So I’m writing this from the Lilac Ward at Hinchinbrooke Hospital at 3:58 on the 12th March 2019… I won’t post this until I have a bit more information about what’s going on though.

Should I be sleeping, yes I should but the cannula in my arm is really irritating me! It should be the least of my worries really.

I can hear a lady being monitored because I can hear her baby’s heartbeat. She seems really uncomfortable and it’s not nice to hear at all. She has a midwife with her who seems to be really reassuring. I couldn’t hear a midwife earlier and was half tempted to go and check she was ok. Not sure if she’d appreciate that or think you are crazy woman!

So why am I here?! We had come in Sunday as I had a bit of bleeding (not fresh) so they wanted to monitor me for a while. All was ok and I was discharged and said it’s only a cause for concern if it’s fresh blood. I woke up about 1am Monday evening (Tuesday morning actually) to go to the loo and I had a massive whoosh of blood. Sorry to be graphic but the bathroom could be said to look like a murder scene! I literally screamed for Michael to call the hospital straight away. I had to tell him where my maternity notes were. Lesson 1, make sure you tell your husband where they’re kept! I called the hospital as I knew exactly which number to call and they obviously said to come in immediately. I went into panic mode, I was shaking and I couldn’t think straight at all. My Michael… I cannot fault him. He stayed so calm which was exactly what I needed given that I was going into meltdown.

You should have seen the state of me… I was wearing a casual maternity dress with slippers and a coat and blood splattered all down my leg – wow not a good look! Michael ran me in and then parked the car and caught up!

I’m now writing this on 13th March reflecting back at what has happened so far. It’s been an absolute whirlwind of two days but I’ve had a great 12 hours with no more bleeding!

So I was initially brought over to the labour ward and then moved to the lilac ward. I then had another big bleed at about 4:30am, I had sent Michael home at this point so as soon as the midwife was in and checking I phoned him immediately to come back. It happened as I got up to go to the toilet and then it just gushed so I screamed and pressed my red buzzer until the team of midwives arrived. I was then seen by the doctors who made the decision to send me back to the labour ward where I would be closely monitored with one to one care. I then had another two sessions of bleeding and the doctors came to let me know they had blood ready for a transfusion if required. Just to add, Baby C was showing no signs of stress and was coping amazingly – our little fighter!!

I was given my first steroid injection when we first arrived at the hospital (I think) which was to help with Baby C’s lungs should they need to deliver him prematurely. I had another 12 hours after. If anyone had ever had these injections, I admire you completely!! Literally the most painful injection I have ever had. Obviously, I don’t care about that really. Stab me, prod me, poke me, I couldn’t care less. Keeping our baby safe is the most important thing.

The midwives and my consultant thought that the bleeding has been caused by Placenta Previa but this was ruled out at my scan (good news). My placenta is borderline low and not completely covering my cervix which means I will be ok to have a natural delivery. I’m not going to lie I think in the past 24 hours I had just come to the terms I’d be having a caesarean but looks like that’s not the case (although things may change). We also were told that Baby C’s estimated weight was 3lb 13oz which because of the circumstances we were just thinking – the bigger the better!!

After the scan, I started having contractions and the baby’s heart rate started to dropping a little after them. At this point, I was given medication to stop/slow the intensifying contractions. I have had two more doses since. The doctor was then called to take a look at my cervix to see if it was opening. It wasn’t, it was firmly shut (phew) but my mucus plug was coming away and I had a clot on the cervix too. I also tested positive for the test testing if I am likely to go into labour in the next 24 hours or 7 days (I know it’s a big jump but I can’t remember which of the two). The test can give false positive in 25% of cases so I think they mainly do this in hope of a negative reading.

My consultant then said about putting me on a drip to help with Baby C’s neuro system should he come early. It would be an intense 12 minute drip and then a slow 24 hours. Well, let’s just say intense is one way to describe it! I had the biggest hot flush ever and felt so light headed and nauseous. I had Mum fanning me with anything she could find and Michael holding the blinds up to let the wind gush through. I don’t think I would have coped for longer than 12 minutes!! I screamed how much longer and it was only 50 seconds to go. Longest 50 seconds ever but thank god it was coming to an end!

Michael and Mum were amazing yesterday, I really needed them. Looking back, I can’t believe I was in such good spirits. I kept telling myself that stress won’t help me or the baby. My friend Darryll has such an amazing positive mental attitude so I was thinking of her! Having said that, I did have a couple of cries in the middle of the night. My cannula was soo painful and I only managed to sleep for 5 hours. My cannula has now been moved closer to my hand so it’s much less painful! But again, don’t care about me – just Baby C. I had my drip changed every four hours and my blood pressure checked every hour so it was difficult to zone out.

Baby C has been head down since 28 weeks and was head down even yesterday at my scan. However, today he’s decided he would like to be a breech baby – thanks son. I’m not worried about this and nor is my consultant or the midwives so as long as you’re content baby boy, that’s all that matters to us for now. Also to add, I have stopped bleeding!

