Holding On A Few More Days...

Dear Tweet,
Well, unless you decide it's time to come out like... RIGHT NOW... and we head to the hospital for less than the normal labor time for first-timers, it looks like you're going to miss your due date of October 20.

And you know what? That's TOTALLY okay.

Turns out, your pops, who has been fighting a cold for 15 (that's right, FIFTEEN) days now, was just diagnosed with bacterial pneumonia. And, THAT, my dear girl is no bueno. The doc that finally diagnosed him couldn't believe that he had it, as your dad is a physically fit, healthy guy. Not your typical walking pneumonia candidate. And neither one of us can figure out how he came down with it, yet I have remained miraculously immune to it. The only clear explanation for this phenomenon is his insistence on eating healthy, fresh veggies... and my insistence on eating chocolate five times a day. Anecdotal or scientific? We'll let the evidence and history be the judge.

So, the plan has now changed from contemplating the purchase of a trampoline specifically for the use of starting labor, to holding on to you just a couple of days longer so that your daddy isn't contagious and can give you your first bath... first kiss on the forehead.... first whatever it is that daddy's do with their newborn daughters. He's waited so long for that moment, it's the least we can do, right????

We went to the doctors office yesterday, just to see how things were progressing. Right now, the big scare across the country is the H1N1 virus and hospitals haven't been able to keep the vaccine shot in stock. Luckily, I was able to snag a shot yesterday so that while you breastfeed, I'll be able to give you the antibodies I produce to ward off the disease.

So, yea... there's a lot of sick people out there right now... and guess where they all were yesterday? That's right! In the lobby waiting to see their baby doctors... and coughing/sneezing/breathing their germs all over your dad and I. So that was fun. And it may explain how your dad ended up with pneumonia the day you were supposed to be born!

I'm going to get a little technical here and hope that you're 18 or so before you ever read this so I don't have to explain the details to you. To see how the pregnancy was progressing, the doc checked my cervix and I was only at a 1.5 dilation. Which means that my body is not ready for you to come. But, since we're not really looking forward to delivering a 10-pounder, doc says she'll induce Saturday morning if you haven't graced us with your presence. She also stripped the membranes (whatever that means... since I haven't quite figured it out, I'm going to ask you not so ask and just respect that it was very uncomfortable, mkay?) to help stimulate labor... and we have a 50-50 chance of going into labor between now and Saturday.

Which basically means that although we've done everything we can possibly do, IT'S STILL UP TO YOU. I hope that this isn't a sign of what life with you on the outside of my body is going to be like. I'd like to hold on to some semblance of authority and control for as long as possible!!

I will say that the anticipation was much easier for me after visiting with the doctor. The previous two nights, I couldn't sleep. I was up wandering around the house... wondering if you were going to decide that tonight was the night... wondering what it was going to feel like to start contractions... wondering if we had any Cheerios left or if I should hold off until the morning. That type of thing. On top of that, I just didn't feel well. I didn't feel sick, but it definitely wasn't a feeling of health as I've had throughout most of this pregnancy. But, last night, I slept like a baby and really had a hard time getting up this morning. Which was AWESOME. I'm hoping for a few more nights like that.

Last week, we had a false alarm with you and went to the hospital just to be on the safe side. We thought that my water had broken.... and by "we", I mean your dad. Because - and I'm not exaggerating here - there was no talking him out of throwing all of our bags in the car... convinced as he was of your pending arrival. And you would have never known that the man had been sick for days with the energy that the very thought of your arrival gave him! When we got there and explained our concerns, they immediately hooked me up to the monitors and tested to see if there was any amniotic fluid leaking. The first test came back positive and your dad gave me a "told-you-so" look. But the second test came back negative. The moral of the story, Tweet, is... no matter when your dad thinks he's right, always check with me. *Ahem*

But, the dash to the hospital did serve a great purpose by being a dry-run for us for when the time comes. And, actually... we didn't do too bad. We've had our bag packed for a few weeks and the only thing I really had to get together were my toiletries. Because when the pics are taken, your mom is gonna need some cover-up for all the acne you've given her for the last two weeks! True story, Tweet. This is something that is very un-cool about pregnancy, btw. The kicks in the middle of the night? Cool. The monster zit on my chin? Patently UNCOOL.

Anyway, I guess for now we're sitting and waiting some more. And knowing that I need to hold on to you for a couple of more days so that your dad can experience the thrill of holding you for the first time without fear of contagion is so totally worth the wait. I just need you to buy in to the game-plan and hold off any thoughts of coming out before Thursday, okay?

That'd be great.

Love,
Mama