The biggest thing to note since my last post was that we let E stay up way past his bedtime to watch Matt Cain pitch the perfect game on Wednesday night. So exciting! One for the history books. And, as Lisa said, "one for the baby book!"
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| Cuddle time with Mommy |
Ok, got that out of the way.
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| Aunt Lucille has the perfect cheek rest |
For the rest of you who like being strung along (c'mon, you know you do), sit back, relax, and enjoy the next exciting episode of HOW E CAME TO BE (spoiler alert: it ends on another cliff hanger):
Where were we? Ahh, yes. Lisa and I just frantically packed our bag - yes, with plenty of mouthwash - said bye to the dogs, and headed toward the hospital around 1:45 in the morning.
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| Aunt Dasha has done this before |
Unlike the movies, I stayed surprisingly calm on the 5 minute drive from our house to Kaiser. Lisa called her parents on the way since 2011 taxes were due in a few short hours and obviously her dad would still be up. She wasn't far off, when Gary answered, he'd been asleep for approximately 15 minutes.
Lisa opened the conversation with: "Dad, you might have to retire to watch the baby a month early."
Gary: "What do you mean?"
"Dad, my water broke. I'm having contractions. We're on the way to Kaiser."
"You're kidding. You're kidding"...a while later..."You're kidding. You're kidding."
I *believe* she talked with a number of her family members - including one partial conversation with Vanessa in which a contraction rudely interrupted - though I was much more focused on remembering the rules of the road and the rules of labor to pay attention. Though after she hung up, it really sunk in that my parents were somewhere in the Bahamas and we didn't have a reliable way to contact them.
As we turned onto Lawrence Expressway, we discussed how we still didn't have a name picked out.
When we got to the hospital, I knew exactly where to go: Lot E (in retrospect, this is fitting, huh?). Lisa, of course, actually knew where Lot E actually was. Though at ~2 A.M. there's plenty of parking at Kaiser. Also, at that hour, only the Emergency entrance is open (another thing they drilled into us at our birthing classes).
I grabbed our newly packed duffle, decided to leave the birthing ball for the 2nd trip, and followed Lisa toward the entrance. About halfway there, she stopped, hunched over, grabbed a white SUV for support, and had the first BIG contraction.
The next one came when we were just outside Emergency with Lisa doubled over the back of a courtesy wheelchair. She was breathing hard with a slight moan.
"Sir," the Emergency check-in nurse called though the door. "Is she alright?"
I patted Lisa on the back lightly. "She's just having a contraction. We're headed to Labor & Delivery."
The nurse came over, insisting that Lisa use the wheelchair to get through the hospital and up to the third floor. Lisa, who was well-versed in things labor, insisted on walking - after all, being on ones feet sped the process along. The nurse looked her square in the eye. "Mam, you might not make it to Labor & Delivery."
We came to a compromise. Lisa would kneel on the wheelchair and I would push. A few moments later, we both came to the conclusion that this was very, very unsafe. In pain, she succumbed to sitting in the chair while one of the Emergency nurses joined us on the trek. It wasn't until the elevator that I saw she was carrying a big, blue sterile drape, gloves, and an assortment of gauze. This lady was serious: she wasn't sure we'd make it to L&D.
With a ping, the elevator opened and our escort pointed us into department 300. Labor & Delivery.
Where we'd meet The New Ballou for the first time.
TO BE CONTINUED...
(The suspense is excruciating, isn't it?)
As we turned onto Lawrence Expressway, we discussed how we still didn't have a name picked out.
When we got to the hospital, I knew exactly where to go: Lot E (in retrospect, this is fitting, huh?). Lisa, of course, actually knew where Lot E actually was. Though at ~2 A.M. there's plenty of parking at Kaiser. Also, at that hour, only the Emergency entrance is open (another thing they drilled into us at our birthing classes).
I grabbed our newly packed duffle, decided to leave the birthing ball for the 2nd trip, and followed Lisa toward the entrance. About halfway there, she stopped, hunched over, grabbed a white SUV for support, and had the first BIG contraction.
The next one came when we were just outside Emergency with Lisa doubled over the back of a courtesy wheelchair. She was breathing hard with a slight moan.
"Sir," the Emergency check-in nurse called though the door. "Is she alright?"
I patted Lisa on the back lightly. "She's just having a contraction. We're headed to Labor & Delivery."
The nurse came over, insisting that Lisa use the wheelchair to get through the hospital and up to the third floor. Lisa, who was well-versed in things labor, insisted on walking - after all, being on ones feet sped the process along. The nurse looked her square in the eye. "Mam, you might not make it to Labor & Delivery."
We came to a compromise. Lisa would kneel on the wheelchair and I would push. A few moments later, we both came to the conclusion that this was very, very unsafe. In pain, she succumbed to sitting in the chair while one of the Emergency nurses joined us on the trek. It wasn't until the elevator that I saw she was carrying a big, blue sterile drape, gloves, and an assortment of gauze. This lady was serious: she wasn't sure we'd make it to L&D.
With a ping, the elevator opened and our escort pointed us into department 300. Labor & Delivery.
Where we'd meet The New Ballou for the first time.
TO BE CONTINUED...
(The suspense is excruciating, isn't it?)
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| Uh oh...Lisa cheatin' on E with Cid |
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| Auntie Janis! |
Happy First Father's Day, Bret!!
ReplyDeleteThat made me a little teary! I'm on pins & needles waiting for the end of this story...wouldn't it be fitting to end on Father's day?! :) Congrats on your 1st Father's day!! Enjoy!
ReplyDelete