I also met Doctor Nick from the NICU who answered any questions I had and reassured me that there is ‘room at the inn tonight’ if needed! He was so lovely and really reassured me.

I’ll be staying in the hospital tonight but may be moved back over to the lilac ward opposed to staying on the labour ward which is good I guess. Although, I do rather like my private room, shower, tv and toilet haha! We’re just taking each day as it comes and I’m trying to remain positive. So here’s a picture of me with no makeup, greasy hair, ginormous bags but still smiling. I couldn’t give a 💩 what I look like as long as our baby boy is safe.

You deserve a medal if you made it to the end, it’s a bit all over the place but I think I got all the key points in!

Another huge thank you to Mum and Michael because I couldn’t have done yesterday without you – I really couldn’t!

I also want to add that I honestly cannot fault the staff at Hinchinbrooke hospital, they have been incredible. Every question has been answered and we have been involved with every decision made. I feel completely safe here and if I’m honest I feel like I’d rather stay here than go home currently so here’s to another night here being looked after.

So last Monday we started our NCT antenatal classes. There are twelve of us in total (6 couples) which is a lovely sized group. Michael wasn’t overly enthusiastic about doing the course because, well, just because this is Michael ha! However, he definitely enjoyed the classes (two so far) much more than he thought! All the couples seem so lovely which obviously helps.

All of us are first time parents so it was really lovely to meet some other couples. Everyone has said that NCT friends become friends for life so I’m really hoping that is the case. I can’t wait for baby meet ups already – four of us are having boys and the other two couples haven’t found the gender out! Our due dates range from 23rd April to the 9th May (us) so we’re all due within two weeks of each other (give or take). The course so far has been really informative but also fun too. I haven’t read much if I’m honest but now I’m keen to find out the facts about giving birth and I’d like to be prepared for labour. Not prepared, maybe that’s the wrong word! But, basically I think the time has come for us to know the early signs of labour, when to call the hospital etc. So far in a nutshell, we have learnt that the more relaxed I am during labour, the better. Sounds pretty easy doesn’t it?! 👀🤣 Yeah right haha! I still don’t plan on writing a birth plan (I’m sure I’ve said that before) purely because it’s realistically not going to happen. Having said that, Michael had suggested that we could perhaps make a couple of bullet points about choices I may need to make and may not be in the right frame of mind to during labour. For example, I really don’t want an epidural but if I’m having a horrendous labour I ideally need to decide beforehand (when I’m in a non-crazy labour state of mind) if I would agree to one as a last resort. If I’m screaming to give me an epidural then Michael needs to know how to support me best on this. Does he encourage me to keep going and focus on my breathing or does he tell the midwives that I’d like an epidural etc! I guess there is a lot to think about although I do sort of keep putting it of ha!

If I could plan my perfect birth it’d be a water birth, I feel like I’ve spent 30 weeks in the bath so far haha – I’ve never had so many baths! However, because I need IV antibiotics during labour this is unrealistic. Fallen at the first hurdle already – this is why I’m not having a birthing plan! Because I will have a cannula in my hand (or arm), I can’t get this wet. I’m sure there are ways around it but what’s the point in the extra faf?!

This brings me nicely onto the purpose of this blog post. I was aiming to start with GBS but, as always, I’ve gone off on a tangent! GBS stands for Group B Strep. You may or may not have heard of it. I hadn’t had a clue about it until I found out I was carrying the infection. I had also asked the NCT class if they had heard of it and nobody had. It’s not anyone’s fault for not knowing about it but I do feel like I would like to raise as much awareness about it as I can. It really can be a matter of life and death – super dramatic I know! But it is scary. I feel so lucky to know I have the infection and I know for a fact I will be getting tested for any future pregnancies whether it’s privately or under the NHS.

Iwan Thomas (Olympic sprinter) recently spoke out on This Morning about GBS as his son Teddy unfortunately caught the infection. Teddy thankfully is absolutely fine now but it was an awful time for him and his partner, especially having never heard of Group B Strep.

So here’s some facts… About 1 in 4 women are carriers of the Strep B infection and this can be passed onto the baby during labour. Shockingly 1 in 10 babies that catch the infection sadly die. The infection can cause lasting problems like loss of vision or hearing loss. Some babies may also develop serious problems like sepsis or meningitis.

Now that sounds scary doesn’t it… well it is scary! I just wish Strep B was something that more pregnant women knew about. I feel that it’s important to speak about it and raise awareness. There are no side effects for GBS so unless you’re tested there’s no other way to know you have it. I was tested when I had the bleed on Christmas Day, which I now see as a blessing in disguise as scary as it was at the time.

