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Gumby Orgy posted:I was reading through the earlier parts of this thread and found a recommendation for the Bravado maternity/nursing bra from Target. Whoever first suggested that wins for life. My comfort level instantly improved with the acquisition of a couple of those bad boys. I went from zero to uncomfortable in quite literally one day. Sure, my breasts were sore as hell before today, but today marked the "Oh wow. My bra cups are too small and hurt" phase. You're not alone. 2 days after I tested positive (and after weeks of my breasts aching nearly since conception), I flopped right out of my halter top at a family bday party. I went to get fitted and found I'd gone from 34D to 34G. Stayed steady until week 17, but I think they've been growing again now.
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Sep 12, 2011 08:50
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legbeard posted:I'm around 18 weeks now. The second trimester is flying by comfortably, compared to the first three months that I spent sleeping. The books I'm reading say I should be expecting some kicking soon, but I haven't felt anything definitive yet. When you figured out that the baby was kicking, was it obvious? A lot of women say fluttering, but I'm reading you all say that you have super hulk babies. Will I be able to tell that they are kicking me soon? I started feeling my kid definitely around 16 weeks but it wasn't hulk smashing then. It was like fingers lightly flicking me from the inside. Over the past 5 weeks she's taken up kickboxing or something and now its not "aww, the baby is moving" all the time but "gently caress, seriously quit trying to stomp your way out of my cervix" type deals. But when she is actually positioned nicely and kicking out toward the front, which is a good portion of the time for me, its cute and fun to watch the belly. Everyone is different though.
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Sep 12, 2011 13:12
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I started feeling faint fluttery sensations some time around week 17 I think - it felt like a muscle spasm at first, but a really tiny one. I had an ultrasound sometime around week 18 and seeing the baby move on the screen and then simultaneously feeling the kicks was really cool!
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Sep 12, 2011 13:49
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I remember that he felt like bubbly gas at roughly week 17, and I'd only feel him like once or twice a day back then. There was about a month where I was definitely feeling some baby movements, but couldn't really be sure if it was baby or gas at any particular time. I remember distinctly that it was week 22 that he started trying to escape via my bellybutton. It's really nice to know I'm not the only one with the mini-Hulk. It's also nice to know that I've only got at most 10 more weeks of this.  I really shouldn't complain much though, because overall the pregnancy has been pretty easy to deal with since I got over the morning sickness. I'm even still able to sleep on my back some at night, which rocks because sleeping on my side has always made my body ache in the morning, even pre-pregnancy. Legbeard - you might think about getting one of those heavy-duty belly supporters/harness/girdles; I've heard good things about them. I can only imagine what carrying around a twin-belly would feel like, but I think it would be more comfortable with some extra oomph. Wearing the bella band or cinching my hips & lower belly with a scarf provides some relief when I get achy, too.
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Sep 12, 2011 17:22
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I called up my mother-in-law and asked her to pretty please bring me the airbed that my doofy husband had made her take back with her last time she visited. I mentioned that if this didn't work for the hip/back pain I might have to buy a recliner. She arrived last night with the airbed AND a brand-new recliner.  Slept in the recliner last night. For the first time in a month, I had no hip pain last night, nor do I have any yet today.  Gonna try the air mattress tonight, provided I get a spare moment to inflate it.Gumby Orgy: My tatas had grown a cup size by 6 or 8 weeks. I really hope they don't grow much more; I already can't find a maternity/nursing bra that fits. legbeard: I started feeling little pops and flutters sometime before 16 weeks, just a few every now and then. It just felt like a little fluttery sensation low down in the belly, or like gas bubbles. At 21 weeks it feels like I am gestating a jeet kune do student--feels more like getting thumped from the inside. Sadly I can't feel him from the outside yet, though.
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Sep 12, 2011 17:52
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Baby movement for me felt like eye twitches, but on the inside. Not popcorn or butterflies or anything. It felt like little muscle spasms.
