37 Weeks - Full Term!

Today is a special milestone - baby Conan is now officially considered Full Term. He probably won't be born for at least another two weeks (possibly up to five) but whenever he does decide he's ready it will be OK. Medically, his lungs & other organs are fully developed now and he wouldn't require any special care to survive "outside". He might be a tad on the skinny side at this point, as these last few weeks are all about accumulating baby fat, but otherwise he'd be just like any other newborn.

Besides Conan himself being ready, we've finished getting & organizing all the supplies we'll need for the homebirth, so we're ready too. Most everything we'll need is packed in this laundry basket, ready & waiting to be deployed whenever labor starts.

If you are curious, here's what is in the basket:

2 dozen extra large blue medical underpads

1 dozen 4x4 sterile gauze pads

1 digital thermometer

1 sterile rubber 2 oz bulb syringe

1 8 oz. peri squeeze bottle

1 bottle hydrogen peroxide

1 bottle witch hazel

1 bottle olive oil

2 dozen regular sanitary napkins

1 pkg maximum absorbtion maxi pads

2 sets of sheets

1 12x12 painters' drop plastic

1 12x12 blue plastic tarp

2 plastic garbage bags

2 ziploc freezer bags, 1 gallon size

drinking straws

heating pad

large plastic bowl

hand mirror

clean wash cloths

receiving blankets

diapers

sleepers for baby

cotton baby hat

nursing nightgown

And in the freezer there are a couple soft-gel ice packs, frozen juice concentrate, and several boxes of popsicles. :)

The plan is to set up the birthing tub right in the living room (on top of the blue plastic tarp) and make up the futon/couch as a bed (sheets, painters plastic, second set of sheets). It's the biggest room in the house, and the kitchen and one bathroom are right adjacent to it. Also, the wood stove is available if we want (or need) to have a fire going. You never know, we do get some big winter storms around the time we're expecting Conan to make his appearance. I actually think that would be pretty neat, to have a big storm going on outside while we were snug and warm laboring inside.

The only thing we don't have at home yet is the birth tub itself, which we are renting. We are supposed to pick it up on Saturday, so that shouldn't be a problem. We even have a special medical-grade hot water hose (regular garden hose is a no-no for this sort of thing) and a special adapter so we can attach it to the bathtub faucet for filling the birth tub.

I can't believe it's so close! I'm so ready to be done with pregnancy. It really hasn't been very pleasant, and although I will always treasure the special feeling of having felt this little life grow inside me, I'm ready to have my body to myself again.