You can get kits online to self-test but I’d also recommend asking your midwife if they can offer you a test – there’s no harm in asking. It’s recommended that you test between weeks 35 to 37 of pregnancy.  According to the Group B Strep Support website, the ECM test is supposed to be the most accurate.

I’d also like to add that although you may be a carrier of GBS, this doesn’t necessarily mean it’ll be passed onto your baby during labour but for the sake of taking one test and opting to have the IV antibiotics, this really could save a life.

All the information above is of the NHS and Group B Strep websites. I’ve added the links so you can read further into it if you wish. You can also follow the Group B Strep Support charity on Instagram.

I haven’t written this blog post to scare anyone, it is simply to try and raise awareness about something I feel should be spoken about more!

Has anyone had any experiences with Group B Strep? If so, I’d love to hear your story!

I hope everyone’s had a lovely week so far, happy hump day! Mum if you’re wondering what ‘hump day’ is, it’s Wednesday (middle of the week) 🤪

Here’s a little bumpdate for you 🥰

So before I found out I was pregnant, I was always baffled how people could name their baby before he/she was born. I’d always said ‘how can you name a baby before you’ve seen them?!’. I now have to take that back and withdraw the statement because when you know, you know!! I can hand on heart say that I never thought we’d be so settled and happy with Baby Crisp’s name before he was born! But, I couldn’t be happier with our choice.

Michael and I didn’t hang around with finding out the gender – we had a private scan booked for when I was 16 weeks exactly. We were tempted to book it for 15 weeks and 6 days because this would have been Michaels birthday. However, I was too chicken to change my due date by a day ha. I’m always living by the rules me!

We were both so pleased to find out we were having a baby boy. I have a big brother who I get on really well with (although we used to argue like goodness knows what) and Michael is the eldest of three. Because our mums had both had boys first, I think most of our family just assumed it’d be a boy. Although, Michael would say ‘well it’s a 50/50 chance so I’m not guessing’ – men 🙄 Although, when it came down to crunch time, he finally guessed a girl and I guessed a boy! I really had no idea so I just guessed the opposite to Michael and it turns out I was right. What’s that saying? Mama knows best – that’s it 🤪

Both Michael and I agree that girls names are much easier than boys. We had a list as long as my arm for girls names. Some of our favourites were Elodie, Lilah, Arabella and Elsie. I also loved Beatrice (Bea for short) but Michael hated that, boo! Our list of boys names had maybe 10 on the shortlist, until we found out it was a boy! Then I decided that I didn’t like any besides one particular name (diva eh).

Can I just add that names are even harder when you work with children… I teach some children with gorgeous names, but it’s their name, not our little boys! I wanted him to have his own identity rather than using the name of a child I teach which would remind me of them. I would say on average I teach around 100 children a week, obviously not all of these are boys but that’s a lot of names ruled out!

Also, what they say is true… you don’t realise how many people you’re not fond of until it comes to naming a baby! It’s awful really isn’t it?! But a baby’s name is so so important and it needs to be perfect.

I’ve touched on this before, but being called Amy, I’ve always wanted a name that’s a little different (but not weird). The name we have chosen doesn’t come up with a red squiggle on my iPhone so that’s enough for me!

So, I have the one name that I absolutely love! Like completely love! Until… Michael one day said ‘we’re not set on that name though are we’. Errrrrr, yessssss!! I was completely set on it! This put me in the right hump because in my head he just is *insert name*. I then admittedly did go into diva mode and refused to look for any more names. I said to Michael that he can look for a name then because I don’t like any as much as this. Name hunting is so time consuming and I just wasn’t prepared to do it when I had a name I loved 🤣 Oh my god, sounding like a proper diva aren’t I – oops!

Some of the names on our shortlist (before it was a list of one) were Theodore (Theo), Riley, Finley, Hudson (Michael didn’t like this) and Louis (pronounced Lewy, which is why we took it off because people could likely say Lewis). I also LOVED the names Jude and Arthur – really loved! But you’re setting a child up to be bullied calling him Arthur Crisp or Jude Crisp – say them out loud! Even more so Arthur Jude Crisp, could you imagine 🤦🏼‍♀️🤣

So… we avoided the subject of baby names for a couple of weeks. It then came to Christmas Day and I got a very special card that said ‘To Mummy, Lots of love, *****’. Christmas made!!! We have our name confirmed!!

We’ve told family and close friends our baby name but I’ve been pretty shady about it otherwise mwhaha! I think because we know the gender, it’s nice to keep something a surprise. This is why I’ve stuck with my decision in not wanting a 4D scan. We have the name, we have the gender but we won’t have seen his beautiful face! Although, at my growth scan I kept saying how beautiful he was. The midwife was probably thinking but it’s just an ultrasound you crazy woman 👀🤣

The name has had mixed opinions but again, I’m really not upset because we love it and that is most the most important thing!

