Saturday 29 June 2013

20 Week Scan

Our 20 week scan was this week and not only was it a very very exciting time but it was also a very nerve wracking time, as your baby's organs are pretty much developed and this scan is to check that everything is OK with their teeny tiny bodies!

After our scare last week I think the nerves were probably at their highest but I can very happily say that everything looked fine with little Harry and he's cooking just nicely in there!



I basically had to be tipped almost vertical halfway through my scan so that he would move, as he was snuggled right into my pelvis and the doctor wanted to see his face which is why our scan picture is at a funny angle!
I can't believe how big he looks in the photos, it hardly seems possible that he is curled up inside my belly!

I'm a little sad that this is probably the last time we will see Baby H before he is born but this makes me more excited for his arrival!

Were you nervous before your 20 week scan??

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Friday 28 June 2013

20 Week Update


How far along? 20 weeks HALFWAY!!!!!!!!

Total weight gain:  Not a clue!  I am all bump so far though

Maternity clothes?  Nothing new but I really need some new flattering tops.. I feel so frumpy in everything lately!

Stretch marks? None yet.   I have upped my moisturising routine up another level and have been using the Nivea In Shower Body Moisturiser which is almost like using a conditioner but on your skin!  I really love how silky soft my skin feels afterwards and it feels like my tummy is getting an extra layer of hydration that will hopefully keep my skin nice and elastic

Sleep:  I have been sleeping really well since having my time off work, probably as I was so relaxed.  I have had some really weird dreams though!

Best moment this week:  Seeing our little boy at our 20 week scan was amazeballs!  He looks so big compared to the last scan!  So happy that he is growing fine and all cosy in there

Worst moment this week:  My body has started to ache a lot in the evenings and its very uncomfortable.  My ribs feel so sore and also my back, it must just be all the pressure from baby/uterus and from organs moving all over the show!

Miss anything?  Well a friend of mine just told me that I can in fact eat dippy eggs so I might indulge in one or two this weekend and then my life will be complete again!

Movement: TONS!  He doesn't stop kicking and wiggling about which I find so comforting!  Its so annoying though as every time Scott puts his hand on my tummy he stops completely.. darn!

Food cravings:  Still a cold glass of coke with ice!  Its bad because of the sugar and caffeine content but I don't have much other caffeine so that is my excuse

Anything making you queasy or sick:  Not put off by the smell of coffee so much anyone which is good news!  We found a dead bird outside our door last night though and had to bag it up to bin it and that made me heave like crazy!  Poor birdie :(

Gender: Boy!!

Labor signs: None

Symptoms:  Just the aches and pains in the evening and the constant heartburn.  Generally feeling better in myself though and a lot less stressed out

Belly button in or out?  In

Happy or moody most of the time?  Happy again!

Looking forward to:  We finally have a new house so I cannot wait to move in and start making it into our home.. Harry's nursery is top of my list

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Thursday 27 June 2013

Wishlist



1.  Angelcare Movement and Sound Monitor £74.46 from John Lewis - I have heard really good things about this monitor, it has a motion sensor pad that doens't go off every 5 seconds, alarming you, your other half and your baby.  We were going to go for a video monitor but decided against it as we could possibly get a little too obsessed with watching our little one, plus our parents never had those when we were babies and we turned out just fine!

2.  Millie and Boris Baby Record Book £18.50 from Mamas and Papas - This is one of the nicest baby record books I have seen, it is jam packed full of pages to record the life of your little one as well as little pockets and envelopes for you to put little souvenirs from your journey together in

3.  Elephant Print Baby Blanket £20 from John Lewis - Since we are going with a slight elephant theme for Harry's nursery this baby blanket is a must have for us! Its so so cute, just right colour blue and is amazing quality
4.  Easidream Ewan the Sheep £27.50 from Precious Little One - We have recently been reccommended this little cutie by friends with a baby and they have advised that this is one thing we MUST buy! Ewan the sheep emits soothing sounds at a low base frequency  that can be played to your baby even before birth into your belly.  The sounds of heartbeats and womb sounds can be heard which really helps to calm your baby and send them off to sleep.  It also glows pink as this is really comforting to babies and has several calming noises to choose from
5. Leather Moccasin £25.99 from Zara - Baby moccasins are just TOO cute aren't they!!?  I have seen at least 5 or 6 pairs in Zara alone that I feel baby Harry must have in his life!  I know he won't be wearing shoes anytime soon but it doesn't hurt for him to have a few in his closet does it..  These red leather ones from Zara are my absolute favourite!
6.  Elephant Nursery Prints £39.33 from Etsy - I fell in love with these prints a while ago when I came across them on Etsy!  They inspired our nursery theme and colour scheme and i can't wait to buy them and put them up on the wall!!
Whats on your pregnancy wishlist??
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Tuesday 25 June 2013

Pregnancy Survival: The Highs and Lows

Not all parts of pregnancy are amazing and lovely and wonderful.. bla bla bla.. some of it can really suck, and its usually stuff "they" don't tell you about in the books!
Here are my highs and lows of pregnancy so far (i'll start with the lows so we can end on a high!)



