evaluation of the baby situation pt 2

it was a waiting period. the only difference from the waiting that took place in a state side hospital was that this room felt like we were waiting literally while on the sun's surface. i didn't mind waiting so much because the anticipation of a whole new life completely removed that frustration that comes with being forced to wait. while i waited i took advantage of the internet as soon as i could to enjoy a little texas rangers baseball.

actually, the way this whole search for the "wireless password" began was i had a monster energy drink that i had purchased for the explosion meeting. usually these all day events drain me by the time the meeting is actually supposed to begin so a little pick me up is appreciated. however, at this particular moment at the hospital my energy drink had began to heat up, as everything else did in that inferno of a room, and therefore rendered my beverage too unbearably warm to consume. it seriously was like a sauna in there. you may be able to drink a coke at room temperature but i dare you to drink a red bull or monster energy drink at 90 degrees.

the same shirt that welcomed dutch, titus, and now baby finn

i searched for a nurse to retrieve me a fridge and the wireless password so that i could access twitter and inform the very anxious grandmas from all the way around the world about the happenings. upon asking for a fridge she quickly gave me the look as if to suggest she knew american's spoiled rotten nature of needing a lot of ice and free refills. the answer to the fridge was a quick, "no we don't have that" and i would only be able to retrieve the wireless password when i had a room registered to me. i found said room which had a fridge in it and quickly moved the stuff in order so that i could find entertainment. this fridge, even at maximum cooling capacity would be useless but i still gave it a shot. around 9pm belgian time i not only was able to enjoy my beverage but the rangers as well.

nearly 45 minutes later liz began the process of multiple contractions that were very painful. the strength of that woman as she clenched my hand ever 30-45 seconds. after nearly an hour of this i didn't know what to do. i wanted to call a nurse in and tell her to check on liz but i didn't want to leave her either so i waited. finally a nurse came in and i tried to aggressively nudge with my vocal tone that my wife need to be attended to by a medical professional. she checked and sure enough liz was ready to push this nugget out. the nurse said she was going to go call the doctor, i knew this meant i wouldn't see anyone for another hour for sure.

the chair in the far corner folded out to a rather comfy bed

surprisingly 5 minutes later the doc came in and they stared sliding stuff around, turning directional lights on, shifting the bed at the footboard, getting the warmer on, and of course, suiting up...oh, and that trash can looking thing was wheeled over as well. i had some experience in helping liz before with this sort of thing so helping her breathe and count was easy enough. and  before you knew it, all of a sudden voila! baby finn comes out 10 minutes before the 19th of august. it really was only about 15 minutes of pushing.

overall the staff was awesome, the room wasn't too bad in size, the bed was great for me, privacy and noise was superb. so i would say that if you are thinking about having a baby in belgium...go for it. oh, but make sure and have some money to pay for it or have insurance.

now we are balancing 2 young boys and a new born. i have been really trying to tend to all the boys needs while liz focuses completely on baby finn. sleep is a commodity that is as valuable as gold around these parts.

we will persevere!!!