Well, today was my due date. I read somewhere that only five percent of babies are born on their due date, and that first babies are on average eight days late. Isn't that lovely... So to keep you all occupied I posted some pictures of my big 40 week pregnant self.

Our house was almost finished, and we've been living here for six months now, but we still missed one thing. We didn't have stairs yet. The ladder worked fine for a while, but as my belly got bigger and bigger it became harder for me to go upstairs. The past month I was afraid to go up, so I just stayed downstairs. But as of last week, that's over. We finally have our stairs! I think they look beautiful (and it's so nice to be able to go see the second floor of my house again ). The nursery will be upstairs. We don't have it in order yet, because the baby will stay in our room for the first few weeks. That's why the bassinet and the changing table are in our room for now.

Last night, after dinner, I sat down on the couch. Usually that's the time when my baby decides to start disco dancing, so I was well prepared for that, or at least a case of the hiccups. That didn't happen however. I didn't feel anything. I started to think when I had last felt the baby, and that's when I started to worry. I couldn't remember feeling the baby all afternoon. Not when I laid down for my nap, not while I sat on the couch. And I usually feel the baby as soon as I sit down.

One of the things my midwife had told me on Monday, was to call if I didn't feel the baby as much as I had before, considering the bloodpressure and traces of protein. So - rather stressed out - I called M, who was on his way back from a trade fair in Amsterdam and of course was stuck in traffic. He told me to call the midwife, who asked me to come in to the office right away.
So I walked over to the in-laws (who live down the street) and my mother-in-law took me to the midwife's. Thank goodness she found a very strong heartbeat, so that was nice. My blood pressure was through the roof (understandably, considering my stress) but the traces of protein in my urine were gone. M came in right when she told me she wanted me to go to the hospital for a CTG, just in case.

So we went to the hospital and I was hooked up to a machine. They took my blood pressure again, and took a 30 minute CTG. The hospital midwife told me it looked like a happy baby, and it showed lots of movements. The weird thing was that I still hadn't felt anything. She made an ultrasound which also showed a moving baby. I just didn't feel it. That's why she called in the ob/gyn. The ob/gyn also made an ultrasound and took a lot of time for us. We got a very good view, we even saw the baby's face. He/she was sucking his/her thumb! She told me that the baby had dropped nicely and that I probably didn't feel anything because the placenta was very close to the baby's arms and legs. So if it moves a little, it's cushioned by the placenta, and that's why I don't feel it. Apparently it had turned around recently, because its position was different than last week.

She measured a few body parts. The baby has a big head (which all people in my side of the family do, hats never fit me) and long legs (like my husband). The growth was equivalent of a 38 week baby (and I was 37 weeks and 1 day). She measured it at 3 kilos, or 6 lbs 10 oz. Both the ob/gyn and the midwife told me it will be a "healthy big baby".
All in all I'm glad I went in. I wouldn't have slept at all, and I was getting so stressed out. It cost us an hour and a half but definitely reassured us all was fine. I don't even have to in to the midwife's again today, because they tested me so thoroughly last night. Phew!