The Fourth Trimester

Last night things really started heating up in our bed. No, not like that: Tracey was getting contraction like pains.

While mild at first they did build over half an hour so we thought it was time to get things sorted. It was 11.30pm. I rang the hospital to let them know to expect us in tonight. I rang my mother and she came over to mind the kids. I put the hospital bag in the car. I posted an entry on Facebook.

Then we waited. Then, around 1.30am, things started to die down.

"We'll go for a drive," I suggested.

Although Tracey thought it was an old wives tale, we went. Turns out Gympie has some fantastic baby inducing roads - all sparsely bitumened and lit for our convenience. Whether or not it was the pot-holed streets of G-town I don't know, but suddenly it was on again.

"Have you got the camera?"

"Yes, dear."

"The phone?"

"Yes, dear." I mean, this isn't the first birth I've attended.

We popped home to let my mum know we were heading to the hospital. While Tracey updated my mother I quickly ducked into our bedroom and grabbed the camera and phone then tried to muster her back to the car.

"It's settled down again," she told me. Despite my mother and I encouraging her with cries of "Push! Push!" an hour later it was obvious things were going right off the boil again.

Tracey was a bit peeved by now. Forgetting completely this was the one night she didn't want to have a baby because it was the first day of the new school year in the morning, she said, "It's got to be tonight. I'm in my fourth trimester!"

Again it started up and again things settled down. By 5am it was all over red rover for the night. Dang and bugger.

Ah well. Maybe tonight.