Since there are quite a few of us, figured we could start a thread for Canadians to check in. This is a place to ask those questions that are Canada specific!
We can kick off with an introduction
FTM/STM/STM+:
Ages of other children:
What part of Canada are you from?:
Any questions?:
GTKY: What’s your favourite winter activity for Canadian winters?:
Re: Canadian Moms Check-in
DD1: 7 years in January
DD2: 18 months next week
Southern Ontario (GTA)
FTM/STM/STM+: STM
We do enjoy heading up the mountain to find snow though.
@panaceia I have one that was booked as a follow up to my MMC on Jan 13th. I'll be 7w5d but I may actually request one asap. I keep getting a sharp stabby pain in my lower right abdomen and I am paranoid AF.
TW Loss
With my MMC I had a happy baby at 8w3d then started barrrrely spotting at 13w1d and it had stopped growing at 10w. I feel like MMC is a special kind of mindf*ck
FTM/STM/STM+: TTM
@Panaceia normally it wouldn’t be until the 20 week a/s. NS just started doing dating scans for everyone at 8 weeks like I’m the last year or so, but they stopped them after COVID (unless of course there is a need for one). My doctor is going to put in a request for me after a 7 week beta draw, because of my recent loss. But she said that they may deny the request, so might still end up being 20 weeks!
I'm not certain when I'll have an ultrasound, definitely before the 20 weeks @pickle-chips mentioned. I'm hoping for around 13 weeks.
TW
This summer at 13 weeks we found out our baby was sick, and had a loss at 17 weeks. Its so unlikely to happen again, but I'm so paranoid. I'm hoping for a later dating scan to rule out any complications in development.
I love playing in the snow with my dog, but am mostly an indoor hobbit.
TW
My MMCs were first scans at 12 weeks and 10 weeks. So pretty definitive when there was no heartbeat. I want to know what's going in in there but terrified for the answer to be *nothing*:/
@pickle-chips I love Nova Scotia, I've only been once but if I *had* to live on the East Coast I would choose Nova Scotia
It's so nice to see so many Canadian moms. We dont have as many on my board but seeing this made me so happy
@baby_yoda1986 phew! I know we don’t have the mountains, but we do have the ocean. We are Canada’s Ocean Playground!
We live in rural Ontario, but hubby was born and raised in a suburb of Vancouver so we try and go back to visit every year or so. I haven't been to the East Coast but it's on my need to do list. I've driven out west and our country is amazing. Seeing all of your posts is lighting a fire under my butt tonget out east when covid settles
FTM exciting and scary at my age!
I currently live in Southern GTA but I’m from Ottawa so I also know of the Mrs. Tiggy Winkles store that @pickle-chips mentioned.
I am not a fan of the cold. Loved it as a kid but would much prefer summer year round!
Although Scandinavian spas are nice in the winter - there’s an amazing one in Chelsea (Ottawa-Gatineau region).
We have a nordic spa just outside the city here in NS. (I say the city because there is only one haha). I went in October and it was magical. I hate that I can't go until after this babe is out of me. Its so relaxing!
Do you know when you are having your first u/s?
My US is tomorrow, I’ll post an update as soon as I know
Gah... I was hoping for a heartbeat but also know I may be slightly too early and that just a few days makes a big difference.
i imagine my next one will be after the holidays.
Mine isn't scheduled until I'm 12+2 and my first appointment isn't until the week after that so I have to wait and wait before I know what's going on:/
@Panaceia I count NOT wait until 12weeks. I don't think I could handle that!
I’m surprised that they’ve got you scheduled so late? You must already have an OB or Midwife then? My doctor apparently can’t refer me until he has all my bloodwork and an US with heartbeat 🤷🏻♀️
@baby_yoda1986 I wanted it later so that the results are definitive immediately...but wasn't expecting it this late. As long as my doctor still lets me go for the NIPT at 10 weeks then I can deal with it. But it's just SO FAR AWAY!!!
I got a call that I have an apt with an OB on Jan 28. Still waiting on any form of ultrasound
The way my doctor explained it is if the EEDon requesition is off by even a day you can get a false positive. I know panorama is much more accurate though.
TW - loss
This time, I went in for pain/possible ectopic and I was seen within minutes.
I am thankful they are taking things seriously this time but I'm covered in bruises from all the blood draws 🤣
Is anyone doing the sneak peek? I was considering it but I worry about the postal system taking forever to get it to the US
@baby_yoda1986 with the blood test it doesn't really matter if your dates are super accurate just so long as you are definitely at least 9 weeks. They just want the u/s first because it is an expensive test and it's covered by the province so they want to make sure people are actually pregnant before they shell out the cash:)
TW
With my first loss I was hemorrhaging and bleeding out so they obviously took me immediately as I made a mess of the waiting room just walking through the doors...with my second I found out on the Friday that there was no heartbeat. Saturday I spent 9 hours in the ER waiting for my D&C. It was non emergent though so I knew I'd have a bit if a wait. And this was with them already expecting me ahead of time. It was nice that they were able to fit me in that day though since my risk of hemorrhaging makes MCing naturally pretty dangerous for me. I likely would have had less of a wait had I gone in Friday night but I needed to arrange child care.
With my first pregnancy I stuck with my gp practice since it is also a maternity center. What I didn't like was that at delivery there was no one there I knew. They ended up making a pretty big mistake that almost killed both me and DD1 that I know would have been caught sooner had I gone with a midwife or an OB. With DD2 I went directly to an OB. I loved it and felt so much safer and just more confident and comfortable all around. I am definitely using my OB again, but I'll be a repeat CS so I don't have much of a choice anyways:) Plus I'm high risk this time due to loss history and age (3 losses, and I'll be 42 years old at delivery). I have many friends who have gone the midwife route and absolutely loved it!
Why the government doesn't make this clear when you go on mat leave is beyond me.
Otherwise, like @doodlemom131 suggested, the easiest, most straightforward way to manage is to set aside money for the inevitable tax bill.
There are like two lines about it at the very bottom of this page: https://www.canada.ca/en/financial-consumer-agency/services/starting-family/maternity-parental-leave-benefits.html.
My second parental leave I didn’t end up owing, I think the tax deduction for daycare expenses for our oldest was my saviour 😅.
My first BMB didn't have any other Canadians, at least no-one that stuck it out for the long haul and migration to FB.
Maybe they’ll let me get my 2nd dose earlier than July now? (Probably not)