Geek Dad

Madison has seen the face of the enemy, and it is pink. Our five-year-old Yellow Labrador was freaked out when Sue began talking to her belly a few months ago, and she started sulking when she saw us loading Sue’s overnight bag into the Cherokee in anticipation of her impending labor (Mad Dog knows that … Read more

We’ve got four weeks until Sue’s due date on March 21. One week until she’s term. One week until Lamaze is over. Yes folks, labor is definitely starting to loom rather large on the horizon.

Exactly how large became apparent last night at Lamaze, and it had nothing to do with the 30-minute video we watched of three women giving birth. No, what really drove it home for me was the fact that we’d lost about four couples from our class, not to snow, lack of interest, or schedule conflicts but to … birth.

Sue and I have raised a few eyebrows by deciding to go with a midwife for delivering the baby, rather than a traditional obstetrician. Not that people are all that surprised — Sue being nature girl and all — but they’ve been a little concerned, mostly because of misconceptions about what a midwife is and what it means for giving birth.

So why the surprise? It seems that a lot of folks think that having a midwife means that you’re giving birth at home. And naturally they were a little anxious about her being so far away from the hospital.

But having a midwife doesn’t mean that you have to have the baby on your couch. In fact, from what I’ve seen and read, that option would be the exception to the rule.

Big baby milestone today – we had our first Lamaze class. The first thing I learned was that it’s really important to eat before class – it starts at 7 and I foolishly drove there straight from work without grabbing anything to eat. The class has about ten couples in it, and it felt a … Read more

I’ve noticed a few changes in myself since Sue got pregnant which my wife ascribes to a combination of surging testosterone and nesting instinct. I’ve found myself with a growing desire for an honest-to-God work bench, an admiration of power tools, and a hankering to watching professional football. As a result, I went out and … Read more

I spent Saturday working on three canvas posters for the baby’s room with my wife Sue, my brother-in-law Dave, and his fiancee Wendy. We worked on them for hours, and actually got quite a lot done. And not once did I have even the slightest clue of what awaited me Saturday night. Dave and I … Read more

“Something is going to happen.”– Dave Bowman. “What what’s going to happen?” — Dr. Heywood Floyd. “Something wonderful.” — Dave Bowman, 2010: Odyssey Two We did something wonderful yesterday. We listened to our baby’s heartbeat for the first time. It was our second official visit to see the midwife, and it was part of the … Read more

“I must not fear. Fear is the mind-killer. Fear is the little death that brings total obliteration. I will face my fear. I will permit it to pass over me and through me. And when it is gone past I will turn the inner eye to see its path. Where the fear has gone there … Read more

I’m going to be a dad.

Wow.

Other declaratives of a more expletive nature come to mind, but I try and keep Nuketown somewhat PG-13.

And besides, I need to watch my language. I’m going to be a dad.

Wow.

I still can’t get over it. I’m writing this two days after it was official. My wife and I had our suspicions – there are certain signs and portents (such as a late period, breast soreness, visiting our friends who have a baby and finding the name “Jacob” carved into a bench when we stopped to change her) – but we didn’t know until Sunday (7/21).