@kalesix3 The only reason we were motivated to create one is because several people have been asking me. I don’t know if we’ll do a formal baby shower with what’s going on. Plus they aren’t my cup of tea. We’ll see what happens as we get closer.
I am in the midst of remodeling my son’s new room, so we can move him out and revamp the nursery for this baby. Finished painting today, installed the new light fixture and carpet is coming Thursday! His one request is a batcave... which we can actually do with one of the closets in the room so I’m super excited to surprise him with it.
Wondering what all would you put in a little hideout for a 3yo? I’m gonna make some super hero bean bags, do some Batman decals on the wall. Maybe do a chalkboard wall (trying to decide if I trust him to only color on that wall 😅).
I posted this under the spreadsheet thread, because pregnancy brain...lol. wanted to share because it's super comfy!
BTW I just got this blouse from Amazon and it's suuuuper comfy! I got a M and it's perfect for the bump for now and it will be great for the fall for nursing since it has buttons. I might order more in a small after giving birth depending on what I'll look like, LOL, just so I can still have cute fitting clothes after the baby and not just loose blouses
The weather where I am is being kind of crazy. It was in the mid 90s yesterday and now it's in the low 60s and thunderstorming. DS and I are having a low key day hanging out inside. He's being super snuggly which is always lovely. In a bit of a rant news, I was let go from my internship on Friday at 4:30 pm right before the probationary period was up (when they had previously told me no formal assessment or decisions until August). I told them about my pregnancy a couple of weeks ago and while I did struggle with an assignment last week I'd gotten nothing positive feedback before that. 🤷🏻♀️ I turned down two other internships for this one so I'm kind of grumpy. Plus it's too late in the summer to find another one. It has silver linings. I need to be moved by the beginning of July so this gives me more time to do it. And I have enough money in savings to make it until grad school starts again and I get financial aid. But I can't help feel like being pregnant impacted their decision and it makes me irritated.
I'm taking the weekend to relax and will start packing full time next week. Hopefully I'll get it done sooner than later.
@wineren Booo that sure seems sketchy... I’m glad there are silver linings and you have money saved, but no less frustrating.
I think we’re headed for a major “uncle hangover“ for the toddler. My brother and sister just left after visiting for a week, and bubs spent nearly every waking moment with his uncle’s undivided attention. Wish us luck... 😳
My FIL came to our house today (he lives 2.5 hrs away) and brought us a bunch of things of DHs from years ago and things they don’t need since they’re moving and downsizing. Two of those things included the crib that was used in the 90s for DH and his siblings - which is a drop side, yikes - and the mattress that he said only his little sister used in 1993. 🙈 Of course DH says the mattress is perfectly fine. But he knows the crib absolutely cannot be used. Would you use this mattress?!?! Also it smells musty too since it’s been in storage! I’m not sure how to convince DH that it has to go....
@mamahosch We sort of had the same issue with my parents. They had a crib from the 50s or earlier that has been in the family since then. My dad was going to fix the drop down sides. I really wanted to use it, but as you said, it’s just not safe. Luckily it was my parents I had to break it to. My boyfriend was against it from the start.
Now we are trying to decide if we should get a new mattress for the family cradle. The mattress is only from ‘08, but it still worries me. Luckily my parents are okay if we get a new mattress because we’re still going to use the cradle. I would probably get a new crib mattress, but I also worry about all of that. I love vintage and secondhand items in general (I’m a thrift store junkie, and 99% of my house is hand me down or thrift store finds), but SIDS scares me.
I would say maybe do research online to see what is advised for old crib mattresses. Then you can come with others opinions and facts to him, not yours. That’s what I did with my parents. It still didn’t go over well, but they seem to have gotten over it. Good luck.
@mamahosch I would not use the mattress. I think it's not recommended to even reuse a mattress from one baby to another (like, born within a few years apart). And while I wouldn't be that concerned about doing that, I wouldn't use one from 1993.
Yeah I'd be concerned about the firmness of an almost 30 year old mattress. Not only just from use/wear, but I'm guessing standards have probably also changed since then. Maybe if you find some data about that you can convince YH?
