Happy birthday, Ryan!

I wish everyone who reads this blog was as lucky as I am to know Ryan personally. He is the most caring, helpful boy I know. He is 6 today and I just can't believe it! Let's rewind 6 years ago....
I was heavily pregnant and working 30 hours a week at the animal hospital. Not reception where I would be sitting most of the day or at least some of it. I worked in surgery where I had to stand next to the dental table or the surgery table all day, monitoring pets who were having a procedure. I miss that job! Anyway, I weighed in at 200lb! Yes, you read that right! I like to accredit that to a 9 1/2 lb baby inside me and I don't want to be told otherwise! =) Being December, I had a week of vacation that I needed to use before the end of the year or before my maternity leave started. By 38 weeks my body could handle it no longer. My feet were as big as I don't know what and my belly was even bigger! So I asked to start my leave then. At my next dr appt I begged to be induced. I was miserable and didn't want a child with the birthday 12-25-06. The 18th is bad enough! My dr was on board with that. So I went in on a Monday morning at 6am. (I think it was Monday) Mom went to work like normal bc we were thinking it would be awhile. I was in labor with Hannah for 14 hrs so we were using that as a guide. By the time they asked me a million questions, got me hooked up to the 50 pieces of equipment and flopped me in bed (I'm exaggerating here) it was at least 7am.
Everything was going smoothly and by 8 I was ready for the epidural. Of course, we had to wait for the anisthesiologist (sp?) to get done with all the ladies who were patiently waiting in front of me. I don't remember when I finally got the drugs but I do remember that it was 20 til 9 when I finally started to get some relief. Some being the key word here. I don't remember much about keeping in touch with mom while she was working but I do remember she just barely made it in before I delievered! By 9 am, just 2 short hours after being flopped in bed, I was ready to push and still feeling too much pain. My big boy was born at 9:18 am, weighing 9lb 6.5oz.
Because he was so big, they routinely checked his blood glucose. It was so low it didn't register on the glucometer. I nursed him while I was being "fixed" and then they checked it again. It was only 37. So they rushed him away to do something. I don't remember. They took a bunch of x rays and did blood work. His white blood cell count was high, indicating infection somewhere. By the next morning, Tuesday, they had decided they needed to start IV anitbiotics which require admittance to the hospital. I was devistated when I found out I was able to go home but had to leave my little boy. =( That was the hardest thing every for me. He had a big IV in his forehead and had to sleep all alone in that cold, bright, hard bed.
I rented a hodpital grade breast pump so I could pump every 2-3 hours while he was gone from me. After a week of antibiotics, he was fine and able to go home. I beat myself up for along time about wanting to be induced and how I should have just let things happen on their own. I don't know if that wold have changed anything but I'm over it now.
Six years later and we are still just as thankful for that little boy, if not more thankful for him. Recently, when asked by his sunday school teacher what he wanted to be when he grew up, he responded" a daddy. That melts my heart. If the Lord tarries, he is going to be an excellenthusband and father. He does have a pretty great role model, if i do say so myself! =)