an update

I re-checked the appointment card at 1:57 and saw that my non-stress test was scheduled for two o'clock, rather than 10:30 as I'd thought. Just then, partner's wife pulled up, home for lunch. We hopped in the car, went straight to the hospital for the scheduled test, and stayed there the rest of the work day.

The non-stress test went fine. They monitored the baby for a good forty-five minutes and were pleased with his or her stats. We insisted on an ultrasound anyway, so they did a complete biophysical something or other. They checked to see how much water is in there vs how much baby, how well the placenta is holding up, if s/he's practicing breathing like s/he's supposed to be doing, and at my request, looked particularly closely at the baby's heart to check for deformity. At the partner's request, they double checked the gender. Unfortunately, the baby was squeezing his or her legs shut so the ultrasound tech couldn't tell a thing. They think s/he weighs six pounds, seven ounces. I thought that was awfully specific for an estimate.

Meanwhile I am still getting painful contractions at precisely the same irregularly regular intervals I had when they were monitoring me: four minutes, four minutes, four minutes, eight minutes, four minutes, four minutes, four minutes, eight minutes and on like this.

Now I must call my midwife to let her know. Next I will go to sleep. Maybe if I get a whole night's sleep, that will induce labor.