I'll be 36 weeks TOMORROW!! So crazy to think about.
We had our home-visit yesterday with our 2 midwives, Melody and Joni, and one of the new apprintices/assistant midwives, Sarah. Pretty much they just did a walk-through of the house to get used to the layout, and see what resources we had available for the birth.
* They confirmed that our bathtub would definitely be good enough to use for a waterbirth, if we so desired - just to make sure the bath and jets are cleaned out well with bleach-water, and to turn up the water heater when labor starts :)
* They instructed us on how to make our bed (when labor starts). Good sheets on the bottom, a fitted vinyl sheet on top of that, then a set of sheets on top that we don't mind getting soiled.
* They saw that I had all my birthing supplies together in a Rubbermaid container - so we're good to go.
Then, we just spent some time talking about what our thoughts are about how we want the birth to go - our "birth plan" so to speak. Of course, Neil and I are just so excited to be having this baby born at home, knowing how much more comfortable we'll be, that we don't really have a birth plan. It's not like going to the hospital, and wanting to do things as natural as possible, and having to be a big-time advocate for that. I don't have to have this long list of things I don't want (like not wanting an IV, not wanting monitors or asking for occassional monitoring, not wanting them to break my water, and no drugs - and Don't ask me!) or the things I do want (like holding the baby and feeding ASAP). All of these things are just a given with a homebirth...so really, we're totally ok with just going with the flow...
ahhh....laboring in a nice warm bathtub (and birthing in there, if I so desire)....not being attatched to monitors or IVs...being able to move around and do whatever I want, in any position I want...being able to (and encouraged to) eat snacks and drink water throughout labor so I have some good energy for that workload...having contact with the baby right after birth, and feeding...having an herbal bath with my baby to help healing along, while the midwives and assistants gather up the soiled linens and put them in the wash for me...a home-cooked meal (either pre-made, frozen, and heated or made fresh by mom) ready to eat to replenish all that energy I used...I'm definitely looking forward to this one.
Then, I had my regular appointment, here, at the house.
* Somehow I lost about 2 lbs. Not really sure how that happened. I feel like I've been eating more the past week or so, and I've been getting the water and protein I need. I would think my muscle mass should be long gone by now... So, as of now, I've gained a total of 20 lbs.
* Everything else looked good. Urine was good, baby is measuring right on, and the heartbeat is going strong. When Melody was checking the baby's positioning, her words were "Wow, that baby's low!" ha. The head isn't engaged into the pelvic bone yet, but it's about as low as it can be without being engaged. She also said that the baby seemed to be as far back as it could be (toward my spine). I suppose that may be one of the reasons I've been having a lot of back pain lately. Melody also gave a rough estimate (based on feeling the baby's size) that she thinks the baby is right at about 5 lbs. right now. I know it's a very rough estimate, but still neat.
* I did the GBS test. I've been taking a pretty kickin' probiotic formula everyday for the past couple of weeks...I guess I'll find out this week what the results are, and if the probiotics helped at all. I've tested positive while pregnant with both of the other kiddos. But don't worry! There is a non-IV way of treating GBS during labor. So if I test positive, that doesn't mean I can't have a homebirth. Actually, if I test positive, they may up my probiotics, and test me again in about 2 weeks to see if it's cleared up.
ok, so now the fun part - If you want to, now is your time to guess when this baby will be here!
Date, weight, length...and...boy or girl?
Due date is March 20.
