First and most importantly, I love the smell of tea tree oil, but for any of you who have never tried it in a bath before, be careful!!! I had found it really helped with congestion, so one day about a month ago when I was sick, I decided I'd put some drops of tea tree oil in a bath, so that I could take a nice warm soak *and* breathe better. So, into the bath went water and tea tree oil, into the bath went me, and... my highly anticipated evening of pampering myself and feeling better turned into a "why do my calves feel itchy? Why do my thighs feel itchy? Why does my butt feel itchy?" Which was immediately followed by realizing I was reacting to my bath water, draining all the water in the tub, soaping thoroughly and rinsing off several times in not-very-warm water since I'd used most of it up for the bath, in an effort to rid my entire body of that itchy feeling. Turns out, some of us are super sensitive to tea tree oil contact with the skin, and while I thought I'd used it on my skin before, I must not have to any great degree. I also figured diluted in a bath should be totally fine, but it really really wasn't.
Bottom line: figure out a way to test your reaction to tea tree oil before you go getting in a tub with it! My reaction started within just a few minutes, so you could probably just soak your hands or feet or something to see what happened.
GBS: I had to do research on this for my childbirth class, and was kind of surprised at the outcome. When I started out, it seemed like just one more test. When I was done with the research, I was pretty convinced that it's a test (and treatment) that can make a really big difference. Like most things, of course, it does come down to how you weigh the risks and benefits. In my view, while rare, the infections that can result from GBS (sepsis, meningitis, pneumonia) are severe and can have serious repercussions: deafness, lung damage, learning disabilities, blindness, etc., along with a 5-20% mortality rate. For a GBS-positive woman, with the antibiotic treatment (every four hours in labor I think after your water breaks), the chance of your baby getting an infection decreases from 1 in 200 to 1 in 4000. To me, that's a huge difference, and enough to seriously consider the antibiotics if I turn out positive (the GBS test is the *one* test my midwives really strongly encourage). All the countries that have adopted suggested testing and antibiotic treatment during labor have seen their incidences of early-onset GBS infections decrease 70-80%, down to the levels of late-onset cases, which aren't caused by birth. Anyway, I thought it was all pretty compelling, but of course we all have to make our own decisions! spughy, were your other antibiotics continuous? Maybe you wouldn't have as much of a reaction to antibiotics that were only given every 4 hours? I do totally agree with keeping up healthy flora for now. I should find more fermented foods to eat!
Scruffy, sorry to hear about the accident, and I'm glad everyone is okay! I love the Little Steps story. 
melany, that sounds scary in the tub - I'm glad you got out! I always wondered about this low handle on the wall alongside our tub, and then after I got pregnant I have been very thankful for it when getting out of the bath. And thanks for the hospital input. I honestly can't remember which two hospitals the midwives transfer to, but I do know that for non-emergent transfers, they prefer to go south to one near Renton, because it has the lowest c-section rate. So they've definitely thought about it! And I know two mothers who had to transfer to hospitals with them, and ended up with c-sections, but felt like they were in control of their decision-making the whole time. So I think we'll be good! And of course, while being prepared for other eventualities, I'm hoping for labor/births like my mom had - quick and easy.
jodieanne, white chocolate cheesecake brownies sound amazing.
AFM, I went in for my three hour GTT today. It was not the most awesome experience ever. I asked my husband to come with me to keep me company, and I'm glad I did. I didn't mind the needle pokes much (though the second one in each arm definitely hurt more), but the waiting was interminable. We took a short walk the first hour, which felt good, until I started feeling a little funny. The second hour I was okay until about halfway through, when I suddenly got really dizzy and flushed and sweaty and had to lay down before I passed out. I'm glad laying down seemed to handle it! I pretty much slept through the third hour. Then we went and had giant plates of protein-heavy Mexican food for lunch, and then I came home and stayed awake for about three more hours before sleeping for another three. I am finally starting to feel more like normal again! Now, fingers crossed!
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