2weeks to go, two nights of pain...no baby!

Well we had a lovely weekend. The weather was warm and sunn so we took Mia to Roath park on Saturday to ride her bike and have an ice cream. Mia is so much bettter every time she get on the bike and really enjoyed herself. We walked around the lake at a rather brisk pace so that we could keep up with her, then took her down to play in the park. Huw then went down his parents to watch the match whilst Mia and I came home to wait for her dad to pick her up.
Sunday involved another trip to ikea to purchase some shelves for Mia's playroom and out for lunch. We had a lovely lunch in the oyster catcher, then went home to rest. That evening my lower back started aching, so Mia let me have her hot water bottle and Huw sent me to bed. I awoke a couple of hours later with the first of many pains in my stomach. The pains were much more intense that the braxton hicks I'd been experiencing and kept me up most of the night. However, the next morning, apart from back ache, the stomach pains had gone.
I phoned the midwife under Huw's instruction just to find out if it was normal. The midwife was very unconcerned and told me to go to bed, didn't ask how many children I had, previous labours or complications. She did say that it was probable the pains would return in the night.
I went to bed disappointing as I was still having backache, but no stomach pains all day. Then, true to form, I was awoken at 1am with an intense pain in my stomach. This went on until 4am. They started at 20 min intervals, then 15 and then 10. Convinced I was in labour, and in a lot of pain I contemplated a bath, but didn't want to wake Huw and Mia who were blissfully sleeping through it. Then at 4 am I fell asleep!!!!! Grrrrrrr! Pains have gone. I still have backache but no more contractions. She is definitely an awkward little boo!!!! And is probably thinking feb29th would be an awesome day to be born. I am now beyond caring about the work date, if I'm being kept awake for the whole night again I would like a baby at the end of it please!

Brownies

Mia is no longer a Rainbow as she enrolled in Brownies. i did think i would have more of a problem getting her into this uniform, as lets face it, its brown and yellow, not most girls choice. also, they wear trousers, which she hates so i was expecting tears when we arrived at the shop. Luckily, brownies are ebbing slowly into the 21st century and therefore had leggings! result! one happyu child. Mia had learned her promise, which seemed a bit archaic, and the whole enrollment was a little weird, but all the girls did brilliantly. Huw took some photos, and bought raffle tickets, putting his name on them instead of Mias so when he won, he was the only man to have to choose a prize as everyone else had put the name of their little girls! Mia helped him choose a lovely sewing kit!!!

have tried to upload the video Huw took of her making her promise but it seems to be having problems.

Boo on the other hand has had a much less exciting day. she was very active when all the brownies and rainbows were singing and shouting which must have taken it out of her as she has been very quiet today. i was starting to get a little worried as i'd barely felt her move, but everytime i got anxious enough to think about calling the midwife, she'd give me alittle nudge to let me know she's still there. She's still much quieter than usual though and her movements are more subdues, but she does seem to have her dad's body clock so i will see how she is this evening as that's when she's at her livliest. im also a lot more confortable today, maybe she's moved position but i no longer feel short of breath, nor is she using my ribs as a bumrest which is a relief after a few months of this. Huw is under the impression that she will be out to spoil his weekend by deciding the time to arrive is mid-game tomorrow. I on the other hand, am more anxious that she will try to make an appearance february 29th, which is an awful day to have a birthday on. i can imagine all sorts of problems, especially computer orientated ones which probably wont accept the date. March 1st seems a much better option. but we willl have to wait and see.

not a lot planned for the weekend as Huw is now t-total in anticipation of boo's arrival, he knows he could have to drive to the hospital at the drop of a hat, so a drop of alcohol is out of the question for the forseeable future im afraid. have offered him one of my Beck's blues, but he looked less that impressed! Hes off to his parents to watch the match tomorrow, im staying in with Mia as her dad should pick her up in the middle of the game, have offered to drop her off before or after but im not really allowed to watch the match as every time i do, wales lose.
sunday we're probably taking another trip to Ikea so that we can finish off Mia's playroom, which we started last week. Mia decided on a colour scheme and we have been busily building furniture and redecoratingso that she has a room for her toys and to play in. we now need the shelves so back to ikea it is.

false alarm!!!

