Update on 30 Week anatomy scan...

Sorry, I got totally distracted by my baby shower.  If you don't remember, this is how our anatomy scan went down two weeks ago and how I was feeling about it.

So last Tuesday I took the 3 hr gestational diabetes test.  I was not happy about having to take it.  I had talked on the phone with my mother's midwife who delivered at least 3 if not all 4 of my younger sisters.  She is literally best friends with Ina May Gaskin (you should know who that is) and teaches globally with her and other midwives.  She is the real deal.  Not the hospital kind of midwife (not that hospital midwives are bad, they are just a totally different breed of midwife.)  My mother's midwife offered to deliver my baby...FOR FREE but the catch is I would have to drive to her when my labor starts and I just don't think that's a good idea.  I want to have my baby at my house.  I don't want to labor in the car and have to wait in line for the ferry for god knows how long and then labor on the ferry and then have an hour long drive.  We have no idea how long my labor will last and it just sounds way too stressful and dicey.  She would be willing to come to me except she has a bunch of babies all due around my due date so she can't be that far away from all of her clients. 

Anyway, we talked for over an hour and although talking to her was empowering and validated all my feelings and concerns about taking the GD test, listening to the anatomy scan Dr.'s predictions about my baby's size and my doubts about my midwife, it was also depressing to hear her opinion on the midwives in the Seattle area.  My rough plan was if my midwife was going to push for further scans and tests then I was going to find a new midwife who was more hands off and natural.  This plan didn't seem to be an option after talking to my mother's midwife whose opinion is that ALL the midwives in Seattle are too scared about liability and staying in the hospital's good graces so they have a very clinical approach to their midwifery.  She said they might as well all be practicing in the hospitals and just call themselves nurse midwives.  Whether or not that is really true, I was feeling super bummed.  She would only recommend two midwives in Seattle who she would trust but they are both unavailable when my baby is due.  So it seemed like there would be no one I could really switch to if I decided to go that route.  

So I took the damn GD test and waited for my appointment with my midwife to see what she had to say about our anatomy scan and how she wanted to proceed.  I felt so anxious and stressed all week.  Finally on the Thursday before my shower I saw her for our appointment.  Right away she started off saying that she thought our scan looked really good and was very positive about Hazy not dropping in numbers!!  I almost cried, I was so relieved.  She said that it's really good that she is growing at a stable rate and it's ok that she hasn't moved up in percentiles...she just didn't want to see her dropping down.  She said she doesn't need us to do any more scans as long as my belly keeps measuring on track (I was still measuring 2 weeks ahead we found out later in the appointment)!  It was like a giant cloud was lifted.  She could tell I was visibly relieved and we talked a little bit about how I had been stressing out and worried about having to do more tests and scans.  I told her that I didn't want to do ANY more testing or scans and that was why I had chosen to go with a midwife in the first place.  I also found out that I barely passed the GD test so that was a huge relief too.  I guess my fasting numbers were high so I shouldn't go 14 hours without eating something...no shit.

So as of right now I have no more future tests or scans scheduled.  I am sticking with this midwife hopefully until the end.  I have to order the birthing tub and the home birth medical supplies kit and that's about it.  I have to get to June 29th in order to have a home birth.  They will deliver 3 weeks early but if she comes any earlier we obviously have to be in the hospital.  They will let me go a full 14 days past my due date.  At 41 and 1/2 weeks they want me to go in for a scan to check and make sure baby is ok...at that point if it means not getting induced and not going to the hospital then fine I'll do the damn scan.  After 14 days they will give me a couple more days if I repeat the scan a second time.  Again, if we get to that point fine.  My plan is before 41 and 1/2 weeks (if I make it that far) I will drink a castor oil and pineapple juice cocktail and go for a long walk, followed by a sexathon....maybe all those things but in reverse order as I think the castor oil makes you poop out everything you got.  That would not make for a very sexy atmosphere.