Thankful Thursday?

I cannot believe I am here still pregnant writing a Thankful Thursday. This was supposed to be my yippee skippee I am not pregnant thankful post. Well I guess there are a few things I can say that I am thankful for with this pregnancy despite the fact that it is still going on.

Today I had to have a non-stress test for the baby where they watch the baby's heart rate as it is resting and while it moves to make sure its heartbeat goes up if it moves. Apparently this tells them whether the baby is still happy inside there despite apparently metaphorically setting down roots and building a summer home. During my test the baby happily played kick the monitor and his/her heart rate behaved appropriately for the activity. So that was good. At least the baby is happy to be inside me still.

Then I had to have an ultrasound to see if there was enough amniotic fluid in there. Sometimes when you are past your due date you can have less fluid in there which can be bad for the baby too. During the ultrasound the technician found that I had plenty of water which was a good thing. She also measured the baby to give an estimate of size. Though she couldn't get what she called "good" measurements on a few places and had to guess with the shots she got. The computer calculated a 9 lb 4 oz baby!!!! Holy Moly! When she saw the calculation she and I both didn't believe it. For one thing, Corilynn was 9 lb 1oz and she felt much bigger than this one. This one just does not feel that big and still moves so much more like it has a lot of space in there. She didn't believe the calculation either and said it could be off by as much as 2 lbs. Plus when you combine the lots of fluid assessment and the big baby assessment it would mean my abdomen would be the size of Pluto and it is not and I am not measuring big so nobody is taking the assessment too seriously except to confirm the baby has enough fluid.

So I am grateful that today's tests did not make anyone want to threaten an induction for me. I just don't feel right about it and if the baby is happy and I am healthy then I don't feel the need to push things along artificially. Of course "Operation Home Induction" is still underway and we will keep doing the natural induction practices we can so that we can encourage labor to start on its own.

I am grateful for the fun week I had with my sister Betsy. She had to go home today - babyless. It was really sad for both of us. Going this over due was just not how it was supposed to be. We did have some great talks and fun times together though. I know I did everything in my power and good conscience to encourage the baby to come before she left so the fact that he/she did not just means it wasn't the right time.

I am grateful though that I might not be totally sisterless when I have this baby as my other sister, Donna, flies into town tonight. If I can have the baby before Monday morning then she will be able to be there instead. Please let me have this baby before Monday!!! I don't need to be a billion days overdue.

One last note - while Betsy was here we conducted a survey of my 8 sisters and how their deliveries went with regards to early, on time, late and if they were induced in anyway medically. Of all my sisters there were two that could have gone full term or beyond like me if they were not induced a few days early but we will never know. So as it stands, I am the only one that has consistently gone past my due date. We also asked my mom about her 13 deliveries. And we found the problem. My mom delivered all her babies without induction and they all came anywhere from 2 weeks early to a few days early with exception to two of her kids. Betsy and I. So we were bad influences on each other this week. That is why I am overdue - because she and I were the only ones to come late and we both arrived 8 days late. Tomorrow marks 8 days late for me - will history repeat itself?