Week 23/24 - Spring Forward

T-shirt dress - H&M
Maternity Leggings - H&M

This week has been quite busy baby-wise. I had my 24 week midwife appointment. My blood pressure was checked and the 'bump measurement' was taken for the first time. All is well size-wise at the moment. I also got to hear Baby Bond's heart beat and you can hear it kicking too! I have not been weighed at any appointments since the 'check-in' appointment. I find this quite odd, as most of the things I read regarding weight say how much is average to put on during pregnancy. Although I am not worried about my weight gain, as far as I can tell it is normal, I did think it would be checked more. I asked the midwife about this and she said they tend to go on the 'bump measurement'; if baby is growing as it should then mum's weight is not really an issue.

Within the NHS area that I live I have the choice of having Baby Bond at a midwife led birth unit, or a consultant led hospital. The Birth Centre is about 20 minutes from my home, with the hospital about 40/50 minutes away. Originally I had wanted to go to the hospital, thinking 'if anything happens, I'd rather be at the hospital already, rather than get an ambulance from the Birth Centre.' After a chat with the midwife Paul and I decided to visit the Birth Centre to see what it was like. Which we did this week.

I have been reading up about Natal Hypnotherapy. Basically our bodies know what to do, we have to listen to them. The best places to give birth are quiet, dark and calming. Although I haven't got to the bit of the book that teaches about the deep relaxation techniques so far everything about Natal Hypnotherapy makes sense to me. I am an anxious person and want to give myself and my baby the best chance of a calm, natural birth as possible, at the same time I don't want to put any pressure on myself to do things a certain way, I want to go with the flow.

On walking into the Birth Centre I was amazed at how quiet it was. We were informed that there was one mother in labour and two new mums in the bedrooms resting. You could have heard a pin drop! We had a quick talk from a midwife about the birth centre and then we had a tour. There are three birthing rooms, three bedrooms and a kitchen. The birth rooms are dimly lit and all have birthing pools and a couch. There are no beds, something which doesn't bother me. Another idea of Natal Hypnotherapy is that it is unnatural and uncomfortable to give birth laying down, we do not go to the toilet laying down! Birth is no different in that sense, let gravity help. Women who give birth at the birth centre are encouraged to move/walk about and find any position that is comfortable. I felt so calm on the visit that I think it is definitely the place for me to give birth.

I had a bit of a panic on later in the week; at my midwife appointment I had been given a leaflet on 'counting the kicks'. This said to call a midwife if you notice any change in your baby's movements. After a busy day at work and the leaflet ringing in my ears, I was a bit worried, I hadn't felt Baby Bond move much all day. When I got home I tried to stay calm and relaxed, after a little cry, a big hug and support from Paul I felt a bit better. I decided to have a bath and eventually felt baby moving, what a relief! Baby Bond seems to only do smallish movements and only a few at a time, I think I'd been on the move too much to really notice it moving, but all is good! I knew deep down everything was fine. Listen to your instincts!

On a lighter note Baby Bond's cot was delivered this week. I came home from work one evening to find Paul had already built it! I thought I was the impatient one. I had wanted to see the cot before I bought it but no shops had it on display, so I decided to take a risk. All other cots I had looked at were a combination of MDF and pine, whereas this cot is solid pine. I felt this was a good sign and so wasn't too worried that I hadn't seen it. Mothercare sell the cot for nearly £200, but after an internet search I found Tesco sold the cot, for the supplier at £145, bargain!

East Coast Country Cot Bed

Last Saturday my mum and I went to an NCT nearly new sale. I didn't really need much, I mainly wanted a play mat/gym and a few more clothes. But, I ended up with a play mat, clothes, two hooded towels, a blanket, a bottle bag and a sling/carrier. All for the bargain price of £19! I hadn't thought about using a carrier at all, but as it was only £3 I thought I would give it a go! I was really impressed with the organisation of the sale and would recommend them to everyone, have a look for one in your local area. 

Amy x