progress!

Jalyn – long time no see, lol. You can decide about an epidural at the very last minute, but not the baby lol. That was my fear about getting pregnant, it has to come out SOMEhow. I think of myself as a tough cookie but apparently my mom worrie I’m a wimp! The birthing stories are supposed to be posted as a separate thread but some people are slackin’.

Amanda – Your hubby sounds so sweet! That pooh collection sounds great too. I know you know this, but the preachy doc in me feels obligated to remind you to take the stuffed animals out of the bassinet before putting in the baby! I don’t understand why your DH is against a breast pump? My understanding is that there will be times you really need one… So sorry to hear about your dog, maybe you could start looking for another home early? Also, you know this is the time your weight is supposed to increase the fastest, right? Seems like you are right on track even if you do 1 lb a week until the end!

Taldie – congrats on the negative strep B! So exciting how close you’re getting, that baby will be around to kiss and cuddle before you know it!

Bmfrazie – I think you will have way too much on your mind to worry about petty jealousy. I saw whatever happens, happens (probably will depend on proximity, lol). Chose who YOU want in the delivery room and after that everyone can work it out rather than bothering you with their silliness. They will all get to hold the baby eventually.
I try to work out 5-6 times a week and do Jillian Michaels, elliptical, and my own circuit training routine in the gym that involves heavy weights and cardio machines. When I do the quick Jillian workouts I burn about 250, usually double that on cardio or mega circuit days. I started a thread in this group to see what people’s routines are if you want to check it out.

Kristi – Glad you had fun at the wedding. It drives me NUTS when people try to coddle me cause I’m pregnant! As they are starting to realize my “condition” the nurses are suddenly treating me with kid gloves and even my patients look out for me, not to mention my family. Argh! They mean well but jeez! OMG I think the doc will be fine with your weight, you are still within range and in the growth spurt phase. Give yourself a break! Great goals though.

Yolie – Yay on having a b-day for your little one! The weight will work itself out, especially with a determined soul such as yourself up to the task!

millionsofpea – great goals, the water aerobics sounds fun and it seems like you are doing fantastic! You made me feel guilty about my baseboards as well.

AFM - Happy to be in the 3rd trimester! My LO is moving a ton and I love to feel and see it! So far I have been faithfully keeping up on my exercise though I definitely get urges to veg out, and learning to accommodate my growing belly. My mom just came to visit for the weekend, mainly to feel her grandson kick and take pics of my belly. We did have a little incident where she took a pic of DH and I from an angle that made me look double chinned so I grabbed her phone to delete it, we ended up tousling and slipped on the floor in the living room. No damage done and DH didn't see (thank GOD!) but now she's torturing herself over it! And we're fine! I will be more careful in the future though. From a baby prep perspective we are in bad shape cause we are still talking about moving and have very little baby stuff, we have vowed to change that this month!

What are you ladies hearing about weight gain from your OBs? I see a lot of you are in the lower range of gains. At my appointment a few weeks ago my OB felt I was a little behind, largely because I gained 6lbs before my first appointment at 9 weeks and she's not counting it :noway:. I haven't gained anything in weeks even though I haven't counted calories for the last 2 and feel like I'm just now getting on track with everyone else but I did lose 1/2 a pound at my last home weigh-in (the baby is way high now and pushing on my stomach!) which made my mom and DH nervous. Don't know what my OB will say but she did express an interest in me gaining 30lbs...

Goals this week - exercise mix of cardio & strength at least 5x/week, 5 servings of fruit and veggies a day, 1+L of water a day (super thirsty), work on a nursery! :blushing:

Melissa
28 week 2 days, +19lbs

Happy Tuesday Ladies!!!!
Sorry I have been MIA...last week was crazy as people were traying to get there taxes done last minute...I was so exchausted every night.

Melissa - Welcome to the 3rd tri! You are so motivational exercise wise although I have still been slacking. As for weight gain my OB looked at my chart and compared it to my previous pregnancy and was like ok but I gain WAY too much the first time 60lbs and am only up 32 this time but she is like it's not ideal but not where you were before so she is fine with it. I had a bad eating week last week so I know I am going to suffer on the scale tomorrow but I have decided to not worry about it...I know I can lose the weight and when the scale creeps up too fast it motivates me to do better eating so I went grocery shopping for lots of healthy things on Sunday this week should be better and the weather is great so I should get in come walks.
PS...we do need to pick up the pace in here hopefully as more people come over...we will get more discussions going.

Jay - good for you on talking to your administrator and how exciting about the baby shower. I am sure it will be fun and you are right don't stress out let the planners do all the worrying you just go and have fun. Praying the job plans workout for your hubbs so that you can stay home with your little one. If you don't mind me asking what kind of business do you do from home? Either way money wise you will find a way to work it out...

