your baby is bigger than my baby...or is it?

so today was my 39 week appointment and here i am...home again....doing what us pregnant gals do best...hurry up and wait as they say!

my appointment today was eventful though. first i had my ultrasound - this was done to try to see how big he or she might be...now keep in mind there is a 20% margin of error in the calculations...this means the baby could be 20% smaller or bigger than the actual measurement they got. and the measurement they got was 8lbs. 11 ounces.

After hearing that gigantic number i did the math - based on the 20% window on either side, that makes baby G somewhere between 7lbs and 10lbs 4 ounces. REALLY? to be honest i am NOT putting much stock in that. i know he or she is big...i can feel that, but nearly 9 lbs? seriously? that's so not right...if it turns out he or she is that big i would be shocked!

after the ultrasound i had my exam - 2 cm dilated, 100% effaced with a paper thin cervix and my midwife decided to strip my membranes to see if that might get things jump started...so...what does that mean exactly - it means that during my regular exam she seperated the amniotic sac from the wall of my uterus. this caused my body to release hormones called prostaglandins which help my cervix prepare for labor...now in some women this will cause labor within 24 - 48 hours...in others - nothing.

and after that i went and did a NST, which is a test where they monitor my contractions and the baby's movement...he or she was moving and i was contracting...but not enough to actually do anything. so she sent me home.

the only new instruction i got was to not just sit at home if my contractions are 8 mins apart. if i feel them getting stronger to call. i've had so much false labor that i don't even bother to call since the contractions haven't been close enough or in my mind even worth calling about, but now that i'm only 7 days out she doesn't want to mess around...it would not be good for anyone if i had this baby at home because i was stubborn or didn't think they hurt enough to go to the hospital. i have always had a really good tolerance for pain so i think she is worried that i will wait too long.

well, it's off to wait some more...hopefully this baby will come soon! if it gets any bigger it's will be taller than me! hehehe