This is Nicholas Robert Timmons, born February 19, 2009, at 5:07 pm, weighing 8 lbs 6 oz. Mom, dad, baby, and baby brother are all doing fine.
So, yesterday I started the morning by preparing for some medical tests. I went to the clinic and was put through a battery of tests on all parts of my body. Each test was done in a different room and meant that I had to take my clothes off, have the test, put my clothes back on, go to another room, take off my clothes, have the test done.....and so it went. After the third such test, I said to the technician, "God, now I know what it's like to be a whore, except you're the one making the money here. Hey, does that make you my pimp?" I'll post later about the tests, once I get all the results. I will say that the worst fears have been put to rest and everything other possibility will simply be a minor inconvenience.
I got home from the clinic and was looking forward to resting. I checked my cell phone to see if I had missed any calls. There was a text message from my daughter, "Can you call me at home when you have a minute? All ok right now." So I called and she told me that she was in labour but it was light and sporadic. She said she had an appointment with her doctor that afternoon and she wondered if she should go. I said as long as she wasn't in heavy labour, she should keep the appointment and maybe the doctor could get things moving. I didn't want her to go alone, however, so I drove her and I watched Grandson number 1 while she was seeing the doctor. A while after Crystal went into the office, someone came out and asked if I were Crystal's mom. I said I was and she said "Crystal is 8 cm dialated. You need to take her to the hospital. Now. And don't stop". So all the necessary phone calls were made (her husband, my husband) and off we went. I arranged for Peter to meet me in front of the hospital. He jumped in my car and took Grandson number 1 to his other grandmother's house and then he went back to work.
Things happened pretty quickly from that point on. I won't get into the gritty details. It was planned that I was going to be in the room with Crystal when she delivered her baby, as I was for Grandson number 1. The problem was that I was appearing in a play. We had discussed this in advance and she was okay with the fact that I may not be there for the birth or that I would be late for it or that I would have to leave just before it, depending on what time she started. As long as her husband was with her. So, here we were in the delivery room together, no husband in sight and my "call time" for my play looming. Crystal was looking a little panicked. I said, "Don't worry. If Stevie doesn't arrive for whatever reason, nothing could drag me out of this room...play be damned". She let out a long-held breath. I had guessed exactly what she was thinking.
Stevie did arrive and at about 4:30 or so, I said, "Crystal, you have two choices if you want me to be here for the birth: you can deliver this baby by 5:30 or you can cross your legs and wait until 8:00 pm, when I get done with the play."
At 5:00 pm, the nurse came in and told Crystal that she was going to do a couple of "test pushes" to see how that went. Crystal gave one big push and the nurse said, "Okay sweetie. That's enough. I have to get the doctor".
At 5:07 pm, Grandson number 2 was born.
One thing I have to say about Crystal....she was always a good girl and listened to her mama!
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Note: The ladybug is symbolic of my grandmother and of my mother. We lost my mother in November and the ladybug was a huge source of comfort for me (see post:
See You Later, Mom). Last night, I got home from the hospital (where I had gone after my play) and saw my cousin's status update on facebook "...is wondering why there is a ladybug crawling along my bathroom window....Also, congratulating my cousin Crystal and Steve on their new baby boy!!!!"
I was wondering when and how mom would show up.