Nope, still no final decision on the name. We have about 3 1/2 months to keep thinking though, so hopefully it might happen. Dazza suggested Aaron the other day which i don't hate, but I still prefer Max. One of the kids suggested Zach which i actually quite like too, so we'll give that one a bit more thought.

I hope you're lucky soon with the whole conception process Radar. It's so heartbreaking when it takes so long and you start to think there's something wrong with you or your partner or both. So good luck (although maybe you don't need any luck from the sounds of things. lol)

I had another scan yesterday. It turns out our boy has a face, so that's a relief. *whew*

Doc said that if he keeps growing at the same rate, he'll be at least 8.5lb's. That's bigger than my other two, and their father was Samoan! Anyway, anything can happen. Maybe he's just been hungry this last couple of months. lol Maybe that explains my weight loss. He's been sucking the life outta me.

Damn parasites. ;)

A good name for an echidna.

http://au.youtube.com/watch?v=Tl3a70T3kpk

[whisper]I have been known to refer to this child as one of those things from time to time...specially when it was making me vomit. lol[/whisper]

Tomorrow I'm 28 weeks. That means only 12 weeks or so to go. I'm hoping for 8 or 10. I'm so over being pregnant.

We've come up with a couple of names besides Max to think about.

Cooper and Oscar. I prefer Oscar but Dazza likes Cooper. I still prefer Max most of all though. I guess we'll see how we go till then.

Wait ... Max? From Australia?? :D

MAXimus! I like it the best too. Oscar just reminds me of hot dogs.

Well, I'm sure he'll get that now and then, but I think most Aussies don't think about Mad Max as much as the average US citizen. Honestly. lol

You mean a sausage right?

Congrats lady. You are almost over the hump in 4 to 6 weeks you will be safe. I wish you the best and a healthy last trimester. Hang in there it will be over before you know it and the pay off will be huge. You can do it.

Thanks matey. ;) I'll be glad when it's over and I can get down to doing what I think I'm best at.

The last Trimester was my favorite... naps were plentiful, food tasted good again, could feel lots of baby activity, Flint gave me massages and pedicures... those were good times. Enjoy them.. trust me... it may seem like it is lasting forever, but once its all over you'll miss this time.

Actually, about food, I've regained my appetite somewhat over the last week or so. Unfortunately, I don't have room for much though. lol

I go to a professional for a pedicure. I think Dazza would chop my toes off. He's not good with sharp objects.

I'm just sick of being so F.A.T.!

On Tuesday I had the 'Glucose tollerance test'. They give you a very sweet drink then do a blood test to see how your body is processing sugars.

Unfortunately mine has come back high, which could indicate gestational diabetes so I have to go take the test again but it's a bit more involved second time around.

I know that this sometimes happens to women during pregnancy and it's often/usually nothing that the woman has done wrong. Generally it's just the hormones being out of whack, but it still upsets me to think that my baby could be at risk.

I hope the second test provides a better result. I will never forgive myself if something happens to our baby.

Cooper:

http://content.bt.com/distribution/b...s4-Ep5_im1.jpg

Oscar:

http://www.danzfamily.com/archives/b...the-grouch.jpg

Whoa, whoa--it's never something that the mother has done wrong. Your pancreas is suddenly having to work harder than normal, and it's suffering just like every other part of your body.

I failed the first test, and only barely passed the second--they recommended I watch my diet just to be on the safe side--and I personally know three people who failed both tests. All that happens is you go on a special diet just like a normal diabetic would, and test your blood sugar on a regular basis. The vast majority of the time a controlled diet is all it takes, and even if that's not enough, it just means you have to take insulin until the baby's born. I know it's impossible not to worry about your baby :)--but seriously, it's no big deal.

I failed the 1 hr and passed the 3 hr glucose test. Its pretty common.

Yeah..that's what they keep telling me.

I just can't help worrying...and it sux because I can't get in to do the second test till next Wednesday.

Anyway, I'm sure you're both right and everything will be fine no matter what happens.

If you want to feel like you're doing something in the meantime, you can always follow a rough approximation of the diet now: it's basically just high in protein and low in carbs. Have eggs for breakfast instead of cereal, have more veggies instead of a roll at dinner... super easy.

They want me to eat complex carbs and protien which is basically the diet I've been following anyway. Cereals, grains, and meats, and fish along with healthy veges but not too much fruit.

