Baby, Doctor, and . . . Guns?

Ela é grande . . . não enorme . . . mas grande!
(She's big . . . not enormous . . . but big!)

Those were the words of my doctor yesterday as he felt Z Baby through my belly. He's guessing her to be around 3500 grams (~7 lbs 11 oz) now. And being that babies put on roughly half a pound per week at this point, I'd be quite content with her coming now and not in, oh, say two or three weeks!

The appointment went well again although I was pretty certain my blood pressure was going to be elevated after my experience in the waiting room . . .

I arrived at my scheduled appointment time, but we've never been seen on time, so Eric was just meeting me there about 30 minutes later. I walked into the small waiting room outside of the doctor's office and was greeted by 4 armed guards - 2 men and 2 women - along with a very large scary-looking woman in a red jumpsuit (presumably from a retention center of some sort). There weren't any more seats available, and one of the guards quickly jumped up and offered his to me.

So I ended up squeezing in on the couch between two of the armed guards. They were all quietly reading magazines with the exception of the very large, very pregnant, very not friendly looking woman in the jumpsuit and flip flops; she was just staring at the wall.

I'm not sure if I've ever been in a more uncomfortable setting, but that would soon change.

After several minutes a couple of the guards got up and walked out of the waiting room. And then the other two did the same. And then I started wondering: hmmmm, if they feel the need to send along four people with guns with this woman to a doctor's appointment, um, how safe is it to leave me alone in the room with her? Granted, all the guns were just outside in the hallway, but still . . .

That's when I decided to pick up a magazine. I spent the next twenty minutes or so reading with one eye and watching my waiting room companion with the other.

Eric called to tell me he was almost there. I told him not to be alarmed if there were several police officers with guns at the door when he got to the waiting room. After a moment of silence he asked, "Um . . . why? What have you done?"

About that time, the doctor came out and called the jumpsuit lady back and the two female officers came back in and went into the office with her. (See? They wouldn't even leave the doctor alone with her!)

I'm not sure why she was being seen at a private doctor's office rather than with the public health care system . . . or why they don't have physicians at the detention facility rather than sending out the inmate with four armed guards. But, hey, whatever . . . our tax dollars at work, I suppose.

So back to the appointment. I am the tiniest bit dilated, but Z Baby is still hanging out pretty high. My doula is coming over today to give me an aromatherapy massage and work some acupressure points that are supposed to help start labor . . . we shall see! We're trying everything these days as I'm hitting that less-than-comfortable part of pregnancy that leaves me a little fussy. ;)

We have an ultrasound scheduled for Monday if she doesn't make her grand entrance before then.