Our L&D tour

Holy cow - things are starting to feel a lot more real now!

Hubby and I went on our L&D tour at Albany Med yesterday, and let me tell you- it was A LOT more informative than I had imagined. I figured we'd just walk around the hospital and go home. NOPE!

They told us all about the paperwork we'd have to fill out, how long the stay would be, what you can & can't do in the different rooms you're in, etc. It was crazy. I'm so glad we went.

Since hubby is gonna be away when I deliver, I was really concerned with being able to communicate with him while in the hospital and being able to video tape so he doesn't totally miss out. I mean, laptops are permitted in the hospital, and there's WiFi in the rooms, so I'm hoping I go into labor when he has access to his laptop or a Skype phone, but labor doesn't wait for anyone! lol If he can be on his laptop or a Skype phone at the time I deliver, great! If not, I wanted to be able to video tape so he doesn't totally miss out. However, the hospital's policy is that you can take video up until the time the mother starts pushing, and then AFTER the baby is born. So what they're really saying is you can't get the one moment it's absolutely necessary to record on tape. Thanks, Albany Med! The lady said it's because they've had too many videographers pass out and end up in the ER. What a line of BS. I'm bringing my tripod to the hospital. Our lil camcorder can be operated by remote control. I'll just tuck it in the corner where they don't notice and conveniently cover the little red light on the front. (Insert evil grin here.) Or perhaps I'll record thru my webcam, and just keep it minimized on the screen so they don't see it. Either way, hubby is going to somehow witness the birth of his son and hear that very first cry. You cannot thwart me, Albany Medical Center!

So, as for visitors and guests at the hospital- in the delivery room (for a vaginal delivery), you're allowed to have your partner and up to 2 other people. If it's a c-section, you get your partner, and that's it. In post-partum, you can have your partner and up to 2 additional guests at your bedside at a time. No kids under 12 at all, which totally sucks because I want Anthony to be able to visit :(

Since hubby isn't gonna be there, my mom can be my "partner". I really wanted my grandmother in the delivery room with us, too. I mean, she's done this 12 times, so she's gotta know SOMETHING about this whole thing, right? But, I mean, if we have to rush over there, or if it's like in the wee hours of the morning, I do NOT want my grandfather getting up early and trying to rush grandma to the hospital to be with me. In the winter. No way.

So I'm pretty sure it's gonna be my Mom, Lexie, and Nikki. And Lexie and Nikki are the only 2 people I know who can take decent photos, so I need them for moral support as well as overkill on the photo documentation. There's no such thing as too many picures. But too FEW pictures, or missing an important shot is just unacceptable! lol

Touring those labor and post-partum rooms really made everything feel so real. Like, I'M going to be in one of those rooms in less than 3 months! MY baby is going to be in one of those little plastic tubs they call a "crib" there. Like, whoa. That's crazy. We walked past the nursery and I almost got choked up. There were only 2 babies in there when we walked past, and one was in the back. The nurse that was in there turned one that was in front by the window so we could see her, and she was so little and cute!

Funny thing about the stop at the nursery... Our tour group consisted of about 7 couples/families. One couple had their other child with them, and she was probably about 8 years old. Now, hubby was the ONLY black person on the tour. The baby in the nursery happened to be black. As soon as the girl could see the baby in the nursery, she immediately turned and looked at hubby. Kids are too funny. It was as if she expected him to have something to do with that baby. lol

Anyway, the tour was good. I'm glad we went.