[Quick Question Thread]

Where've the insomnia threads gone and where are all my fellow insomniacs? Have they all vanished from P&B these days?

[Word Association]

Wu Tang

Platinum

[Pregnancy And Parenting]

All these poorly babies! I hope they're all doing better now.

called NHS 24 and they send an ambulance which was a bit scary when it pulled up with blue lights. Really not necesarry as we're only 2 miles from the RAH but NHS 24 said that with circulation problems in children it's procedure.

It's NHS Direct down here - they insisted on sending an ambulance here too when Elise was 2. I knew fine it wasn't necessary and had only phoned for a some peace of mind! Instead I got an ambulance because of "policy/procedure". I don't phone them any more.

This is backed up by the fact that he is stunt baby, having twice now got down the stairs by going under the stair gate and surfing down on his belly!

I know I've heard this story this week already but it still made me laugh. Brilliant. I need to see it!

Is there any make of nappy that doesn't leak pooh? I swear I've tried pampers, huggies, tesco asda and sainsburys own brand and none of them keep pooh in

Washable nappies? Most people reckon they don't leak like disposables. I didn't have problems with mine when I used them.

[Pregnancy And Parenting]

In other news, I cannae believe Matthew is one on Sunday.

Crikey, where did that go?! Is he not just a couple of months old? Are you sure???

I've spent the weekend meeting 11 pregnant couples. 3 more coming up this Tuesday and another 8 on Thursday. Part of me's glad it isn't me these days, much as I loved it when it was my turn.

[Word Association]

Jordan

Breast

[Quick Question Thread]

If you like what someone has to say, you click the green one to give them a + point, if you don't like what they've got to say, then click on the red - at the bottom of any of Kilt's posts.

Lol. Cheers, figured it must've been along these lines. It would seem I've given a few people brownie points when trying to multi-quote.

[Word Association]

Media

player

[Quick Question Thread]

What's with the +/- thingy at the bottom of posts on here now? I've clicked a few by accident, apparently using up my quota!

(Only edited 'cause it seems I can't type!)

[Word Association]

Mika

Circus

(I can't believe this thread's still going! Glad it is though - I remember it being fun for quite a while )

[Garden Options]

Crikey it's this time of year again isn't it! I really don't know if I have it in me to do anything out there this year. Last year was a complete flop as I was ill for a week and then too knackered for several weeks afterwards, right at the point when everything needed watering and consequently I buggered the lot up . I still haven't tidied up behind it. I didn't even pot the new plants my strawberries put out - I'm going to regret that!

Id also like to see about getting some proper garden lights and an automatic waterer for my greenhouse fitted.

Oooooh - automatic waterers! That's what I need. A proper irrigation system and a proper garden to put it in would be fab .

Love the photos Matt. Your garden's really changed since the first ones you uploaded! Blue tree thingy's kind of weird but cool and quirky .

[Petty Things That Get On Your Nerves...]

The Shockwaves ads on Spotify are really getting on my wick at the minute. What makes them think that constantly bombarding me with their ads will make me want to buy their products? Since I have fairly long hair it's also irrelevant.

I honestly don't know what's worse, those ones or the cocaine ads... it seems that advertisers are thinking that in order for campaigns to be successful, the ads need to be as purposely annoying as possible.

The ad irritating me the most on there just now is the one telling you how you can be free from ads if you just pay..... blah blah... these websites that rely on advertising, I don't know.

[Petty Things That Get On Your Nerves...]

I am not tierd

neither am I but I suspect I am and I've had WAY too much caffeine today is all.

I'm bloody knackered and can't flippin well sleep

[Petty Things That Get On Your Nerves...]

My dad has a bizarre dress sense. Some days he dresses like a teacher from the 1960's and some days he's clad in Aquascutum duffle coats and Lacoste polo shirts.

Only one other person on here has had the good fortune to encounter my... um... somewhat unusual "once seen never forgotten" dad. I told him recently that "no-one has a dad quite like mine" - he went away looking a little chuffed and reappeared two minutes later with a puzzled expression. I never did enlighten him!

You just have to laugh. Can't do anything else.

[Pregnancy And Parenting]

It's weird how you don't notice them growing until you compare them to either other babies or their old clothes.

