The update

So I am 41 weeks today and still no baby. I had an ultra sound this morning that showed he is still safely and happily cooking away in there. At my prenatal appointment my midwife stripped my membranes (for the third time) and said that I am still dilated at 2 cm but this time my cervix is soft, so I have had some improvement. She said she would like to give nature a few more days but that we could schedule an induction for this weekend if we wanted, so I am scheduled to be induced Saturday night (I will be 11 days over due by then). I will have my last acupuncture appointment on Thursday and go in to have my membranes stripped again on Friday. In the meantime I am still holding onto a tiny shred of hope that my body will somehow start labor on it's own. However, I am glad that there is an end in sight if it doesn't.

Statistically it doesn't look good for me, between my two sisters and I there are eight children, five of which were induced, one needed labor augmentation with pitocin, one was delivered by c-section and only one was natural (Mary went into labor on her own with her second and delivered without needing pitocin - go Mary!). If when my youngest sister has children and she also needs to be induced we will know there is something going on with our genetics that keeps us from going into labor (at least that is my theory).

I have done everything besides castor oil (which doesn't work often enough and usually does more harm than good) to help my body get ready for labor and start on it's own. If, despite all my efforts, I still end up being induced I am going feel let down. If I were living 100 years ago I would have been on the weak side of "survival of the fittest"... I wouldn't have made it! My can't-go-into-labor self would simply die. How depressing is that! Maybe I should end now and go to bed.