Freebies: Supermarkets

I thought I would do a post on freebies I have managed to pick up from supermarkets since being pregnant and I hope the post will be useful for some people.

First up is the Asda baby club . Sign up online and it will allow you to print out a voucher for a free Huggies newborn starter pack. If you have no printer email customer services and they will send you a voucher in the post.

In the pack you get a packet of 27 newborn nappies, pack of 64 wipes and some cotton soft sheets.

Next up is the Sainsburys baby club you will need a nectar card. This offer will give you a voucher at the till when your card is swiped, they will email to let you know when the voucher is ready. To received the Huggies mum and baby bundle all you need to do is buy a pack of Huggies newborn nappies which cost £3.71 when I got mine. 

In the pack you receive a foldable changing mat, pack of 64 wipes, breast pads, comfort fabric condtioner, sanex shower gel, kleenex tissues and barrier cream. 

Tesco also have a baby club you can sign up to. I can't see an offer for a free gift but you do get offer emails sent to you. 

18 Week update

I am now 18 weeks and 5 days pregnant :-) it means I am 1 week and 2 days away from being halfway there and also my 20 week scan.

Since I last blogged I have had my 16 week midwife appointment which went well. She didn't listen to heartbeat though :-( she felt for my uterus which was exactly where it should have been, my urine was clear and my blood pressure was good 125/70. I mentioned that the consultant had written my blood pressure down wrong at last appointment and she said that was fine, they are more concerned if the bottom number goes up and as long as it's 70 or below they are happy. I find it amazing how my blood pressure has not been the same at any appointments. We also had a discussion about my weight and she said I shouldn't worry too much about my weight but reiterated what everyone else has said about putting on weight. She told me the average is 2 stone (28lbs) but she sees a lady who is 8 months pregnant and has only gained 9lbs. She also told me about aquanatel classes that are run every week, I was meant to go to my first one last Friday but managed to miss my alarm, so this Friday I am going to set several alarms so I get there.

My symptoms are OK, tiredness is the worst thing at the moment, I am finding it difficult to sleep for more than a couple of hours at a time but I am hoping to catch up on my week off which starts on Thursday. I am still suffering with bad skin and woke up with two huge spots this morning to add to my ever growing collection.  In fact without the tiredness I wouldn't even know I was pregnant!

The baby this week is 5 to 5.8 inches long from crown to rump and weighs about 148.8 grams. The ears are moving to their final position and the eyes are beginning to face forward, the retinas may be able to detect light. The bones are continuing to harden and the pads of the fingers and toes will form. The finger and toe prints are also developing. The heart is pumping 25 to 30 quarts of blood a day.

Prams

One of the first things we wanted to do was look at prams, it is early but the fact I have the worlds smallest car boot and we are both tall we thought finding the perfect pram would take a while. We also wanted one with a carseat and that was both parent and forward facing. 

In fact, it was fairly easy and we think we have settled on the babies r us jig pushchair which is pictured below. This folds up nice and small, has a really tall handle and for £350 we can get the pushchair, carrycot, footmuff, raincover and car seat.

So after deciding this is what we wanted I thought we would take my Mum as it will be her and my Dad who are paying for it. Before we went to babies r us we went to a local shop where I completely and utterly fell in love with the uppababy vista, again pictured below.

There isn't much difference in the styles but the uppababy feels a lot sturdier and well made and fits a bit better in my car boot. We can get the same as the package above but unfortunately the price doubles to £700 :-( I cannot expect my Mum and Dad to pay twice as much for a pram I utterly love opposed to a pram that does the same job that I like.

I am not sure when my Mum and Dad will be getting the pushchair as it is up to them, however, we have agreed not to buy anything until we have had the 20 week scan which is 3 1/2 weeks away. I am not completely happy with all this waiting about, this pregnancy has already lasted forever and I just want October to be here.

Consultant Appointment

I had my consultant appointment today and if I'm perfectly honest I found it a complete waste of time. The consultant was nice enough he just asked me how things are going which is fine I said I don't even feel pregnant to which I got a look that meant 'you weirdo!' . There was a midwife in the room who took my blood pressure which I am sure she said was 138/60 and it was 130/70 last time but when  I looked in the notes my consultant had written 110/60 so next time my blood pressure is going to shoot up a lot!!

All my blood tests came back clear and my urine sample was clear too.

I was booked in for my Glucose Tolerance Test which is on the 5th July, the nurse booking me in asked why were they doing it so I said family history, weight and polycystic ovaries. She remarked that she would be very surprised if I didn't have it as the only factor I didn't have is a previous pregnancy with diabetes. I am currently researching the best way to manage this now so that I don't get it or I can make it easier for me and my baby.

I also have to see an anesthetist, he didn't explain why and I'm assuming either everyone sees one or it is because of my weight.

My consultant has written to my GP to get them to prescribe me a low dose of aspirin to help blood pressure stay normal. I don't understand why he couldn't have given me a prescription for them.

My next appointment in with the midwife on 16th May.

Dating Scan

Today was my dating scan, the picture is below. I was put forward a day so now due on the 18th October.

I was a little disappointed in the quality of the picture after my private scan and all the other scans I have seen, however, this is probably because I carry most of my weight around my stomach and even though I have lost a lot of weight the tummy is my big problem.

The sonographer was lovely, she spents ages rolling over my belly showing me the baby, it was very wriggly and I hadn't realised they moved around so much at 13 weeks. It kept kicking and looked as if it was trying to propel itself.

After my scan I had to go and book my consultant appointment which is on 3rd May. My 20 week scan is on the 31st May. I am also booked in for July (I think) for my 28 week bloods.

The week ahead will see my baby grow to 2.5 to 3 inches and will weigh up to 21.3g. The placenta will now weigh the same as the baby. Also my baby should now grow an inch every week. The intestines are migrating into the abdomen and are starting to form villi which will aid in absorption and digestion. The liver will begin to secrete bile and the pancreas insulin. The baby will also start to practise swallowing. All teeth have formed and the baby can smile and the vocal cords are developing rapidly. It's pretty amazing considering conception was only 11 weeks ago.

Names

So, it may be a little early to start talking about names, however, if the conversations I've had so far with Jonathan are anything to go by we are going to have a nameless baby as we cannot agree on any names. For a start he suggested Rebecca and Melissa which I think are really ugly names, no offence to anyone with those names intended I just don't like them. His other suggestion was Aquilla and lets not go there on how wrong that name is!

I have downloaded a couple of baby name apps 50000 baby names and baby names and have made a shortlist of names, none of which Jonathan likes. My girls names are as follows

• Amelia
• Amelie
• Ariana
• Charlotte
• Freya
• Holly
• Phoebe

And the boys:

• Elijah
• Ethan
• Freddie
• Thomas

Pregnancy update: Week 11

I am now 11 weeks 3 days pregnant. I am getting some of my energy back but the nausea is still here but I still haven't been sick which I am grateful for. I still have 10 days left until my dating scan and I am starting to feel nervous about it I am so anxious to see that the baby is still growing and is healthy. My skin is getting quite spotty and my hair is getting greasy really quickly which is annoying. I also have to get up every couple of hours in the night to go to the toilet, but I think in the next couple of weeks the baby begins to move higher so it won't be pressing on my bladder.

So this week the baby is around 4.4cm to 5.7cm and weighs about 8.5g. The ears are moving into their final position. The eyes are still wide apart and are fused shut, the irises are also developing. Some of the organs are almost complete including the pancreas, thyroid and gall bladder.