Peanut (MyGirl)

OK, so I told you before that the Alpha Dog had a family and that one day I would share them with you. I wanted to write something for each of my children so they would know from my point of view, just what went on around the time of their Birthday's. Going back ten years to start so off we go........... I met my wife at work and we became friends, then dated for several years. We had talked about children even before we decided to get married and when we got married, our first child happened to be with us, (In the oven) We had tried for some time during our engagement to get pregnant and there were some trying times along the way. Charting ovulation cycles, put a dot here, check a mark there, fertility drugs. Aghhhhh! Being a man I never would have believed that I could even think the words, "do we have to" I am tired. What? They say men think about, "you know" every seven seconds and they aren't far off. But let me tell you when it comes to marking a chart, building and holding a schedule, or taking a brown bag down to the clinic to have your swimmers counted, and then have their time in the 200 meter backstroke checked, the joy of "you know" takes on a whole new meaning.

So maybe that's a little too much information. The point is that it wasn't easy for us to get our family started. Then out of the charts, the graphs, the tests, finally came the "positive" the plus sign, the dot was blue, one of those. Time to break out the bubbly (beer) and celebrate. The stars had all lined up and we were happy beyond words. Our family was beginning. Our little peanut was starting to grow. She got that name because the first ultra sound was done very early and when we saw the pictures, there was the baby, looking like your standard peanut. That name stuck with her for some time. Everything was new for peanut, no hand me downs, no used toys, all brand spanking new was the theme. At that point we still didn't know if the baby was an inny, (girl) or an outty, (boy). I was hoping like mad that this would be a boy but no matter how hard I looked, no matter what angle I tilted my eyes, the tech uttered the words, It's a girl! Yes I wanted a boy as most men do but more importantly, everything looked good and in the right place. I was so exited! Some people don't want to know the sex of their baby, and that's ok. But not me, not us. Saves time not having to return stuff later also.`

Time passed and all the preperation, all the shopping, the diapers, the butt creams, car seats, all of it we checked off our list. We were ready. My wifes emotions had started to run wild a little and we made the mistake of going to see a movie, "Armageddon". A little hint to all the first time dads out there, Pre Screen all movies, especially in the third trimester! I didn't, and the emotions, the tears, I thought I was going to drown. I'm thinking, Bruce Willis, space ships, asteroids, what could happen? Ooops! The hormones had taken over. Lesson learned! Then came that Saturday. The contractions started. I was working but stayed close to the phone. I waited and nada, zip, no calls. Hmmmm... false labor perhaps? I got home and went through the normal routine and when it was time to go to sleep, out I went. I knew that if things were to progress later on, I was going to need some sleep.

I hear something, it's time I think, it's time. Not sure if I am dreaming or not at this point but when the fog clears, IT'S TIME! Off we go. We are about 20 minutes away so no hurry just drive. It's her first so it could be a while. I think we check in about 11:00 pm, meet the duty nurses, get to the bed and start hooking her up to the monitors. Heperin lock for the IV's, a blanket, were set. The sound of the monitor that has the babies heartbeat on it is loud, going strong, the number showing on the screen. Over and over, beat after beat, on and on. Sure the mom does all the hard labor, but I gotta tell you that monitor will flat wear on you after a few hours. Any change in heartrate, the nurses comments, moms in pain, everyone is fading and tired, AGHHHHHHH! Then came the epidural, ooooohhhh, ahhhhhhhhhh, that's nice, look at all the pretty lines on the monitor. I'm thinking by then I could use one! I'm thinking it would be ok to climb under the bed and go to sleep on the floor.

Pitocin, the dreaded contraction generator had been flowing for some time now and were still at only 4 cm dialated. For those of you who have never had a child, you will learn all about this before you get to the delivery room. Words like, dialation, effacement, inducement, stadol, station, all will become part of your vocabulary. Read up on them, pay attention, you will thank me later. So we are progressing slowly, still at 4 cm and its now about 0900 in the morning. The epidural has changed the entire world now and mom is kind of resting in between the contractions. I am tapped out and decide I can walk across the street and get something to eat for myself, my mother in law, and my sister in law, who are both going to be in the delivery room with us. 10 minutes max. I get back, wolf down an egg McMuffin and the next thing I know the nurse is telling me to get in there, she's at 9 cm! 10 cm is the goal so time to prep for delivery. My wife is tired, numb from the waist down and then comes the direction to push. She is anxious, wiped out and not sure how hard she is pushing, but the doctors incouragement spurs her on. Counting to ten while she pushes, I can see the baby's hair, and lots of it. Barely able to go on she pushes one last time and there she is! Our little peanut, she is beautiful, like an angel. I go with her to the nursery for a check up and bath. She had a slight fever when she was born but all was ok. Grandma and Auntie are looking both tired and amazed. Her sister was barely in her teens at the time so it was quite the experience for her. I am ready to fall on the floor but just too excited for that. What a night. Our little girl has since grown into a beautiful young pre teen who loves to sing and dance, and at school she is at the top of her class. She amazes me every day. Such a joy our little peanut.

It is hard to describe the feeling of becoming a parent. Instant love, love at first sight, call it what you want, you feel it in your soul. The knowledge that this new life will rely on you for everything, 24/7. The greatest gift a person can feel is the love of their children. When they get old enough to look up at you and tell you, "I love you Mom", "I love you Dad" Once you feel it, you will always know it. It can bring even the strongest man to his knees. On that day, your birthday, we fell in love with our little Peanut, (My Girl) BigBlogAlphaDog