Lows
You are worried ALL of the time about everything
You are completely exhausted for at least 2 third of your pregnancy
Your mood swings are uncontrollable and tears are basically an everyday thing
People tend to look at your bump instead of looking at you when they greet you
You have to really cross your legs when you cough, sneeze or laugh too hard
Your skin won't be "glowing", in my case it got very dry, rashy and spotty
Some days everything everywhere just hurts for no reason at all
You basically have nothing to wear, ever!
You have to listen to some really quite pushy mums about how to raise your baby - even though you probably know exactly how and what you want to do!
You'll always get at least 1 person who hates the names you suggest which really puts you off them
You can't eat dippy eggs.
Highs
People seem to give you a little extra attention, in a nice way!  They tend to smile at you lovingly and ask you how you are and you'll find all sorts of new friends through just being pregnant
You will have odd good days where you do have that glow and feel rather good about yourself
You can be a bit naughty and have that extra chocolate or takeaway
You get to take afternoon naps without being called old or boring!
You get to buy REALLY cute things, its obsessive trust me
It gives you a bit of a goal in life and something to look forward to
Its so fun picking names
You can cry at The Notebook without feeling like a plum
There is something comforting about having a baby bump and now I totally get why mums-to-be are constanly stroking and rubbing their bumps at all times
The end result will be a beautiful little miracle that will be worth all those lows in the end!
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Sunday 23 June 2013

18 & 19 Week Update


How far along? 19 weeks

Total weight gain:  Making it my mission to weigh myself.. promise! I feel like my hips and legs have got a little bigger so maybe I am gaining a bit but I don't think too much :) My bump seems smaller this week which is weird too

Maternity clothes? I have some new maternity skinny jeans from asos which I really really like.. They are a little are through though which is annoying but they fit really nicely for now! 

Stretch marks?  None.  I have been using a mixture of Mama Mio and Bio Oil now.  Mama Mio for the mornings/daytime and Bio Oil at night as I like to spend a lot longer in the evening massaging the oil in

Sleep:  I'm constantly exhausted and was hoping that would have subsided by now..  At the weekends I am asleep by 11pm which is so embarrassing at the age of 25!!  This week has been really stressful though which doesnt help, but I now have some time off to rest and hopefully recharge my batteries

Best moment this week:  Feeling lots of movement from our little boy and we sat and watched my belly moving everytime he kicked one night this week!

Worst moment this week:  Ending up at the hospital after a terrifying bleed :( (read about that in my previous post if you wish!)

Miss anything?  Dippy eggs. I watched a Hairy Bikers cookery program yesterday in which they made the most amazing looking eggs benedict and the sight off the oozing egg actually made me salivate.

Movement: I have been feeling lots of strong kicks this week!! He tends to move around at the same times every day now, usually after I've eaten or last thing at night before I go to sleep.. Aww

Food cravings:  Back on the Terry's Chocolate Orange.. So bad but SO good

Anything making you queasy or sick:  All food is making me feel sick this week, I seem to have had a bit of a churning tummy so I am well off everything

Gender: Boy!!

Labor signs: None

Symptoms:  After feeling pretty fabulous a couple of weeks ago, I have been feeling the lowest of lows this week!!  After my horrible scare I am so over emotional, stessed and feeling pretty sorry for myself indeed. I have also been suffering from horrific heartburn ouchie!

Belly button in or out?  In

Happy or moody most of the time?  I have been VERY moody this week!

