The Wading Pool

How do you put a miracle into words?  How do you adequately describe one of the most amazing things that you could ever experience in this life?  Those are the questions I’ve been asking myself as I sit here and watch my newborn son sleep in front of me.

Today was a day long anticipated, and it didn’t disappoint with surprises and turns.  It began with insanely hard contractions in the wee hours of the morning.  Silly me…I thought when you go in for a c-section, your wife gets to forgo all that.  Guess not!  They were so intense Amanda’s doctor told us to come on in as soon as possible, for fear that she’d progress too far before she got there, and put my little breech boy at risk.

A mad dash followed of getting the girls loaded into the van to drop off at a friend’s house nearby, then the trek that I dreaded all pregnancy long:  across Raleigh…at morning rush hour…in the rain.  Did I mention Amanda was in labor?  Yeah…that was a drive, let me tell you.

But we made it, and after placing my wife and son in the Lord’s hands on the way and at the hospital, I placed them into the hands of the nurses and doctor who would deliver our baby boy.  What happened next was a whirlwind of nurses, needles, and nerves as they prepped Amanda for caesarian.  There was a hope in us both that he would have flipped upside down (right side up for this type thing), but God had other plans in mind.  Maybe it was just one more lesson in the “you can trust me guys” category.

Before I knew it, they wheeled Amanda into the OR and sent me to put on scrubs.  How do the people on TV make these things look cool?  I caught a glimpse of myself in a picture glass, and lets just say Patrick Dempsey, I’m not.  As I paced around waiting for them to come get me, I knew I was going to slip on those little booties they make you put on, then hit my head and be useless to Amanda.  No worries, the nurse came, I entered a room straight out of TV (minus the scrubs coolness factor), and sat by my wife’s head and held her hand.

And then, before we knew it, I could hear the scream.  It’s a scream that is music to a parents ear.  It was beautiful (if a bit piggy-esque).  It’s the sound that gives confirmation that everything is alright.  I have to say, it was surreal hearing it from behind a sheet (and believe me, ain’t no WAY I was looking over that sheet).  In a few short minutes, I got up, went over, and said hello to my son, face to face.

Wow.  There aren’t words to express the joy, love  and thanksgiving that filled my heart at that moment.  A healthy son.  A third child, when we didn’t think we’d be able to have one.  Did I mention that he’s a boy?  Yeah…dad’s not on his own in the house anymore.  But he was here, and he was healthy.  And this time, I got to hold him and take him to see mom.  Man…does it get any better?

Yeah, things might not have gone exactly the way we planned them today.  I had hoped for a little early arrival around New Years, and both of us hoped to avoid c-section, but no matter how we envisioned it, I couldn’t have asked for it to have gone any better.  God is good, and His steadfast love endures forever.

So the House of Silas says, “His steadfast love endures forever!”

By the way, did I tell you what his name means?  Now, this is not the reason we chose it, but it’s so cool it HAS to be a God-thing.

“Of the woods.”

He’s a Lil’ Newt already, all 6 pounds 9 ounces of him!