Our Leprechaun

I've been reading this blog this morning -- a link sent to me by my friend who is SO up-to-date on everything creative and beautiful and clever and delicious and fun (Yes, you Tiff!)! I can proudly say that I sent my children off with green lunches that I had thought up all on my own (most of my creativity is copied from others -- often Tiffany) before I'd even read the other blog. But we had some of the same ideas -- sour cream and onion Pringles, green apple juice boxes and green fruit. I also sent the kids with a sandwich with green lettuce and a green fruit roll-up... Ha-Ha! Wouldn't they have loved me to send a REAL fruit roll-up! It was actually a green-wrappered apple "Fruitabo" which is organic 100% dried fruit in a roll. (And I can tell you what kids...I would have given ANYTHING to have COOL healthy snacks when I was your age...so be happy were such a modern organic society! ;-) RIght, mom?)

ANYWAY, there were many cute ideas for pranks that visiting Leprechauns can pull. (Let me know if there's any extra scrubbing involved in getting the green dye out of the toilet bowl. If not, I'm trying that next year!)

BUT, we have our own leprechaun at our house. Christopher was born on St. Patrick's Day and ever since it's been an eXtra-special holiday for our family!!

Christopher was born to laugh and make others smile! He actually pulled his first prank the day before he was born! I awoke on March 16 (one week past my March 12 due date) with contractions -- the same way both Courtney and Marty's births had started -- first thing in the morning. I dropped Courtney off at school and then walked Marty up to preschool telling everyone that today was the day! I even talked about losing my mucus plug the night before. Which as I recall Dan looked at me like I was crazy and asked if I really wanted to share that with anyone. Well, any woman who's birthed a baby knows that that's big news so, what's the big deal?

I called Rachel, my sister who also took on the additional job of being our nanny, and gave her a heads-up, making arrangements for her to pick up Marty from school and Courtney that afternoon and take her to the birthday party she'd been invited to. I have no recollection of what I did that day, but I probably had a walk and a nap! Dan came home in the early afternoon but I hadn't progressed to "stop and think" contractions at all. But continued having regular contractions all day!! Finally we headed to the birthday party ourselves -- and everyone was so disappointed to see us with NO baby!

The next morning was Saturday and more of the same -- regular contractions but no discomfort. I called my midwife in a bit of a panic, certain I was in non-progressive labor. She had me head to the hospital to get checked. Rachel came over that morning (maybe she slept over that night) and Dan and I headed down. When I got there I was dilated to a 3 and definitely in labor. YEA!! But I didn't want to sit around, so we decided to check out and walk a few laps around the hospital and get things going. After an hour of walking and then breakfast with nothing changing, we headed to Nordstroms. I was a little concerned about my water breaking at Nordstroms, but the need for new sunglasses and having my husband shop with me outweighed my potential embarrassment!

I got a great pair of glasses, but no baby. With nothing else to do, we headed home. Again I called my midwife, worried that I'd been so jumpy, how would I know when it was time? What if I had my baby at home? (Worked for Sheree, but I could never get my mind around the potential mess. And a good thing because when my water broke, it EXPLODED and was bloody and messy and ALL OVER! But that comes later.) My midwife assured me that when it was time I would definitely KNOW.

Rachel was shocked to bring the kids home that evening and find me and Dan hanging around. I was doing the laundry. At 7:30 the kids started crawling on my lap and clamoring for a story. I remember saying, "Sure I'll go read you a story!" But thinking, "Get OFF me!" And then I realized... Oh! Yea! I'm annoyed! I'm frustrated! I'm in pain! YEA it's time to go to the hospital and have this baby!! So I read as fast as I could and when they begged for another one I couldn't even be nice about it I'm sure because I KNEW it was time!

I labored in a rocking chair with dim lights and everyone quiet. (Dan had started watching Forest Gump. I'd brought it along thinking it would be a fun movie to watch together while we waited. But realized that movie is mostly a war and after enduring a lot of shooting I finally demanded, "TURN THAT OFF!") I love how the midwife and nurses and husband are willing to sit there quietly in the dark and wait. No one is really talking. Just a quiet whisper in getting things prepared. And I'm breathing and working, so aware of the impending birth, and everyone else is just patiently waiting. Suddenly my water EXPLODED and at practically the same moment I needed to push. My midwife asked if I wanted to give birth where I was or in the bed. I couldn't see how the baby's head could get out while I was sitting, so I opted to move to the bed. However, the contractions were so strong, I couldn't move. So she came over to me and I just stood where I was and she crouched down and said, "The head's out!" And I said, "The head's out?!" And Dan said after me, "The head's out?!" And Yep, it was and a second later out came the rest of Christopher!!

He didn't cry at all, yet he was so alert! I moved over to the bed while the midwife and nurses wiped him down and checked him out and then they handed me my sweet St. Patrick's Day baby! I held him and tried to nurse him and looked at him and he just looked at us. After a while, when we were ready, the cute nurses gave him a bath and boy did he scream!

He's been a jokester ever since -- always doing anything to get a laugh! When he was really little and I tried to be VERY serious or firm to discipline him, he'd just laugh at me! He has a sunny disposition (from being born in California, I'm sure) and a tender heart. He loves when all of our family is together. He LOVES building with Legos, Rockreation and climbing, riding bikes and skating everywhere on his Heelys. He also plays the piano, soccer and baseball. He's such a wonderful kid! Happy 8th Birthday, Christopher!!