Catch Up

Argh, I'm not going to leave it this long before writing again, because I end up with having too much to say!

Let's see.... Thursday evening I didn't feel very well, and I still didn't on Friday, so I was allowed home a bit early and we got take away pizza and watched TV. Saturday day we did nothing all day - it was bliss!

Saturday was Jack's... Mum's... Best Friends... Daughters 18th birthday, so we went to her party. Jack was excited because there were more people we could talk to about the baby and show off the bump to - he's worse than me! So many people were touching me, it was weird! Towards the end of the night I was cornered in the ladies loos, and someone did the ring test on me. She got me to pull out a strand of my hair, which she threaded through my engagement ring, then held that over my bump to see how it turned. She kept loosing my hair though, so I ended up pulling about 5 strands out in the end, which of course wasn't a strand, more like a clump, but luckily I have a lot of hair! The tale goes, that if the ring spins round and round it's a girl, and if it swings back and forth, it's a boy. It told me I'm having a boy. Then the barmaid came in the loos and told me I'm having a boy because she carried her two boys like that - she said I'm carrying out front and glowing, so it has to be a boy.

Loads of people at the party were asking us about names. When I said we didn't really have any boys names, a surprising amount said we should call it Jack Junior if it's a boy. Erm, no.

We've been invited to a wedding on 1st July which will be a tight squeeze but if baby is on time maybe it will be our first family outing!? I was invited to the Bride's hen weekend mid May but I doubt I will be in much of a clubbing mood at that point!

Sunday we went to Lakeside, we went to Toys R Us to the Babies R Us there, and think we've found our pram! We like the Graco Travel System Deluxe, and had a go with putting it up and down and wheeling it around. Jack looks sooooo adorable behind a pram!

We had a look at cots too, I think we'll get a cotbed. We went into Mothercare and still liked the Graco the best. We can't buy it yet because we have no where to put it! I bought a Tommy Tippie Nappy Wrapper cos they were on 50% special offer, and Jack bought a giftset for someone from his work who just had a baby girl.

Jack took me to TGI Friday's for lunch, we'd just placed our order when I got a phone call from my Mum. She had to put our dog down. Poor little Buster, my Jack Russel. We'd had him since I was 8, but he was getting so old - he hadn't really eaten in the last week, and could hardly stand up. I was crying at the table, its so sad. Plus I didn't get to say a proper goodbye. I keep thinking about all the times I could have taken him out, or shooed him off me when I was eating, and I feel bad. I know he had a good time with us though, and the vet said he was ready to go. Mum asked for the vet to cremate him, but didn't ask for his ashes, which I was really upset about - I would have liked to have scattered them in the garden.

We got back home and I just got in bed and had a little cry. I didn't really feel like seeing anyone I just wanted some time by myself, so just stayed in bed for the rest of the day, feeling a bit crap really!

Yesterday, Monday, I still felt rubbish. Plus since I felt ill last week, I hadn't felt the baby move as much as it had been. It had gone from hyperactive child to a few movements a day. I was getting really worried and decided I'd give the midwife a call later if they hadn't gone back to normal. I didn't want to trouble them because I was still feeling the baby, just not as much. But then again, it is my first baby and it's better to be safe than sorry.

By the time I'd left work the number I had for the midwife was going through to a pager, and as I was going to get on the tube, I called Jack and asked for him to page her. Once I got overground I called him, the midwife had told him to pick me up and take me straight to the hospital. She gave him the number of the hospital, which he called so they would know to expect me. I got there and all the staff were really nice, they showed me where the drinks machine was so I could make a cup of tea, then took me to a bed in a ward where they told me to relax for a while because they or me wouldn't be able to feel the baby move if I wasn't relaxed. So Jack and I went into the ward, I lay down and Jack sat next to me. It was really comfy, I could have fallen asleep! There were two other women in the ward, one that looked about to pop, and another that I think was having her blood pressure monitored. God I'm so nosey!

After about an hour and a half, we thought maybe they'd forgotten about me, so I sent Jack out to ask how much longer we'd be because I was getting really hungry, and I think maybe we had been forgotten because within a couple of minutes we were seen! Well anyway, I didn't mind because I just wanted some reassurance, and that's what I got! The babys heartbeat was very strong and clear, and the nurse timed it, so we got to hear it for ages which was lovely! She was considering doing a trace, but she said she wasn't sure if it would be clear enough to do one, so settled with the doppler. She was really nice and said that I did the right thing by coming in, and if I was ever worried again just to come straight in and they'd see me straight away. She also said if I take my maternity notes with me I can always go to the nearest hospital. I felt really good knowing that if I am ever worried I can go there to be seen and they expect it. I feel a lot happier.

By the time we got home, there was only time for a bit of toast and cereal then bed - I was shattered.

I woke up this morning feeling a lot better than I have been over the past few days, and more positive about everything. I have a steady flow of work to be getting on with too which I like cos that make the day go quicker! I met up with my friend Kate for lunch, who I last saw just before I was 12 weeks. It was really nice to catch up with her but she had to dash off back to work. I'm such a pig I stayed in the restaurant by myself and had dessert! Well it is the best bannoffee pie EVER!

On the way back to work I stopped at Boots and thought I'd buy something for bubba seeing as I was so happy that everything was ok in there. Everything was quite gender specific, apart from a pack of 2 Osh Kosh scratch mitts which are really sweet, and when I took them to the till they were on special offer, only £2.88!

Jack rang to say the midwife had rung him to check how everything went yesterday at the hospital, which I think is really nice. I'm liking the service more and more!

My fingers are reallllly aching now, and I'm sure your eyes are too - so for now, byeeee!