@animalandplantrescuer@MJDsquared@carrotsandpeas3 okay ladies, I just talked to him about the research I just found and I think he realized our baby’s safety is #1 priority over a family crib and mattress. Also he told me his dad was going to burn it anyway and just thought we might want it! So we will just tell him that the safety issues outweighed our need for it! Luckily in two weeks our town has clean up days so all the crib pieces and the mattress are going bye bye!
@themoonandme, thought you might want to see how another non-maternity StitchFix piece works as maternity wear. I wear it without leggings in the community but for work my legs have to be covered at least to below the knee.
Current pregnancy - First BFP on 1/4/22. Due date 9/13/22.
Four prior losses, no living children - 1 first trimester miscarriage, 1 blighted ovum, 1 chemical, and one extreme premature live birth daughter who died at 15 days old.
Anyone else still struggling with nausea? I'm almost 22 weeks and still throwing up a couple times a week, struggling to eat dinner 50+% of nights, and still on nausea medicine. My weight gain and baby are fine, but it's just making life way more miserable than I remember things being at this point with my daughter.
@carrotsandpeas3 Me! But I notice it’s food related. As in I eat too much and I get nausea and then don’t want to eat anymore for the rest of the day. I force myself to snack and eat small meals throughout the day because I know I need it. But being full means I have nausea.
@babycakesday mine seems to be the opposite! If I get too hungry the nausea starts and then it's this terrible cycle--I can't eat because I'm nauseated but I'm nauseated because I'm hungry. You'd think I'd just learn to keep something in my stomach. Work days I seem to do better than weekends at home. Turns out my toddler is more demanding than my job, and I don't have to sneak my snacks at work. Evenings seem to be the worst for me. I put off snacking hoping that I will "have room" for dinner but then end up not wanting to eat because I let myself get too hungry I guess.
Y’all I need help! I switched to wireless nursing bras a while ago which are a thin material. My nipples are constantly hard and it shows through my bra, undershirt and uniform top. Help!!! Anyone know of any nipple covers or something to cover these up? It’s embarrassing 😩🤪
@anitamargarita_82 I've never tried it, but the bandaid trick? Two bandaids in the shape of an x over your nipples??? At least in the interim until you find something more permanent, maybe? I've been wearing un-padded bras lately and this is constantly happening to me, but I'm not at work and generally not seeing anyone so I haven't actually had to really deal with it!
Guys I'm about to lose my shit. My anatomy scan was $900!! $900!!! Yes, I know how my insurance works, it's a choice we make to pay less money every month. We pay out of pocket until the deductible has been met. However, to hear that 'the use of the machine' was $1300, and insurance covered $400, makes my blood boil!!!! I also have a $64 bill that is "For the radiologist". What the actual F is wrong with this country! And why did my OB not mention that this was an expensive facility! The AS with my son was 2HOURS (this was 15 minutes), it was considered higher risk, and it was $500 out of pocket. Seriously I cannot right now! I thought I met my deductible already so I am going to call my insurance advocate and see what's going on.
@morethanamama I’m sorry. That really really sucks. I was told by my neighbor that is knowledgeable on insurance stuff that you should always argue your bill with the insurance. I would have no idea how to go about it, but that was her advice.
Whenever I hear everyone’s insurance stories it makes me so thankful to be with Kaiser. There are no referrals to other practices, and I can easily call to get an estimate. I hope you can get things squared away. I know with my previous insurance what a nightmare it can be.
@animalandplantrescuer I definitely intend to fight it. I love my insurance and see, everyone has their own experiences, I did not like Kaiser at all. My issue is I live attached to Newport Beach AKA where the riches live, so all our hospitals are stupid $$$ and you need to be careful where they send you for imaging...I should have checked
@morethanamama fight fight fight that bill. Call both of them. My very first ever OBGYN when I was pregnant with DD sent my bloodwork to an out of network facility and they ended up billing me for $10,000 in blood work. I didn’t end up paying anything at all. I find it so frustrating that practices can all choose how much to charge. I wish it was all more like buying a shampoo at target, amazon or Walmart. They’re all relatively the same. I’m so sorry that really freaking sucks.
@animalandplantrescuer I have the Cadillac of Kaiser plans. My out of pocket expenses so far this year have been a total of $15 (that is an exact number, not an exaggeration). Everything related to pregnancy is 100% covered with no co-pay, so I haven't paid a dime for this pregnancy.
Current pregnancy - First BFP on 1/4/22. Due date 9/13/22.
