Due October 2012

Rachineire

hazeler wrote: »

Thanks for the reply. For us, we know that using cloth nappies is not going to be a time saver! they will be more work I know but really it doens't bother me. You're doing extra washing for the babs anyways so you can just fire in the nappies with them. (well the brand we're opting for anyways!)

From what I have read, there are nappy liners that are included in the nappy. These are the ones you wash and re-use. the once off buy package. Then there are optional liners that you can get to help absorb looser stools etc and these are bio-degradeable, can be composted, washed out and re-used up to 6 washes or just flushed down the toilet. They cost €4.99 for a roll of 200 (and are made in Ireland ) A once a year buy really and because they are bio -degradeable they are actually environmentally friendly.

You don't have to have these liners with the brand I am looking at, they are just optional.

It does seem to be the "jesus yer mad" option but thats ok with us!

Popping over from the december thread! We were thinking of going cloth as well more for the money saving factor (over time as buying them at first is a major expense!) and also for the environmental factor! I hate the idea of so many nappies ending up in a landfill. I was trying to do research and just got completely overwhelmed and gave up! What made you decide on bumgenius versus the others?? do you have to wash them in a special detergent versus regular clothes? can you tumble dry them? can you use sudocrem as normal?? so many questions! I would love to have a chat with you about them if you want to/have the time! Much thanks and thanks for letting me barge in!

hazeler

Lac21 wrote: »

Wow hazeler, I have to admit it's something that has never even crossed my mind until I read your post!
I think like most parents, I would find the washing daunting. As you say though there is lots of extra washing as it is!!
I will be very interested to see how you get on with them.

Thanks Lac21. From what I have read I don't think the washing will be as huge as I think, in my head it will be... But we'll see! I'll keep you updated on our progress once "Champ" arrives!

Rachineire wrote: »

so many questions! I would love to have a chat with you about them if you want to/have the time! Much thanks and thanks for letting me barge in!

I PM'd you there so hopefully my nonsense will make sense!

KGLady

First time around I was all eager to explore options for cloth nappies, though I never went beyond toying with idea of it. Honestly after the horror that is a breastfed newborn's poop I always wound up wanting to just be rid of it as fast as possible, shoving the disposables into a scented bag and straight into a sealed bin. I'm not squimish or particularly smell sensitive (apart from during pregnancy!) but they can be so so bad Himself is even more pathetic when it comes to the stinky bums, he is brilliant for doing the washing, but there's just no way I could coax him to deal with washing nappy liners.

Part of me always felt guilty about the landfill aspect, esp when we had no2 arrive when no1 was only 13mths so for a time we had a lot of nappy waste. I'm dreading that aspect again esp as bin charges are on the up and they are bulky. Ultimately I decided disposables were an evil of convenience that I couldn't pass over and really pushed myself to be careful about recycling and composting to soothe my guilty conscience :P

messynessie

Hazeler I'm planning on going down the cloth nappy route too. I've gone for mostly BumGenius V4s for a number of reasons. They were easy to get hold of, we've managed to get a good deal on both new and preloved ones, they will do from birth to potty, no scary folding haha:)
We have gotten a pack of Bambino Mio prefolds as well, got a really good deal on a starter pack of 12 nappies and 3 covers for 30quid so have them as an option.

I wonder actually is there a thread on here with a group if cloth nappy parents? Maybe we could set one up for those of us that are doing it

I'm not too bothered by the washing side of things it's an extra load every second day really and they apparently dry fairly quickly and you can use normal non bio washing powder (apparently half the normal amount should suffice)

KGLady

Hows all our Oct bumps and Mammas getting on?

