Saturday, January 11, 2014

30 week meltdown

Tomorrow marks 30 weeks down, which leaves just ten (max, hopefully) to go. I find myself looking forward to the end so much that it's become nearly unbearable. Fortunately, there's a lot to look forward to - a lot that breaks the big "10 weeks" chunk into smaller, more bite-size chunks. I can do this. Maybe.

This weekend, we have lunch with a couple of friends, and possibly dinner and a movie with another. Next weekend, we're painting the nursery (actually, I have nothing to do with it, other than picking out colors - my sister-in-law and a couple of her daughters are coming over to paint; I'll be banished from the immediate area).

Next week, we have a doctor's appointment (just a baby checkup), and what Kaiser calls a "stork tour" - basically a tour of the maternity area. Exciting but nerve-wracking, just like every other baby-related thing.

Coming up within the next month is my baby shower (also nerve-wracking, because I'm not a big fan of having everyone's attention centered on me). Fortunately, we're registered, ready and rarin' to go.

Then comes the organizing of the baby stuff, the packing of the hospital bag, the freaking out... and then, horror of horrors: L&D (don't make me say it)!

I just hope everything goes as planned, but I'm not naive enough to think that it always does, so I'm trying to come to grips with that.

What if I have baby way earlier than expected? Later than expected? What if baby decides to make her grand appearance at home? What if I'm in L for, like, 57 hours? What if I have to have a c-section? What if I go into L at the most inopportune time of day or week? What if we don't make it to the hospital on time (we live a little more than an hour away from the hospital)? I'm trying to prepare for these possibilities.

Any advice? Calming words? Horror stories? I love them all!

2 comments:

  1. Calm down, if you can. 10 weeks (9 and a half now) is a hellishly long time when you are pregnant and there are more miseries to come and most likely by the time it's all over with you will be much more worried and impossible to please than you may already feel.
    Now, on to the good news. Labor lasts a long time for most people, especially with first babies. So you've probably got a 90% chance of having LOTS of time to drive to the hospital and thus you will not be having your child at home or in the car. And on the off chance that you are among the 10% keep in mind that paramedics deliver babies too and they are quite good at it.
    Your hospital bag should contain just a few things, like a robe, slipper socks, some lotion and some of your toiletries to spruce yourself up a bit after your baby makes his/her arrival, and something adorable to take baby home in. You won't be there very long. I was in the hospital for a day and a half and that was only because I gave birth in the middle of the night and had my son circumcised. Are you having a boy? You'll want to look for a pediatrician now to perform the circumcision in the hospital if that is something you plan to have done. Don't be like me and pick one out of the phone book on the day of the procedure. My son is fine by the way, it was just stress I didn't need.
    I was expecting a short labor and ended up having eight hours of mostly unmanageable pain. And I survived it. I can barely remember it now and my son is only two years old.
    The things I worried about when I was pregnant were the same things you are worrying about now and they will seem a little silly once you have your bundle of joy in your arms. Babies really only need love, something to keep them warm, and something to drink every couple of hours at first so don't go crazy worrying about the cutest socks being in the right drawer, the baby won't care at all.
    Buy more bottles than you think you will need, and lots of those little onsies because you will be surprised at how quickly they get messy and some of them will be straight in the garbage after a particularly nasty diaper change. Oh and don't stock up on newborn diapers, get the next size up in abundance because they only fit into the newborn ones for about a week or so. And when I say stock up I mean purchase them by the case - plan on 300 diapers a month for the first six months.
    Don't be afraid or too shy to ask friends and family for help during your first couple of weeks after baby. Might want to feel people out for that now so you have a list of people you can call. I was exhausted and then caught a cold about a week after my son was born and having my mom come over for a few hours so I could actually sleep was a blessing I will never forget.
    Did that help at all? Last but not least, get your butt out of the house as much as you can in the next two months. Once your little one is born you won't feel like going anywhere for a while and taking little babies to movies and restaurants isn't that easy and you'll probably be too tired to bother.
    If you think this sounds negative keep in mind that I'm trying to get pregnant again, even having a two year old and knowing how hard it can be is no deterrent at all! Best wishes to you! Candace

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  2. Oh I just read your previous post where you said you are having a girl - congratulations! You can cross that part about circumcision off of your list. :)

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