Well, our baby is still obediently head-down, but has not dropped, according to my doctor. Here's the medical details for interested grandparents and others: the baby's probably about seven pounds right now and still has a very healthy heartbeat. My next appointment is scheduled for my due date: Thursday. If I haven't gone into labor by then, we're going to have a non-stress test, which will see how the baby's moving, measure my contractions (if any) and check the level of fluid in the uterus (to make sure there's still enough there for kiddo). If I haven't gone into labor in two weeks, the plan is to induce labor (apparently complications increase when pregnancies go much past 41 weeks. I was born at 43 myself, but whatever. They don't let you do that anymore, apparently.).
So, no bad news, but I found myself disappointed. I've been having lots of Braxton-Hicks contractions (the uncomfortable but fairly painless kind) as close as six minutes apart, and I had this faint hope that my doctor would examine me today and burst out, "wow, you're already three centimeters dialated! Bet you have the kid by tomorrow night!"
No such luck. I would ask your prayers that the baby would be born before 41 weeks, because labor that's artificially induced tends to be harder than natural labor, because mom and baby's bodies aren't 100% behind what's happening. (I also ask your prayers for this whole parenthood. Eager as I am to meet this child, I'm also scared at the overwhelming change and responsibility that's coming. "How do we know when something is of overmastering importance?" "Why, when it has overmastered us.")
Still, this waiting has prompted some reflections. Talking today, Adam and I found that we'd both been mulling the similarity between this and waiting for the coming of Christ. This very tangible waiting is giving us a really good picture of what our attitude ought to be in the second situation. I mean, right now, waiting for Squirt, we can only make very tentative plans about the future. Like St. James commanded, we can only say, "If the Lord wills, tomorrow we will do this or that . . ." because we are very aware that our lives may be interupted at any moment by an event we'll be powerless to stop - an event we have to be ready for.
In reality, this is the future we face all the time. Christ may come back any day, and when he does, all our plans will mean squat. Whatever we thought we would do will have no bearing on how we are judged; only what we did do and are doing will count for anything. And how ready we are. When the baby comes, there's no more time to get our home ready for her. When Christ comes, there's no more time to ready our hearts.
Come soon though, Lord Jesus. And if there's time before that, come soon little Snell too. Amen.
1 comment:
How exciting! Sometimes I think it's better if the Drs. don't try and make predictions about when the Squirt is coming. After all, I was dialated to 4cm and fully effaced on 12/30 - told I would have him by New Years for sure, and didn't have him till 3 days after that! They just never know, even when they think they do. Hope the anticipation doesn't last too long now!
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