[kblythe]

Good morning all.

I logged on hoping to hear something from Deej. How did the appointment go?

Susan, I've never heard of a "pregnancy slot" either. It sort of sounds like your va-jay-jay, but I can't imagine why you'd need to buy another of those!

Thanks, Mindi. My work day yesterday wasn't as hectic as I had feared. I had three dissents outstanding and conceivably could have "won" the cases from other judges and then been forced to whip out a majority opinion. But they stayed dissents, so if I get any vindication, it will have to come from the Supreme Court! Oh, I had meant to tell you that I was shopping at a local baby furniture store over the weekend and talked to two women, one with an infant and the other visibly pregnant, and they asked me if this was my first, and I responded "First and only. I'm too old to have more." They then told me that they were 45 and 43, respectively! So I guess we shouldn't feel too old for this!

Hope everyone else is having a good Thursday.

Kathryn

[silverbrumby]

Hello Lasses,

Kathryn, congrats on your last day! So are you officially on leave now??? Great story about the pregnant ladies in the shop. So does this mean you're having a second after Davis is born. ;-)

Susan, I haven't heard of pregnancy slot either. What is it? Some sort of list or is there a time limit to when you can get pregnant? Love the donor name. That's too funny. As to the weirdness with your cycle, there isn't a chance you might be pregnant is there? Ok, you can laugh now.

Deej, hope all is well. Please update us when you get some news!

Jen, I'm in the eternity club as well. CD4 today and I have to wait through this whole cycle...literally counting the days. It's like watching grass grow.. My next LH surge isn't due until 24ish of August...

WOrk is dull dull dull today and I really just want to go back to sleep.

[Viv]

Hello to all,

Susan, way to go ...Willy - that just lightened up my day a bit!! As for pregnancy slot, could you explain what it is?? It's probably some Danish or Nordic thing - never heard of it neither here, nor in France, at least!

Deej, like everyone, wondering what's up with you?

Kathryn - I'll hold out the congrats for a little while- until the BIG moment comes!!!

However, I am glad you will have a less stressed time schedule from now until...

I finally got the results on the sex of the baby, and it's a girl. Somehow, I am very sad... I just hoped it would be a boy - I don't even know why, I don't particularly think too highly of (most) men, but it's better to know now so that I don't have a huge disappointment later on. I tell myself the most important is health, and all that I can give her.

Ok, all for today - have a good one!

Viv

[Deej]

Hello Ladies... I appreciate the concern. It has just been unusually busy w/ work, caring for mom etc. I am feeling good, no more cramping and the spotting has slowed. After speaking with the nurse, I feel confident that it is not something to worry about. She said if the cramps get intense or if I start to bleed, then to go in immediately. My next u/s at the end of next week. I will keep you all updated. There are so many posts I want to read, and hope to have time this weekend.

ahh viv i just read your post about a girl!!! CONGRATULATIONS!! i have always thought i wanted a boy, my mom has always said she wanted me to have a girl. i am sure the excitement will kick in of having a beautiful little girl!

[kblythe]

Deej, I'm glad the spotting has slowed and that the nurse has talked you from the ledge. I'll tell you what my friend, Amy, told me when I got pregnant: "Welcome to the journey of fear." It's so true, too. You're fearful something will go wrong with the pregnancy, and then you're fearful that something will go wrong at birth, and then you're fearful about childhood illnesses ... it never ends! Try, to the best of your ability, not to give in to the fear and to enjoy every moment of pregnancy. It goes faster than I thought it would!

Viv, I'm so excited that you're having a girl! Now Davis will have a little girlfriend in Belgium. And girl clothes are so much more fun to shop for. Although I always thought I would have a boy, I would have been equally excited for a girl. And with a boy, in the States, you have to decide whether to get him circumsized or not. Insurance will pay for it, and about 50% of boys in the southeast US are circumsized. It just seems odd to me that a single mother has to make a decision about what a boy's penis will look like. At this point, my inclination is not to circumsize, although the pediatrician recommended doing the procedure. Yikes.

Ona, I'm still at work. Yesterday was the end of a term of court, but not the end of my working at the court! I plan on working until the end unless the doctor recommends otherwise.

More later.

Kathryn.

[silverbrumby]

Hi all... avoiding work over here.

Kathryn, sorry I misunderstood about your work, but I guess working til the end is good too as it will keep you busy. Circumcision is a very personal choice so my advice is don't listen to your pediatrician. I know plenty of people who didn't circumcise and their boys were just fine. It just requires that you are diligent about keeping things clean down there. At the same time, I know people who circumcised their boys and had problems.

My own preference leans more towards not doing it. For one, that's how nature made them, so why mess with nature? For two, it's an irreversible thing and a choice about a very personal part of a man's body. There are ways for adult men to be circumcised so I figure if my child grows up and regrets not being circumcised he can always "fix" it. But the opposite doesn't hold true.

On the parenting side of things, I know several people who did circumcise and their baby was so uncomfortable for so many days that it really messed with getting him into a good sleep pattern.

