Once Upon a Time....The Birth Story of Smith Errington Pitzer- Part 1

Dear Smith,
You may or may not be interested in the story of your birth someday. I'm not sure if guys care about that type of thing, but I'm guessing at least your wife will, so I will share it.

Once upon a time a beautiful pregnant woman (me!) and her handsome, intelligent and wise husband (your dad) had their 39 week appointment with the midwife.
Okay...I need to write in first person for this....shifting gears....
During my appointment the previous week (38 weeks) I saw Maria, one of the only midwives that I had not met by this point. It was during this appointment that she brought up induction of labor. You see, I was labeled a "high risk" pregnancy while you were growing in my belly. So in addition to visiting the midwife, I also saw a perinatalogist. Apparently, the doctor had recommended in her notes induction of labor during the 39th week. I was under the impression that I could at least wait until my due date, but even then I was going to give them a hard time about it. I wanted to avoid being induced at all costs because my goal was to have a natural birth experience. Although it is possible to not have an epidural when induced, the pitocin makes the contractions more intense thereby causing more discomfort. It often leads to women wanting an epidural. You and I had been perfectly healthy the entire pregnancy. I dismissed the "high risk" label in my mind, but now I had to come to terms with what this meant now that we were approaching D-Day.
I didn't schedule a date that day, but Maria asked me to come the next week prepared to set a date. Now I just think it is no fun to schedule a birth. I loved the element of surprise...I didn't know when you were going to come, when your birthday would be...it was exciting to me. So the next week came and my appointment was with Maria AGAIN! I was hoping it would be someone different and maybe I  could slide past them or at least set a date past my due date. I hate confrontation and when she asked about a date I just rambled and did not do a good job of speaking my heart. Luckily, John was there and he spoke clearly and with authority about our feelings. He may have come off a little strong, but I suppose it had to be done. Maria kind of shut down and said we would have to make another appointment to meet with the OB because she didn't feel comfortable making any decisions.
I felt bad because I didn't want to be difficult, but I felt really strongly about letting you come naturally.
Well, then I made a decision that possibly altered things a bit. She offered to "check" me. I had always refused during prior appointments because it wasn't necessary, but this time I decided to go for it. I needed some information! She said that you head was nice and low, my cervix was thin, and that I was dialated a little more than 2 cm. She said that was great and maybe I wouldn't make it to my due date and if I did have to be induced they could use some balloon thing rather than pitocin. I left feeling better...
Now I have heard plenty of stories of women who leave the doctor after getting checked out and their labor began....well perhaps that's what happened with you...we never will be able to say for sure, but things got interesting that evening :)

To be continued....