Friday morning, October 11, started off as a normal day. We brought Clare to school, and she knew that we were going to be back at 11:30 for the kangaroo presentation.
Phil stood in front of Clare's entire school (probably 75 kids between the ages of 3 and 5) with Jep...the baby kangaroo (see previous post "Twas the Night Before Baby"). The kids loved it, the teachers loved it, Clare loved it. Good day!
Clare and I left straight from school to drive to the airport to pick up Mema and Papa. The countdown for their arrival was finally over, and they were due to land in St. Petersburg at 2:00 PM. YEAH! Clare and I sat in the parking lot until we got the call that they landed, and then we decided to meet them inside (so that I could use the bathroom before the hour drive back home). This is where things got interesting! As we walked from the car to the airport, my water broke. Picture the dramatic movie scene with gushing fluids and a shocked pregnant woman. Yep...that was me....TOTALLY SOAKED and SHOCKED.
Clare looked at me and asked, "Did you just pee your pants, Mommy?"
"No...my water just broke."
"But your water is in the car. What is happening?"
"The baby is going to come today."
I called my mom and told her to meet us in the parking lot instead of inside the airport because I was a mess. As soon as we were all together, we made our way back home so that I could grab my birthing stuff, my husband, AND the kangaroo. :)
REWIND 5 YEARS: The picture below was taken just hours before CLARE was born...same shirt covering the same enormous belly.
Now, my sweet 5-year-old daughter insisted on doing "Funny Faces" before she hugged us goodbye as we left the house to deliver her new brother/sister.
Phil and I drove up to the birthing center, Labor of Love, a littler earlier than necessary, but it was Friday evening. We spent the entire pregnancy joking about getting caught in Friday night rush-hour traffic while in the middle of serious labor, and we didn't want that to become a reality.
YES...we had the kangaroo with us. Our Friday afternoon plans included bringing Jep back to Busch Gardens...not having a baby ten days early. So, we had to improvise.
Everyone seemed pretty excited about the addition of a kangaroo to our packing list.
From left to right:
Sarah (my dear friend who was present at the birth) Stacy (the zookeeper who met us at the birth center to pick up the kangaroo), Jep (the center of attention), Phil (my handsome husband), Corrie (the woman in labor who was now wearing an actual geriatric diaper because her bag of water was still leaking), Michelle (the midwife who attended our birth), Karla (the midwife student who assisted at our birth).
The birthing center has private birthing suites (bedroom, bathroom, kitchenette, living room), so we made ourselves comfortable. This was before my labor got too "exciting" and I had time to email my sister (on the other side of the world) to tell her that she was about to have a new niece or nephew.
My generous mom bought dinner for all of us and set up an awesome buffet. We all ate together (friends, family, and midwives) and prepared to "get the party started" in terms of delivering another baby.
Unlike my other two labors, my contractions didn't start before my water broke. With Clare and Isaac, my water broke when I was in the midst of serious contractions...about ready to push. In order to "stimulate the contractions," they offered me an herbal tincture. This tincture was made of two ingredients: Organic Cotton-root and Vodka. For those of you who know me well, you can understand why that is so funny. I don't drink any alcohol, so consuming vodka every 15 minutes (granted, in very small doses) became the joke of the night.
As promised, the tincture worked. Within minutes, my contractions ramped up and I knew that we were finally moving forward...closer to meeting our baby.
I forgot to mention the one other person who was present at our labor and delivery: Eric Schrotenboer. He is a friend from college who writes and performs the most beautiful piano music, and his "Fruits of the Spirit" CD has been on repeat through all three of our birthing experiences. :)
One more sweet, happy, smiling picture before things get exciting.