Anyway, as I said, I think it is a very personal decision. These are just the thoughts that went through my mind when I thought about this.

Hope it helps.

Cheers,

Ona

[Deej]

My favorite ladies: I may have mentioned it before but if not, here goes. One of my closest cousins has a son with kidney issues. Long story short, she has been cleared as a match to donate a kidney. It is moving rapidly, but there is another health issue with his bladder. Best scenario would be that his bladder in the present condition is healthy enough to keep his soon to be kidney healthy as well. Please keep him in your prayers. The type of procedures he has endured make me feel like an ungrateful complainer! He has been catheterized more times than I can count, taken more meds thank I can imagine, and received shots weekly for some time... His name is Max. I will post a picture of him on our other group!
Kathryn - this is where I think of how you said the worry never ends. When Max was born, one of the doctors told my cousin "take him home and love him until he passes" He has not yet needed dialysis, and has always appeared healthy! So, the worry probably never ends, and always get a second opinion!

[lilac]

Kathryn, did the pediatrician give you a reason for doing the circumcision? Just wondering. It used to be a lot more common here, though my impression is that it was never as common here as it was in the US. Now they discourage it here unless for religious reasons. It actually wouldn't even occur to me to have a son circumcized, though I am of course always interested in what others have been told or intend to do.

Like Ona said, I prefer not to mess with nature, myself.

Deej, I will keep Max in my thoughts.

Viv, I think many people have an idea in their heads about whether it's going to be a boy or a girl. Now that you know you're having a girl I'm sure you will start thinking of the baby as a girl and before you know it you will be looking forward to having a girl as much as you were to having a boy. Congratulations! I'm so excited for you!

[Viv]

Jen, Deej, thank you lots for the encouraging words - I'm sure I'll soon kick back and look at this positively as you say!!

Deej, I am very relieved to hear you (two ) are ok, and I will be thinking hard of Max and I honestly hope his outlook changes dramatically for the best once the op is performed. Fingers crossed!!

I'm sure this is the umpth time someone asks, but could one of you send me address for the yahoo site?? I know I've seen it once before, but I couldn't find the specific mail.

cheers to all

[silverbrumby]

Viv! Congrats on having a girl! I echo what the other ladies said and I'll also mention to you what I mentioned to another of the lasses a while back. I think that all of us ladies are strong people and part of the way we get through this very hard journey is to visualize our goals. Sometimes, I think, we get attached to the vision we've created for our future so it takes a little while to adjust when things don't go exactly to plan, but I have seen some pretty resilient ladies who once they are faced with something not being exactly as imagined, adjust quickly to the new reality and embrace it fully and from it create a new vision. I think you will be so happy to see your little girl when she arrives that all you will think about is how lovely she is. Besides, most boys are NON-STOP energy and girls are much more fun to dress up. ;-)

Deej, I will be thinking of Max and hope all works out for the him. I'm sure with all he's been through he's become a very special and strong person.

Jen, is it August yet???? I hate waiting.

[lilac]

Originally Posted by silverbrumby

Jen, is it August yet???? I hate waiting.

Nope, not yet, but August begins two weeks tomorrow! Is it just me, or is time actually slowing down?

At least you aren't waiting alone!

[silverbrumby]

I think time has definitely slowed.....

but how can it go so slow and still feel like it's ticking away too fast? It's like August is taking forever to get here, but I feel like the days are sand slipping through my fingers.

Perhaps I need to be medicated??? ;-)

[Deej]

Happy Friday!

[kblythe]

Happy Friday all.

Davis, who was sort of quiet yesterday, is squirming around this morning. He's big enough that I can just watch my belly change shape from the outside. It's a bit freaky, but simultaneously sort of cool.

Deej, I'm so sorry to hear about your cousin and her son. It's one of life's ironies that the surgery is harder for the kidney donor than for the kidney recipient, but hopefully that bodes well for Max. How old is he? I'll definitely keep him in my prayers.

Jen, the pediatrician recommended circumcision for hygiene reasons. She says that she sees little boys who are just not particularly good at keeping their nether regions cleaned. At this point, though, I'm not inclined to have Davis circumsized. His cousin is not and my friend Amy's boys are not, so it's not like he'll feel the odd man (or boy) out.

I'm 36 weeks today. Yippee.

k.

[Viv]

Silverbrumpy, thanks - I think I'm starting to think positively about this, but you hit the nail on the head: we're used to getting things our way - through a lot of hard work and effort, but yes, I am not used to get an alternative outcome when I've invested myself fully for a certain objective...Gosh, it's about time I start changing my outlook!

"May ladies" (sorry, but that IS your goal, right?!), I know it may not make the time go faster, but if you find some ways to be around friends - occupy your evenings not alone, but going to dinner/movie/concert etc. with friends it may make time a more agreeable element.
I know when I was hiding in my corner the negativity surrounding me was palpable and time was passing by cruelly slow.

A short trip/visit to family, etc may also work - as much as you may feel in the mood to be alone, it may just be necessary to get your spirits lifted by others .

August will soon be here - and I x my fingers it is a VERY good month!!