Saturday night was a little interesting as i wasnt feeling the best. Poor Mia hadnt been well, we took her to tesco to buy a dvd on the way to the park for her to ride her new bike. But mia asked to go straight home as she wasnt feeling well - a sign that she is really ill and not trying to get out of school. i'd not been feeling the best and had little niggles in the day. By the evening however they had got much more painful and more regular. we started to think that this may be it, so Huw decided it would be a good idea to fix the carseat in the car just in case. this sounds like an easy and not too time-consuming task, however, it proved too much for us! Huw toddled off to my parents to pick up the car seat and base. opening the boxes, Huw went out to the car, he had no problem fitting the base. all looked good. five minutes later he came back in with the base and the carseat.
'i cant get the carseat to fit! Are they the right ones?'
'um Huw, new born baby carseats are rear facing, youre trying to fit the carseat facing the wrong way'.
first dilemma resolved. hbuw turned the carseat around and it clicked straight into the base. Perfect!
'right, how do we get it back out?' here lay the big problem. we could not budge the carseat, we pressed all the buttons and levers we could see but could not shift the carseat. after faffing for about 20 mins, we started looking inline. We watched videos of how to eject the seat and even wrote on fb. Huw decided the carseat was faulty then panicked about not knowing anyone with a carseat we could borrow had i gone into labour that night.
Huw toddled off back to my parents to get the instructions. meanwhile i found the base instructions and started to read. a minute later, i had successfully unclipped the seat. when huw arrived back, looking slightly stressed, he was a little amazed that id done it, after demonstrating how it was done, we sat down and didnt bother fitting it in the car. at least we know how now though :)

3 WEEKS.....and counting!!

3 weeks and counting. An appointment with the consultant went well and everything seems completely normal now, except for my iron. I took MIL along with me to the consultants appointment as she is the only one who hasnt seen the baby yet. The scan showed that the baby's head has grown and shes in the right position etc. so all is good. The consultant is lovely and wants to see me in two weeks time. i'd rather it be in a delivery room than the average appointment but dont think boo is planning on shifting any time soon.
Have been having plenty of braxton hicks and just when i think 'ooh, this looks promising', it stops, meh. am having more tired days now which is really frustrating, spent all day on the sofa yesterday as i didnt have the energy to move, but probably because i've done Mias playroom out and swam half a mile. may have been a bit much in hindsight. after a restful day yesterday i do feel much better today, so am off for a swim this morning before the aqua zumba lot take over the swimming pool.
have started doing the research for my next masters essay, cant say its the most interesting of things and it seems like a real chore, but am aiming to get it at least mostly done before the baby arrives as i dont think my brain will function normally with sleep deprivation. Its hard to kick-start myself though, especially as we've managed to banjax the printer so making notes and highlighting sections is a little more difficult. But it seems a much better idea to try and get it done and out of the way before May.
visited my parents this week as they've been married 43 years this week, go parents! told mum that when the consultant measured my belly, it hadnt grown for two weeks. mothercame out with the lovely comment (as onlyl mothers do) saying,
'well its the only place that hasnt grown, your arms are bigger, your legs, face, everywhere!!!!!'
thanks mum!

4 weeks to go!!!

Havent blogged for a while, i have been busy which is surprising considering im not actually in worlk. i dont know how i managed to fit everything in when i was working. by the time i get Mia ready for school., sort out packed lunches, clean and tidy, its time to pick Mia up from school, cook tea, do her homework with her etc. How did i fit in a full days work?
Have been managing to still swim a few times a week but have cut it down to just under half a mile as im finding its getting harder. I have now started a yoga class, why didnt i discover this way of exercising years ago?? its far more relaxing than running around the gym like a headless chicken. The instructor was surprised at my balance (as was i) and said i was quite bendy for 8 months pregnant. have decided to go next week as it was very relaxing.
a few people have commented on how 'neat' i am, except for my mother of course, who reminds me on a daily basis that i was 'much smaller on Mia'. cheers mum. I however, dont feel too 'neat', i feel like a whale. Huw took a photo for me to upload so you can see for yourseld lol

This week i have found my energy zapped, and am starting to get very tired. i have rediscovered nana-naps which are bliss, and means that im ok then to collect Mia from school. Huw has been very nice and telling me how well im doing etc, but ive had enough now and would like her to make an appearance in about two weeks. maybe its getting close to the time to start chowing down on some pineapples and hot curries. think a visit to Ian soon for one of his famous curries might be on the cards. Mia has asked if i can have the baby March 1st, will do my best! lol