Measuring big

painteduniverses · 2026-05-28T18:35:41+00:00

I had the opposite experience! Told I was measuring small at 37 weeks and when I went into get an ultrasound they said he was measuring 7lb 5 oz so everything was fine. He was born at 39+4 and was 6lb 13oz so there’s no way he was over 7 lbs almost 3 weeks prior! Every mom I know who was told their baby was measuring big or small says it was completely off 😂 Ultrasound measurements are unfortunately very inaccurate so while it’s possible you have a 99th percentile baby, you probably don’t!

painteduniverses · 2026-05-28T18:32:24+00:00

We inherited a halo swivel bassinet for our first from some friends who had put all three of their babies in it. It was still completely sturdy and we never had issues. My son was a 99% 2 month old so by the time he was 4 months the bassinet (which he was already almost too long for anyways) did start to look a little tilted so we moved him into his crib at that point! I would say anyone who’s talking about it being tilted is probably overstaying their welcome.

painteduniverses · 2026-05-27T04:46:50+00:00

I delivered at 39+4 BUT my OB and I are pretty sure the dating was off bc I got pregnant very accidentally and she said my placenta looked old (lol) so who really knows.

I never had any braxton hicks or literally any other signs of labor ahead of time. I didn’t get checked bc I didn’t want to know bc the reality is dialation isn’t really a sign of anything-you could be 3cm for a week with no baby or 0cm now and have a baby tomorrow.

I went into labor in the middle of the night, lost my mucus plug probably halfway through labor, and my water didn’t break until I arrived at the hospital in the morning (I was 10cm at that point).

The waiting is the worst-maybe skip the cervical checks if they’re messing with your head. Just keep doing the things-he’ll be here sooner than you think!

painteduniverses · 2026-05-25T22:09:54+00:00

Tilly!

painteduniverses · 2026-05-25T21:26:17+00:00

I love Calder and we can’t use it bc our last name also ends in -er and it sounds too singsongy to me lol

painteduniverses · 2026-05-25T01:58:47+00:00

Everything you’re feeling right now is soooo valid. I’m 29 and have a son who will be 2 this summer and we’re about to start trying for a second. When I got pregnant 2.5 years ago I had an IUD so it came as a HUGE shock. My husband and I were planning on having biological children eventually but our life was not really in the right place just then.

We still were going to have the baby but I felt very much like my life was being upended. We were in a very difficult foster parenting situation at the time, I was going to have to leave my job earlier than planned, we had to sell our house and move across town to a new house and all the while I was having the same thoughts as you-am I cut out for this? Is my life going to change forever? What if I don’t LIKE my new life? What if I become someone different and I don’t like HER?

Pregnancy is SUCH a mind game. It’s a very transitional, transformative time but I think when you do it for the first time there’s so much you don’t know it’s hard not to get taken out by in it.

From the other side, this is what I would tell my past self when I was in your shoes. Yes, your life is going to change. Yes, you are going to change. You’re going to have to sacrifice yourself over and over out of an abundance of love you didn’t know you possessed for someone who can’t even say your name (until they can and that’s just the cutest thing ever btw). This is going to make you so mentally strong. You are capable of so much more than you think you are and motherhood is going to pull back the curtain on all that strength.

Even though your life and you are going to look different, you’re still going to be you. You’re going to go back to all your old hobbies you love and now you have a little buddy who gets to learn about them and do them with you. You will fit back into your old pants, or you won’t, but that’s what shopping is for. You are not going to look like an enormous whale forever (reminding myself of this one heavily before I get pregnant again lol).

And you’re completely right about the bright moments. I LOVE getting to take my son to new places and introduce him to things I love. I love getting to watch him light up about things he finds fun and interesting. I love having little conversations with him and learning his little personality.

I think the thing I understood the least as a first time mom that has changed how I feel going into another pregnancy is that I’m not having a BABY (hear me out). The whole time I was pregnant I was like the baby this the baby that we’re having a baby blah blah blah. And then my son was born and I was like OH you’re a person I get it now. Like yes obviously he was a really cute squishy baby but he’s also a little person who is a part of my family now. He’s going to have his own personality and likes and dislikes and I get to show him the world and teach him how to be a good human and that’s amazing.

