Magee: Oddly Similar to the Hampton Inn

Or maybe not quite...there is no free hot breakfast buffet. But the decor, the ambiance, all resemble a corporate hotel chain.

M and I went on our tour of the hospital today, where we will be delivering Puddin', barring any exceptional circumstances, like not getting to the hospital on time and having a baby in the car. I go to a midwife practice that is based in the hospital, and we got to meet all of them tonight (there are 8 possible people who could be on call). I was greatly relieved to hear that they really do promote a natural approach to birth, and that unless I specifically request it, my labor need not resemble a bad episode of TLC's Birth Day. That is, I will be free to walk around, sit in a jacuzzi, and drink when I am thirsty. There won't be a crowd of doctors and nurses yelling "push!" - which was seriously my worst nightmare since we found out I was pregnant. I wish we did not have cable then, because I watched a lot of Discovery Channel and they really make labor and birth look truly awful. Then I watched The Business of Being Born, which is odd because Ricki Lake is suddenly this rather crunchy natural birth activist...I mean, who saw that coming?? However, this film shows some home births where, although it certainly doesn't look like a picnic, the laboring women are not strapped down in stirrups under bright lights.

I was born at Magee, and I actually do have a few memories of the old part of the hospital when I was really young, like maybe four or five, because my mom taught breastfeeding classes there, and I remember going to pick her up.

So now, we have a onesie, a baby carrier, and have completed the hospital tour. Check those off the baby preparation list. I think I am at that stage of pregnancy where you have gotten so used to it that you just assume you will be pregnant forever, and it's not so uncomfortable to wish you were not. But time is ticking away, and I am now in my third trimester. That means you can tell I am definitely pregnant and not just fat, and that sometime in the month of October, the baby should be fully done and ready to come out.

I think there is still a lot to get done, but I am going to put it out of my head until I finish my much-needed vacation next week.