We were very kindly gifted a blanket from Boop Designs which has Baby Crisp’s initials on. It’s so beautiful, thank you so much! So I’ll leave you with ‘CC’ and see see (like what I did there) if you have any guesses as to what we’ll be naming our little baba!

Ps. If you know the name please don’t say it and ruin the fun 🙄🤪

So I am officially in my third trimester – wahoo and yesterday I had my first growth scan. I wasn’t really worried about it as I can feel Baby Crisp growing bigger as the days go by – I was just excited to see him on the big screen again 😉

He is weighing at approximately 2lb 7oz which is perfect, it’s pretty much slap bang in the middle of my graph and he’s in the 44th centile (which I actually thought was percentile oops). The first thing I thought was (morbid as it is), if he was to come early that definitely seems like a reasonable weight meaning that he would have a good chance of survival. Mum also said the same, such positive minds eh! I mean let’s hope he stays put but I did find it reassuring to know he’s a healthy 2lb 7oz with 12 weeks still to go.

Baby Crisp’s head is down so the midwife said he may well stay head down until he’s born now because it’s probably a comfy position for him to grow. When I type Baby Crisp I ALWAYS sing it in the Baby Shark tune with the do do do’s on the end. It’s really annoying!!!! And I bet you’re now singing it too – sorry not sorry! I can’t believe over the next 12 weeks he’s pretty much going to triple in size – that just seems crazy! The midwife tipped me up to try and move him a little as his head was creating a shadow. She was trying to see if my placenta was covering my cervix but because of the shadowing she couldn’t be 100% sure if it was covering it fully. When I had my 20 week scan, they weren’t sure if my placenta was covering my cervix but they’d come to the conclusion it was just a shadow. I wasn’t convinced but because I knew I had extra scans, I wasn’t overly concerned. The midwife said yesterday that the bleed could have been related to my placenta lying low (although still not officially confirmed). I will have it checked again at 32 weeks and if it’s still looking like it’s covering my cervix, I’ll be booked in with the doctor at 34 weeks for an internal scan to check – great! Mind you, I need to get used to having people down my nooni really don’t I haha!

If my placenta is still covering my cervix at 34 weeks, I will likely be booked in for a caesarean. Basically it just means the placenta is blocking the way for the baby to come out naturally – he’d be stuck! Obviously this is the worst case scenario but the most important thing is that our baby arrives safely and if that means having a c-section, I’ll just deal with it! I’ve had a look online and it looks like it’s quite common and they can move as the uterus continues to grow. I think it’s the uterus anyway – the bit where the baby is haha! I’m not going to get hung up on it because a lot can happen before my next scan. I asked the midwife if I can do any exercises to get it to move (I thought a bit of shaking could do the trick 🤷🏼‍♀️🤣) but evidently there isn’t anything I can do. I have my 28 week appointment with my lovely midwife, Leila, on Monday so I’m going to ask what the chances are of it moving. I also have to have my bloods taken again – boo! This is standard for your 28 week appointment so nothing to do with any worries or concerns.

I also had a look at Group B Strep being passed to the baby during a c-section but I don’t think the risks are as high because I think it’s passed through the birthing canal. I’m not going to waste time really researching into it when I may be able to have a natural birth.

In other news, I have lost sight of my nooni – quite amusing! I obviously was highly entertained by this – Michael not so much! He always calls me a crazy pregnant lady because I love being pregnant so much. He should think himself lucky because it could have been nine months of hell if I didn’t haha! Although, I have been what some would call a little mentally unstable this month 🤣 I think my hormones have calmed down a bit now – thank god!

My skin has really improved this week too, hallelujah. I have a Lumie Clear light which I have been using nightly and it seems to be really helping. Mum had read about it and recommended it to me. I managed to get a refurbished one off the website. They’re also only based in Bar Hill too! I also had a lovely facial with Kat at La Powder Box which worked wonders. It was also recommend that I drink warm boiling water first thing in the morning and last thing before bed which I have also been doing – thank you Claire! I think all these factors have contributed to the improvements I’ve had this week. Everyone has been so lovely when it’s come down to my skin, I have had so many recommendations and things to try that have worked really well for others. It’s so nice to know that I’m not alone and people genuinely want to help.

Here’s a little sneak peak of the nursery too, I can’t wait for it to be finished. I think it looks so perfect! Although, its now not looking quite so neat as all the boxes of bits we’ve brought back in the room haha! I was gifted a gorgeous knitted blanket from @SnugAsABugx on Instagram so make sure you check them out – it’s so gorgeous!

I have a meeting with my consultant on Thursday (they usually try to tie it in with the scans but they couldn’t on this occasion) so I think that’s just to discuss the scan results really, I’m not too sure! Other than that, it’ll be another scan in four weeks but that’s about it. Baby Crisp (do do do do do do) is going to keep growing bigger and stronger and I’m going to continue to balloon!

Ps Michael just brought me up garlic pizza bread to the bath – top hubs!

