40 weeks today! This is the week...

I am pretty sure today will come and go without a baby but I have felt pretty prepared for this to happen.  I also have a lot to look forward to this week which definitely includes meeting our baby girl; either way there is an end to this part of the journey and I am looking forward to it.

So here is the update.  As of Friday I am pretty much a 4 dilated, 70-80% effaced and just ready to go.   I haven't experienced much change over the past couple weeks and my midwife believes I am just really close and ready to go and not much will change until active labor starts.

The plan is this - we try some more gentle natural ways to get things going.  I did my first acupuncture session yesterday.  It was actually pretty great.  In all I was there for 2 hours - way longer than I expected; I think I might of fallen asleep.  There are two spots on your hands and ankles that are suppose to help get things going and I believe release oxytocin in your body.  They put a few needles in other places but the sets in those particular spots, they hooked up to a little electrode thing that I could control and increase a current as I felt comfortable.  It was really interesting and I mostly just tried to relax and let it do it's thing.  I have felt a lot stronger contractions since and just a whole lot of pressure.  Sometimes this works the first time around but many people do a couple sessions but there are numerous studies from eastern and western countries to show that acupuncture is a very effective way to induce labor.  I may do another session tomorrow afternoon after my meeting with the midwife.

I also have been drinking  a lot of red raspberry leaf tea which is suppose to do something with the uterus.

Tomorrow morning I go in to have my membranes swept.  I really feel a tad uncomfortable saying that.  Again, for some this is enough to get things moving along.

The final and last resort will be going in on Friday to have my water broke as a means of inducing.  My body is already ready to go and this is how I was induced the first time so there is a strong likelihood that this should work.  The risk obviously is there is no turning back.  Once we break my water and must have her in some way shape or form.

Here are a couple pics of me at 40 weeks!  This has been a much different pregnancy and I think I look a lot different this time around.  I am so curious to see how big she is when we meet her this week.

39.5 weeks with Ariy