Tara - oh my goodness anyday now...how exciting. Enjoy your day home. I vowed that towards the end I will keep my nanny on Thursday and use that as my day to get stuff down around the house and go shopping or to the movies and have some me time before the second one gets here so good for you on getting Tara-time in... I actually took my son to the zoo yesterday...My husband was like it maybe too much for me because of the heat and we took the train into the city but it was actually fine and amazingly my son was on his best behavior...I was so proud of him...and when we got home he took a nice long nap...SWEET! I didn't have any BH though I was hot the whole time...my little person is like a furnance...seriously.

Amanda - sorry to hear about your dog, I hope things workout and you are able to find a suitable compromise.

Millionsof pea - love the pic...I was just thinking this morning my feet are almost gone. I am with you on the weight gain...I need to get remotivated to eat healthy and stay active. Great goals for the week.

AFM - Next doc appt is tomorrow. Have been slacking on the walks last week because I ended up working everyday and was exhausted by the time I got home but taking my son to the zoo yesterday was quite a work out as I did all of the walking either carrying him or pushing him... Hopefully I will walk again today after work. Nursery wise things are slow but nesting as seriously kicked in and on Sat I rearranged my whole kitchen and am looking to reorganize it to make it less cluttered. And then on Wed I set a date with my Hubs to work on the nursery and on Frid I am having the nanny come for a few hours so I can work on the nursery again...so I have a plan for the week let's see how it goes. On a different note...last night my son climbed out of his crib, it was the scariest funniest thing ever. I was just telling my husband that he had figured out how to get one leg out ( this I witnessed) so we need to consider what to do and he was like ok. And we were listening to him on the monitor but he was quiet and then all of sudden there was a thump and the pitter patter of little feet...and my son was at the top of the stairs...crazy...so we are going to try out a toddler bed and see how he does, which now also means I have to rearrange his room. Wish me luck.
Anyway, good catching up with you ladies, I have to get back to work...will checking back in later today.

Kelley - 31 weeks

Kristi - Enjoy your walk....Yea...if he transitions well then I will definitely use the crib for his sibling. We are also considering making his bed his toddler bed with a rail but I have a few feelers out there to see if I can get a different toddler bed and then I will move the crib out of his room. Not sure how he will take it but I only have two months to work on it so I have to decide this week.

As for after birth procedures...with my son I didn't realize all those things were elective except the Hep B which I let them give him. With this baby I am think I am going to opt out of the eye drops...they are kind of pointless. I only did minimal research on it though. As of right now I am ok with the heel stick so they can run test and the hearing test.. I really need to research some of these things...but haven't...Great question!

As for after birth procedures...with my son I didn't realize all those things were elective except the Hep B which I let them give him. With this baby I am think I am going to opt out of the eye drops...they are kind of pointless. I only did minimal research on it though. As of right now I am ok with the heel stick so they can run test and the hearing test.. I really need to research some of these things...but haven't...Great question!

Cool... thanks for the responses, ladies. Kelley - that's weird, the nurse last night said something about the eye drops being state law in MD?! Jalyn - thanks for the info on the hearing screening... I had no idea what was involved.

Really...I spoke to a mom in one of mothers group who gave birth in a birth center and she opted out of the eye drops...I am going to have to research it...the mom told me that it was orginally created for AIDS babies and is not necessary if there it nothing wrong with your baby...humm...
I( appreciate the info about the hearing test as well.

Kelley- I don't mind you asking about my business at all! It's actually been really wonderful so far. You might have heard of Rodan and Fields before? They're the creators of Proactiv. They sold their business and in 2007 came out with a new line of products for skincare. The "regimens" as they call them are: Anti-age, Unblemish (adult acne), Soothe (for people with eczema, psoriasis, rosacea, allergies, etc), and Reverse (sun damage spots). They started selling in high end stores and out-sold Clique and Este Lauder 3 years in a row, but pulled out of retail to direct sales. I joined up and am now a marketer/independent consultant. Here's my website: https://jalyn.myrandf.biz/ I'm actually looking for business partners, so if any of you ladies know anyone who might be interested in product, or joining the business, please let me know. I want to stay home with my LO this fall! (Shameless plug ended. )

Emily- Your blood glucose test...did you have to drink something before you went to the doctor's office or did you take it there? My doctor gave me something to drink an hour before I get to his office. I assumed they'd do it differently just from what other people have told me happens. Just curious.

