today's check up

Ah... the luxury of the midwifery model of care... I was able to bring a friend with Kev and me to our appointment today. And she was able to ask all sorts of questions about midwifery and still I received far more attention than I ever did with my previous caregiver. This model allows such a greater generosity of time.

I gained another five pounds in the last two weeks, I'm on the cusp of 200.

My blood pressure was normal.

The baby's heart rate was 150.

And I'm measuring right on target.

And the baby was head down today... I thought maybe that was a head pressing on my bladder!

a few random baby related thoughts

• I had my first dream, this pregnancy, where I actually gave birth to a baby. I didn't have any sort of labor. I had the sense my water was about to break and I went to the bathroom. It seemed to break when I was on the toilet and the next thing I knew the baby was coming out. I caught the baby before it fell into the toilet, noticed that the cord was wrapped around its neck four times, unwrapped the cord, the baby picked up better color and then started breathing, though not really crying. Everything seemed fine so I wrapped the baby up and took the baby out to show my sister and Kevin. My sister freaked out because I had touched the cord (absolutely ridiculous, but that's what happened in the dream), but I wasn't phased because the baby wasn't breathing and then was so I felt I had done the right thing. She asked if it was a boy or a girl and I realized I had forgotten to check and I checked and... boy. Don't know that that means anything, just thought I'd make note of it here.
  
  
• So the two giving birth dreams I've had in the past two weeks, the nightmare and then this one, both involved minimal to no labor. I told my sister I didn't think I should make much of this, but she said "You might have a fast labor. Mom dilated to 10 cm with you in three hours." She ended up having a c-section anyhow, which is a shame, but... good to know.
  
  
• I've been doing pre-natal yoga, using a d.v.d., pretty regularly for the last week or so. I'm finding it relaxing and strengthening and not too difficult (thanks to Rebecca for giving me this d.v.d. along with so many other goodies for me and for baby), except for the hip opening poses. I'm no good at those. That seems unfortunate.
  
  
• I've been reading Ina May Gaskin's guide to childbirth every night before bed and am becoming more and more convinced about the whole mind-body connection thing. I'm becoming conscious of some mental work I need to do before giving birth. I've asked my sister for help.

Most Recent Check-Up

Kevin and I drove about 20 minutes to our new midwife's house for a check-up this past Monday. Her partner and her apprentice (both of whom will likely be the primaries for our birth) were also there. The appointment was much longer than what I was used to with my practice in Syracuse. They actually asked how I was feeling... what a concept! I'm sure not all my appointments will be quite so long, but they had to take my history, etc. I've gained another six pounds, for a total of 16 so far in this pregnancy. And the baby was favoring my right side and lying horizontally. The baby's heart rate was a bit slower than it has been, but healthy. And my blood pressure was much higher than at my last two appointments, but... still... healthy. (And my sister says digital cuffs can give a distortedly low reading and those two times were digital cuffs, this was a manual cuff.) The main midwife would like me to have another ultrasound around 30 weeks to make such that my placenta is still away from the os just because with a homebirth she wants to be sure to have all the information possible so that a hospital transfer isn't done unnecessarily. She wants to see me again in two weeks, though normally it would be four weeks, because we're behind in forming a relationship and because she'll have info back on insurance then.

As I've been typing this the baby has been moving around like crazy. The babe was pretty still the past few days. It is good to feel the movement again.

All is well.

After a long silence, the fourth post of the day!

So we have a new bed. And it is glorious... BIG and comfortable. It is more challenging to nudge Kev when he's snoring now, but otherwise it is GREAT. I have slept very well the past two nights. (The midwives told me taking a calcium supplement before bed will also help me to sleep... alrighty then, I'll do it!) However, towards the end of a very good night's sleep the first night in the new bed I had a terrible dream. I dreamed that I gave birth and it was much easier than I thought it would be, but it turned out I wasn't actually pregnant, I wasn't carrying a baby. Apparently my insurance company had arranged to have something implanted in my uterus so that I would believe I was pregnant, but when all was said and done there was no baby. I wept and wept and wept in the dream. I woke up rather distressed and awakened Kevin to tell him all about my terrible, horrible, no good, very bad dream. He concurred that that is what it was. He rubbed my belly and said "We know you're in there, kiddo." And then we went back to sleep.

The next day I didn't feel the baby move for hours... and it was terribly disconcerting.

Since then the baby has had some impressive bouts of movement. It appears, in Kev's language, to be using my bladder as a trampoline- an odd sensation to say the least.

They'll work!

So our new midwives just left. They'll work. They're laid back, experienced, sweet, connected. The head of the practice is my age and is due with her first six days after me! She may or may not attend my birth, consequently, but her partner and her apprentice likely will, and my sister will probably be there. They'd like to meet my sister in advance of the birth. Given that she is in Alaska at the moment (lucky duck) and soon will be back in NY only then to head back to Oregon... not sure that a pre-birth meet-up will be possible. We'll see...

I've been saying for awhile "I'm not going to do that until I find a midwife..." Guess I can start working on all those "thats".

23 Weeks Today- Belly Shot at Last

So, if you scroll down a bit you can find my first belly pic from very early in the pregnancy. I was wearing the same outfit. Yesterday might have been the last day I wear this outfit (for awhile) as the waist band on the skirt was awfully snug. As I haven't been as diligent about posting belly pictures as I planned I thought showing one in the same outfit would be fun.

It has been challenging, but I think I found a midwife. Two midwives (partners) are coming to our house for an initial consultation this evening. If I feel comfortable with them, this will be it! Great news is that the midwife who would be primary on our birth is a CNM- certified nurse midwife (as opposed to a CPM- certified professional midwife) which MAY be more acceptable to my insurance company. BUT because the head of the practice is a CPM, she likely will have the values I desire.

More to blog about, but break from French class is ending.

Capturing One Moment When the News Was Shared

These are pictures I've been meaning to post for weeks. My sister captured this moment when I shared the news of our pregnancy with a sweet couple from the Methodist congregation in Lowville who came to our goodbye bbq on our last Sunday to say goodbye.