The end of the road

November 13, 2009; it looks like that is going to be this baby's birthday. We're scheduled to be at the hospital at 5:30 a.m. (no wonder my OB is usually running late for my 10:30 appointments...when does he sleep?).
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As I mentioned in the last post, Dr. Barton wasn't very confident that I would make it to my due date next week. What I didn't mention was that he wanted to induce me this Friday because he was going to be in Anchorage for the weekend (for my peace of mind, not his convenience). Unfortunately, there were a few technicalities with scheduling at the hospital that didn't allow that. The hospital had two c-sections scheduled for Friday already, which means the operating room wouldn't have been available immediately in the rare event things go wrong with the risks of a VBAC. What that could have meant was that if this baby decided to arrive over the weekend and Dr. Barton couldn't get back from Anchorage in time, I would likely have been forced into another c-section to avoid the risk of VBAC. The other OB in town doesn't do VBAC's and the only other family practice physician that does VBAC's and c-sections is not allowed to do a VBAC if Dr. Barton isn't in town to back him up. Now, if I need a c-section because of baby trouble, I'm fine with it...but I do not want one because of a technicality. Needless to say, I've spent very little time these past few days actually sleeping, but rather worrying about the potential of "wrong timing."
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I spent much time reciting Philippians 4:6-7 to myself: "Do not be anxious about anything...and the peace of God...will guard your hearts..." But I have to admit, I wasn't feeling much peace. I kept hoping something would start between Monday and Wednesday...not because I'm tired of being pregnant but because then I'd KNOW things would work out the way I wished for (I'm a planner and a control-freak, remember?). I contracted every 4-6 minutes most of Wednesday afternoon, evening and night, but nothing that made me want to tell Ryan to get the car ready. So last night at church, I let my guard down a bit and told my friend Rena about my worries. Conveniently enough, she's one of the OB nurses at the hospital and told me that one of the ladies that had been scheduled for a c-section on Friday came in earlier in the week and had her baby early. She suggested I call Dr. Barton's office to see if this changed the potential for scheduling things for us on Friday. So I left a message with his office late Wednesday night. And then I spent the rest of the night telling God that if it was his will for me to have this baby naturally, he would reveal that to me...and if that wasn't his intention for me, I would learn to find peace with that as well, regardless of the reason. No sleep again.
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But, first thing this morning, Dr. Barton's office called and told me they had actually already been trying to get me into the "schedule" on Friday. And about an hour later, they called again and said everything is set for 5:30 a.m. I'm still not entirely convinced nothing will happen today. This kid is giving me some very intense pressure; I don't even like standing up anymore. Must have a big Magee head!
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So there ya go. Assuming I don't go into labor later today and assuming a bunch of ladies don't come into the hospital tonight to have their babies and bump me off "the list," we're ready to roll for tomorrow morning. It's a bit of a disappointment for me to pick an "artificial birthday" for this little guy, but I cannot even put into words the amount of relief I have knowing I'll have my own OB there tomorrow. I'll take the trade off, I guess. Dr. B's hoping to only have to break my water to get things going, given how far things were on Monday and how quick my first labor was with Logan. Does anyone know where the trampoline at the hospital is???
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I'm going to miss being pregnant, even if he has kept me up from 10-1 EVERY NIGHT THIS WEEK with his intense boxing practice...but what fun to have made it this far. I'm beginning to feel I'm not ready to handle three kids, but I guess it's a wee bit late for second thoughts now...

39 weeks