Looking forward to:  Seeing our boy bean next week at our 20 week scan.. it will be good to see him all healthy and ok

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Thursday 20 June 2013

The Scare

Anyone reading this who is expecting knows how much you worry throughout your whole pregnancy about things going right and for no harm to come to your little bean
So you can imagine my terror when I started bleeding

The whole experience was so so sooooo scary but thankfully baby boy and I are going to be fine!  After calling every single number under the sun given to me for emergencies on my medical notes - with NO answers - we decided to head down to our local A & E to see what the bleeding was all about and to make sure all was ok.  I didn't feel the baby move the whole time we were there which made the wait agonisingly long but we were finally hooked up to a monitor and there was my baby boy's heartbeat, beating away quite merrily

The hospital couldn't really tell me anything about the bleeding as it had stopped and wasn't accopmanied by pain, which was quite frsutrating as I was then worried about it happening again or if it was something I had done to cause it

After a rest and getting over the shock of the scare I headed to my GP who examined me and told me exactly what the bleed was (he even drew me pictures to explain!)  Basically my placenta is just a little low and close to my cervix which can cause it to bleed.  This usualy will happen if you are under stress as hormones cause it to bleed so I have been asked to take the next week off work and to have a little "me" time at home where there is less pressure and less stress so hopefully it won't happen again 

I did have some advice that bleeding was "normal" in pregnancy and nothing to worry about, now let me just tell you it isn't normal at all and you have every right to be concerned about it.  My GP said that what this person really should have said to me was that bleeding is common in pregnancy and isn't always serious, but you should always get checked out by a proffessional if you get any bleeding or pain that doesn't feel right to you

I hope you don't mind me sharing this experience with you, I think it is important that everyone hears the lows as well as the highs of pregnancy and I hope this will help you get through it if you too have had the same or a similar scare!  
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Wednesday 12 June 2013

Baby Buys: Tommee Tippee Closer to Nature Essentials Set

As you know we are being super organised when it comes to shopping for the baby and another pricey thing on our list was an electric steriliser.  When we were buying our Quinny in Babies R Us we came across an amazing offer on the  Tommee Tippee Closer to Nature Essentials Set for half price at £69.99.  This really is an absolute bargain as there is so much included in the set:
1 x Electric Steriliser
1 x Electric Bottle warmer
2 x Insulated bottle bag
4 x 260 ml bottles
4 x 150 ml bottles
6 x Milk Powder Dispenser
2 x Medium flow teats
1 x Pure soother
1 x Teat tongs
1 x Closer to Nature Bottle Brush

We were really lucky too, not only was it a 20% off weekend when we bought it but we were also given £10 gift voucher from when we bought the pram so it cost us a mere £45.99 - as you can imagine i was a happy chappy and spent the leftover money on a pram blanket!

Obviously we haven't tried it out yet as it will stay in the box until nearer the time but as soon as I do I will do a full review on how it works, what was good and what was bad about the product, but I have heard really good things so I am expecting it not to disappoint! 

Do you have the Tommee Tippee Closer to Nature Electric Steriliser??
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Monday 10 June 2013

Book Review: The Antenatal Group by Amy Bratley


I love to read.  I love that feeling of escape when you get lost in pages of adventures!  I often read before I go to sleep as well as I find I can drift off much easier and have a better nights sleep overall!  I enjoy a whole range of genres, girly rom coms, crime and thriller as well as non-fiction 
Although my blog is mainly about tracking my pregnancy I am also going to throw in some lifestyle posts and this is one thing I will be writing about, as I am hoping with what little free time us new mums have/will have we can still enjoy a good book or two!



So as this is a pregnancy blog and I am with child I will start off with a book I have just finished reading called The Antenatal Group by Amy Bratley.  I had seen it on the Kindle Bestsellers list and it looked like a fun, easy to read, bedtime number, and I thought it would be good to read some stories about how other people cope with pregnancy and the dreaded labour.  I must say the book didn't disappoint!  It was such a simple read but was really quite funny and also sad at some points.  It follows the later stages of pregnancy of 5 completely different women from Brighton, right through to them delivering and adapting to their lives with a newborn.  Even though this is a fiction book, I thoroughly enjoyed reading each of the girls stories and seeing how even the most organised of women can fall apart just as much as a disorganised and carefree one!  

I won't go into detail as to what happens in the book as I for one HATE to have a good story ruined for me, so the synopsis is below.  If you like a bit of a girly book and you are also expecting I would definitely recommend The Antenatal Group, its also at a discounted price of £2.99 on the Kindle at the moment!.  Even if you don't read often this is a very very simple book to read and will keep you gripped right to the last pages


Synopsis

New babies. New problems. New friends.

Mel’s boyfriend Leo flees and leaves her stranded on the steps of her first pregnancy class. And so the expectant mother believes she is about to face parenthood alone. Instead, Mel finds herself introduced to the world of pain relief and labour positions with a diverse group of women who quickly become valuable friends in the terrifying new world of motherhood.

