38 week checkup

Yah my parents are back in town from the mountain house....now I can have this baby! I started taking the Red Raspberry Leaf Tablets today (I was afraid to start them while they were out of town in fear they actually would put me into labor!) I have been taking Evening Primrose Oil since last week per the request of the midwife. Yes, I said Midwife! My doctors office now has a midwife on staff. It was an answer to prayers because we really had thought about changing this time around and going with a midwife instead and even doing it at a birthing center. But I've been with this doctors practice for so long they almost feel like family. I just couldn't leave! So now that they have a midwife I'm so excited because she's gung ho on natural childbirth and doing anything she can to help me out at the hospital. The only catch is that she's only at the hospital Tues-Friday from 11-5. So now pray I go into labor during those times! But I trust God and I know he always picks the perfect doctor to be there for each delivery, and this one will be no different.

So today I saw Dr Walker, one of my favorite doctors! I started having back labor over the weekend and they wanted to "check under the hood" as the nurse called it. I've never had back labor before and wow what a horrible thing that is! WAY WAY WAY worse than normal contractions across your belly. This is like a shooting intense pain that goes all the way up your spine into your neck. I pray that's not a sign of what this labor is going to look like! When they checked me today he said I'm very soft and about a finger tip. I honestly wasn't expecting much because I usually do all the work during my long long labors. And since Boston was 10 days late and Asher was 2 weeks late most of the doctors think I'll be late on this one. They aren't even sure my body is capable of laboring fully on it's owns since it never really has wanted to. It always needs a big shove. But I'm praying this one will be different. That she won't be late and that I go into labor on my own and it goes smoothly and fast and I'm able to experience a labor without pitocin or an epidural.

I told the doctor I'm not sure I'll even know when I'm in labor this time because I've been so uncomfortable for so long! This actually happened to my mom. She went in for her doctors appt and the doctor said to her, "Don't you know you are in labor?" She responded that she had been so uncomfortable for so long it just didn't even seem any different. I told my dr that and he laughed and said "You will know...trust me." We'll see...