Labour diary - Days 1 & 2

Hello All,

I know it's been a couple of weeks since the arrival of my magic little boy, Arthur which unfortunately turned out to be a more complicated affair than I'd hoped for. However in the end of course it does have a very happy ending ;-), so I thought I'd share the experience with you over a couple of posts. If anyone has any questions please do post them below:

7^th Jan – Due date

AM

Wake up feeling apprehensive as I have an appointment with the Dr this morning. My Pelvic Girdle Pain seems to be getting worse again so I’m quite keen for an induction as I’m fed up of being a prisoner in my flat barely able to do anything because walking is so painful. I’ve also only had about four hours sleep as turning over and trying to get comfortable is so difficult.

PM

I met with the Dr who seemed sympathetic to my plight and therefore decided to try and do a membrane sweep to get things going naturally. However after an internal examination she said my womb was no where near ready for labour and she wasn’t keen to progress any further. Instead I was booked into see her again next Monday for another sweep and then an actual induction on the Thurs.

Whilst I know what’s really important is that baby is healthy and comes in as natural a way as possible I can’t help feeling disappointed. The idea of another week of literally just sitting on the sofa watching daytime TV, online shopping and facebooking alone just seems too depressing. However, I try to be positive and start downloading new TV series I’ve always wanted to watch on my laptop and a couple of books for my kindle. I then plan a couple of mini excursions which involve minimum walking to give me something to do each day.

Early Evening

I’ve sent Mr W out for the evening because I’m desperate for some sleep tonight and he gets so grumpy with all my tossing and turning. I manage to sort myself out and gleefully climb into bed with a book at 10pm in the hope I’ll be long gone by the time he returns.

However, soon after physically getting into bed I realize something doesn’t feel right. My back feels really sore and trying to turn my pelvis is absolutely excrutiating. I try to remain calm but after not being able to move for an hour and a half I call Mr W.

When he returns we try desperately to move me but the pain everytime a leg is moved is so painful I can’t stop crying. I start panicking about how I’m going to get too the loo. After a couple of minutes of slowly slowly does it Mr W manages to get me to the bathroom for the first of three trips that night.

8^th Jan – 1 day over

AM

When I wake after approximately two hours sleep at 7am I try tentatively to move around a bit in the hope that the rest has given my pelvis the opportunity to settle down but alas there doesn’t seem to be any improvement.

After waking and talking things through with Mr W we decide to call the hospital and ask to be seen by the Dr again in the hope of getting some stronger medication. Luckily they agree to see us at 11am. However DH has an appointment with an ENT specialist that morning  which he has been waiting a year to see so we ask my sister to come over and help me get dressed.

I have to say having your 24 year old sister undress and get you into the bath is not one of my most dignified moments but my vanity overrides it.

Walking into the hospital on my crutches feels like one of the longest most torturous walks I’ve ever done. I keep praying that some poor person will take pity on my slow moving frame and run for a wheelchair but alas after about 15mins of stop start, stop start I make it to the ward.

11.15AM

The midwife on duty at the day assessment unit checks all my vitals and muffins, and explains that she’s told the Dr to get a wiggle on because she can see how much pain I’m in.

11.45AM

Finally the Dr comes to see me and explains that he’ll examine me and then discuss two options with me. The first is if he’s satisfied that the head is low enough they’ll induce me right away but if he’s not they’ll have no choice but to send me home and just monitor me as best they can over the coming days. The best part though is that he gives me some stronger pain relief which do nothing for my pelvis but make me feel a lot more smiley.

12PM

After an ultrasound and good prod he decides he’s still not convinced it’s low down enough so will still need to do an internal examination. However they can’t do this until I’ve spent at least 30mins on a fetal heart rate monitor to get a base reading of his heart rate.

12.30PM

A different Dr comes in checks the read out and sees that I’m actually already having very small contractions and after another prod thinks the head is low enough to try an induction. So a pessary is inserted which I’m told will be in place for 24hrs to get things moving. She does however remind me that induction is a very slow process and not to expect an arrival until tomorrow evening or even the day after. Then because of my limited mobility they admit me to the antenatal ward.

7PM

The weirdest part yet of this whole experience sets in after Mr W has to leave as visiting hours are over because at no part in my envisaging of this whole event did I ever think I would be on my own???

As he was leaving I could actually begin to feel the contractions starting and the idea of facing a whole of them without him to hold me hand and massage my back just seemed so wrong.

8.45PM

Finally managed to persuade the midwife to give me some more painkillers as the combination of these contractions and my pelvis is getting a little much. I’m also waiting for my second fetal monitoring session so I can finally settle down and get some sleep.