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Sep 12, 2011 18:34
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Since it was my first pregnancy and I had an anterior placenta, I didn't feel any movements until right around 20 weeks. Nothing on the outside to closer to 25 weeks. So don't fret if you're not feeling anything real early on. I also hear (this may have been mentioned earlier) that a lot of women go in for the standard 20 week ultrasound, see the baby kicking around and realize that they actually have been feeling baby for a while, and had mistakenly attributed the sensations to things like gas. Motherhood Maternity claimed they didn't carry nursing bras in my size (which while big, was by no means unheard of). I looked around and had no trouble finding something that worked (at Gordman's, actually), so keep your eyes peeled! Chicken McNobody posted:I called up my mother-in-law and asked her to pretty please bring me the airbed that my doofy husband had made her take back with her last time she visited. I mentioned that if this didn't work for the hip/back pain I might have to buy a recliner. Best MIL ever!
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Sep 12, 2011 18:39
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I had a gynecological nurse visit today to just confirm that I am, indeed, knocked up and to allow me to ask some questions. I am definitely pregnant (duh). I do feel better about the pregnancy, though, knowing that my symptoms are completely normal, including my case of "pregnancy brain." I feel like I suddenly developed a case of ADD. Even the simplest tasks require more mental fortitude than I currently seem to possess. My cramps are not abnormal and it doesn't appear that I am miscarrying, just cramping. I was given orders to call back between now and my actual prenatal appointment if the nausea gets worse or continues to interfere with my work.
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Sep 13, 2011 05:15
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Gumby Orgy posted:I had a gynecological nurse visit today to just confirm that I am, indeed, knocked up and to allow me to ask some questions. I am definitely pregnant (duh). I do feel better about the pregnancy, though, knowing that my symptoms are completely normal, including my case of "pregnancy brain." I feel like I suddenly developed a case of ADD. Even the simplest tasks require more mental fortitude than I currently seem to possess. My cramps are not abnormal and it doesn't appear that I am miscarrying, just cramping. Congrats! It's nice to know for sure. Preggo-brain sucks. Everything important in my life has to go on a post-it note now, or I'll completely forget about it. It was really disorienting for me, and I felt like an idiot a lot of the time until I got a good system in place. Getting as much sleep as possible helped me a lot. It's gotten better lately, too; since I made it to the 3rd trimester, I've been feeling more myself (more logical & together, less weepy). I'm even auditing some CS and engineering classes online to try to stay sharp. Screw Baby Einstein - this kid is listening to Stanford professors in utero. 
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Sep 13, 2011 18:51
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Bahunter22 posted:I started feeling my kid definitely around 16 weeks but it wasn't hulk smashing then. It was like fingers lightly flicking me from the inside. Over the past 5 weeks she's taken up kickboxing or something and now its not "aww, the baby is moving" all the time but "gently caress, seriously quit trying to stomp your way out of my cervix" type deals. But when she is actually positioned nicely and kicking out toward the front, which is a good portion of the time for me, its cute and fun to watch the belly. Everyone is different though. Hahaha I know how it is, I was definitely like "it's a uterus, not a hamster wheel goddamit" for a few months. Forget it if I had any chocolate or coffee ice cream. Enjoy it while you can though. I'm in the 34th week now and its all knees in sensitive spots, hands and head beating on your bladder and colon and pushing on your pelvis. One night I think the kid was trying to flip and failed... he flailed around so much I was ready to cry, my stomach hurt so bad. Finally I gave my whole stomach a shove and he settled down. I am definitely reaching the point where I'm ready to have this kid so he can become my husband's headache too. XD
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Sep 14, 2011 00:07
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Has anyone had to deal with less-than-accomodating employers? Mine won't let me take a little bit of time off to go to my first prenatal appointment. The OB/GYN is already exceedingly busy, so I will have a hard time getting another appointment anytime soon. I might be November or later before I can get in again. My first appointment is (supposed to be) October 17th.
