A Year Ago Today: The Beginning of the End

Thirty Nine Weeks and Two Days, originally uploaded by Sacha Digi.

Well, really the beginning of the beginning.

I was so determined that I would hold out until the very last possible day and keep our baby in. Seems my body decided to do things differently. I was incredibly uncomfortable but had been that way for weeks and weeks. I was crying myself to sleep in pain. But still we were going to do everything we could for the well-being of our baby, and we are still doing exactly that.

My first thought when my water broke was "oh shit!" And it's amazing how much fluid can gush from one's vagina. It's not the cute, sometimes embarassing, often comical splash that happens on TV. It was a river. I waddled into the living room where M. was sleeping, thinking about how I was going to break this news to her. I have a tendency to downplay things. "Uh, honey, I kind of, well, broke my ankle..." so I decided to just say "sweetie, my water broke".

So begins the beginning. Of a labor that culminated in a birth that went exactly how we didn't want. Of parenting the most wonderful, challenging, intense little boy. Of pushing our relationship to the limits. Of learning to be parents together.