De-Institutionalization

October 2009, that's the last time I blogged. I worked 6 days this week, somewhere between 60-70 hours, which isn't an atypical work-week for me. But definitely doesn't leave much time for blogging. Plus, when I work a lot, it's on my mind a lot, but you'd probably rather not read some of those things. And honestly, some of it probably is not HR-savvy.

But at my wife's request, I blog today.

You've probably noticed through facebook updates and such that we are expecting a little girl sometime around September 14. This isn't exactly anything that was planned, but as I tell most people, it's the most logical, God-planned consequence of the acts we take as married people (SEX!). But with the date getting closer and closer, we started analyzing everything from budgets to birthing statistics.

Budget-wise, we are cutting back out cable. No more sports in HD or MLB Network (which is probably why we've been on that channel for the past 6 hours). I also traded in Carlos, my '07 Mazda 3, for an '05 Mazda 6 with more miles. Cuts over a year off the loan, and saves us money monthly. We're making other cuts here and there, but these two show my dedication to the cause. :)

As for the birthing stuff...If you follow Kacey's blog (she's listed appropriately as "Beautiful" on my links, as she still is), you probably already know that we met with a mid-wife last week. I know that I have a pretty institutionalized thinking of many things, including births happening in hospital. It just makes sense, right? That's where we've been told since we were kids babies came from, hospitals. How can you bring a baby home if you stay home???
But the more my wife read, the more we talked to our doctor (who we like, nothing against her), the more uncomfortable she became with the idea of the hospital birth. So, she started looking into midwives and homebirths. At first, I had a very Scooby Doo-like, "hmmmMMMM???" But, as the wonderful, caring husband that I am, I listened. Everytime she had new info for me, I listened.
So, after emailing and talking to a few people, we were referred to one midwife. As I am a baseball fan, I love statistics and quick headlines. Here's the most interesting statistic I've learned:

1. Average hospital C-Section rate: 46%
2. C-Section rate for this midwife: 4%

You can see how that one can kinda jump out at you. I'll give the midwife credit, as she answered my "what if something goes wrong" and "what's the cost" questions well. Now, as this lady is a midwife, it makes sense that she has a hippie feel to her. But, when you give me statistics, my head can get around that. And if you give me straight answers, I can appreciate that too.

And here's a quick tidbit for you: It's ok in the State of Indiana to have your baby at home. However, you aren't supposed to hire an expert in that arena to help... (Again, Scooby Doo.)

What I do know is that my wife was truly about to come out of her chair with excitement at the end of this "interview." Kacey looking at me saying, "You good? I'm good. Let's do this," isn't usually the way you offer a "job," but that's probably the institutionalized manager coming out in me.

Probably not the best blog ever, but I've had my beautiful wife (and puppies) interrupting me throughout. :) Happy Mother's Day!



(I would also like to point out that this blog did not mention anywhere that the Tampa Bay Rays had a Perfect Game thrown against them today by the Oakland Athletics.)