High heels and low places

Please stop advertising maternity wear with high heels! It makes me feel ill!
I like the stripper heels in this picture too, gives the look just that extra bit of class...

The arrival Elliott Ian Madigan.

I gave birth to a beautiful bonny boy on Saturday 10:47am.

Details to follow.

Due Date

I am 40 weeks today. My baby was due to say hello on this day, the 20th November, alas he wants to arrive fashionably late, like his mother Grrr.

I am becoming a nervous wreck not knowing when he is going to arrive, especially since it appeared to everyone he was going to come early [His head has been engaged from 31 weeks, ow].

The tenuous sporadic early labour signs throw me into a belief he is coming that day/night I am finding it hard to ignore my body as I keep analysing it.

Also as the day gets closer I have had a few hormonal doubting moments, sort of like muted prolonged panic attacks, wondering if I have made the right choice, etc.

The thing that makes the wait more annoying, I am mindful that these worries and aliments will dissipate on his arrival, but thats then I am here, now. Painful, bored, anxious, now...

Fed up. A week to go....

I want my body back.
I want my boobs back.
I want to be able to put my own knickers on without falling over.
I want the metallic taste in my mouth to disappear.
Most of all I want to meet my son.

I don't know what I hate more the feeling my ribcage is being pulled apart
or the fact its much harder to breathe.

Seven days have never felt so much like an eternity before...

10 positives about my pregnancy

Enough with the maternity moans! Below is a list of reasons to why I should like my pregnancy, rather than wishing for its inevitable end. This pregnancy has been rather tough, to be honest I hated the first and third trimester so much, those reasons alone would make me think twice about doing it again.
But heres a bunch of reasons that in a few weeks time, I may come to miss it.

1 - I get to interior design shop, a lot. No questions asked! ...Junk shops, Ikea, Habitat, no one can hold me back!

2 - It makes me think of the 'larger picture', rather than just my own needs. Helps me to put my existence in perspective

3 - Rowdy men on the street leave you alone, no wolf whistles or strange comments, sometimes they will be surprisingly respectful to you, holding doors open, etc.

4 - Because I have had severe nausea throughout this pregnancy my partner cooks every night, he has now become really good at cooking whereas before I couldn't trust him with a microwave.

5 - I did not suffer from stretchmarks nor did I get a Linea Alba, which I don't really like the look of. (some women do, I don't)

6 - Always having an unquestionable reason to get out of social arrangements if needed.

7 - Random chats with nostalgic middle age women about pregnancy in the supermarket.

8 - I have spent a lot of time reconnecting with my own Mother.

9 - My relationship has got much better, we communicate more efficiently, hardly argue and take things on the chin a lot more, again pregnancy has a way of making light of things which may have really knocked you down before.

10 - Sex is more intense when pregnant! It feels incredible!

[Picture left Die Hoffnung by Gustav Klimt (1903)]

Maternity clothing mayhem (belated post)

The majority of maternity clothing is far from exciting, my friend recently described the high street choices as 'dull casual office wear'. There seems to be a gap in the maternity clothing market, it is either elaborate party wear or plain functional work wear, in most cases they are usually both extremely overpriced.
Besides being absurdly expensive I find maternity clothing sizes to be quite unpredictable. I purchased a body con skirt, size 8/10 from Moda Mothercare and even in my 6 month bump it was 3 times too big. I am over 8 months now and it is still just too big... 'body-con' my bum!

Below are a few pointers that may help both women on a budget or women just wanting something with a bit more flair.

1- First port of call, and most obvious place would be eBay, type in 'maternity lot', or 'maternity bundle'. I grabbed some ace bargains that way! I managed to get a bag of 20 pieces most of which were all in season, it came to about £4! The were based far away and refused to post so I asked my Mother to pick up the bag for me as she lived near by to the seller. Most of the items are lush and I still haven't had chance to wear all of them as of yet!
Another trick is to sell items you may not deem as 'mothery material', or items of which need to go to make space for all the baby stuff, trade in for some staple maternity classics.

2- ASOS has a clearance section which can offer some neat bargains. Maternity or not!

3- Most vintage clothes have high waist/empire seams, great to wear above the bump, watch out with vintage sizing though, us ladies were a bit more petite those many moons ago!

4- Most 'maternity' items are not maternity specific, its mainly items sold as comfort wear, you see a lot of Waterfall cardigans for instance, with a massive mark up because they happen to have 'maternity' labelled onto them. The same is to be said of the high street maxi dress as the in trend maxi seems to be made of out jersey material, but the maternity ones are sold for a premium price.

