~35 Weeks & Her Name~

Today is the official end of our 35th week!  We just happened to have our follow-up OBGYN appointment today and Malu was able to come for the first time.  Little did he know that he (as well as I) was in for a treat today with news we'd receive today.  Not only did he get to sit there and witness my GBS testing (you know, the one where they just get a swab sample down there) and hear her heartbeat, but he got to see Vaiosina via ultrasound.  But the reason why we got to do the ultrasound in the first place is because we found out that Vaiosina hasn't turned just yet.  She's just happily sitting in the breech in my tummy, which shouldn't be the case with me hitting my 36th week tomorrow.  So.....we had to meet with a physician to schedule an ECV (External Cephalic Version) to turn this baby out of the breech (head down).  This will happen on the 13th.  To be honest, I am a little nervous.  I have to get an epidural for this procedure and if something goes wrong, I may have to get a c-section or be induced. 

All I can say is that I am so glad that Malu is here to support me through this.  Could you imagine how much more freaked out I'd be if he hadn't returned from Iraq early?  Oh my goodness, I'd be a wreck.  He is determined to have me give birth naturally (vice a c-section) and is helping me by "forcing" me to do all kinds of exercises to get the baby to turn on her own.  So tonight, I was on all fours with my butt in the air three different times for 20 minutes each. And each time, he laid there right with me, making me laugh and helping me through the discomfort of it all.

Anyway, I figured that while we're on the topic of our baby girl in the first place that I'd finally take the time to give you guys some background on her name, as some people have been asking me about it.  

When I told my parents what her name was going to be, my dad was ecstatic.  I mean, he's Samoan and he loves the fact that we had chosen a Samoan name.  My mom found every reason to not pronounce the name correctly despite how many times I said it...and I think it was because she wanted us to give her a more "common" name.  She actually wanted me to name her "Isabella" which is a beautiful name.  Unfortunately, for Malu and I, it held no meaning and we'd always known that we were going to give her a powerful Samoan name, as a way to preserve our culture.

Vaiosina (pronounced VIE-OH-SEE-NAH), according to my husband, translates into "Sina's pond or pool."  And there just happens to be a story in Samoan mythology entitled "Sina and the Eel" that explains the origins of the first coconut tree.  As you know, the coconut is a staple throughout all of Polynesia and is not just important as a food, it is used for oil, baskets, building houses and so much more.

There are several variations of this story, but I particularly like this version from Wikipedia:

On the island of Savai'i in Samoa, there was a beautiful girl named Sina who had a small pet eel (in this version...they use the word 'Tuna' and 'Eel' interchangably...as 'Tuna' is the Samoan word for 'Eel').  When the eel grew, it fell in love with Sina and she became afraid.  When she tried to run away, the eel followed her.  So she sought refuge in a village and when she thought she was safe, she went to the village pool to get some water.  But when she looked into the pool, the eel was there, staring up at her.

There are pictures that depict this great story, such as this one by Sheila Lamb.  This picture was found at http://www.sheilalamb.com/.

And she became angry.  And when she did, she cried "you stare at me with eyes like a demon!" and the village chiefs came to the pool and killed the eel.  As it died, the eel asked Sina to plant its head in the ground and when she did, a coconut tree grew.

When you remove the husk from a coconut, there are three round marks that appear like the face of an eel (see above).  Two of those round marks are solid...for the eyes, and one is soft and can be pierced so that you can drink from the coconut.  That soft mark represents the eel's mouth...so when Sina would drink from the coconut, it was like she was kissing the eel.

And that's the story!

But the cooler part is that the village pool where eel found Sina?  Well, that pool is located on Malu's grandma's family land in Samoa--which is why the name has such significance to Malu's family.

And would you believe that once Malu told my mom this story, all of a sudden, she could pronounce Vaiosina's name without any problems.  Go figure.

And there you have it.  Please keep us in your prayers.  Being a first-time mom, this procedure has me a little worried, but I know that we'll be okay.  I promise to keep you guys in the loop!