Easter Weekend

So here is the recap of the rest of the week. On Saturday morning the Easter bunny arrived. It was the first time in my life that that has happened. Gabriela reminded me the day before that they had to leave their Easter baskets on the front steps outside (a tradition my mom started when I was in the hospital giving birth to Julianne...thanks mom) and she made a sign (see below) that read "NO EASTER GRASS." I guess she remembered how much I dislike Easter grass in my house, so she made the sign and stuck it on the mat in front of our house. Unfortunately it has been raining like crazy around here and the temperature was freezing that night, so I had to wake up at 5:30 in the morning to sneek them out there so we wouldn't have frozen peeps.

Good thing that Easter bunny can read the sign and he didn't disappoint.

He brought new swimsuits, puzzles, play-dough, word searches, buckets, and a little candy.

They look happy don't they

 Poor peep didn't stand a chance.

 Later that evening, I hosted an Easter egg party. We had the family over and pulled out all the art supplies and let them go at it. I can't say we ended up with any spectacular, award winning eggs, but the kids had fun in the process. It was raining, so we held the egg hunt in the basement. No my ideal egg hunt, but you just have to go with the flow sometimes and change your expectations.

 And here are our Easter morning pictures before church.

I don't think I've taken a pregnancy picture this entire pregnancy, so here you go. 37 weeks.

 And here is Julianne posing it up. (and wearing Sophia's shoes)

 Here's the sign I was telling you about. It's awesome!

 Can we say, large belly?

 Sophia was not into the whole idea of spring colors yesterday. She was insistant on wearing all black.

It was a good day. I taught my easter egg lesson in sharing time in primary. We came home, ate, slept, had the easter egg lesson again for Julianne's sake, ate dinner, made resurrection rolls, and played games together as a family. It was simple, it was relaxed, and it was good.

A New Experience

In preparing for this baby’s arrival, one of the main concerns of mine and the doctor’s is whether or not I can go into natural labor. He’s given me some things to try and I also had the idea to try acupuncture. I have heard good things about it and that it really works. So I had my first appointment last Tues.

Wow, I had no idea what I was in for. It truly was a “foreign” experience. I know this lady personally, she is in my church ward, and I had no idea what she would do. I was expecting a couple of needles maybe and was a little nervous about it. Was it painful…YES! Were the needles the worst part…NO!

As I tried to wrap my mind around what she was explaining and what she was doing, I felt a little overwhelmed. So when I got home, I started looking things up on the internet to help me better understand what I had gone through. So for your curiosity and reading pleasure, here is what I found:

Many of the concepts emphasized in traditional Chinese medicine have no true counterpart in Western medicine. One of these concepts is qi (pronounced "chi"), which is considered a vital force or energy responsible for controlling the workings of the human mind and body. Qi flows through the body via channels, or pathways, which are called meridians. There are a total of 20 meridians: 12 primary meridians, which correspond to specific organs, organ systems or functions, and eight secondary meridians. Imbalances in the flow of qi cause illness; correction of this flow restores the body to balance.

It works by applying pressure to acupoints, meridians and groups of muscles or nerves to remove blockages that prevent the free flow of qi. Removing these blockages restores the balance of qi in the body, leading to improved health and vitality.

I did what is called “cupping” on me, in which drawing up the skin is believed to open up the skin’s pores, which helps to stimulate the flow of blood, balances and realigns the flow of qi, breaks up obstructions, and creates an avenue for toxins to be drawn out of the body.

Depending on the condition being treated, the cups will be left in place from 5 to 10 minutes. Several cups may be placed on a patient’s body at the same time. Some practitioners will also apply small amounts of medicated oils or herbal oils to the skin just before the cupping procedure,

In “air” cupping, instead of using a flame to heat the cup, the cup is applied to the skin, and a suction pump is attached to the rounded end of the jar. The pump is then used to create the vacuum.

While cupping is considered relatively safe (especially air cupping, which does not include the risk of fire and heat), it can cause some swelling and bruising on the skin. As the skin under a cup is drawn up, the blood vessels at the surface of the skin expand. This may result in small, circular bruises on the areas where the cups were applied. These bruises are usually painless, however, and disappear within a few days of treatment.

Yeah, it looks more like hickies on the skin. I also had my neck, legs, and back scraped which gave me a rash. And in the end I did have too qi-punctures to my shoulders. Those felt like an average stick of a needle, like when you get your blood drawn.  The next day my shoulders were so sore.

So in summing up my experience, it wasn't horrible, it was painful, it was really different. You just kind of have to let go and have faith in what she tells you. It's almost like switching religions. You can't compare it, you just have to believe it. I have another appointment next week. I'm a little nervous, but if it works and she can do what she says she can do, then it will all be worth it. If it doesn't work, then I've had an experience I would have otherwise never had and I'm all about new experiences.

A Change of Heart

We are all entitled to a change of heart, right? Because I've had a major change over the last couple of weeks. I'm about ten weeks from having this baby and I already had my c-section scheduled for May 10th, but my sister in law asked me if I had concidered trying to do a VBAC. She's asked me about this with my last two pregnancies too, and I usually just let it roll off my back with no concideration at all. No thanks, I'll just play it by the books and have repeat c-sections. I also went as far as telling myself this was the better way to go after all. I could pick the date, fly my mom in to help, and there were no surprises or waiting around, plus I got to shave off a week from my pregnancy. I was cool with it. After all, that's all I knew and my doctor's didn't seem to keen on the idea of VBAC anyways. I took their advice and went the safest, easiest route.

So this is how I greeted my new babies each time.

Sophia:

And Julianne:

But when my SIL mentioned it this time, I actually couldn't get it out of my head. I came home that night and started doing some research. Boy did that open up a can of worms. Maybe I was missing out on something. The fact that I didn't get to hold Julianne for several hours after my last surgery was a bummer, and the fact that the majority of the experience you are on your own. Miguel is never allowed to come into the OR until they are about to cut. All of the prep is done without him and then as soon as the baby is out he goes with the baby to the nursery and I'm there for another half and hour by myself. Kind of scary, but I just accepted it as the way it had to be.

After looking more at the stats, it seems that my chances of having a uterine rupture are very low. The stars have all seemed to allign, and prayers answered too, and I've been able to find the only doctor in the valley who will support a VBAC after multiple c-sections and he took me on as a patient. I've found a hospital that will allow me to do it and a very supportive doula,  who is an RN, who will help us.  (If you didn't know, attempting something like this is extrememly rare and those that do, resort to home births, which I'm not open to that. Doctors won't do it anymore for fear of lawsuits and hospitals quit allowing them after one c-section)

I'm hoping for a different experience. A more pleasant one, where I can enjoy the moment, have a much shorter and less painful recovery, and be back on my feet to take care of my family.

Wish us luck! We are going to need all the prayers and support we can get.