The Baby Arrived…in Dramatic Fashion!

Baby LRC
It’s a Boy! Baby Living Rich Cheaply (hereinafter Baby LRC) arrived last Sunday. I was not going to dedicate a post to this event. Not because it was not a special event, but this is after all a personal finance blog. But, I think I have to mention how Baby LRC came into our lives as it was not in a way which we would ever expect. Actually, it was something that I think every expectant father fears. I was very paranoid that I’d be stuck in rush hour traffic trying to get my pregnant wife to the hospital.

Well I wasn’t stuck in rush hour traffic as it occurred over the July 4th long weekend. We went to the hospital on Saturday night and was told that the baby was not ready to come yet. They told us to rest at home and come back when the time was right (contractions closer together, stronger contractions, amongst other things). We returned late Sunday afternoon/early evening as the contractions were stronger. Once again, the doctor told us that the baby was not ready to come and that we could go home. I told the doctor about my fear and she said that labor will take hours, especially with baby #1. We went home and the baby came in about 2 hours. The later stages of labor happened so quick that there was no chance to make a third trip to the hospital. I guess Baby LRC likes to make a dramatic entrance. That or he’d rather be at home with mommy and daddy than at a hospital. Much appreciation to FDNY and EMS for arriving quickly and transporting Baby LRC and Mrs. LRC to the hospital.

Thanks FDNY and EMS

Thanks FDNY and EMS

Here are somethings I learned from the experience:
-Be prepared for the unexpected
-Always ask questions even when dealing with professionals
-Stay Calm
-Trust your instincts

It has been one crazy week, but I am one proud papa to an adorable baby boy. And I am very lucky to have such an amazing wife!

46 thoughts on “The Baby Arrived…in Dramatic Fashion!

  1. Matt Becker

    Wow! Just being honest here, that would have terrified the crap out of me! Sounds like you guys handled everything like champs though. That’s an incredibly cute picture of your little boy. Glad to hear that everything worked out, as crazy as it was. Good luck with all the adjustments. Can’t wait to hear more!
    Matt Becker recently posted…When Does it Make Sense to Shop for Insurance?My Profile

    1. livingrichcheaply@gmail.com Post author

      Thanks Matt! Yea it did scare the crap out of me. My wife was probably calmer than I was…lucky for me!

  2. Greg@Thriftgenuity

    Congratulations! I agree, I will be paranoid about the same thing when we start a family. Great to hear it all went well and you’re starting on the journey of being a parent.

    1. livingrichcheaply@gmail.com Post author

      Thanks Greg! I’m sure you’ll be alright when the time comes. Plus your wife is a doctor!

  3. Thomas | Your Daily Finance

    Congrats on a happy healthy baby boy! How are you and the new mom? Hopefully things are great and man he did want to make his arrival special. i had a friend who kept calling her doctor and he said wait until xyz. Needless to say listening to her doctor meant when she finally got to the hospital she was almost about to have the baby on the elevator. Shout out to the FDNY and EMS for the fast response!
    Thomas | Your Daily Finance recently posted…When Is the Right Time to Change JobsMy Profile

    1. livingrichcheaply@gmail.com Post author

      Thanks Thomas! The new mom and I are sleep deprived but so happy to have the little one with us. Yea I don’t know if the doctors really know when the baby will come. They told us to wait until xyz and when that happened and we went to the hospital, they still said to go home and wait.

    1. livingrichcheaply@gmail.com Post author

      Thanks Holly! It definitely is one heck of a story to tell.

    1. livingrichcheaply@gmail.com Post author

      Thanks John! You’re right about the hospitals. I think I should have been more insistent that my wife stay the second time around. But then you hear of women who are in labor for a very long time. I don’t know, but we’re definitely not going anywhere next time around.

    1. livingrichcheaply@gmail.com Post author

      Thanks Anthony! No need to panic for you…you’re probably a pro at it already!

    1. livingrichcheaply@gmail.com Post author

      Thanks Grayson. It definitely is an awesome feeling! Although it was more of a scary/frantic feeling immediately afterwards.