Kristi- I don't know if I"ve had them. I *think* that maybe I did, but I can't be sure. It felt like a tightening of my belly, but it was up high, so I don't know. I thought they'd be low, but what do I know?!

Jayln - I was given my drink at my previous appointment and was told to drink it 30 minutes before my appointment time, that way I could see the doc, and once my appointment was over they could draw my blood. Lol, not a shameless plug at all! I will have to take a look at your website later.

For product info: https://jalyn.myrandf.com
for business opportunity: https://jalyn.myrandf.biz

Thanks for checking it out. Let me know if you have any questions!! :happy:

Hi everyone. Just wantd to share that I gave birth last Mon nite on the 9th at 8:27pm. I will post the details in a bit on the birth announcement section. Still adjusting to the schedule with my baby girl while doing motherly and housewife duties.
Her name is Shasty Wailani. She was 21 3/4" long.

Jalyn – Your OB is likely thinking you will end up close to 35lbs which is within range. All we can do is continue to eat right and exercise anyway, it doesn’t make sense to frantically count and slash calories since our bodies are likely doing what they need to. How exciting about your shower! Your business sounds cool as well, will have to check it out!

Kelley – I’m glad your OB is being flexible, sounds like having a toddler is quite a workout indeed! Yikes but also lol at your LO escaping, I guess it’s that time! Glad your appointment went well and thanks for the website.

Kristi – I’ve definitely thought a lot about medical procedures. I absolutely want the screening and vaccine, they are done to keep my LO safe and give him the best chance of a normal life if he has anything wrong with him. The eye drops/ointment are largely harmless although they can cause eye irritation. They are for preventing STD-related eye infections (Chlamydia/gonorrhea not AIDS Kelley) which used to be the #1 cause of blindness! Since I’ve never had an STD and BETTER NOT have contracted one, I will likely refuse it if it isn’t the law. I plan to refuse the vitamin K and take it for myself since studies show it can cause irritation and possibly even leukemia and it works just as well to give supplements to a breastfeeding mom. BH are a vague tightening of the uterus, you can feel it if you touch your stomach. We all get them, it’s just a matter of whether you can feel them. I definitely have been feeling them for the last 2 weeks or so.

Emily – Welcome, you are hot on my heels, lol! Glad your placenta moved up, keeping my fingers crossed for your glucose test!

svgarcia – congrats! She’s adorable! When I saw you updated the thread I had a feeling you’d delivered! Looking forward to your birth story and total weight gain, etc. I’m sure all that water buildup will come right off in the next few days!

AFM - Had my OB appointment today, up 20lbs by their scale, at first they thought I gained only 14 but when I explained to my OB about the 6lbs I gained right away she was ok with it. She said I started off lean so if I gain closer to 35 that would be appropriate. Would still LOOOVE to be closer to 25, my LO is measuring right on time so I know I'm on the right track. Went to HR and found out I'm basically looking at about 3 weeks of pay lost during my 12 weeks of maternity leave, which I'm ok with but if I can pick up extra hours before the baby I will. I'm super tired today, slept until my OB appointment and then after lunch when I got home. About to hit the treadmill to at least get something in before meeting a friend for a movie, especially since I'd like some popcorn. I have my oral boards coming up in 2 weeks, going to really hunker down over the next few days to study, exercise, and eat right since I'm off work.

Melissa
28 weeks, 4 days
+19-20

Good luck, Tara!! Keep us posted.

Tara- super exciting! I'm sure I'll log on and read your baby story any day now!

Kelley- Happy shopping and best of luck on the nursery! Yeah, the institution of the drops was critical years ago because it did safe a lot of babies from blindness, and there are definitely women who contract STDs during pregnancy and don't know it, but many of us monogamous moms won't need it. I don't think it's as big a deal as vit K though

To the rest of you - hello? (hello, hello, hello) that was an echo. Where the heck are you ladies? Baby is coming soon, let's get to postin'!

AFM - heading off to Vegas for a few days with the hubby and a review course for my oral boards. Should be fun to prance around in my maternity clothes, seems like I'm showing more and more by the day though some still think my bump is small. Been battling fatigue but I guess that's par for the course at this stage. All the more important to stay active and eat right! On my official weigh-in today I haven't gained that pound I had at the OB, so I ain't counting it. I don't mind gaining a little but the less the better because I feel like the extra weight is so hard to carry around, not to mention lose. Been slacking on my kick counts cause he's always kicking me, easily does 10 kicks in 10 mins when not asleep...

Melissa
29 weeks, +19lbs

Hey ladies

Hope you’re all having a fabulous weekend!

