Jack and Me

‘If you are expecting your first baby you might want to attend Antenatal Classes to help prepare you for labour, birth and the early days at home with your new baby’ , says the blurb.

And so it began – one, two hour session every week for six weeks. Naturally, I was not keen and my first session confirmed my worst fears. Couples sitting round in a cramped room with that uncomfortable silence when so many new people get together, the mums heading out to the toilet every 20 mins or so and rubbing their beach ball shaped tummies as they try to find a comfortable sitting position, an expert drumming on about the benefits of natural birth and the men trying to look interested (well me anyway) as the topics of the uterus, fetal activity, amniotic fluid, colostrum and of course your LMC are covered. I was really anti antenatal classes. Don’t get me wrong there are benefits of antenatal classes. Its just that you could cover it all in one two hour session.

As the weeks wore on, the experts in the group came to the fore. It was fine to ask questions that you already know the answer to – just don’t leave it till 9.30 pm (2 hours after the start time), especially when the last few episodes of  ‘Boston Legal’ start at the same time. There was also the upcoming video of a women giving birth (naturally) of course to come and while I am not squemish, I just think there is something private and sacred about childbirth that I don’t know how or why anyone would want to be filmed. It really was not that bad but the accompanying sound track really did it no favours.

By now the men were starting to feel more comfortable and the jokes about breast feeding, oxytocin, suckling, hardened nipples, cracked nipples, engorgement and leaky boobs-breasts in general really were fair game. However those who made jokes about other parts of the female anatomy were met with the odd chuckle, but the cold stare by one or two of the expectant mums dampened the humour somewhat and that uncomfortable break in delivery by the presenter certainly meant it was off-limits.

Anyway, I survived and I only missed the one three hour weekend session. I was ready, massage hands waiting and my partner was up for the natural, drug free birth that would mean our child would be a super baby. The reality…..? Well that’s the next blog….

In summary, glad we did it but even happier that I don’t have to do it again. Coffee group outcome a bonus and my vocab around birth grown exponentially. My advice, worry about what you do when you walk in the door with your wee one. With all the focus on the birth (a relative short period of time), you forget about the moment you go home with baby in tow. It is scary, exciting, daunting but yet exhilarating and you feel unprepared to take on such a huge responsibility. Well, that’s how it was for me.

Yes indeed, welcome! Finding it hard to navigate through this whole blog thing. But as they say ‘no try might as well die’.  Anyway the blog. Its about Jack (my son, now 11 months) and Me (Mark….dad), how we survived the last five months with me in charge (well I thought I was), how we coped when Mum went off to work, the little things we learnt along the way, our encounters as we bond, find our way together and through it all come to share the most precious of commodities today, time.

Wouldn’t you believe it, he’s awake. The first thing that you notice when you spend time with wee ones is that they have a canny knack of waking when you have an activity, wanting a rest, a chore to do or when they really need that nap. But then again, that smile when you poke your head into the room – makes you realise your task was really insignificant.

Jack calls…..