From what I've read, that's more or less what they'll require if it turns out to be positive anyway and I may or may not need medication.

The thing that upsets me is that gestational diabetes is one of the reasons babies can be still born, so that's really freaking me out aside from the health risks for me which don't seem to be rating at all really.

Chick - anecdotal evidence again, but I worked with a colleague and friend who had gestational diabetes in both her pregnancies. She delivered two very healthy, happy babies.

It's no better or worse than any diagnosis. It's just we know more about it these days.

All my thoughts to you - and try to accept that your body and your baby's body will do what they can - evolution is a damned powerful force when it comes to reproduction. Both you and him will fight like tigers to get him born.

I don't think you want me to rephrase that in a religious way (I'm sorry, I couldn't) but you do so if it helps. Either way, the odds are in your favour.

My thoughts and care are with you & all the chaps.

That thing ought to be popping out soon! Tell me the date again?

April fools day.

Then Cooper. definitely.

Why?

Tommy Cooper (in the Pic) was a professional Fool -much loved by Brits.

Right. Well I'm not so keen on Cooper atm. Apparently it's the number 1 name for boys just now. It'll be like Steven and Mark from my generation.

beest recommends the bottle trick

Cooper is #1? Wow! Only in Aus. You get about 5 modern names in the top 10 here and UK, but the very top are always the traditional biblical for boys.

We're more or less godless here...and apparently a bunch of barrel makers.

Well with barrel-making an honoured craft, the mini cooper being the sports model, and Coopers beer being the nectar of the gods, I guess it makes ... no sense at all, really.

Here are some pics of the baby's room. There's a rug to go on the floor yet and a footstool, but it's more or less ready to go now. :)

Attachment 21304

This is one of the cot, change table, small dresser and chair.

Attachment 21305

This one gives you a bit more of a look at the bits and pieces we've decorated the room with, including the ceiling which we covered in celophane and then dilly netting.

Attachment 21306

This is a close up of the dragonflies on the wall and the little fishies and birds that're suspended from the ceiling.


Obviously we've gone for a 'by the seaside' theme in keeping with just about everything else in our lives. :D

Looks very nice - At first I thought those were butterflies and I was like WTF? butterflies in a boys room? Looks really nice.

lol...yeah, Aden and Mav wanted to know I was putting up butterflies too, but then I showed them more closely.

Anyway, it's mainly the bright colours I was going for. Getting him to focus etc...all the pop psych crap they go on with...plus, I never had the opportunity to decorate a room for the other two when they were babies, so it was nice to let my imagination go on this one for a while. :)

You should do something with the fan blades - put the dragonflies on there - that way the baby can see them while in his crib - just a thought.

I've got mobiles and stuff to put up on his cot, and I'm going to paint his name on the wall once we decide what it's going to be.

More colour to come!

Oh c'mon - paint the damn blades on his fan! Just alternate red and blue or something - It'll be cool to watch him go cross-eyed watching it.

lol...sadist!

Well that or he'll learn red and blue make purple when the fan spins really really fast.

It all looks gorgeous!
Lucky, lucky boy.

Serious question - do you think it will be a positive thing that your three boys will have a different colour skin (to eachother) or do you anticipate problems in the future? Sorry, that was the blunt version, I suppose I should say that can you perceive differences for those of your sons that have an alternate heritage.

Inter-racial adoption is a big issue in the UK at the moment, with a large number of children who need to be adopted being from mixed race backgrounds, and the vast majority of couples wanting to adopt being white middle class. And the official thinking seems to weigh very heavily on the non-Causcasian side of the heritage - mixed race and black/ asian etc parents being the preferred parents. As the biological mother you don't have to jump through these hoops, but you & Daryl would certainly not top the list if your two older boys were not your own.

Personally I think children can't thrive in care - there are official statistics to back this up - so send them to where the love is. Any experience they have of an inter-racial family can only benefit them.

I appreciate this is an incredibly personal question - feel free not to answer.

I love the dragonflies!!

(I don't know how they're regarded down under, but here they are seen as messengers of creation, and also work to dispel illusion. Very sweet!)

I can pretty much guarantee that the little one will end up pretty much indifferent to the mobile, but fascinated by the ceiling fan.

At least that's what happens to the babies that get brought into my office. Despite all grown-ups attempts to engage them, they just love to watch those blades going round and round and round.

See - I was right - wolf eht htiw og

lol...ok, I might do something with the fan blades then! Satisfied???

