:thumbup:Hi guys! I know we have been keeping each other posted in various other threads, especially "Banded & Hoping to Get Preg", but since the title of that thread doesn't exactly give out the best info, I am starting a new one for all to post their fun pregnancy stuff, like how appointments go, how the baby is, when we find out the sex, due dates, etc etc!!

Here's my info for today!

We had our 13/14 wk appt today. I am very aware of my ovulation/menstrual cycle, so by my dates we are 13 weeks, however the docs say the baby is measuring 14 weeks. Whatever, it's gonna come when it's good and ready! We got to hear the baby's heartbeat today and it was good and solid, also fast. About 160 Beats per Minute, so there is a good chance the baby is a girl if you go off the heart rate literature. Lower rates like 120-145 BPM are often boys, higher rates from 150-180 BPM are often girls.

Other than that, all is well! I'm officially out of 1st trimester and had another lb lost, which is great as that means I technically didn't gain. The first few weeks I was starving so gained 4-6 lbs real fast, then the hunger tapered off and the band got kinda tempermental and tight on certain days, so I have lost what I gained...YIPPEE! Hearing the heartbeat was wonderful, it made it more real, just like our first ultrasound did.

Let's try to attach a pic or two..

Let's try to attach a pic or two..

Wow . . . he is absolutely adorable. He has so much hair. My daughter has a wee bit but it looks like they are similar in that the hair they do have sticks straight up, lol.

Now that she is 3.5 months out, it has gotten so much easier to be a new mom. She is a happy baby who sleeps through the night most nights (with one feeding sometime between 5 am to 7 am for 20 minutes but I can live with that).

She can now entertain herself and doesn't need to be held all the time. If I am in the kitchen cooking or cleaning, I just bring her swing in and she babbles away watching me walk around, lol. As long as I am in the same room, give her a kiss or a squeeze every once in awhile and babble back or sing, she is content for 30-60 minutes at a stretch. :mad:

It just seems to get easier and easier and I am sure it will for you as well.

Let's try to attach a pic or two..

very very sweet... Abe has more hair that Joshua at 8 months... :scared2:

cute baby pics diva he is adorable!

Let's try to attach a pic or two..

I think this second picture is so cute...for such a NEW baby we sure are a show off!! I love it!

Grrr...I had been losing about 1 lb a week for the past month, slow but steady. Now today I am up 1.6?!?!? Why? I'm irritated because I can't buy new pants, as I refuse to do so until I'm closer to the 16 or 14 I was in when I got pregnant, but my 18's and 20's are too big...sigh.

I am still breastfeeding quite a bit and very hungry most of the day, so what gives? What helped you guys shed the weight? I don't want to get a fill, because I'm already kinda tight.

Grrr...I had been losing about 1 lb a week for the past month, slow but steady. Now today I am up 1.6?!?!? Why? I'm irritated because I can't buy new pants, as I refuse to do so until I'm closer to the 16 or 14 I was in when I got pregnant, but my 18's and 20's are too big...sigh.

I am still breastfeeding quite a bit and very hungry most of the day, so what gives? What helped you guys shed the weight? I don't want to get a fill, because I'm already kinda tight.

Well, I may not be the best person to answer this. I went from 188 the day of delivery and am currently 137 at less than four months out. This loss was due to a slipped band so it is kind of like cheating.

I am beginning to struggle a bit with hunger now. I am not just hungry, I am HUNGRYYY . . . I had almost forgotten what that was like. I am trying sooo hard to be careful but I am beginning to battle the same demons as before banding now that my band is fixed albeit empty. I don't need to lose, but I sure as h*ll don't need to gain. Maintenance is the key for me and it is alllll too easy to go in the wrong direction right now.

I am handling it by not limiting myself on quantities of vegetables/salad (not starchy items like potatoes and corn). I am staying away from sweets, starches, rice and breads as much as possible (although I have had an occasional sandwich because I missed them for so long). I need to get my butt moving with exercise, but just haven't gotten to it yet. I am ready, I have no excuses now . . . I just need to do it.

It helps that we can motivate each other :0) I don't think anyone understands what we go through as much as our fellow bandsters.

Hi I am new at this and me and my hubby have decided to try for our third baby (first with the band). My question is how long after trying did anyone realize that they were preggos? I have been having some bloating problems and the band feels tighter then ever (first time ever experiencing this. It has also been a year since I was banded). It has only been one week since my last menstral cycle. Could it be that I might be preggos?

