not as perfect as we thought
So, I guess I spoke a little too soon when I said my pregnancy had been perfect so far. Nothing like getting a nice good scare to set you straight that NO pregnancy in perfect.
Let’s rewind to our prenatal appointment last Thursday. I was already a little concerned going into it because my weight had been steadily dropping all week, despite my attempt to shove food into my mouth. I’ve resorted back to my first trimester eating: vegetables are only good on pizza or smothered with ranch dressing, apples + bananas are about the only fruit I want to eat, and I simply can’t get enough bagels. Lately, I pretty much eat whatever is put in front of me. It’s saved us a ton on groceries, but it hasn’t been so good for me, or the baby for that matter.
Sure enough, I got weighed and had lost 3 pounds from the previous week. That wasn’t the scary part though. After having my fundal height measured (the length from my pubic bone to the top of the uterus), my belly had “shrunk” 2 centimeters, from measuring 36 centimeters the week before to 34 centimeters last week. In reality, I should be measuring 38 or 39 centimeters (it coincides with how far along you are in your pregnancy). The 2 centimeter difference was enough for the doctor to schedule us for an ultrasound, just to make sure our baby was growing and the placenta was still functioning properly.
That was Thursday. Our ultrasound appointment was yesterday. Cue Matt + Kristen freaking out the entire weekend. It was a loooooooooong weekend for us. My hand was constantly on my stomach, making sure she was still kicking and moving around like usual. Thank goodness for my active little girl! She kept me reassured all weekend and helped me avoid having a complete and total meltdown.
I woke up Monday morning and stepped on the scale, only to see I had lost another pound. My brain went from, “Everything’s fine. She’s just dropped!” to, “Oh, we just might have a baby today.” We were nervous to go into the appointment knowing that there was a possibility we would be going to the hospital sometime later that day.
I absolutely LOVE the ultrasound tech at our doctor’s office! She was so supportive and was willing to answer all our questions about what we were looking at and what we should worry about. (I’m sure it helps that my uncle is in the practice – I think I get a little bit of special treatment.) After 20 weeks of not being able to see our baby, it was so reassuring to see her little heart beating and her “breathing” (babies don’t breathe before birth, but they practice inside the womb). She took measurements of her head, torso, and femur along with her amniotic fluid levels.
Everything was just fine. The placenta is aged a little bit, but that’s to be expected at 39 weeks and 2 days pregnant. Because there was plenty of fluid surrounding her, they knew the placenta was working just fine for this far along in my pregnancy.
However, we do have a little peanut on our hands. My doctor’s biggest concern was her being below a certain percentile for weight at 39 weeks. If she was below the 10th percentile, we would probably have to be induced, since that’s a sign that she might not be getting all the nutrients she needs on the inside and would function better in the outside world. She cut it close, weighing in the 13th percentile and just 6 pounds. She’s definitely measuring behind, but both my doctor and the ultrasound tech reassured us that since Matt + I are both small people (I’m 5’4” and Matt’s 5’6” and a buck 30) that they’re not surprised we have a small baby.
I’m definitely relieved that everything is OK. That was my biggest concern going in. I just wanted her to be healthy and if that meant having to be induced or having an emergency C-section, so be it. But, I’m happy that they are letting us go into labor naturally – for now at least. I did leave a little disappointed though since I thought we might have a baby sooner than expected, but as long as she’s doing well inside, I’m happy to continue preparing for her arrival – it definitely got my butt in gear!
Our next appointment is Thursday afternoon, where we’ll get measured again and also have a non-stress test done, just to make sure she’s doing alright in there (the ultrasound tech was concerned that she didn’t move much during the ultrasound, but as long as I’m feeling her move consistently, we know she’s doing fine). So, unless I go into labor before then (still feeling unlikely), I’ll be pregnant a few more days at least!