Trouble Arrives...

Some of you have been asking for details of Trouble's arrival.  Here is the story!!

We decided I would be induced so that we had a measure of control over when I would be in hospital, given that we don't really have a lot of friends or family nearby who could look after Lunatic Child in the event we had to make a mad dash to the hospital at 2am.

Well, best laid plans and all that.

I checked into hospital at 5pm on Tuesday evening.  The induction process starts with something called Cervadil, which is meant to "soften" the cervix.  Then, the next morning, they start you on a Pitocin drip and that's supposed to get things going.  There is a chance that the Cervadil can jumpstart labour.

So I got my Cervadil (not a nice process, nothing about childbirth really is, frankly) and settled in to watch a bit of Masterchef.  Alas, the Cervadil jumpstarted my labour.  I instantly started having contractions which steadily progressed over the next hour or so, at which point my water broke, and we were off to the races.  I had to call Fun Daddy, who had gone home for the night, and tell him that he'd better get back to the hospital pretty quick.  We ended up having to call our neighbours (who are super nice, and to whom we are FOREVER grateful).  She came over to sit with Lunatic Child and Fun Daddy made a mad dash to the hospital. 

By the time he got to the hospital, I was in a very primal place, having just been informed it was WAY too late for an epidural.  I have never been particularly interested in natural childbirth.  No one is going to give me any special award for enduring that sort of pain, and the point of the epidural is that you don't have to.  Works for me.

Trouble was in a hurry though.  The nurse checked me when I called Fun Daddy, and I was 3cm dilated.  Fun Daddy probably got to the hospital within 45 minutes to an hour.  I had Trouble 20 minutes after Fun Daddy arrived.  The nurse was flustered and stressed and kept saying "but I just checked you, and you were only 3cm dilated!"  Meanwhile, I'm screaming that I need to push.  I mean, that baby was ON HIS WAY.  My obstetrician didn't make it back to the hospital, and the flustered nurse had to call in some back up.  Trouble arrived after about 2 pushes.  It still feels surreal given that it took Lunatic Child a very leisurely 18 hours to make his way into the world.  From Cervadil to Trouble was 5 hours...

Part of the reason Trouble arrived so quickly is that he is so, so tiny.  He weighed 5lb, 13 oz and was 19 in (48cm) long.  Lunatic Child, who was no giant in the baby stakes, was 6lb 5oz and 21 in.  I make the little babies...He looks exactly like a little red walnut.  Sweet baby.  He's still all squishy newborn so it's hard to tell, but I think he will look like Fun Daddy and Lunatic Child.

Lunatic Child is pretty nonchalant about Trouble.  Fun Daddy has been home on paternity leave, which is much more interesting than some new baby.  Trouble also brought Lunatic Child lots of great presents, including a giant fire truck and some new Thomas equipment.

The bigger issue has been Queenie, or Psycho Cat.  She's OBSESSED.  The baby is so interesting and twitchy.  She would like to eat him.  We had to get a spray bottle.  She's been squirted a lot and just keeps coming back for another sniff.  I spend a lot of time checking for the cat and then shutting her in or out of various rooms.  It's a right old pain in the *rse.  Don't worry.  Trouble will get his own back when he's big enough to make a grab for her.  She'll learn.

We're all coping pretty well.  Trouble is sleeping and eating well and I am so much more relaxed this time around.  When he sleeps at night, so do I.  I don't sit there and stare at him and check his breathing every 5 seconds.  This means I'm getting a lot more sleep.  I'm sure things will get a bit more hectic when Fun Daddy goes back to work, but so far it's been pretty relaxed.

Family starts to cycle through at the end of July, so we're looking forward to that!  We wish that we could see everyone in London.  We'll be back when we can.  It might take me a while to work up the courage to take 2 kiddiwinkles on that long of a flight.

Love to all

Harried Mum, Fun Daddy, Lunatic Child, Trouble and Psycho Cat

Oops...

Lunatic Child and famille went to Great Grandma's house today.  Great Grandma has a frog pond in the backyard.  See if you can guess where this one is going...

If you guessed that Lunatic Child managed to fall into the pond in 3 minutes or less, you win a small prize.

Poor Lunatic Child.  He just wanted to see the frogs.  The pond is a sunken bathtub, and he was leaning over it in a precarious manner.  I was waddling along behind him, and I told him to back away.  Since he is 2, he immediately said no, turned around and backed away from me as I reached out to grab him, and the end result was that he tipped into the tub backwards.  I could see his little shocked face as he sank slowly beneath the pond weed.

I hauled him out in about 5 seconds, but he was absolutely covered in pond goo, reeked to high heaven and was fairly well traumatised.   Fun Daddy was SHOCKED at my negligent parenting and came storming over, saying "What are you doing?"  Well, obviously, I'm letting him fall into the pond ON PURPOSE as I think it will be a Good Learning Experience.  I mean, really.  I'm a million months pregnant.  I'm not moving that fast.  I did my best.  Worse things have happened to 2 year olds than being dunked in a stinky pond.  He can work it out in therapy later.  It will give him something to talk about.

After a bath, laundered clothes and a cookie, he was amazingly recovered and had a fantastic afternoon playing with his much older cousins.  They tossed him around for several hours.  I'm really surprised he didn't chuck it.  He was so completely exhausted when we got him in the car.

I am fairly sure he's not permanently mentally scarred, so all's well that ends well.  I think we'll be finding pond weed in various orifices for a few days however.  That stuff is pernicious.