Post by CarpentersFan2003 on Jan 14, 2004 20:23:50 GMT -5
Chapter Sixteen
The summer tour wrapped up with a week in Lake Tahoe. It was late August and Karen was looking very pregnant. She was seven months along and so far every thing was going right. At little over three months Karen felt her baby kicking for the first time. She’d been lucky enough for it to happen in her hotel room in New York City. Nathan and Christopher had flown in to visit her, and be on hand for Karen’s first ultrasound exam.
Karen due to being on the road was seeing doctors in different states as it was needed.
So in a doctor’s office that Karen had booked before a flight in from Boston, Karen was on a padded table while her husband sat beside her looking at the small black and white viewer. Both parents had been overjoyed to hear the baby’s heartbeat for the first time.
“ There is the baby’s head.” The young female operator said her name was Cathy, and she was thrilled to be the one to be doing this for Karen. As she deftly moved the wand over the singer’s jellied stomach. Cathy had been a fan of Karen’s since 1970, when she heard “ Close To You.” for the first time, a few months after the appointment, as a personal thank you Karen sent the technician a signed photo and a letter of gratitude.
Karen smiled broadly and then said.
“ It’s so tiny looking.”
“ At this stage he or she is very small. Would you care to know the sex of your baby?”
Karen looked at Nathan; he shrugged his shoulders and said.
“ It’s up to you Karen. I don’t mind knowing now or when it’s born.”
Karen could help but say yes. It would make getting baby shower gifts all the easier.
Cathy moved the wand a bit more and then she smiled anew.
“ It’s a girl.”
Now both Karen and Nathan broke out in bright smiles. Christopher would have a new baby sister.
After making several photos of the baby, Cathy turned off the machine and excused herself.
Karen stepped into a change room and took off he paper gown she had on and used it to clean the jelly off her middle. As she dressed she called out to Nathan.
“ We’ll have to start thinking off names soon. I was thinking of maybe Tatum Joyce after our mothers.”
“ Really… I think that would be a wonderful idea. I know my Mom will be thrilled.” Nathan said.
*** *** ***
Karen was on stage in Lake Tahoe when she felt a stabbing pain in her middle. She let out a small yelp of pain and had managed to stagger off stage. Closely followed by Richard.
Karen could hear the audience booing loudly at the interruption of the show.
Karen was clutching her middle when her brother caught up to her.
“ Karen what is wrong. The crowd is going nuts out there.”
Karen looked up at Richard with a mixture of pain and fright.
“ It’s the baby… It’s coming… I’m going into labor… Help me Richard… It’s too soon…” Karen cried out as a new wave of pain hit her.
For some reason this snapped Richard into action. He was not sure if it was the way his sister looked or if it was the panic in her voice. However, he ran back on stage and stepped of the microphone.
“ Is there a doctor in the room? My sister believes she’s going into labor.”
Richard was just able to make out the frantic waving of a man in the tenth row. Richard asked for the house lights to be turned on and he motioned for the man to come forward. Once he was up on stage he said.
“ I’m Dr. Charles McDonald. Where is your sister?”
“ She’s right this way. Follow me.” Richard said leading the way back stage.
By this time most of the band had abandoned their instruments on stage, and where circled around Karen who was leaning up against one of the travel totes for the drums.
Dr. McDonald got down on his knees took Karen’s wrist between his thumb and fingers checking her pulse. Richard introduced himself Karen and the group to Charles.
“ How far along are you Karen?” he asked.
“ Umm, about seven months.” Karen managed to say in between the pain she felt in her middle. She asked. “ Am I going to lose my baby?”
“ I can’t answer that Karen. We need to get you to a hospital on the double.” The doctor looked up at Richard. “ Go call an ambulance. And you might want to have someone tell the crowd out there that the show is over.”
Richard got Cubby O’Brian to make the announcement to the somewhat calmed audience. Richard had added that if the people held on to their ticket stubs they would be granted their money back.
*** *** ***
When Karen arrived at the hospital she was in full labor and she was panicking. The paramedics in the ambulance had refused to answer any of her questions. So when she was wheeled into the ER of St. Mary’s Hospital she was beside herself. Richard had ridden with her.
The hospital had been alerted to Karen’s condition and had a room on the maternity ward waiting for her.
