One Week (Or So) To Go!

So here we are… one week to go until Becky’s calculated due date, May 21. I know that we had told many people that our due date was May 18, but for the life of me I can’t remember how we came up with that date. May 21 is the date that we and the doctors calculated based on Becky’s last menstrual cycle, and it was confirmed when we had our prenatal ultrasound. It’s also the date that Beverly Hospital has us tentatively registered for admittance. Of course, there is no way to know for sure that our baby will be born on the due date, but we can be reasonably certain that it will be plus or minus a week from that date. Based on Becky’s current symptoms, and based on her doctor’s opinion after her exam last week, I tend to think that the baby will be born *past* the due date. It is pretty common for first-time mothers to go past their due dates. According to What to Expect When You’re Expecting, however:

Studies show that about 70 percent of apparent postterm pregnancies aren’t postterm at all. They are only believed to be late because of a miscalculation of the time of conception, usually thanks to irregular ovulation or a woman’s uncertainty about the exact date of her last menstrual period.

Becky and I kept pretty close tabs on such information while we were planning to have a baby, thanks to another great book, Taking Charge of Your Fertility. So we can say that the information we used for our calculations is about as accurate as we could get. That’s not to say that Becky won’t go past her due date, just that if she does, it’s most likely going to be true postterm pregnancy and not a miscalculated due date.

Becky has another prenatal exam on Tuesday, so we’ll get some more up-to-date info. With any luck, there should be a new Wood in our house within the next couple of weeks!

3 thoughts on “One Week (Or So) To Go!

  1. jennifair

    How are you doing up there? I saw a pic of some older people in Peabody being evacuated! I hope you’re all well and that there isn’t any unnecessary stress from this crazy weather! Hope those cute rubber ducks for BabyWood aren’t floating!

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  2. Peter Post author

    We’re doing fine in downtown Beverly… no flooding at our apartment building. We are up on higher ground, which is nice, and there is a hill that slopes past our apartment building, so there is really not any way for water to build up. There are a few small puddles outside of our windows, but nothing serious.

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  3. michelle

    When ever I think of what you might name the wee little Wood, I am always reminded of the twins Heather and Heidi Wood that were in my older sister’s class in school. Their mother very sorely had so wanted to name a daughter “Holly”, but father thought it would be best if they instead went with other “H” names.

    🙂 Best wishes here on the last leg of the race!

    Reply

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