She was due on Thursday, but her Daddy was working at camp until Friday at 5, so she waited until he was home; contractions started Friday about 7. We went down to Memorial Park by the Legislative Buildings, and in the shadow of the Golden Boy we had samples at Taste of Manitoba, greeting people we knew, keeping an eye on our watches and our secret to ourselves.
Home again, we put sheets in the crib, the hospital bag by the door, and started playing cards. At one in the morning, we figured the contractions were close enough to go in, and the long route all the way across town was empty and quick. Once there, we were told 1 cm - we could go home to wait or just stay there... easy choice! We were shown to our room and had a pretty good night's sleep; nice to not be wondering if and when. The rooms at the Victoria General Hospital at the time were all-in-one: delivery & recovery; no moving around at all. I was ready for some pain management at 7:30 am when they came in to check on us, and things progressed from there - no epidural, as they were 'using it down the hall' - so 7 hours later, with just laughing gas, she made her appearance.
It was a warm summer day and our doctor was wearing her volunteer shirt for the Pan Am Games that were being held in Winnipeg at the time. All that dark fuzzy hair... it all fell out and she turned into a blond. She was 9 lbs, 12 oz, and amazing.
This is her today - taller than her mom, and still amazing. Love you, my first baby.
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