June 2013 due dates

Hi girls. Scan went very well apart from the fact that baby completely refused to even budge an inch! Its big brother did back flips at his 12 week scan, waved and turned his back on us whereas this little one was fast asleep and no amount of prodding was moving it. I was so glad to see a strong heartbeat though. I can relax a little now! We didn't find out the gender ( I was overruled by husband and Dr!) so we might let it be a surprise again. I should be having my NT scan this week so I'm deliberating whether I should sneakily ask as hubby won't be with me. What do you think? Would that be really naughty? Kam.... I wouldn't worry too much about going to a Bumps and Babes meeting. They are usually a really friendly bunch and we are all in the same boat so very supportive too. If you are really too shy to go how about some of us meet up for coffee after the crazy festive season and maybe go together? Very exciting that you may be having a little pink bundle. Andrea..... You are lucky it's only burping! I won't go into details :-). Totally normal though to be gassy or so I keep telling my husband. Pregnancy does the most delightful things to our poor bodies. My belly has popped already but I think that's quite common for your second pregnancy. Still at that " jelly belly" stage though. Let us know how the scan goes! How is everyone else doing?

Kookee...good luck tomo with your appointment too! Let us know how it goes and feel free to ask away if you have any more questions :-) Hard to believe we are already more than a quarter of the way through the pregnancy. Hope everyone else is keeping well!

Congratulations Kookee and Kam! Looks like we all have pretty close due dates. How is everyone else doing? Andrea, I hope you are feeling a little less queasy. I have started to get my appetite back so hopefully that's the morning sickness over and done with :-). Kookee.... You have absolutely nothing to worry about having a baby here in Dubai. I moved to Dubai from the UK when I was 6 months pregnant with my son and have nothing but positive things to say about the care I received. I had him at the American and everything was very straightforward. What did you mean by ante natal help? You generally do an ante natal class separately to your maternity package. Most hospitals offer them but Healthbay Polyclinic or Coopers Clinic come highly recommended. No NCT groups as such but lots of support at coffee mornings such as Bumps and Babes. I found prenatal yoga really enjoyable too and a lovely way to meet other Mums to be. You don't usually get a midwife assigned to you but a team of nurses will look after you when you go for your scans/appointments. You will meet the midwives when you go into hospital to give birth. I had such a lovely midwife the last time. As for ob/gyn recommendations, as Andrea said, lots of advice on here. I am with Dr Braithwaite at the American. She is straight talking, no fuss and highly experienced. Lovely lady. I saw Dr George for scans at the American before he opened his new practice and he is such a nice man. Specialises in high risk too. In fact, I just visited my friend and her gorgeous new baby girl at City yesterday and she delivered under Dr George. Dr Raj at The American also gets lots of good reviews. It's a personal choice really. Don't be afraid to meet a few doctors if you are not entirely happy now. You have loads of time! Also dont be afraid to ask to visit the maternity and delivery units of different hospitals to help you decide. Some docs only deliver at certain hospitals. Also depends on what your insurance covers. Whatever you do, don't worry! Dubai is a brilliant place to have a baby :-) Having my scan next Thursday. Can't wait!

Congratulaions to you all! Very very exciting if it's your first. Still very exciting if it's your 2nd but less time to think about it as you're too busy running round after the 1st :-) I'm due on June 19th but already know I will be induced 2 weeks early so that makes baby's arrival about June 4th. Momtastic....only a few more weeks and you can spill the beans at last. I have 4 sisters and they all twigged straight away both times that I was pregnant at about 7 weeks so my close family knows already. Feel free to ask if you have any niggling questions! Anon...congrats on baby. Enjoy the last few months before your little one starts crawling/walking. There is no stopping them when they discover that they can move:-) Marianna/Andrea....have a few friends who have delivered at City and they were very happy. Staff are lovely and they have an excellent neo natal ICU facility (for the rare cases that need it) which gives extra reassurance to lots of Mums. How are you all feeling? Any struck down with dreaded morning(all day!!!!) sickness? My son was a breeze. A few nauseous days and a little tiredness. This little baby is a whole different kettle of fish!!!! Have felt hungover for the last month. UUrrghh. Anyone craving certain foods? I have more of a sweet tooth this time whereas with my son i couldn't get enough of ritz crackers, fish and chips and salty crisps! Old wive's tale is that sweet cravings are more associated with girls and savoury with boys (although to be honest I don't think it's very reliable). Hope you are all keeping well! 12 week scan coming up soon which is amazing :-)