Pps Yes, I’m in the bath and it’s 5:50pm on a Saturday evening. I’m clearly having a wild Saturday! I hope yours is just as fun as mine 🤪

So this week needs to just be over and done with!! My emotions have been ALL OVER THE PLACE – I don’t know what is wrong with me! I’m not normally a highly emotional person. Don’t get me wrong I’m gonna ball my eyes out if I’m watching ‘The Notebook’ or if a singer on the ‘X factor’ is amazing but when it comes to crying and being emotional at my own life I’m usually ok. Just not this week haha! In true Justin Timberlake style I have cried a river this week…

I think the route of my emotional week has stemmed from my skin again (get over yourself Amy). It had gotten sooo much better and I was finally start to get a bit of my mojo back but it’s really flared up again since last week and quite frankly it makes me miserable. Am I really writing about my skin again?! YES, yes I am. I started this blog because I wanted to write an honest and truthful account of all my emotions and feelings during pregnancy so it’s pointless writing about it being perfect and amazing all the time because we’re all human and it’s normal to have little wobbles. I’m growing a baby for goodness sake, it’s not an easy job 😜 I literally feel like I need to cover up all the mirrors in the house so I don’t catch a glimpse of my face when I have no makeup on (well this week with makeup on it’s not even that much better).

I wake up in the morning and I use all my products I have for my skin – my skincare is obviously really important to me (it was even before the acne started). I always do my makeup in our en-suite which doesn’t have a window so we don’t get much natural light. My skin always looks alright in the en-suite but admittedly my foundation is too dark at the moment (boo to no sunbeds) so I went into the main bathroom to check it was all properly blended. I’m telling you now I’d have rather looked like a patchy Oompa-loompa than have to face the sight of my awful skin in the natural light! So that was it, I was in the worst mood this morning. All because of my bloody skin.

I feel awful moaning about it because I know at the end of my pregnancy, we will have a beautiful baby boy. We are so fortunate with even being pregnant in the first place and I do feel really selfish for having a moan. I have a husband that loves me and family & friends that love me also. So again, my life could be FAR worse than a bit of acne. I know that in the grand scheme of things it’s NOTHING but at the moment it just feels like EVERYTHING. I’m full on sat here crying as I write this, gahhhh there goes my crazy hormones again!

I went for brunch with my best friend, Hannah, today (not forgetting her gorgeous little boy Keegan). We went to Bohemia which is my favourite place to go for brunch. The coffees and food are just delish! We had such a lovely catch up and then went to Tescos so Han could grab some Ella’s Kitchen bits for Keegan (the weaning has begun) and I had to pick up my prescription. Well poor Hannah, on the way home from Tesco I just started having a cry didn’t I! Hannah (I’m sure she won’t mind me saying) is quite an emotional little bean (especially since becoming a Mumma) so I didn’t feel bad for having a little cry. She made me feel so much better, so just a little note to say thank you for saying just what I needed to hear and letting me have my hormonal cry! I then came home, took off all my make up, washed my face and put my spot treatment on to then re-apply two hours later ready to teach my singing lessons – totally turned into a crazy preggo lady! I have also booked in with Kat at La Powder Box again for a facial next week, she’d really helped with my skin in the run up to our Wedding back in October.

Mum and I are off to Whittlebury Hall  on Sunday for a spa stay which couldn’t have come at a more perfect time! I have been worrying about wearing no make up but no matter how much I hate my skin, I would never be one to wear make-up on a spa day. It’s like 40 minutes away so I’m not going to see anyone I know so it will be absolutely fine. I can’t wait to relax and read my book. I’ve been reading ‘How To Grow A Baby and Push It Out’ by Clemmie Hooper. It’s literally brilliant, it’s the perfect mix of factual information with so many bits to make you laugh too. My friend Paige’s sister, Sian (also our wedding videographer), recommended it to me. She’s due any moment, I think her due date is actually today 😱  PLUS, my Mum is treating me to a pregnancy massage – absolutely love her! Writing this I’m thinking… Has Mum told Dad she’s treating me to this massage or am I majorly dropping her in it 🤣 Sorry Mum, if I’ve dropped you in it 🤪

Over the past week, I have also been having lots of moments where my bump goes really hard and tight for like a minute or so – it’s the most surreal feeling ever! I think my beautiful bump (yes I am going to give myself some self-loving) is growing. When I stand up straight my belly button is almost flat now. I’m a bit of a weirdo because I literally have been waiting for the day my belly button no longer properly exists. I keep wondering if it’ll just stay flat or if I’ll pop out a little bit – who knows eh. Maybe I’ll update you in one of my next blog posts 🤪

I have my first growth scan on 15th February so I can’t wait to see our little man again! I’m hoping we’ll get an idea of his weight as well but we shall see!

Anywho, this is probably very boring and dull – sorry about that! But I hope you maybe smiled at my bellybutton weirdness!

