37 Week Doctor's Appointment

Well, what do you know...I was right all along (as usual)! I had my 37 week doctor's appointment this morning (I'm going once a week now), and due to the fact that I'm measuring rather large for my gestational age (like four weeks ahead), they ordered an ultrasound to measure the weight of the baby (to make sure he or she is not a GIANT).

Now, to give you a basis for comparison, the average baby weighs nearly 6 pounds at 37 weeks gestation. Mine, on the other hand, is already a little more than 8 POUNDS! Holy moly...he or she is measuring in the 93% of babies in terms of size/weight!! When they told me that, my first question (other than "Can I get the epidural now?!") was "So from here on out, how much more weight will he or she gain?" They said the average is about half a pound a week, which would put the baby at about 9.5 pounds at 40 weeks...thank goodness I'm planning on being induced a week early!! I guess I shouldn't be that surprised...David was a plump baby, and I was no slouch myself (over 9 pounds). Looks like we'll have the fat little baby we were hoping for...you should've seen this little one's cheeks on the ultrasound screen (he/she looked like a little chipmunk).

In other news, the doctor says that the head is down (which we already knew), and I am 75% effaced and 1 cm dilated...so things are progressing! I probably won't efface much more before I go into active labor, but hopefully I'll dilate another centimeter or so before my next appointment (Thursday, Aug. 28) so that I'm presenting all the conditions necessary to formally schedule an early induction. The doctor thinks this is very likely, but keep your fingers crossed for me just in case! The scheduled induction date would be Tuesday, Sept. 2...which gives me just 13 more days! I try not to think too much about that, because if I do I start going into super-planner mode, stressing out about all the things I still need to do before the birth (get the car seat installed, pack my hospital bag, create a "birth plan," finish my master's degree, travel the world...you know, the basics). I figure...it'll all get done, and everything will be just fine (at least, that's the lie I'm telling myself right now...all you parents who have been through this before, just leave me to my delusion!).

Well, that's about all for now...I'll post the baby shower photos as soon as I get them, and will update you after my appointment next week. Thanks to everyone for their concern about Tropical Storm Fay...so far, we're doing just fine. Just say a prayer that I don't go into labor during the worst part of the storm (sometime in the next two days)! Love you all...