Nearly half way there

In a few days time I'll be halfway through this pregnancy. It's hard to imagine what in some ways things will be like in another 20 + weeks and it's also interesting to see how different in ways this pregnancy is compared to my one with Callum. For a start as I said to Daz yesterday "Blimey it's just hit me we're nearer to 40 than to 30 this time round." yes I'm talking about our ages. Daz and I wonder if that's why this time round I seem to be feeling (and in some ways suffering) more with things.

Anyway before thoughts get in the way a quick update!

As of today I am 19 weeks and 5 days pregnant. I have a little bump appearing now as can be seen below:

Me at 17 weeks and 5 days pregnant

I still have the never-ending tiredness and the constant all night late night visits to the little girls room but hey I don't feel sick and queezy any more and the lightheadedness seems to have gone too. I've had little fluttering movements from Bumpy and seems that certain genres of music appeal to them more than others, Jesus and Mary Chain for starters the other day. It's been fun to work out what music gets bumpy a fluttering and a jiving. I can't wait until Daz and Callum can feel the movements too, I think mostly I'm looking forward to seeing Callum's reactions to it all. It's been interesting to see how Callum sees and deals with pregnancy. Sometimes you'll find he wants to talk to bumpy and will put his mouth up to bumpy and start talking to them saying simple things like "Hiya Bumpy, it's Callum here, I'm going to be your big brother and we'll have so much fun." or "Are you in the bumpy of have you popped out for a bit?". lol. I do think Callum wonders where his place in the family will be once Bumpy is born and sometimes says he worries that he won't be needed by us any more as we'll have another little child but we try our best to reassure him that he is always going to be special and important to us and who will we need around to teach Bumpy things. The other day Callum was doing some Maths homework and turned round and told me how Bumpy can already add up. When I asked how this was so Callum replied that he had been teaching Bumpy and that Bumpy knows that 3+2=5 and when they say "ga ga ga" that's them saying "the answer is five." Yeah I don't know what goes through that head of his either. lol

At the end of September we had a consultant appointment where we received back the blood test results and got the all clear... you'll be pleased to know I don't have syphilis. ;) The consultant said that we can still try for a natural birth which I'm happy about but we still have to be at Queen's Hospital incase of any complications and because of Callum's birth they want to be careful. We've been given a leaflet to read about natural births after an emergency c-section so fingers crossed all goes well and to plan this time round and no middle of the night phonecalls to my parents from a worried and upset Daz after Callum and I are rushed into an operating theatre.

Our next appointment will be at the beginning of November for out next scan, the anomaly scan to make sure all is progressing as it should be... and of course another chance for us to see Bumpy. After that I have to have a GTT (glucose/diabetes) blood test and then it will be MW apointments. It feels strange that I won't actually meet my midwive until I am 28 weeks gone.

So all in all everything seems to be going ok, I just wish I could get my brain into thinking like that instead of the paranoid state it's been in for weeks that something is wrong. I'm hoping once we have our next scan that I'll feel better in the mental department. Until then I am enjoying being pregnant, feeling those movements and seeing my bump get bigger.

What's In a Name?

Great Delightful Princess with Dove Twin
(Daz, mine and Callum's name meanings combined)

Choosing the right name for your child is such an important task but it's also a very hard one. You want a name that suits the child but how will you know what will suit your child, it isn't even born yet and within those first few moments of birth does a child's personality already shine through so you know you've chosen the perfect name for them? Then you have to think about a name that matches with your surname, are there going to be any connotations, will the initials cause teasing or will the name be shortened and then not sound right. And then you have to think about when your child is older and what they themselves think of their name, will they love or hate it, will they want to change the name? So many thoughts to process and such an important decision.

When Daz and I were expecting Callum we started early on in the pregnancy looking at names, we wanted to be sure we chose a name we were happy with and thought our child would like. I myself had to also bear in mind that I'd been told by Daz when we got married there was only one name he wanted if we had a daughter, Charlotte. Now here is where the other part of choosing a name comes in, what if you knew someone by that name and had bad memories of them? In the end though you have to put all that aside and that is what I did and so there we were with a chosen name for if we had a daughter: Charlotte Rose White. The problem Daz and I had was with choosing a boys name. Neither of us could agree on a name we jointly liked but if we did it then turned out to be a name that, well, didn't sound right. For example we both didn't mind the name Matthew but then we realised this would in most cases be shortened to Matt and having the surname White the child would then end up being named after a paint colour (Matt White). So that name was scratched. A name we kept coming back to was Callum and as those of you that know us that's what we opted for and it's a name we've agreed perfectly suits Callum.

So what names have been floating around this time? Once again it seems we've settled on a girls name already and have a few extra on stand by. Again we have gone with Rose as a middle name (this is after Daz' Mum's middle name) and top of our list of girls name is Scarlett with Daisy, Skye and Summer as other maybes.