Strange that it took the birth of Madison for me to actually notice that my oldest daughter is only a few inches shorter than my wife (or that they now share the same size of shoes )

For me it was always seeing another brand new baby that shocked me with the realisation that my own "newborn" was no longer that and was in fact quite big now. It's amazing how quickly that happens too. Even six weeks can make a huge difference.

Her blood pressure was down to something ridicilous like 37/22 and later we found out she had lost almost half her blood. She was taken in to theatre and I was called in about 1. Turned out her uterus hadnt contracted back and blood clots had formed. She was out of theatre when I arrived, and thankfully everything was ok. She had a blood transfusion the next day and is on iron tablets still to get her hymoglobin (sp??) up.

Oh my word! I thought I'd had bad experiences with birth, but nothing compared to that!

Glad to hear everything's ok and congratulations!

Kind of puts a different perspective on things when you hear a really dramatic experience! I'm also glad to hear it's all working out now and you're able to enjoy your wee one together neilsjfc

[Petty Things That Get On Your Nerves...]

Maybe she felt she couldn't say no to her friends, and maybe thought she felt her friends wouldn't be happy if she made plans with you instead. So don't go thinking it'll be only because of you, because it might not be. I don't know if it's an isolated incident, but if it keeps on happening then you gotta ask yourself if she's worth the hassle. But do give it a chance, I believe I'm right in thinking it's still early days?

Early days or not, if the plans were firmly made to do something together and she jilted him for a better off, what does that say? It's ridiculous. If it was another of the girls she'd made plans with would she have cancelled on her for her other friends too? If so then do you want someone that unreliable and unfeeling? The old "my friends aren't happy because..." routine is just a load of shit IMO. So your friends don't like you having a bf and spending time with him? WTF? Bit different if you shun them all the time when you're with someone and only bother with them between relationships, but that's not really the point in question here.

SB, for what it's worth, everyone else will have their own opinion on what you should do. Do what you think's best but (to add more advice to the pool) don't be taken for a mug. Any girl who'll do that isn't worth holding on to.

And Monster -

[Petty Things That Get On Your Nerves...]

Anyway,i used the train to Stirling this weekend,why to so many of my fellow passengers feel the need on a 1 hour journey to sit down to a picnic. There is nothing worse than sitting in a packed carriage listening to crunch crunch,slurp slurp.

I have even seen a couple start to take loads of Tupperware containers from there bag and start to deal out a bloody meal for gods sake..

Only time I bring out food in tubs on a train is when I have my children with me. I need to keep the entire journey carefully planned if it's more than about 20 minutes or they start getting fidgety and drive me mad. Feeding them takes up some of the time and keeps them interested and seated. Long live snack pots!

Any even number or multiple of 5 is ok.

Multiples of 5 are the way forward. I don't know where this even number idea came from, but it most certainly IS NOT OK!

I'm not bothered about the tv volume, but get really tense if the blinds aren't quite right.

I don't have blinds, but there mustn't be any gap at all between the curtains, even just a wee one at the top. Drives me mad!

Don't even get me started on pillow openings being on the outside of a made bed.

Both pillows should be placed in the same way - that would mean the opening of one being in the centre of the bed and the other being on the outside edge. If there's no pattern or the case is symmetrical then I agree - in that case you place the pillows with both openings in the centre of the bed and on the underside of the pillow.

Absolutely. I'd say that a joint income of 40 grand is the bare minumum on with you could give children a decent quality of life nowadays.

I guess that depends on what you value as being "quality". I'd hate for my children to want for nothing. I'd hate for them to think they could always have what they wanted. Of course I wouldn't want them to feel deprived but there's a balance. It also depends what your housing situation is - if you have a higher mortgage/rent then you'll need to earn more than those who own their home outright. It seems more than a little sweeping if you're saying less than £40k and your child won't have a decent quality of life.

Toma - get some painkillers taken and if they take effect then get to sleep while you can. Also, it doesn't matter what's wrong with you they always advise you to drink plenty, so... drink plenty and I'm sure you'll be fine soon.

[Pregnancy And Parenting]

However, the continuing exposure to antibiotics in the milk can change the way the baby acquires its gut flora (the bugs the baby gets from its mother that help to digest food) and this can affect the way that the baby’s poo changes in the first days of life. So you should make sure your medical professionals know you intend to breastfeed your baby.