Four prior losses, no living children - 1 first trimester miscarriage, 1 blighted ovum, 1 chemical, and one extreme premature live birth daughter who died at 15 days old.
Our circumstances are a bit different because we always owe taxes so what makes sense for us is a plan that has a high deductible because we always contribute a crazy amount to our HSA in order to lower our tax bill. We pay a really low price to cover all 3 of us and it's worked fine for our first pregnancy - it will now too but what drives me crazy is the sticker shock of this bill! My husband's company gives us a contribution to basically cover the deductible, and after that the co-pays are minimal, it's still super annoying to get a ridiculous bill like that!
Total first world problem, but I waited in a long line at the hospital cafeteria at lunch for what looked like a delicious made to order salad with spicy crispy chicken... And the person in front of me got the last of the chicken. 😭 So I went with the grilled instead and it was very disappointing.
In better news, this is my last work day for a week! Heading to visit family for a few days that I haven't seen since January. We usually see them around once a month, so it has been way too long!
Insurance/billing question: has anybody had to prepay their OB for medical coverage if insurance refuses to cover you? I’d only been paying co-pays this whole time for appointments until I was about to pay this time and the receptionist asked how much we wanted to contribute to an outstanding $1,000 payment. We asked what that was and she said it was to cover our medical costs if our insurance didn’t cover us. No one had told me this and I later checked to see if it was under my online billing, it wasn’t listed there either. We have good insurance, it’s one of the ones everyone accepts around here and is considered one of the best. Just frustrated because no one told us about it and the only payments our insurance listed were for labor and delivery costs and it’s an extra $1,000 we weren’t expecting to pay.
@ccstlln1 My OB gives us a bill to prepay... but not “in case insurance doesn’t cover”... and it’s more like a couple hundred I think. But you have encountered a sneaky little loophole...the labor and delivery costs listed by your insurance only cover the hospital bill. You also will get a bill from your OB (which you’ve already received), your anesthesiologist if you have an epidural... I can’t remember what else we got billed for. There are a few different bills that you will receive and pay separately. It sucks!
@ccstlln1 yeah mine does what @baseballismyfavoriteseason is describing. I prepared like $400 but it covers essentially all my prenatal stuff (including ultrasounds and labs) and any leftover will go towards delivery. They don't word it as "in case your insurance doesn't cover" though. That's a little weird.
@ccstlln1 My practice in the past made me prepay my deductible which is what I would owe at the birth. They spoke with me at my 12 week appt and set me up with a payment plan that we both agreed on. I would ask to speak to the OB coordinator or billing rep to see what you can do about it. This time because of covid they chose not to do these payment plans.
Edit to add: So with DD I had the same experience you’re describing with my first practice She demanded I pay my whole birth by my 6th month of pregnancy which according to her was $6000. I ended up leaving for my current practice. Not just for this reason but this was the icing on top.
I don't know if this technically qualifies as a baby registry topic, but I figured randoms gets the most participation anyways. For people who are breastfeeding pros, is it worth getting nipple shields before baby is here just in case? My only experience is that my mom never used a shield for any of her 10 kids.. and I'm %100 planning on cutting any and all tongue/lip ties etc, so that should decrease the need for the shields.. but what do you all think? I am planning on getting the silverette nursing cups to help with chapped skin and soreness, but the silicone shields for breastfeeding is what I'm not sure about.
@kalesix3 I had a lot of trouble when I first began breastfeeding and it was VERY painful. I had some friends recommend the breast shields, but my sister used them and said they didn’t help her at all and she thought they made it even more challenging for her. I didn’t want to use something artificial if I didn’t have to so I just pushed through and worked with a lactation consultant. I know breastfeeding isn’t supposed to be so painful and I’m sure that they could have reduced some of that, but I was able to figure out breastfeeding without them.
@westslopemama thank you for your feedback, it's so helpful! I keep hearing around that pain during breastfeeding is ties the majority of the time preventing a good pain free latch, but I'm not sure how early I can get assessment done and I'm worried about being in excruciating pain and kicking myself for not preparing better, that's just the aggressive planner in me though.. I hear the drawback to synthetic nipple guards is it makes it really hard to breastfeed without them once you start.. which is a really good thing to consider. I'm glad you figured it out by yourself in the end!
