Thursday 31 May 2012

Pregnancy Post: When to call the Midwife.

At 27 weeks pregnant, I am very aware that some point in the (scarily!) near future, the little blue bundle of joy that is happily growing inside of me will have to enter this world.

As i've said before; I am a worrier. A serious worrier. How will we get the hospital? Will the car break down as i'm in labour meaning that i'll end up birthing in the car park outside our apartment? Will my hospital bag be ready or will I end up throwing my stuff in an Asda carrier bag? Will Mr C somehow manage to get stuck at work; will his phone battery have died and will it be impossible to get in touch with him so he'll miss the birth? You read the stories; they are a weekly occurance in 'Take A Break' magazine. Will I be claiming my £50 telling the world of my son's arrival in 6.3 seconds down the toilet!?


All these questions are constantly whirring around my head and I feel that the only thing that will ease this tension is knowledge. As they say, knowledge is power and all that.

So, when is the time? When do you call the midwife? I came across this really interesting article that I will most definitely be saving until 'D Day' eventually arrives. In fact, I may stick it to the fridge door just so i'm prepared for all eventualities! :)

If you think you’re in labour, the best thing to do is stay at home as long as you can.

There is always a midwife on duty at the labour ward, so you can ring at any time to talk things through. If your waters break you may be advised to go in.

 

Early labour tips

If you are coping well at home, keep reasonably busy and labour will pass more quickly:
  • If it’s the middle of the night, rest!
  • If it’s daytime, keep active, but don’t exhaust yourself.
  • Eat and drink.
  • Empty your bladder regularly.
  • Check that you’ve got everything ready.
Go to hospital when the contractions are regular, long and strong. Some midwives suggest when the contractions last 50-60 seconds and come every five to six minutes. Remember to take into account the length of the journey to hospital.
If you are having a home birth, team midwifery or one-to-one midwife care, phone your midwife when you think you are in labour. Together you can decide when she should come.

 

Labour worries

Call your midwife or doctor if you have:
  • Bleeding like a period. This would be heavier than a ‘show,’ which may be lightly bloodstained. Heavy bleeding is a cause for concern.
  • Constant abdominal pain. Contractions are different as they come and go. Constant pain needs checking.
  • Sudden severe headaches or vision disturbances as this could be a sign of dangerously high blood pressure.
  • Reason to think the baby has not moved recently or the movements are much less than usual.
  • Any reason you think you might be in labour – your midwife will have spoken to plenty of women in labour and will be able to tell a great deal from how you sound and what you describe to her.

 

At the hospital

Before you go to hospital, ring the labour ward and tell them what has been happening to you. The midwife may suggest you stay at home longer or ask you to come to the hospital straight away.
Once there, you might be admitted first to an assessment unit. Your midwife will check when your contractions began and how often they are coming.
She will check your notes, take a urine sample and your blood pressure. She will then check the position of your baby by feeling your tummy and may, with your permission, do an internal examination to see how much the cervix has opened.
She will listen to the baby’s heartbeat using a hand-held monitor. If anything needs double-checking, your midwife may ask a doctor to examine you as well.
The midwife or doctor can confirm from this assessment how far on in labour you are and will offer to admit you to the labour ward, an antenatal ward, or suggest you go home for a while.

Source: www.bounty.com

Blog Challenge (2): 20 Facts About Me

So here goes; 20 Facts About Me. Now, as i've mentioned before, I am about as interesting as a nun in a library so i'm changing this one. My blog, My rules and all that!

20 Facts About Me is now replaced with 10 Facts About Me. Much more concise & too the point, I don't want to bore you! (Realistically, I can barely think of 10 so there's not a cat in hells chance of coming up with 20 even remotely amusing, witty or to be honest, interesting facts about me!


1. I chopped the end of my toe off when I was 2 whilst dancing on a table - There you are; a nice grotesque one for you. Hopefully, it's not lunch time and you've not just chomped down on a nice baguette of some sort whilst you are reading that one. The good news is, it was saved and i'm the proud owner of all 10 toes.

2. I have a BA(Hons) in Primary Education with Qualified Teacher Status. However, I am currently working in administration... and my grammar leaves a lot to be desired, especially for a 'teacher'! Ooops!

