Dawn

I parked my car this morning like normal upon coming home to my apartment and heard a loud crack...I quickly pulled back because I thought I ran over something I didn't see. It was actually a three inch piece of metal sticking out of the top of the parking block...it got hooked on the front bumper of my car and yanked half of it off and broke the connector so I need extensive repairs.

I am so pissed. Is the apartment liable or am I?

My husbands motorcycle was stolen from our Apartment complex last night. We did not have insurance on the bike because it isn't required by the state. We do however have renter's insurance. Can the bike be covered there?

Confession: Not for a baby, but for a character in a story.

I'm writing about a woman who is very special to me, but the story is going to have her name changed to protect her from having her personal life out in the open.

She is a sweet woman in her 60's. Country, but sophisticated. Loves animals, bird feeders, flowers, gardens. She is a sweet lady who takes great care of her family.

What names come to mind to you when you think of someone of this description? :) Thanks

I'm writing a book about a part of my life. One of the central characters is someone I knew who was manipulative, a little abusive and turned out to be a drug dealer.

It is legal to use his correct first name and a fictional last name? Or would I have to change both?

My family is having a cookout for my father's birthday and they want me to come over and bring my daughter. She is only nine weeks old and I'm concerned because my mother has a viral infection similar to bronchitis and she has been coughing constantly for about two weeks. I called today to see if she was still sick and she got offended and said she was on antibiotics.

Today is the only day I can see my family all together as we all work different schedules.

Is it safe to bring my lo over there? Everyone else in the family is healthy, including my two year old nephew who lives with my mother. If he didn't get sick, is she really not contagious?

I'd call the pedi but they are closed and charge $20 for after-hours calls so I thought I'd check here first for advice.

Ty ^_^

I have a seven week old baby and she has developed a rash on her upper chest, neck and behind her ears. The bumps are small and red and are not warm to the touch.

She is a massive dribbler. She dribbles formula all over herself when she eats. I have to keep a bib on her and keep a washcloth on hand during feedings. Could the formula be causing this rash? And if so, does it mean she has an allergy to the formula or could it just be skin irritation?

Can I put desitin on this rash or is there another kind of cream I can put on it to make it go away?

My hubby accidentally bought the wrong formula last week and it is only since then that she has had the rash this bad..he bought the Good Start Gentle instead of DHA ARA. We've switched back now.

Any advice?

I have a 3 week old who sometimes cries when she is being breastfed. She will be eating and all of a sudden throw back in the "Startled" position and scream and fuss. Then she latches on again. She gets very animated, as though she is frustrated. This happens mostly at night. I don't think I have a problem with milk supply.

We've begun to supplement because she doesn't seem to have the patience to nurse. She falls asleep within five to ten minutes whenever she nurses and wakes up hungry. It's exhausting.

Any advice?

She gets so very fussy and strains and strains when she needs to go number two. Is there any special position I can lay her in or anything I can do to ease her discomfort while she is struggling so bad?

I live on the third story of an apartment complex and I have a 1 week old and a lhasa apso. My hubby works during the day but of course I still need to walk the dog.

My neighbor on the first floor has a pitt bull. He doesn't EVER leash him. Once when I was pregnant I was coming around the building to the stairs and the dog charged me, teeth bared. He kicked up grass, growled...I pretty much thought I was a goner. (This was when I was 38 weeks pregnant). The owner apologized and brought him inside.

This week I had the baby swaddled in one arm and the lhasa on a leash and was walking towards the stairs and the dog RUSHED my dog and attacked him. I didn't know what to do, I was scared to death for the baby.

The owner profusely apologized and pulled the dogs apart after about 30 seconds of my heart stopping.

Today the dog was off the leash AGAIN. Now I'm very, very upset. Who should I call? Humane society, the apartment landlords or just confront the owner? I want to do this right. I'm scared to bring my baby downstairs, even to get to the freaking car.

Advice?

So, girly question...how big should my hospital bag be? I don't want to look like I'm going on a cruise but I'm going to be in the hospital at least three nights (scheduled for an induction/possible c-section). I don't want to look silly dragging in a suitcase, but do most people pack like that?

Silly worries :)

Hi!

I'm getting induced on Saturday due to possible problems with the placenta. I am 38 weeks and dilated "a fingertip" and have been for two weeks. The baby is in position, but my cervix is not dilating thus far.

The doctor wants to admit me at 3pm on Saturday and begin Cervidil and if all goes well I should start pitocin around 5am to induce.

I've read that Cervidil often ends in c-sections and it is really a stomachache....literally.

