Leap Day Baby?

[TheAnswerIs42]

Okay, I have an opinion question. I am especially interested in what Dragon Lady will think, since we are closer to the same page with our birth plans, but I could use other thoughts as well.

I am due March 7th, and since my daughter was late I immediately decided I would shoot for a Pi day baby (41 weeks). But my husband just recently noticed that I turn 39 weeks on Leap Day, so that was his new target. When I told my midwife that we had those two "goals" in our head, she jumped in and said that they would be happy to induce me on either day since I would be considered full term, and went so far as to put our names down for February 29th just in case we want to go for it. We don't have to go for it, but now we can if we want to.

Question to everyone: Would a Leap day birthday be cool, or depressing when you don't get to celebrate it every year?

Question to Dragon Lady and perhaps others: Is that worth inducing just for the fun of it?

The thing is, I have had both of my children with Pitocin. And my poor mother has been scheduled wrong for both of them as well. My water broke for my son 5 weeks before my due date, so my mom had to frantically change her flight and dash out here from Cleveland where she lives. And then she came out a bit early for my daughter, only to have me go a week over. At that point, we induced because I wanted to have a baby before my help left town without meeting her!

So in some ways, I am really used to Pitocin and being induced, despite how natural I prefer my births. And my husband was really open to trying to induce naturally instead of with Pitocin- we know a lady who does foot zoning, etc. But I feel like inducing at 39 weeks doesn't even give this girl a chance to decide when she is ready to come! At least with my 41 week day it was allowing her that.

The plus, obviously, would be that my mom could plan her trip. She could arrive a couple of days before, get to know the school schedule for my kids, and watch them while we are at the hospital. And then I would get to fully use all her help before she flies back. If I don't plan an induction early, we might run into having to induce later before she flies home, just like with my other daughter.

I wish I could just wait and decide the day of, but if my mom is going to change her flight, she can save $80 by doing it today by midnight. So we have to either jump on it or not.

I am measuring a bit big, and this girl is a STRONG kicker, which tells me she is a) healthy and strong and b) ready to get out of her confined space.

[Katya]

Question to everyone: Would a Leap day birthday be cool, or depressing when you don't get to celebrate it every year?

I think it could be fun. My friend's wife is a leap day baby, so maybe I can get her to weigh in on it.

[Katya]

Here you go:

That's a tough one. It will depend on the parents and the child's personality. I didn't like it until I was 12, but that's because I didn't handle teasing very well and, of course, everyone teased me about it. It was the worst for me when I was 7, about to turn 8. I was so excited to get baptized, but my siblings teased me that I would only be 2, so I wouldn't actually be able to be baptized. Even though I knew that wasn't true, it hurt my feelings. But I was a really tender-hearted child.

It all changed when I turned 12. At the time, all of the 6th graders in the school district went to the 6th grade center. On my "real" birthday they said happy birthday to me over the intercom and to the one other person in the school who had that birthday. I got lots of positive attention and I loved it! Tons of people gave me gifts and balloons (even though they weren't my close friends) and my core class had a party for me with a popcorn machine and everything. Mine was the only birthday that ever happened for. That's when I realized it was a pretty cool birthday. (It helped that I could handle teasing by then.)

I continued to love it because on my actual birthday we'd always do something extra special for it. The off years weren't bad either. I milked it for all it was worth and tried to get out of doing chores for both the 28th and the 1st. I definitely tried dragging out my birthday. (Actually, there's no "tried" there... I still do that.)

Now it's fun because people always remember my birthday and it's always something I can use that's unique about me when I introduce myself, if I can't think of anything else to say.

I also know people who make sure their child is absolutely NOT born on the 29th though. I like it, but haven't always. I think if the parents think it's a fun idea and would be excited to do something extra special for their child when it's their real birthday, then why not?

[Dead Cat]

I would go for it, because when they're 43, they can make this joke.

[Craig Jessop]

Go for it!!! My sister's birthday is Pi day. Every year I make the same jokes, and every year she rolls her eyes. They got even funnier once she learned what Pi is!

"Oh, hi, I'm just calling to wish you a Happy Pi Day!"
"Thanks!"
"I hope you're going to eat pie today!"
"I was planning on cake, to be honest."
"Oh really? Why?"

I'm the worst brother ever.

[krebscout]

Just because you're induced that day doesn't mean you'll give birth that day, does it?

