Going Directly From Work to the Hospital

So
your wife is in the third trimester and both of you are counting down
the days. She may have already started dilating and may already be on
maternity leave. You, on the other hand, need to continue to go to
work, anxiously awaiting the phone call, with the words, "It's time."
on the other end.

That can be really stressful—juggling
concentration at work with concentration on your needy wife and
soon-to-be kid. Guess what? Get used to it. Because once that baby
comes, you will be stressed out about that all the time. But I digress:
that's a different article.

Because you are basically "on call", you need to be prepared. You need
to be ready and able to pull a Superman at a moment's notice. That
means change out of your Clark Kent garb into different clothes ready
to save the day. Us men always have the need to don a Mr. Fix It hat.
(For you female readers, know that we can't help it)

Even if you have already packed your labor bag, there are a few more details to take care of.

POINT PERSON (WORK)
If you are willing and able to take paternity leave, you have already
alerted your boss, the human resources department, and your staff of
your impending time off. But when you receive the call, you won't have
time to track everyone down to tell them, "Now is the time." You need
to have a point person—a single point of contact who will relay any
important information. If you don't have one yet, get one immediately
and know all of their contact info.

{mosnooad}POINT PERSON (FAMILY&FRIENDS)
For your life outside of work, you will need to also have a point
person to contact immediately. This person typically plays a bigger
role in the process. They may be the ones watching your other kids
during labor, or the one that mobilizes the support troops to the
house. Regardless of role, you need to know their contact info.

WARDROBE CHANGE
I don't know of too many people who can say they are most comfortable
in their work clothes. You do not want to be spending 10 plus hours
huffing and puffing in a  $2000 Armani suit. Or a $200 Men's
Wearhouse special. Make sure you have an emergency outfit in your
office. This should include comfortable shoes, extra socks, and
comfortable layered clothing.

AVOID TRIPS
If you are able to, avoid business trips anytime between week 30 and the due date. (pretty self-explanatory I think)

KNOW THE PLAN
Your wife, when she is in labor, will not be terribly bright. They may
sound intelligent, they may even kick your ass at Scrabble while they
are in labor. But they will not be rational or detail-oriented. Make
sure you know the plan of attack from every angle leading up tot he big
day. For example:

If you take the train to work in the city and the hospital is in the
city and your wife is at home, what happens when she goes into labor?
Do you take the train back to home? Do you meet her at the hospital? Do
you cab it home? Does your point person drive her to the hospital?

Know the plan. (And make sure she knows it too)

POWER
I'm not talking about your own power. One thing witnessing the birth of
your kid will teach you is you are truly powerless compared to the
miracle you just witnessed. I'm talking about something a little more
tactical. I'm talking about chargers and batteries. If you leave
directly from work to the hospital, there is a chance you won't be home
for a couple of days. This means you should have chargers and batteries
for your cell phone, your digital camera, and your computer. The last
thing you want is your camera bugging out right before the birth. Or
your cell phone kicking out before you can tell the good news.

You guys are almost there. WIth a few more bits of planning, you will be ready to go at a moment's notice. Good luck noodads.