I have to say though contractions are nothing like what I expected them to be. I had expected to feel like a severe achy pain going from the top of your tummy down to your pelvis but it’s not like that at all. It’s like crippling backache moving round to your front and the pain is really sharp.

They seem to be coming a lot more often but still pretty irregularly, I wish I had some idea of what that meant and possibly if it was a good sign that he might be here sooner.

I’ve also made the decision that I’m definitely going to be having an epidural when the time comes…

11PM

I call Mr W let him know I’m ok and then settle down for some sleep.

Mrs W xxx

Oysterbaby - yummy mummy baby slings

In my search for baby products in recent months I happened to stumble across this lovely company set up by midwife Kate Thorman. Now personally I've been quite nervous about using anything other than a sturdy Baby Bjorn type carrier because I'd just worry I hadn't done it up properly and I'd drop the baby. So I decided to have a chat with Kate to find out more:

Could you tell me a bit about yourself and how Oysterbaby came about? 

As a practicing midwife I am well educated in the benefits of baby wearing, my knowledge combined with my experience as a mother I was inspired to design a sling that would be practical and comfortable. A sling that would encourage all mums to wear their babies, to feel gorgeous, empowered and enjoy their calmer, happier babies.

There are quite a lot of slings available on the market, what makes yours different? 

Oysterbaby slings are the only slings on the market made from 100% organic bamboo fabric. The colours and designs are all unique and limited in edition, ensuring they maintain their boutique attraction.

Oysterbaby slings combine fashion with practicality, believing all mums can look and feel great when carrying their baby.

Oyserbaby is completely unique, All the designs are limited editions, they are reversible so you get to change your style daily and they are incredibly comfortable for both mum and baby. Oysterbaby slings are designed to be lightweight so you wear your baby close to your skin and layer clothes over the top. The fabric and designs i use are like no other slings on the market.

Did you use the sling with your own child?

Yes! My daughter is the original oysterbaby! I carried her in the sling from the day she was born, she is 15 months now and I still carry her everyday, she loves it. We traveled to Africa when she was 4 months old, and we are about to travel to Sri Lanka, we could not dream of having these adventures without an oysterbaby!

What are the benefits of wearing a sling over something like a Baby Bjorn carrier? 

Unlike other slings, Oysterbaby is chiropractic endorsed ensuring spinal health for both you and your baby.

Oysterbaby carries your baby ergonomically - which helps correct hip development without putting pressure to baby's spine or pelvis. It helps muscle development and prevents flat head syndrome.

The sling distributes your baby's weight evenly over both shoulders and entire torso, making your baby feel feather light and does not cause any shoulder or back discomfort. In contrast to other baby carriers that have thin straps that dig into the shoulders.

Unlike other slings, It is also possible to comfortably and discretely breastfeed your newborn baby in an oysterbaby!

Bamboo fabric is more breathable than cotton, making it very comfortable to wear. And perfect next to your precious newborn baby’s skin.

Why Bamboo?

Bamboo fabric is cashmere soft, naturally anti-bacterial, UV protecting and hypoallergenic. It is thermo regulating so keeps your baby warm in the cold weather and cool in the warm weather, making it the perfect choice for your baby.

Bamboo produces the only true eco-friendly textile material. It is 100% biodegradable and takes in five times the volume of green house gasses and releases 35% more oxygen than cotton.

Bamboo is extremely fast growing and can grow up up to three feet a day.

And unlike cotton it needs no replanting, pesticides or fertilizers. Bamboo is cut not uprooted, helping soil stability, sustaining riverbanks and reducing water pollution.

Can you share the main benefits of babywearing.

Keeping your baby close to you regulates your baby’s heart rate, breathing, and temperature. It promotes breastfeeding and weight gain. Evidence shows improvement in reflux, colic and other discomfort caused by digestive problems such as wind. Oysterbaby allows you to be completely hands free with the reassurance that your baby is safe and secure next to you.

Studies show babies cry less, sleep more and show faster cognitive development when compared to babies who are not carried in a sling.

How safe are the slings? Is there any risk of your baby falling out or the sling coming undone? 

Oysterbaby is completely safe to use, all slings are provided with a clear illustrated manual showing you how to safely carry your baby. Your baby is carried securely next you,  with no danger of any buckles or straps breaking!

So I've got my Oysterbaby sling ready for little muffin's arrival and I'll be testing it out for myself and letting you know how I get on now that I feel rest assured that it is a very safe option ;-). 

In the meantime if you want to know more about Oysterbaby then please click here. 