5- Jersey! It's cropped up already, anything cottony and stretchy will probably be your lifesaver over the next few months, not those designer maternity jeans! (-speaking of which every pair I have purchased have caused me massive discomfort around the bottom of my bump when sat down... I despise the things!)

6 - American apparel, they are quite unique in that their ranges sell in both maternity and non maternity ranges. Their maternity section is a collection of products that accommodate to both. Try to bear this in mind when looking at the price tag, though as admittidly, the prices are a wee bit steep... I purchased a body-con pencil skirt at the start of my second trimseter, I have been wearing it through out my pregnancy without any hassle, because of the density and nature of the fabrics they use in the body-con items meant that my ever growing bump was always left supported, it has been my staple piece of clothing ever since I nabbed it. It supports me and looks great, I will rocking this skirt pre and post natal.

7- Speaking of investments, there are certain things on the market I would reccomend that may deem a bit pricey such as the above, but items do what they are supposed to. The Mama Spanx tights for instance offer great support aswell as lasting that bit longer than regular tights. I have tried other highstreet maternity tights and they just don't cut it, buying these to begin with may actually save you some pennies.

8- Most of your clothes can be revised to fit around your ever changing figure, there are lots of great guides online. DIY Maternity has a great range of projects suiting to advance to novice sewers!

9- The empire strikes back! Well no, not really, but one trick I love is typing in empire into eBay/wherever and finding empire seamed clothing which can be worn as maternity wear without the insane price tag

10- Many people forgo this item, diving in for nursing bras or larger bras, but a good maternity bra will save you from discomfort and not to mention potential stretchmarks. My boobs feel great!

A thought provoking and candid account of one woman's experiences of childbirth, and the idea of being 'womanlike'

"When I told people I didn't plan to breast-feed my daughter (I only told people who asked; I'm old-fashioned that way), I met a fair amount of incredulity. "But don't you want to give your child every possible advantage?" I was asked. Not really, I replied. This kid will be born white and middle class in America; she's already ahead of 95% of the rest of the world. Why does she need every advantage?"

- http://mcsweeneys.net/links/bitchslap/bitchslap10.html

a twit...

Oh dear

This inventor seems to be more interested in showing off gadgets/silly ideas, rather than being excited over the kicking of the unborn... Or maybe I am just too cynical, I never really 'got' Twitter anyway...
I only find it entertaining to read what the famous kids are up to.
Also, if you care that much to have a text message every time your littleun kicks, get already poor long suffering partner to text you, don't make social networking websites even more tedious than necessary.

My baby kicks the most (and not to mention the hardest) at night. He could show Ian Curtis a thing or to, so perhaps I would get some satisfaction by the idea the baby's father was being woken up as many times as me. Hmmm, food for thought.
Ah, it wouldn't work, phones have a silent mode, I wish pregnancies came with adjustable settings!

Another thing, not to buy... The Kickbee fetal monitor!

Getting my maternity kit off...

So, a friend of mine needed a preggo to bare (not really) all for his upcoming video installation. At first I didn't want to do it, but didn't want to let anyone down. I tried to re-write my parts where my chest would be covered with a newborn, un-surprisingly we had problems getting hold of one.

Looking back at the day I suppose I felt more funny about being partially naked in front of my friend, I also felt odd that by getting my kit off when pregnant would misrepresent my usual shape. The day came closer and closer then on the day I just took a deep breath whipped my top and bra off and got on with it. - the tension dropped and not after long I felt fine.

Looking back on the photographs (which I asked to be taken) I was slightly proud I had overcome being so wilful and just got on with it, not to mention I didn't appear to look like the Jabba-the-Hutt freak that I was convinced I would. Also, after the pregnancy, looking back at this time in years to come, I can see how I carried my first born. (Not to mention being a part of a pretty unique art-piece!). Just as well it is being exhibited in lands far away, I would probably feel much different if my friends were to see it!

I definitely suggest doing something similar, this has made me consider making a video of the birth or from the day of arrival so I can remember all of this, the negatives make me forget how happy I am to be carrying. Also, on speaking to other Mothers about this they recall the final stages/labour as cloudy, it seems to upset them that everyone sees their experience from a better view of which they did.

I don't know, maybe i'm going maaaaaaad.

Say cheese.

Rather than lumbering you pregnant folk with yet another collection of food that you cannot eat, here is a post about some food of which you can.
Below is a list of cheeses/dairy produce safe to eat in pregnancy, some may come as a surprise - Enjoy!

Hard cheeses:
Austrian smoked, Babybel, Caerphilly, Cheddar, Cheshire, Derby, Double Gloucester, Edam, Emmental, English goat's cheddar, feta, Gouda, Gruyere, Halloumi, Havarti, Jarlsberg, Lancashire, Manchego, Orkney, paneer, Parmesan, Pecorino (hard), Provolone, Red Leicester.

