Today was my 20-week check-up with Dr. Pickler and we went in with a host of questions, ready to make some decisions about delivery of our little girl. We did the exam first and Dr. Pickler found Lucy's heartbeat right away with the Doppler (the first time a doctor hasn't struggled to find her behind the placenta!). She has a great little heartrate of 153 bpm, very normal and very normal for her (she doesn't budge from a 10-beat range). She also moved 3 times while we were listening and Dr. Pickler says her movements sound good and indicate she's a happy baby. Fantastic news!After much discussion (and after lengthy research provided by my good friend Dawn -- thank you SO MUCH, my friend!), we have decided to definitely go for a scheduled C-section around the first of August. We considered several points, the main ones being that I struggled so much laboring to have my first baby with no success, and the fact that when the time comes to deliver this baby, it will only have been a year since I had a C-section and the uterus needs at least that long to heal, so we don't want to take any chances with uterine rupture (*shudder*).
I have to admit, I'd been wavering of late, torn between the possibility of a VBAC (a "normal" birth) and the ease of a C-section. Thank goodness for frank conversations with knowledgable friends and helpful doctors -- I no longer have any doubts that this is the safest and best way to go for both of us. However, Dr. Pickler did tell me that with 2 C-sections under my belt, I'm pretty much "locked in" to C-sections for any subsequent children we might have. That was a heavy thought at first, but then I just quickly got over it. This is the way I'm meant to go, and apparently God thought I'd had enough of laboring the first time around, so I'll take it as a gift!
Before I close this post, I have to share one more thing. On a lark, I decided to look up Lucy's name in a name-meaning dictionary tonight. We were absolutely shocked to find out what her name means:
Lucy=light
Anne=full of grace
Elizabeth=promised by God
If you know anything about my personal history, you know how much significance I find in her middle name. And all together, we have a child whose name means "a light, full of grace, promised by God." How stunningly beautiful. We pray that she will indeed be a light in this world, that she will always carry herself with grace and beauty, and that she will always know that she is a gift promised by the Father.
2 comments:
I'm glad your decision has been made! How do you feel about it? Is it weird to have your daughter's birthday all picked out already? :-)
I actually feel great about the decision because it's been made and I don't have to stew in my own juices about it any longer (I was already sick of thinking about it). We haven't picked her actual birth date yet but we do know it will be at least August 1st and no later than August 7th, so depending on our doctor's schedule that week, we'll pick a day around the end of July. I kind of like doing that!
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