Our Plan of Attack

Oh, the birth plan.

The really good moms out there seem to have one. However, I could never seem to wrap my head around it. And I am definitely not criticizing anyone that had one, to each his own. Although in my own case, I am much happier leaving my safety and Leah's safety up to the doctor I have trusted for the last 8 months. The same one who went to medical school, and has been delivering babies for 12 years. But, nevertheless, this same doctor gave us a "wish list" of boxes to check on options we had for birth. I was completely overwhelmed by it at first, after all, she gave it to me at our very first appointment. Some of the things I had never even thought of. Slowly, but surely I have been working on it though, checking off boxes as I (and Kyle) make up our minds on certain things. And I am proud to say, after 31 weeks, we have a plan.

I'm not good at plans, I'm rather impulsive, but the checking of boxes I can handle. So if you're curious, some of our boxes go like so:

Labor Partner: Kyle. He's it. He's the only one I want in there the whole day. Poor guy. We will bring lots of things to do to keep ourselves occupied though. Apparently, I will learn how to play pitch. There will also be my laptop, iphones, a tv, and magazines. It just seems way to intimate of an occasion to have the world in there as well. Some people welcome crowds, some welcome family... I welcome Kyle. He's my family.

Induction: I do not want to be induced in any way. I will try everything from walking 10 miles to eating lemon cupcakes to get her out on my own. However, if it comes down to it and she's just not coming... I'll give in. As with everything else, I want what's best for Leah whether it's in my plan or not.

Epidural: This one was tricky. As I've said before, the moment I walked in on my sister mid contraction was the moment I decided I wanted an epidural for myself. However, somewhere in the last 31 weeks that has changed some. Perhaps it was the video I watched of someone getting one, or the fact that I learned it basically straps you to your bed. But my mind has softened on it some. For now, I will take an epidural when I absolutely cannot stand the pain anymore. If that moment comes at 2cm, fine. If I go the whole way and think I can finish without it, fine. We shall see.


Cutting the Cord: Leah's daddy will do that. I left this one all up to him. I could have cared less. After initially giving the thought of it an awful face, he decided he wants the scissors.


Nursery for Leah: Nope. She'll be with us the whole time. Some say it's good to let them sleep in the nursery so that we can get some rest. I know for a fact I wouldn't be able to rest if she wasn't right beside me. I might even choose to stay up all night and watch her breathe, who knows?


Pacifier for Leah in the Hospital: Yes, please. Babies need to suck to soothe themselves. Soothe away, Leah.

Visitors: You better believe we checked the box that said the nurses will announce all visitors. We have no idea what shape I'll be in, Leah will be in, or Kyle will be in. And for those days that we are in the hospital, those are our priorities. I will be in full on mama bear mode, so our advice to any visitors would be to call first. Otherwise, we reserve the right to have the nurses politely send you away and not feel guilty about it :). Also, absolutely no visitors are allowed when Leah is eating. Not a one.

Those are pretty much the boxes that the general public would care about. There were others that I know you don't want to read as much as I don't want to tell you about. I am getting (we are getting) so excited for this day, and having the "plan" finished and signed makes it seem just that much closer. But it's just that, a plan. We will check into the hospital with a plan, but Leah will dictate all final decisions. I can't wait to write part two of this blog and see how closely we were able to stick to our checked boxes!