Hello Mums-To-Be,

• My sis and I will be 37 on the 9th June 2008, we share the same birthday with our dad. I wonder how many babies are born on their parent(s) birthdays?

• This is my first pregnancy. My family in Scotland were overwhelmed when I showed them the pregnancy test on the webcam, so I will be webcaming with them lots showing the progressing bump. My twin sis cannot wait to be an Aunty as I have two wonderful nieces and 1 nephew already.

• Twins have not skipped a generation in my family as I have twin uncles and a twin sis. I can't wait for my first scan (in 4 weeks time) to see if I am expecting twins, if not, I won't be dissappointed. What I have read there is a greater chance in conceiving twins if you are an older woman as the egg structure is weaker and the egg can easily split.

• If your twin sis is pregnant, do you have her symptoms? I did have my sisters symptoms during her first pregnancy but not with the other two. I experienced her morning sickness and also her labour pains at 2AM. I could not sleep and the phone rang and my mum said congratulations you are an Aunty. I said I know because I felt her labour pains. My sis has not experienced morning sickness with any of her pregnancies.
• 24/05/2007 - Looking back at my first 6 weeks I can see a change in my body already. I felt bloated for a while but now my tummy has settled down. Some days my little bump looks bigger than others, maybe it's because of the amount of greens I eat, I don't know lol. My breasts are definately bigger, heavier and are really sensitive and painful. I have a cat and she loves to chill on my tum and when she walks over me the pain is intense, but Poes Poes does not know this and she headbutts me and rolls around wanting a tummy rub...I have not had morning sickness yet, touch wood and only felt sick in the evenings. My thirst is now extreme and I am drinking about 2 litres of mineral water a day and I am always paying a visit to the wc every half hour. I will mention this at my first scan as I know you can get diabetes during pregnancy, especially being an older mum. I have no cravings yet, but I am missing my Burger Kings Tender Crisp, mmmmmmm. My fiance has not given into my pleading, knowing that I would regret it later , feeding our bundle of joy junk food. I am also trying to remember to wash my hands after everytime I stroke Poes Poes (indoor cat) before I eat and avoid cleaning the cat litter tray is essential. I am not sure how Poes Poes is going to react when our bundle of joy arrives as she seeks attention when I am on the phone or reading a book or even at the computer she sits on my keyboard...Well I better get some lunch, I think cheese toastie is on the menu....write laterz....
• 28/05/207 - It is Monday again.I cannot get enough sleep, yawn. I woke up 12.45 PM (nice sleep-in) feeling like my eyes had been washed out with sand.I think I might have got heyfever or some allergy as my eyes nose and throat are irritated, I thought you were meant to blossom when you are pregnant, well for me, not today lol.I have never had hayfever in my entire life, so are you more likely to get allergies when you are pregnant? hmmmm.Well, I do have some good news, I am getting married on the 7/7/2007 and I still have no wedding dress.I have no idea how big my bump will be on the day so I ordered two wedding dresses over the internet and they fit perfect round the waist but won't zip up, so I have ordered a bigger sizes.I find the clothes here in Holland are for long, slim women and I am the opposite, short and medium build, only Etams has some clothes in my size.I heard that C&A have now wedding clothes, so may take a trip there also.My mum, sis and auntie are coming over the day before for my wedding.My twin sis is so excited as it is her first holiday abroad, they will be here for a week, so I can't wait to see them all again..woo hoo!

