So we got to tour the birthing center last night during our Lamaze class. I'm a bit dissapointed. I had heard all super good news about it, and it was very nice up until the point of actually having the baby. Let me start at the beginning...
We met in the front lobby. You walk through the front door, past the gift shop, and you see an elevator right in front of you. It's called Elevator 1. Don't take this one! It doesn't go to the 2nd floor where the birthing center is. Keep walking to your right. You'll then see Elevators 2 and 3. Take one of these to the 2nd floor. As soon as the elevator doors open up, the waiting room is to your left through a door. It's a small L-shaped room with chairs, two water fountains, and a bathroom. No TV. So if you're one of the people going to try to tough it out waiting for the baby to be born, bring a book or magazine or something. The only other doors in that main hall lead to the birthing center and to the operating room for c-sections.
When the time does come and you're able to see Southern, you follow the hall straight ahead of you when you get out of the elevators. It has double doors that are locked. You'll have to ring the doorbell (on the right wall), and tell whoever lets you in who you are and who you're there to see. If you are under 14 years of age (the teacher last time told us 12, but the official sign on the door says 14), you will not be allowed in at all. The nursery will be to your right once you're in. The labor and delivery suites and post-pardum rooms are down this hall as well.
The labor and delivery suites are nice. They're big rooms with a table and chairs, an easy chair that folds into a bed for dad, a TV, large windows, etc. Very comfy and big enough for visitors, which is ironic because I don't think I'll be up to hosting any visitors at that point! When it's time, the doctor comes to the room and delivers the baby. Then it's the golden hour. Then baby is taken for his bath and shots. I clean up and am moved to a post-pardum room. This is where I was disappointed. Yuck. They're your typical small hospital-feeling room. The labor and delivery suites feel like hotel rooms, and there are seven of them. The post-pardum rooms are not that way at all. There are three private rooms and three semi-private rooms (meaning two patients to a room!). It is first come, first served. So there's no way to know which one I'll be stuck in. The nurses on duty said that on most every day, all the privates are filled up and they start putting new moms in the semi-privates. Bummer. Also, there is no place for dad to sleep in the semi-private. He gets one hard, wooden chair. Which also mean visitors will have an uncomfortable time visiting, especially when there's a roommate with visitors. :(
Sooo Dustin and I decided that whoever wants to come visit, come on. Just stopping by for a short time to say hi and to see the baby will be fine. (Just not everyone at the same time!) And for the key people who want to see the baby right away (parents and siblings), we'll just have to call when we're getting close so you don't have to wait in that cramped waiting room too long. You can see Southern after the golden hour and swing by the room for a bit. Then Dustin can call with the good news to everyone else later. And we'll plan a trip to Yoakum sometime within that week to show him off to family there. That way, we won't have to worry about people dropping by the house when it's a mess and we're trying to sleep. I'm sure we'll be doing nothing but napping and feeding those first few days back at home. I can never sleep in hospitals, especially if I'll have a roommate and my husband sitting upright in a chair all night!
As for my mom and Carly, we don't mind you guys stopping by the house. I'm sure there will be times when Dustin wouldn't mind sharing diaper duty! ;)
No comments:
Post a Comment