So the baby’s nursery was painted this weekend – eeek! We’ve gone for Dulux polished pebble which we also have in our kitchen, we’re clearly really adventurous when it comes to grey! Our entire house is grey so I made a pact with myself that we’d add some colour to the baby’s room. So I’ve gone for three Grey walls 🤣

But… we have a wallpaper to go up on the biggest wall. Yes, that’s right we have colour!! I absolutely love this wallpaper and it was really reasonable at just £12.99 a roll (and I got a 20% discount code too)!

We’re also getting the nursery furniture up on Saturday too. My Dad and father in law, Steve, will be helping. I have visions of it being like 60 minute makeover and me coming home from work to it completed and looking beautiful. I’m so impatient, I just want everything done in an instant! It’s more the boxes everywhere that is driving me crazy. Given that there’s three pieces of furniture we have six ginormous boxes just in the middle of his room!

I’ve also ordered some mint, grey and white decor bits this week which again I will want up on Saturday but realistically I might have to wait a bit longer #diva. If only I could click my fingers and it would be finished eh!

I mean there’s no major rush with 13 weeks until my due date but Michael is away for two weeks in March – he’s going to Cheltenham races and he has a stag do in Portugal so it pretty much writes the whole month off (well that’s what I’ve been saying 😜). My mum is on standby whilst he’s away, wouldn’t that be extremely unfortunate if he decided to make an appearance early!? I hope he stays put for past March that’s for sure!

Michael and I were saying last night that as soon as the nursery is finished everything will seem that bit more real. Although, everything seems pretty real enough to me with the party animal I seem to be growing. His movements are getting so strong, he was almost doing the Mexican wave last night haha! Look!! (Or don’t if you’ll be weirded out🙈) Featuring Super Bowl in the background and a very dramatic gasp by me. Very out of character for me to be dramatic 🤪

Anyways, I’ll leave you with a cute little picture of my favourite outfit so far – not forgetting the cutest little comforter 🥰 Have a wonderful week everyone ☺️

So going by my due date I now just have 14 weeks and 6 days left, oh wow! That sounds so much closer than saying I’m 25 weeks pregnant. I’m definitely going to use that from now 🙃😝

This week has been amazingly productive baby-wise, we’ve pretty much got all our main bits sorted! We already had our nursery furniture, we went for the Boori Sleigh range in white – I’m obsessed with it! I have always loved the Sleigh style cots and this really was the only one I loved, mainly because the wardrobe and drawers are in the sleigh style too. I saw it on Becky Miesner‘s Instagram and that confirmed how amazing it is 😍 It had 20% off in John Lewis when we got it so we saved a fair amount too!

We’ve also been really lucky, my parents have treated us to our pushchair. The Bugaboo Cameleon Classic Plus in grey! Again, totally obsessed with this and I can’t wait for it to arrive! I’ve already mentioned the pushchair in a previous blog post so I’m sure you can tell I’m super excited about it! My in-laws have also treated us the the MamaRoo rocker which is so cool! If you haven’t had a look at them you need to 😁

We’ve also got a Sleepyhead – I know these have lots of mixed opinions but I’ve done my research and have decided we definitely will use this. Plus, my bestie Hannah used one with her little boy Keegan and has said how brilliant it is.

We have gone for the BeSafe Izi Go Modular Car Seat and Isofix base. It’s one of the best out there (in my opinion)!

Last but not least, we’ve ordered our SnuzPod yay! I was so undecided on which colour to go for so I was very kind in letting Michael decide (well he had pick of two 🙈🤪). We’ve gone for the Dove Grey – it’s amazing!

So now it’s just the waiting for it all to arrive… we’re hoping to decorate the nursery next month. I use the term ‘we’re’ very loosely 🤣 My Dad is painting and Michaels Dad is wallpapering. Michael will assist, his DIY isn’t quite up to the standard of our Dads 🙊 And I, well, I make a cracking cuppa 🤷🏼‍♀️ Baby Crisp’s room is an absolute state at the moment, the door remains SHUT! It’s got boxes and bags everywhere, I can’t wait for it to just be all done and ready. Baby steps and it’ll get there (pardon the pun).

Little update.. my skin seems to be a little better this week and I’m still being brave and not using filters on any photos. I’ve been starting to use the Charlotte Tilbury magic foundation which is so much lighter than the Double Wear I have been wearing (and still do when we go out out).

I’m feeling full of energy this week (for a pregnant person) and all went well at my midwife appointment Monday. The baby’s heartbeat was 155 which I believe is perfect and on the higher end of the scale! I was told that because I’m having antibiotics during labour, if I was planning a water birth I will have to have my arm with the cannula out of the pool and wrapped up because it will be susceptible to infection. So as much as a water birth sounds great, it does sound like a bit of a pain in the booty! I’m also adamant I’m not having a birth plan. I just think my labour is pretty much out of my control so I may as well just go with it. It’s pointless having an ideal and unrealistic plan for labour when the chances are it’s not going to happen! Although, having read bits and bobs online there are techniques on dealing with labour so you do feel in control to an extent – I need to master this eh!