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Sep 14, 2011 06:52
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Do you accrue vacation time at all? If so, I think you can leave early/come in late, use your PTO, and they really have no grounds to say no as long as you tell them ahead of time. Otherwise, that kind of blows. If they're this unaccommodating this early in the pregnancy, they might try to fire you before you can go on maternity leave. I would check with the policies and HR (if your job has it) on what your rights are for appointments. My employer has been super accommodating, not only with my OB appointments (now bi-weekly) but also all the appointments I've needed to make for my cat and his urinary issues. I think in the past couple months I've had to leave early once or twice a week, so my PTO is pretty meager right now. =/
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Sep 14, 2011 09:37
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That's really lovely if they won't accomodate you to go to a drat doctor appointment that you're telling them about over a month in advance. Is this unusual or is your schedule usually set in stone forever? What kind of work do you do? I can't imagine a single job that you can't take one day off with a month's notice.
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Sep 14, 2011 12:33
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You need to have a serious talk with your employer because at some point you will be going to the doctor weekly. If morning sickness is a problem you think is going to effect your job, talk to HR and your doctor immediately about intermittent FMLA leave, because then they cannot fire you for missing work related to your pregnancy. You really need to advocate for yourself starting now. Early pregnancy is the tip of the iceberg as far as missing work. At some point you will be going to the doctor weekly. Once you have the baby if you are going to pump at work they are going to need to make accommodations. What are you going to do if your kid has a fever and can't go to daycare? That is why I waited to tell my employer I was pregnant. I said I had the flu until the pregnancy was confirmed and had my first trimester visits all set up.
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Sep 14, 2011 14:23
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Gumby Orgy posted:Has anyone had to deal with less-than-accomodating employers? Mine won't let me take a little bit of time off to go to my first prenatal appointment. The OB/GYN is already exceedingly busy, so I will have a hard time getting another appointment anytime soon. I might be November or later before I can get in again. My first appointment is (supposed to be) October 17th. Sounds like your employer is being a dick. Might be better to approach it as, "I will be gone for a crucial doctor's appointment on Oct 17th for a few hours. I can make up the hours on <option a> or <option b>. Do you have a preference?" It's not like doctors' offices give you tons of scheduling options for nights and weekends, and going to regular appointments isn't optional. Your boss knows that of course, they're just being a dick. I'd look into setting a meeting with HR and starting scouring through any employee handbook you have ASAP.
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Sep 14, 2011 16:43
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MoCookies posted:Sounds like your employer is being a dick. Might be better to approach it as, "I will be gone for a crucial doctor's appointment on Oct 17th for a few hours. I can make up the hours on <option a> or <option b>. Do you have a preference?" It's not like doctors' offices give you tons of scheduling options for nights and weekends, and going to regular appointments isn't optional. Your boss knows that of course, they're just being a dick. I'd look into setting a meeting with HR and starting scouring through any employee handbook you have ASAP. I tried basically this exactly. When she said that she couldn't give me the time off because others had asked for that day off before me, I mentioned that I couldn't exactly change the fact that I'm pregnant. I asked if I could come in late and she said no. I then said that I am entitled to prenatal appointments through FMLA and she said that I have to talk to HR. I talked to my OB/GYN appointment manager today and found out that if I can't go to the October 17th on, it will be early November before I can get another one scheduled due to the length required for a first appointment.
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Sep 14, 2011 17:55
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Gumby Orgy posted:I tried basically this exactly. When she said that she couldn't give me the time off because others had asked for that day off before me, I mentioned that I couldn't exactly change the fact that I'm pregnant. I asked if I could come in late and she said no. I then said that I am entitled to prenatal appointments through FMLA and she said that I have to talk to HR. I talked to my OB/GYN appointment manager today and found out that if I can't go to the October 17th on, it will be early November before I can get another one scheduled due to the length required for a first appointment. Call in sick? Prenatal appointments are frequent and necessary. I'd go get my poo poo straightened out with HR as soon as possible, because this isn't going to get any better. edit; good luck figuring out maternity leave/benefits. Eep. VVV Yeah. How long have you been employed there, Gumby Orgy? Do they have a bad track record with pregnant employees? Regardless, get to HR so you can see how this will pan out. brambling lass fucked around with this message at 18:24 on Sep 14, 2011 |
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Sep 14, 2011 17:59
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Gumby Orgy posted:I tried basically this exactly. When she said that she couldn't give me the time off because others had asked for that day off before me, I mentioned that I couldn't exactly change the fact that I'm pregnant. I asked if I could come in late and she said no. I then said that I am entitled to prenatal appointments through FMLA and she said that I have to talk to HR. I talked to my OB/GYN appointment manager today and found out that if I can't go to the October 17th on, it will be early November before I can get another one scheduled due to the length required for a first appointment. Gaahhh, look at these fuckers, it makes me mad. Could she not talk to one of the people who has asked for that day off and see if they're willing to switch? Or, really, do anything that suggests "you are a valued employee" at all?  What kind of repercussions might there be if you just called in sick that day?Better watch this one closely, I'd bet they try to fire you.