Karen was in bed when the on-call maternity doctor came into the room. He read the chart on the foot of Karen’s bed and did a double take when he saw her name, but his professional side took over when he saw the seriousness of Karen’s plight.
“ I’m Dr. Jason Smith.” He said to Karen as a nurse gently strapped on a fetal heart monitor around Karen’s abdomen. When she was out of the way he took Karen’s hand in his “ You say you in labor Karen… Can you tell me how far apart the contractions are?”
“ About every thirty minutes or so.” Richard answered for his sister. “ Is the baby going to be alright?”
The Doctor looked at Karen and then Richard. He frowned slightly.
“ I will be honest with you. At seven month’s gestation the baby has about a seventy-percent chance of surviving the first month of life outside its mother’s womb. We will try a few drugs to try and slow or stop the labor. However, if it’s needed I can perform an emergency C-section.”
Karen began to sob quietly. She reached out for Richard’s hand and said in a whisper.
“ Go call Nathan and then Mom and Dad. I need them to be here. I will be fine for a few moments.”
Richard nodded and headed out of the room to call his brother-in-law and his parents. He also called Mary as well. He too needed a shoulder to lean on if things took a turn for the worse.
When he was off the phone and back in Karen’s room, he noticed that Karen now had an IV in her hand. The nurse was just taping the tube in place when he said to his sister.
“ I called home. Mom and Dad are getting on the first flight out of LA. I called the hospital in Downey to try and locate Nathan. The operator told me that he was currently assisting with a coronary bypass. He’s due out in about another three hours; they ensured me that a nurse would have the message delivered to him. Mary is with Mom and Dad. She wants to be here for me and for you as well.”
Karen nodded to her brother that she’d heard him. She was watching the nurse as she set the IV’s drip rate. She then told Karen about the drug’s that where being used to slow down the contractions.
Karen nodded and said thank you to the woman as she left.
Richard sat in a chair that was close to his sister’s bed and took her hand in his own. He looked into Karen’s eyes and he could see that she was barely holding back her tears. So in an attempt to lighten the mood he said.
“ So are you and Nathan positive on the name of my new little niece. Are you still going to go with Tatum Joyce?”
Karen shook her head no and said.
“ Nathan and I where also considering a few other names. We narrowed it down to three. Jocelyn Rebecca, Kathryn Selena, and Tatum Joyce are the finalists.”
“ I like Jocelyn Rebecca the most out of them all.” Richard said.
Karen smiled. She’d liked that name too.
*** *** ***
The next morning Karen was still in bed and her family was gathered around her. Nathan had been the last to arrive but now he could not be torn from Karen’s side.
The drugs that she was getting had halted the labor for about twelve hours but now Karen knew that the baby was on the way, and there was nothing that anyone could do to stop it.
When Dr. Smith came into the room he agreed with Karen and the choice was made for her to have a C-section. Karen was transferred to a wheel chair and was pushed out into the hall. Nathan was at her side holding her hand, while her parents, her brother and Mary trailed behind. At the doors to the surgical bay Dr. Smith turned to the others as Karen was pushed through the doors.
“ From this point on only Karen’s husband can continue with us.”
Nathan said to his in-laws.
“ I promise to have a nurse fill you all in on the news when Karen delivers.”
In the delivery room Karen was already on a table and a sheet was draped so that she could not see as the team of doctors and nurses did their jobs to bring the newest Yates into the world.
Once the epidermal needle was in place and Karen’s lower half was numbed. The operation began.
Dr. Smith said to Karen.
“ Karen, you will feel some pressure once I have cut through to the uterus and I deliver the baby. You should feel no pain at all. If you do tell me and I will have the nurse give you some more freezing.”
“ Okay.” Karen said as she felt tears start to slide down her face. She was so relieved to have Nathan at her side for this. If he wasn’t she’d have never forgiven him.
Nathan saw his wife’s tears and squeezed her hand.
“ It won’t be long now. Our daughter is almost here.”
Karen squeezed back.
The operation took about an hour and forty minutes start to finish. Half way through came the joyous moment for Karen and Nathan of hearing their daughter’s first cries. The proud mom and dad where only allowed a moment to see little Jocelyn Rebecca Carpenter-Yates before she was whisked off to the Neo-Natal Intensive Care Ward.
