what position is this baby in?!

[Incubator]

Ok... I remember very clearly with DS some hard jabs and pushes on my ribs for like a month or so before he came. I was told he was in a perfect position, head down facing back, completely upright...

Now with this one... I've never felt a kick in the ribs, not one. THe kid doesn't really kick, it PUSHES, you know? Like a big lump pops up and moves a few inches and then goes down, but no kicks. I'm worried now that it's not head down. Every time I've listened to the heartbeat it's been below the belly button, so I THINK it's at least head down-ish, but lopsided. Last night I found the HB on the lower-left side, but 20 minutes afterwards I felt some light wiggling in the same area, is that hands? If so, where is that dang head at? There's no room for it to be any further down and to the left, so how am I feeling hands there if the head is down and facing right, with the back just above it laying on the left side of my body? When it pushes I get a big lump very near my belly button, sometimes just below it, but more often to the left side a little. I've had to assume this is the butt. When I get the big "butt?" lump, I also get a smaller "Foot?" lump on my right side, about even with the belly button, like the baby has it's legs extended, and is in an "L" shape. I don't feel much above the belly button at all, all the lumps and action happens near or below it.
So WTH is going on in there?! any thoughts? If anyone is really good at palpating babies, walk me through this, the spinning babies website doesn't help me much, just makes me more confused. I've tried the circle with quadrants belly mapping but it seems like the kid moves too much.

[Chinese Pistache]

Originally Posted by Incubator

Ok... I remember very clearly with DS some hard jabs and pushes on my ribs for like a month or so before he came. I was told he was in a perfect position, head down facing back, completely upright...

Now with this one... I've never felt a kick in the ribs, not one. THe kid doesn't really kick, it PUSHES, you know? Like a big lump pops up and moves a few inches and then goes down, but no kicks. I'm worried now that it's not head down. Every time I've listened to the heartbeat it's been below the belly button, so I THINK it's at least head down-ish, but lopsided. Last night I found the HB on the lower-left side, but 20 minutes afterwards I felt some light wiggling in the same area, is that hands? If so, where is that dang head at? There's no room for it to be any further down and to the left, so how am I feeling hands there if the head is down and facing right, with the back just above it laying on the left side of my body? When it pushes I get a big lump very near my belly button, sometimes just below it, but more often to the left side a little. I've had to assume this is the butt. When I get the big "butt?" lump, I also get a smaller "Foot?" lump on my right side, about even with the belly button, like the baby has it's legs extended, and is in an "L" shape. I don't feel much above the belly button at all, all the lumps and action happens near or below it.
So WTH is going on in there?! any thoughts? If anyone is really good at palpating babies, walk me through this, the spinning babies website doesn't help me much, just makes me more confused. I've tried the circle with quadrants belly mapping but it seems like the kid moves too much.

My baby is most definitely head down, but I've never felt kicks up in my ribs. I've got this hard round butt that pushes up and down. I feel kicks in my sides (like, he extends his legs and his body forms and "L"). And actually, now that the baby is getting so big, he doesn't kick much; just a lot of nudges.

I've read that if you can push on the "ball" at the top of your belly and it flexes easily, it's most likely the head (and neck is bending when you push). If you push and it seems more solid and the whole mass moves (as in the torso), it's more likely the butt.

[Luv2Skydive]

Mine is head down and has the same type of movements in the same places. My last DS lived in my ribs, so I was really worried that I had a babe in a really weird position because I've never had anything in the ribs and I'm 36w. When I push on his bum above my belly button, I can feel his whole body move down and feel pressure of, I'm guessing, shoulders or hands pushing into my hips.

[treehugginhippie]

Not in your DDC but this might help in figuring out baby's position...

http://www.spinningbabies.com/index....d=22&Itemid=32

[TaraD.]

Originally Posted by Chinese Pistache

My baby is most definitely head down, but I've never felt kicks up in my ribs. I've got this hard round butt that pushes up and down. I feel kicks in my sides (like, he extends his legs and his body forms and "L"). And actually, now that the baby is getting so big, he doesn't kick much; just a lot of nudges.

This is exactly how my baby is and my Dr. is positive that he is head down.

[Incubator]

Oh thank goodness, nice to know that the feet don't have to be in my ribs for it to be head down. I guess later today when I'm laying down I'll push on the "butt?" lump and see what happens... That's so reassuring. TY. I'm was just so worried that the baby might somehow have it's head tucked over on the left side and really be lying transverse., except that I don't feel "wide" ykwim?

Oh yeah... I said that I'd been to the spinning babies website and tried the belly mapping, but it wasn't helping me any...

[pixiepunk]

it sounds to me like your baby is in almost the exact position as mine, only mine's slightly on the right and yours is slightly on the left. i constantly get the butt and foot lumps you describe though i do get plenty of feet in my ribs when i'm sleeping - trust me, you're not missing anything fun

my guess is that what you felt down lower wasn't hands but maybe a shoulder. i've just recently started feeling shoulder movement down there as the head gets further down into my pelvis.

and if you're hearing the heartbeat below the belly button, that's a really good sign too.

[cmi]

Your baby's position sounds similar to mine. One reason you may feel everything below the belly button is that its head may be making its way down the pelvis. At my last two midwife visits my measurements have gone down, and last week the midwife only felt two fingerwidths worth of baby head above my pubic bone. I actually thought it had moved back up because I was feeling less pressure down there, but apparently it's just burrowing further and further. Maybe you have the same thing going on!

[Incubator]

Whew. ok, now I'm confident that the baby is where it should be. I can deal with an OP baby, or even a breech, but I do NOT want a transverse! whew!.

The main reason I freak out is that with DS the movement was all over my ribs, very high up, for a long time, and didn't let up any until he started dropping. This baby has never been anywhere NEAR my ribs, period, not even close. About a month ago the lumps were a bit higher than they are now, but hardly higher than my belly button. I guess this baby just rides lower than DS did, it's probably smaller too. Thank you ladies.