If I ever have a baby and I am in a position to determine the baby's due date, I will not have the baby on a Friday.  All specialists are not available, the MRI scans are not done etc.  I must tell you about my great gynea first.  This woman is amazing.  When all the things went wrong on Friday evening in the delivery room, she literally started crying and told me her amazing story.  Her son was born prematurely as she suffered from pre-eclamsia.  When he was born, he could not suckle and nurses told her he would never speak because of this.  Everyone was convinced that this boy would be brain damaged.  She refused to believe this and sent him to a stimulation centre as the brain at this young age is flexible and can learn new ways of working.  Today he is a fine and clever little boy and there is nothing wrong with him.  Now in a time like this, you need to hear these stories from other people.  She also kept on telling us t...

Gerhard and I are told to go to my room, where a little cot awaits us with no baby in it.  Within minutes of walking into my room, the head of the ward comes to tell us that our siblings are there for a visit.  We are rather shocked as all of our friends walk in.  They were at various locations, having dinner etc. on this Friday evening and rushed over to the hospital as soon as they received the news. We were so blessed to have their company, although this was cut short when my gynea arrived and told them that they need to leave.  Gerhard and I need our rest as we will need all the energy in the coming days to cope with a baby in NICU. The maternity ward keeps on phoning NICU for news; Liam's condition is still very grave, his apgar score is 2/10. Gerhard helps me to take a bath, I have some supper and we just lie on my bed comforting each other. We decide to go to NICU to see Liam before Gerhard heads off home at around midnight and as we walk in there, Lia...

Following on the great success achieved with project hydrate, we were all set for the big day, somewhere around the 6th of July 2008.  Bags were packed, I was ready to go.  On the 26th of June I went for another routine scan, and my gynaecologist was once again concerned about the lower than ever levels of amniotic fluid.  Nobody understood this as I had not 'leaked'.  So she told me Liam need to come out the next day via C-section or induction, my choice.  I am petrified of any operation and to date I have been in hospital on two occasions, the first to have some spare teeth removed when I was about 16, the next to have wisdom teeth removed aged 18.  I was not about to have a planned C-section.  So I chose to opt for the induction.   Being a first time mom, I politely declined the offer for an epidural; I am a strong farm girl.  I could do this the natural and old fashioned way.  Gerhard and I left the gynaecologists rooms and ...