Homebirth General Discussion #17

I love going quiet on FB! I still haven't acknowledged it on FB, like last time, and I also had a 3 (or 5? I can't remember!) day moratorium on mentioning the birth or posting any pics. I figured that the people who mattered knew and everyone else would find out when they needed to know. I went quite on FB at about the time of our move from the farm shed to this house - in large part because I already knew I was pg, but many people assume it's because of the move and the drama about that.
I read a good article recently about keeping children off FB and online in general, so I'll be even stricter with this one. The writer called it a 'digital trust' - bought up domain names in the baby's name and asked friends not to tag pictures or post any on FB if they had any. Food for thought.
People who ask where I'm going to have the baby get the truth, otherwise I don't say much - plus, my pelvis side-effects tend to take away the focus from the birth plans in conversation, so far. Same with scans - unless someone asks specifically, I don't find myself explaining to anyone that I'm not having any scans for this one.
I was out today and I don't have much of a belly for 20 weeks, and only a handful of people at the party know about the pregnancy. It's not a secret, so as we were talking about it from time to time the others around us looked really confused and we had to explain to them that I was pregnant, and not talking about some nasty disease or accident that had happened to me! As I said to one lady who was very glowing about my 'clever' small belly, it makes it difficult to get consideration for seating when you're not showing much more than what a full lunch-belly would show!
I am really enjoying keeping this one under the radar. I found that last time, given how late most people found out, they weren't expecting the birth to happen when it did, because the pregnancy didn't seem to last very long in comparison to when they find out about other people's at the 3 month mark. The point of that is that apart from furnishing them with a vague EDD, they forget to hassle me ;)
I've got my booking in appt at the ward in two weeks, and I really need to get my back up secondary middie confirmed etc. I've been really slack! What I'd like to do is have a birth plan meeting with all 3, but I'm not too fussed if that doesn't happen this time. I'm keeping costs down by having most ante natal checks with the GP, and soon the ward middies, so I will be able to afford a birth plan meeting with all 3. It might well be the only time I meet the secondary local middie.
I'd better start looking for a birth pool liner, and looking for my essential oils to make up herbal-soaked maternity pads to freeze!

I told everyone with DD2 that I thought I'd give birth a couple of days past my EDD, so no one expected anything beforehand. Turns out I was off by half an hour. ;) This time, i think I'll be at least 4-5 days past the closest EDD I could guess, so no one is expecting anything before 7 Jan. I wonder if I can get it right twice in a row? Kinda freaky that I was able to predict and from so early with DD2. Anyone else guess their date? I even told my m/w at my final scheduled appt that there was no way I'd be another week, even though there was no obvious sign anything was happening.

I don't think I ever had a birth plan meeting. I have a birth plan, I just gave a copy to everyone and put one on file. I spent so much time discussing things with both my m/ws that I don't think there should have been anything left to wonder about. This time, I'm using the same plan with a small update on the front about expecting a fast labour. In my case, it's really only for the hospital's benefit, as birthing at home everything was set the way I wanted it anyway and my m/w's never suggested any exams or procedures that would have needed me to make a decision. I just told my m/w that this time she's not to ask me to get out of the pool to go to the toilet. ;) If we'd realised I was already at the point of pushing, she wouldn't have bothered last time either!

M/w appt tomorrow, but nothing really to talk about.

Oh, and I'm still bfing DD2 and oh my, my boobs are HUGE! I don't remember them being this big until after birth with DD2. I'm venturing into my post-birth/engorged bbs bras already. :o Eeenee, hats off to you managing with two still bfing. I think DD2 is dropping her pre-nap bf (which she doesn't have when I'm at home) and the night time one is usually very brief, but as long as she sticks with the morning one, I think she'll be still going when DD3 is born. Probably close enough now for her to resume even if she does stop. What did everyone else find in terms of colostrum and toddler bfing?

38 weeks today! 4 to go or something like that!

I never really had a formal birth plan appointment either as my MW was pretty much on the same page when it comes to knowing what I did and didn't want, actually half the time I wondered how she knew what I wanted as she just seemed to know without me actually saying something.