I'd my glucose test done yesterday, I need to say thanks again for the tips and advance advice that was offered here, it really came in handy esp for helping me be realistic about planning the rest of my day afterwards. (Gave a pass to the offer of freebie Madonna tickets and I'm so glad I did and had an early night instead!) All clear on the test results which is a relief, though my little passenger seemed to get a real burst of energy in the initial lucozade high and has been hyper ever since. Its nice to feel all the activity and movement, but it seems like the baby hasn't slept since yesterday and its getting exhausting now. Playing some chill music to the bump now in the hope the tiny dancer will relax and give me a bit of a break

Lac21

Great you got the all clear KGlady:-) Sounds like its a tiring day though.
Can I ask you how long it took in total? I'm due to have mine next Tuesday. In at half 9. Would just like a general idea. Have to sort out a babysitter. Also, were you expected to sit in the hospital the whole time or could you leave in between tests. My in laws live v close to the hospital so maybe I could pop over to them. I realise I must sound like a very impatient pregnant lady!! Am dreading it now I have to say. My GP stressed me out saying it was a completely antiquited process etc. I'm also a bit worried because my last urine sample showed an increase in sugar level.

KGLady

I was in the Rotunda for mine and it was the '3hr test'. I was fasting from midnight, checked in there for 8.30am (they have a wee room with comfy chairs and a TV just for the GTT patients, and a small consult room just off it) had my first bloods taken then had 15mins to drink the jug of lucozade and had more bloods then at ~ 9.30 10.30 and the last one just after 11.30am. I couldn't eat or drink anything else during the 3hrs. After the last one they had tea coffee and sandwhiches and the nurse was making sure we all ate and felt well and told us to stay until we felt ready to head on. There's a right sugar rush in the first hour and then a crash after, so the second hour was the tough one for me, but eating helped pick me up after and I had a chocolate bar stashed in my bag to give me an extra little boost if I needed it.

There was two of the ladies coming and going between their hour time - one was spending time in the main hospital waiting area with her mother (room was too small for +1s and we were told in advance to come alone) and another was popping out elsewhere coming back in time for the retest each time, but I didn't know if she was onsite or off.

I was very tired afterwards, sore arms from having bloods taken from each one twice, usually it doesn't bother me getting them done, but going on the same area again made it more sensitive second time round. I did feel kinda pukey when trying to eat after the final bloods, but thankfully wasn't actually sick. I arranged to have himself come and pick me up after so that I wasn't driving home, the combination of the fasting and the rollercoaster of the sugar high and come down just left me drained, but honestly I was expecting worse than it actually turned out to be

Hope yours goes well tomorrow - and that I'm not too late replying to be helpful!

Lac21

Thanks so much for all the information. Doesn't sound as bad as I thought. Mine is next Tuesday so I have some time left to organise babysitter and someone to collect me.
I will be having mine in UCH Galway. My sister in law had hers there. They didn't have separate waiting area or sandwiches/tea available. She was there nine in the morning until half one. That was seven years ago though so hopefully things have changed!! :-)
Thanks again. Will keep you posted.

KGLady

@Lac Hah clearly I had a brain fart last night when replying and somehow invented the notion yours was today XD Might be worth while putting on the friendly charm and phoning UCH-G to check out the setup and see if they will let you pop out to your inlaws or give you any advice on what to expect. One of my sisters has this fantastic manner with people that she can always charm them even in a simple short phone call, honestly she leaves me impressed everytime I watch how folk warm to her in a few mins. I do try to reflect some of that charm of hers when making those sort of phone calls

Lac21

KG, Just got a phone call from maternity in UCHG. They want to change my appointment to Thursday. Suits me better so am happy about that. I tried the charm trick to get some info but I didn't get very far :-(
Anyway, met an old friend at lunch yesterday. She's due early October and had her test last week. No separate waiting area or tea/sandwiches for us Galway girls it seems! She said she felt like passing out afterwards from hunger. She had no idea what was involved beforehand so at least I will be prepared with my own food, book etc.

messynessie

Lac I've my test in WRH on Tuesday From what I've heard I'll have pretty much same set up as you, no special treatment just sat in the corridor outside the main bloods room with everyone else that's getting bloods done. I'll def be prepared with a packed lunch and some books. Hopefully I'll be ok to drive home I've no one who can pick me up

KGLady

Sounds like I did really well in the Rotunda then having a comfy room for the testing and being fed after. Hope it goes well for you both I'll be keeping fingers crossed.