[Dragon Lady]

Just because you're induced that day doesn't mean you'll give birth that day, does it?

Good point. With Dragon Baby I was induced and she was born 24 hours later.

I have opinions on this. But I also have a screaming baby. So… I'll get back with you.

[Unit of Energy]

I just thought I'd share a story about a man I knew when I was younger. He was my grandparents' age and was born on leap day. It wasn't until a few years of celebrating this that they realized that he was actually born on March 1st. The year he was born didn't have a leap day.

As far as having a birthday on leap day, I always wanted to have such a birthday.

[Katya]

I just thought I'd share a story about a man I knew when I was younger. He was my grandparents' age and was born on leap day. It wasn't until a few years of celebrating this that they realized that he was actually born on March 1st. The year he was born didn't have a leap day.

That's awesome. ("I was born on Leap Day, 1981!" "Um . . . ")

[Tao]

Not entirely connected, but in my high school's production of Pirates of Penzance one of my good friends whose birthday was on leap day got cast as the Sergeant, which I found rather amusing.

[Katya]

Not entirely connected, but in my high school's production of Pirates of Penzance one of my good friends whose birthday was on leap day got cast as the Sergeant, which I found rather amusing.

Not Frederick?

[Yarjka]

I wouldn't induce just for the sake of the birthdate... but if you were planning to induce anyways, you might as well do it on a day of significance.

[Tao]

Not entirely connected, but in my high school's production of Pirates of Penzance one of my good friends whose birthday was on leap day got cast as the Sergeant, which I found rather amusing.

Not Frederick?

heh, nope. Hence the funny.

[TheAnswerIs42]

I wouldn't induce just for the sake of the birthdate... but if you were planning to induce anyways, you might as well do it on a day of significance.

Yeah, that ended up being my thoughts. I had to make a decision by last night so my mom could change her flight if needed, and it looks like we are going for it. I was just worried that if I skipped the induction on the 29th, my mom might fly in and wait for a baby that didn't come, and I would end up inducing so the baby would come before she left (just like we did with my daughter), only it would have been some random day. If I am full term and there is a chance I would be inducing anyway, might as well make it a fun day to induce, right?

Honestly, I'm not fully happy about it - I would prefer to let nature decide when the baby is ready to come - but scheduling a flight means that things need to be a bit more predictable. I kinda hate that I am scheduling the birth for convienence, but . . . I want my mom to be able to be here and help.

[Genuine Article]

I kinda hate that I am scheduling the birth for convienence

My parents decided to induce labor with my youngest sister because their insurance was going to run out 5 days before she was due. Sometimes convenience is okay. Now she gets to share a birthday with Harry Potter.

[TheAnswerIs42]

Just because you're induced that day doesn't mean you'll give birth that day, does it?

Good point. With Dragon Baby I was induced and she was born 24 hours later.

I have opinions on this. But I also have a screaming baby. So… I'll get back with you.

I wrote a response to this earlier, but I just noticed that it apparently didn't post. Since I have had Pitocin for both my births, I figured I have a fairly good idea of how it will go for me. The first time we were "inducing" 12 hours after my water broke when I still hadn't started contractions, and the baby was born 6.5 hours after we started the Pitocin. The second time was a regular induction, so the Pit took a couple of hours to really work, but even then I had a baby 7 hours after the Pitocin started (labor was just shorter that time around). So as long as we start the Pit by midday, we should still be fine.

And Dragon Lady, I'm still curious about your opinions. But screaming babies always come first, so take your time!

PS - GA, that's certainly a good reason to induce. I can't imagine the bills with no insurance at all - especially if things go wrong.

[TheAnswerIs42]

Fail.

Of all the opinions we asked, the baby's is the only one that mattered. And she had no intention of being born on Leap Day. My labor was three times as long as expected and she was born at 12:40am, March 1. Birth story coming on my blog as soon as blogger lets me get the photos in there.

(Granted, it isn't a fail when you have a healthy, beautiful baby girl born. But the Leap Day concept failed.)

[Fredjikrang]

Well, at least you already know that she's going to be a non-conformist. ;D

[Digit]

My wife and I have the same birthday (but she's exactly one year older) and we were at the hospital in a delivery room ready to have our first child on that day too, but the doctor said she wasn't ready to come out yet, so we were sent home and she was born five days later.

[krebscout]

Congratulations!