Take care,

Mrs W xxx

Pizza Express goes all skinny on us

This isn't the normal type of thing I'd blog about but I was genuinely so excited to see this little announcement I wanted to share: Pizza Express are bring their light range to supermarkets! So if you're feeling like you've been naughty over Xmas but you're not ready to give up the tasty treats then this is for you:

Here's the release from their head office:

Calorie conscious pizza lovers needn’t avoid their favourite foods this January thanks to two new skinny pizzas from PizzaExpress.  The new Light range, inspired by the popular, 500 calorie, Leggera range, which is currently available in PizzaExpress restaurants, is available in supermarkets from 7 January.

Giardiniera Light and Pollo Piccante Light contain fewer than 500 calories each and 40 per cent less fat than other PizzaExpress pizzas*.  Thanks to a thinner, crispier dough, which matches up to the quality of PizzaExpress’ restaurant pizzas, low calorie mozzarella and carefully selected ingredients, waistline watchers can enjoy toppings which might otherwise be off limits, and without compromising on taste. 

Giardiniera Light is packed with typical, flavoursome Italian vegetables and pesto, and topped with cherry tomatoes, garlic mushrooms, red peppers, artichokes, olives and light mozzarella.  The spicy Pollo Piccante Light also contains light mozzarella and is topped with slices of aromatic Cajun chicken and chargrilled yellow and red peppers.

The new line up joins the PizzaExpress’ other retail offerings designed around its best-loved restaurant dishes.  Other products include Garlic Bread starters, Dough Balls, Fresh pastas and a wide range of signature pizzas such as the American Hot and Sloppy Giuseppe.

Both pizzas will be available in Waitrose from 7 January and Tesco from 12 January with RRPs of £4.00 - £4.50.  The Pollo Piccante light will be available in Sainsbury’s also from 21 January with a RRP of £4.00 - £4.50.

Ready to go - what I packed in my hospital bag

I can't quite believe the time is here but I am now 8 days away from my estimated due date so of course I've had to get my bag packed. As I'm giving birth on the NHS you're strongly advised to take as small a bag as possible which is harder then I thought particuarly when you look at all the recommended lists out there.

Anyway after a lot of deliberating here's what I packed in mine:

Things for muffin:

Most importantly and of course excitingly, his first little outfits. As cute as little people outfits are there skin is sensitive so I've just chosen a couple of baby grows and a romper suit. The two on the right say 'welcome to the world' and are from Mammas and Pappas, the third on the left is from Next and has a little hoodie which looks really cute.

They also need some undergarments so I've included several plain white vests. Then a couple of hats to keep his head warm and a bib to catch any spit up or dribbles whilst feeding - no idea if that's necessary but thought I'd include anyway.

I know many hospitals provide swaddling blankets but the ones I've seen can be quite scratchy so I've put in a couple of my own blankets and of course muslins for any after feeding effects ;-).

This is by far the most special item going into my bag. The above is a blanket knitted by late Great Grandmother and was the last one she ever did. She actually specifically knitted it for her first Great Grandchild she knew she would never meet and it has been kept specially by my grandmother for this very occasion. It was a really special moment when it was handed over to me after my baby shower earlier this month.

In addition to my hospital bag I've also packed my nappy bag with bits and pieces for the beginning of many years of changing! As advised by friends and other blogs I've got cotton wool pads, sensitive wipes, sudocrem, pampers nappies and vaseline. Plus my hospital notes as they'll be easy to pull out in this bag - these are probably the most important thing you need to bring so don't forget them! They should be with you really wherever you go during pregnancy just in case you have an emergency. I've been keeping mine in the glove box of our car.

Finally we have the going home outfit! As it's the middle of winter and the temperatures are pretty nippy outside I've packed a bear suit to keep him all snuggled up in his car seat, with a matching bear hat. I can not wait to see how cuddly he's going to be in this one!

Things for me:

Whilst for the actual birthing part I plan to wear a hospital gown there will be a lot of time before and after the birth when it's best to have something comfortable, so I've packed a nightie, pjs, slippers and a dressing gown. The latter two are good for if you want to walk around the ward during labour to help move things along and crucially the nightie and pjs both contain buttons at the front for breast feeding.

As there's no way you can keep visitors away and the inevitable photos I'm definitely packing some bits and pieces for afterwards to get me looking as best I can again. These include shampoo and condition for if there's a shower, dry shampoo for if there isn't, facial wipes and of course make up and lip balm (apparently your lips get really dry). I know that's really vain but these pictures are going to be around for a very very long time!

No need to explain what these are for, other than to say the pants are from primark so cheap and disposable plus a lot comfier then the ones they give you in hospitals.

Finally, I've got the above bits and pieces for breastfeeding: breast pads, cooling pads, nipple cream, antiseptic gel and a notebook to keep track of when he's been fed and for how long.

So that's it for now! I'm sure I'm missing something important so feel free to comment but that's all I got for now. Eek really not long to go now.