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Sep 14, 2011 18:18
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Chicken McNobody posted:Better watch this one closely, I'd bet they try to fire you. I was thinking the same thing. Such bullshit. 
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Sep 14, 2011 18:30
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Gumby Orgy posted:I tried basically this exactly. When she said that she couldn't give me the time off because others had asked for that day off before me, I mentioned that I couldn't exactly change the fact that I'm pregnant. I asked if I could come in late and she said no. I then said that I am entitled to prenatal appointments through FMLA and she said that I have to talk to HR. I talked to my OB/GYN appointment manager today and found out that if I can't go to the October 17th on, it will be early November before I can get another one scheduled due to the length required for a first appointment. Is this a doctor you know and are comfortable with? Otherwise, you could try to get an appointment at a different clinic. Here is the link to the FMLA: http://www.dol.gov/compliance/guide/fmla.htm I was reading a little bit online in various places and it seems like you can take time off for prenatal appointments under FMLA only. If you take them as FMLA time, you are protected. If you take those appointments as unpaid or PTO, you are not protected. There's also a bit of a debate over whether pregnancy is a "serious illness" - if it is, then you can take the appointments whenever you want; if it isn't, you have to accommodate your work. The internet says all sorts of interesting things but that seems to be the general idea. Good luck!
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Sep 14, 2011 20:02
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Gumby Orgy, your story has amped my pregnancy rage and I want to punch your boss in the loving teeth. You know, I bet if it were flipped she'd be all drama queen and take it off regardless. I say get to your HR pronto and see what's up. They are going to be in a world of hurt if they even attempt to fire you while you're pregnant because of that very fact. You're pregnant. If she gets snippy you could always tell her that if she would like to negotiate night or weekend hours with your doctors office she's more than welcome to. Otherwise, you'll be out for a few hours and back before the world crumbles around her. Be careful with the FMLA, you may be able to use it for doctors appointments but you might not get paid for them. On the plus side it keeps your job safe.
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Sep 15, 2011 03:01
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As soon as I mentioned that I am entitled to prenatal appointments under FMLA, she said, "Uh... You need to talk to _____ in HR." She then begged me to try and find a replacement instead. That is drat near impossible because it usually puts people in a bad situation where they have worked a long stretch of days. I called the HR guy and left a message stating that I needed to speak to him, but today he wasn't in the office. I'll probably be able to talk to him tomorrow. She was caught off guard when I stated that I was hoping to save up all my FMLA time off to secure a breastfeeding bond, but I would take the time off using FMLA if it means I get to go to my appointments. I don't think she was expecting me to know my rights at all. I have been there long enough to be entitled to FMLA. I told my husband that I'm probably just going to quit come baby time and then find something else. If they do this kind of stuff when I'm pregnant, they sure as hell won't let me pump breast milk, which I am also legally entitled to do at work. Tesla, the reason I am going to this particular OB/GYN group is that they have three of the four CNMs in North Dakota. I really, really want a midwife.
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Sep 15, 2011 04:56
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Gumby Orgy posted:Also realize that any time taken off for pregnancy complications can also be counted towards (or against depending on how you look at it) the FMLA time off. FMLA is a great thing, but it's an easy Act for employers to step around based on some of the wording so be careful in that aspect.
