gross part duex

Well 2nd dose of castor oil is now done and we have made up a song to the tune of “Shout”

Sprout, Sprout come on out

you are the baby we are talking about

come on, were talking to you, come on….

send us luck and speed.

xoxo

The good, the bad and the things I can not control….

The Good:

1. I love my wife… over the moon in love her.
2. We are going to have a baby.     I have doubted that there is a live baby in my belly but this morning I felt his or her reassuring kicking.
3. I love my family – even if I am feeling a bit oppressed by them right now- I do want them at this birth and they are doing everything possible to make that happen.

The Bad:

1. Castor Oil was ineffective.    I don’t know why.    I did not go into labor.    I have been given the go ahead to try it again on saturday which honestly is good but also so gross.    I can’t really think about it too much or I want to throw up.
2. If I do not go into labor by Monday then I will be risked out of the birth center.    I am beyond sad about this.    I am trying to not get head of myself.   That is four days away.    But I have been on the brink of labor for two weeks and there has been no action.   Something as got to work in four days right???    So the deal is I have two due dates, I gave the midwifes my older one which was 5/26 and you can go into labor at the birth center until you are 40 weeks and 6 days.    By my due date based on conception (5/23) I am at that point.    I am so so glad someone told me to give the latest date possible and I am really glad that our sprout was a slow grower in the beginning.     The birth center is so much better then labor and delivery for me and H.     H could spend the night with out us shelling out $750 for a private room, and I would not have to be on a monitor.
3. If, and I am saying to the universe a please “no thank to you” to this,  I reach monday and I have not had the baby then I will have a bio-physical done of the baby and if they think the baby is over 10lbs then I will not be allowed to be inducted and I will be signed up for a C-section…. blah.    Our baby is big.    I am measuring at 42 weeks.   I am hoping he or she is not over 10lbs.

The Things I can not control:

1. all of the above.    I am trying to surrender to this all.    I am doing everything I can do.    Acupuncture, nipple stimulation, sex, red raspberry leaf tea, membranes have been stripped, evening primrose, walking, squatting, blue cohash, and general talking to this baby.
2. I can not control when this baby will come.  This baby will do its own thing.   We will have it.    In the meantime I just have to surrender.    This is hard for me.

The eviction plan

Well I think I have the comfiest uterus ever.    The baby is kicking and happy in there.    So this morning we intitated our eviction plan.     I had some castor oil mixed with Ting – Our midwifes suggested Fres.ca or Orang.ina but neither were available at out NYC bodega last night so grapefruit Ting it was.     It was pretty gross.    I suspect we will be just spending time at home until something happens more concretely and they really don’t want you to go into the birth center until you are pretty dialated.     Of course my body has really held on to this baby.   As my midwife said yesterday: “you have the ripest cervix I have seen  in a non laboring personin a long time.”     Hopefully castor oil will do what blue cohash, 3 accupuncture appointments, and a million walks did not do.      We have been feeling everyone thinking of us and thank you.    We will let you know when there is another update.

We are still here and without a baby

Well we have a baby it is just still in utero.     I am sorry for the radio silence on our end.    We both have been so preoccupied with the waiting and it is difficult to spend time on the computer with my mom in our small apartment.  That is right – my mom is still here.     When I woke up this morning to go to the bathroom at 4am I realized that my mom has almost been here for two weeks and I freaked out a bit.    I know that it has been hard on H. too.     Family is challenging even if they are wonderful and you love them.     We are trying to proceed as normal around here but it is clear that nothing is normal.     We saw star tre.k last night which was fun and we are going to a picnic/walk tonight in the park.      This is a strange time in the baby waiting game.     I certainly don’t wish to go back to TTcing time but I liked knowing the day I would have an answer.      There have been some tears in the house and one of us (usually me)  has be reminded that the baby will be born.     It sometimes feels a bit mythical at this point.       I really wish my mom had not rushed down here and we could have proceeded a bit more like we not on baby watch 2009.

I am working on catching up with everyone this morning and I promise we will send a quick update when we are actually in a more active labor.    xoxo L.

Still going…

So there has not been much of a change here. L is still in labor with the contractions sometimes very strong and sometimes not. Last night she woke up with very strong contractions at 1:30 and the stayed strong enough that I called the midwife at about 2:30. She spoke to L and thought that the contractions may have been stronger because L might be dehydrated. She told her to drink a bunch of water and see what happened. It turned out she was right an the contractions slowed enough for L to fall asleep. Now L is getting accupuncture froma person suggested by our midwives. Hopefully it will move things along.

