The way to the sykehuset

Syke = sick.

Huset = the house.

So sykehuset is the sick house. The hospital. I love how literal this language is sometimes.

I am not getting out much these days so not many photos sorry, so here is a nice little Google Earth picture of our drive to the hospital when exciting things start happening. Google Earth informs me it takes 12 minutes, depending on traffic. That is definitely an advantage of living in a small town! Our house is the point on the right and the hospital on the left.

Don't think I wrote much about the hospital, I think after our tour I went offline for a wee while. There are two birthing suites. One bath, nice big one and they light candles for you and have it nice and dark. But you can't have a water birth, just use it for pain relief and relaxing. The larger birthing suite has two beds, a normal one and the stirrupy birthing one. A lazy boy, bean bags, birthing ball. And something which translates as a pulpit but don't know if it is called that in English - is a sort of frame to hold yourself up on if you choose to give birth standing up.

Something funny the midwife said was that they don't "straighten babies out" when they are born. We were saying at the last scan baby's feet were on its forehead and she said if it stayed like that it would take a few days to straighten out and they don't force it - so to measure it, for example, they measure head to bum and then legs.

What else about the hospital... have to share a room, depending on how many are there. Apparently not too many babies born in January. Not too worried about sharing a room but the beds were against the wall, head to toe, not side by side so seemed kind of close. Also there was a curtain between the beds but couldn't see one around the beds. Hmmm... So hopefully get my own room. Most people spend about four days there, longer for c-sections.

Baby stays with mother the whole time. Meals served in the lounge, not to bed. There is a family room if a little more privacy is needed or you have lots of visitors. Telephone in the bedroom that you can give out the number for which is nice.

I have heard lots of good stuff about the maternity department hospital and the level of care there so am not too worried about it.