The secret to maternity pants

And by pants I mean trousers for all you UK readers.

So from about month 5 or 6 I've been wearing full on maternity clothes, and found that I really hated most pants because they were really saggy once you start moving around. Maternity pants have basically two types of stretchy bands at the waist-ones that go under the bump and ones that go over. Neither fit very well. I've even tried different sizes. I always feel like I want a belt, but unfortunately there's nowhere to put one. But after Christmas I had an idea. I started using my stretchy band that I used in the in between stage when I just couldn't quite button up my regular pants. I put this on over the stretchy band on the maternity pants and it works like a charm. If you don't know what I'm talking about, have a look here: http://www.motherhood.com/Shop_MotherhoodMaternity/Tummy_Sleeve.asp. (Looking at that link I'm realizing I'm not the first person to think of this.  Guess I overlooked that feature when I first got this thing--oh well nevermind.) I'm so pleased not have to walk 10 steps and hike up my pants. I'm sure it wasn't an attractive look.

mid wife appt #5

This post is slightly overdue, but we since we aren't in our home yet we haven't had regular internet access and we were out a lot last week furniture browsing.  I had another mid wife appt last Monday.  This time in the office. I know now why they do home visits. Their offices were not very nice or welcoming.  I ended up having to wait 5 minutes in the freezing cold waiting for someone to arrive to open the office. I was the first appointment of the day at 10am! It was all normal stuff. Blood pressure (normal), urine test (normal), bump measurement was 32 cm (12.5 inchces), a 6 cm growth in 4 weeks. We also did some routine blood tests, which I think were for hemoglobin levels. I'll get the results next month (unless there's a problem).

My mom has been asking me how long I'm likely to be in the hospital after baby comes so I finally asked. Apparently you can be discharged as soon as 8 hours after giving birth if both mom and baby are ok. Seems quick, doesn't it!?  I've got my antenatal classes in two weeks, so I'll find out more then.

I've got another ultrasound on Friday so stay tuned for photos. Need to also post the photo fromt the last one, but I don't have access to a scanner, so you'll just have to wait a bit longer. Sorry!

Merry Christmas!!

From Snowy St. Louis!!

Lots of love, Paul, Stacy and baby W

A perfectly average little boy!

Two posts in one day-that's what you get when I get a day off work!  I just got back from my 28 week ultrasound. I've got two photos of him, but our scanner is packed away in storage (see below!) so you'll have to wait till I'm Stateside to see him. Because of my fibroid, I now will have monthly scans to measure the growth of Baby W. So in I went today and they meausred his head, tummy, length, and femur length.  All nearly smack on the average line for 28 weeks.  We even got an estimated weight: 2lbs 10oz. He was squirming about and opening and closing his little mouth-pretty cute.  They also measured the fibroid which showed almost no change in size since 20 weeks which is good. All in all, a good visit. I'm off to the doctors in a couple hours to get my swine flu vaccination.

Officially homeless!

Thanks to everyone for their support of the very crazy last week. We have now officially exchanged contracts with our vendors and buyers. We packed up and moved all of our stuff out of the flat (well I should say Paul and 3 very capable movers) yesterday and it's being put in storage. The earliest we could negotiate our move in date is Jan 18th. She said if her movers get a cancellation then she'll let us know, but I think this is very unlikely.  Our friends Chris and Cheryl are kindly hosting us this weekend and for a week when we get back form the States, then we'll move in with other friends Ben and Lizzy for a week and a bit who live slightly closer to our new house.  Here is a photo of our moving van just before the doors were practicall forced shut:

That's a lot of stuff!!  Looking forward to finding it all a place in our house in exactly 1 month's time!

oh the drama!

A little update on our housing situation...
We are in a chain of 3, all aiming for simultaneously completion and moving next Friday. This was agreed very early on. Paul has been working extremely hard to ensure this happens (multiple phone calls multiple times a day to lawyers, mortgage people, estate agents, etc). We just about had everything set yesterday when Paul got notified that our vendor has decided to fly to Ghana on Thursday next week and won't be able to complete until the New Year. She returns to London on Jan 2nd like us. Unfortunately, there isn't a lot we can do except vent our frustration.

We told our buyers about this today, and they're pissed off too of course.  In order to appease them, we've offered to still move out on Friday as long as we exchange contracts with our vendor beforehand (which will make them legally bound to sell us their house). This means we'll homeless from Friday night. We are going to the States on Sunday so technically we're homeless next Friday and Saturday and then for a week or so when we get back until we can complete. Paul has spoken to the movers and they can store our stuff for £900 extra, a cost we will be passing up to our vendors, as well as any other inconvenience charges we might face because of this.

We are really hoping our vendor isn't playing games and planning on going AWOL next week. We need her to sign the contract before she leaves so we can feel assured that we aren't making ourselves permanently homeless when we move out on Friday. Please pray this happens!  We'll keep you updated.

mid-wife appt #4

Mara came to see me, this time with a student, for my 26 week appointment. Everything seems to be progressing well. She took BP (120/80) and urine and both were fine. She measure the bump which came in at 26 cm (10.2 inches), which is right on track. The cm should roughly match up with number of weeks, so I'm perfect I guess. I don't have to do the glucose screening for diabetes since there is no history. And I've scheduled a swine flu vaccine for next week. We also listed to Baby W's heartrate and he sounded good and active. He's in the head down position and to my right, as usual avoiding the fibroid. We also talked about what to do once we move and for now I'm going to stay with my midwife and designated hospital. This means no more home visits and we have to drive ourselves to the hospital (or get an ambulance if necessary), which should all be fine. Hopefully it won't be rush hour when the time comes! I will also check out services near our new house once we move and make a final decision then. I got my government forms which entitle me to £190 ($310) just for being pregnant(!) and also forms for my employer so they can claim my maternity pay.

Generally, I've been feeling pretty good. No more cramping and the baby is getting a lot more active. He makes likes to make my tummy look all wonky, especially when I'm laying down. We've got another ultrasound next Friday, so I'll get to see his sweet little face and get some more snaps. We're also attempting to move house that day-though not confirmed so it could be a very busy day!