Learned estimates put the brute at 18.2 inches and around 5.3 pounds give or take a bit although my wife does not look huge. There are pains, though. She is due at the mid-wife's today but the baby's head and movements around the fibroid are causing severe discomfort in short, but annoyingly regular bouts which wakes both of us up during the night. It appears only my fatherly fingers lightly stroking what we think is the baby's head actually stops the grinding against the fibroid and eases the discomfort which brings immediate relief.
We are concerned. The baby's regular movements higher up the tummy cause no real problem in terms of pain and still the undulating surface causes the strategically positioned TV remote control to bob around as if moved by waves on the sea - a source of endless fun while watching a film or something. The nastier pains usually come when my wife is lying on her back and we have tried these funny V-shaped pillows but they don't help much. The nagging concern is that these pains may grow in the build up to the final weeks and cause an early delivery, so our bags are well and truly packed and ready - both cars fuelled up.
This week, there is once again a severe weather warning for tomorrow and as I travel to Basingstoke for work, I am already making contingencies as leaving my wife on her own while in such discomfort and with the spectre of an early birth is not sensible. So I shall be trying to make sure I am near by and have the 4 wheel drive saloon car on stand by.
By coincidence, a colleague at work is also a 'senior' dad - his partner and he having their daughter 5 months ago and he is full of excitement and pictures on his mobile. We had a kindred chat about the problems that endometriosis can cause around conception and there was a similar story about the early pregnancy that indicated that the low progesterone level my wife suffered which almost caused a miscarriage again, was not as uncommon as we had been led to believe. What we both found is that fertility, for all its incredible techniques and detailed knowledge as a research area, was still a fairly inexact science and sometimes there was an air of 'trial and error' or lack of attention to the obvious that seemed to pervade. At least that seemed to be our experience despite all the praise we have for all the people who have helped on the way. In our experience, it was a lowly nurse who spotted the problem and, in our opinion, saved the day when more experienced and highly regarded specialists failed to heed the warning signs - or perhaps they were looking for something different.
No matter. Baby is on its way and the excitement and trepidation continues to grow. This week is another NCT Class and in 2 weeks the cot, pram and car seat arrive. In a last defiant stand, I have arranged a man's weekend in Spain in may for 'work' purposes and in June a long weekend in Las Vegas for a relative's birthday.
Once a man, always a man.
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