Wolf, there's no particular significance attached to dragonflies here that I know of, but I just had this idea of putting a flock(?)/swarm(?) of them on the wall. It's amazing when you see a dozen or so of them going about their business in real life, so I was just trying to capture that organized dissaray with the wall.

Thanks for your comments. :)

Actually, the main thing I've been worried about is remembering to put sunscreen on him all the time. It's not something I've had to worry about too much with Aden and Mav. lol They still wear it to begin with, but they just go browner and browner rather than burning. In fact, the only time they've really been sunburned is one time when Dazza took them fishing on a really hot day and they stood around in the sun all day long without shirts on (not Dazza, he's lilly white).

Within our family I don't expect there'll be any problems with different skin colours, and as the boys are with me most of the time and I'm clearly white when they're not, we're used to the looks we sometimes get although not as much as you might expect. I know people wonder when they see Dazza and me and the boys together, but I've never bothered to say anything. This new baby will be lucky to come into a family that's got a little bit of it's own diversity, and I'm pretty sure that if any of the other kids give him any grief over the difference in skin colour, they might have to consider dealing with his big brothers. Particularly Aden who can get pretty feisty if someone's giving Mav a hard time. I can only imagine it'll be the same for the new little bloke.

I know it's not PC to say so, but Aden and Mav are pretty good looking kids, so I think this has saved them from a lot of teasing and racial comments they might otherwise have had to suffer. It hasn't completely insulated them from it, but I think it's definitely helped. They're also leaders among their peers, so it's usually coming from one of the kids at the bottom of the pecking order so it makes it easier for them to cope with and they've done very well for themselves imo.

When it all comes down to it, we're all colourblind in our household and we've never had a situation where it's been said or even implied that something has happened because of someone's colour. As parents, we've always spent time talking about the reasons why some people make nasty comments about numerous things with the hope that our boys will always know that it's not them with the problem, but rather the person doing the saying. I expect we'll follow the same path with the new one and any possible future progeny.

Good for you Ali, you sound like a great mom. I think it important to instill that stuff in your kids. Hey, what is your due date?

April fools day. ;) A bit over 10 weeks from now. Hopefully it'll be closer to 6 or 8 weeks. lol I'm over this!

9 weeks to go now.

We have a little under 8 weeks to go now. We've pretty much decided on Max Cooper McPhee for the baby's name and pretty much everything is organized except the car seat which we'll sort out in the next week or so.

I just can't wait for him to arrive now.

Great name! :)

Yep, the translation is, Number One/The Best Barrel Maker McPhee. ;)

Thanks though. We really like it. :)

I should point out that it was case who suggested Max, so if there was a prize for picking the name, it should go to her. :D

:D What is my prize?

You get to go on safari!

Oh...right...okay.

? McPhee? Family name?

As a third time Mum I know you know that 8 weeks is practically due date anyway. Keep us up to date!

McPhee is Dazza's last name. That'll be the babies surname...and mine one day when I perfect a signature (yes I know it's been almost 3 years), and the older two boys want to add McPhee to the end of their names too, so I might get that all organised this year.

I'm hoping I only have another 4 or 5 weeks to wait to be honest. I'm so ready to have this baby now! lol

what? those last 8 weeks are the longest evah.... third time moms know that the best :lol:

I get what you're both saying, and in my case it's six of one and half a dozen of the other. We've got so much going on here atm that every week seems to be flying by so time goes quickly, but when I'm in each day it seems interminable because everything is just such an effort now. I was sitting out in the front garden having a cuppa this morning and looking mournfully at my plants. They looked so sad and neglected. I think they're just going to have to get used to fending for themselves for a while. I really can't be arsed with them.

Remember I've met more pregnant Mums that practically anyone apart from a midwife.
I know they are the longest days (and nights!) but I also know babbas are born early due to the odd way that doctors time pregnancies.

Pleased to hear that your boys love Daz enough to take his name. Not that it would be a lack of love if they didn't! (like you :p) I know who to address the card to now.

Can't wait for the first sight of the chap. Oh wait - I've already had that. Can't wait to see him outside your body. And I bet you can't either!

7 weeks to go! Time flies when your back's aching and everything seems like so much effort.

Dazza and I are going away this weekend for Valentines Day. I'm really looking forward to it. It'll be nice to have a couple of days to ourselves without any kids (other than the one in my belly) before the bomb's dropped. lol