3. I am in an 'age-gap' relationship. I am 22; Mr C is 34. For people that know us as a couple, you'd know that this is most definitely the other way round. He has the mental age of a 22 year old whereas I am extremely mature for my age. Coupled with the fact that, apart from a few grey hairs(!), he doesn't look (or act) like a man in his mid 30's. In fact, in his words, he looks 'at most 21.' If you'd have told me that i'd be with a significantly older man before I met Mr C, I would have laughed; but as they say, you never know who you are going to fall in love with. I enjoy the stability of being with someone who (even though immature at times!) is 'grown-up', committed and able to keep it in his trousers, rather than a young 'jack the lad' sort who loves nothing more than spending his nights prowling the clubs like some sort of alley cat & his days watching Jeremy Kyle back to back! Note: I don't think all young men are like that; just my experiences!

Which brings me nicely onto number 4:

I was on Jeremy Kyle! No, not as as a contestant (I can't think what you'd call them? Maybe a 'subject?') but in the audience. Yes, shameful I know. I shook his hand and was on the TV grinning innanely at him! He is now also one of my secret 'shouldn't but would' crushes!

5. I passed my driving test 2nd time. Yes I know, this isn't particularly interesting. 1st time would have been impressive and 21st time would have been hilarious whereas 2nd is a bit boring. I like to think I am a good driver although whenever myself and Mr C are in the car together, we argue like crazy because he's a rubbish driver and he likes to tell me what to do!

6. I have a love of mushrooms. I could eat them for every meal & when I go to family or a friends house for a meal, they always make me mushrooms specially.

7. I would like to learn Spanish. I did download an app on my phone but as such, it remains unused similiar to the 'Trainline' & clubcard apps!

8. I have always dreamed of going to Australia. Mr C has VERY long legs; he's 6ft 7" so he's reluctant to be cramped up like a sardine on a flying bird for 27 hours but we will go in the future.

9. I would like to swim with dolphins. (I keep trying but they keep dying on the bus on the way to the swimming baths!) Sorry that was a pathetic attempt at a joke, which has left me sniggering to myself ridiculously!

10. Talking of sniggering... I snort when I laugh. Not all the time but when something is particularly funny, i'll happily snort away like Miss Piggy. Attractive i know!

So that's my attempt at being 'interesting' or factual whichever way you want to look at it. I admit, I was scraping the barrel towards the end but there is 10 Facts About Me!

Wednesday 30 May 2012

26 Weeks Pregnant...

Last Friday saw us reach the 26 week milestone. Exactly 6 months. Wow.

Here's me, looking like a beached whale with our blooming bundle growing and wriggling happily inside me.


The bump seems to have popped up out of no where. I hadn't informed my work of my imminent arrival until a few weeks ago but it would have been impossible to hide it any longer! This week has been lovely as we have started to see his movements. For a few days, i'd been catching my tummy flinching out of the corner of my eye but thought I was imagining it. Then bold as brass, whilst I was laid on the couch in my bra eating chocolate (classy I know!), Baby C let out an enormous kick which ricocheted across my whole stomach! Myself and Mr C were in shock to see how much my tum moved! I feel like i've got an alien inside of me thrashing about in a great attempt to escape!

In other baby news this week:

  • We've brought all of his stuff over from my mums house. As our planned relocation isn't going ahead now until after he arrives, we figured it was important to get as organised as we possibly could. Both myself and Mr C were in shock at how much things a tiny person needs! Our spare room (which will be the nursery when Mr C gets round to setting it up) is bulging at the seams with baby related items! I am under strict orders that I am to purchase no more clothes until he arrives but I just cannot resist!

  • I've started looking into private antenatal classes. I'm looking at NCT classes as the hospital Parent Craft classes seem to be a pain in the bum to organise! I'd love to hear if anyone had any experiences with these classes? Would you recommend them?

  • We've booked our 4D scan for next week! I cannot wait to see what he looks like rather than simply a grey sketchy blob floating around. (God, I seem like a terrible mother describing my unborn son as a 'grey sketchy blob!'.)




Blog Challenge (1): Introduction & Recent Photo

This is me. Well, I say 'me.' The usual me doesn't look like I'm smuggling a beach ball up my dress but it did say a recent photo & recently, I've been looking like this. I'm Jess; 27 weeks pregnant and carrying a little boy.


I live in Merseyside with my 'partner', Mr C. I say 'partner', he still hasn't put a 'ring on it' and he's way too old to be my boyfriend! ;) I am an adopted scouser; moving here at 18 years old for University, meeting Mr C then never moving back! Much to Mr C's dismay and despair(!), I still have a broad Yorkshire accent which to the amusement of him & his 'Scouse' family, causes me to elongate my vowels in a way that they find hilarious. "Noooooo", it's not funny! However, Yorkshire is still 'home' & a place that I will always love.