Katy, a rich and successful professional woman with the dream husband, has her birth designed to perfection but soon realises that nature doesn’t always follow plans. Rebecca, the youngest of the group and still a student, is an independent and strong-minded woman who is determined to hold onto her dreams. Lexi is loud and brash in every way, although it soon becomes apparent that there is a lot going on behind her colourful exterior. And Erin already seems an expert on babies, but her over-protective attitude to her bump is hiding a sad story from her past.

Each of these women has a different kind of complicated life, but as mums-to-be, the five discover together that preparing for the birth of a baby is one time when every woman needs four brand new good friends.


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Saturday 8 June 2013

17 Week Update


How far along? 17 Weeks/4 Months

Total weight gain:  No scales yet!!  But bump is well and truly popping out and getting bigger by the day

Maternity clothes?  Nothing new but due to the sunny weather of late I realise I need to buy some more maxi dresses and maybe some sort of maternity shorts as my wardrobe is not really exciting me for the summer ahead!!

Stretch marks?  None

Sleep:  I have had a couple of horrendous nights sleep this week.  Mainly due to the fact my uterus/baby is sitting right on top of my bladder so I constantly feel the need to pee!  As soon as I am up and awake I am really struggling to get back to sleep.  I guess there's nothing much I can really do about it either, when you've gotta go you've gotta go!

Best moment this week:  Our amazing incredible and fabulous 4D gender scan!!

Worst moment this week:  Thinking that we almost couldn't find out what the gender of our little baby is!!! I will do a review of my 4D scan soon and tell you all about it!

Miss anything?  Dippy eggs as usual but I have also missed alcohol a little this week! You can't beat an evening in the pub garden with a cider or a pimms can you!?

Movement: I felt the first flutters at night whilst getting ready for a lovely nights sleep on Sunday 2nd June!  That made me 16+1 which is really early to feel something but I definately did and it continued all week as well!  It feels just like a butterfly flying about inside and I can't wait to feel more and more

Food cravings:  Still loving coke and fizzy drinks this week which is bad as I know how sugary they are but they make me feel good so oh well!

Anything making you queasy or sick:  Coffee and cigarette smells. Yuck

Gender: After 2 sessions with the 4D scanner we finally found out we are having a little BOY!!!!! I am so excited! I always thought I would want a girl and would panic if I was having a boy but the last few weeks I just knew we were having a boy and I was really drawn to male names and blue things!!!! I cannot wait for our little man to arrive

Labor signs: None

Symptoms:  I have felt really good this week!!  Probably the best I have felt in the pregnancy!  Tailbone pain has gone, headaches have passed and I feel like I have a little more energy even with the restless nights

Belly button in or out?  In

Happy or moody most of the time?  H.A.P.P.Y

Looking forward to:  Now we know what we are having I cannot wait to start collecting clothing and such things!!

Bump:







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Wednesday 5 June 2013

3D & 4D 16 Week Scan

I am super impatient and waiting for our 20 week scan to come around so we could find out if we were having a chico or chica seemed to be taking flipping forever!  I was chatting to a work friend the other day and she mentioned that you could have 3D and 4D gender scans from as early as 16 weeks!!  Upon hearing this I immediately started my research and found a lovely place called I Can See You! in Yateley, Hampshire



The appointment is 15 minutes long and you get to see your little one in 2D, 3D and 4D form on a big screen in front of you.  They advised me that they can usually 100% tell straight away the gender, but if baby is being particularly awkward and they cannot see then they will ask you to come back another day free of charge

I am SO excited about our trip to I Can See You! as it is TONIGHT eeeek!!!  Don't worry, once I find out what we are expecting I am sure you guys will be the first to know about it!

If you want to book yourself a private scan, whether its a gender thing or just a little bonding session so you can see your little one you will find all the information on their website here 

Have you ever had a 3D or 4D scan and are you as impatient as me??!
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Monday 3 June 2013

The First Flutters

Last night I felt the first movements from Baby H!!!!!!  It was the weirdest feeling ever and I wasn't sure if I liked it at first!  For those of you who haven't experienced it yet it literally feels like a butterfly is flying around in there and bumping into your tummy now and again!  

I just had a bite to eat as well which may have woken baby up and am feeling the flutters again! Eeeeek!  I am so excited now to feel it properly move around and kick and I am hoping that won't be too far away!

At what stage did you feel your baby move/kick??
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