Back in September of 2005, I wrote in my journal that it felt strange to be driving out of Klaipeda for the last time as a married, childless couple knowing that when we drove back into our city our lives would be forever changed as we would have a baby in tow.
And here we are again, 3 & 1/2 years later, about to take that same trip tomorrow, with that same strange knowledge. This time it's a bit easier to imagine as we've already done it once, although I've heard that going from 1 kid to 2 can be the toughest transition of raising a family. Bringing home a boy will be new for us, and for as much as Ieva talks about how excited she is to meet her baby brother, we know that the reality of sharing mom & dad's attention is going to be a pretty tough reality check in her little life.
Ieva & her baby brother at -5 weeks old! (I was at 35 weeks then.)
Waiting for Ieva was somewhat easy. Our doctors suspected she could come early (I had gone into early labor at 34 weeks), so we went to Vilnius 2 full weeks prior to the due date and waited. And waited. And waited. And when her due date came & went and she still hadn't come, we had labor induced & she was born via c-section (due to my body refusing to continue the labor process all the way to completion).
This time around it's a bit different. We hoped to play the waiting game again, but this time wait long enough for the baby to come naturally, without inducing labor, & see if my body reacts differently & allows me to labor until the end. But upon consultation with our doctor (the same who delivered Ieva -- she's fabulous!) she informed us that due to the risks involved for a 2nd pregnancy when you wait too long (the bigger you get, the thinner your uterus becomes & the greater the chance of your c-section scar bursting while trying to push the baby out of the birth canal), she said that she won't let us wait longer than the due date of June 10. If he hasn't come naturally by then, it'll be another c-section. And as much as I thought I'd be disappointed to hear this, I'm really (truly!) okay with it! When she used the terminology "internal bleeding" in reference to what could happen if my scar burst during labor, both Andrew & I immediately decided it wasn't a risk worth taking. I've always thought the idea of natural baby delivery was the best (and only!) way to go, but quite frankly, our primary goal has become a healthy baby (and healthy mom!) at the end of the day...regardless of which way the baby comes out.
The other big change this time around is obviously having our precious 3 & 1/2 year old daughter Ieva with us. Thankfully, her 1st nanny Aurelija (who lives in Vilnius with her husband now) has agreed to keep her when we go to the hospital. It's a perfect fit, since Ieva adores Aurelija & Balys and the feeling is very much mutual! 
Ieva was the flower girl in Aurelija & Balys' wedding in September 2008!
We also had Ieva see an Ear/Nose/Throat specialist the last time we were in Vilnius who strongly recommended that she get her tonsils & adenoids removed, as her tonsils are in bad shape & her adenoids are blocking her sinuses & causing fluid build-up in her ears, which is preventing her from hearing properly (and helped her get sick much more frequently this spring).
So...our tentative (and hopeful!) plan is this:
Saturday, May 30 -- drive to Vilnius & stay with missionaries Wendell & Patti McClung who are graciously opening their home to us!
Sunday, May 31 -- attend the 10 year anniversary service & celebration of the International church in Vilnius. The pastor there now is the same one who was there when we were waiting with Ieva. He & his wife left soon after, but have returned recently & we're thrilled to reconnect with them!
Monday, June 1 @ 2pm -- Ieva will go to the Baltic American Clinic for a tonsillectomy & adenoid removal. They'll most likely keep her overnight.
Wednesday, June 3 @ 10am -- I will have an appointment with my doctor at the Baltic American & she'll assess my progress at that point. Depending on what she finds, we'll make a plan for the next week (either wait it out or schedule a c-section).
Sometime between June 3-10, and hopefully after Ieva has recovered from her surgery, we expect our baby boy to enter the world!
We know that our plans are often not the same as Gods', so we're trusting that whatever happens will still work out okay. I'm significantly more uncomfortable at the end of this pregnancy than I was with Ieva, so the idea of getting baby boy out of my belly & into my arms as soon as possible sounds wonderful! But it would still be nice if he waited to come until after Ieva recovers from her surgery. We'd like her to be able to enjoy the process of welcoming her baby brother as much as possible!
Please join us in praying for all these transitions happening within our family in the upcoming weeks. Thanks!
We're excited to see what God will do in the life of our family!
1 comment:
Wow! Praying for you guys! How exciting that he's almost here!
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