39 week checkup...

Definitely didn’t think I'd ever write 39 weeks! Today’s checkup went ok. I whined and moaned and begged and pleaded for them to induce me today but it didn’t work. I didn’t really expect that it would, but I had to give it a shot, right?!

Dr. Paul is on vacation this week so we saw Dr. Deeley, who I also really like. I had to really prepare Ella for the visit today because she adores Dr. Paul and I wasn’t sure how she would handle being at “Dr. Paul’s office” and not seeing Dr. Paul. Thankfully she did well and was a very good girl during my appointment. I will preface this by saying that I am NOT a whiner. I might be high strung and get upset easier than I should, but I don’t whine. However, things change when you are this pregnant and today I started the whining as soon as Dr. Deeley entered the room. I guess there’s just something about being 39 weeks pregnant with an internal temperature of, oh, let’s guess about 105, who expected to have a 3 week old by now. I had her talking induction before she even sat down. Unfortunately half of their doctors are out this week for spring break (come on people, babies have to be delivered even though it’s spring break!) and they literally had no day or time this week to schedule a non-emergency induction. (Though I consider pushing out a baby with the potential to be over 9 lbs pretty dang close to an emergency. Just kidding.) I am, however, now scheduled for an induction next Wednesday, April 14. They could have scheduled me for Tuesday, April 13, my due date, but Dr. Paul is the doctor on call Wednesday so I figured that if we are already waiting this long I might as well wait one more day for my doctor.

Hopefully it won’t come to an induction. I was lucky enough to experience pitocin with Ella (my water broke but I didn’t actually go into labor and had to be induced) and it’s not fun. Hopefully Kendall will get things going naturally. When Dr. Deeley checked me today I was 4 cm dilated and 80% effaced – so very, very little change from last week (when I was ALMOST 4 cm). Today Dr. Deeley stripped my membranes, which can help to stimulate labor. That wasn’t fun but if it works it will be worth it. While she was doing it I told her that if she accidentally broke my water I wouldn't be upset - she said that she definitely could if she wanted to. I should have asked what it would take for her to want to...maybe I should have brought some cash with me. ;)

I’ve given up on doing all those things people keep telling me to do to induce labor because it worked for them. If it’s on the list of things to do to induce labor I’ve done it….a lot…and it hasn’t worked. I take that back, I have not and will not drink castor oil. No way. I guess that if being 4 cm dilated and walking all over the Louisville Zoo, all over our neighborhood, and working out on the elliptical at the gym hasn’t gotten things going then it probably won’t. Before we left I brought up Kendall’s size, again, hoping to make one last plea for a quicker induction. I keep hearing that babies gain a pound a week in the last few weeks. She assured me that at this point it’s usually no more than ½ a pound a week. Ummm, ok, so that means my baby that measured 8 lbs 9 oz at 38 weeks will probably weight 9 lbs 9 oz at induction day next week. *big gulp* Maybe we will take another walk around the block…