Upon My Return

Note: To quiet fears of a blog post with "far more detail," I won't post anything providing too much information for those uninterested in the birthing process.

I got home Tuesday morning, glad to get back to my house and my life. Not only did I return home with a brand-new daughter, I also came back from the experience with the assurance that God really can handle things without my advice and assistance.

As anyone who talked any length of time with me knows, I had decided (based on how long I thought I was pregnant and on sheer convenience) that this weekend was the ideal time to have Baby. I reminded God of this fact many, many times. I tried to believe He was paying attention, even though the weekend was running out, Baby was still breech, and there were absolutely no indications that labor was imminent.

It was 5:00 Sunday morning before God put things into action, and from then on everything ran as smooth as oil. Our neighbors were able to take Addie and Stuart; Nina actually stayed here until the kids woke up. We took a calm ride to the hospital, since by this time I was peaceful with the idea of a c-section. I got in, confirmed Baby was breech, and was prepped for a c-section without ever actually suffering labor pains. (Because of her position, Daphne could have been delivered -- not an option for me, of course -- but was not very turnable. I'm grateful the doctor didn't try.)

Darren left an apologetic message for Father Tim: "Obviously I won't be at church today. You don't have the bulletins, music, music leader, or lector. Sorry for the short notice." Father Tim claimed he had serious questions about the new deacon's dedication to church, but he himself was so anxious to get to the hospital for news that he curtailed the already simplified service.

The surgery went very well, and in contrast to my experience with Stuart's birth (twelve hours of labor then surgery), was simply a breeze. They wrapped up Daphne and gave her to Darren, and together we admired our red, wrinkled newborn beauty. While I was in recovery, Darren called the kids, who were quite ecstatic to hear of their new sister. It was almost as exciting as the fact that they got to go to church with Mollie.

Mom started up by train the very next day. Darren missed only two days of work, back in the office in time to file an important brief. I'm sore and halting of step, but I will be at Dana's wedding in about a week. And Daphne Michele is a beautiful little bundle and the entire Jones household is delighted to welcome her home.

Thank you all for your prayers. God really does pay attention.

-- SJ