I'm in shock this morning, 29wks and last night was out for dinner with hubby (yay for grandparents taking our other minis for a weekend sleepover!) and leaving the restaurant we were laughing at how I was feeling baby's back or bum right up high on the bump just beneath my boobs. I was very sore all last night, lower back the muscles under the bump and the tops of my legs too so I'd a hot shower and stayed in bed once we got home. This morning my bump has dropped MASSIVELY. Baby is no longer up under my boobs (relief for my squishy lungs and stomach at least) but its now really low down so much that even hubby was shocked looking at it. I've about 5-6 inches now between boobs and bump and sitting down its resting on my thighs and I'm still all aches and agony moving about.

Its baby 3 for me and dropping earlier is common I believe, but it seems just so early and I'm gobsmacked at how far its moved overnight

Lac21

Keep us posted Messy. I'd say you will need to eat and relax a bit before driving yourself. Was just thinking this morning, it's going to be tough with no breakfast. I feel a bit lightheaded until I eat.
KG, hope aches and pain have gone. Did u experience 'dropping' before? I never did on my first. Bump was quite high even when I went into labour. Although little fella was in the transverse position until 38 weeks. When he did drop he was face up. This wasn't noticed until I was well into labour. Maybe that's why I never felt him drop.
On that note, do any of you get scans later in pregnancy? That time I only had one at 16 weeks. I've heard of women being scanned again later on, but as far as I'm aware, it's still the one scan only in Galway.

messynessie

Oh KGlady that sounds shocking how quickly you've dropped! Hope the pain has eased for you!
I'm secretly hoping this baby drops for me early enough so that I don't have to worry if I'll fit in my bridesmaid dress haha

Lac I'm thinking I'll bring a packed lunch and have that in the hospital after the test and sit there for a wee bit until I feel ok to drive. FIngers crossed for the all clear! Don't know how I'll manage to go that long without food since I wake up starving during the night as it is haha

In WRH there's routine dating scan about 12 weeks and anomaly scan at about 20 weeks, I've had both and will be having another to check placenta position as it was very low at 20 weeks but I think if everything is ok they usually only do the 2 (or one if you're with Dominos sometimes)

KGLady

Thankfully the BHs are lessened for me since yesterday and I'm adjusting to the new position and weight so its not as sore, the upside is my lungs are getting a welcome respite, its a novelty that I can manage more activity without being short of breath as much I did have drops on the other two, but never this extreme or this early, remains to be seen now if the little wriggler stays down there or moves again.

As for scans, in the Rotunda its 12wks for a dating scan and 20wks for an anatomy scan. Usually thats the minimum you'll have unless there is an issue. On my previous 2 because I was admitted so much with BP and pre-eclampsia I'd loads as they were constantly checking the placenta function, I'd no idea that 2 was the norm. This time around in the Semi-Private clinic the exam rooms have the same mini ultrasound machines that are in the ER so each time I see the Dr they do a quick scan (it was ~1min on tuesday!) to look at the size and mostly to check the heart beat. The other visits they usually gave me a little pic but on Tuesday the Dr was eager to let me get on home after the Glucose test so he didn't take long over it and sent me on my merry way

Lac21

Glad aches and pains have eased for you KG. Will be interesting to see if you any major movement again over the next few weeks.
I'm getting a lot more scans this time because of previous history, which is great. I'll definitely need them at the end to make sure baba is face down this time, otherwise it will be C Section for me.
Messy, I must have missed that you are going to be bridesmaid soon. How many weeks will you be? Have you got dress sorted? I was bridesmaid at 34 weeks last time. Wore navy/midnight blue which was a good colour. Dress was empire style which worked well and suited the other very slim bridesmaid. I have heard of some brides being a bit 'bridezilla' about bridesmaids getting pregnant. Luckily my friend wasn't phased by it at all :-).

messynessie

I'll be almost 34 weeks for the wedding! When I found out I was pregnant I offered to step down as bridesmaid but my friend wasn't having any of it haha She had already picked the dresses and had ordered them but just sent mine back to change for a few sizes bigger to give room to grow It's a lovely purply/pinky colour (hard to describe) One shoulder and empire line so it sits nicely above the bump and I look pregnant not fat which is a relief as the other 3 bridesmaids are right skinny minnies haha
We may have to let out the lining a bit unless bump drops but gonna wait another 2 weeks and try it on again before making any adjustments

messynessie

The glucose test wasn't too bad. The drink was fairly rotten, it was some lemony flavoured syrup that was diluted a little bit but I managed to get it down in the 10 mins.
My arms are so dead from having blood taken from each and I'm feeling wrecked now. Only managing fruit and toast so far even though I'm starving I just couldn't stomach anything more!
I'll have the results at my appointment next Friday unless they call me first.

