Mom’s hand
in perfection
Dear Baby,
We had our
25 week doctor appointment today, and it seemed the perfect opportunity for me
to write my first blog to you because 1) I’ve been meaning to for quite some
time and 2) the outcome of today’s appointment was such that your modest mom
can’t be trusted to report it in full detail.
Dr. Elliot glanced at your mom’s chart and noted her weight: “perfect.”
He listened to your heartbeat:
“perfect.” He felt you in your
mom’s tummy: “perfect.” So strong was this assessment in nearly
everything that the doctor must have used that word a dozen times in half as
many minutes, and his questions, “how are you feeling,” “any abdominal pain,” “any
cramping,” weren’t so much questions as perfunctory requests for statements he already
knew to be true.
Your
perfect heartbeat is measuring at 130 bpm, which, according to the old wives’
tale, indicates you’re a baby boy. We
need to get an official family pool going on this…
The doctor
also told us that you and your mom can travel with you in her belly up to
around 34 weeks, which means that the date your mom and I are supposed to
babysit for your cousin Carter in Atlanta is right on the cusp of that. Your mom said she really wanted to go though,
and the doctor said it was ok. So
barring any issues, you’ll get to spend some good quality time with your cousin
again at the end of June.
Even
though we got such great news today, you should know that things often aren’t
perfect. Even so, things are often
beautiful and useful in ways you might not see at first. Take for example your mom’s hands, which she
has always regarded as a distinct imperfection.
Dr. Elliot told us that because your mom is nice and tall and because her
hands have nice, broad palms, your delivery has a much greater chance to go
smoothly. I always tell your mom what
beautiful hands she has, and here is the perfect proof.
Can’t wait
to see how perfect you are in person.
Love,
Dad
Interesting...do you think broad palms are important in case baby comes out so fast she has to catch him/her? Or is that just a doctor's way of saying she's got a broad enough stature over all that she won't be crackin' bones to get him/her out?
ReplyDeleteWell, he said there's a direct correlation between hand and pelvic size. I teased him a minute for looking at my hands and saying that I'd have a good, natural birth since he didn't look at my hips at all. That's when he said there's a direct relationship between palm size and pelvic size as well as height and ease of child birth. We'll see. But I'm hoping that my freakish, man-hands pay off somehow...
DeleteSounds promising!!
ReplyDeleteIt's wonderful to hear "perfect, perfect, perfect".
ReplyDeleteOf course in our eyes this baby will always be perfect...and genius and incredibly talented and extremely beautiful!!