Lots of love,

Mrs W xxx

Skip Hop Mini Changer Review

Finally I've decided to look at a different option for those of you who might not want a dedicated nappy bag. The Skip Hop Mini Changer is the ultimate portable changing bag that you can slip into any normal handbag or attach to your pram. 

Measuring 22.2 x 2.5 x 29.2 cm it would need to go into a larger handbag but it's amazing how much you can fit in. 

When you open up the pack there are two main packs which you can hold nappies, wipes and cream inside. One pocket is a mesh which stretches to hold several nappies, the second is zipped and perfect for holding your wet items including wipes in a plastic case so you can prevent anything else in your bag from getting damp. 

The changing mat itself is pretty large so plenty of room for little one and the material is easy to clean any extra spillages. There are also two extra side panels for wiggly babies:

Finally at the front you have one extra zipped pockets which you can easily use for personal belongings if you literally just want to take this out with you. 

I know I'm going to get loads of use out of this changing bag particularly when I'm travelling. Whenever I'm flying I always make sure I take the biggest possible hand luggage bag you can so just being able to pop this in is going to be brilliant. Also because it's small it's really transferrable so if you're in a rush you can just keep it packed and ready to grab whenever you need. 

The only downside for me is the price. You can buy it on amazon here for £27.85 which is cheap in comparison to a full nappy bag but I know other brands have slightly cheaper versions of this available. However this is definitely the best one I've found so I'm sure it'll be a worthy investment. 

Seraphine Puffa Quilt Nappy Bag Review

So here is number three of my nappy bag reviews and I've had a look at something a little different for this post. The Seraphine Puffa Quilt Maternity bag is definitely not your typical looking changing bag and therefore really caught my eye:

 In comparison to the other two bags this one is really simple which definitely has it's advantages. As it's made from a puffa quilt it's super light weight with padded handles so if you're worried about your back this would be great. Also because it's quilt you can fold it up and pack it up in your bag if you're going away. This for me would make it the ultimate holiday changing bag as I always need something quite big for hand luggage. I have no idea how I'm going to cope keeping luggage to a minimum with muffin to pack for as well...

Inside the bag has a wipeable funky silver lining with several pockets for personal bits and pieces. Including a separate pocket if you've got wet items.

In terms of accessories included in the quilted maternity bag you've got a thermal bottle holder and one crazy fun changing mat in leopard print. In fact I really really love this changing mat and think it might be a permanent fixture in my nursery as my main changing mat cover - I'm sure hubby is going to love seeing his son on that ;-). 

The only real disadvantage to this bag is that because it isn't structured the opening doesn't stay open which can make it a bit more difficult when searching for little bits and pieces. 

However, overall this is definitely the chicest of all the bags I've tried and if in particular you really want to keep more to your previous self then embrace 'mummy style' this is perfect and at only £49 it's a very reasonably priced option. 

For more information click here. 

Yummy Mummy nappy bag review

So you can't do a set of reviews without looking at Pink Lining's Yummy Mummy bag line. To me they are currently the most iconic bag used by mummy's today and are used by most of my friends.

Initially I wasn't quite so sure about the Pink Lining range mainly because as I've mentioned previously I'm not a huge fan of slightly more childish designs. However they've definitely grown on me whether that's to do with my maternal instinct or I'm just embracing the whole childhood thing I couldn't say. Moreover I couldn't do a series of reviews on nappy bags without looking at it:

The Yummy Mummy Blue Bouquet bag - £79

Whilst pink lining do offer several different styles of nappy bags the Yummy Mummy is their most popular. With measurements of 38(L) x 28(H) x 14(W) cm it's actually quite a big bag and because the it's longest length ways you can open it up widely to really get in access whatever you need and trust me that's a huge bonus judging by the amount of paraphernalia my friends have in theirs. 

I'm not a fan of all of the designs but this one I do really love. The blue is quite subtle and the overall look is pretty. The outside also features three pockets (one on the front and one on each side) giving you quick access to items but make sure they're not valuable if you plan to hang this on your buggy. 

The inside is of course made from their famous easy wipe, water-proof pink lining. There are several pockets designed for specific goods including two thermal pockets, a phone holder and nappy pockets. There's even a little pocket mirror for a quick check that your make up is still in place after a particularly frantic journey.

Also included in the bag is the expected wet bag and changing mat. I really like the mat in particular because not only does it look easy to clean but it's also padded so I know it will be more comfortable for muffin.

In conclusion I have to say that despite previous thoughts I really love this bag and I know I'm going to be using it lots. Not only is the quality great but despite having a boy I can keep my girly style. It's also big enough for me to include all my rubbish that feels my handbag today pre-baby. I'm sure you'll be seeing several post-pregnancy photos with this in use.