A Family Affair

The whole family was in the room for the affair. Since our family lives a thousand miles away and our friends are an hour away, we had decided that Doc would watch the boys in a waiting room of the hospital while I gave birth. We didn't know what else to do. So, the morning of my first contraction we were headed to church. Doc immediately freaked and turned back for the hospital. I was hungry, so we stopped at a fast food restaurant so I could eat. I figured I needed my strength for what was ahead of me. The contractions stopped for no apparent reason and we went home. Since I was jumpy, I decided to make a casserole and freeze it for my family. Without knowing it at the time, I was in labor while making food. I shake my head at that now. After that, we started for the hospital and as my husband alternately slams on his breaks and speeds up on the highway, I grind my teeth during a contraction that felt like transition and ask him to "stop that". I didn't add "or I will strangle you". I hate hospitals. I had to walk from the car to the room I was staying in. I should say walk then stop to breath through the horrendous pain while everyone stares at you and the brood you have brought with you. They also want to ask a lot of questions when all you want to do is snarl at them and say, "Give me a bed already!" The nurse checked me finally and since this was my fifth baby, I had a pretty good idea where I was at. I said, "I bet you I'm at eight centimeters." She said, "No, you are more like four to five." I was in disbelief. No way was this labor going to go well when a four feels like an eight. After I reached six to seven centimeters I was looking around for an epidural. The nurse helped me come to my senses and she gave me a little somethin' to help me get through the last two centimeters. Yeah, okay. So I didn't get through it all without medication, but when I finally pushed this baby out into the world, my midwife informed me that he was coming out face up. The baby wanted to come out the wrong way! She made me feel better when she told me that it is the hardest labor a woman will ever have to go through and why it took longer than usual to push him out. So where was my husband in all of this? Right beside me.......and so were the boys. As the pain became unbearable, I wouldn't let go of his hand. I looked at him with pain in my eyes and said, "You cannot leave me! You can't!" He looked helpless standing there and decided to put the boys in the corner near my head with the chairs facing the wall. They were smart enough not to look and were busy with their activities I had packed for them. I heard later that Grumpy was nervously rocking back and forth in his chair. So, the whole family got to see the littlest one right when he was born. Even though they didn't see a thing, the oldest ones will probably never forget their brother's birth.