T-Minus 10 Days

Whoa.

Ten days?

Just… whoa.

People keep asking how I’m feeling and if DH and I are ready. I say I feel great in spite of the discomforts, and that we are excited to meet our daughter but the main emotion in the V household is mainly one of terror!

But are we ready in a Must Finish This Stuff Before She Arrives kind of way? Er, sort of. I definitely have a lot less time since moving into our own place. Here’s my list for those of you who like that sort of thing. If you don’t, jump to the bottom.

Crossed off my to-do list:

• Launder all of the newborn- to 0-3-month-sized clothes.
• Pack Baby V’s hospital bag
• Write and mail thank you cards.
• Finish our caesarean birth plan (which I will post next week).
• Choose a paediatrician — and she’s fabulous!
• Start having twice-weekly Non-Stress Tests.
• Look into what we do with placenta / cord blood:
  • Decided not to bank privately as it’s very expensive;
  • Can’t donate it because I have spent more than three months in the UK and can’t donate blood products due to… wait for it… MAD COW DISEASE…;
  • Placenta encapsulation seemed cool a few months ago, now I’m not so into the idea and would rather spend the $250 on getting a few post-natal massages!
• Buy mega flow sanitary towels.
• Choose formula, in case I can’t breastfeed or need to supplement.
  • Worthy of its own post but briefly:
  • US formulas are filled with junk like corn syrup (glucose solids) instead of lactose (milk sugar).
  • Organic formulas seem to have more glucose in them than lactose; non-organic formulas have a higher ratio of lactose, so GRRRR.
  • For comparison, I wish HIPP (UK), Holle (Germany), or Milupa (Canada) were more readily available in the US.
  • Wanted Nature’s One, but paediatrician said it was too high in protein for a newborn.
  • That leaves Earth’s Best.
• Choose eco-friendly, low-chemical, disposable diapers — subject to how they fit.
  • Strongly considered cloth diapering but won’t be doing so, at least not initially.
  • Love the look of Bambo and will try them. Maybe the higher cost will be offset by using fewer diapers (they don’t leak as much as other brands).
  • Will also try Earth’s Best and Honest diapers.
  • Have inherited a bunch of Huggies which apparently leak dreadfully, but I’ll use them.
  • The folks at BabyGearLab.com made this quite easy!
• Arrange crib in master bedroom.
  • We got the DaVinci Laurel 4-in-1 crib in Espresso — low toxic, sustainable wood, under $300, JPMA-endorsed.
  • And the Sealy Cotton Bliss 2-Stage Organic Crib Mattress — excellent brand, low toxic, organic cotton, got it on sale, JPMA-endorsed.
• Pick out a car seat.
  • Chose Chicco KeyFit 30
  • Best safety rankings from BabyGearLab and ConsumerReports.
  • Did you know it’s pronounced “KEE-koh” not “CHEE-ko”? No, neither did I…
• Pick out a stroller.
  • Due to my height (almost 6’1″ / 184 cms) I need a stroller that not only has a higher handlebar, but also a rear wheel axle that I won’t constantly kick (long stride).
  • That meant I only had two strollers to choose from!
    • Britax B-Ready: the Chicco car seat connects with a strap, didn’t seem secure, especially if going around a corner. Also, limited warranty.
    • UppaBaby Vista: click-in adapter for Chicco car seat is more secure, lifetime warranty, easier to push with one hand, better folding mechanism (2015 model), comes with a bassinet, and easier to configure if we have another baby.
    • UppaBaby Vista more expensive, but a clear winner.
• And, lucky us, all of V’s clothes, fancy changing pad, diaper bag, car seat, and stroller, have all been gifts. We’ve only had to fork out for the crib and mattress.

I still need to:

• Choose a health insurance plan for Baby. This will ultimately be decided by whether she spends time in the NICU (put her on her own plan) or not (add her to mine).
• Choose life insurance for DH.
• Close registry and order remaining stuff — completion discount, here I come!
• Secure bookshelves to the wall.
• Install car seat.
• Clear DH’s dresser to make room for the changing pad.

Working on:

• Packing my hospital bag
• Tying up loose ends at work (both graphic design and writing).
• Putting 400 CDs into a CaseLogic book.
• Sorting through art supplies.
• Finishing filing. Yuck!
• Finishing moving insurance claim.
• Updating my portfolio website.
• Whittling down my inboxes. I’m making progress on this one, honest!
• Creating mailing lists for the birth announcement, because I won’t be posting pics of this baby on social media.

♥

As of last Thursday, I’ve had two Non-Stress Tests. I thought NSTs were routine, but they only are for women over the age of 35 (check!), or who have pregnancy complications like placenta previa (check!), elevated Inhibin levels (check!), or gestational diabetes (nope!).

I also thought an NST was monitoring uterine contractions and the baby’s heartbeat for an hour. Nope! I have a limited ultrasound, four measurements where they measure the amniotic fluid levels. I was slightly worried I might have polyhydramnios (excess amniotic fluid) because I literally. cannot. stop. drinking. I drink 24 fl oz / 750 mls in the night because I’m always parched. I don’t understand why! I actually recorded my fluid intake one day, and it came to just over 204 fl oz / 6 litres. But it turns out my amniotic levels are spot on, so I’m guzzling away on ice cold water, OJ, and milk.

At both NST ultrasounds it was confirmed Baby V is head down. Yeah, I knew that, thanks to the sensation of pressure. I also can see that the widest point of my bump has dropped ever so slightly. Best of all, we could see her little ribcage contracting and expanding — she’s practicing breathing by working those little intercostal muscles! All babies do it intermittently, but when they stop doing it off ultrasound it means they’re in trouble and oxygen is diverted to the brain, lungs, and adrenal glands. So, to catch it on an ultrasound is extra-reassuring because it means baby is doing well.

In terms of abdominal monitoring, I haven’t had any contractions, and Baby V is active, healthy, responsive to stimuli. Atta girl, Baby V! 

In other exciting news, I noticed a drop of fluid on my pyjama top, the other night. I assumed it was from my water bottle and closed my eyes for an evening nap. To my astonishment, 45 minutes later the drop had become a large splotch, the size of two of my thumbs side-by-side. Colostrum! Holy shit! I’ve had golden gunk, like eye sleep, in my nipples since about 16 weeks, but never a leaky boob! I’m really hoping this means I can breastfeed. My mum had problems breastfeeding me and gave up after a week. Physically, I’m a carbon copy of her, plus I’ve had chest surgery, so I’m anticipating problems — hence wanting to have a formula picked out ahead of time. I haven’t had anything more like it since, but I’m definitely hopeful I can breastfeed — if not exclusively, then at least out of my right tit.

Alright, folks. That’s all for now. Time to eat, look at my To Do lists, and plan what I need to get done tomorrow.