Had a trip up to the hospital today for CTG as for the last 3 days Bub had been super quiet and it was keeping up at night just worrying about it so finally let my MW know and she suggested I got there and get checked out. Was quiet up there so was in and out and of course Bub moved like crazy the whole time I was there, more than it had the last 3 days put together!

Double post

I like to go over it all, and it will be doubly important this time round because none of the mw's are familiar with how I birth, unlike last time in Melbourne. Plus, I'm not having that many appts with my mw's, to keep costs down, so I think it would behoove me to get it all discussed in one meeting. The back up secondary mw will be coming from Melbourne and will charge travel costs, so I'm gonna make that appt count! Birthing 'choices' in the country are so crap, it's discriminatory. Now I can contrast the two experiences - metro and country. Metro HBers really do have it lucky, in comparison.

39+1 just waiting waiting waiting!

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39+1 just waiting waiting waiting!

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I hope you're not waiting too much longer! :D Sending labour and easy birthing vibes your way if you want 'em ;)

Has anyone heard from dotface recently? Hoping she's doing well and has gone quiet because she's snuggling a newborn :)

Sending beautiful birthing vibes your way, Eeenee. Not long now.

About seven weeks to go for us too. Bub has the hiccups a lot now, so I'm confident she's at least doing her bit to get ready for the outside world. I'll be ready for her in about six weeks. ;)

Teni, how are you doing? Feeling prepared?

Yeah I have wondered about dotface too. I'm sure she is either very close or as you say, cuddling a nb. I know that initial transition to motherhood can feel massive, so here's to hoping she has her hands full of baby goodness.

Well, I may as well share this here now - I've finished my mother blessing cake for tomorrow! I was unsure how it would turn out, and I've dyed my hands blue, but it's done and I'm proud of it :)

http://img.tapatalk.com/d/13/11/15/upeteder.jpg

Now, what to do with all the leftover icing? :think:

You should definitely be proud of it, it's awesome! Well done :)

Photos from today, if anyone's interested:

http://img.tapatalk.com/d/13/11/16/hybu8yre.jpg
http://img.tapatalk.com/d/13/11/16/geze3aju.jpg
http://img.tapatalk.com/d/13/11/16/8e5utyty.jpg

I don't think we quite achieved the calm atmosphere I was going for, but I was kind of expecting that anyway. In any case we all had a lot of fun, I feel very loved and connected to these women who love me, and I look very hippy-ish with my hennaed belly :p

Awesome pictures Teni... I loved the cake, job well done... countdown to birth is really happening for you now!!

Awesome! That looks great! Glad you had a lovely day. Lots of birth blessings to you tenibear.

My homebirth mothers group friends organised a last minute blessingway for me for today. Was nice to have people so caring and thoughtful enough to do this for me. They painted my belly (I'd already done henna on my own belly a few days ago in front of the mirror lol!) DD helped paint my belly too funny kid! And they made flags and DD and DS both participated in that also :) then they made a birthing necklace and did the blinding of the wrists thing.
So baby can come now!
Feeling super low and uncomfortable and can't walk properly due to bubs head being so low lol!

Aw, that's awesome of then eenee :D I wish I wasn't such a control freak, then someone else could've organised mine :lol:

My belly's itchy and sting-y now, I got a bit too rough getting the dry paste off. I was shedding all over the floor so I couldn't keep it on any longer. It's already nice and dark though, so hopefully it develops even further and I get a nice deep stain :) If not, the woman left a cone of paste here by accident so I could get someone to try to go over it again as it fades...

Oh gosh, next big thing to do now is give birth :jawdrop:

Sounds like you both had lovely Blessingways. I've booked mine in for early next mth. Just a low key morning tea. My sister has made bunting flags for everyone to write on. I might order the henna for having my belly painted too - that looks kinda fun. Not sure what else to do, if anything. But at least looking forward to a nice get together.

Eenee, not long now. :hug:

Teni, you always add a little excitement! You will rock this birth though. ;)