Going back to the leaflet on Strep B in pregnancy/birth, the above quote is in the breastfeeding section. If you don't want to hear my take on it then I'd stop reading now and skip to the next post . Still, this is the pregnancy thread so probably the best place to find anyone interested.

I can't speak for the validity of the information given in the quote - I'm commenting here on the assumption that it is right. I always bear in mind that some of the information that is printed about breastfeeding is not based on any research at all but on opinion or misinterpretation of facts. I dare say I could find out more so if anyone's going to challenge me then I guess I'd better say I'm prepared to do more homework to find out the actual position.

What isn't mentioned is that the way the gut flora is acquired is affected by ANYTHING other than breastmilk. So a mother doesn't breastfeed her baby after reading this information - unless her baby is fed donated breastmilk then they will be fed artificial formula which also changes the gut flora. Surely if this is the main consideration for a Strep B carrying mother when thinking about feeding, it would be useful to understand this so they can decide whether they want to make a decision to permanently change that gut flora by using formula in the long-term or whether to breastfeed, accept that the flora may be affected by the antibiotics but that the breastmilk will continue to protect the baby and that the antibiotics which are potentially causing the changes will be gone once the antibiotics are out of the mother's system and therefore no longer in her milk. I think I may have overcomplicated that, but it does say what I intended it to (just not very succinctly - it's getting towards bedtime!).

I daresay there's only Ayrgirl and Rowan reading now. *waves* Thanks for sticking with it guys.

[Pregnancy And Parenting]

It has to be IV, or at least that's the impression we have. The antibiotics have to be administered every four hours, so a water birth is possible if the hospital allows it. I think the ABs can be administered at home, but the advice will always be to go into the hospital. We didn't consider a home birth and my wife's not really bothered about the birthing pool either (but has not ruled it out completely). Is it not possible to get IV injections at home? Sorry if that's a stupid question!

No. You can be strep b free a week before labour and then it could be back during the big day itself.

There is an excellent leaflet here and I think p24 answers most of your questions.

Cheers. I've had a look just at p24 - I might bookmark or print the rest to read later as my interest has been sparked by this thread.

Some areas won't permit intravenous antibiotics to be given at home - there is a small risk that you would get

a severe allergic reaction to the antibiotics... and, obviously, there is no intensive care unit nearby. The risk is small but your health professionals may be anxious.

It seems it's down to policy then. Or a woman's (or couple's) ability to find out about and strength to fight for what she feels best for her and her baby. Most people won't feel that strongly I guess and will go for the hospital option to follow policy. I'd love to know more about whether home births are denied in various places on grounds of the mother and baby's safety. On the back of that I'd also be very interested to know the difference in timing between a woman on a labour ward reaching intensive care on hitting a problem and that of a woman at home in the same circumstances. When you give birth at home the Ambulance Service are informed when the midwives first attend and you're made a priority if an ambulance is called for. Some women (and yes, I'm talking from a personal perspective here) would just rather the comfort, safety, security and confidence of being in their own home surrounded by their own things to help them cope better with the birth overall. Perhaps I'm just playing devil's advocate here re the antibiotics, but it's a valid point.

My first class about labour/birth was just about standing room only, the second one had thinned out a wee bit, and the breastfeeding one had maybe half the initial group of people present.

I've had someone turn up at one of my classes in labour. There's dedication for you! I was particularly pleased as often people choose not to come to the bf class, despite it being a part of the course as a whole. It isn't just for people who intend to breastfeed - it can be a really useful place for discussion and for those who don't breastfeed their own babies to understand why others do. If handled appropriately it can really bridge gaps.

There is a campaign to have all woman swabed

Overreaction, maybe? I can't help but think it'll end up overdiagnosed and with too many women receiving treatment for something they don't have.

Was indeed a brilliant day and the wee man was star of the show.

Sounds fab. Lovely to hear the Christening went well and you've all enjoyed it.

[Petty Things That Get On Your Nerves...]

It's brilliant! I don't go for all the usual games and quizzes that other people try and make me do, but I tried Mafia Wars one night last week just to see what it was all about and I'm hooked now.

What IS it all about? I've noticed a few people at the Mafia Wars thing but it looks like just more Facebooky crap so I've ignored it. What's good about it?

I think I signed up for that, but Facebook Scrabble quickly became the priority.

Scrabulous was definitely the way to go, but it got banned. Is there a replacement feature I'm missing out on here?

