Showing posts with label midwife. Show all posts
Showing posts with label midwife. Show all posts

Sunday, June 9, 2013

Weekend Recap - Friday

I wasn't able to get to a computer on Friday to update, and I was out of town for the weekend with my family so updating was really tough yesterday.  I wanted to make sure to blog today so I could at least catch up.  :) 

Friday was a good day, I was able to work from home in the morning.  I really appreciate that I have that benefit with my job so I can have a day in the week that I don't have to rush to get to work super early.  I normally get to work on Monday through Thursday at 7:30 AM and work until 6 because Arthur works 4 10 hour shifts, and we carpool.  So by the time Friday rolls around every week, I've already worked 40 hours as it is.  I love that I can chill out a bit some Fridays and get caught up on a few things.

Some good news related to my job that I haven't yet posted... I applied for a position working on a team that manages the knowledgebase at my job.  The knowledgebase (or KB for short) is a tool that teammates use when they take calls to look up answers for common questions the customers ask when they call eBay.  I applied for the job a couple of months ago and the hiring process was a bit slow, because they were posting it in Europe too.  I was able to pass the first interview round, which was with the person who would be my boss, and his boss.  I also passed the second round, which was a written assignment to see how well I would do actually working the job.  The last round was with a couple of the people who are already on the team.  I was offered the job just before Memorial Day weekend.  I was so excited to hear that I'd gotten it!

I will work in my current position until June 26th, and then I will move into my new role until I go out for maternity leave.  I will admit, it will be nice to not have to worry about my work here while I go out.  I am the type to stress about making sure everything is going smoothly while I'm away from the office... and being in a new position will force me to not stress because I won't to know too much about the job as it is, only be in the role for a couple of weeks until my due date.

I will be out on maternity leave for 6 weeks, and then I will take 6 weeks off for what is called "bonding time".  It's an optional benefit I can take, but it is unpaid.  I will then take 4 more weeks off for my 5 year eBay sabbatical.  Once you have worked for eBay for 5 years, the company gives you 4 weeks off, completely paid, on top of your normal Paid Time Off accrual.  I ended up saving mine back at the end of 2012, which was my 5th year.  I wanted to add it onto my maternity leave so I would have 16 consecutive weeks off to spend with my baby.  I'm so lucky to be able to have this time, and I'm definitely going to take advantage of it.  :)

Anyways, back to the updates.  So after work on Friday, Arthur and I went to our 35 week doctor's appointment with our Midwife.  I was excited to hear Finn's heartbeat and check in to make sure things were looking good.  We went in and waited for a bit, but not as long as I had to wait for my previous OB at past appointments.  She was really tired because she had been on call all day before and the previous night, and then had to come to the clinic for day appointments.  She was still attentive and remembered everything she needed to, which I appreciated.  Having no sleep and working two days in a row is really tough, I know.  She answered my two questions that I had and checked his heartbeat.  My questions were about the position he is in as well as about his hiccups. 

She had me lie on the table and she felt my stomach to locate where he was.  She confirmed that he is head down and his back is facing my right side.  She also told me that hiccups are totally normal, and are good practice for his diaphragm and lungs.  I felt great after hearing these two answers from her.  She measured me and my fundal height was at 34-35cm, which means he is measuring right around where he should be for 35 weeks. 

We left our appointment and went to have a late lunch at a Mexican restaurant in Sandy because Arthur had a Groupon.  It was really good, and the servings were big.  I had a beef burrito with beans and rice on the side.  Arthur had a seafood burrito with shrimp.  We then got ready to head up to Park City to meet up with my family.

My mom and Dad had traded their timeshare weeks to get a few units in Park City for the week.  Because I have to work all week next week, I told them we would only be able to stay Friday and Saturday nights.  I was really sad to not be able to stay the whole time, but I figured I would give as much time as I could.

We arrived up there around 6:30 or so and got unpacked and settled.  My sister and her husband and kids arrived around 8 or so and we all had pizza and stayed up and talked.  I shared a bunch of my Hypnobirthing information with my sister, and I was really grateful to hear she'd like to try it on her next pregnancy.  She is very into natural medicine, and so I figured some of the information I had to share would be interesting to her. 

We went to bed pretty late, around 12:30 AM, which is the latest I've gone to bed in awhile.  I was pretty tired, but Arthur and I still made time to practice our Hypnobirth breathing and a script as I went off to sleep. 

I'll be posting Saturday's update soon!  Check back!

 

Thursday, November 8, 2012

2 for 1

I forgot to blog yesterday, so today is a 2 for 1.  :)  Well, I didn't forget, I just didn't have time.  Yesterday was one of the most busy days I've had in a long time.  I had to be to work at 8:00, and then I had back-to-back meetings all day, until 6:00 PM.  I left work right at 6:00 PM and headed downtown.

I had plans with my friend to go see a documentary at the SLC Downtown Library at a free screening.  The movie is called Birth Story: Ina May Gaskin & The Farm Midwives.  It's about a woman who was a leader for Midwifery in the US during the hippy era.  She had a community on a farm in Tennessee and had a group of other Midwives who helped with the births in the town.

It was really interesting to see this completely different method of birthing, outside of the normal hospital environment.  It really intrigued me.

After the movie, there was a panel discussion and the audience could ask questions.  I asked a question.  I asked the 4 ladies at the front what I could do to learn more about getting involved with a Midwife before I got too involved with an OB.  They said I could go and meet the Midwives at the hospital of my choice (since some hospitals offer a Midwife service) and I could tour the facility to feel more comfortable with the option.  It sounds wonderful to be able to enjoy the experience and not be numb and disconnected.  I want to be involved and aware of everything that happens during the process.  And aside from Natural Birth in a hospital, this seems like the best option that gives me the most control.

After the discussion (around 9:00 PM), I left the library and went up to Bountiful to visit my mom.  She was at Lakeview Hospital after having a small procedure earlier in the day.  I came in, and it was so scary to see her in the hospital bed.  She was as white as a ghost, and she looked so frail.  She was asleep and so I sat in the chair by my dad and waited for a little bit.  My mom woke up for a second and asked my dad to help her throw up.  She had nausea from the pain medication.  I felt so bad for her.  :(

I talked to the nurses and asked them if they could give her something for her nausea and also some less strong pain medication.  She came in and gave my mom something less strong and said she couldn't give her any more anti nausea because she'd already had quite a bit.

I gave my mom some water and some peppermint and she seemed to relax a bit, so I felt like I could leave.  It was about 10:20 by this point.  I got in the car and drove home.  By the time I got there, it was close to 11:30.  I was so tired.

I'm going to head up there today and see her after work.  I hope she's feeling a little bit better.  Maybe I'll take her some flowers.

How far along:  5 Weeks TODAY!
How much time left:  35 weeks
Top two symptoms:  Exhaustion and hunger

Favorite thing I ate today:  Yesterday I didn't eat hardly anything and today so far, it's this veggie sub.

Mood:  Yesterday I felt busy, and disconnected.  Today I'm feeling a little bit weepy.  I think it's related to my mom being in the hospital.  It is getting to me more than I thought it would.

Worried about: I'm worried about not being able to know about all of my options when I have my baby.  I know I can turn this worry into strength by doing the research I need to do.  I also had a bad dream last night that my baby had some physical problems.  I think it's because of the movie I watched... some of the discussion about babies or mothers that don't make it through the birthing process.  I know that this is just my mind playing tricks on me, of course... but it was still scary.

Excited for:  I'm excited for when my baby is out and I get to hold them for the first time.  I also thought a bit about Christmas again.  I think the stuff will make it feel more real.