Glad It's Not Me

This having a baby is exhausting work...for those of us not even having to do any of the work. What was supposed to be a "get in the car and drive to Chicago in time to take cute pictures of the newest family arrival" has turned into a "bleary-eyed, stumbling around-bumping into things in the dark" mass of confusion. Throw in a mother-in-law who doesn't speak English, and the scenario could be played out on Comedy Central.
Imagine being sent "home" when the birth seems a long time in the future...to be called at 2 a.m. with the news that a baby is on the way. Then, wake up a person in a foreign language, get dressed and head down the sidewalk to a car parked six blocks away (love that Chicago parking torture), only to get another call saying that the whole thing was a false alarm. Try to explain THAT to someone who nods and smiles in response to almost everything!
Sleep after that is impossible with every phone poised to ring with yet another call to rush out and the smell of cooking wafting through the house at 5 a.m. I think I brushed my ears and combed my teeth this morning.
Make another trip to the hospital just to be reprimanded for not "letting" the MIL eat breakfast before leaving! I figure anyone who had been up for two hours had already taken care of that! Language barriers being what they are makes for interesting times, that's for sure!
Now...I'm sitting here watching "I Love Lucy" while avoiding potential landmines in the conversation and assorted cultural gaffes.
It's going to be a long day.
Just imagine how tough it has to be for that poor woman lying in bed trying to have the real baby! Not eating since yesterday morning, enduring the pain of delivery onset and trying to be patient has got to be frustrating for her.
It's hard to believe that anybody has more than one child after this experience!
I did manage some cute photos, though; in fifteen years they will be classic!