    1. livingrichcheaply@gmail.com Post author

      Thanks! It was definitely a curveball I was not expecting.

    1. livingrichcheaply@gmail.com Post author

      Thanks Nick! That’s horrible that your wife almost died, glad she is okay. No luck with that sleep you speak of!

        1. livingrichcheaply@gmail.com Post author

          Haha, great…something to look forward to! Actually after the first night home, he’s been pretty good. He just wakes up every few hours to be fed or to change his diaper. Sometimes he gets fussy and wants to be held. But other than that…he sleeps pretty well.

  4. E.M.

    Congratulations!! Glad everything turned out okay. I can’t imagine having to go through that – I probably would have demanded I stay at the hospital. Going back and forth just adds to the stress you don’t need while in the process of giving birth!
    E.M. recently posted…Student Loan Debt: Update #2My Profile

    1. livingrichcheaply@gmail.com Post author

      Thanks! A part of me regrets not being more forceful in demanding to stay. But according to the medical professionals, they were saying that this being the first baby and my wife not really progressing in labor (not that dilated) that they would not admit us into the hospital. They said that this was rare and unexpected. But part of me is mad that they sent us home and that I didn’t demand that they let us stay. I don’t know.

    1. livingrichcheaply@gmail.com Post author

      Thanks Daisy! Yea I was just going to mention it and not write a post about it…and not put up the pictures but I really wanted to share with everyone.

    1. livingrichcheaply@gmail.com Post author

      Thanks Troy! Baby LRC already has a plastic football! And his uncle is getting him a “futbol” (soccer) ball.

    1. livingrichcheaply@gmail.com Post author

      Thanks Alexandra! Yea, that picture is great…good thing one of the firefighters told that this was a great photo op because I was still in shock. Everyone is doing great…as for the getting lots of sleep…not so much! Sorry, didn’t see this comment until now.

    1. livingrichcheaply@gmail.com Post author

      Thanks! It was definitely a crazy experience and will be a fun story for him to tell. I’m already telling everybody now!

  5. Brad @ RichmondSavers.com

    Congrats!! That’s an unbelievable story — now that you and your wife got through it safely for everyone, that’ll make a great tale for decades to come. Must have been unbelievably scary though…

    We barely made it to the hospital for the birth of our second daughter. My wife strolled leisurely through the hospital parking lot (wouldn’t let me drop her off in a wheelchair) and our daughter was born 27 minutes later!

    Sorry for the delay in this congratulatory post — I’ve been on vacation for a few weeks. Hope the first few weeks of fatherhood are treating you well!
    Brad @ RichmondSavers.com recently posted…Quick Tips: What is an ETF?My Profile

    1. livingrichcheaply@gmail.com Post author

      Hey Brad, hope you and the family had a great vacation. Thanks for the congrats…it was definitely a bit scary! Yea, they say the second baby usually comes faster…in which case we will camp out at the hospital at the first sign of a contraction if they don’t admit us for baby #2.

  6. C. the Romanian

    Congrats on your baby! It seems that this is how babies nowadays like to make their entrance – in dramatic fashion. In our case, my wife’s water broke while we were walking to visit some friends. Fortunately, we were near them when it happened so they drove us to the hospital. The whole thing took less than 90 minutes but was totally unexpected.
    C. the Romanian recently posted…Can a Family Live on $1,500 per Month?My Profile

    1. livingrichcheaply@gmail.com Post author

      Thanks! Yea it was totally unexpected for me as well. The baby wasn’t due for another 2 weeks so we thought we’d have some more time to prepare. And then when we were sent back from the hospital, we thought we had a good amount of hours to go…definitely an unexpected surprise. Congrats again to you too!

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  11. Thomas William-Browne

    Nice bashing of doctors. I’m glad I spent nearly a million on my degree to be appreciated by some random guy on some blog.

    1. livingrichcheaply@gmail.com Post author

      No where in the post did I bash doctors. I just stated what happened. You seem to have a chip on your shoulder…sorry you feel like you spent a million dollars on a profession where you don’t feel appreciated.

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