37-38 Weeks Prego

Photo courtesy of dizznbon (this isn't me =)

So sorry I've been neglecting you. These last couple of weeks have been a blur of productivity. My to-do list is sufficiently wiped out. There remain a couple of minor tasks, but I could go into labor at this moment and have nothing to worry about. That feels really, really good.

Speaking of going into labor, I am SO ready. I've been planning on this weekend (the 10th-11th) as my ideal date (even though I'm not due until the 18th), but if this baby popped out right now, I'd be thrilled. Even just waiting until this weekend is a bit trying on my patience. This stage (being completely ready and just waiting for the baby to come) is one of the hardest stages for me. I don't like being idle, but it's hard to do much of anything when you're this big. So, I feel like I'm wasting time just sitting and sitting and sitting and sitting and sitting and, well, you get the idea. I'm not a lot of fun for my two year old right now because I'm pretty immobile. Thankfully she's young enough she won't remember these boring days. It's like pulling teeth to motivate myself to cook dinner (I contemplated if it'd be more of a blessing to have people cook food before or after the baby's born--days like yesterday I would've welcomed a free meal and a no-dishes-to-wash kitchen).

Despite my whining (I apologize, whining ends here), I've remained fairly active. This week is packed with play dates and activities. We even managed a miraculous photo shoot with the cousins and all three children (2 and under) looked at the camera at the same time for three different shots. That's amazing! Labor Day weekend was spent jumping from party to party. We even drove over two hours to Arkansas to camp for the day with friends. There was a lot of walking involved, which I was fine with because it meant helping gravity do its work to pull this baby down. I even had some strong, consistent contractions on the way home, but nothing came of it.

A storm moved in (the edge of Hermine) today. They always saw low fronts will send you into labor. Again, I waited expectantly but to no avail. Here I sit looking at my rain-soaked yard and still not feeling anything new.

So my current dilemma is deciding how far I want to go in trying to naturally induce labor. I have a theory that people who tell you what worked for them (e.g., yard work, walking, sex, etc.) just happened to be doing those things before their body went into labor. Basically, I believe they would've gone into labor regardless of if they were doing those things or not. So the whole idea makes me skeptical. A friend of mine just told me about a pasta dish that's guaranteed to make you go into labor, but for some reason that made me queasy. I'm beginning to wonder how far I want to go taking God's plan and squeezing it into my own timeframe. I believe my body will go into labor when it's right and best for the baby, so shouldn't I just sit back and wait for that to happen this time? I'm torn. I'm really uncomfortable and really prepared for this baby to come now, yet I don't want to force anything. I believe the best experience will be the one my body triggers, not the one I force with my fast-forward button.

What do you think, dear readers? To naturally induce or not? Do you think it really works, or do you think your body will do what it wants to do when it wants to do it regardless of what you're doing at the time?

Another quick poll: Do you think I'm having a boy or girl? My gut flip flops on a daily basis, and right now when I picture myself with a baby, it's a boy. I think that's really bizarre because right now I'm leaning more toward wanting a girl--I would just love for A to have a sister close in age to grow up with. Plus, our play dates are stocked full of boys, so another girl to throw in the mix would be kind of refreshing. Either way, I'm curious to know what you guys think this baby will be. Just leave it in the comments section.

And if you're wondering, we're no closer to picking out a name than we were nine months ago. Our list (for both genders) is long and full of potential options. It took us twenty-four hours to choose A's name--and we already knew the gender and only had three options on our list. Who knows how long this decision will take. Is it possible to leave the hospital with a nameless baby? I may have the answer for you sooner than later ;-)