We picked for maybe 2 hours including the walk and got maybe a gallon, maybe a little more. We wished we had bought the blueberry rake (scoop size) that we saw for 3 euro at the flea market.
We have enjoyed blue berry pancakes and last night I baked a blue berry pie with crumble top. It was pretty juicy and delicious!
And as you can see, there is more of a belly now, though I think this picture exaggerates a bit because of the sweater. We went to see the health center on Monday to make an appointment. We had no idea how to make an appointment, and the person at the Info desk couldn't understand us very well. So we went to the maternity area, the neuvola, and we waited until someone came out of a room, which are examination rooms and offices combined. We asked her about how we should make an appointment. She then, but happenstance became our public health nurse. She made an appointment with us for the next day! We actually didn't know her title until the next day. On Tuesday we arrived at 10 am, and talked all about how things are done in Finland for about an hour and a half, then we did height, weight, uterine size, blood pressure and heart beat. Interestingly they test hemoglobin every check up. I was a little low.
But back to the talking... Finland seems like it will good. The main differences in care are that you see and develop a relationship with a public health nurse instead of a midwife or OB. When it's time to labor you go to the hospital and deliver with whoever is working at the time. The midwives and doctors work together, with the midwife often representing the parents needs and wants when making decisions. You only really see a doctor ahead of time if things aren't looking normal. And of course that's all relative, but I feel good about it. You also may never see the doctor during delivery if everything is going fine.
The nurse talked a lot without being prompted about how they want things to happen naturally and how they want to work with the women's body in labor. Even if they induce labor, they start out very slow to see if the mother's body will kick in. The system also is just so different because of their approach. Her job is to help healthy people stay that way. There is no assumption of sickness. And she kept saying "If you are healthy and feeling good, then baby is healthy and feeling good." and regarding care, she talked along the same lines. If I'm healthy, then there's no need for tests, etc. She always had the caveat there too, but it seemed responsible. The only thing that they rely on and I don't really believe in is checking the pelvis size in relation to head size. Ina May has convinced me that it's pretty bogus. We will see.
Regarding labor, John asked about fetal monitoring, and whether I could walk around. She said "Yes! We want you to walk around." She talked about the use of a tub only during "the first stage" but other then that restriction, she said shower when you want, listen to your music, sit on the ball, deliver in whatever position. It seemed like what she described philosophically was meant to apply to all care, not just her own beliefs, which was heartening.
That's probably not all the information I got, because it was TWO hours, but the main take away is that it generally was a relief. As far as my check up went I was right on the curve for uterine size and my blood pressure was great. Hemoglobin low, but not anemic. We had a good laugh over height and weight because I know what I started at in lbs but not in kgs! She said she will enjoy practicing her medical talk in English and remembering those conversions. She also enjoyed seeing the differences in the blood work and what we screen for and what we don't. Syphilis and HIV tests are mandatory in Finland, but all the blood work that New Dawn did was overkill for them.
Well... there is always more news because everything is new, but I should wait and spread it out, and of course I should have pictures to accompany it.
Love, Emily
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