Last Thursday, I became a Bradley Birth Coach. Twelve weeks of 2 hour classes and it’s official. ;) I even have a card to prove it. I told my friend Natalie that I would flash my card around The Birth Center so there would be no question of who is the boss. Our birth class teacher said, “Rachel if you plan on showing that card to anyone, I am not going to give it to you!” She ended up giving it to me and now I am going to show it to all of you!
Official Coach Card
The good news is that I had a great event in Oklahoma last weekend AND Natalie did not go into labor! Whew! (So far there is no bad news) Natalie was due on September 21st, so, she could be having a baby any time now. (Cue dramatic music) I leave for Oregon tomorrow afternoon. I fly from Oregon to Colorado on Saturday. I return home Sunday night. If she goes into labor this weekend, it will be interesting. I have saved miles on Delta and on Southwest, and I am not afraid to use them.
My friend Brooke told me that her friend Brandy knows Natalie, small world. They came to that realization through an odd conversation that went something like this.
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Brandy: “My friend Natalie is pregnant and she asked the Signing Time lady to be her birth coach.”
Brooke: “How random! Do they know each other or is Natalie just a fan of the show?”
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This cracks me up. I imagine an email that goes like this, “Dear Rachel, Our family loves Signing Time. You are such a big part of our lives. We feel like we practically know you. I know you believe that children should be introduced to ASL as early as possible so, we would like to invite you to the birth of our next child. Please wear your orange sweater and colored tape on your fingers.”
For all of you wondering if I am now providing labor support services in addition to entertaining sign language DVD’s the answer is: Yes, I will do that for you, if you have been my friend for 20 years. Why not?!
This morning my brother Christian called to say his wife, Rachael, had a 7 lbs 12 oz baby boy, their second boy. I believe the count is now 14 unmedicated/natural births of nieces and nephews in my family, which is 100%. (Again, if I just count nieces and nephew I don’t have to count the 2 c-sections that I had with Lucy… Yes, two with Lucy.) Today is Christian’s 27th birthday. Christian is in the army somewhere in Georgia. He played the bass guitar on “Show Me A Sign.” He also speaks Arabic, thanks to his fabulous Army training. Now you know. How’s that for random trivia? I will post baby pictures as soon as I see some.
I called Natalie and told her that there is no race. It’s over. Everyone I know has had their babies and she is last. I also said that there is no hurry. Please wait until Sunday.
I do have a layover in Salt Lake City on Saturday night, when I fly from Oregon to Denver. If she goes into labor Saturday I could skip the Denver leg, help deliver the baby and then drive to Denver before my performance on Sunday, maybe even catch a flight. Never a dull moment! Stay tuned…..