Kelley – I’m glad you get another ultrasound to check baby! With DS#1 I only got one at 20 weeks, and I’ve had four with this one so far! Also happy to hear the heartbeat was strong and baby is doing well. I’m glad you had a successful shopping trip. Don’t you love hand me downs!? I worked with a couple of ladies who have sons a year or 2 older than DS and they gave me a bunch of clothes last year! I know you asked Melissa about the Vit K, and she’ll be able to tell you more than me, but I do know that it’s for blood clotting, and infants are usually deficient in vitamin K. I didn’t know about the whole relation to leukemia thing though which is scary, so I will have to research and ask my OB about that.

Svgarcia – Congrats! She’s a cutie!

Melissa – Have fun in Vegas and good luck with your course! I’ve been fatigued too, baby boy is SO active at night! I passed my glucose test, but my antibody screening came back positive. They didn’t give me the details, just that they would test again in a month, so I don’t know what my titers were, but I’m guessing they weren’t too high at this point being that they won’t check again for a month? I have another appointment next Monday so will find out the details, and in the meantime I’m trying not to stress too much, but I’d be lying if I said I didn’t have a mini breakdown after finding out and researching about it! I should have known better than to Google it!! Lol!

Tara – Sounds like baby will be here any day now (if not already!?) Good luck!

Jayln – Hope you had a good shower!

Kristi – HAPPY BIRTHDAY! Hope you’re having a lovely day and are getting spoiled!

AFM - Been super tired this week. Baby is so active at night, and I’m constantly tossing and turning throughout the night! Passed my glucose test but my antibody screening came back positive, so I’ve been a little stressed too which hasn’t helped matters! OH and I are still trying to decide on a name for the little one, and I think we may finally have it narrowed down, we shall see! I guess we still have plenty of time to decide! I weigh in tomorrow and I’m not really looking forward to it, I haven’t exactly eaten the best or exercise too much this past week, will have to rectify that this week!

I hope that you’ve all had a wonderful weekend and that you all have a great week!

Emily
28w+5d

Tara- I hope the LO decides to show up soon for you. What’s your final guess on date and sex since you seem to be dead on with everyone else?

Emily- Welcome! Wahoo for narrowing down a name!

Kelley- Yay for sales! I don’t know how you guys do it not knowing the sex. I had a pretty strong feeling right from the start it was a girl but felt so relieved after finding it out. Any guesses or inkinlings as to what it is?

Melissa- Have fun in Vegas! The bassinet won’t have the stuffed animals in it when baby arrives it was just a cute storing spot until we get a shelf or something to put them on. I hear you on the fatigue.

Svgarcia- Congrats on the beautiful little girl!

Kristi- Mine feel like sharp intense menstruation cramps that come and go in about 30 seconds. Some of them are strong enough I have to stop what I’m doing others are just little twinges. I’ve had a couple friends that said one of their pregnancies they got lots and then the next felt none so I think it just depends.

AFM- Well my boss left on vacation last week and left me as his replacement until the end of the month. This may not have been horrible except the fact we were right in the middle of contract negotiations and got some really bad news for staff on Tuesday(which was the day he left). So last week I got to deal with MULTIPLE very angry staff members and upset board members...just what an 8.5 month pregnant lady needs. Well I have definitely been “tested” by one of the other shift supervisors who is pissed I’m doing this since he is usually the boss’s replacement. I had an absolute break down on Wednesday. Thank God I have such an amazing husband who actually got his supervisor to cover his shift so he could come home and calm me down. I’ve never felt like that in my life and hope to never feel it again.

So I’m not sure if it’s the huge increase of stress or the 3rd tri-mester fun times but I’ve been nauseated almost every day for the past week. I had a prenatal on Friday. My doctor informed me he was no longer giving me the go ahead to work until 38 weeks and said the maximum he will let me work is 36 week(he wanted me off that day but can’t do that with the boss gone), only 2 weeks left for me I guess. He wasn’t happy to hear about the stress or my coping mechanisms and my BP was showing it. It wasn’t considered high but was 20-35 points systolic higher than it has been my entire pregnancy. I’ve also lost 3 pounds in 2 weeks not something they really want to see at this point.

On a happy note we went and had a maternity session with the photographer yesterday. The photographer couldn’t believe how small my belly was for being 34.5 weeks along. There was a lot of belly pushing out to try and make it look bigger which seemed to really annoy the baby. Hubby says there are some pictures I’m really going to like and others I won’t. As long as there are a few cute ones I’ll be happy.

We also have the nursery set up and ready aside from we are still waiting on a dresser we ordered. I get so happy every time I walk by the room. I can’t wait for her to be here and in it.

Well here’s hoping for a much better week and that everyone has a good one too!

Amanda
34Wks (+ 23lbs)