Throughout the weekend (and before), Freddy and I did all the things you're supposed to do to trigger labor. All the normal things, and even some off-the-wall things. (Freddy REALLY wanted Troy Emmitt to be born on 10-10-10.) Nothing happened.
Then I realized why Troy Emmitt doesn't want to come out. Even he, a teeny, tiny little fetus, knows that there is a difference between a fetus and a baby. He knows that as soon as he comes out, he stops being Troy Emmitt the Fetus -- he'll become a Real Baby Boy. And he likes being Troy Emmitt, Fetus Extraordinarie, doesn't want to become [Real Baby Boy Name].
See? Even fetuses get the difference.
Now, I feel sorry for Troy Emmitt, and I know that I, too, will miss Troy Emmitt the Fetus, but we gotta do what we gotta do. So we're going in to the hospital tonight, to start the induction process.
I know Troy Emmitt's going to be peeved that we're doing this to him, instead of letting him stay in there, all fetusy, forever, but once h becomes Real Baby Boy, I think he'll get over it.
Good luck! Well wishes and prayers will be sent your way. Healthy vibes for you and Troy Emmitt / [Baby Boy] (and Freddy too!).
ReplyDeleteFetuses are so smart, knowing they're not really infants. I wonder why that smartness disappears in some people...
In your opinion is the difference between fetus / baby more important than that and say infant / toddler, or preteen / teen? I'm curious as to why you feel one is more important than the other? Good luck with the birth and all I'll keep you in my prayers.
ReplyDeleteCharlie,
ReplyDeleteI don't know what you mean by "more important." The difference between a fetus and a baby is clear-cut; I can show you a photo of a fetus and a photo of a baby and you can tell me which is which. But if I show you a photo of a baby, can you tell me if that's an infant or a toddler? When does a baby go from being an infant to being a toddler? When he starts walking? When he turns a year old? Some babies start walking ("toddling") at nine or ten months. Are they no longer infants? Some babies don't start walking until fourteen months or later. Is walking the only determining factor? Do other developmental milestones matter? Which milestone is more important, since no two babies are likely to hit the same milestone at the same age?
What's the difference between a preteen and a teen? When does one transition from one to the other -- on midnight on one's 13th birthday? Or should it be at the time one was born on one's 13th birthday? What if one now lives in a different time zone than where one was born?
There are no physiological changes that take place when one "transitions" from infant to toddler or preteen to teen. There are, however, pretty significant changes that happen when one is born and stops being a fetus and becomes a baby: one stops receiving oxygen and nutrition through the umbilical cord and must now breathe air through one's own lungs and learn to suck and swallow to get fed.
I still don't know what you mean by "more important," but the difference between a fetus and a baby is clearly more distinguishable and more significant than the other differences you mentioned.