My son wants to catch the worm...

It sure is an eye-opening experience when you’re sitting at your desk pretty content on doing your job when you receive a phone call expressing that your wife is on the way to the hospital because she is having contractions!!! Five minutes apart, no less. I was not sure how to even react to this news…

“It can’t be time yet,” I thought… “we are only 33 weeks along! He can’t come yet… he still has some cookin’ to do…”

I received this phone call at 4:02pm, on Thursday afternoon, and all in the next 30 minutes, I was able to call my boss, explain the situation and meet my wife, and mother-in-law, at the elevators of labor & delivery! Yes, I think I broke a few speeding laws on the way, but my mind was going 1,000 miles a minute and I almost broke down into the fetal position, ironically the very position my son is in, and swayed back-n-forth while saying… “not yet… not yet… not yet…”

However, that didn’t happen… I was able to pull myself together and be calm and chill as a 1999 bottle of white wine… (in which I was needing a glass of, bad!) That was until I got to the hospital...

On the way there...I made sure to contact my mom and sister to make sure they were aware of what was going on... "Is she okay?" my mom said in a rushed and motherly voice...

"Yes, mom, as far as I know, but when I find out exactly what is going on, I will call you back!"

I made it! Finally, after I parked, I made it inside and there were the elevators and to my right I heard...

“Hey baby,” my wife, Laura, said when greeting me at the elevator. I took a deep breath and looked at her belly. She had on a mint green shirt and gray sweatpants. I know this wasn’t her first choice of attire, but with the need to be comfortable, over chic, she obliged to comfort.

“How are you feelin’, you okay?” I quickly interjected during our embrace.

“Yeah, I’m fine, the doctors just felt I needed to be monitored…” she said, “That’s all!” How is she being so calm, I thought... she could go into frickin' labor!?!?!

I glanced over to my right, there stood my mother-in-law, Carol, she seemed as calm as could be, but I knew inside she was pretty much freaking out, but would never let her daughter see this because she knew deep down as soon as “she” looked nervous Laura would lose it. So, I took this as a cue that I should calm down as well… and honestly, how could I even really freak out because I truly could not imagine Mauldin being born on this day.. this day of days when I only had a caramel macchiato, from Starbucks, for lunch. This is Thursday, February 5^th, this isn’t a day for my child to be born… this is the day BEFORE he is 33 weeks… I will not freak out because this is not the day my son will arrive to this world in his birthday suit. Besides, this isn’t the day I picked for the “pick-a-date” pool…

We walk in and are put into “triage,” which by just that word sounds scary… like we are on M.A.S.H. or something… Triage, I have only heard that word whenever we are watching a disaster movie where there has been mass destruction!!!!

After being hooked up to numerous machines, Laura is monitored as to make sure Mauldin doesn’t arrive… her contractions are still in full force, but from what I can tell she isn’t in a lot of pain. The nurse comes in to let us know Laura should be drinking atleast eight glasses of water a day… and they will be giving her a “shot” to lessen and hopefully stop said contractions. Although, they do warn, my wife, this shot may cause her to feel a little “different” for a short while. Oh, and that is certainly what happens… she starts shivering and shaking as if she hadn’t had her heroine today! (NOTE: My wife is not a junkie by any means) I had to hold her cup of water to make sure it didn’t shimmy out of her hand… There was nothing I could do, but stand there and watch… I wrapped my arm around her shoulders trying to hold her to show some sort of comfort, but she still shook…

What we do for our children.

Okay, fast forward three and a half hours and we are finally allowed to leave… her contractions have ceased… the shivering is over and her blood pressure is back to normal. So, now all we can do is wait… We certainly do not know how soon he will decide to grace us with his presence, but lets hope and pray that the lil’ guy has a little more patience than his dad because as the nurses say…

“White boys are whimpy!” He needs to wait until ATLEAST the first week in March.

Please, oh please, let him be somewhat punctual and not an early bird!!!