How was YOUR Thursday?

Most of our family has probably already heard this story, but we had quite a day yesterday.

In a nutshell, we went to the hospital worried that we were going to have our baby four weeks early (and, in my case, panicked that he still has no name...). Thankfully, I am still pregnant.

Why would a woman who has already been through labor make the mistake of driving 20 minutes to the hospital only to be sent home an hour later? I seriously considered not going in, but I was having painful but irregular contractions all night on Wednesday night, and by Thursday mid-morning they were three to five minutes apart and making me moan. I've had the flu since the wee hours of Wednesday morning, and apparently my body's reaction to the fever, chills and body aches was to cause contractions - contractions that were worsened by my already-always-sore pelvis bones turning mega-sore from the achiness of the flu. I told Matt on the way to the hospital that I didn't want the baby to be four weeks early (especially because my doctor told me that if I was exhibiting flu symptoms when I delivered, I would be quarantined from my baby), but if it would make the pain stop, I would have him that day and any way they wanted. I don't know that I have ever been sicker in my life.

I calmed down a lot and the contractions slowed once we got to the hospital, probably because I felt like we were doing something and at least I didn't have to wonder anymore if the flu was inducing labor. They took my temperature (not quite 101) and monitored my heartrate and the baby's - both high from the fever. Then we waited...and waited...and waited...for the nurse to come in and say that the on-call doctor wanted me to go home and take some Tylenol. Well that was a fruitful trip to the hospital! I started crying at that point, because even though I didn't actually want to have the baby, I didn't know how many more hours of aches and chills and contractions I could take now that I knew the contractions weren't even getting me anywhere! And Tylenol had only been denting the fever and pain up to that point.

I consider it nothing short of miraculous that about half an hour after we got home, the Tylenol kicked in and was working better than it had at any point in the last 30ish hours that I'd been fluish. I was able to get some rest and find a way to sit that caused the fewest contractions, and they've been getting fewer and farther between in the 24 hours since then. I know my mom and mother-in-law were praying for me and had enlisted the help of many others to do the same. And thank heavens (literally!) it worked. I'm still tired and sluggish, but I can tell this bug is on its way out - and I've rarely felt more grateful.

Thanks to all for your prayers, help watching Truman, and reading this epic post.