It's all Normal, But it's Not

Once you get past a certain stage in your pregnancy you start to see your midwife every 3 weeks. This Monday just gone it was exactly 2 months until AvaLillaBee is due and it was 3 weeks after my last midwife appointment, so we went in to see her. 

I had a million and one questions to ask about this pain or that pain, that cramp and this feeling. She took my blood pressure which she said was normal and then took the good ol' pee cup sample and sent it off for testing - apparently normal. 

Then she asked me if I had any questions. I asked about my cramps around the bottom of my back, the heartburn I get from drinking water, the sharp pain I got once or twice at the top of my uterus, the knotted feeling of back ache, the headaches, the pains I had in my pelvis when I could barely walk last week... All of these things I was terrified about, terrified that baby wasn't well that she wasn't doing something right, that I wasn't doing something right. That she was going to come any minute and I've had these visions of me going into labour telling the midwife "We're not ready yet, she's not ready yet". But on the other hand all I can think about is how she is fine and she is just chilling until it is her time to come. Adam reckons she will come early. But anyway, I asked her about all these things I was worried about and she said they were normal. 

I felt like a complete loon! The midwife reassured me that all of my worries and troubles were normal parts of pregnancy and some of them, like the back ache, are probably only going to get worse during the latter parts of my pregnancy. Sleep is beyond me a lot of the time now, either I get the whole restless leg syndrome thing, or my hip hurts, or I need a pee, or Millie our cat, feeding her ever growing up brood of six kittens, needs feeding.

The midwife got me to lie down so she could feel where Ava was and how she is doing so I asked if the midwife could tell me where about's Ava is lying because I can never tell. She said Ava has her head above my belly button and her bum by the bottom of my stomach with her legs and arms curled to the side. She told me that Ava and bump are measuring in at the right size for the length of the pregnancy I am at and said there was nothing to worry about. Then we listened to her heartbeat. Adam and I love that part. We didn't realise now when we go for appointments we would be able to hear her heart beating but since we do and we can, it's such a great comfort to a little worrier like me. 

Not that there is much to worry about. Ava is bouncing and kicking all over, even having a good old dig at my ribs. Now I know the womb is supposed to support Ava and give her all the comfort she needs to be safe inside my body but where is the comfort and support for my ribs, and my bladder, and my stomach? The cheeky little monkey takes it all for herself. But as they say, as long as she is okay, that's all that matters, since women's body's are apparently built for this sort of thing I shouldn't worry myself too much about my organs moving all over my body. 

Oh well. As long as she's fine and I am curled over in pain because she has kicked my ribs... then I am fine. 

Baby B Update

There has been lots going on so I am sorry I haven't posted. Most days my brain is too exhausted to formulate words. But today I shall try.

The last post I wrote I told you I would tell you next time about the cot Adam and I have purchased. We have been collecting vouchers from Adams work place because you can use them in a couple of mother and baby shops and last Monday (wow has it really been that long since I posted) we went in search of a cot. We made it our reward for getting AvaLillaBee's bedroom cleared and ready to be decorated.

First we went to Mothercare and couldn't really find any cots that we liked. We didn't have loads of vouchers but I knew we had enough to purchase a neat little cot. However, the one we saw in there was too plain and boring for me so I asked Adam if we could go to ToysRUs/BabiesRUs to see what they had in there and we had a £5 voucher when you spent over £50 which we knew we would be doing anyway so there was an extra £5 there.

Thankfully as we entered the car park I saw a sign on the door that said "IF YOU SPEND OVER £40 TODAY IN STORE YOU WILL GET £10 OFF YOUR NEXT VISIT" so I was glad we went there instead. We meandered around the isles inside to get to where we needed to be and found there weren't many cots out on display and there was only a blue one in our price range. I like the size and shape of it and it didn't have a boring headboard end like the last cot... But it was blue. The sign said they had it in pink too which I thought would be ideal if it was a toned down pink so we enquired with the sales assistant for the cot. She took out a catalogue and showed us the PINK cot. It was very pink, very bright in your face pink. Those of you who know me know my love of pink only goes fingernail deep and I'm only tolerating it now because we are having a girl so the fact that this cot was very pink made me say no straight away.

