birth plan

i mean, really.  what the heck is a "birth plan"?  isn't the plan to just have the baby as swiftly, safely as possible?  especially this being my first pregnancy, how are first time mommies supposed to "plan" their birth when we don't even know what to expect?  at this point, i don't even know what real contractions feel like, let alone know what to do during labor & delivery.  my plan is simple - have the baby.

but my dr and hoag had asked me to complete their birth plan worksheet.  do i want a birthing ball in the room?  do i want to take a shower or bath during labor?  do i want a rocking chair?  who can be in the room during birth?  do i want pain medication?  uh....honestly - "i don't know" is the answer to all.  i don't know WHAT i want because i don't know what works and doesn't work for me.  so i hope the hospital doesn't stick to my yes/no answers like they're permanently engraved.

the only thing i am sure about is that i want to avoid going to the hospital early only to be sent back home.  i know that's not completely within my control since i might be such a sucker for pain that i think the baby's seriously about to come out and we rush us to the hospital only to find out i'm only like 1/2 cm dilated.  i want to avoid early medical intervention so would like to stay home as long as i possibly can.  but at the same time, i don't want to get to the hospital so late that it's too late for an epidural if i choose to take it.  damn~~ this is harder than memorizing SAT words!  how am i supposed to get this timed perfectly!

ap says i'm probably gonna ring for the anesthesiologist the second i feel contractions.  he obviously doesn't have confidence in my pain threshold.  but trust me, i am not gonna fight epidural off just to prove a point to my husband.  i don't care if my husband thinks i'm a sucker.  i'll ask for the meds on my terms.  no need to be a hero.  won't make a mom who delivered med free next door any better of a mom than me who might want to relieve not just myself from pain but people around me from pain when i wail like a 5 year old and curse like a sailor.  but my biggest turn off about epidural is that it'll prolong the labor process.  i'd rather get it over with short and not-so-sweet than long and sweet.  ah...we'll cross that bridge when we get to it.

so just yesterday i was hoping this baby would come out like asap.  but ap actually did start his new job today so at this point, it really doesn't matter when the lil guy comes.  of course, i'd want him to come soon but my big fat reason wanting him to come like yesterday is no longer that fat.  ap's employer is aware that i'm ready to pop any second so they'll allow him to leave at my phone call.  he won't get paternal leave days since he just started but i think we'll be okay.  my mom will be staying with us for a couple of weeks so i'm sure we'll be in good hands.  what i am super excited about are possible upcoming vacations we'll be able to take w/o worrying about hotel cost!  i've already told him vancouver is on the top of my list since we had to cancel our anniversary trip 2 years ago. 

and i have accomplished my goal in getting salad bbang and mamma cozza.  i even devoured a large claro's sandwich on sunday.  so bad since deli meat is a no-no but it was soooo tempting and good!  and whenever ap orders wine or beer, i just take a big sniff and believe it or not, does somewhat satisfy me.

hopefully this is my last post before he's here!  not crazy about the idea of our parents driving in this rain to come to the hospital so i wouldn't mind if he decides to hold off for a couple more days.  just come out healthy lil man!

triggering labor...

i know i have 6 days left before my due date but dear God, please can he come out like...now?  please???!!!

i'm not unbearably uncomfortable or in pain or tired of being pregnant.  in fact, i feel perfectly fine.  well, okay, maybe not at 2am and 3am and every hour after that until 8am, when i get up to go pee and feel the aches & pains in my hips and bellly.  but other than the middle of the night aches, i feel darn good at 39 weeks+ pregnant.  and i don't mind getting to 40+ weeks b/c i know the safest place LO can be is in my womb.  however...i want him out.  for one big fat reason.  good (GREAT!) news is ap got offered the perfect job!!  the work hours/days, the perks, the potential - we count our blessings and thank the Lord every day.  with him finishing up school in december, timing couldn't be more perfect.  or could it?  the bad news is his first day at work will be either tomorrow (yikes) or this thurs or next monday. we'll find out today.  ideally - i'd want him to start next monday and the baby come like...tonight!  that way - ap can spend a week with the baby at home before starting his new job.  he won't get time off since it's a new job, so i REALLY need the LO to come like asap~!  so...how can i trigger labor?  i don't even feel contractions, just slight dull cramps at night for like 30 mins...that's it!

here are some labor triggering trickeries i've been told/read:

• i have been in major nesting mode.  cleaning, dusting, scrubbing, lifting, washing like crazy.  i heard that you get a burst of energy as you get closer to labor but i think my energy is working ot.  i can't even sleep at night.  i go to bed around 2am and can't really sleep sleep and next thing i know it's 9am and i'm up watching regis&kelly.  but i also heard lifting things and cleaning can bring on labor.  anxiety+impatience has made me mrs. clean lately.  i say this as i sit next to the vacuum i'll be using in like 5 mins
• i've always loved spicy food.  but i'm chomping on jalapenos and kimchi like never before.  in fact, i'm going to make some dduk bo ggi for lunch - a hella spicy one.  yea, i'll suffer from heartburn later tonight but that's what tums is for.  this trickery isn't too difficult to follow for me.
• herbal tea.  i've been avoiding caffeine but heck - if something as simple as a cup of tea will get my contractions going, i'm all over it.  we went to teavana yesterday and oh.my.gawd their youthberry tea is the most delicious treat!  i think i can chug a liter in one sitting.  so we brought home 2 large tins of youthberry and wild orange tea.  drank a cup this morning.  maybe i need to drink about 5 more cups today and hopefully i'll be holding a baby in 24 hours.
• i hate walking.  i used to drive to imperial burger right behind my house in bp.  ap tries to persuade me to walk to barnes&noble right next to our apt but he fails every time.  it feels like a whole city away although it's probably less than a mile away.  but i'm not myself lately.  i've actually been walking!  lately, i go to target, ikea, south coast, home goods, spectrum, costco and walk around for hours.  ok so that's "shopping" not "walking", but it involves walking, right?  at the end of the "walk", i try to feel if the baby feels lower.  no such luck yet.
• supposedly fresh pineapple can trigger labor.  i should call ap to stop by ralphs and pick some up on his way home.  any triggering trickery that involves eating - easy peasy!  
• ok warning...TMI.  so supposedly semen contains some kind of magical hormone that induces labor.  honestly, having sex is not that difficult.  c'mon...we're all human!  but (a big BUT) - when you're 39 weeks pregnant - any animalistic needs in that dept are so thin if not nonexistent.  since 3rd trimester rolled around, we're lucky if it happens once a week.  really - sex is not that fun when you're carrying a giant basketball.  however...i think this trickery is the most trustworthy since it's what i've read and heard the most, so if it means softening my cervix, bring it hubs!
• castor oil???  ok, i take back what i said about "any triggering trickery that involves eating - easy peasy!".  

ok...gotta go vacuum and drink another cup of youthberry tea with some pineapple then hit up target again, maybe walking there today and ap will get some action tonight.  at least one of us is thoroughly enjoying this waiting game.

any day now?

his head is down according to dr. s and the fetal distress test i took last wed.  i see the dr. every wed now until the due date which is exactly 2 weeks from today.  i cannot believe i'm 38 weeks.  i feel like i'll be pregnant forever.  it hasn't hit me that in as little as 1 day and as much as maybe 3 weeks, i will hold our little baby in my arms.

some quick random updates:

how low can he go!!  he's always sat low since i started showing, which a lot of people told me was a dead giveaway that it was a boy.

the nursery is pretty much set.  i just need to tidy it up once the glider/ottoman comes this week.  everything in the room is just waiting for it's place in the room since i need to figure out where to put the glider.  but here is a peak...

before...

...and after.  i really did not want a nursery that screamed THEME or BLUE or MATCHY MATCHY.  we painted the wall light pool with sage green bed sheet/skirt.  both colors match the softest blanket yumi gave the little guy.  that's pretty much the only colors that match anything in the room.  no jungle, winnie the pooh, or airplane themes. i just wanted to keep it simple and light.  i really wanted a white glider to match the room but ap won that battle - it'll be cherry wood.  he said white glider looked tacky.  what about the entire nursery then!?!

 we got this swing from a family friend as a hand me down.  it was missing the mobile of stars/moon that hung from the top.  helen recently bought the little guy a bunch of finger puppets so i did a little fix to the swing by using the finger puppets for the mobile.  once he outgrows the swing, i'll have to take the little animals out so he can play w/them for what they really are. :)

the car seats are installed and set as instructed (i think...i've questioned ap about 54 times...God bless his patient heart).  the stroller is assembled.  loved how everything was just snapping pieces into place, no tools/screws/bolts required for this thing!

i've been on maternity leave 2 weeks now but feels like 2 months! i was super busy the first week off, putting the new apt and nursery together, shopping for random things, but now - i'm just anxious and don't know what to do w/my time besides catching up on grey's and modern family on demand.

two things i told ap i must eat before i go into labor.  those salad bbangs (sandwich is more like it) at a korean bakery.  haven't had one since like high school!  mama cozza in anaheim.

speaking of eating...maybe i should think twice about the above.  warning - TMI.  for about 3~4 days now, i've been dealing with diarrhea like you wouldn't believe.  i've read that it's common as you get close to labor and it might be a mix of contractions/diarrhea pain.  never experienced real contractions so not sure what they feel like but my diarrhea pain lately feels like hell.  no joke - i get to meet what i ate in the restroom 15 minutes after the meal.  that's not normal.  it's as if my intestines decided to stand up straight.  i'm scared to go anywhere.  not because i'm afraid my water will break but because i don't know when the next d. attack will happen!  last night, we went to go watch the town (loooved it~ developed a slight crush on ben affleck) but i was nervous the entire time that i'd need to get up all of a sudden and bolt to the restroom like my life depended on it.  definitely asking the doc about this on wed.

i think i might have passed the mucus plug.  i thought i saw what looked like it yesterday in the toilet (my one of many trips!) and stared at it forever but couldn't determine what it was.  they say once you pass your mucus plug, you can go into labor within a couple of days.  i guess only time will tell if that really was the mucus plug.

as much as i want this baby to come out asap, i wouldn't mind if he takes his time.  the safest place he can be in is in my womb and the longer he stays in it, the better they say.  as long as he's not like 10 days past due and 10 lbs.  and ap said the other day that he'll miss me being pregnant.  i think i kinda will, too.