I am not going to lie- the waiting has been hard. I think we are all hanging in pretty well but not having any idea if and when things will really change is sometimes hard. I am tring to stay really positive but between you and me, vast internet, today I am not feeling it. I think this is in large part because yesterday I got my period. Early. Not something I wanted to have to deal with right now. Today I feel irritable and sort of withdrawn. I just want to crawl back under the covers with L and be quiet and still. Making the irritability more difficult to manage is that L’s mother is staying with us and has been here since Wednesday. I love her very much and she and I get along well, but right now she is making my a little crazy. I am trying really hard not to say anything about it to L because I don’t want her to feel stressed out about it, or that she has to take care of me or in any way manage my relationship with her mom. So I am telling you. She is a person who is used to being in control and when she isn’t she can act a little crazy. She is such an opinionated person that it is very strange that in situations like these she makes declaritve statements or shares her opinion using passive questions. Let me explain; this morning we were all walking to this appointment and L’s mom was asking what L was going to eat for breakfast. L said she would get a bagel and her mom said, “And maybe a banana or some fruit?”. I know this must sound petty and it might hard to fully appreciate the implication of her question, but to me, this was not a question at all, but a statement that she thought L should have fruit. Another example is when leaving the house she will say, “Should we take the trash downstairs with us?”. Again, sounds reasonable, but it is not a helpful suggestion, it is declarative of what we should do.

I really don’t want to make it seem like I don’t like her, I really do. I just can’t vent to L so I am laying it out here. There have also been some really good things about having her here. L’s sister has been here since Thursday and she and L’s mom have done a majority of the cooking and washing of dishes. They made the changing pad cover that we needed and it has been fun to spend time with them. But, my friends, our apartment is pretty small and I am a girl with her period. Hopefully the baby will come soon and solve all these problems. No pressure Sprout. (of course I am kidding)

Whew, thanks for letting me dump that. For the remainder of L’s appointment I am going to find my happy place so I won’t be so grumpy when we meet back up with her family.

Of course we will also let you know of any labor updates.

No baby yet!!!

This has been hard. Although I suppose I should be grateful. My body is doing the work and I am not in great pain. We have been talking epic walks and I am taking blue cohash and my contactions are not progressing. They will get stronger but then will dissapte as soon as I am not standing. I have made an appointment for accupuncture tomorrow and this baby must come out somehow. This wait is very hard emotionally. I almost started crying this morning when I woke up and realized that I was not having contractions. This baby will come out right??

Quick update (no baby yet)

So everything is going well here.  Slow and steady wins the race (or at least the baby).  L’s contractions have been increasing in intensity and we are getting the chance to practice some of the techniques we will use when she goes into much more active labor (back pressure, massage, etc.).

Overall, things are pretty mellow, which is exactly how we want it.  We did not have hot water for a while, then this morning had NO water, so we got up and went out to breakfast and then for a long walk through the park and then the botanic garden.  It was really beautiful.  L had to stop from time to time because of the contractions.  We came home and laid down for a nap.  L slept for about 45 minutes and now her mom and sister (who arrived last night) are making tacos for lunch.  We have been eating our big meals at lunch and want to really make them count so she has plenty of energy once active labor starts.

I just heard that the taco bar is open, so I have to go.

I will keep you updated…

No news here…

Just want to let you know that things remain about the same here.  L was able to sleep some last night, which is great.  Her mom did decide to drive down from VT and arrived at about 2 am.  It is great that she is here and not 6 hours away now that things can change at any minute.  Currently I am at work and L and her mom are walking to Park Slope to visit one of L’s friends and her new baby, then L is having a prenatal massage at 1.  So far so good.  I will be here until about 12:30, and then will go home and do that vacuuming I didn’t get to last night.  Also, we need to sew a cover for our changing pad (nothing like a little last minute sewing), I want to water the house plants and put more food in the bird feeder on the fire escape.  Oh, and have a baby.

We will update when there is more news to report.  Thanks for your thoughts and prayers and excitement for us!

well, well, well

I am 3 centimeters dilated and 90 percent effaced and the baby is at station 0.    This could mean a whole variety of things.    I could have the baby tonight or in a week as our midwife told me this afternoon.    It means concretely that the cramping I have been feeling has been contractions and that I am completely correct about feeling like the baby is really down.    Our midwife felt the baby’s head – I get teary thinking about that.   Our baby’s head.    It also means that H. is in full speed prep mode.   She is currently debating if she should fully vacuum the house or cut up fruit to take to the hospital.   What a good wife.    I have been given instructions to rest.    We will keep you updated.   I would not be surprised if all was the same tomorrow but I do hope and know that we will have something exciting to post soon.   xoxo

baby pants

no baby yet.

It is wonderful to not be at work.   I have been sleeping so poorly that it is good to be able to take a nap in the middle of the day and today I ordered HBO so that I could watch some movies.    Yesterday I made some baby pants.    I do love these little pants.    We did not name the blog babypants because we love baby pants however.    We use pants as a dear term.    We often will call each other babypants and our cats are kittypants.     I am so looking forward to our babypants coming into our house.   Nothing really to report on that front.   I did have some contractions last night and this morning.  But they did not progress, I really think they were just because I was lifting a ton of laundry.    I want to leave you with a current belly photo and two of our cats who do not yet realize what is going to happen to their house or their sleeping spot.