Hellobee Boards

@purplelilac: Great news!

@purplelilac: great news!!!!

@purplelilac: Such great news!!

@mamainthesun: I stay at home so my maternity leave will be forever! Haha. Well until my kids start school and it's unpaid so...

I currently take care of one child for 10 hours a day (super long day) and they're having another baby in April so when she's done maternity leave I'll shoot from 2 kids to 4 all day and that freaks me out a bit! Right now they're only two three weeks apart in age, but by the time her leave is done I'll have my 9 month old and 30 month old, their nearly one year old, and 30 month old.

From what I know about daycare (which isn't much since I only have worked at them and I'm also in canada), it's good to start looking asap and get your name on the list for a spot if you find a place you love. How long will your mat leave be?

And, on another note, I have now gained weight and I feel like it's a lot...which I'm sort of sad about. Haha. I know I need to gain weight, but I was on a high from only gaining like 1.5 pounds for the first 15 weeks. I feel like I have gained a bunch in the past week alone. It's really cold here so I haven't been getting out for my stroller walk and I have been snacking a lot at home.

@mamainthesun: I plan to take a 12 week maternity leave, but my mom lives with us and watches my kid(s) during the day. I'm lucky!

Doing okay over here at 17 weeks, still never turning down a chance to nap with my son though! Because of my BMI, my OBs are having me take the glucose test twice, ugh, so I had my first one this week.

Hubs and I started talking names and have 5 good candidates for both sexes, which is a far cry from last time, so I'm thrilled.

@winniebee: When you update our list, my due date is 7/28 (I did the math wrong, haha), we're team green, and my anatomy scan is 3/3. And thank you!

@Mrs. Goose: @Calibee: @Nutella:
Wow I thought day cares got full quickly here but more than a year in advance is crazy! I'm definitely going to call around on Monday and put our name on lists !
Here the system is different I think, most day cares are government services and then you have private structures (mostly an at home structure with one lady who can take care of up to 6-8 children), I live in a small village and there are about 20 structures on the village list. They take newborns to 3 year olds and free school!
Lo1's nanny told me to start looking in April at the latest but definitely working on it now so!

In France the normal maternity leave is 12 Weeks but as I'm an independent worker I can choose how long I take. And I also don't work during the school holidays so I'll probably start again after a holiday or in November or January. So that'll be 4 or 6 months. With Lo1 I started after 2,5 months and I thought he was still so small!

@mamainthesun: exercise....what is that again?

@purplelilac: That is excellent news!!! Praying that everything else takes care of itself. Now you can relax a little.

@mamainthesun: I am thinking I will stay off until the beginning of November. My position at work is up in the air as the job I've done for 5 years was a grant funded position and the grant is over. I definitely have a job, but I might be back in a classroom after not doing that for 5 years. I returned to work in the beginning of November after having my son (July 17 b-day) and I liked the timing as a teacher. Thanksgiving was right around the corner and then a few weeks and Christmas

As far as daycare, our in-home daycare is going to take this new baby. I think this might put her over our states's numbers, but she said we'll make it work. We absolutely love her so I'm glad she was willing to do that.

@jaypegs: I had GD in the past and will have to do the test twice two. I hope you don't have to do the 3 hour. Yuck!

@Mrs. Goose: My night time sleep is definitely starting to decline. Up to pee and just overall uncomfortable. Ugh, only 20 weeks so there is still a long way to go.

@Nutella: hahaha I know! Supposedly it's good for you!

@Mrs. Goose: I know where is the boost! O felt better for a week and then back to erukk... Plus I often have headaches. Ive been craving chocolate and cheese like crazy, and I do the groceries..So not a good combo!! Thank God I've also been craving fresh veggies! Hope it'll balance out!

@JennyG: true I didn't think of the last weeks before Christmas flying by because of festivities! Good point! It makes going back to work fun as there is something to look forward to!

@HawaiianGirl: ooh a new job! Nice Especially if it comes with better benefits for you!

So many of you have family members that can look after los! So lucky, it must make the first droppoffs so stressed.. I remember crying so much in the car after dropping off my son the first few times, leaving your precious baby with a stranger...

