This is because of family! Tantie Lydie and tantie Nadege live with us and help take care of you, and I am not often overwhelmed. It seems like there's usually someone else around to help when I need help. I love having extended family right here with us and don't know what I would do without them.
Isaac and Sonia help entertain you too, although just as often they cart you upstairs, close the baby gate, and run back down, saying something like, "Keep Evence up here! He's going to destroy everything!!!!"
You have been destroying things a lot lately. Especially Isaac's Pokemon graphic novels. From the library. This is not ideal, my dear Evence. Although, it is hopefully teaching Isaac to put his stuff up out of reach. I know it's just a stage. You were much better in church today. Isaac and Sonia went to Nana's for a long weekend so it was just me and you. You stayed right by me and were only moderately loud, which is fabulous. Usually you are the loudest baby in church, hands down. And it's not usually because you're upset. You're just loud. (I secretly would not be sad if you became a priest some day. Maybe you're practicing your speaking/singing voice.)
Dare I attempt to recall when you were born? Maybe I'd better try, since you just turned 13 months old on Thursday and my memory isn't getting better, that is for sure.
Let's see. Maybe I can be fancy and even put some pictures in with it. Maybe. Not pictures of birth. There aren't any of those. Thank goodness.
Okay, the day before you were born, we went to the zoo with Tantie Nadege. At this point, you were due July 16th and this was 6 days later (July 22nd). Although, I had thought about it again and decided that *modern technology could be wrong* given that my previous two babies were larger than the average baby and so your real due date should have been the 23rd. Because that would have made sense. Also it would make things so perfectly perfect since I had a baby three days early and a baby three days late - so one on time would just be such a nice balance, don't you think? But it still was funny when Isaac and Sonia (and London) were at Vacation Bible School that week before (the week after your due date) and every day I both dropped them off and picked them up, and every time got asked, "Still not here yet?" about you.
We will never know if the excessive walking or the fact that the next day was really your real due date, as decided by Mama, helped me start labor then (apparently at 3:50 a.m. - thank you baby book).
Well, that was a Sunday. I had not super planned things out so hadn't gone to Mass Saturday evening (to be fair, we were probably at the zoo). I felt, given that my previous two labor experiences had started approximately the same time, that I may in fact be able to make it to 8:30 Mass, but 10:30 would probably be cutting it close, or just be distractingly uncomfortable. Also, I was supposed to go in four hours before having the baby because for the first time I had the group B strep and they were supposed to give me antibiotics, so there was that. I decided, given the situation, that I would just go to Mass myself and not worry about my parental duties to bring Isaac and Sonia that time. I think they might have still been asleep, or woke up as I was leaving. I can't say I was paying attention to that.
At church, I sat in the back left hand corner at the very end of a pew. I had never "had my water break" before the very last part of labor, but if it happened I was definitely going to be leaving as discreetly as possible. This did not happen. God is merciful. I didn't pay as much attention at Mass as I should have, but I believe I did save something with the readings from that day, so you can look back in case you wonder what they were.
Since I don't usually go to 8:30 Mass, I didn't know hardly anyone there and so left right afterward to go home. Everyone was up and I told Henri that I was, in fact, in labor and maybe we should go to the hospital in a little bit. This was probably around 10ish. Maybe 10:30. I got things together then milled around a little. It was not comfortable but clearly I was not communicating this, because finally I felt like I had waited enough, and said, "Don't you think we'd better go now?" and Papa said, "Why?". I reminded him about the 4 hours before thing and he got ready to go at a relaxed pace. I called Nana to say that I was indeed in labor and we left Isaac and Sonia with tantie Nadege.
For the first time in my life, someone else drove me to the hospital while I was in labor. I fully appreciated this, although I also totally could have done it myself, if necessary. The hospital is not only the same one I was born in, but is two blocks from where I work, so I could almost get there on auto-pilot. Instead, I co-piloted Henri there. It was luxurious.
Since I wasn't so terribly far into labor (but probably just a little over 4 hours away from giving birth, I guessed), it was relaxed enough. It was around 11:30-11:45. We checked in and they had us go back to a triage nurse. I said, "They told me to come in 4 hours before giving birth for those antibiotics, so here I am! "
Apparently my tone was too chipper, or the nurse was less than thrilled to be at work on a Sunday. She hooked me up to the monitor, which recorded my first two contractions and then must have slipped, because it didn't record any others although I was having them regularly (maybe every five minutes). When she came back, she in so many words told me it was a no go, we should go have lunch, walk around a little, and the antibiotics required an IV, which required admission, which who knows when that was going to happen. Maybe today, maybe in the next 24 hours. I asked them to note that I did, in fact, come in four hours prior to giving birth as I was told to, and we left. It was now around 12:30 (I think).
Now, Henri and I don't always agree on everything, but we do have a shared value of "why pay for not-so-great food when delicious food is available for free somewhere close by?" So we drove home to eat some of Nadege's yummy leftovers. It was a bit anti-climactic to come home with the baby still on the interior side of my belly, but whatever we ate was good. I called Nana briefly to whine that they had sent me home unjustly. I got extra Isaac and Sonia hugs. We decided that next step would be to walk around the loop (Wilderness Dr). On the way, we met our neighbors Sharon and Myrt. Sharon asked if I thought the baby was coming soon. I said, "Why yes, it will be today," and we shared the story thus far and our intention of walking around the loop. After chatting for about five minutes. we resumed this walk. We got to the corner of their property (not more than 100 feet away) and I decided that perhaps it would be better to do this walking business back at the hospital. I didn't want to give birth on the other side of the hill.
Back in the car we went, parked (luckily we already had the parking permit from our first visit), and started walking around. I think we did the loop twice before I said it was close enough and we went back in. By now it was at least 2:30. Back into the triage room we went, and either I was dilated enough or the contraction monitor worked or both - they finally admitted me. I changed into the hospital gown and the nurse slowly got things going. I did ask again about the antibiotics, and she said we'd get there. I am not exactly sure what time it was but definitely at least 3:15 by then.
At this point it hurt and I knew it was close. The nurse was not catching on. I was annoyed. I began to tell myself, forget it, apparently I was pretty vocal when Sonia was born, why try to play tough? Henri already knows I'm a wimp, so there was nothing to lose. Obviously this nurse lady did not read between the lines with "tough". Papa started to get a little worried and said he thought this seemed worse than the last time so did I want to consider painkillers? I said it was ok, it was just close. The nurse phoned the anesthesiologist to have him come discuss my options. I laughed on the inside. I don't think he showed up until I was pushing.
Evence was born at 4:14 p.m., and had no complications. His placenta split in half, for some reason, but they got the other half out and then I had no complications either. The nurses were very nice and I don't remember them painfully pushing on my uterus to have it contract back down, although I'm sure they did what they were supposed to. They checked Evence out and gave him to me right away, and we snuggle-loved. Evence at this point was still nameless, and we marveled at how much he looked like Isaac. I guess we thought that with the two of us looking so different from each other, each kid should look a little different. This was a deja vu moment though.
I got to hold Evence almost right away. They said that nowadays they don't give the newborn babies baths. Apparently the white stuff helps their skin later. Okay.
So he was a little bit stinky but not too bad. Papa wrote three different name combinations (kinda the final three we had thought about) and we decided that his first name should be Evence, not Stephane (our second idea). Papa's other combination was Evence Ghislain, but the way you say the second name sounded too much like a girl name in English, and Evence Aymard just sounds so nice. Evence Aymard it was. It kind of sounds like Waldemar. But not exactly.
(Although there are moments I still think he looks like a Theo.)