Then I turned to the wall of cot advertisements and for some reason they had a cot on the wall that they didn't have out on the stands. I don't know why, maybe because it was really good value for money and was worth the price. It was the same size as the blue one and personally I think in better shape. So we got that one instead. Now it is stood still in its packaging waiting for the room to be decorated. My sister Bethany said it would be a good thing to unpack last, as a good luck idea. I think she is right.

I can't believe we have just under 2 months to go. It is all becoming so real so fast and I am barely keeping up. I say there is lots to do but really if she came tomorrow (No Baby don't get any ideas) then we would be fine with what we have. But she is cozy and staying put, because I said so.

The Search is On

This month Adam and I have two weddings to go to. We have his brothers on the 13th and my brothers on the 28th! So, I need something to wear, because the only dresses I have now that actually fit me are two maxi dresses, that I alternate in wearing every other week to church. Maxi dresses are nice, but trust me... after a while, there is only so much you can do with them, and they always make me look like a tent, like a woman with a ball up her top. It's not flattering at all.

I have looked in a few places and all I seem to find are dresses that aren't below the knee. The women are wearing quite short, very tight dresses with 4 inch heels, because obviously at 30 weeks pregnant (32 by the time the wedding comes, 34 at the next) the only thing you're going to be tottering around in is 4/5 inch heels. It totally baffles me.

However, when Adam and I went to Mothercare the other day I found some saving grace in the dresses they have on sale. Now all I need to do is cross my fingers and hope they still have them next week when I get some money to buy one. On the other hand my sister, Bethany, sent me numerous pictures of the dresses they had in Mothercare in Bradford and I did not like a single one.  I had to ask very politely who the dresses were for, as she hadn't told me previously. If they had been for her I would have told her she was nuts, but since she had looked them all up for me and taken pictures of them all, I told her she was nuts, in a nicer way. It was nice of her to look for me. But why is it that all pregnant women are supposed to wear stripes? You get told unless you are skinny there is no way you should really be wearing horizontal stripes as they stretch over your body, so why is it as soon as you're the size of a balloon the shops think you want to wear? The mind boggles...

If you hadn't guessed it already, yes I am ranting. I need to rant every now and again. It makes me feel human.

Also, the lack of shops that sell maternity dresses, that don't look like tents, is very far and few between. I searched every shop I could think of, and this was their online range... even bigger than what they supply in store. I could not find a thing. I honestly, could not find a thing. Unless you wanted to rob a bank for me so I could buy a dress from JoJo Maman Bebe... feel free if you like.

I might just hide in the background when all the wedding photos are being taken that way nobody needs to see my nice large belly. I am not of any major importance at either wedding (meaning not a bridesmaid or main party) which means I don't need to be in lots of pictures, which is completely fine by me. It's funny because I look down at myself and don't see a very large bump but I guess other people do, and now I am going to have to start asking Adam to take pictures of bump as I can't hold my camera far enough way to get all of her in. I am not any bigger than I am supposed to be but I am getting bigger.

Apparently, little tip for you from my midwife, once you hit 20 weeks and over the measurements of your 'bump' from top to bottom should correspond with how many weeks you are. So, if you're 25 weeks your 'bump' should be 25cm. I think that is pretty cool. Also, kinda scary because at 40 weeks my stomach is supposed to be another 10cm bigger than it is right now... Definitely scary.

So next week at some point I shall hopefully show you the dress I have got for both weddings, if I don't get the money in time I shall be wearing a good old maxi dress... nothing wrong with that although I may get told off because it is red, white and black with stripes. You make do my dears, you make do.

