Carnage at the NCT sale

Last week we decided it was about time we actually bought something for the baby, as up to that point, we were all set to bring a child into the world with nothing for it to wear, nowhere to sleep, and no means of carrying it other than my own fair hands. So the baby would have to be naked, sleep on me and be carried by me.

Anyway, I did a wee bit of research and found that there was an NCT Nearly New Sale (capped up as they did in their literature) taking place in a town nearby on Saturday. I twigged that it was only on for an hour and a half and suspected that might mean it was quite busy so decided to get their a little early.

Busy is not the word. As we pulled up, 15 minutes early, the queues of about 200 women, children and some men were reminiscent to me of people queuing up for rations in the third world. By the time we had actually got to the door, there were at least 150 more people behind us. Then, the rummage rumpus began...

To be fair, it wasn't as cut-throat as it could have been. No worse than prime-time Primark shopping. But you had to be very definite and deliberate as you attacked the tables. If you put something down for a moment, chances were someone would snatch it out from under you.

We were a little daunted but took it all in a spirit of humour (so much so that the woman in front of the queue, eavesdropping, turned to us and gave us some advice). And success was ours. Although prams and pushchairs were thin on the ground and all looked a bit on the tired side, we are now the proud owners of a Mamas and Papas cotbed - for a princely sum of £40. We also bought a couple of bags full of newborn babygrows, and, on impulse, a rather fetching purple babycarrier for a tenner. And I picked up some nifty black maternity trousers for work and an awesome pair of cropped, checked blue and cream dungarees. My husband did not think they were so awesome, but what does he know?

Anyway, we left about £60 poorer (once cake and tea were added to the mix) but feeling like we had actually made a start. And then spent approximately two hours trying out prams. I had no idea how many different options there were.... it was completely bonkers. But we did make a choice and now my parents are forking out the cash.

So all good. More later.

*SPOILER*

Having just moved house, not got the internet up and running yet at home, and being well, you know, preggers an' all, I've been quite lax about updating.

So, the scan - so much better than the first one. I don't think I realised quite how nervous I was about everything being okay with Giuseppe the bump until I got there, rolled my trousers down and took a big fat glob of gel on the tummy. But it was absolutely brilliant. This time, although bizarrely the printed pictures weren't quite as clear to me, you could see much more during the actual scanning. They come at your bump from every possible angle, and then stop and take measurements of things I didn't even know you needed to measure. And, most breathtakingly, you could see the movement. When she got underneath Giuseppe, you could see two little feet paddling away. The arm was endearingly up close to the head, and the spine was clearly visible.

And all clear - everything within normal range. Although we did notice looking at our printout afterwards that the head circumference was actually a bit below the average, but she said the readings were broadly average so nothing to worry about. And as far as I'm concerned, anything which lessens the difficulty of squeezing a watermelon through the eye of a needle is a good thing ;o)

And timidly we did say that we would like to know the sex if it was possible. So she swivelled that little wand and pointed to the relevant area. "Now here are the external genitalia. I think you're having a little girl. There are no signs of any boy parts there."

Result! I was going to take this with a big ol pinch of salt because I've heard before that unless they see a willy, they can't really be too sure. But I asked her this and she said in a confident voice "I think it was a pretty clear view".

Sadly, we had pretty much decided on a name if it was a boy - now that it's going to be a girl our shortlist of possible names is growing all the time. I'm very excited though. You're not supposed to say it, but, not very secretly, I wanted a girl. They are just less icky than boys.

21 week scan

Here's the latest image of the teeny baby - which now has a head circumference of 170mm, apparently... Next update for gender news....

Movement

I think I had been feeling the baby moving for quite some time before I realised what it was. Yes, the sensation in my lower abdomen felt different, but I figured that it was a result of the pregnancy in that my digestion was a little more active, and that I was feeling a bit excited and having nervous butterflies.

Then, I was really doing nothing else at all, possibly watching some telly or reading a book, and I got that strange slightly fluttery feeling completely isolated. And I realised it was probably the little baby doing somersaults.

Since I realised what it was, it's been much easier to recognise the sensations (and they're probably getting stronger all the time). They seem to be in different parts of my belly (not vastly, but I guess the kiddo is kicking different parts of the womb)and range from waves, to flutterings, to what does feel like the kick of something with about the strength of a stick insect. Evidence indeed of the life growing inside me. It's too little at the moment for anyone other than me to feel it, but it's becoming more noticeable and does sometimes almost stop me in my tracks. Which I quite like. Subsequently, I'm feeling more and more protective over the burgeoning bump. I should probably stop screeching my bike into the back of cars, I guess, then.

Halfway there

I am 20 weeks pregnant today, so officially halfway through my pregnancy. Woohoo!

I am yet to feel the bump (we have christened it Giuseppe because I thought it was a funny name) moving. But depending on which source you go to, it sounds like that first strange sensation may not happen until 20, 22, 24 weeks or even later - while some people get it as early as 16 weeks.

I have been googling '20 weeks pregnant pictures' furiously and the vast majority of them look way more preggers than I do. I am told this is a good thing, because it means when I am about to pop I won't be quite so humungous. I think it is probably because I wasn't stick thin to begin with, although as my best friend E points out, I didn't have a particularly fat belly. I have no idea how much weight I have put on, because I have no idea what I weighed to begin with. One thing is certain - my waistline has gone the way of the dodo.

Life continues to be rather tiring, but I have recently, on more than one occasion, managed to stay up past midnight, about which I am inordinately proud. I'm not sure if I'm blooming exactly, but I don't look too bad and I feel pretty happy.

I had a lovely bout of pregnancy hormones the other day when the stresses of moving house (next Tuesday!) got to me and I could not see past the challenges of shifting a futon, washing machine, desk and fridge. I ended up in tears on the phone to my husband. I am still mildly stressed about moving, and keep wishing that I could wake up one morning and all be moved, but it's not to be.

On another front, I've had my first taste of stress incontinence, which was just lovely. I was having a fairly major allergic reaction to dust while packing, sneezed very hard and a teeny tiny bit of wee came out. Lovely.

I have my anomaly scan next week, which is deeply exciting. We are planning to find out if sproglet will be sporting a willie or a lady garden, although my parents apparently want to be kept in the dark. Good luck with that one...

Hopefully by my next post there will be something exciting to report. I will at least have moved...