Judah Immanuel

I am still in shock.

There is new life.

Judah is now a part of our family.

Here is the story.

First of all, I need to praise my sister. She is a ROCKSTAR! Her water broke Friday around 11 am and she did not have baby Judah until 8:10 Sunday morning. That is over 40 hours in labor. AND SHE DID IT ALL WITHOUT DRUGS. Good lord, I don't know how she did it. We are all very proud of her.

I had spent Saturday night at my parent's house. Neither my dad or I could sleep very well. We were excited/anxious for Amy and the baby, hoping that they were ok. I remember waking up at 6:30 am, not being able to sleep and texting my mom (who was at the hospital with Amy and David) to get an update. We got the phone call around 8:30 Sunday morning that the baby had finally been born, so my dad and I jumped in my Corolla and sped to the hospital.

I imagined that when I saw Amy and the baby, I would hoot and holler, laugh, and leap around with giddiness. But nothing prepared me for the reaction I had. My dad and I were in the lobby on Amy's floor, waiting for her to be wheeled in from the floor below. When we saw her, my dad and I jumped to our feet and ran over to give lots of hugs. I looked down and saw Amy was carrying Judah in her arms. And tears came. I literally became frozen and speechless. No words would express what I was feeling, looking at her son. I just stared and stared at him with tears falling. I was so overcome with emotion. Finally I choked out, "Aim...he is the most precious thing I have ever seen in my life."

I've been thinking about why I reacted that way. I mean, I obviously know those tears were tears of joy. But it was deeper than that. Maybe it was the realization that this little one had been inside my sister for nine months and now we finally got to see what he looked like. Or maybe it was seeing my sister and brother-in-law's face in his little face. Or maybe it was thinking about this amazing miracle God had given Amy and David. I don't know. All I know is there was a little life looking up at me with big eyes and my heart stirred deeply.



We got to spend the whole day at the hospital with them. What a treat! I did not want to leave. Poor Amy, David, and my mom were so tired. They had been up all night. So they caught naps whenever they could, which was good. We all took turns holding baby Judah. I pretty much melted when it was my turn.



To celebrate his day of birth, my dad and I had bought a chocolate cake and a "0" candle (since he was 0 years old). We also brought some sparkling cider and champagne glasses. So we sang happy birthday and toasted to Judah. We were all so surprised at how alert he was. He kept looking around with his beautiful blue eyes. The nurses and my mom (who is also a nurse) think it was because Amy didn't get an epidural. AND he was a stud breast-feeder. They said 15 minutes after he was born, he was already feeding. What a champ!



When my dad and I finally left at night, we drove home with some conversation but also some silence. I think we were both caught up with our thoughts from the day. Finally, as we neared home, my dad said, "You know...the world seems like a better place. Because Judah's in it." I looked around at the darkness, the lights of the houses, the hills, the bay...and I agreed with him.

Welcome, Judah Immanuel. You are very loved.