Entry #672219, added on 10-18-09 @ 12:05 am EDT
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CHAPTER 1
The golden retriever puppy pawed at the bed covers until Silvie woke up. “Alright Roland.” Although it was a Saturday morning, Roland never let her sleep past 7:00 am. She looked down at the puppy who was wagging his tail. “I suppose you’re good training for motherhood, but it’s cold out. I wish I could just open the door and let you out.” She pet the anxious dog on the head as she struggled to wake up. Sleeping had become extremely difficult. She slid her legs out over the edge of the bed, her feet searching for her slippers. As soon as Roland saw Silvie was getting up, he trotted to the kitchen door to sit and wait for Silvie to let him out. Silvie dragged her loosest sweat pants over her overly extended belly and pulled a maternity shirt over her head. “Nine days and nine hours overdue. This is getting ridiculous,” she said to herself as she waddled out to the kitchen.
Silvie opened the back door which led into the garage and Roland bounded impatiently past her. “Sit.” The exuberant puppy struggled to obey the command as the garage door raised. “Ok, go.” The puppy bounded over to his favorite tree and then proceeded to sniff the yard to see what critters had trespassed on his territory.
Silvie shuffled down to the mailbox for the morning paper. She noticed that frost crystals hugged blades of grass. She breathed a sigh. “The weatherman was correct. We did get a hard frost this morning. Thank goodness. My allergies should clear up a little now.” As she waddled up the driveway, Roland followed in step behind her. “Good dog.” She reached down and patted him on the head.
“It’s a gorgeous day.” The warming yellow sun hung in the cool blue fall sky. The crisp autumn air filled her lungs. Roland was at her feet bounding around full of energy. She turned around and looked at the sky. The fresh air beckoned. “You know, Roland, maybe I should just go get dressed and take you for a walk. A bit of exercise might just get this baby born.” With that she tied Roland up outside so he wouldn’t be under her feet. She went inside to complete the arduous task of putting on some more appropriate clothes. Socks and shoes were the worst. Maternity jeans were uncomfortably snug around her better than nine month pregnant belly. A long sleeve maternity t-shirt and then a jacket. On her way through the kitchen, she grabbed Roland’s leash and headed out the back door, stopping to grab the garage door opener from her car; that way she wouldn’t have to walk around to the front and use the key.
As she clipped the leash to Roland’s collar, she noticed that the maple trees had changed from lush green to vibrant jeweled yellows and reds. There was a wonderful smell to fall that Silvie just loved. She breathed in. “Ok, Roland, let’s go for that walk.”
Blake had gotten up early to go into the office and finish up a few things so he could enjoy his weekend with his wife.
Silvie waddled slowly down the drive, the puppy finally coming into step with her. As they got to the end of the driveway, she turned down the sidewalk and admired the multiple fall colors in her neighbor’s yard. The burning bush seemed to have turned crimson overnight and stood out brilliantly in front of the white siding. The quilt of mums covered the ground in front of the bushes. They had even decorated their yard with a scarecrow and pumpkins for Halloween. She looked closer and spied little ghosts hanging from the trees.
As she reached her neighbor’s driveway, a sharp pain in her stomach stopped her. It took her breath away. When the pain subsided, she looked at the puppy. “We’re turning back, Roland. I don’t think we’ll be taking that walk.” She waddled back to the house with Roland in tow.
After she unleashed the puppy, she grabbed her cell phone. Doc Carlson had given Silvie her cell number weeks ago, and Silvie had put the number on speed dial.
“Hello, Silvie. Is everything ok?”
“We – ll, no. I started to take Roland for a walk an…” Another contraction turned her breathless. Silvie breathed slowly and purposefully like she had learned in Lamaze classes and waited.
“Silvie. Silvie, is everything ok?”
“Yes.”
“Another contraction?”
A smile covered Silvie’s face. “Yup.”
“How far apart are they coming?”
“I don’t know.”
“Well, when they are five minutes apart, give me another call and then head to the hospital. Is Blake there?”
“No, he’s at the office.”
“You might want to call him so he has time to come home and get you to the hospital.”
Silvie hung up and called Blake.
“Morning sweetheart. Your up.”
“I thought I’d call and see when you might be home.”
“Oh, give me a couple of hours.”
“You might want to come home a bit earlier than that. I started to take Ro…” Another contraction seized her and left an awkward pause on the phone.
“Silvie? Silvie? Are you ok.”
She caught her breath when the contraction subsided. “I’m ok, Blake. It’s just that I’m having contractions, and I need you to come home. Your going to be a daddy before the day is over.”
With that they hung up, and Blake finished up quickly and headed out the door.
Silvie looked at the clock. 7:20. She waddled into the bedroom to get her watch, the small notebook, and a pen so she could track these contractions.
“I’m not going to just sit around and wait for each contraction,” she told Roland who was now following her around the house. “I’ve got things to do.”
She attacked the morning like any typical Saturday morning. She decided to start with the dishwasher: cups, plates, and glasses to the cupboard; silverware in the drawer; and baking dishes in the pantry. Then she breathed and realized it had been ten minutes since the last contraction. “Well, Roland, it seems like this is going to be a very long day.”
Pouring some dog food into Roland’s dish, Silvie realized that she was hungry. She poured herself a bowl of Cherrios, honey nut Cherrios to be precise, and decided to sit in the lazyboy and watch a few home improvement shows while she munched. As she sat down, another contraction seized her. 8:00. She breathed through it and recorded it in her notebook. Before she finished eating, however another contraction rose. Looking to record the time, she found that it was only 8:05. ‘What had happened? It’s only been 5 minutes. The last interval was 12.’
She was relieved when Roland’s barking announced the arrival of her husband.
“Blake, I think we need to leave immediately. Doc Carlson told me to call her back and to head to the hospital when the contractions were 5 minutes apart. I’ve had four since I talked to the doctor.”
Blake hurried to grab the overnight bag from the front closet and got it and his wife into the car, and Silvie called Doc Carlson. Once at the hospital, he got her the wheel chair and proceeded to the maternity floor. Doc Carlson met them as they got off the elevator. Silvie and Blake had chose to deliver in a birthing room and then have the baby stay in the room with them.
As they were getting Silvie settled, Roland went down to complete the final registration; they had done most of the registration during the Lamaze class and all he needed to do was give the lady at the reception desk his and his wife’s names.
When he got up to Silvie’s room, she was in the middle of yet another contraction. He sat down in the chair next to her and held her hand and worked to get her focused into his eyes. “You’re doing great, champ.”
“Uh-huh.”
“It won’t be long now,” Doctor Carlson said from the foot of the bed.
Contraction after contraction. Blake kept focused on Silvie and breathing with her. Finally, he heard the strong cries of an infant. Both of them took a deep breath.
“Blake? Blake, you wanted to cut the cord.”
Blake tore himself from his wife’s gaze and cut the umbilical cord. Then, he followed the nurse to the warm bassinet and watched as the she cleaned the infant and wrapped him in a soft blanket.
“Your son, Mr. Greggory.”
“He’s perfect. Silvie,” he said as he walked to her, “he’s perfect.”
WORD COUNT
CHAPTER 1 = 1,436
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© Copyright 2009 Caressa (UN: caressa at Writing.Com). All rights reserved.
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