Hi I am new at this and me and my hubby have decided to try for our third baby (first with the band). My question is how long after trying did anyone realize that they were preggos? I have been having some bloating problems and the band feels tighter then ever (first time ever experiencing this. It has also been a year since I was banded). It has only been one week since my last menstral cycle. Could it be that I might be preggos?

I was 6 months into the band when we got preggos with number #2.. We were not trying persay.. but we were stopping it either :thumbup: anyhow.. I had just gotten a fill and I normally lose like 1-2 lbs in the day after the fill and I gained 6!! I was like something is wrong.. so I took a pregnancy test like a week later on a suspicion because I had been having some pain in my ovary area and we were pregnant!

you're weight gain and band tightness could be hormonal from your body ovulating.. since its like a week after your period. but you never know.

I just know this time that I knew so much sooner because had I not been watching my weight I might have not picked up on it. as it was I knew 7 days before my missed period.

shrinknme-You are 38 WEEKS! I am sooo jealous! I am so ready to have this baby! Any signs that labor is close yet? Have you had the "lightening" feeling yet where the baby drops? Keep us posted, you are sooo close!!!

shrinknme-You are 38 WEEKS! I am sooo jealous! I am so ready to have this baby! Any signs that labor is close yet? Have you had the "lightening" feeling yet where the baby drops? Keep us posted, you are sooo close!!!

YES I am so ready. I have been having menstrual like cramps so I know somethings happening.. but who knows. I will keep you posted!!

Hang in there.. I felt the same way past 32 wks.:thumbup:

YES I am so ready. I have been having menstrual like cramps so I know somethings happening.. but who knows. I will keep you posted!!

Hang in there.. I felt the same way past 32 wks.

I've been a little crampy too, nothing big though.

I went in for my 34 week checkup yesterday, they said my stomach measured at 37 weeks...don't know if that means anything or not...

I did have my other child AT 37 weeks though so i'm praying the good Lord brings this child to us (happy & healthy of course) at 37 weeks as well, which means that is only 3 weeks away (which STILL feels like a lifetime away)!!:eek:

Does anyone on here know why they measure our stomachs? What is the signifigance of the measurement as opposed to WHEN we deliver?

I could ask my doctor, but hate to call her with questions 'just because' and I always forget to ask these 'just because' questions when I actually have her in the exam room...

Thanks.

Renee

Weight update:

I have gained a TOTAL of 49.4 lbs this pregnancy so far....12 of those pounds I gained before I went in for my first intake appointment (because I had my lapband loosened and ate like there was NO tomorrow) so they are only counting 37 lbs gained on this pregnancy.

My weight gain has slowed alot these past few weeks (less than a lb a week now) as the baby is getting bigger and i'm finally eating less...LOL

How have the rest of you fared and how hard (for those of you with previous band babies) was it to take off afterwards??

I still have 22 lbs to lose before I'm at pre-pregnancy weight. Sigh...i have been bad all week too, so who knows if I've gained? Probably. Just dealing with hunger sucks. I know I need a fill, but I am not wanting to be tighter than I am right now! Lately I don't eat large meals, but I notice I get growly tummy after breastfeeding. It's food choices, pure and simple. Cravings for the naughty foods are worse at night, so I will try to work harder at that.

The main reason they measure your tummy is simple, for easy, quick checks of growth. Your tummy measurement should match your week, so 37 cm should mean you're 37 wks along. However, the measurements are not as accurate if you weren't slender to start with, so don't worry too much about it. One of my pregnant friends has measured very large since about 24 wks, always measuring about 5 wks ahead. This has prompted several sonograms. Her last tummy measurement was done when she was 36 wks, however it showed her at 41 wks...she has not had a healthy pregnancy. WAY too much weight gain, fatty, salty foods, etc has resulted in gallstones and gestational diabetes. Her docs aren't too happy with her, as she was obese to start with. So basically, the tummy measurement is a good diagnostic tool to determine if other tests should be done. They estimate her baby girl at over 9 lbs right now, and she isn't due until Halloween...so it's looking like a C section might be the only option. I love her to death, just hope she's getting nutritional food for the baby. Even if the veggies are drenched in ranch, I wish she was eating more of them.

Abe is 10 weeks old and doing great, smiling and laughing constantly! He is in the 75th percentile for height, so he will hopefully be tall, and 50th percentile for weight, so he's gaining perfectly.

How are all of you out there? Excited for the new babies to arrive soon!