Not in Labor Day Weekend

Nothing to report. The baby did not choose to have a sense of humor and arrive on Labor Day. He also refrained from coming on Saturday and causing us to miss Michigan's win against Western Michigan - GO BLUE! However, we gladly would have missed the game had it meant we'd be at home with Baby Gill right now instead of Erin being home alone with the cat and Anthony being stuck back at the office for what looks like another week.

We went to the hospital this morning for a second non-stress test and had identical results to Erin's first test. The nurse was visibly surprised to learn that the baby is 6 days past his due date, as his fluid levels remain very high and he is under no stress whatsoever. Erin continues to maintain a blood pressure that is just barely above "dead," which seems strange to us given that she's feeling extremely stressed out at this point.

After the test, we went to the doctor for Erin's 41 week exam (she is 40.6 weeks pregnant today). The doctor noted some progress from last week's exam, but nothing to indicate that the baby is definitely coming in the next day or so. Erin was concerned that the baby is perhaps too active at this point, since he kept her up with constant movement from 12:30am - 4:30am last night, but was reassured by the doctor that a baby simply cannot move too much - especially when he's past his due date. While it may be uncomfortable for Erin, the aggressive round-house kicks Baby Gill regularly delivers to her right side are actually a good sign that he is still very much thriving in the womb.

Knowing that we are trying for a natural birth, the doctor agreed to allow Erin to continue the pregnancy until Monday, when she will be 41.5 weeks pregnant. Doctors in the US will not allow a pregnancy to go beyond 42 weeks, so a Monday induction is about a long as we can wait to have the baby. Erin will be admitted to the hospital at 5pm on Sunday night to begin a round of cervidil (a drug that helps soften and efface the cervix) and, assuming the cervidil itself doesn't send her into spontaneous labor, as it very well might, will begin pitocin on Monday morning. Erin was very tempted to take her doctor up on the offer to just go ahead and induce tomorrow, but has done enough reading to know that at her current cervical state, there is a high likelihood that an induction at this point will fail and she'll end up with a c-section. The doctor did say that Erin can change her mind at any point between now and Monday and decide to be induced earlier.

Erin is going to try to relax over the next few days in hopes that the baby decides to show up on his own - perhaps when the Grandparents Meek are here, so that they can actually meet the little guy! She's getting a 1.5 hour prenantal massage tomorrow and hopes that it works some physical and psychological magic. Keep your fingers crossed!