And things are moving along. My dearest and oldest friends in Portland - Pearl and Erica - planned an organized a shower for us. It was perfect. There were the friends and 'aunties' from Portland and then the friends and family who travelled hours to be here. It was truly a great party. This baby is certainly loved and has such a community of wonderful folk surrounding him. What a lucky guy!
We are still organizing and nesting. I can feel a big cleaning nesting session coming up. Maybe during Thanksgiving weekend. Brett is currently adding final painting touches to the nursery and we are trying to figure out how to be uber organized - that, I believe, is the secret to not feeling entirely overwhelmed and feeling prepared. We'll see if that works.
The one wrench in our plan has been around the type of birth we will have. Way back in June I mentioned about the spotting issues and the result was the placenta being too close to the cervix, essentially this little guy's exit route. We have had a number of follow up x-rays to see how things have progressed. Luckily the placenta has moved about 4 cm away from the opening- which, according to my OB is great. Hopefully you sense the big "but" that is approaching...BUT, he remains breach at 33 weeks, which could change - again, do you sense the big "but" coming - BUT, the umbilical cord connects with the placenta at the bottom, not in the center as is usually the case. So now, the cord is blocking the cervix. In essence, my OB feels like he is basically sitting on the placenta like a cushion and that is making it 1) difficult for him to turn and 2) will make it nearly impossible for him to get through the cervical opening with the cord where it is. It just wouldn't be safe to attempt it unless things change drastically. So...we have another ultrasound during the week of Thanksgiving and we will find out what the plan is.
She asked me, as she was drawing me a great picture of the placenta and cord placement, about my birth plan, 'So, what's your birth plan? 'Cause my birth plan for you is to place a healthy baby in your arms. That's pretty much it. Whatever that means we have to do.'
'That's pretty much my birth plan,' I told her.
'Having a C-section doesn't make you any less of a mother,' she assured me. And I know she's right.
We have watched documentary and films about natural birth, read about it and yes, ideally, I would like to have that experience for this baby and I. However, after all that we've been through - having him here and healthy is priority #1. As Brett characterized it, we are about the product and less about the process at this point in our baby-making careers.
So I imagine that during our next ultrasound, at 36 weeks, we will see where everything is in there and we will make the call about the c-section. There are of course pros to this route, including just knowing when he will be here and being sure we are prepared. The cons are of course missing out on the experience and just the 'fatefulness' of his arrival. I hope we can at least pick the day out of a hat so that there is some 'fate' involved.
I'm not exactly sure how soon after 36 weeks the delivery would be scheduled, but I know that she does not want me to go into labor on my own if the cord/placenta continue to be where they are. So this baby could be home and snug before Christmas for sure. Baby's 1st Christmas. Crazy to think and type.
Today, Brett and I are headed to the coast for the night. Likely our last trip out of town as a couple, but looking forward to many trips as a family in the future.
No comments:
Post a Comment