I can’t remember if we have a nursery thread or not and didn’t see one while scrolling so I’ll post this here... We finished paint our nursery today— still need to replace the flooring and do the closet, but I’m so excited to have this part done! The other walls in the room are the lightest color.
@kalesix3 I used nipple shields because I could NOT get my child to latch without them (at first). I used a lactation consultant, they couldn’t find any ties that were causing him issues, but he would not latch—apparently, I had flat nipples and that is what made it so difficult for him. I hated using them because it was harder to nurse in public because there was no one-handed latching happening, and he would get really mad waiting for me to get situated, and I kept losing them in the bed or in the chair or whatever. I was determined to nurse without them so whenever we were at home, we would always try without first. Eventually, he figured it out and one day it just worked and we never went back to using them again!!! I can’t remember exactly how old he was when he figured it out, though. As difficult as nursing was for us, and as much as I hated the nipple shields, it was never painful for me to nurse and I never had issues with cracked or bleeding nipples, so that might have been a positive effect?
Re: June Randoms
BTW I just got this blouse from Amazon and it's suuuuper comfy! I got a M and it's perfect for the bump for now and it will be great for the fall for nursing since it has buttons. I might order more in a small after giving birth depending on what I'll look like, LOL, just so I can still have cute fitting clothes after the baby and not just loose blouses
https://www.amazon.com/dp/B07M7VDZQT/ref=cm_sw_em_r_mt_dp_U_7Nw4Eb5C0A0PW
Lots of colors too!
In a bit of a rant news, I was let go from my internship on Friday at 4:30 pm right before the probationary period was up (when they had previously told me no formal assessment or decisions until August). I told them about my pregnancy a couple of weeks ago and while I did struggle with an assignment last week I'd gotten nothing positive feedback before that. 🤷🏻♀️ I turned down two other internships for this one so I'm kind of grumpy. Plus it's too late in the summer to find another one. It has silver linings. I need to be moved by the beginning of July so this gives me more time to do it. And I have enough money in savings to make it until grad school starts again and I get financial aid. But I can't help feel like being pregnant impacted their decision and it makes me irritated.
I'm taking the weekend to relax and will start packing full time next week. Hopefully I'll get it done sooner than later.
Now we are trying to decide if we should get a new mattress for the family cradle. The mattress is only from ‘08, but it still worries me. Luckily my parents are okay if we get a new mattress because we’re still going to use the cradle. I would probably get a new crib mattress, but I also worry about all of that. I love vintage and secondhand items in general (I’m a thrift store junkie, and 99% of my house is hand me down or thrift store finds), but SIDS scares me.
I would say maybe do research online to see what is advised for old crib mattresses. Then you can come with others opinions and facts to him, not yours. That’s what I did with my parents. It still didn’t go over well, but they seem to have gotten over it. Good luck.
DD - 12/28/17
TTC #2 3/2019
BFP 5/2019 || MC - D&C 5/2019
BFP 2/2020 || EDD 10/10/2020
First BFP on 1/4/22. Due date 9/13/22.
DD - 12/28/17
TTC #2 3/2019
BFP 5/2019 || MC - D&C 5/2019
BFP 2/2020 || EDD 10/10/2020
Thanks for letting me rant...
First BFP on 1/4/22. Due date 9/13/22.
My husband's company gives us a contribution to basically cover the deductible, and after that the co-pays are minimal, it's still super annoying to get a ridiculous bill like that!
In better news, this is my last work day for a week! Heading to visit family for a few days that I haven't seen since January. We usually see them around once a month, so it has been way too long!
For people who are breastfeeding pros, is it worth getting nipple shields before baby is here just in case? My only experience is that my mom never used a shield for any of her 10 kids.. and I'm %100 planning on cutting any and all tongue/lip ties etc, so that should decrease the need for the shields.. but what do you all think?
I am planning on getting the silverette nursing cups to help with chapped skin and soreness, but the silicone shields for breastfeeding is what I'm not sure about.
I keep hearing around that pain during breastfeeding is ties the majority of the time preventing a good pain free latch, but I'm not sure how early I can get assessment done and I'm worried about being in excruciating pain and kicking myself for not preparing better, that's just the aggressive planner in me though..
I hear the drawback to synthetic nipple guards is it makes it really hard to breastfeed without them once you start.. which is a really good thing to consider.
I'm glad you figured it out by yourself in the end!