The summer tour wrapped up with a week in Lake Tahoe. It was late August and Karen was looking very pregnant. She was seven months along and so far every thing was going right. At little over three months Karen felt her baby kicking for the first time. She’d been lucky enough for it to happen in her hotel room in New York City. Nathan and Christopher had flown in to visit her, and be on hand for Karen’s first ultrasound exam.
Karen due to being on the road was seeing doctors in different states as it was needed.
So in a doctor’s office that Karen had booked before a flight in from Boston, Karen was on a padded table while her husband sat beside her looking at the small black and white viewer. Both parents had been overjoyed to hear the baby’s heartbeat for the first time.
“ There is the baby’s head.” The young female operator said her name was Cathy, and she was thrilled to be the one to be doing this for Karen. As she deftly moved the wand over the singer’s jellied stomach. Cathy had been a fan of Karen’s since 1970, when she heard “ Close To You.” for the first time, a few months after the appointment, as a personal thank you Karen sent the technician a signed photo and a letter of gratitude.
Karen smiled broadly and then said.
“ It’s so tiny looking.”
“ At this stage he or she is very small. Would you care to know the sex of your baby?”
Karen looked at Nathan; he shrugged his shoulders and said.
“ It’s up to you Karen. I don’t mind knowing now or when it’s born.”
Karen could help but say yes. It would make getting baby shower gifts all the easier.
Cathy moved the wand a bit more and then she smiled anew.
“ It’s a girl.”
Now both Karen and Nathan broke out in bright smiles. Christopher would have a new baby sister.
After making several photos of the baby, Cathy turned off the machine and excused herself.
Karen stepped into a change room and took off he paper gown she had on and used it to clean the jelly off her middle. As she dressed she called out to Nathan.
“ We’ll have to start thinking off names soon. I was thinking of maybe Tatum Joyce after our mothers.”
“ Really… I think that would be a wonderful idea. I know my Mom will be thrilled.” Nathan said.
*** *** ***
Karen was on stage in Lake Tahoe when she felt a stabbing pain in her middle. She let out a small yelp of pain and had managed to stagger off stage. Closely followed by Richard.
Karen could hear the audience booing loudly at the interruption of the show.
Karen was clutching her middle when her brother caught up to her.
“ Karen what is wrong. The crowd is going nuts out there.”
Karen looked up at Richard with a mixture of pain and fright.
“ It’s the baby… It’s coming… I’m going into labor… Help me Richard… It’s too soon…” Karen cried out as a new wave of pain hit her.
For some reason this snapped Richard into action. He was not sure if it was the way his sister looked or if it was the panic in her voice. However, he ran back on stage and stepped of the microphone.
“ Is there a doctor in the room? My sister believes she’s going into labor.”
Richard was just able to make out the frantic waving of a man in the tenth row. Richard asked for the house lights to be turned on and he motioned for the man to come forward. Once he was up on stage he said.
“ I’m Dr. Charles McDonald. Where is your sister?”
“ She’s right this way. Follow me.” Richard said leading the way back stage.
By this time most of the band had abandoned their instruments on stage, and where circled around Karen who was leaning up against one of the travel totes for the drums.
Dr. McDonald got down on his knees took Karen’s wrist between his thumb and fingers checking her pulse. Richard introduced himself Karen and the group to Charles.
“ How far along are you Karen?” he asked.
“ Umm, about seven months.” Karen managed to say in between the pain she felt in her middle. She asked. “ Am I going to lose my baby?”
“ I can’t answer that Karen. We need to get you to a hospital on the double.” The doctor looked up at Richard. “ Go call an ambulance. And you might want to have someone tell the crowd out there that the show is over.”
Richard got Cubby O’Brian to make the announcement to the somewhat calmed audience. Richard had added that if the people held on to their ticket stubs they would be granted their money back.
*** *** ***
When Karen arrived at the hospital she was in full labor and she was panicking. The paramedics in the ambulance had refused to answer any of her questions. So when she was wheeled into the ER of St. Mary’s Hospital she was beside herself. Richard had ridden with her.
The hospital had been alerted to Karen’s condition and had a room on the maternity ward waiting for her.