Nesting Stage Skipped

I think the nesting stage skipped me and went straight to Adam. He has been an absolute star and I honestly don't know what I would do without him. Whatever I have needed he has been there - like my personal slave, haha, just kidding.

But in all seriousness, I think the nesting stage comes in the second trimester when you have loads of energy and think you can conquer the world and do anything. But I am telling you now, those of you who haven't been pregnant before but are planning to have children, that is just your body leading you into a false sense of security. Oh yeah, it knows what is coming up just natural instinct I suppose so it is giving you that last bit of freedom before it takes your body down an exhausting ride of aches and pains, not to mention no proper sleep. Do your nesting while you have the energy, because come the third trimester you won't be able to.

I do my little bit around the house when I can and even wiping a work top or two can instantly make the place look tidier but give me 20 minutes into a job and I am aching for top to toe. I have no idea what I would do if Adam suddenly couldn't do anything anymore but I am thankful for the way things are now so no changing please.

I say the nesting bug has skipped me and gone straight to Adam because in the five days that he has had off I think the only time he hasn't cleaned has been Sunday. We don't labour on a Sunday which is good because I think he has gone into hyper clean drive and today I was honestly at the point of just telling him to slow down. Friday he cleared out the baby bedroom a little, Saturday I did the living room and he did the kitchen, dining room, stairs and hallway then Sunday we chilled but Monday we finished off the baby bedroom by putting all unneeded things in the spare room. At this point Adam was also doing the washing and had cleaned out the kitchen where the cat tray is. If you think that is a lot today he did even more washing, cleared out the utility room, the cupboard in the dining room and yesterday I forgot, he did the cooker too. See what I mean? I was on the verge of telling him he should really take a break when he said his back was aching so he had to chill out for a bit.

Obviously I am not getting at him at all for doing all these jobs, this is my way of telling you all how much of an amazing husband he is being and if you could purchase one of Adam in a shop then you would definitely be getting your money's worth. However, unfortunately for you lovely people there is only one Adam and he is priceless so... He won't be in the shops any time soon.

Tomorrow I shall share the news with you of our cot buying conundrums. It was definitely an exciting and interesting journey.

Bumbling Along Like a Bee

Posts have been slow recently and I have no one to blame for this but myself. I don't even have an excuse for it. So apologies to one and all that read my blog and I thank you continually for your support, comments and 'likes' on Facebook.

I am now 75% through my pregnancy and apart from an exhaustive list of aches, pains and annoyances I seem to be getting on rather well. I hope this is a sign of things to come during labour. Yep, that's right you up there or whoever may be listening, I am booking in my labour now on the 8th of June and I would like it to go as smoothly as possibly; if its not too much trouble for you. There I have booked it - one can wait in hope.

The further along the pregnancy I get the more paranoid I seem to become over every ache and pain that comes my way and I have my midwife in my phone so if I need to I can just give her a quick call. For now, I've been using Google to rationalise my hypochondria but all seems to be normal for now. If I am in serious doubt I can ring the midwife, she is there for a reason I suppose.

I have a couple of weddings coming up, one in 2 weeks time and another in 4 weeks time so I am waiting for as long as possible to get a dress and I am hoping with all my might, mind and strength that I can find something other than a maxi dress. I hate wearing maxi dresses now, they are all I seem to wear. It is slightly depressing as I am in the show-my-bump-off trimester except maxi dresses do nothing but hide the ever growing baby inside your tummy.

I don't think anyone can say that pregnancy agrees with them or their body because it clearly doesn't but what I would like to optimistically say is that pregnancy at the moment compliments my body. We seem to be getting on well at the moment. That's not to say we don't have our disagreements but right now I am enjoying the thought (or feeling rather) of AvaLillaBee growing inside me and she is enjoying kicking me in the ribs so really it's a win win situation; come back to me in 4 weeks time and I shall let you know if I still feel the same way.

