Another successful visit with the midwife

I'm 24 weeks along today and went to see our midwife, Sue. Usually Cam and I go together, but today I went by myself for the first time because he was working. It was a very intimate visit because not only was he absent, but her two students who are usually there were gone too. Yep! Just some good ol' one-on-one time for an hour. Nice!

D.L.'s heart rate is normal at 130. My blood pressure and urine are both still normal. We talked about my iron level which was 13 at the beginning of my pregnancy and now is 11. I asked if that was a good thing and she says it is. The reason is that the iron is basically the same, but has dissipated throughout the vast amount of blood volume I've gained over the last few months.

My feet have been swelling, which is pretty normal for this stage of the game. She said to be sure and focus on drinking plenty of water and eating well. I'm to especially be sure to eat plenty of salt in order decrease the swelling. Since, after all, an increase in blood volume means the need for more salt. Fine with me! I love salt.

I asked about a water birth pool and she said that you can't really get the 5 foot diameter kiddie pools at the regular store anymore. They seem to have been all bought up by a water birth specialty place and marked up in price. Luckily, she will be able to provide a pool. All we will need to get is a pool liner and a garden hose to hook up to our washing machine spout for warm water.

We wrapped up our visit by figuring how much money she would take off the total bill for all the yard work Cam has done for her. The remainder of the bill will be paid in whatever amount we can manage when we can get to it. This lady is so laid back. I LOVE her! She is really flexible, but more importantly, kind hearted and compassionate.

On our next visit, I get to do a glucose challenge test. An hour before the appointment, I need to eat 1 regular size "3 Musketeers" bar + 1 fun size bar, have nothing but water for an hour, then get my blood drawn at the appointment. If I do well enough on that test, I won't have to go into the lab for a grueling 3-hour gestational diabetes test. I'm keeping my fingers crossed because I really don't want to have to hang out at a lab for 3 hours!

I'm also looking forward to my next visit because it will be my first as a 30-year-old! Pretty monumental for me. I can't believe I will be giving birth for the first time at 30. I'm glad I've been able to hold out this long to do and see all the things I have. I just hope I'll be able to take all that experience and put it to good use... Only time will tell!