Mother's Day. All I ever really want for Mother's Day is just to have all my children healthy and all together with me and their father. (Well, maybe I want them to take care of dinner and dishes too!) Presents and cards are sweet, yes, but they're the frosting on the cake.
This year, nothing worked to get everyone together at the same time, and we planned to celebrate on Saturday to best accommodate schedules. However, late Saturday morning, Nick let us know that he and Christina would not be joining us because it they had checked into the hospital and were going to be busy having a baby. Oh, how time slows down when an eagerly anticipated event is about to take place! We got updates through the day as things slowly progressed.
Eric, Molly and Stephanie came for dinner (Craig had to work), then we headed over to Corvallis to the hospital. Stephanie was lucky enough to have official bracelet that gave her admission to the birthing room. We hung out in the dreadful waiting room awhile. (The real waiting room is down 3 floors. Who wants to be that far away?!)
Christina still hadn't progressed very far. Nick left her with a friend in the birthing room and we went outside for some quality family time.
My youngest son, on the precipice of becoming a father. Myself about to become a grandmother. What a feeling!
Craig was off work by then as well, and look, I got to be with all my kids together on Mother's Day weekend after all! I didn't mind a bit that we were in a hospital parking lot! We even had snacks, because I brought Nick his favorite no-bake cookies!
And let's not leave out the girls. I absolutely love the girls who our boys have brought into the family. (Including Christina, who was a little busy!
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| Stephanie, me, Molly |
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| Molly and Stephaie with the big daddy-to-be! |
We hung out at the hospital for several hours, but the prediction was that baby wouldn't be born til morning, so we came home and went tried to get some sleep, keeping our phones very close!
Stephanie called around 4 am and told us it was time to hurry that way. In record time, we were dressed and back in the waiting room. Eric and Molly showed up shortly as well. Stephanie kept us updated with texts, announcing at 5:44 am "He's here!!!", followed shortly thereafter by a pic of baby on mom's chest, then one of Nick cutting the cord. Awhile later, a text with the weight, "7 lb 8 oz, 20 1/2 " long, 13 1/2 around the head." We already knew his name was Kamden William. Again, time dragged on interminably until we finally got to go in for a brief visit around 6:30.
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| The first time I held my newborn first grandchild. What a perfect, beautiful little face! |
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| Amazing love. |
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| Ok, I guess we'll let Grandpa hold him too! |
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| Stephanie was in awe of this miracle and declared that Christina made it look easy! |
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| We never tire of looking at that tiny face! |
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| We let Steph have a turn too! |
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Out of the womb for less than an hour, this little guy is getting his first glimpses
of the people who are going to love him for his whole life. |
We couldn't stay too long and soon headed back home to nap. We were very fortunate to have about two hours alone with them when we went to visit that afternoon.
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| Daddy's hand is the big one, not the wrinkly one on the left. Yep, wrinkly hands belong to grandmas! |
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| Just look at that perfect little sleeping face. Don't ask me why I rolled the blanket around his head like that. I don't know. |
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| Mom is looking radiantly great! She did SO good! |
The rest of our boys and girls joined us after Craig got off work.
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| Steph and Craig (who are getting married Aug. 17!) |
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So much love in one room! Everyone is smitten with this sweet baby!
Oh look, is our whole family together on Mother's Day after all? Being all together in that room for about an hour and sharing the love and joy of this new life was so awesome. I recall Pastor Roy Hostetler occasionally greeting us in church on Sunday morning with, "Aren't you thankful that you are here instead of in the finest hospital in the state?" Well, this was one Sunday that I was pretty happy to be in a hospital with those I hold most dear!
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"Oh nurse, could you please take a family picture for us? Because we don't
expect we'll ever enjoy spending Mother's Day in the hospital again!" |
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| The happy little family. |
We are all enjoying our new roles. We've done pretty well about not fighting over who gets to hold him when we visit. No screaming or tears when our turn is over, and only a little pouting. We're trying not to be pesky grandparents who visit too often and out-stay their welcome. Although who can blame us for wanting to hang out when you see sweet sights like this?
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| Kamden, age 6 days |
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| Kamden, age 6 days |
He looks a great deal like his daddy, but I think he has his mommy's lips. (I took the last two yesterday during a lunch-time visit.)
What a Mother's Day weekend, one to look back on and cherish forever. Having our family together twice, united in love to celebrate a new life,...the most precious gifts a parent can receive. Words cannot begin to express the love and joy and sweetness and gratitude that accompanies the beginning of this new era in our lives.
I'm a grandma!
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