His name is John.

Just kidding! ......We still have to decide on a name. But I was hoping that somebody might see that title and be intrigued to read and perhaps post a name suggestion...

Yesterday I had a "Centering" appointment. I was very thankful that Dustin was able to get off work a little early to meet us at the hospital, where we did a tour. First we watched a video at the doctor's office, which was interesting. Before becoming pregnant and reading about birthing, I had a completely false idea of what pregnancy and birthing was. This video covered the stages of labor. Thankfully, it was not nearly as scary as the last video we watched in class (which covered comfort measures and had a lot of strange women in it making strange noises to "comfort" themselves---which actually made me very uncomfortable). And after going on the hospital tour, I am almost looking forward to the experience. Tammy (one of the three midwives) lead the tour, and after listening to what she had to say, I hope she's the one on call when Baby Mann is born! But actually, they all share a similar philosophy to birthing. I'm so blessed to be able to have a midwife!

One of the things I was most grateful to learn is that they will definitely not push me to get any kind of pain meds or an epidural. In fact, Tammy was even quick to point out all the negative aspects of getting one. At Virginia Baptist Hospital, where Baby Mann will be born, women with an epidural are confined to the bed, must wear baby monitoring hardware continuously, must have an EKG monitor on themselves, and can only have ice chips. Compare that to a natural birth: Can move around freely (which includes use of the in-room whirlpool tub), labor in any position desired, eat and drink freely, and will only have to be bothered by the baby monitoring hardware periodically (except for a 20 minute standard protocol run when you first enter the hospital). And then perhaps the thing I was most excited to hear is that they rarely perform episiotomies and do quite a bit to protect against natural tearing. Tammy said that most women come through "in tact" or with just a few abrasions that do not even require repair. That's encouraging!

Back at the doctor's office, I measured at 30 cm, even though I am 31.5 weeks. Blood pressure was spectacular, and my total weight gain is still within the normal range.