It’s A Girl

Well, today was an exciting day. It all started around 1:30 am on Sunday morning. Dianne began having some really strong contractions. Based on her past history of quick labors, we called our friend to come over and stay with the kids in the house while we went to the hospital. At the hospital, the contractions remained strong, but started to get farther apart. Even after walking laps around the labor & delivery floor, the contractions remained sporadic, and they sent us home around 7:00 am. Our friend went home, and we fed the kids breakfast. Dianne’s contractions continued throughout the morning and we made plans to drop our kids off at church to stay with friends for the day. I met a friend halfway to church and got back home as soon as I could. Good thing. Dianne was definitely in full-on labor. The contractions were very strong, but still around 9 minutes apart. Most hospitals  tell you not to come in until they are 5 minutes apart for a full hour, so we waited. They got to about 6 minutes, and I could see from Dianne’s face that we needed to go. There was no 5 minutes apart. Everything turned into one long continuous contraction. At this point, the car is running, the stuff is in there, and I am wondering if I am going to get Dianne to the car. She had a sensation like her water broke, and things start to move very quickly. While Dianne is getting into the car, I dial the hospital and tell them we are coming quickly, be ready. About a mile down the road, about 4 minutes from the hospital, Dianne informs me that the baby is coming. I suggest to her kindly that it would be a good idea for her to wait a few more minutes, but her water breaks en route. I get on the phone to 911 while in traffic at a red light. The operator asks if I need an ambulance, and after consulting the birth committee, I decide to pull over into the parking lot of the First National Bank. After pulling into a parking spot, I rush over to Dianne’s side of the car, and the baby was there. Everyone asked if I delivered the baby, but I really didn’t do anything.  I was just the only guy who was there to sign for the package. The ambulance arrived on the scene in about 2 minutes, and I let the professionals take over. Everyone got to the hospital in great shape. Mommy and baby are doing great. She weighed in at 7 lbs 8 oz.