At this point, I would love to be able to say something interesting like "I enjoy water skiing, deep sea diving and have climbed Mount Everest twice" but I can't. To be honest, I'm not that interesting... I even had to lie on my University application to say that I was an avid skier and an accomplished horse-rider. I have, once being skiing; that was when I was 10 and on a dry ski slope. To be honest I put the skis on, fell on my arse and spent the rest of the time there! Coupled with the fact my 'accomplished horse-riding career' is more 'donkey rides at Blackpool', I am forced to admit that on paper, I'm a bit of a bore! Realistically, I enjoy: shopping, eating out at restaurants that we cannot afford, watching Corrie with a big bar of chocolate, long bubble baths and talking on the phone. See, not particularly interesting or exciting at all! :)

My blog is to document the journey of my pregnancy. Hopefully one day, when my son is not so little, he'll read it and see how he came to be. (Albeit, not the actually 'coming to be', making bit though! I'll spare him [and you for that matter!] those details!) He'll see his mum before she became a smock-wearing, grey-haired worrying bore and find that; once upon a time, she used to be 'cool' herself!

I hope you enjoy! (& son if you're reading, i totally WAS cool!)





My name is Jess & I am a TERRIBLE Blogger... But I will get better, Promise!

When I set out to write this blog, I was  all 'bright eyed & bushy tailed' as they say. However, as good as my first intentions, I found that life simply got in the way, my work load increased ten-fold and my blog posts quickly wained! Writing a blog was something that I had previously thought about on numerous occasions, especially since finding out I was 'expecting'. I wanted somewhere to document my journey, have a rant & a moan (apparantly I am a master of both; according to Mr C!) and generally fill my time once my maternity leave began. I am an avid reader of numerous blogs; they make me laugh, cry and inspire me and I hoped that through documenting my pregnancy journey I could maybe do the same. So here I am, I am back, with re-newed enthusiam, determination and a significantly de-creased workload!

To kick off my posts, I am going to do a blog challenge... Here goes.

 

Blog Challenge Prompts

1. Introduction and recent photo
2. 20 facts about you
3. Your favourite quote
4. What are you afraid of
5. 10 songs you love right now
6. Your 5 senses right now
7. Your pet hates
8. What's in your handbag
9. What are your worst habits
10. What's your best physical feature
11. List 15 of your favourite things
12. What's inside your fridge
13. What is your earliest memory
14. If you won the lottery...
15. Timeline of your day
16. What's top of your bucket list
17. What is your most proud moment
18. The meaning of your blog name
19. What do you collect
20. A difficult time in your life
21. Your 10 favourite foods
22. Best thing to happen this year
23. Your dream job
24. Your favourite childhood book
25. Your 5 favourite blogs
26. An old photo of you
27. Post your favourite recipe
28. What are you looking forward to
29. Where have you travelled
30. What's in your makeup bag
31. Why do you blog

Sunday 20 May 2012

P.D.A's - How far is too far?

Today, me & Mr C had a very 'interesting' encounter with two strangers in Boots... We stepped into the lift (Baby C is giving me some jip with my back so we took the easier option of the lift rather than Mr C rolling me down the flights of stairs!) only to practically bump into a couple snogging! And no, not just a quick peck; full on necking!


Now i'm no prude, I'm partial to a spot of hand-holding with Mr C, maybe even a sneaky peck on the cheek if i'm feeling particularly romantic ;) but this was just WAY too O.T.T. Luckily, we only had to go down one floor but still cue red faces (mine & Mr C's; not theirs!) and an awkward shuffle whilst they played a spot of 'tonsil tennis' and their young daughter skipped happily and oblivously around the lift!


It got me thinking... How far is too far? Public Displays of Affection or P.D.A's are acts of physical intimacy in view of others, for example, holding hands, a kiss, cuddle or god forbid, even more! Now, I love nothing more than seeing an old aged couple holding hands; it restores my faith in love and makes me look forward to the future when me & Mr C are old & grey! I'll happily walk the streets with Mr C holding hands but we're not those pains in the ar*es  joined at the hip, blocking the aisles in Asda- type! If i'm feeling particularly fruity ;) or have had a few too many glasses of the good stuff, he may get a quick peck but anymore than that is, in my personal opinion, too much!