Karen was in bed when the on-call maternity doctor came into the room. He read the chart on the foot of Karen’s bed and did a double take when he saw her name, but his professional side took over when he saw the seriousness of Karen’s plight.
“ I’m Dr. Jason Smith.” He said to Karen as a nurse gently strapped on a fetal heart monitor around Karen’s abdomen. When she was out of the way he took Karen’s hand in his “ You say you in labor Karen… Can you tell me how far apart the contractions are?”
“ About every thirty minutes or so.” Richard answered for his sister. “ Is the baby going to be alright?”
The Doctor looked at Karen and then Richard. He frowned slightly.
“ I will be honest with you. At seven month’s gestation the baby has about a seventy-percent chance of surviving the first month of life outside its mother’s womb. We will try a few drugs to try and slow or stop the labor. However, if it’s needed I can perform an emergency C-section.”
Karen began to sob quietly. She reached out for Richard’s hand and said in a whisper.
“ Go call Nathan and then Mom and Dad. I need them to be here. I will be fine for a few moments.”
Richard nodded and headed out of the room to call his brother-in-law and his parents. He also called Mary as well. He too needed a shoulder to lean on if things took a turn for the worse.
When he was off the phone and back in Karen’s room, he noticed that Karen now had an IV in her hand. The nurse was just taping the tube in place when he said to his sister.
“ I called home. Mom and Dad are getting on the first flight out of LA. I called the hospital in Downey to try and locate Nathan. The operator told me that he was currently assisting with a coronary bypass. He’s due out in about another three hours; they ensured me that a nurse would have the message delivered to him. Mary is with Mom and Dad. She wants to be here for me and for you as well.”
Karen nodded to her brother that she’d heard him. She was watching the nurse as she set the IV’s drip rate. She then told Karen about the drug’s that where being used to slow down the contractions.
Karen nodded and said thank you to the woman as she left.
Richard sat in a chair that was close to his sister’s bed and took her hand in his own. He looked into Karen’s eyes and he could see that she was barely holding back her tears. So in an attempt to lighten the mood he said.
“ So are you and Nathan positive on the name of my new little niece. Are you still going to go with Tatum Joyce?”
Karen shook her head no and said.
“ Nathan and I where also considering a few other names. We narrowed it down to three. Jocelyn Rebecca, Kathryn Selena, and Tatum Joyce are the finalists.”
“ I like Jocelyn Rebecca the most out of them all.” Richard said.
Karen smiled. She’d liked that name too.
*** *** ***
The next morning Karen was still in bed and her family was gathered around her. Nathan had been the last to arrive but now he could not be torn from Karen’s side.
The drugs that she was getting had halted the labor for about twelve hours but now Karen knew that the baby was on the way, and there was nothing that anyone could do to stop it.
When Dr. Smith came into the room he agreed with Karen and the choice was made for her to have a C-section. Karen was transferred to a wheel chair and was pushed out into the hall. Nathan was at her side holding her hand, while her parents, her brother and Mary trailed behind. At the doors to the surgical bay Dr. Smith turned to the others as Karen was pushed through the doors.
“ From this point on only Karen’s husband can continue with us.”
Nathan said to his in-laws.
“ I promise to have a nurse fill you all in on the news when Karen delivers.”
In the delivery room Karen was already on a table and a sheet was draped so that she could not see as the team of doctors and nurses did their jobs to bring the newest Yates into the world.
Once the epidermal needle was in place and Karen’s lower half was numbed. The operation began.
Dr. Smith said to Karen.
“ Karen, you will feel some pressure once I have cut through to the uterus and I deliver the baby. You should feel no pain at all. If you do tell me and I will have the nurse give you some more freezing.”
“ Okay.” Karen said as she felt tears start to slide down her face. She was so relieved to have Nathan at her side for this. If he wasn’t she’d have never forgiven him.
Nathan saw his wife’s tears and squeezed her hand.
“ It won’t be long now. Our daughter is almost here.”
Karen squeezed back.
The operation took about an hour and forty minutes start to finish. Half way through came the joyous moment for Karen and Nathan of hearing their daughter’s first cries. The proud mom and dad where only allowed a moment to see little Jocelyn Rebecca Carpenter-Yates before she was whisked off to the Neo-Natal Intensive Care Ward.
