Dry run for the real deal

[livbenson]

NSFW ahead

Just got back from labor & delivery, still 37 weeks, 2 days, after thinking my wife's water had broken on Wednesday night and that she'd been experiencing possible contractions for the last two days.

Lots of lessons learned.

1. If you & your wife have never used sex toys, don't buy a vibrator for the first time thinking that this is a great way to get the oxytocin going in order to induce labor. Squirting and water breaking are waaaaay too similar, at least for first time parents. Putting that in the underwear drawer until pelvic rest is done.
2. If you're unsure, go. This is what our doula said after my wife has spent the last two days in even more discomfort than usual. The risk of infection if her water did break is too high.
3. Make sure Mom hasn't overpacked her hospital bag, causing the strap to break.
4. This is actually maybe the most important. Make sure the car seat is not behind the passenger seat. Mom will be PISSED when she can't tilt her seat back to get comfortable like she normally does.
5. Make sure your MiL hasn't started her Friday evening drinking so that she can drive down and dog sit.
6. Have a water jug sitting beside the bags so you don't forget.
7. Hospital staff are saints.
8. Have a beer in the fridge so you can relax when you get home, because it's been a day.

 

[eileen7316]

@livbenson Thanks for the good laugh, especially number 4. Wife loved it.

Also why number 6? Hospitals don't have water?

 

[livbenson]

@eileen7316 Glad you're laughing, I'm finally starting to unwind a little bit, though my wife is just sad. She just wants the baby out.

They do have water, but we got so caught up with all of the checking in and getting her hooked up to monitors and stuff that we didn't have the chance to fill up our water bottles and there was too much going on to ask, so when we left we both felt a bit dehydrated

 

[cranberryjuice]

@livbenson For for point 5 and point 8

...

5, it was my mother and 10 am whe n we noticed baby was coming. I just made sure there was ice and tonic in the fridge with a bottle of gin on the counter.

8, my mother went out and made sure there was a twofour in fridge for when we got back. She also made homemade chicken fingers and fries. That was super dope.