RJ 04/02/1985 Monday
I’m leaving tomorrow, thank god. After two days of heat I’ve had enough, I never felt so hot in my life! When we came back from the restaurant, at Barra, the thermometers were saying it was 43c. In the morning Maira went to meet Zezé at some lab and they came back. Rita came back from her house in the country (she went on Saturday) and came here and she had a look at Maira’s belly. Maira’s belly is hard one minute, soft the next, and the baby isn’t moving as much. Since she’s had diarrhoea is gone softer; and Rita said that the baby is now due any minute, in the next 2 or 3 days, and these are signs of it. Zezé started getting worried.
Grandad phoned to say he was coming to pick us up for lunch. We went to a really nice restaurant, grandad, Maira, Zaira and I, there’s even a little monkey in the car park. We sat in front of the lake. I had fish with mashed potatoes and for desert I had strawberry ice cream, I asked for chocolate but the stupid waiter got it wrong. We drove back past all the beaches (Barra, Sao Conrado, Leblon, Ipanema, Copacabana and Botafogo) and the thermometers ranged from 36 to 43 C. Maira was feeling sick and when Zezé came back she phoned the doctor, but she wasn’t there. She got an obstetrician to examine Maira. She said Gabriel should be born within the week (I did say he would be born on the l0th!), but she thinks Maira rnight have to have a caesarean, as she is very small, but you never know. His head is engaged and if Maira wanted they could do the operation today, but she wants to wait a little longer, hoping to have a natural birth. I packed my bags today, so I won’t have to do it tomorrow. We might wash the inflatable boat tomorrow (Zezé and I) as it’s full of salt water. Betinho and his gang are in the street, making a lot of noise.