(Dreaded) Middle Child

We started remodeling our house soon after I found out I was pregnant with our second child. We did quite a bit of the work ourselves, and tiling the kitchen counters was one of them. I was about 8 1/2 months pregnant while I was tiling the kitchen. I remember I was making cooked pudding (chocolate, of course) on the stove while my husband was glueing a thick piece of plywood on top of another piece for the counter. My stove is in a corner of the kitchen and I was cooking the pudding, with a gas flame, right next to the part of the counter my husband was glueing (with adhesive that CLEARLY said, HIGHLY FLAMEABLE...DO NOT USE NEAR FLAME). Well, I don't know if being pregnant zaps out all of ones brain cells, or if my husband and I are just plain stupid...but you should have seen the flame catch hold of the adhesive fumes. It was just like in the movies. We watched the flames go from under the pan, across the counter and up the wall. There just happened to be some carpet hunks on the floor (thank GOD) that my husband tossed on the counter. Geez, that was a close call, it could have been soooooo bad. After we did the usual stress laugh, we ate the pudding!!
So in the following days, he finished the counter top so I could start tiling. I was just finishing up the last bit when my water broke. Because this happened to me with my firstborn, I knew I wasn't going anywhere anytime soon, so I put on put on some protection and finished working.
This was 4 p.m. and a week early. I called my mom and told her we would be bringing her grand daughter over later because we were hoping to have a baby. Well, at 7 a.m. the next morning, we were still at home. I was having some contractions, but nothing really productive. Once I got to the hospital and into my room and all situated, they started a Pitocin drip. I had heard horror stories about Pitocin, so I wasn't too thrilled with that, but it turned out to be Wonderful!.
We had taken the childbirth classes this time also, and I was prepared with music, and a focus, and I had my husband tell me when the contraction peaked. My focus was my daughter and I sitting in the kiddy pool, with the sun sparkling on the water. That along with my knowing when the contraction peaked was all I needed. I sailed through the whole wopping three hours of labor like a bush woman. Again, same as the first time, I hyperventilated and got the shakes and needed the trusty paper bag, but unlike last time, when they checked for dilation, they waited until the contraction was over. I told my husband I had to push and to call for the nurse. She sauntered in and told me I couldn't possibly be ready yet, but after she checked, she got moving real fast. I was sort of in a sitting position, and I had my feet on the foot pads, the bottom of the bed was taken off, and the nurse and doctor were leaning against the counter. I said, "Are you gonna come catch him?" They didn't seem worried at all. Well, I kind of took them by surprise, because I only had to push 2 times and my second child was born. A darling little 6 lb. 11 oz. 19 in. wrinkly little Dr. Spock. He had a little turned up nose, with a crease across it, a little pointed chin, blond hair. Soooo sweet.