14 Years Ago Today

It is hard to believe but 14 years ago today, I gave birth to my one and only son, Nathan.  I sit and think about that day with great fondness, but also wonder where the time has gone.

He was actually due the day before, but instead he waited till the middle of the night to decide to start his journey out into the real world.  My mother had come to stay with us so that someone would be there to watch Madison for us when we went to the hospital.  As my mother now knows very well, I cannot have a baby in the daytime.  It would have been nice to have a baby in the daytime, but my body apparently likes to do the hardest work it possibly can do in the dead of night. 

I woke up around 1:30am with a contraction which had woken me out of a deep sleep.  I decided I was going to wait and time the contractions for a little bit before I woke Carl up.  The second contraction was 12 minutes apart then 9 minutes apart then 7 minutes.  I woke Carl up, not because the contractions were regular, but because they were hard.  I had done this once before, and I knew these were the real deal.

My labor with my first child, Madison, had lasted 23 hours so we both were assuming our second would be half that labor time or 12 hours.  This is what the doctors had predicted for us, and we believed them.  So, we were a little slow in processing what was really going on in this labor with our son.

Carl awoke, and we continued to time the contractions.  The next contraction went from 7 minutes to 5 minutes then 3 minutes to 1 minute which is where they stayed.  During the breaks in between the contractions, I would tell him the contractions were very hard, but we were confused that the times seemed to be irregular.  However, I remember when they got to one minute apart, we looked at each other in horror.  They were not irregular!  They were getting closer together and now they were one minute apart.  We had no idea we could go from 12 minutes apart to 1 minute apart in such a short period of time.

I remember my mom being worried that we might not make it to the hospital.  I have to say as we drove to the hospital that night I was worried about the same thing.  I could feel that boy moving down with every contraction.  I remember saying to Carl as I gripped tightly to the inside car armrest with every contraction when we were about half-way to the hospital, “Carl, get me there fast.  This baby is moving down.”

I often laugh to myself.  Nathan’s labor is similar to his personality.  When he makes his mind up about something, there is nothing that can stop him.  I think about him saying in the womb, “It’s been nice while it lasted, but now I am out of here!”

This day is a day I remember with great joy.  Where did the time go?  Now he is definitely taller than his mom and according to the doctor last week, taller than his dad now too.  Before I know it, he will be out of the house.  We have a lot of work to do between now and then to equip this child with the skills and wisdom he needs to be not only be a good man but also a godly one.

Manhood is still a little bit down the road so I will be excited and thankful for what I have been given now.  The truth is that I am grateful.  God has been so good to me!