Don't get me wrong, different situations call for different levels of 'restraint.' For example, if I was in a club, I wouldn't think too much of a couple having a cheeky kiss and cuddle (we've all been there, blame it on the wine!) but a full on (un-alcohol fuelled) passionate snog in broad day-light should be left for behind close doors shouldn't it? Don't get me wrong, i'd much rather see a happy loved-up couple than a screaming slanging match taking part in the street (yes, it hapens... another 'interesting' encounter spectated today) but too much and I won't be held responsible when the contents of my stomach end up on street!



Friday 18 May 2012

Changing Bags....

I'm definitely a handbag kind of girl... They last a lifetime, unlike clothes (which suspiciously begin to become tighter over time. It's the clothes themselves though; not my unhealthy cravings for birthday cake & pick 'n' mix!) therefore I do not mind paying a little bit extra for a gorgoeus bit of 'arm candy' so to speak. 

Saying that, I am the proud owner of a Chloe Paddington bag which was used a handful of times then replaced with my current trusty Primark classic and thrown in the bottom of the cupboard, hence a waste of a significant chunk of my monthly salary!

I've been looking for the perfect changing bag for a while. We've purchased the pram, the bedroom furniture, nursery interiors, nappies, clothes, bouncer chairs and all the essentials etc. etc. with ease and we've even been  fortunate enough that baby C has grandparents that love to spoil him already so they've showered us with the whole of Mamas & Papas however I am struggling to find the perfect changing bag! 

Now, it's only a bag I hear you say, but it is something that I will use everyday and it will take place of my trusty Primark classic so I'm hoping to find something quite spectacular!


Features that I've figured important are:

  • it co-ordinates with my pram; the Quinny Buzz in Black
  • it has space for all baby C's things (which if he's anything like mum, he'll have loads!) as well as my diary, purse, keys, lipgloss etc etc. I don't really want to be carrying two bags around with me.
  • it isn't TOO girly - Mr C will have to use this bag on his 'father & son' outings so i'm sure he wouldn't appreciate lugging a pink floral print bag around on his shoulder!
Now i've seen a few styles I like (see below!) but this seems to only make it harder for me to choose!

I'm sure when baby C arrives, what his changing bag looks like will be the last thing on my mind but whilst I'm enjoying my last few weeks months before I'm drowning in nappies and baby sick, I'm sure it'll give me something to take my mind off the swollen ankles and backache!

I'd love to hear any recommendations or comments!

Today: 25 Weeks

So today we have reached 'Week 25'. I honestly cannot believe how fast this pregnancy has gone. I recall finding out at Week 4 and thinking we had all the time in the world before he/she arrived! I am so used to casually answering 'Oh, not till August' when somebody asks when I am due but I am now panicking that 'not till August' is only 3 months away! 

Where does the time go?! I should really be thankful and not tempting fate as the next 15 weeks will drag now I have dared to say it's gone fast! 

Luckily we are really organised and have made all the relavant purchases (who knew how much a tiny person needed?!) so apart from the major hurdle of re-locating to a whole new area and finding a new house, we are pretty much ready for our little man to make his entrance into the world. 

At 25 weeks:
  • Our baby's face is now fully formed and his ears are capable of picking up and differentiating between different voices and sounds.
  • His skin is smoothing out and looking more like a newborn.
  • His nostrils have cleared, having been plugged until this time?!
  • His sleep cycles have developed and he will snooze for as long as twelve or fourteen hours at a time! (I hope he has such lovely sleep patterns when he arrives!)
  • His hair is growing and it is now possible to detect the colour! (My dad will be made up if he is a red head!)
  • He is around 34cm in length and weighs around 1 1/2 1bs.
Here is a 3D scan photo of a baby in the womb at 25 weeks. (Not our little man however!)





Source: Emma's Diary

Thursday 17 May 2012

20 week Scan... Half way there!


On 18th April, 2012 we went along to the hospital for our anomaly scan. We'd decided early on that we'd find out the sex of our baby. Now this was a personal decision for us, I understand that some people like the element of surprise at the end of a pregnancy however I am not a 'surprise' kind of girl! In the run up to Christmas, I have been known to check Mr C's bank statements to see if he's made any extravagant purchases from any of my favourite shops and even search the house for any clues of potential gifts! You can imagine then that from the moment we found out we were parents to be, I couldn't wait to find out whether my bundle of joy was pink or blue!


