31 Weeks Pregnant - girls are more trouble than boys!

Well I am now in the 3rd trimester of my pregnancy and don't I know it! The bump is huge and is on the move regularly and I know the patterns of her being awake and asleep. I heard the rumours that you carry girls all up front and didn't really know what it mean't but now I most definitely know what this means.

With K I always felt his movements down my right side but they were set back in my stomach, I am not saying I couldn't see his movements because I could but they did not feel too hard on the front of my stomach and I carried a lot of water with him and felt that this acted like a bit of a barrier.

This time I can feel every movement she makes to the point where it now feels painful, I thinks its her shoulders, back and elbows I can feel just to the left of my belly button and I can visibly see her shifting herself around. It feels like she is going to pop out of my stomach and I still have just under 9 weeks to go which is a bit of a scary thought. Even when she is not moving I can put my hand on my stomach and feel a part of her there.

Now for the real whinge -

• Restless Legs - this is not the first time I have had this as I suffered this with K, every night when I sit down, about half hour later I have restless legs. Some people call it twitchy legs, its when you can not stop fidgeting with your legs as they will just not settle and constantly feel uncomfortable. The only way I can manage this is by sitting on the gym ball and having a little bounce while watching tv but if I get it in bed it keeps me awake for ages (and my partner unfortunately)
• Cramps - I am getting cramps in my legs and feet, not too often but very painful. My partner thought there was something seriously wrong when I shouted out loud due to a leg cramp the one night!
• Hormones - Yes I have days where I just want to ball my eyes out or just want to kill somebody (usually my partner)
• Struggling to do my trainers up - to bend for anything is a huge task but trying to do my trainers I have to bend to the side as she is always in the way and I am sure I will be asking for help before long. To bend over to pick something up is embarrassing as I just look ridiculous with my legs apart trying to stretch down!
• Getting comfortable to sleep is difficult, I need to position my V cushion under my bump now and turning over to sleep on my other side in the night wakes me up as I have to be careful and mindful of which side the baby is sleeping.
• Needing to go for a wee up to 5 times during the night and feeling so hot and uncomfortable is a nightmare. I am sure this is good practice for when she is here but I am so uncomfortable I would just love to have the occasional full nights sleep.
• Not being able to drink a bottle of wine! I miss a few glasses now and then and have been invited to more weddings,christenings and special occasions since being pregnant again than any other year.

Now for the good bits -

• Waking up in the morning to feel her first movements of the days which can still be an elbow sticking out but its comforting to know she is there when I wake up she is warm and safe in my tummy.
• Realising that the limb sticking out of my stomach feels like toes on her tiny feet - how cute.
• Being able to eat loads. I must admit I am not pigging out too much, its mostly in the evening and its usually just a bowl of cereal extra to what I would eat, though its nice to have the odd bar of choccy as a treat being as I can't have a drink.
• Decorating the nursery and buying all the things you need for baby. As I already have K I kept all of his things from when he was a baby which I have been able to re-use this time. eg, the cot, moses basket,cot mobile, baby moniters etc From experience I haven't spent much on a buggy as I know that you don't necessarily get the use out of them and they are all pretty similar. In fact I have gone for a second hand one which has not been used so looks brand new saving us a stack of money! It has a car seat, carry cot, foot muff, raincover and nappy bag so was amazing value.
• Reading about how your baby is developing week by week. I love checking up on how big our baby is getting and what she is up to inside my tummy. The sites I read from also offer you good tips on what you should be eating and how you might be feeling as the weeks go by.
• Knowing I am only a few weeks away from meeting our little princess. I keep recalling how I felt after having K and the emotions and love you immediately feel for your little bundle of joy. The first night I spent with K I couldn't sleep as I just kept looking at him, taking him all in and checking he was still there and breathing. I can;t wait to feel like that again plus I can't wait to see K meet his new little sister.

First Day of School

Well the first day of school for my boy and I couldn't be prouder.

K has been going to the nursery in his school for 2 hours from 9am til 11am for the past year and he has loved it. He has a lovely circle of friends there that he also plays with out of nursery hours and they are all moving up to the reception class together, which is why I have no major worries about him being in school for a longer day.

I have all the usual worries I suppose, what if something happens to him and I am not there to comfort him? Will he eat all his dinner or refuse and end up being hungry all afternoon? Will he get picked on? The thing is that they can't be tied to their mom's apron strings and need their own independence to learn and grow. This is the age now where they can easily adapt to situations and they have that much energy and want to learn everything about the world around them. I feel that K is ready for full-time school and is going to really benefit from being there.

So the night before . . . 7am bedtime, school uniform ready, fruit ready to take for snack time!
Guess what Kieran has a lie in on his first morning of school til 7.20am, bear in mind his usual wake up time is 6.30am! Anyway I wake him up and he is all excited to be going to school to see his friends. I have a chat to him about school dinner and what he will be having today - the school give us a 4 week menu which is great for planning which days you want them to have dinner and which days you may want them to take a packed lunch. As K is a bit fussy there will be days where I know he will refuse to eat certain things so will push him a little but will let him take his own sandwich occasionally.

We left the house early and took lots of photo's on the way and met up with his friends and the mom's all waiting outside. What a great atmosphere outside the school gates, everyone excited, showing off their new shoes and bags etc all the mom's nervous about letting their little ones go for the whole day and thinking what are they going to do with all this spare time on their hands! Then the school bell goes and everyone heads for the door. Me and K join hands and we walk to his new class, find his coat peg and he races in to meet his friends - not even a kiss goodbye!! I look around feeling a bit dejected and see him playing happy with his mates and I feel so proud of him. Then off to work I go!

K is on my mind, I am wondering what he is doing and I find myself looking at the clock timing what he would be doing now. I can't wait to finish work to see how his day has gone. I pull up outside the gates at 3pm and wait outside, he appears 5 minutes later and runs out the door shouting mommy with a big smile on his face - my gorgeous little boy.  He tells me he has eaten all his dinner and been playing trains and that he enjoyed his day.

I am thankful that I picked him up with a smile on his face, he was all in one piece and had eaten his school dinner plus he had enjoyed being with his friends, what more could a mom want?

We have had a little meltdown this evening as he I took him out for a walk after his tea and probably finished him off! I just need to wait for him to adjust to his new routine and school is bound to tire him out more now.

I just can't wait now to have a day off work while K is at school so I can have some me time before all my time is occupied with my new baby girl. Happy Days!