Here’s my post from three years ago tonight.

So I’m sitting here on the sofa, waiting to have a baby. I’m scheduled for induction tomorrow, sometime between 3am and 7am. I could get a phone call as early as 2am, or anytime after that, and I’m expected to arrive at the hospital within an hour of that call. I thought this would be better than waiting to go into labor on my own but now I’m not so sure. I am glad to get the baby out before she gets any larger and I do know what to expect from an induction, but it’s a strange thing to know you’re having a baby in a few hours. Is removing the mystery really a good thing?

Not surprisingly, it’s been a frantic weekend. All that nesting and such. I planted daylilies and hostas yesterday, completely doing in my back. Then we went shopping for a toaster, curtains for Oliver’s room, and got his 2 year pictures taken.

Today wasn’t much better. Oliver was especially challenging. He went down for his nap early and only slept for an hour. He’s was a holy terror the rest of the day. No, I should restate that. He alternated between sweet and terror for no predictable reasons all day. He got a lot of practice saying, “I’m sorry,” mostly to me and to Penguin.

I’m still not done with everything I need to do before the hospital calls. Bills to pay, a few more things to stuff in my bag, more preparations to make life easier for Mama ‘Cia, who is taking care of Oliver and Penguin tomorrow. With any luck I’ll get a shower and some sleep before the call comes.

The call didn’t come. I went into labor around four am. Six came and went, still without a call. I called the hospital but they didn’t answer! Calling my OB worked like a charm. Her words? “Let’s have a baby.”

And we did.

Eleanor Rose

More pics of her first days are on the family photo site.