As for boys names... it's proving difficult... again! See it's so easy to pick a girls name there are so many pretty names but with a boy it's hard to choose. What do you want that name to say about your son? Do you want a name that's popular or a name that maybe stands out a little. And will we find a name that all three of us will agree on? lol. Also will we find a name that we like that either a family member or friend hasn't already used themselves? Names that are liked but that we won't have are Jack (Callum's choice and is one of his imaginary brothers name, the other being Ben) and Liam which has always been a favourite name of Daz'. Me? I can't decide what name I really like... and I've been told Remy is out of the question as is Gambit. :( ;) Boys names that have floated around though are Jay/Jason, Leo, Rocky (totally Daz! He wants to name the baby if it's a boy Rocky Jay White!), Sam, Riley, Ryan and Cory to name a few.

I can see us having many an evening talking boys names... again!

X marks the spot

Ok ok I know I have been very bad with this blog but life gets to busy and hectic at times and well now it looks like it's going to get even more so.

Last Tuesday Daz and I found out that I'm pregnant! We honestly thought that it would take us a lot longer to fall pregnant than this but we're so so so happy. It's been a roller-coaster ride of a week and it's only today sitting here between my best friend Claire visiting me this morning and waiting for Callum's sports day this afternoon that I've had a moment to myself to think about this properly and how I feel. Of course I'm excited and happy as can be but I'm also full of nerves and a little anxious over things. Happy because this is what we wanted, a another bundle of joy in our lives and a sibling for Callum, who by the way now believes that wishes come true (that story will come up later!)and all the happiness that a child brings. The worry comes from my experience of birth with Callum and the added stress of money, how will we survive, the economy isn't exactly the most stable at the moment and obviously this news puts my job hunting on hiatis for a while so it's more burden put on Daz. The doctor when we saw her last Thursday said about the birthing experience and my anxiousness about it can be worked on throughout the next nine months and I know it can but it still doesn't at this moment make me stop feeling anxious. Luckily other things to worry about normally we don't have to, we've got a lovely big house now with a spare room (just need to move the big double bed out of it!) and we've still got a lot of stuff from when Callum was a baby either up in our loft or at my in-laws so the cost of having to buy a lot of new stuff isn't there and thankfully the bed linen I'd bagged up ready for a friend to collect to give to charity is still bagged up waiting for collection so we can now keep that.

So how did we tell Callum and how did he take the news? Well on Tuesday after school Daz asked Callum how he would feel if we had someone come and live with us, before we knew it Callum was saying "Has Mummy got a baby brother in her belly?". A bit surprised Daz asked what made him think that to which he replied (and talk about give me a complex! lol)"weellll Mummy's belly has looked a little bigger the last week.". Out of the mouth of babes. Anyway after telling him it might not be a brother but a sister instead he jumped up and was very happy and all smiles, he full of smiles and happiness about this news.

Now here is where you hear a little story about a little five year old boy back in May. See in May Daz, Callum and I went out with Daz' parents to a few garden centres looking at stuff for well gardens. It was at one of these garden centres that Callum apparently came upon a wishing well and asked his Nanny Joyce for a coin for a wish. He made his wish but then turned round to Joyce and because he didn't think his wish would come true told her what he had wished for. Any indeas anyone?... He guessed for a baby brother. So as you can imagine now Callum is over the moon with himself and thinks wishes come true and well Daz and I are trying to persuade him to make a wish about us winning the lottery. lol.

Of course it isn't just Daz, Callum and I that are over the moon with this news I swear when I phoned my Mum up and told her I was pregnant after hearing her yell out "Yay!!" I then heard her jumping up and down for joy and Daz' parents have big grins on their faces. My Dad phoned me the next day and quietely whispered down the phone because he didn't want anyone at work to hear him "Congratulations, but what happened to you saying no more after Callum?" and chuckling. It's been so nice to be able to talk to family and friends and give them good news and make them smile or as some have said make their day. It makes me realise just how blessed I am.

So other details, hmmm... Well yesterday I was six weeks gone according to the doctor so that gives us a due date of 9th March 2010, so only 3 days before my litle brother and sister celebrate their 18th birthday. lol. I have to wait until I'm twelve weeks gone for our first scan (gosh I love those things!) so I suppose they may give a more accurate due date then and then a few weeks after that I'll have my blood tests etc done, yuck hate those things. In myself I'm not feeling too bad, very very tired and very hungry with constant night-time trips to the little ladies room and a few headaches and back aches none of those two which I remember from being pregnant with Callum. Also I'm really craving ready salted crisps, well very salty flavoured things and chocolate doesn't seem to agree too well with me. I'm feeling a little queezy at times but no proper full on blown vomiting which I like.

Well I have a litle boys school sports day today so I should go and get on with getting ready for that and hoping that the rain holds off.

Now I wonder how good I can be at keeping up with this blog.