We start our NCT classes next month which I’m looking forward to! It’ll be really nice to go to together but also it’ll be nice to meet other (usually) first time parents. We also are going to a Hypnobirthing taster session at Love Your Birth with the lovely Lauren! We used to dance together back in the day. It was actually my sister in law, Charlotte that told me about the taster – she’s going to university in September to train to be a midwife (how amazing is that) so she’s going to come along to the session too!

This is really long, sorry 🙈 Have a brilliant weekend everyone 💖

Ohh and baby monitors, we’re yet to decide on one! Does anyone have any recommendations? I like the idea of the Angelcare with the sensor pad/mat but not sure how sensitive they are and if it’ll stress us out? 🤷🏼‍♀️

I can’t believe we’re only half way through January, it’s going so slow! I think this every year – it’s most likely because of the craziness at Christmas.

I have an appointment with my midwife on Monday which is exciting because I think I should get to hear the baby’s heartbeat again! I’m hoping she’ll be able to let me know roughly what position he is in as well – I really have no idea! Sometimes I think oh that’s his head there and then I’m like no it’s a foot 🤷🏼‍♀️ So basically I’m backing up my point of saying I don’t have the foggiest idea. I guess it gets easier to work it out the bigger he grows. I’m hoping I don’t have to have more bloods Monday but I have a feeling I will as I’ve only had them taken once so far. I found giving blood far less painful than any of the blood tests I’ve had! Maybe it’s all physiological? I actually think it might be because giving blood makes you feel good because you’re doing something to help someone. Having a blood test doesn’t have quite the same effect, eh?! I still hate needles and sweat like god knows what. Too much info? Maybe ha! I may rope Michael into coming along for moral support!

I get my (I think it’s called) MATB1 certificate tomorrow which means I can finally speak with citizens advice about maternity pay (or allowance in my case). Being self employed always confuses EVERYTHING! Because I have my own business, obviously I’m gonna have to link to my website now 😝 (Limelight Entertainment), I will still be earning whilst I’m on ‘maternity leave’. I won’t be earning half as much as what I do normally because I won’t be teaching my singing lessons or dance classes. Someone had said to me because I will still be earning I may not be eligible for maternity allowance… well that’s a load of crap if that’s the case! I’ll be having a huge chunk of my income cut?! Plus, I will also have no stable income. So basically, I just need to speak to someone who can advise me further!

I’ll be working up until the last week the schools are open before Easter, which makes the 5th April my last day. I’m due on the 9th May so I think this works quite nicely. When I say working, I mean teaching. I will always be doing all the admin, party bags, pass the parcels etc for Limelight. I would love to take a proper maternity leave but I’m too much of a control freak! Plus, why would I pay someone to do something I’m perfectly capable of doing?! 🙊 I think I will maybe try and allocate some set hours to this during the week but we will see! I was going to say I’ll have to try and tie this in when Baby Crisp is snoozing but we’ll probably end up with a non-sleeper if I jinx it 🤗

I’m going back to teaching in September which means with the summer holidays, I’ll have approximately four months off. However, there will be some big, scary changes! I will only be teaching my singing lessons from home come September. I absolutely love teaching my singing lessons and I feel really lucky that I can do this from home. I have had to turn away students this term because I just don’t have the time to fit them in so I will probably do a bit of a push to build up even more of a client base. I shouldn’t say client base, they’re not clients really… I have such lovely relationships with all my students and their parents – I’m super lucky!

Eliminating all the travel time I currently spend for my other teaching jobs will also give me some more time to really push everything even further with Limelight too. My little business has grown so organically over the past three and a bit years, but I feel ready to give it that extra bit of umph to take it that step further!

I am absolutely gutted to be leaving my other teaching jobs, I have the most amazing students and I have made some really lovely friends (teachers and parents)! I just want to able to utilise my time in a way where I can spend as much time as I can with the baby (and Michael). Everyone has said they grow so fast and I know I don’t want to miss any of his milestones. The way I see it is that I’m going to be a full time Mummy but three evenings a week I will be teaching whilst Michael has the baby. I absolutely love teaching my singing lessons, so to me it really doesn’t feel like proper work!

How long did you have off when you had your little one? When did you finish working, as in how close to your due date?

Approx 100 selfies later and I have found a picture that I think I look OK in.. Yes, just about ok! I’m probably under-exaggerating there (for once)! More like 200 🤣 My skin has been something I’ve really struggled with during my pregnancy. I have tried EVERYTHING! We are off to our besties for a takeaway tonight (shoutout to Han and Richard) so I thought I’m going to do my makeup for once so I actually feel half decent! I have reverted back to Estee Lauder double wear which is a really thick foundation. I know this probably isn’t ideal for acne-prone skin but it does give the best coverage.

