My Baby is 7!

Yes, today is the day. Today is the day my baby turns 7! Where did they years go? It seems like yesterday I was giving birth, and ecstatically yelling "It's a Baby! It's a Baby!" As my husband always comments, "What did you expect?"

I want to take this time to tell the story of my first birth. After "trying" to become pregnant for so long, I was finally pregnant! When I first found out I was pregnant, I screamed and cried. Warren kept asking me if I was happy, DUH! I guess he didn't expect the tears! Three weeks later we had the scare of our lives! I started spotting. The doctor did an ultrasound and said that everything looked good, but to take it easy. Sunday nights while we were at the seminary, we were a part of a wonderful Bible Study group. We took turns meeting at each other's homes. The group was coming to our house that week, since I wasn't supposed to get out and about. About 5 minutes before our group was to arrive, I felt a gush. I was bleeding...very heavily! I immediately started crying and called our doctor. He said to meet him at the ER. Our friends arrived while we were waiting for him to call us back. They all wanted to stay at our house to pray for us. Not only did they stay, but they cleaned my kitchen (I had been on bed rest for about 2 weeks by now...my kitchen needed a good cleaning!)

When we arrived at the hospital, the first doctor I saw was SOOO insensitive! He said that with the amount of blood I had lost, there "was no baby." No baby??? No baby? Just like that???? But the wonderful nurse kept asking if he was SURE he didn't want to get an OB consult. Thank God for that nurse! The consult came down and did an ultrasound...there was our little jelly bean, jumping and wiggling...heartbeat flashing away! My doctor came down before I left (he was delivering a baby upstairs). He said to continue to take it easy, but that they didn't know why I was bleeding, but that the baby looked great.

That night, while laying in our bed, Warren and I cried because we were afraid we were loosing our baby. We prayed, talked, and just held each other. He did the sweetest thing that night! He talked to my tummy (the baby) and told her all about Jesus. He said that if we lost her, he wanted to be sure we would get to hold her in heaven. Just the memory of that brings tears to my eyes.

Anyway, fast forward to 7 months later...Warren had graduated from the seminary, and we moved to Iowa where he would serve his first congregation. We found an awesome midwife to help us in the delivery! As I posted the other day, I had "false" labor 3 days before the "real" labor. My parents came when I was in "false" labor, but dad had to leave to get back to work on Sunday evening. Mom thought it would be soon, so she decided to stay. It's a good thing she did! About 5:00 the next morning, I woke up with contractions. I took a shower about 6:30, and then we left for the hospital around 8. Belinda (the midwife) checked me and said that I was only dilated to about 4, my water hadn't broken, so she said sometime in the afternoon, we would have a baby. An hour later, they checked me again and I was now at a 6-7 with a bulging bag...but the nurse said that I would probably close up a bit when the bag of waters broke. Warren said that I gave her a look of death about the closing up comment. Right when the nurse was finishing that comment, the water popped, after getting things cleaned up, they left me to "rest up." Fifteen (yes, 15!) minutes later, I told Warren and my Mom that I had to push. Warren looked at me and said "It's not after lunch yet!" TOUGH! My mom looked at me and said she was going to get the nurse. The nurse came in and lifted up the sheet, didn't even come close to me. Dropped the sheet, ran into the hall and yelled at the other nurse "Call Binky (the midwife's nickname) and get your catchers mitt, NOW!" Belinda arrived about 1 minute later (the clinic was attached to the hospital) and two pushes later, little Abbigail Grace was born. So tiny. 5 pounds 10 oz, 18 inches long. Such a little cutie, full head of dark brown hair. Oh, what an experience! From the first contractions until she was in my arms was a total of about 5 1/2 hours. About 5 minutes after she was born, I looked at my mom and said "I want to do this again!" Everyone started laughing!

My baby is now 7 years old. 7..7...7...are you sure? She can't be that old! She's a wonderful, delightful, sensitive, beautiful, caring, smart, loving, fun little girl, and I wouldn't trade her for the world!

Abbigail, thank you for being my "biggest girl." Thank you for helping me with everything, and being so patient with me while I'm still trying to figure this whole mommy thing out. Thank you for loving me, daddy, Andrew, & Bethany. I'm so proud of how much you love everything, from ladybugs and caterpillars, to small children, and especially Jesus. You are so beautiful, outside, but most importantly, inside. You have the most caring heart I have ever known. I love you!

Love-Mommy

PS...what did I expect when I said "It's a baby!" I had had 3 dreams while pregnant that I gave birth to a kitten...even dreamed about nursing it (OUCH!) So I was very relieved it was a human child...and the best little girl ever! (until Bethany came along, now they both share that title!)

Don't you just love her long hair? About a month after this picture was taken, she had her hair cut into a short bob...and donated her ponytail to locks of love. What a big heart she has! Cute with long hair, cute with short hair!