Lisa left a beautiful baby album for me on my desk, what a sweet heart.

Now I have somewhere to put my ultrasound photo

My very good friend has her online blog here

We went down at the weekend to tell them about Bert.

The 'TigerFeet' family consists of TigerFeet a good friend of over ten years and she has known my husband longer than she has known me !!! Her husband YorkshireMan who is a lovely man and another good friend and baby Little'un a sweet toddler who was the flower girl at our November 05 wedding.

We arranged this visit as it was the nearest weekend after our ultrasound session. Christmas presents were given, a 'thought' for TigerFeet & YorkshireMan and a Wibbles toy for Little'un and lastly a christmas card with Bert's ultrasound photo inside it for TigerFeet to open.

Here is TigerFeet 's blog reaction

TigerFeet has volunteered to be a shoulder for me to lean on, I am to ring her with any questions and or developments.

TigerFeet you are going to be on the phone a lot in the next six months and make sure you keep a few days free in August for a Sheffield visit

I like to know things, but I don't feel the need to pass information to others. I get enough pleasure from knowing that I know.

Hence I have enjoyed keeping the news of my pregnancy to our intermediate family for the last three months but now we have a beating heart on our ultrasound it is time to spread the news !!!!

Last night my DH rang our Best Man from our wedding Al to break the news to him very casually "Hi Al, I have completed a course, been promoted, and got my wife pregnant" Apparantly with men it is not essential to make these things face to face and emotional !!!

Unlike when I break the news, I need to see peoples faces which is why for both sets of parents and my sister we visited each in turn to tell them about our baby.

So today I took a couple of my work friends, Lisa and Rachel out to lunch, specially to break the news about Bert.

I couldn't think of a way to tell them, so when we all sat down, I told them I had something to show them and just pulled out our u/s picture and held it so they could both see it. They were both in shock for a moment but cottoned on very fast. Hugs and general baby advice all around. Very nice way to break the news.

Then it was back to the office to break the news to Liz (who was also invited to the lunch but had to man the phones...boo hiss) She said "Who's is the baby ?....Yours" Shortly followed by "You secretative bugger" when she found out I was three months gone.

There was two more people who had been invited for lunch, Lorraine and Linda who had both been ordered to a big town meeting. I caught up with Lorraine in Lisa and Liz's office later in the afternoon and after listening to the meeting news for ten minutes, I found a gap in the conversation to interrupt and show the ultrasound picture.

Not only was Lorraine speechless which if you know Lorraine you would recognise this as a true miracle. When she did regain the power of speech, her first words were "Why didn't you stop me talking and tell me sooner", LOL.. I am not that brave a woman.

Lastly I called by Linda's office and told her, she was delighted and said what blessing babies are, especially when they are wanted.

So I feel happy bouncy and very well hugged and loved today

We got to see our baby Bert with a strong heartbeat and with very active limbs.

She/he actually waved at me, I was so relieved I cried whilst having my scan done

The pictures were a lot better on the screen than on our picture, but you can just see baby, she/he is lying on her back looking at the top of the picture.



I'm so happy, I could burst

Oh, my EDD date has changed to the 12th August 06

My DH is !!!

He came home tonight,bemoaning a course he had to do on Monday entitled ' Managing Difficult Employees'.

I just screamed 'You got the job !?!'

He has got his promotion, goodbye shift work, no weekends or evening on my own...I'm so happy for him and for me

He is one VERY clever boy and I'm very lucky to be his wife.

Beautiful tale found on the internet, author unknown

We are sitting at lunch one day when my daughter casually mentions that she and her husband are thinking of "starting a family."

"We're taking a survey," she says half-joking. "Do you think I should have a baby?"

"It will change your life," I say, carefully keeping my tone neutral.

"I know," she says, "no more sleeping in on weekends, no more spontaneous vacations."

But that is not what I meant at all. I look at my daughter, trying to decide what to tell her. I want her to know what she will never learn in childbirth classes.

I want to tell her that the physical wounds of child bearing will heal, but becoming a mother will leave her with an emotional wound so raw that she will forever be vulnerable.

