At the Hospital

Shannon tussled my hair this morning at 3a and told me that she thought she was having labor contractions but wasn't sure. Two hours, a bath, and a shower later she said "Call your dad." That's the code phrase for "GO!" By 5:20a, mom and dad were at the house. From 5:00a-5:20, I loaded the car, put some clothes on, and brushed my teeth (not in that order). By 5:25a, we were in the car and on the road.

One of our prayers during this pregnancy has been that this little guy would come at just the right time. Leaving the house at 5:25a on a Saturday morning is the perfect time to drive the 30 miles from Cumming to Northside Hospital. (There is a satellite of Northside in Cumming only 5 miles away. It's worth the 30 mile drive because the Northside in Atlanta delivers more than 18,000 babies per year, more than any other hospital in the country. And because my brother, Mark, was born there.)

On the way to the hospital, Shannon's contractions were as frequent as 3 minutes apart. Time to put the hammer down. I switched on the hazard lights and hit the gas. We made it from our house to the hospital in less than 30 minutes.

By 6:30a, we were admitted. By 7:10, Shannon was given an epidural. Our first nurse, Karen, has been a labor and delivery nurse for 35 years...not bad hands to be in. Everyone seems to think that this won't be a very long labor. We'll see. Can't wait to meet our little dude!