Thursday, May 8, 2014

When Will Baby Arrive???

Well, isn't that the question du jour!!!  We have a due date {Sunday, May 25th}, I'm going for weekly check-ups, we have a poll where friends and family can record their own hunches, but the funny thing about baby births is that despite all the miracles of modern medicine and all the "convictions" our loved ones have in their own minds, nobody REALLY knows when baby will be ready to make his or her debut!

For some reason it hit me this week -- Week 37 -- that I could go into labor at ANY minute.  YIKES!!!  I know I typically love surprises, but in this case it's terrifying not knowing WHEN or even WHERE baby or my body will decide "it's show time"!  Instead of wondering whether we'll need a boy name or a girl name to give baby, my mind is occupied with desperately trying to predict when we'll need a name at all and how I could potentially limit any humiliation by not being out in public at the wrong time!  If I feel a twinge, does that mean something's happening?  Should I not walk around too much "just in case"?  I've freaked myself so much that I've been sitting on a towel at home every day this week!

It's a well known fact that very few babies are born on their actual due date.  I think the last statistic I read said that only ~5% of babies enter the world exactly on their due date.  {Fun fact:  My hubby fits into this category!  Me?  I was late being born, and late every day since...}  I've also heard that it's most common for babies to be born anywhere from 2 weeks before to 2 weeks after their due date.  BUT THAT'S A FOUR WEEK SPAN!!!!  That's not a narrow enough window for me to mentally prepare!  I know in my head that there is no possible way for me to find this answer, but that doesn't stop me from looking for it!!!  :)

According to this Baby Center article:
The most popular day for babies to make their entrance is Tuesday, followed by Monday. Sunday is the slowest day, with 35.1 fewer births than average. Scheduled c-sections and induced labors have a big influence on the fact that far fewer babies are born on the weekend, but spontaneous (non-scheduled) deliveries occur less often on the weekend too.
Interestingly, I was born on a Tuesday, while Shep was born on a Wednesday!

I'm sure many of us have heard the old wives tale that there are more births during a full moon.  Though many scientific studies disprove that theory, it's worth pointing out the next full moon in NYC is May 14th!  Gulp... that's *less than a week away*, though technically during the relevant window of time!  {And for anyone curious, it's a Wednesday.}  I don't know though, that sounds much too soon!!!  I'd love a little more time if possible!

Then I stumbled upon http://whentoexpect.com/, which is a prediction calculator that compares some self-reported demographic info to public birth certificate data from the CDC's Division of Vital Statistics on live births in 2009 and 2010.  {Read more about the calculated estimates here.}  According to this calculator, I'm most likely to give birth during week 39.

Source: http://whentoexpect.com/

That seems a little less scary.  :)  One other tidbit from this prediction site:  Our best guess of your baby's birth weight: 7 pounds, 12 ounces.  Given my recently-developed wish for a "not too large" baby, I think I could live with that! ;)

Oh, and I can't leave out Madame Zaritska's prediction:
The day you deliver, outside will be cloudy. Your baby will arrive in the early morning. After a labor lasting approximately 10 hours, your child, a girl, will be born. Your baby will weigh about 5 pounds, 4 ounces, and will be 17-1/2 inches long. This child will have medium green eyes and fluffy blonde hair.
***

So there you have it folks! I could have this baby on a Tuesday, or a Monday, or on Wednesday May 14th, or anytime the week of May 18th - May 24th, or on a cloudy day...... or basically any other day from now to early June. How's that for a scientifically accurate prediction? ;)

6 comments:

  1. i love the fact that you don't know when baby will come it's like this big mystery but i'm sure when it's happening to you its different, i'll prob be stressing so badly at the end too! I have to work pretty much up until i'm due so i'm super worried my water will go at work or something!The fear of the unknown is what is scary too i reakon. I'm guessing you will go over due like a week maybe, as it's first baby :) but at the end of the day baby arrives when it's ready! i'll be checking in all the time! can't wait to hear the big news! x

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. One of my friends is a teacher and with her first baby her water broke at work during a superintendent's conference! She was mortified at the time! But, these things happen so try not to stress about it too much! I also remember several years ago when I was visiting a branch office at my job that my co-worker's water broke at work when I was there! They came in and cleaned up and replaced her chair with a brand new one by the end of the day. ;) I'm actually convinced that's one of the reasons why my job gives us "pre-maternity" leave -- they probably got tired of dealing with the clean-up from all these women going into labor at work! But, like I said, that's what very commonly happens when companies have employees work up until their due date, so try not to sweat it! The fear of the unknown is SOOOOO scary though! It's thrilling when it comes to the sex of the baby.... it's terrifying when it comes to the arrival date/time of the baby! Yikes!

      Delete
  2. Have you started having your weekly cervix checks? That will give you a good indication too of just where you are. The day before I gave birth, 13 days before my due date, my doctor pretty much told me it would be any time now. And sure enough, the next day (a Friday, Christmas Eve) I gave birth to my son twelve days early! I was nervous that I wouldn't know what to do when the time finally came or that I wouldn't recognize that it WAS time to go, but I totally did. It's like my body just knew what to do and all I had to do was follow suit. You will be the same! Tha'ts how God designed us! I can't wait for the BIG DAY.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Yes, those started last week at Week 36 appointment, and I'm going weekly. So far as of Monday this week, it was still "closed", but I've read that can change very quickly, though I'm sure that's not the norm for it to change super quickly it can and does happen! I was a bit more relaxed on Monday afternoon and even into Tuesday & Wednesday, but now I'll be super anxious until Tuesday at my 38 week appointment to learn what, if anything, is happening! :) Thanks so much for the encouragement, Mel! I know that women have been doing this since the beginning of time, and I know in my head that my body should and hopefully will know what to do, but it's hard to actually let go and just let that be enough! :)

      Delete
  3. You know what, I got exactly the same prediction from Madame Zaritska. Lol. I'm Asian. There is no way my kid will have medium green eyes :-) Great blog BTW. I'm currently 36 weeks and basically in the got to wrap up to do list phase!

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Ha ha ha, that's pretty funny! Thanks so much for reading!! Congrats on your pregnancy... hope you're feeling well! Your baby will be here before you know it when baby is good and ready, and it won't matter what is done on your list or not done -- I sure learned that!

      Delete

Related Posts Plugin for WordPress, Blogger...