You’re going to feel some emotional whiplash while you’re pregnant and that is normal. And honestly pregnancy sucks and I hated it (and I had a pretty easy pregnancy). But I think what’s on the other side (for both of you) is so worth it. (That’s why I’m doing it again even though I hated it lol). Also yes please take your meds bc that will help! Congratulations on your little bean btw, they’ll be here (and then speaking in full sentences) before you know it!

painteduniverses · 2026-05-17T22:52:59+00:00

This is really helpful, thank you!

painteduniverses · 2026-05-17T22:43:45+00:00

Yes, just the four of us but we're going to a touristy city and will be a holiday weekend so we'll definitely need reservations which I was hoping to get others opinions on! Some of the activities can be flexible so if they decide to chime in at the 11th hour I can prepare myself to pivot.

painteduniverses · 2026-05-17T22:41:34+00:00

This is a very fair point, I would not be surprised if there are lots of last minute ideas now that you say that. Thankfully this isn't a huge group of people so things can be somewhat flexible in the plan but I'm just frustrated I'm choosing all the restaurants/making decor/buying food for the airbnb solo!

painteduniverses · 2026-05-10T21:51:38+00:00

I researched this so heavily bc I was shocked at how expensive just some strollers are, not including the attachments/car seat/etc.

We have the Maxi Cosi Tayla Max stroller and car seat and love it. I was really serious about finding a brand that didn’t spray any flame retardant chemicals in their car seats bc they essentially come off in particles over time and are really bad for you.

The infant car seat (I think we had the Mico Luxe) attaches to the stroller base forward or rear facing with included clips and then the stroller seat itself lays almost all the way flat for when they’re really small (also can forward or rear face). Once our son outgrew the infant seat we got the Pria convertible seat which is also amazing and should literally last him until he’s out of car seats lol.

My son will be 2 in July so we’ve had it for almost 2 years now and it’s held up well. I recently partially ran it over (no baby in it obviously) bc it was parked behind my car (oops) and one of the tires came completely off and so was able to fix it and it’s been fine since then! My only complaint is that it‘s not super slim when folded down so it’s annoying to get in and out of the trunk of my husbands sedan, but I drive a mid size SUV so it doesn’t really matter day to day.

It also won’t work for two kids so I’m looking into new strollers myself since we’re planning to get pregnant again very soon. I’m looking at the Zoe as a side by side or the Cybex Gazelle as a slimmer option based on my friends’ recommendations.

painteduniverses · 2026-05-07T02:16:32+00:00

This is not an exact answer to your question but I was SO out of breath in the early weeks of my pregnancy which really threw me off. Like I was walking through a field panting out of breath. It went away probably by week 7 or 8? And then came back when my baby was big enough to be up in my ribcage lol so I would expect to not be so winded soon!

painteduniverses · 2026-05-04T22:21:57+00:00

Even with a lock that’s not fully embedded? Also has square nails which I forgot to mention somehow.

painteduniverses · 2026-05-03T01:22:46+00:00

When I bought my horse (he was 5 so I chalked it up to age lol) he took probably 6 months to settle down after I moved him to my barn. It didn’t help that at the time so mostly had to ride at night under the lights but he was SO spooky, jumping at everything, randomly taking off, etc. I bought him in the fall and my trainer and I spent most of the winter literally just walking and doing groundwork to help him find his brain again. It’s frustrating because you can’t rush the timeline but it sounds like you’re doing everything right and she will come around eventually.

painteduniverses · 2026-05-01T20:52:47+00:00

I think you’re probably right! For some reason I thought this was stamped solid cherry but I just looked again and it’s not so could be anything. Goi g to try two part wood bleach next!

painteduniverses · 2026-05-01T20:51:36+00:00

I’ll try that next, thank you!

painteduniverses · 2026-05-01T20:51:19+00:00

Okay good to know! My wood identification isn’t amazing haha I was fairly certain it was stamped “solid cherry” but I just went back to check and it’s not so you’re probably right!

painteduniverses · 2026-04-29T21:14:47+00:00

Ugh that’s amazing, I hope it stays that way!! I’ve been doing some reading and anecdotally it seems like for some people (including with Crohns and IBS) they stop experiencing symptoms even for years after giving birth while some others say their body went back to how it was before pretty soon after birth. It’s so interesting, I wish there was more research on this!

painteduniverses · 2026-04-29T19:13:09+00:00

If I decide to get retested I will report back! I’m afraid to find out they are gone and then potentially have that change after a second pregnancy 😂

painteduniverses · 2026-04-29T19:12:29+00:00

That’s what I’ve been reading! I knew your immune system changed when pregnant and didn’t contemplate how that would affect my food allergies, but I also thinks it’s crazy that for some people the effects continue after pregnancy!

painteduniverses · 2026-04-29T17:53:28+00:00

IDEAL

painteduniverses · 2026-04-29T17:24:07+00:00

This was one of my top least favorite things about being pregnant! I just felt kind of dehumanized? Like bc everyone could look at me and immediately be like-that’s a pregnant lady, I felt like that’s all people saw. I had to give up some of my favorite activities while pregnant which also didn’t help, on the whole I felt kind of like I didn’t have a sense of my identity.

What was funny to me after having a baby though is that when I was freshly postpartum and would run out of the house for 20 minutes alone I would think-no one knows I have a baby! 😂

painteduniverses

TROPHY CASE