Soft and processed cheeses:
Boursin, cottage cheese, cream cheese, feta, goat's cheese without a white rind, mascarpone, mozzarella, Philadelphia, processed cheese (such as cheese spread), Quark, ricotta.

Yoghurts (all varieties), probiotic drinks, fromage frais, soured cream and crème fraîche - any variety, including natural, flavoured and biologically active - are all safe to eat.

[info collected from babycentre.co.uk]

27 weeks! Update!

I am 27 weeks! Not long to go now, this feels all the more real considering David Cameron had his baba today, me and his wife fell pregnant around the same time, so it is a little scary! - Horrifying Torie babies aside I shall update you on the pregnancy niggle front: the 'morning' sickness has pretty gone just gone, or has actually been left to just the morning, thank goodness. I now waddle rather than walk, and I eat all of the time.
Cravings are kicking in now, albeit them ever changing ones. The longest cravings I have had have been Spaghetti hoops and Aeros, not together, I don't really have any exciting stories on that front really. I usualy just prefer really starchy foods like potatos and bananas and insanely fruity drinks. Nothing really exciting like coal i'm afraid - unlike my friend who had a severe craving for bubble bath foam!
Regarding the hoops and chocolate, not sure what defiency that could be highlighting, if any... maybe its that I don't eat enough junk food and my baby is giving me a helping hand.
CHANCE WOULD BE A FINE THING.

I had a scan last week where they told me I had a lot of placenta, meaning baby is getting a big ol' connection to my blood supply, this has been said in the same fortnight where had had t come in and out of hospital for collapsing. It isn't regular pregnancy fainting spells, either, I lose my vision, get a fever and pass out followed by violently throwing up - We have been in and out of different health services trying to find out the answers but thus far Doctors seem to think I have bad anaemia brought on or exasperpated by the pregnancy. M blood levels were low at the start but it goes to show its got to the point where baby is literally sucking ALL OF MY blood. Cheeky bugger! Thankfully though, everything is fine on the baby front, all tests on the baby have come back more than positive and he is kicking me now, more than ever. [Sigh]

We have had it also confirmed I am in fact having a boy! - something I always had a feeling I would, but now I can stop panicking about all those baby boy clothes and toys impulsivly purchased.
This news has brought on slight anxieties though, I am worried about raising a boy, I know where I am with a girl, but what if my little boy turns into a macho woman hating man, or worse, ANOTHER GAMER? (like his Father) - I don't think I can take another nerd in the house!
How do I keep the balance between keeping an open mind and remaining vigilant with my own views? I am probably getting really ahead of myself, these things, they have a habit of just buzzing around my head at night. It's all just a part of a bigger problem, that I am getting nervous about actually becoming 'a Mother', being responsible for a person and as well as a unit, being a role model, and entertaining another little soul's imagnation till he becomes an independent person...

BUT I'M NOT ONE OF THOSE YET. ARG.

On Sunday I have my baby shower, we are having a Mexican theme, as one of my many cravings have been burritos, this hits two nasty birds with one stone, this way the men can make ridiculously hotwraps and smoke cuban cigars whilst the women get on talking about the horrors of childbirth. Hooray.

T-minus 100 days!

We're due our bundle of joy in 100 days, these are the things still left to do (I will highlight items as they become completed):

1 - Have the baby shower. [COMPLETED]
2 - Write up my birth plan.
3 - Complete house hunt. [COMPLETED]
4 - Have the frightening meet up with partner's mother and discuss parenthood [COMPLETED]
5 - Go to Antenatal classes. [COMPLETED]
6 - Go to Aquanatal classes. [HAVE HAD PHYSICAL PROBLEMS PREVENTING ME FROM DOING THIS]
7 - Learn how to knit (don't just learn how to cast-on then give up).
8 - Sell all the clothes I will no longer be able to fit it/not appropriate for 'motherhood' on eGay. [ONGOING]
9 - Make labour mix tape. It will probably include lots of Brian Eno and none of my partners love for Thin Lizzy.
10 - Agree on a girl's name, just in case it isn't in fact a boy. [COMPLETED]
11 - Move into new place. [ONGOING]
12 - Decorate nursery.
13 - Make plushy toy for child.
14 - Sew a personalised blanket for chid.
14 - Do all that PC muscle stuff. [ONGOING]
15 - Learn how to use and assemble travel system. [COMPLETED]
16 - Have a meeting with midwife over breastfeeding/going back to work. [COMPLETED]
17 - Learn all that crap about sterilisers/powders/warmers, etc. [COMPLETED]
18 - Buy a cot. [COMPLETED]
19 - Apply for maternity grant. [COMPLETED]
20 - Stop worrying!! [ARRGH]

Mini Mode

Mini Mode are my favorite high street-big name baby clothing brand, it seems they are to be no more. If it isn't that than they are making massive adjustments to their company.

