Today is July 7, 2011, and tomorrow is Emalyn's due date. I can't believe we're already here, and that our little girl will be in our arms so soon. (I hope.)
The past month has flown by, and so much has happened. I apologize for not updating more! I think the most exciting news is that Matt is finally home from Afghanistan for good!! He landed in Hawaii on June 20th, and we have been happier than ever to have him back with us. Juliet just loves her daddy to pieces, and I'm having tons of fun just watching them play together. There's just something so special about having my whole family safe under one roof. The week after Matt came home, his sister, Kaitlin, arrived! She's staying with us for 5 weeks to welcome Emalyn, and help us adjust to life with two kids. She's already been a huge help in just the week that she's been here, and Juliet loves playing with her Aunt KK. I'm so happy that she's able to be here for the birth of her second niece! I was nervous that Emalyn would come before Matt and Kaitlin were both here, but thankfully everything is working out, and I'll have two great support people by my side!
I'm not sure if it's because my first pregnancy lasted only 34 weeks or not, but I don't think I ever actually expected to make it to our due date still pregnant. Let me just say, I get more and more anxious and frustrated with every day that goes by that she hasn't arrived yet. I know that it won't go on forever, and some day over the next week or two she'll be here. While I try to remind myself of this constantly, I'm feeling so impatient right now, that a week or two seems like an eternity. Trying to ignore my impatience, I do think I'm pretty lucky as far as pregnancy symptoms during the last few weeks go, although I'm sure I do enough complaining to make everyone around me think otherwise, haha! My biggest complaint is that my lower back hurts most of the time, and most days I feel like the nerves in my hips are on fire from being pinched. I still get heartburn every once in a while, although not as frequently as I was a few weeks ago (I assume because she dropped?). It's still pretty hard to get comfortable at night, but I am sleeping better than I had been, probably from pure exhaustion by the end of the day, haha! Every now and then I feel a little queasy or light-headed. But honestly, I've had several friends who have had it much worse than I do toward the end of their pregnancies, so I guess I should try and keep that in mind while whining..
Over the past week or two, I've been trying almost everything I can to get labor going, but I guess our girl just isn't ready yet, since so far, the following 'tried and true' methods haven't worked:
Walking
Acupressure points
Eggplant parmesan
Spicy food
'What got the baby in there..'
Stripping membranes (this was only done 24 hours ago, so maybe it might still work?)
Anyway, I'll keep trying, and I'm sure at some point she'll decide it's time!
I'm feeling pretty confident that I'm going to have a successful VBAC delivery, and I've been preparing myself and making choices to give me the best possible chance for the outcome I want. Of course, Emalyn seems to be cooperating quite nicely as well, and has been in the right position for almost two months now! My birth plan is pretty specific as far as things I do and do not want once I get to the hospital, although I'm hoping to labor at home as long as I can. This way I can eat and drink, use my own bath, and walk around as much as I want. I know I'll have to have the fetal monitors once I arrive at the hospital (as I've mentioned in previous posts), but I will do what I can to avoid internal monitors, mainly the one that monitors fetal heart rate. This has more to do with Emalyn herself than my hopes for a VBAC, since this particular monitor involves inserting a coiled wire into her scalp, and I would hate for my baby girl to have to experience pain like that (even though they say it doesn't hurt her......) before she's even born. I'm also planning on having a natural birth, without any sort of pain medication. I know that being able to change position during labor, and being upright as opposed to lying on my back, really helps labor along, and will decrease my chances of a repeat cesarean. If I choose to have an epidural, I won't have control of my legs, and will be stuck in bed. Plus some doctors feel that it decreases the ability to push effectively, which can also lead to a repeat cesarean. There are narcotic pain medications I could take, but those can pass through the placenta and effect the baby, and I don't really want that either. I'm sure while I'm in active labor it's going to hurt like hell and I'll probably want to change my mind, so I'm planning on telling the nurses not to even offer me any kind of pain medication, so that the temptation just isn't there. If it's truly that bad and I need something, I can always just ask. Anyway, there are more details that I have written down, but those are the big ones. I'm really hoping everything goes smoothly for us!
Yesterday we had an OB appointment, and the doctor says I'm 1cm dilated, so that's a start. He stripped my membranes, which was quite possibly the most uncomfortable experience of this pregnancy so far. Hopefully it'll help move things along, otherwise I'm sure he'll try again at our appointment next week. I also found out at the appointment yesterday that I'm negative for GBS, which is a relief. He said that if my water does break before going to the hospital, I won't have to rush right down there to start antibiotics, and can continue to labor at home like I want. Very good news :)
I'm hoping the next time I update will be with Emalyn's birth story, and that it will be very soon! I can't wait to meet this little girl!
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