I consider warning her that she will never again read a newspaper without asking, "What if that had been MY child?"

That every plane crash, every house fire will haunt her. That when she sees pictures of starving children, she will wonder if anything could be worse than watching your child die.

I look at her carefully manicured nails and stylish suit and think that no matter how sophisticated she is, becoming a mother will reduce her to the primitive level of a bear protecting her cub. That an urgent call of "Mom!" will cause her to drop a soufflé or her best crystal without a moments hesitation.

I feel that I should warn her that no matter how many years she has invested in her career, she will be professionally derailed by motherhood. She might arrange for childcare, but one day she will be going into an important business meeting and she will think of her baby's sweet smell. She will have to use every ounce of discipline to keep from running home, just to make sure her baby is all right.

I want my daughter to know that every day decisions will no longer be routine. That a five year old boy's desire to go to the men's room rather than the women's at McDonald's will become a major dilemma. That right there, in the midst of clattering trays and screaming children, issues of independence and gender identity will be weighed against the prospect that a child molester may be lurking in that restroom.

However decisive she may be at the office, she will second-guess herself constantly as a mother.

Looking at my attractive daughter, I want to assure her that eventually she will shed the pounds of pregnancy, but she will never feel the same about herself.

That her life, now so important, will be of less value to her once she has a child. That she would give herself up in a moment to save her offspring, but will also begin to hope for more years, not to accomplish her own dreams, but to watch her child accomplish theirs.

I want her to know that a cesarean scar or shiny stretch marks will become badges of honour. My daughter's relationship with her husband will change, but not in the way she thinks.

I wish she could understand how much more you can love a man who is careful to powder the baby or who never hesitates to play with his child. I think she should know that she will fall in love with him again for reasons she would now find very unromantic.

I wish my daughter could sense the bond she will feel with women throughout history who have tried to stop war, prejudice and drunk driving.

I want to describe to my daughter the exhilaration of seeing your child learn to ride a bike. I want to capture for her the belly laugh of a baby who is touching the soft fur of a dog or cat for the first time. I want her to taste the joy that is so real it actually hurts.

My daughter's quizzical look makes me realize that tears have formed in my eyes.

"You'll never regret it," I finally say. Then I reached across the table, squeezed my daughter's hand and offered a silent prayer for her, and for me, and for all the mere mortal women who stumble their way into this most wonderful of callings.

Please share this with the Mothers that you know or your friends who may someday be Mothers.

May you always have in your arms the one who is in your heart.

My first appointment letter to meet the midwife did not arrive until after the appointment I was offered and the midwife’s regular clinics are booked ahead for weeks, so my midwife arranged for a special home visit to book me in today. How sweet of her

She is a lovely friendly and very practical lady, which you have to be in her profession - you don't want a whishy washy indecisive midwife when you are in labour !!!

I have the distinction on being the only pregnant lady my midwife has ever met, who has her own doppler - okay my husband is into gadgets, so I'm blaming him.

Run down of the best questions.

Most Important Question
Question - Plans for location of birth ?
Answer - Home birth, if they are supported (*which they are by this group of midwifes- hurrah*)

Most Scary Question
Question - In the section about the father - Is this man related to you by blood ?
Answer - Dear god no, why would you ask such a question ! (*you really don't want to know why they ask this question but the baseline is inbreeding causes genetic problems*)

Most Worrying Question
Question - If we want blood tests and other genetic tests ? (*Optional*)
Answer - Yes to the basic blood tests (*Thinking about the rest*)

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She left me with :-

: My own urine collection tube, to be rinsed though and refilled for every doctors visit. Charming when you think about starting a family, you don't equate that with carrying around wee in your handbag for the next seven months.

: My own medical notes, to be taken to all appointments. Maybe this is a practice run for having a baby. As you have to keep the notes, clean ordered and with you at all times. I wonder what happens if you turn up for an appointment without your notes... gasp horror

: A leaflet on cheese - Now this threw me a bit. Thinking of all the important things you need to know about pregnancy...I don't see cheese being at the top of the list, or even in the top ten.

Counting down to the first ultrasound on the 24th January 06