Lac21

Messy, that's great you are over it!! Hope you feel better as the evening goes on.

Bridesmaid dress sounds lovely. I really enjoyed being a pregnant bridesmaid! I was a bit nervous about walking up the aisle. It had a marble floor and my shoes were not v sensible! Had the flats for the evening though :-)

The only part of the day I found a bit tiring was the photographs. The groom is a professional wedding photographer so a lot of time and attention was given to the photographs. Luckily my hubby wasn't too far away so he got me sandwich and bottle of water. Plus I sat in our car while the photos of bride and groom were being taken. Was great to have a rest as we left bride's home at 12.30 and didn't sit for dinner until 6.

messynessie

Good idea with having OH ready with food I think I'll be enlisting my OH to do the same haha

KGLady

@Messy Glad to hear the GTT wasn't too bad, my arms were fine again by the following evening but it was weird when even lifting a cuppa was ouchy! Hopefully a good sleep tonight and you'll be in decent shape tomorrow and back to eating regularly.

Bridesmaid dress sounds nice, empire line is great for bumps I had one for my brothers wedding when I was expecting no1. I've a wedding coming up when I'm 38wks and I'm so nervous about it - not that I'm a bridesmaid but my two little girls are the flower girls. Cousin is the bride though she grew up with us and is more like a sister. Unfortunately with a history of pre-eclampsia and not going full term I've simply no idea if I'll be fit-to-burst-pregnant or post natal with a tiny newborn! I'm covering all bases with a full on maternity dress and also an empire style dress (great for post baby tummy!) with lots of room for expanding mammaries too

I just have to hope either way I'm medically in the clear to attend in some capacity, both to be there for the bride and for my little girls. I'd hate to miss what is a big day for them too & I feel that as their mother I need to support them encouraging them to get it right and behave well on the day (they are just 3 & 4 yrs old). I can only wait and see, so in the interim I keep inventing worst case scenarios to make myself laugh so that even if I end up admitted with the Blood Pressure or giving birth the night before or something else to make me miss it, that it won't be so bad!

• I could go pre-eclamptic in the church and collapse while the Bride is walking up the aisle and wreck her beautiful moment.
• I could have a 'TV' start to labour and have my waters break while the priest is giving me communion and soak his shoes
• I could give birth on the day and unwittingly time the mass delivery notification calls and texts during the grooms speech and turn the crowd into a nightmare of serial phone calls and the buzzing of txts!

So far the more I imagine outlandish scenarios, the more I can giggle and not worry so much about it and just wait for time to tell. So if anyone thinks of worse than wetting the priests shoes during the communion let me know and gimme a laugh

Lac21

KG, really hope things work out for you. Your post really made me laugh.

Reminds me of a friend who gave birth to her first daughter exactly a week before her brothers wedding. She was feeling very tender in her nether regions and was worried about sitting on the hard church seats during the ceremony.
Her mother arrived home from town, two days beforehand, with an inflatable swimming ring for kids. It was for her to sit on during the ceremony!! Blue with multicoloured fish. Perfect in the privacy of her own home but not exactly the look she wanted for her brother's wedding!! :-)

ariana`

Lac/KG thanks for the laughs ladies

How's everyone feeling?

I'm just starting to lose sleep now :rolleyes: I wake to go to the toilet and i can't get comfortable again after or else the baby kicks me awake :rolleyes:

KGLady

@Lac Aw it was a nice thought, but yeah no way I'd sit on one in church - knowing my luck it'd probably burst too with a big whallop of a bang during the vows or something. Or a slow hissing leak so that the person behind me would keep thinking I was 'pssting' to get their attention!

