Are we there yet?

Wow! I can’t believe there are more than 60 comments on the “guess that birthdate” post!! What fun! But, for the record, anyone who guessed later than February 7 (when I’ll be a week overdue) or any hour that involves an overnight labour, you’re getting a lump of coal instead of a book if you win the contest!!

I had an appointment with the midwife last week that sent me home driving with my legs crossed, convinced that the baby was about to come shooting out at a stop light if I was not careful. I’ve since settled back down into a holding pattern of waiting (there are, after all, still many days until my due date) but it was exciting to be talking about BIRTH instead of just pregnancy.

They’re keeping a close eye on the size of the baby, and I’ll likely have another ultrasound this week to see just how big this big baby will be. (Hmmm, sounds JUST like Simon. Again!) Apparently the midwives have special protocols with the hospital when a baby gets to be this size. I’m trying not to think about it.

And, while it’s still three weeks to my official due date, the midwife suggested several natural induction techniques (clinically unproven, she stressed) that I might want to consider, so on the weekend I picked myself up some evening primrose oil and some red raspberry leaf tea. I took a couple of the EPO capsules last night (one orally and the other one – well, not orally) and there’s still no baby this morning. So much for instant gratification!

Another thing that got me all excited about an early debut for this little guy was that although my last day of work would have been this coming Thursday, they suggested that I might consider being done a little earlier than that. So tomorrow is my last official day of work until 2009. Can I get a hallellujah for one-year maternity leave? So many reasons to love my country’s social net. (And yes, I know it’s not perfect and not everybody benefits, but it benefits me and at 100 months pregnant you go ahead and TRY to tell me that it’s NOT all about me at this point.)

So we spent the weekend doing little things like assembling the cradle (I love our wooden cradle!) and cleaning the car seat and installing it in the van. We drove out to the Montfort so Beloved would know where it is, which seems rather prudent, and debated the most efficient way to get there from Barrhaven. (There isn’t one.)

I’m ready! Well, I’m readier, and that’s a start. And I’ve decided when I’m going to have this baby. Simon was due on January 22 and born on February 1. This baby is due on February 1, so I figure there is a lovely symmetry in him arriving on January 22, right? At say, 2 pm, after a five hour labour. Yep, that’s my story and I’m sticking with it. Are you listening, baby boy??

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