The Birth of Eric…
Amy and I were married on May 24th, 1986. Eric was NOT born February 24th, 1987. He was born December 12th, 1991 (5 and ½ years later.)
We worked into the idea of being parents. I read books about it. Amy did “field research” by spending time with other women who had babies or were pregnant.
I suppose our first test of fake-parenthood was our cats, Caspian & Corin. They were Toms (well, ex-Toms, if you know what I mean) and they were spoiled. We took them on trips and kind of treated them like kids. One time we took them with us to Missouri to Amy’s grandmother’s house. Amy said to Irene, “Say hello to your great grand kitties.” To which Irene sardonically replied, “I don’t want to see those. You bring me some real grandbabies!”
After a year of “trying” Amy was pregnant. She diligently read the hot new book, What to Expect When You Are Expecting. She researched different types of births (Epidural vs. Natural, Bradley vs. Lamaze) and she decided on the natural Bradley birth method. That sent us down a path that altered our family philosophy.
Amy wanted to birth naturally because of the quicker recovery time and the lack of medication in her system. Which led her to nurse her babies exclusively (none of our boys ever had formula and never had a bottle.) Which then led to cloth diapers, and homemade baby food, and a whole host of “Little House on the Prairie” tendencies (including Home Schooling.)
I worked in Columbia, TN (40 miles from our house) and Amy worked at the Target on White Bridge Road in Nashville. Amy had found an OBGYN through Baptist Hospital near the down town. We took the prenatal classes (where we determined that we would have to live in a padded sphere with nothing in it to avoid the potential horrors we had seen in all of the safety videos) and we had a coach work with us on our Bradley Method.
Eric was due December 31st, 1991. We were prepared for him to come even later and for a long, arduous labor. We had scoped out our route to the hospital. I had located where to park and how to check-in. Hopefully I would still be on Christmas break when he came. We had it all mapped out, because we are planners.
Here were the events of Thursday, December 12th, 1991
> Thursday, December 12th: Amy’s last day working at Target before her maternity leave.
> Thursday, December 12th: I was staying late after school to rehearse for the King’s Daughters’ Christmas program (I was playing the piano.) My last day of work before Christmas break was Friday, December 20th.
> 4:10 PM: Amy arrives home from Target
> 4:10 PM: I go to Taco Bell before the 5:00 Christmas Program Rehearsal
> 4:20 PM: Amy goes into our bedroom and notices that the faux end table has been knocked over (probably by the stupid cat.)
> 4:20 PM: I am eating a bean burrito.
> 4:21 PM: Amy squats down to pick up the table when her water breaks.
> 4:21 PM: I am still eating a bean burrito.
> 4:22 PM: Amy calls her Dr. who tells her to come into the office.
> 4:24 PM: Amy calls my school to tell me she’s headed to the Dr.
> 4:24 PM: I’m still at Taco Bell.
> 4:25-4:50 PM: Amy drives herself (through downtown Nashville late afternoon traffic while in labor) to her Dr.’s office.
> 4:50 PM: Dr.’s office calls the school again (I am not there)
> 4:55 PM: I get back to school as the secretaries descend upon me telling me to call Amy’s Dr.
> 4:57 PM: Dr.’s office tells me to come immediately, “You’ll have a baby tonight,” she pipes in her perky Southern accent. I reply, “Whuuuuuuut?”
> 5:00 PM: I run into the KDS Christmas rehearsal to see about 60 smiling faces of the residents. “Gotta go! Amy’s having a baby!” I holler. Then I run to my car.
> 5:30 PM: I am at the stop light on the off-ramp towards Baptist hospital. A homeless guy approaches me with a sign asking for money. I roll down the window and say, “Sorry buddy. Maybe next time, but my wife is having a baby!” Then I cackle as I peel-out around the corner.
> 5:45 PM: Finally park and make it to the Dr’s office. (of course I have to wait.)
> 5:50 PM: Amy comes out of the exam rook pale and sweating (she has just had a contraction. I pull out my handy dandy watch and begin timing (because that’s what I’m supposed to do.)
> 5:55-6:30 PM: We attempt to make our way from the Dr.’s office to the birthing room but we tend to wander around (having contractions no less) because Baptist Hospital is like a huge freaking maze. (I am reminded of the scene in Spinal Tap when the band can’t find the stage.)
> 6:35 PM: We are settled into the birthing room and Amy is having regular close contractions. 15-year-old girls dressed as nurses frantically push clip boards under Amy’s nose because we haven’t filled some stuff out. They soon realize it’s real labor and they say, “I’ll come back later.”
> 6:40 PM: I am trying to soothe Amy and get her through the contractions, (Actually I’m making her a little nauseous because I had played basketball in PE that day so I smelled like old man-stench mixed with Taco Bell onions. “Relaaaaaaaaaax Amy. Breeeeeeeeeeeeath.”)
> 7:00 PM: Amy says, “I think I need to push.” And she does. She pushed through three contractions.
> 7:40 PM: Eric William Geil is born. 6 lbs, 4 oz.
He was so small. He fit in my two hands. I stayed with him to get cleaned off and weighed. The nurses stayed with Amy. He was swaddled and given back to Amy wearing a little blue stocking cap. He laid on Amy’s chest and I couldn’t take my eyes off of them. (I’m crying a little bit right now as I type this…but that is why I’m doing it right? To stir my heart?) We were officially a family. I caught a glimpse of my self-centeredness draining away as I looked at the two of them.
I had a great phone call to my Mom from the hospital room. I called and said, “Hey Mom, guess what I’m doing right now?” “I don’t know,” she replied. “Holding your Grandson,” I snickered. “Whuuuuuuut?”
Fun day, and I’m glad Eric wasn’t born on Friday the 13th.
chris
Bonus Blog: Eric’s Name
I had a brother, Eric William Geil, who died 4 days after he was born.
He died of Hemolytic disease. My mother has a negative blood type, but I have a positive blood type. When I was born, some of my blood got into my mother’s system. My mother’s body then developed antibodies against positive blood. When Eric William Geil the 1st was conceived, those antibodies worked against him as he developed. He did not survive long after birth.
Amy has a negative blood type as well. Now there is a series of shots that block the mother’s body from developing those antibodies, however, Amy didn’t have to have those shots because my son, Eric, also has negative blood.
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