I like Mini Mode as they make casual normal-looking baby clothes which are also a bit of fun. Most of their designs are vibrant and well made, they are also not too expensive either, which is always a bonus.

This post is intended as a little bit of a heads up really as there are some strange goings on with the company. Mini Mode online is no longer selling direct to the public, which seems rather odd. Boots, their high street retailer has also stopped selling their range from the Boots website. But some good news! - In store in Boots most (pretty much all) of their stock is on sale! They have items that have just come out going for up to 50% off.
This includes toys, blankets gifts and sets. Sounds like yet another company has been hit by the recession.Its a shame Minimode look like they are on thier way out, but it can be made into a bittersweet situation when checking out the new discounted prices.

I got my little un' this little romper suit today (picture left), amongst other things...

My person to be is already following in its mother's footsteps, it already has a bursting wardrobe full of silly items.

Hooray!

Making maternity marvelous!

Coming soon to in the pudding club a write up about the woes of maternity clothes. In the meantime here are a couple of online tutorials showing you how to make your own yummy mummy maternity clothes out of your old regular ones.

Jeans to a maternity skirt - HomemadebyJill.blogspot.com
Two regular skirts refashioned into a 'modest' maternity skirt - Georgeina.wordpress.com
Regular jeans to maternity jeans - Instructables.com
Making a maternity skirt - seemommysew.wordpress.com

From Craftzine.com:

Here comes the fun bit - Nursery inspo!

Baby hamock.

The bednest

A 50's space age stroller.

Vitaminer Ikea curtains.

Eames rocker chair.

Sorry to those who have seen this post before, I accidentally deleted it and have got round to salvaging it. Those on Google reader will not be impressed!

As easy as 123... :/

I have one hundred and twenty-three days left until our child is due, and I still am yet to see how it is possible for a person to come out through my most sensitive and small lady regions.

ARGH!

Strange

Mozart saves premature babies's lives... Well not really.

We're on TopBabyBlogs.com!

Click here to vote for meeee on TopBabyBlogs.com!

Thank you, from me and the Bump.
XXX

Manhattan toy company.

Recently I came across a brand of unusual looking baby products that I have become rather fond of. Growing tiresome of neutral baby products being very much that, neutral in colour, neutral in form, and even neutral in concept! I was pleasantly surprised to find baby toys that were non gender specific without being a bit of beige let down. It isn't so surprising then that the brand is then called Manhattan Toy as they have the vibrant feel of modern day upbeat New York design.

These toys originate from 1970's Manhattan.,the company was founded in 1979 by Francis Goldwyn (grandson of motion picture studio owner Sam Goldwyn).

Goldwyn wanted to move away from traditional fabrics, ideas and toys, Manhattan toy have opened up new ways of cognitive learning through their spiffy designs, and as they put it Manhattan toy intended to 'blend science and whimsy to produce toys that offer children a rich array of visual and tactile stimulation' .
Goldwyn is no longer a part of the company but it seems their motivation is still the same.

Not only are the toys quite innovative in contrast to others on the market ,the company are also dedicated to good old fashioned craftsmanship. Some of their designs have been tried and tested through the past 40 decades since the company began, with the biggest critics in the business; American families. Some of these toys are moving onto becoming design classics of the baby play world with their dedication to playtime products. And, as the New Yorkers say themselves, 'if it ain't broke, don't fix it'.

On my shopping list is the Classic Skwish rattle, as pictured above. The Bababall and the Wimmer Ferguson mind-shapes.
I am hoping my baby shower will bring down-town New York into my Mancunian nursery!

A Century of Fatherhood.

BBC 4 have put together a series presenting 'A Century of Fatherhood'. In this episode it points the finger at turn of the 20th century fiction, which in many cases is to blame in allowing us to believe that Fathers are (or rather were) not at all warm to their children.

This series uses diaries and personal accounts in order to suspend the myth that men were the cold, short tempered, bread providers, and not much else.
It looks into the effects of the first world war and the impact it had on being a paternal figure.

It was really refreshing to see a program which did not cash in on stereotyping men as belligerent neanderthals. However, the narration is a bit wet and makes it hard for the viewer not to want to gag at points. But all in all, I will be continuing with this series, it makes for thought provoking viewing.

Just maybe not watch it if you are a single mother, it is quite a warming documentary.

Eak!