Our childcare is also up in the air for now. I would love to stay home, but my health benefits from work are hard to beat and my spouse runs his own business so getting it on our own would be a lot more. My employer offers 12 weeks paid leave. I am planning to ask my manager if there is any flexibility to take an additional month unpaid. In addition, I want to go down to 32 hours when I return. I still have to make one call out to the HR center to ask how that will impact my benefit costs. My local HR contact said that all these exceptions have to be approved at the manager level, so I am hoping it works out! Then I can be home 1 day a week, and we can get my mom for another day and maybe a nanny for 3 days a week? I am hoping to not send her to a daycare.

Thanks for all the well wishes. I am feeling much calmer these days (thank god).

I plan on taking off 3-4 months then going back to work (I work PT, 2 days/wk)- that is aaauming there is still work for me to do. I work as a contractor to the EPA so there is a serious chance my budgets may be slashed. The current plan is to keep our nanny around through this summer/maternity leave and then She will juggle the three kids. There is a chance we may have to find a new nanny come fall, but I really hope not as our current nanny has been with us for 4+ years and is wonderful! Either way, a nanny is definitely the most economical and easiest option for 3 Little's around here. I can't even imagine how much it would cost and the logistics of after school care, preschool, and daycare together !

List is updated! Let me know if I can update or add any genders or appointments.

@winniebee: I've gained the same already, and I'm a week behind ! I'm hardly working out, I'm just still so tired and my bump is "hurting"more this time.

@winniebee: I'm on the 10th for my scan! I think I'm up at least 5 at this point. I'm not feeling too heavy in the belly yet, but sidelying for sleep at night is making both my hips hurt, plus the wake ups, and constant dreams are not restful.

Eek, I haven't been feeling teeny flutters anymore. :(. Cue more Doppler use. @winniebee: did you end up ordering one?

But, yesterday I lay super flat on my bed and saw my tummy move! So cool. It was just twice, but was for sure baby.

My anatomy scan was last week, and baby is healthy! I also found out in having a boy. I'm sad to say that I've had a really hard time with this. I know I'm so very lucky to have a healthy baby, but I really wanted to have another girl and to give my daughter a sister. I worry that I won't know what to do with a boy and my kids won't be as close. And of course I feel like a monster for feeling this way.

Anyways, that's what's been going on over here! Any great stories about super close brothers and sisters to share?

@Calibee: Glad your baby is doing well! I'm very close with one of my brothers in particular (I have a sister and two brothers). I think closeness is usually dictated by personality, not gender!

@Calibee: I have a brother and sister and am really close with both of them. My brother and I are 5 years apart, but we still talk probably once a week even though we live 6 hours apart. I agree with @winniebee that personality is a bigger factor than gender.

@JennyG: Oh my goodness, super busy few weeks for you! I am having cervical ultrasounds every 4 weeks - my next is in a few weeks. Hoping it's still nice and long. My issue is more contractions in third tri (I'm already having some) but I'm hoping that my cervix stays long at least until the third trimester. And yes, I'm enormous. And have been eating SO MUCH in the last week.

@Calibee: Glad to hear the baby is healthy! I just wanted to say, I totally understand your feelings. I have had such mixed feelings after finding out LO2 was a boy. We know that this is our last one so I do get sad sometimes knowing DD will never have a sister and I also worry they may not be that close. That being said, I do have three brothers that I have great relationships with. Out of the three, I'd probably only consider myself "close" with one of them but like others mentioned, that's more due to personality.

@JennyG: I'm sorry you've had such a rough few weeks.

And yes, I feel huge too. I think I'm packing on the pounds pretty quickly out of nowhere too which I don't feel great about. I try not to eat too unhealthy, but I agree with you guys - I can't stop eating!

Last night, I literally couldn't move for like a 2 hour period because I had such horrible sciatic nerve pain. I never felt anything like that in my life, it was so intense. My husband was laughing at me because the pain was mostly in my butt but it really did hurt! It's totally gone now, as if it never happened.