Any personal stories? Thanks

Hello :)

I'm getting induced at 38 weeks because my baby girl is measuring below the 10th percentile in size for her GA age. My doctor says she is reading healthy and happy and should probably be able to come home no problem right after delivery with me, but she will be small...they are expecting her to be around 5-5.5lbs at birth.

I have a "sleep sack" my MIL gave me to use and I've heard they reduce the risk of SIDS. I was wondering if there is a size requirement to use it though. It is labled "NB" but I know newborn is usually a little bigger than 5lbs. I don't want to use it if it will be more dangerous than good.

Thanks! :)

My little girl is really petite and is only at the 10th percentile for size (went down from 21st percentile two weeks ago) so my Dr. wants to induce me at 38 weeks.

I was planning on skipping the epidural and going as natural as possible, but now that I am getting induced I'm wondering if I should give meds a second glance. Is induction really more painful?

I'm not against epidurals, just a little afraid of getting one.

Can anyone share their induction stories? :) Thanks

I need a copy of my tax return to submit to school but I filed online and am not sure of exactly what they need. Can anyone enlighten me? :)

I was reaching for something on a higher shelf at work and a coworker said, "You shouldn't reach that far over your head you will tangle the umbilical cord around the baby's neck!!". I was so shocked I almost laughed at her before I realized she really was concerned.

She has two kids of her own, I feel bad at how paranoid she must have been during her pregnancies. :P

Anyone else get offered weird advice or off-the-wall tales?

Last week at my 36 week appt. the doctor had me on a non-stress test for about an hour. When he checked the sheet he said I was contracting quite a bit and checked me. He said that I wasn't quite ready yet, "just a fingertip" dilated.

I'm not sure how much that is...1cm? .5cm? Does this mean I'm effaced? Does one happen before the other or at the same time? I should have asked but I was so concerned about getting out of there and on to work (the test was only supposed to be 15 minutes, I was so late! :P) that I forgot to ask.

Thanks :)

No symptoms of an infection and I know it isn't an STD...what could this be? Is it common? Should I call my Dr. or just wait until my next appt. During the week?

Thanks!

I had my week 35 appt. last Friday and had my "final" u/s to check the baby's position and my Dr. was concerned because the baby appeared to only be 4lbs. She has been right on track during my whole pregnancy, but now she is measuring in the 21st percentile for size.

My fundal height went from 33cm at 33 weeks to 31cm at 35 weeks.

My Dr. wants to repeat ultrasounds every week to make sure she is growing okay.

I'm a little concerned because my Dr. also changed my due date to a week later (making me at only 34 weeks now). So if I was 35 weeks, like we thought and how she has been consistently measuring then she is really, really small.

I'm pretty sure she dropped...could this be causing a lot of the confusion? And if she did drop, can I still go to full term? I've heard babies generally come by 4 weeks after dropping. I'll be 38 weeks then.

Thanks :)

Hello!

Just got back from my 34 week ultrasound and the Doctor had a few concerns...

Baby has been measuring right on track during the whole pregnancy, but now, at 34 weeks, she is measuring in the 21st percentile. The doctor was concerned and issued a non-stress test, but the baby was fine.

He says he isn't too concerned but that he wants to monitor her progress weekly and decide if the placenta is functioning properly or not.

My fundal height was also measuring 31 in this week, and it was 33 two weeks ago at my last appt.

My assumption is that the baby dropped and they didn't get a good set of measurements done....or she is just small. I was a pre-term baby born at 35 weeks and five pounds. Could she be following my genetics or should I worry?

Thanks!

I'm 34 weeks pregnant and am still serving tables. I encounter a lot of bad tippers, but I'm startled to report that EVERY single table I take care of that is either A.) Pregnant or B.) Has a newborn with them (carrier age, once the baby is in a highchair it doesn't apply) tips TERRIBLY. 10% or less.

Not only do I get terrible tips from these tables but two more things really irk me.

One is the pregnant woman will be flat out rude...avoiding eye contact/run me like crazy and say "Well...I'm PREGNANT and that's what I want"/change their order fifty times/load me up with extra dishes....

and the other thing is when people are overly concerned about me and then tip crap after saying "You shouldn't work so hard". Well, if you tipped me at least 15% then maybe I wouldn't have to pick up extra shifts.

I'm not slipping on service, I've been doing this for a long time and I'm taking good care of these tables. I'm just flabbergasted at how rude pregnant people and their families can be (and often are).

For example, yesterday I had a table with a $240 dollar check. There were nine of them and I took great care of them...in fact, they were my only table for an hour. They split the check and one party stiffed me completely on their check and the other party left me 10% of their bill. I was so upset I nearly cried.

Anyone else experience this in their jobs?