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Sep 15, 2011 16:19
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Gumby Orgy posted:As soon as I mentioned that I am entitled to prenatal appointments under FMLA, she said, "Uh... You need to talk to _____ in HR." She then begged me to try and find a replacement instead. That is drat near impossible because it usually puts people in a bad situation where they have worked a long stretch of days. I called the HR guy and left a message stating that I needed to speak to him, but today he wasn't in the office. I'll probably be able to talk to him tomorrow. Don't let anybody bully you from your rights as a mother. What they are doing now is essentially forcing you to quit or convenience them. If these appointments cause you to take 4 days off here and there that's okay. On the other hand you should give your employer advance notice so you don't spring them up the week of. That being said I think 12 weeks is plenty of time for anything you have to do.
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Sep 15, 2011 17:26
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Not to turn this into an e/n, I'm going to going to say that the scheduling manager at work has done horrible poo poo before and it takes strong arming her into being less of a complete asshat. The woman I would work with everyday quit, so there is only me until they hire someone else. This means all I have to do is threaten to put in my notice if I don't get the day. A coworker friend of mine did this to her when the she told her she couldn't have the time off she needed to attend her grandmother's funeral. A bunch of people had taken jobs elsewhere and she was the only full-time person there. Voila! She got her time off as soon as she said she was just going to quit. I had to get HR on my old manager's rear end when she illegally passed me up for a promotion. It was provable, so I got transferred until a similar job opened up again. I haven't heard from HR yet, but I'm pretty sure they have already been informed. tl;dr version: For working in a caring profession, they sure don't give a gently caress. On another note, I got woken up with miserably bad cramps last night. No bleeding or anything, just bad cramping. Pregnancy
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Sep 15, 2011 18:24
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Dear unborn son: I'm glad you're having such a great time in there, but it's a uterus not a mosh pit. If you cause me to go into early labor from all your banging about I will not be a happy person. At least give me two more weeks to finish painting the nursery so I'm ready for you and then you can come out whenever you want and stretch those legs and arms to your heart's content. Until then, I would appreciate it if you stopped trying to rearrange my pelvis and ribs, kthx. Dear me: You are due in four weeks, why the hell are you painting a frickin mural in the nursery you idiot?! Gumby Orgy, I'm with you in the wanting to quit my job and stay home with the kid - except right now I'm carrying the health insurance for my husband and I. I also work for a huge company so if I do quit I shudder at what the cost of keeping the insurance through Cobra would be. My job has the eight months pregnant lady busting her butt in the warehouse because the two people that work back there can't keep up and it friggin sucks, and you know, taking them and their supervisor to task for being bad workers would just be too hard.
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Sep 15, 2011 23:19
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Lyz posted:Dear unborn son: Funny, I just wrote a letter to my unborn daughter today requesting that she surrender her flamethrower at her earliest convenience. I signed it 'The Landlord'. I hope she thought that was amusing.
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Sep 16, 2011 02:04
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I have varicose veins in places I don't want to think about. WTF. I'm pretty sure only other pregnant women will understand the dismay this is causing me.
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Sep 16, 2011 19:01
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It's chilly (cause I'm in Canada). And none of my hoodies will zip over my bump anymore. I'm trying to hold out on buying more maternity stuff until I can use some of my 50% off coupons next month. Should I just get a poncho or something? Supposedly they're cool now, but I'm pretty sure I'm going to look like a gigantic walking tent. Preggo + Poncho - yea or nay?
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Sep 16, 2011 20:41
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Just buy a men's hoodie.
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Sep 16, 2011 20:51
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I would just get a giant sweatshirt/jacket that zips. After you have the baby you can use it again by zipping it around you and the baby if you have the baby in a baby carrier like an Ergo or Wrap. Keeps everybody warm and cozy.
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Sep 16, 2011 22:32
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I had an ultrasound at the hospital today. They spent about an hour checking out twin A and twin B, and both of them are healthy! They were able to tell me that I'm most likely having identical girls. They were moving around a lot, but I still can't feel it at all. I went to start my registry afterwards and I have a couple questions for anyone who has already had a kid. Do I really need a diaper genie? It seems like a trash can with a lid and an air freshener would work just as well. And the genie refills look pretty expensive. What kind of bottles work well? I'm planning on pumping and bottle feeding as well as breastfeeding.
