My Due Date Is Approaching

hourglassThese last days are wistful and exciting, frightening and full.

Soon - very soon - our second child will be here in our arms. We'll be holding her and smelling her sweet baby hair and getting lost in her deep and thoughtful eyes.

I've received a number of requests for a "pregnancy update" so here's my 3rd trimester Q & A.

Q. When are you officially due?

A. My due date is actually a little bit sketchy. We have several - one based on when we think we may have conceived, one based on the sonogram, one to buy us time if the baby goes overdue (we don't want to be induced). I think we've finally settled on March 20. I anticipate it will be within a week of that date - either before or after.

Q. Where are you planning to give birth?

A. At a free-standing birth center. With a midwife.

I gave birth at a hospital with an OB (no drugs, no episiotomy) for my first. It was a relatively positive experience, but I feel much better about my "birth setting" this time around. I prefer the laid-back and intervention-free "way" that midwives espouse.

Q. Are you "ready"?

A. We're not much into the "commercial" side of readiness so if you're asking if the baby's room is painted and decorated and such, the answer is no. Babies don't need decorated rooms or frilly socks or drawerfuls of special occasion outfits. They need love and attention (and diapers, wipes, and onesies). We have those things so - yes - we're ready in terms of having all of the baby necessities.

Readiness to me is more "mental" than anything. Lately, I find myself praying a lot and thinking about labor & delivery and the joys that will undoubtedly follow...

Q. Is your "hospital bag" packed?

A. No. I have a few things set aside, but I'll probably pack my bag when I go into labor (I'm only half-joking).

What else do you want to know?  I'll happily take your questions...

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

16 comments on “My Due Date Is Approaching”

  1. I'm so excited for your family! I absolutely LOVED being pregnant and those first few months with a newborn make me wish I could do it all over again. The midwife thing sounds really cool! Yay!!!!

  2. I never worried about the nursery either. I knew Lily would sleep in our room so what difference did it make if her room was done or not?
    Good luck!

  3. I am so excited for you! I think you'll love the birth center and cannot wait to read all about it. (I'm thinking I'll either go the birth center or homebirth route next time too.)

    I was totally the mom who did her daughter's room all up during pregnancy. It was something that I could physically see to prepare for her and it felt really good and therapeutic. She is six months old and has never spent a night in it. It's a cool and beautiful room, though!

    Try to relax as much as you can and hold onto that feeling of being hugely pregnant. It will all be a memory very soon. :)

  4. Stephanie, I wish you and your family all the best as you welcome your little one into the world. I imagine you will be taking a maternity leave from the blogosphere, so in case we don't hear from you in a while, we'll miss you.
    I can't remember if you mentioned if your birth center handles water births. If so, are you hoping for one? My son is a water baby!
    I love my widwives and how they care for their patients, I hope you love yours too!

  5. You and your growing family are in our thoughts and prayers as you approach your due date(s) :) You look amazing!

  6. Wow, you really are getting close!!

    You know, I used my "buy us time" due date all through my last pregnancy. And I *still* went 6 days overdue. Ugh. Nothing like knowing you're using a late date and still watching the days tick by. I hope you'll be spared the waiting.

    I hope you'll find the birthing center to be absolutely wonderful! I know my experience with homebirth vs. hospital birth, though both types were natural, was sooooo much nicer.

    And I'm so glad I'm not the only one in the world who isn't into the uber-decorated nursery thing. I have to cringe a little (okay, a lot!) when my own sister, who is majorly in debt and struggling to live paycheck-to-paycheck is still going all-out on the nursery. But I agree with you - there are some things babies need, and some things they really don't. They don't care about the ruffles and paint colors, only that they're taken care of and loved.

    How's the big sister coming in terms of being ready?

  7. Good for you for giving birth at a birth center! The hospital I'm planning to birth at is known as a "spa-spital" meaning that they really cater to the women's needs to provide the best birthing experience possible. With my first pregnancy this meant laboring in the bathtub with lavender salts for as long as possible.

    Recently a friend's husband made a shrewd comment to me about choosing a "luxury" hospital over a hospital that provides more advanced medical personnel should the need arise because all that really matters in the end is a healthy baby.

    He's right but this other hospital he is referring to has a high c-section rate and in the end I personally believe that the fewer the interventions the better I'm setting up my baby for a healthy delivery.

    Hoping and praying for you for a smooth labor and delivery and a healthy baby girl!

  8. Your so right about the readiness part. I got a whole room ready for Levi, and he didn't darken the doorstep of it for quite some time. We now sleep in it (together) and it gets use for indoor play, but in retrospect, I wouldn't have worried so much about it. Hope you love your birth center experience! Can't wait to hear about it!

  9. I'm with you on the room. Our son doesn't even have a "room". He sleeps with us. And he'll be there with us for awhile.

    Hmmm, let see....

    Do you have a name picked out?
    Did you easily agree on the name?
    How's little princess feeling about the baby coming?
    What's your favorite memory of this pregnancy?

    Take your pick, you certainly don't need to answer all of them ;)

    Nell

  10. I agree with you about the "commercial" side of readiness. We've never had matching baby nursery sets, in fact we've never even had a nursery. The baby sleeps in the pack n' play in our room.

    Lots of love and time and a comfy rocking chair is what you need most. :)

  11. How exciting that you get to meet the newest member of your family so soon! My thoughts and prayers are with you!

  12. Is it ok that I'm slightly envious of the fact that you get to have your baby in a birthing center? I have to have another C-Section (another reason why this will definitely be our last child). I seem to grow fibroid tumors faster than I grow babies... at least they don't interfere with the baby's growth!

MetropolitanMama - See The World, One City at a Time
©2024 Metropolitan Mama - All Rights Reserved | Privacy Policy
linkedin facebook pinterest youtube rss twitter instagram facebook-blank rss-blank linkedin-blank pinterest youtube twitter instagram