[Pregnancy And Parenting]

We didn't bother with a 'birthing plan' either. Had we written anything then "whatever the midwife says" would also have been what we put!

It's funny how people's perceptions of that differ. First time around I think I would have just done as I was told. Knowing what I know now I'd take no notice of what anyone was telling me unless it was an out and out safety/risk based thing. ie, "advice" would be unwelcome, information about any risk to my baby would be taken on board and acted on - so when they wanted to call an ambulance rather than let me continue at home with Scott I just let them do it. I was fortunate enough to have no complications and used the system in the best possible way, chose my own midwife and made sure everything was organised for my convenience rather than anyone else's.

here. It just means that my wife will have to have antibiotics administered intravenously at four hourly intervals at the onset of labour.

Does that limit your options during labour much? I assume the birthing pool would be out with a drip in (although I can actually see that that shouldn't follow, I think policy would rule it out). Would they administer the ABs in a birthing centre or at home or does it have to be IV? I don't know a thing about it.

The only ante-natal class I was interested in was to find out what to expect during labour.

That was exactly what I didn't want to know. Stupidly. Maybe if I'd known more then I'd have had a better birth with Sam, but you live and learn and it's all experience I guess. Without that birth maybe I wouldn't have opted for home births with the other two, which was the best decision I could have come to.

I should have added that it can come and go, and she may well not be a carrier now.

Do they retest then before the due date to see if it's necessary?

My wife has not had any swabs taken as far as im aware as she is only 20? Would that be right? Or am i talking poo?

Not something that's tested for as standard, I don't think?

[Pregnancy And Parenting]

I'm I the only one who didn't bother with the 'parentcraft' classes?

I didn't bother either. I wanted to see each of the units and speak to the staff at my local hospitals though so I phoned each one and arranged to visit, have a look around and a chat. Worked fine for me.

[Pregnancy And Parenting]

Hehe, we got a photographic example of each from the midwife at Antenatal class this week, lovely!

Niiiice. Don't suppose it was the "What's In a Nappy?" sheet by any chance?

[Pregnancy And Parenting]

Hope all is going well Reina. Remeber to breath now.

C'mon Reina....breathe, breathe and PUUUUUSH!

Right people, puuuuuushhhhhhh, aaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaand breathe.

You know, if anyone - ANYONE - had told me to either push or breathe while I was giving birth I'd have at the very least bitten their head right off and fed it to the dog (I don't have a dog but I'd have found one). It's about the most ridiculous thing you can say to a woman giving birth I reckon and is just far too melodramatic! Pisses me right off.

Many congratulations to Haitch and Debs on the arrival of your little ones. Hope all's going well for you all.

I don't

Am I the only female that doesn't?

Edit to add:

I know, I know

Heck, even *I* knew so it'd have been a poor do if you didn't!

Oh Christ, I'd forgotten about that It's one of these things your not sure about mentioning to pregnant folk, that and episiotomy.

The different stages of poo from thick black meconium right through to runny orangey-yellow mustard seed is something I often find myself speaking to pregnant parents about. And postnatal parents, come to that. Some of the reactions I get to it are quite amusing.

I am now worried about the black nappy.

Ach, it's not that bad. Someone on here said it smells foul, but I never noticed that with any of my three babies. It's like anything else - when it's your own baby you just get on with it.

I said I was going to use terry nappies. Hasn't actually worked out at all! I did for my second though and I actually really enjoyed it.

I bought some hemp and some bamboo nappies when I was pregnant with Scott. They were both great, but I really like the bamboo ones. It's apparently the kindest fabric you can use on the baby's skin and really absorbent too - my friend used them for her baby when she was hospitalised with eczema and they were so much better than other nappies. I'd definitely use those given the choice.

[Petty Things That Get On Your Nerves...]

Could have been worse. You could have gone for a piss

Aye he's not long turned five so hpefully he got a big enough fright not to do it again!

Stupid boy.

I've read this post three times now and for some reason it makes me laugh every time. It's not really funny... but it is!

Secret, eh? Well it's not my place to listen then surely. Now kindly f**k off.

I'm easily amused just now, it seems.

[Petty Things That Get On Your Nerves...]

just cos it isn't frequent, doesn't mean it isn't fun.

So my friend told me

I heard that lost time should always be made up for. Maybe we know the same friend .