Yesterday was the first day I have left the house without make-up on since I’ve had acne – 22 weeks to be precise. Now I know that sounds utterly ridiculous and pathetic but it took so much courage for me go! Was it as awful as I thought? Yes! Did I keep my head down the entire time? Yes. BUT I managed to go out bare faced. Yes, it was only to Aldi to grab about 5 items but I did it. I literally felt like all eyes were on my horrible skin and I have never felt so self-conscious in my entire life – yay! I didn’t see anyone I knew luckily but I just felt so vulnerable.

I always say I have a ‘fuck it’ attitude, which I mostly do! Like with our baby name… I don’t care if you don’t like it 😜 But when it comes to my skin, I just can’t! Even when I have make up on it looks bad, it just takes away the redness. I always feel like it’s the first thing people see when they have a conversation with me and 9/10 I always make a comment about my skin. I have no idea why this is? I think it’s so I am the one that’s drawing attention to it, rather than someone leaving thinking ‘oh god, does she realise her skin is tragic’. Everyone I know is lovely and I know that they probably think nothing of it but it’s obviously my insecurities making me paranoid AF.

Michael, my parents and best friends are the only ones that have seen me with no make up on my skin because it’s VILE. It had actually got much better over Christmas and I was starting to feel like it looked alright but this week I feel like I’m back at square one. So many people said that it’ll probably just last for my first trimester but here I am five weeks away from the third trimester and it’s just the same, boo! Because I was on the pill for so long, I have a feeling that my skin isn’t a pregnancy thing. I think this is just my skin and unfortunately because I am pregnant I cannot take anything to help.

Would I rather have clear skin and not be pregnant? Not in a million years! I would take looking like a pepperoni face any day. So why the moan? I don’t know really! I just felt like it was something that I wanted to write about as it’s a big part in my whirlwind of a journey. I have wanted to write about this for a while but I needed to pluck up the courage first 🙈

I am making a pact to myself not to use a filter on any of my photos anymore and just try and get over myself!! I am the problem, no one else. It’s me thinking everyone is looking and it and it’s me getting upset. But really, what is the point in getting upset over something that I really have no control over? There is no point whatsoever. So I hope you enjoy my completely imperfect selfie, there’s a lot more to come (until I have another melt-down 😜). Ps, there were pictures where my skin looked much worse than this but I managed to find the light that worked well (for me).

Ps I know wearing make-up on my skin won’t help it get any better but I can’t face the world bare faced just yet 🙈

Pps Maybe one day I’ll get my ‘pregnancy glow’?!

So going by my due date (9th May), we have just four months to go! I mean let’s face it, the baby will probably keep us waiting! I’d much rather that than him be early though. Jump ahead to 38 weeks, watch me eat my words… I’ll be saying hurry up baby boy!!

So pregnancy seems like it’s going pretty slow at the moment – I’m just waiting for the third trimester to hurry up! Everyone says that the first trimester is the one that drags but I have to say, it’s definitely the second for me! When we found out I was already around 5 weeks so really the first trimester was only 9 weeks of waiting. And it was the busiest 9 weeks of our lives – stag do, hen do, wedding and honeymoon! Christmas did go crazy quick but now everything seems to have slowed down.

I’ll be 23 weeks tomorrow which sounds, well, really pregnant haha! To think there will be approximately just 17 weeks left until we meet our baby boy is so exciting (and scary)! I’m currently waiting for the date for my scan at 28 weeks, apparently the hospital don’t usually send them until around 3 weeks before so I’m sure we’ll get it soon. I can’t believe that if I wasn’t consultant led, we would have had our 20 week scan and that would be our last. That seems crazy to go another 20 weeks without seeing your baby on the big screen 😉 I’d be lying if I said I wasn’t secretly happy that I am consultant led because we get to see him at 28, 32 and 36 weeks just to make sure he’s growing at the expected rate.

In other news, I have finally decided on colours for Baby Crisp’s nursery! I really should say we shouldn’t I?! I get all the ideas together and Michael usually just agrees. I’m lucky that I have such an easy going husband (most of the time 😝). We’re going for mint, white and grey colour-wise and then we’re going to have elephants too! I have found the most gorgeous handmade name garland on Instagram – @_bysadie_so we’re going to get one of these for the wall where his cot will be. We’ll also be getting some elephant prints (probably a trio), most likely off Etsy. Any recommendations welcome! I could sit on Etsy for hours – I’m a nightmare.

It took me so long to actually decide on what I want to do with the nursery so I’m pleased I’ve finally decided on a theme. WE I MEAN WE 🙈

Ps I’m looking super pregnant now – look!

Pps I’m writing this from the bath and the baby is having a party! I think he enjoys baths just as much as I do 🥰