Adam has nearly finished clearly out the soon to be baby room and I hope with all fingers and toes crossed that by Monday we will have bought a cot ready for little Ava to sleep in at night time. My, it's all becoming very really isn't it?

I got another batch of cute baby things that no longer fit Amelia from my sister so I can't wait to get them all sorted out on a rail and I may have put in a couple of requests here and there for some seriously adorable baby dresses from George in ASDA - seriously you should go look on their website. We also got a little package from some friends at church today with a gorgeous soft blanky in it, some Johnsons baby products, nappy bags and wipes, socks, mitts and other cute baby essentials - like baby scissors for cutting finger nails... I never realised how essential they would be until Emily had to keep sitting there chomping on Amelia's nails because the little baby girl would constantly scratch her own face. So I think we are getting there.

Subconsciously Supplying the Brain

For the past week I have been reading every night before I go to sleep. I didn't even realise I was doing it until today when I finished the book I was reading and wanted something else to read. I had to actively go searching for something else since I had read the two freebie books I had downloaded on my Kindle Amazon app on my phone.

I was reading a book called "The Diary of a Nobody". I figured they must be a somebody in order to have written a book. It was based in a time where shillings were the usual currency and women wore dresses for all occasions and maids were a common occurrence. Then I wet myself laughing (not literally - my bladder is still in tact although who knows for how long with this pregnancy) at the first freebie chapter of Miranda Hart's book, I have promised myself that I must buy it at some point. I downloaded a book called "How to Have a Stress Free Life"; where it shatters everyone's dreams of accomplishing this because it tells you from the off set that it is completely normal to have stress in your life - it just depends on what kind. Thanks for nothing silly book.

I think it is good to read before going to sleep as it helps my mind wander away from my normal every day life and just delve into the world of whatever book I am reading. My eyes usually last about an hour on my phone before the screen starts to get blurred and I need to go to sleep but that's okay because I can usually read a lot in an hour. But like I said I didn't even realise until recently that I was actively engaging in the reading world and should now qualify to list reading as one of my hobbies on my CV - I wonder who even does that...

I guess it's definitely not a bad habit to have of reading before going to bed and it certainly beats watching television. It will definitely come in handy through all those sleepless nights we have to come with Ava B. since during breast feeding you do nothing but sit there, or so I have been told.

So anyway, now I am actively going to read "Great Expectations" on recommendation from my mum, so lets see how that goes. Subconsciously reading makes me think of all the other things I do to engage my brain without even realising it, since the TV isn't included in that I am sure there are other things I can do that will help my brain actively engage in something without even realising it.

Phone Freebies

Might be too good to be true but we shall see.

There are some good pregnancy websites out there such as:

thebump.com
bounty.com
emmasdiary
mumandme
whattoexpect.com
parents.com

They give good advice, you can get good advice from other people and weekly updates on how your baby is developing. I don't know which one of these I gave my phone number to but it was an interesting surprise to receive a call from a representative of Disney. They asked me if I was due to have a baby soon - how awkward would it have been if I had said no? I told them yes I am and she said "Congratulations" in a really happy 'Disney' sort of way. You know the way they talk to you in the shops.

Then she said as I am pregnant Disney are giving away free books and Micky Mouse bookshelf and they would be arriving within 30 days. There was a catch though, a nice small catch. They said they would also be sending two other free books and if I didn't want to keep them I would have to send them back first class post but if I did want to keep them then I would have to pay I think, £5 in total for each book. Then she gave some blurb about if I kept the second set of books without returning them within 10 days they would sign me up (automatically) to the Disney collection of books where they send you two every 4 weeks at the cost of £5 each. But I asked her twice that if I sent the second two books back within 10 days then it wouldn't continue on and she said no.

So, cool. I get two books and a bookshelf free then when I get the next two books I send them back and all is done. Awesome. I like freebies. I keep getting random freebies in the post which is nice because I hardly ever get post since all the bills are in Adam's name. So packages are awesome. However, we shall see about it when it gets here...