I'd had feelings all the way through that I was carrying a boy. Some say it's 'mother's intuition', others a lucky coincidence but I was adamant that my bump was blue, especially because of my to my hairy belly which apparently indicates that you're carrying a boy!! I never said this pregnancy lark is attractive ha ha!

The scan went along brilliantly. We were thankfully told that our baby was developing well and growing perfectly. There were no major issues however it took a while to check the heart as the little monkey wouldn't move and kept sticking his bum in the air! Having a walk and a quick trip to the loo meant that baby moved and we finally managed to get a scan picture! It was at this appointment that we also got told... We were having a BOY! As Mr C thought we were having a girl (he likes to disagree with me!) I shouted 'I told you so!' loudly when the sonographer told us!



It was lovely to finally be able to call the bump 'he' and I definitely don't regret finding out. A major peeve of mine, especially before we found out, was people (and by people I mean some that we hardly even know!) passing comment on our choices. We experienced at least 4 or 5 people saying 'What? You're going to find out? Oh no, it ruins it... BLAH BLAH BLAH!' It really annoyed me that people felt they were able to pass comment on our parenting choices before I'd even given birth! Obviously the pregnancy hormones made it worse & I'm beginning to learn to accept that whatever you do, people will always feel that they can comment on your choices, especially where parenting is concerned!

Knowing that a baby boy is growing in my bump has made it all seem more real. Seeing Mr C's reaction to the fact that he had a son was overwhelming & we are literally counting the days till we meet our gorgeous boy!

Sunday 13 May 2012

For the first time...

It sounds cliche... nauseating even but seeing our baby for the first time, I felt complete and utter elation. In fact, scrap that, elation doesn't cover it. It's a feeling that I couldn't even comprehend describing but as a mother or father, you'd know exactly what I was feeling.


As a complete hospital phobe, admittedly I was petrified, selfishly for myself and the prospect of becomming a human pin cushion but also for the baby. Would he/she be ok? Would they have two heads? Would there even be a baby there? As stupid as it sounds, because they'd not confirmed my pregnancy at the doctors, I was terrified that we'd get to the hospital and they'd tell me I wasn't even pregnant!


That moment of seeing our baby wriggling about on the screen, it made me realise and appreciate everything my own mother had done for me and how much I was loved by my own parents. It made me fall that little bit deeper in love with Mr C and I will forever be greatly thankful for this gift that we'd both created.








I felt a love that I'd never experienced before and a complete and utter devotion to this little bean that was growing inside of me. I was determined, he/she wouldn't want for anything. Mr C was determined that he/she would play for Liverpool, be a professional golfer, a doctor, a child genious... so many dreams and he/she wasn't even born yet!


We'd chosen to keep the pregnancy quiet until after this scan. The only people that knew beforehand was my parents (the day before the scan!) & my friend, who's a midwife. Other than that we'd made the decision to make sure everything was ok before we broke our exciting news!


I think it was this point where it really sunk in. I was very lucky that apart from the odd tiredness, I never really felt 'pregnant'. I managed to avoid the usual plagues of the first trimester; especially and thankfully, the sickness therefore seeing this little life on a screen bobbing about, it finally dawned... I was a MUM!

















Saturday 12 May 2012

Where the Journey Began...



So here it is... Where the journey began. 30th December 2011. Very much planned and excitedly anticipated but still, the biggest shock of our lives!

It wasn't the most romantic of settings... In fact it was a pub car park. Now anyone that knows me or Mr C will know we like a drink or two and we met in a pub so it was quite apt that I was breaking the biggest news of our lives to him in the car park! However, I wouldn't change it for the World & i'll remember the moment forever.

After doing the test, I'd drove to pick Mr C up in shock. As soon as he'd got in the car, I blurted it out and I honestly thought he was going to burst with shock/excitement/fright and every possible emotion you could ever imagine. His initial reaction was 'Are you sure?!' so I threw the test at him and the look on his face was something i'll remember forever.

The journey home was surreal, both of us trying to digest this information! We, US! were going to be parents! Mr C honestly did not shut his mouth for one second! Usually, I am the talkative one in the relationship but my god, I thought my ears were going to burn off! Arriving at home, after telling me he couldn't wait for me to 'glow' and he'd got the baby's whole life planned out, his hopes and ambitions for his first born and at that moment, I knew... A Daddy was born!


At this point I was 4 weeks pregnant.  And there we begin... The start of A Whole 9 Months! Fast forward 20 weeks and so much has changed.