The Waiting Game

I am already on my 39th week of pregnancy and it is taking longer than I thought. Not that I am complaining, I am duly aware of the benefits the baby gets inside the tummy (so long as everything is going well). I must admit time flew by with this pregnancy, I have been pregnant since January but it didn't feel that way at all. I remember dealing with nauseousness on my 2nd month and then the next thing I know I'm already on my third trimester and nearing my due date! During my first pregnancy, I had to deal with nauseousness far longer than most women I know. It stretched way past my 2nd trimester and crept on to my 3rd trimester. The good thing was I gave birth on my 38th week (and what joy that day was!).

I am a little anxious with the labor and delivery this time around. For one, I am less clueless now, I know more about the risks involved and have heard of horror stories. Adding to that is the fact that my husband and I have decided that I do a trial of labor (I had a C-section during my 1st pregnancy). I'm a good candidate according to my OB since I fully dilated during my time with M, the problem only was she was breached. This time around, baby girl #2 is fully engaged head down and seem to be staying put.

Preparations are already in place for a VBAC (vaginal birth after CS). We had to donate 2 units of blood to put on standby in the hospital's bloodbank just in case I'll be needing it (hopefully not!). The treatment would be the same as if I'm undergoing a C-section, the operating room would have to be reserved to me for an emergency CS should the need arise. C and I have discussed about the pros and cons of VBAC with our OB a numerous times, but in the end the final decision rests on us, on me. We prayed about it a lot and now that I am very near my due date, I do feel more determined to have a successful VBAC. I'm thankful to my friends and sisters who are very encouraging, it gives me more confidence and sometimes that is all you need to succeed! One of the motivating factors why I am going this route is I simply want to avoid another surgery. I want to feel well after giving birth and not have to worry about my wound. It IS a major surgery, after all. I want to devote all my time to my new baby, to M & C, to breastfeeding.

So, what do I do while on this waiting game? why EAT, of course! I've made a list of foods I want to eat as my last hurrah before I go through the traditional ge lai - the chinese tradition of making the mom eat certain foods only and house confinement for a month. I have no problem with the food and house confinement, I'm a homebody and there's no other place I want to be than be with my new baby. But part of the ge lai though is the no shower policy. I do sponge bath with hot ginger water 2x a day and that's about it. Luckily, I don't sweat a lot and my scalp hardly gets oily. The ginger sponge bath keeps me feeling fresh and help keep my body warm - an important factor during ge lai - so my body will heal properly.

SO, let's see. I can't wait to see my new baby girl! I can't wait to see how M will interact with her. I have even prepared a little gift that will come from the new baby to M. And as I always tell her, a sister is one of the best gifts God will give her.