Elijah is fine!!! Soooo happy and relieved and thankful! He's a smaller than average baby, that is all. His umbilical doppler was fine, and his amniotic fluid levels are great. It took a while to find the biggest pocket of fluid to measure, because my whole uterus is just full of baby, lol! Everywhere they put the wand thingy (or whatever it's called!), on the sides of my bump, top, middle, as low as they could go at the front, etc. - there were baby parts squashed up everywhere, hehe! I didn't get to see his face because it's down in my pelvis. Even his sweet (straight-looking, yay!) little feet were sort of mashed up together. He was fairly wiggly during the scan but seemed quite calm and happy. I got a flash of a definite scrotum again, lol!
I just sort of held my breath while they did the measurements, and squinted at the screen to see if I could make out the tiny numbers giving an estimation in terms of gestational size. I caught one of them at less than 36 weeks so was a bit worried, but then another couple of measurements were almost 38 weeks, so that was reassuring. I just had to wait until the scan was finished before I could find out how he was doing, but I WAS encouraged that there had obviously been some growth.
The sonographer put the details in the computer while I lay on my side and waited a bit nervous - Heather was sitting in the chair next to me. The computer seems to take forever to compare with the previous scans, but it probably isn't really very long at all! Then he said that the baby has grown and he has no concerns! Such a relief to hear! I started asking questions after he said that, and he was so nice and answered them all. He said that Elijah was at the 12th percentile, whereas 2 scans ago he had been at the 16th, and then the last scan he was at the 9th - hence their concern that his weight gain was dropping off. Thankfully it does appear to have just been a blip as Jackie had been so reassuring about, and he is keeping to a curve more-or-less. His growth velocity has increased since the last scan, so they are happy that he is a healthy normal baby with no increased risk factors at all. Phhhheeeeeewwwwwww!!! Seriously, soooo relieved.
Elijah's estimated weight at 39 weeks and 1 day is 6lbs 4oz - sooooo teeny tiny!!! I know people have smaller babies at later gestations, but for me this is such a weeny teeny little baby! :) The estimation is very approximate and carries a 10% margin of error or something like that - in fact Heather told me that once she attended a growth scan with a client and her baby had exactly the same estimated weight as Elijah, and was born a few days later weighing 8lbs 8oz, lol! So you never know! I DO know he will be littler than my others, even if they are off with his weight, because of his measurements. His biggest measurement was his bi-parietal something or other - some sort of head measurement (not the head circumference) which was 37.5 weeks, so still small for dates for my babies. His abdominal circumference and head circumference were 36.5/37 weeks, and his dear little femur (so sweet to see his little leggie bone!) was only 35w6d! He's going to have short leggies like Arthur, Benjamin, and me (and my daddy!), but even knowing the extra shortness is related to his build, it's still on the small side even so - over 3 weeks behind dates! So he will be a little baby, for me, unless he grows tons and stays in for a couple more weeks yet while he does so. Matthew was 7lbs 11oz at 41 weeks, so I would not expect him to be heavier than that even if he goes to 41 weeks. I'm quite excited at the prospect of having a little baby! I have had two whoppers the last couple of times, hehe! Well, not WHOPPERS, but big enough for my little frame!
The consultant appointment afterwards went fine. Midwife who I had never met asked me casually if it was my first baby - this is the usual thing - and I said, "My sixth." and she said, "First?" and I said, "No, sixth." and she said, "What?" etc, hehe! Happens every time now. I had to hold up six fingers before she got it - she said she couldn't believe I was old enough to have had six children, and when I told her I was 36 she got all high pitched and said she would have said I was 19!!!!! Um, no. I do NOT look 19!! But how nice all the same! ;)
My blood pressure was 120/60, absolutely nothing in my urine (yay!), and the consultant was happy. It was SO nice to leave with him saying, "Good luck. I really hope it all goes well for you!" and know that's the end of scans and consultants, and hospitals at all, if all continues to go well and my waters don't break before labour. I can still have a homebirth if they do, but I am careful about that, and will take it as it comes, depending on when they break, due to the GBS thing. Hopefully they'll break as the head is crowning like usual! :)
I'm just so relieved - I can physically feel the difference in my breathing and my muscle tone in my chest and shoulders and arms. I'm so glad and thankful to now be allowed to just wait to go into labour, which shouldn't be long now given how pregnant I am! :) And then just have a baby! Yay!
I can't wait to meet this sweet baby boy, and have him in my arms at last. I am absolutely itching to know what he actually DOES weigh when he's born, with all these estimations and all this focus on his size and weight! It will be so interesting to find out his actual birth stats at the time. I can't wait to kiss his little cheeks and breastfeed him and just love him and snuggle him. Of course there's BIRTH to get through first, but if I keep my eyes on the prize and draw my strength from God, I think it will all be okay.