• 21/07/2007 - It has been a while since I have written on here. My wedding dress could not be altered but I was allowed to exchange for another, the shop assitant picked a perfect dress as I don't normally wear dresses. They altered it perfectly and everyone said on our wedding day that I looked beautiful.
• I have started to get my energy back, woo hoo, as sometimes I felt I could not keep up with the housework and now trying to get back into a routine again. I have developed an itchy red rash, it appears anywhere on my body at any time of day but my lovely husband managed to get an ointment to releave the itch but I heard this is normal as your body is growing and changing. I cannot get used to my new married name LOL. I feel finally settled here now in Holland and I have a super husband. I cannot wait until my echo at 20 weeks and hopefully we will know if its a girl or boy and everything is okay.
• 06/10/2007 - My second scan lasted an hour as the baby kept moving around and this examination is more thorough to see how everything is developing, and all was fine but unfortunately they could not say if it was a girl or boy, so I will have to wait until the birth. Two days after the examination I developed the flu, sinus pain and blocked ear. I got my ear syringed and it was advised no antibiotics should be taken and just to hang in there as it normally take longer to clear up and thankfully it did. I found the baby salt nasal spray worked wonders. I feel the baby move regurarly now especially at night when trying to sleep lol.
• 31/12/2007 - I am so glad I made it past the safe period of 37 weeks and into my 38th week. My last weekly check went fine and the midwife said I had a beautiful tummy....I am so lucky in that I have no visible stretchmarks, maybe it is because I am always rubbing in the cocoabutter, I just love the smell...I feel ready to burst and find walking and doing general chores difficult....I laugh when my husband has to tie my shoe laces or clip my toenails....he is an angel and looks after me superbly and so understanding when I have aches and pains. He is going to be super dad, I just know it. We are both excited and worried at the same time, are we going to be good parents, what is the birth going to be like, are we going to cope....but when the baby is here I know those worries and fears will be behind us and I am going to do my best and be supermum!
• 17/1/2008 - Well I had my checkup and waited 40 mins to be seen, it seems to be a different midwife everytime I go and this one was full of the cold and should not have been working as she was way behind schedule and made mistakes. She said my stomach was too supple for the baby to be born, it should be hard as an egg and that I would have to go to the hospital on Monday for an echo to see how much fluid is surrounding the baby and see how far down he or she is. She made a booboo with the heart thing, my heart skipped a beat as we heard nothing, she forgot to gel me first...when I heard the heart for a short moment it was a big weight off my shoulders. I came away with a big dissapointment, I really thought by the other midwifes that it was almost time for baby to be here but no and I am a bit down in the dumps with hormones going everywhere and so tired as I am up every hour through the night and cannot lay comfortable and this cold is not helping. My hubby is a super listener and he cheered me up a bit by saying, well if its echo on Monday, we might able to see this time if it is a girl or boy this time...I really hope so. I did notice this past week that my stomach was a bit smaller and thought nothing of it, thought it was just the way baby was lying as my jacket was not as tight when fastened, the midwife said its nothing to worry about, but why have an echo? If you have less fluid surrounding baby after 40 weeks, does that cause complications before or during the birth, and I am not sure whats going to happen if I will start labour naturally or what.
• 19/02/2008 - My echo went good, there was enough fluid surrounding the baby but you could not make out if it was a boy or girl, too big to see. I thought my labour had started on 21/01 as I woke up just at 7.04am with cramps and by 3am the next morning it was time to call the midwife, she came with an assistant and I was 5 cms dilated so it was time to go, it was a long labour and I had to get a drip to make my contractions stronger and something to take the pain away a while as for hours I lay and the baby had not dilated, I was so tired and full of the flu, I was relieved when I could rest and have a little sleep before the baby reached 9cm, then the drip was removed and the midwife was excellent and I gave birth at 5.30 pm in the evening to a beautiful healthy baby girl, 7 and a half pounds she weighed and we called her Sira which means beautiful. I could not have done it without the support of my husband, he was fantastic throughout and I felt proud when he cut the ambilical cord as he is not the strongest of people when it comes to the site of blood. I was torn after the birth and the anisthetic was wearing off and I felt every stitch, it did not go good, something was not quite right inside so I was taken to theatre and restitched and an hour later I was re-united with hubby, Sira, my mother-in-law and father-in-law, I could do nothing but cry and smile, I was so proud to give them the best present ever as they do not have much contact with their other grandchildren, now they have a chance to see Sira regularly and show additional love :-) I had 9 days of special baby aftercare, we do not have this service in Scotland and the carer showed you how to wash, dress, everything to do with the care of your baby, and she even cleaned the house, served meals and do the laundry. I could not do much the first 5 days as I was black and blue from the 3 spinal injections and the 4 attempts to place a drip into my arms, 1 attempt in my leg and shoulder but you forget all this when your baby is snug in your arms, it was worth it. 4 weeks have flown past and every day I am feeling better, apparently it takes 9 months before you feel your old self again and I look forward to that. I would recommend to those who can to breast feed, it is good for the bonding of you and your baby and it also helps you to get back to your normal weight before pregnancy and the breast milk is good for the baby, Sira is putting on the pounds fast and I hope to continue to breastfeeding until she is at least 6 months old, it is tiring work but with the support from family and a wonderful husband I can have a nap during the day allowing me to recharge and care for the baby and the house routine.