Our daughter - by Theo

Our daughter is here. I can't believe it. I'm utterly shocked. Yo no creo. She's about a month early - we'd been expecting here on Feb 21st, but yet here she is. It's all so sudden. She's beautiful, and I feel angry and hurt that I can't be with her and Kate - the hospital has ordered me home.

Kate was out when I got back from work at 9.30pm, so I started to do some marking. She got back about 15 minutes later and by the wheezing sounds she was making it was clear something was wrong. She'd been having contractions, though she thought they might be Braxton Hicks contractions and not the beginning of actual labour. She went to the loo and I went to make her some tea, which she never got to drink. There was some blood. We did what we always do when we're in a situation in Madrid and we don't know what to do - we called Cesar. He ordered us to go to the hospital. We'd known that was the case but it helped us to have somebody say it out loud. I hastily packed bags, trying to anticipate everything - false alarm, long wait, tests or indeed long labour - and then helped Kate to the car.

We made it to La Paz just about - tricky trying to find the right exit off the M-30 - and into the Urgencias Maternales entrance of the Hospital. After a quick chat with a doctor I was sent to register Kate at the reception only to discover I wasn't then allowed back to where they were examining Kate, as it was women-only. I had an anxious wait in a drafty reception area for about 30 minutes before somebody came out to say they would be keeping Kate in the Hospital but I could ride up with her in the lift. I was then ushered through to see her, she seemed calm and relaxed, and that was when one of the doctors told me they were going to do a Caesarian as the baby was the wrong way round. I assumed at this point that they'd told Kate, but if they had they hadn't made it clear as she didn't seem aware of why I was told to give her a kiss and wait once we'd gone up a couple of floors. Once again I had another anxious wait in a non-descript hallway, laden down with bags and thoroughly uninformed.

Thankfully another expectant father, Fernando, arrived - his wife was being wheeled in for a Caesarian as well - at 40 weeks and after induction his son still was budging. I guess Kate and I should be glad that she didn't have to go through any of that. We chatted a bit and he helped explain things a bit to me.

We heard a cry and then later, a second. After what seemed an age a little baby girl - just over 2kgs - was wheeled out, all tightly bundled up. Little Rosie Ines. She was to be taken up to the nursery while Kate is being kept in Intensive Care overnight - a standard precaution. Kate was conscious - somewhat miraculously - and I got to talk to her; she seemed understandably dazed, but OK. Us fathers - clearly extraneous in the eyes of the medical staff - where told in no uncertain terms to go home, sleep and on no account return before 10am.

On the bloody dot you can bet.