@Ariana I'm gradually sleeping less and less, My little wriggler is keeping me awake too and since the bump dropped the old bladder capacity is just rubbish. We're also moving away from night time pull-ups with one of my girls, and her coming into my room to ask for the bathroom light on at 2am woke me (having only fallen asleep at 1.30am thanks to baby keeping me awake) and the panic shot of adrenaline that made me jump up awake also hit the baby full whack too and it was like a baby tango lesson in there. I'd only just nodded off again after 20mins of baby pokes when hubby woke up with a shout dreaming herself was in the room for bathroom help and all confused as to why he couldn't find her in the bedroom with us - he'd slept through when I had actually the bathroom trip and put her back to her own bedroom again. So there I was awake with a jolt and adrenaline shot no2 which started baby off all over again. Himself was mortified when he realised it was only a dream and racked with guilt when I was pouting over the second surge in baby tango and feeling all sorry for myself for the chronic lack of sleep

Early night for me now, here's hoping I can sleep for more of it than last night!

messynessie

KGlady I did have a wee giggle at your post of worst case scenarios but I do hope all goes well and you can attend the wedding without any issues

My arms are still in bits haha, they have bruised pretty badly though, inside my elbows are black so I guess I'll just have to wait for the bruising to go down before I'm normal again!

Lac21

Hope everyone is well? :-)

Had my glucose test this morning. Wasn't as bad as I thought. There was no where to sit really between the tests though, so I ended up in the car. Maternity waiting area was really busy. They didn't want me to leave the hospital grounds. I felt fine immediately afterwards and ate a sandwich but about ten minutes later I felt really sick and lightheaded. Just off my food all day. Feels like the early weeks again!!

Slept so badly last night. Woke up at 3am and couldn't get comfortable after that.
Early night tonight!!

messynessie

Ah it really takes it outta ya doesn't it Lac! Hope you're feeling better today!

Lac21

Feeling good again. Once I got some sleep!! :-)
Hope your bruises are healing Messy? I only have a very slight bruise. They only took blood from one arm so I think I escaped the worst.

Sleeping patterns all over the place. I seem to feel exhausted and go to sleep v easily. Then I wake up about two hours later and can't fully get back to sleep for ages. Didn't help that I got some random text at 4am informing me that there was a brilliant jazz session on in somewhere called 'Arch' and that I needed to get down there asap!! Then I got another one ten minutes later telling me to bring someone called Sandra and anyone else that might enjoy it!! :-)

messynessie

Ah they are starting to heal now, started turning a bit green this morning so should be gone mostly by the end of the weekend

Ah that sleeping pattern really doesn't sound fun. Don't wanna jinx myself but the last few days I've actually gotten an ok sleep haha Managing a good 6 hours then dozing after a pee until my alarm goes off. Hope you manage to get some better sleep soon and that you have no more random texts haha

KGLady

Hey Oct Bumps, how are we all getting on?

Sleep is becoming more elusive for me, really bad week for it so last night I ditched my fortress of pillows and slept my first full night in ages. I probably spent it all lying on my back as soon as I nodded off but feck, it its a whole new world after a goods nights sleep

I was glad of the sleep this morning, drove my no1&2 out to their grandparents for sleepover visit (YAY pure rest time for me at home!) and no1 puked all over the car when we were literally around the corner from their house Preg sense of smell and bump made it a pain in the youknowwhat cleaning out the car, but kid brekki puke is so minging there was no way I'd let my mother in law do it. To make it worse, it was too hot so I wasn't wearing bump band thingy so my maternity jeans kept slipping when I would bend into the car giving a good old knicker flash... I was starting to feel mother in law would brave the puke car just to stop me giving the neighbours an eyeful

Also went to see Ted in the cinema with himself this evening seeing as we were kidfree for the night, and I swear I was so close on wetting myself from laughing, good thing baby was asleep and not kicking or else it would have been a wet seat

Pregnancy might be the most natural beautiful state for a woman to be in, but I tell you for sure there's no dignity in it!