Happy Birthday, #1

Eleven years ago today:

It's 5:00 in the morning. I am not feeling well. I had better have my husband call in to work for me. I don't think I am going to make it. What is that strange feeling? If I could stay out of the bathroom long enough I would call in myself. Well at least I don't have to find an outfit that fits.

It's 8:00. WOW! That really hurt. "Uh, Gary. I think that was a contraction." In a state of disbelief, he starts timing them. Five minutes. Oh, my God. Now he's wondering how he's going to get me to the hospital 20 minutes or more away from here. There's no time for the suitcase. Just get the keys and let's go.

Speeding through the streets of Colorado Springs, winding our way to Fort Carson. There is no major amount of time between contractions. I am banging on the window screaming, "I have to push." Gary, "Don't Push!!!"

After the worlds fastest trip in a Festiva, we pull up in front of the emergency room. Now they told us not to go through emergency in our childbirth classes, but I figured a baby crowning was an emergency. They don't believe us and put me in a wheel chair and roll me into an ELEVATOR and take me to Labor and Delivery. The nurse on duty whisks me away and asks Gary to start filling out paperwork. Don't they understand the severity of the situation???? We called ahead!

Oh my! I can't even bend over to get my pants off. A dumb aide is there trying to find the baby's heart rate. "Uh, Nurse Ratchett, I can't find the heart beat." An old nurse comes and grabs the monitor from the idiot and immediately finds the heart rate.

9:08 a.m. Gary comes running in the room just in time to see his first child come into the world, all 5 pounds 15 ounces of her. Yep, it's a girl. He is so happy. I just want to go to sleep.