I love to play softball and miss it terribly since moving to the USVI. There are no adult leagues here and can’t even seem to find people playing pick up games. So, I try to go to softball tournaments back stateside when I am able. I have some really great friends that I play with and enjoy seeing them a few times a year as well. This post is not really about softball though, that’s just a backdrop.
It was January. My wife was 26+ weeks pregnant. We figured it was safe for me to go to one more softball tournament before our son’s arrival. As I said, we live in the USVI so flights aren’t connecting to many places at all times of day. I was going to Las Vegas for the weekend to meet up with friends and play the tournament. I would be gone from Friday until Tuesday. It’s a long travel day from home to Las Vegas. Leave early in the morning Atlantic time and get to Vegas after 9pm Pacific time. I was staying with one of my best friends in a very nice condo just off the strip. I’m not much of a gambler so this trip was about softball and hanging out with friends. The tournament went fairly well. The games were played on Saturday and Sunday. I honestly don’t remember how we finished but we did ok. My wife and I would text back and forth between games and at night.
It was Sunday now and we had to play some back to back games so I didn’t get to check my phone for a few hours. After we finished I had a voicemail from my wife telling me she was having some pains and may need to go to the hospital. I didn’t think too much of it at first figuring this may be Braxton Hicks contractions and they would pass. I called her and things hadn’t gotten any better. I told her to get to the hospital and see the doctor so we could be sure everything was ok. I was calm but freaking out on the inside a bit. “This is no big deal, it happens to lots of women”, I thought. “The doctor will check her over and everything will be just fine.” My friends and I head over to restaurant for a team dinner after the tournament. I’m having conversation and trying to enjoy my meal awaiting a call from her hoping I was thinking the worst for nothing.
I get the call mid dinner. I walk outside to get away from the noise as I hear the uneasiness in her voice right away. “I’m in pre-term labor and the doctor is giving me steroids to help the baby’s lungs in case he can’t stop the labor”. “We’re at 27 weeks!!! This can’t happen now.” I’m screaming it in my head. I had tears forming as I kicked myself for thinking it was safe to be so far away from her. It was Sunday afternoon and my flight home wasn’t until midnight on MONDAY night. “I can’t F$%*ing wait that long to get home! I can’t not be there right now.” I hang up with my wife and I’m on the phone with the airline. “I need to get home ASAP. Please find me the quickest way home!!” I was able to get the midnight flight that night out of Vegas and would get me back in the USVI at around 4pm the next day. It was my only choice. I went back to the condo and packed up my stuff. My friends were really great and helped keep me calm. I had about 8 hours to kill before I had to get to the airport. We went out to check out some bingo games free to play at some off the wall casino way away from the strip. It kept me occupied. I did everything to not think too much about it. I had a few drinks, I would need to find sleep on the flight home and couldn’t let my mind go crazy with worry for the next 18 hours.
The flight home was uneventful thank goodness. I made it to the hospital that Monday afternoon/evening. My wife was resting better and the contractions had slowed and almost stopped by that point. Relief for her and our son. Our little guy was doing everything he could to keep us on our toes even before his arrival. I sat down and had a little talk with our son and let him know we couldn’t wait to meet him but thought it best that he just relax for another few months. After all it was winter in the USVI, temps were reaching the mid to low 70’s at night. HAHA. I may have gone off the deep end a bit if the labor couldn’t be stopped and I wasn’t there for her. She was able to check out of the hospital the next afternoon with some medicine to help keep the contractions at bay.
But now she would be on bed rest for the next 3 months. Off to the store I go. I bought puzzles, a handheld yahtzee game, set up my video game systems that had been in storage since our move, and got some new books to read. The dogs would be getting some quality time with mom for the next few months so this would be heaven for them. 🙂
Next installment…..the stutterstep arrival of the man, the myth, the legend….and possibly the quick origin story and evolution of his name. 🙂