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Sep 17, 2011 05:01
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We used this diaper pail: http://www.amazon.com/Baby-Trend-Diaper-Champ-Deluxe/dp/B002IWYXH4/ref=sr_1_5?ie=UTF8&qid=1316234033&sr=8-5 It's nice because it just uses standard 10 gallon trash bags. You have to empty it every day the first few weeks though (Oh, twins? Twice a day). Biggest con is you need to position it in the corner when you are changing the bag because it's very top heavy when open and doesn't stay up on its own. HOWEVER, once he started solids all bets were off, it was like the plastic was permeated permanently with poop smell and it never went away. I was warned of this happening in this thread but I didn't really believe it till it happened to us. No amount of cleaners, disinfectant, or sunlight made it any better. Now we just toss pee diapers in a regular trash can and take poop diapers to the dumpster when they happen -- if we can't do this for whatever reason, we have a roll of cheap bathroom trash bags and I put the poop diaper in one of those and twist it up and tie it off really well to hold off until we can get it to the dumpster. For a while we were just keeping a cheap bathroom trash bag by the changing area and tossing the pee diapers in there, then whenever he pooped putting the poop diaper in with them and tying it off and putting out a new one, but we were going through so many trash bags we changed our system. Randomity fucked around with this message at 05:41 on Sep 17, 2011 |
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Sep 17, 2011 05:38
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You definitely don't need a diaper genie. Just empty your trash cans regularly and it isn't a problem, in my experience. The bottle question is a big variable. Some babies are pretty picky about what bottle they'll take and others don't care at all. I know a lot of people have good luck with the Dr Brown's bottles. Make sure you get the slowest flow nipples since you'll be breastfeeding too. And yay for your healthy twins.
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Sep 17, 2011 05:39
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We use a regular foot pedal-operated trash can that takes standard 13 gallon kitchen bags. It's just so much easier for us that way. One thing that will help keep the stink at a lower level when you do reach solids is to make sure you wrap your diapers up before you throw them away. Basically, roll it up from front to back, grab one tab, pull it around the diaper and stick it in place, grab the other tab and do the same. You end up with a compact little diaper bundle that keeps the poop contained. It won't eliminate odor completely, but it helps.
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Sep 17, 2011 06:19
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If it's feasible, we also flush as much poop as we can before folding the diaper up and putting it in the pail (we use a Diaper Genie, but I don't think they're by any means necessary).
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Sep 17, 2011 06:30
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Yeah, don't bother with the diaper genie. They fill up quick, the refills are expensive, and really as long as you wrap the diapers up around themselves and take your trash out regularly it shouldn't be a problem. Plus the stench of condensed diapers from the diaper genie when you empty it will knock you on your rear end.
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Sep 17, 2011 13:01
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My kid must be an especially toxic pooper because we roll every diaper up (habit from when we used a diaper pail, made em take up less room) and it doesn't do a thing to contain the smell.
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Sep 17, 2011 14:16
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We use a very small garbage can with a foot pedal, and use the plastic bags we get from the grocery store. It has to be emptied pretty much daily. We roll up all the diapers and it doesn't really smell unless we open the can. I considered getting a diaper genie, but it sounds like it's a waste of money.
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Sep 17, 2011 15:48
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Has anyone ever used Gdiapers? I like the fact that they have a disposable/flushable insert (that biodegrades in about 100 days) but the rest is reusable. The inserts are quite inexpensive compared to disposable diapers. It is kind of like the best of both worlds, I suppose. I told a couple of my coworkers about the scheduling manager's shenanigans regarding my first appointment. The instant response was not positive about her behavior, and I found someone willing to work for the first half of my shift. It wasn't hard making the scheduling manager out to be a bad person. I stated just the facts and she hung herself. I spoke to HR and he said I could easily use FMLA for that day but suggested I find a replacement so I don't burn through it. He said that she can't deny me time off for prenatal appointments but she can make me use FMLA time.
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Sep 17, 2011 16:23
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