the mom thing

Below is an excerpt from my cousin Chad's monthly prayer letter. This excerpt, written by Eva, is about her first experiences as a mom. I thought it was beautiful.

"Nine days after the official due date, we FINALLY went into labor - late Friday night. I was a little bit nervous, but mostly excited because I knew that the next time we’d be home there would be THREE of us! Around 8 Saturday morning my doctor came into our delivery room and said that we needed to do a C-section. Every time I had a contraction the baby's heart rate would drop real low (it is normally between 120 and 140 - it would drop all the way down to 60). I was disappointed that we weren’t able to have a “normal” birth and pretty scared about what was to come next – but I wanted to do whatever it took to deliver a healthy baby.

So, we ended up having an emergency C-section. Minus throwing up the chocolate ice cream I had earlier that night all over Chad, the surgery was a success and at 8:41am, Brooklynn Taylor Frank was born. She was perfectly healthy, weighing 6 pounds 15 ounces, and was 20 inches long. (Afterward the doctor said it was a good thing he did the C-section - her umbilical cord was wrapped around her neck AND the cord was real thin. If she would have been born normally her cord might have torn on her way out...)

It’s crazy how quickly Brooklynn stole my heart. When I was in the operating room all strapped down to the table, I couldn't see what was going on during the surgery because there was this huge hospital sheet in the way. But since I was awake for the whole thing (they just numb you from the stomach down), I could still at least hear everything. I will never forget the instant that I heard her first cry – I started to cry myself because I was so immediately and overwhelmingly in love. It makes me tear up just thinking about it now. I didn't know it was possible to love someone so much - all in that very first second (without even seeing her!). I was nervous about being a mom. I didn't know if I'd know what to do...or how to feel...but, it turns out that this is by far the greatest thing I have ever done! I love being a mom...and I'm absolutely crazy about Brooklynn....

I’ve always heard people say that being a parent allows you to relate to God on a whole new level. Now, just a couple weeks into it, I’m beginning to see what they mean. I would do ANYTHING for that little girl. But, what really blows my mind is that these feelings are still just a fraction of the way that God feels about us. He loves us more than I can ever really know. I’m so thankful that He’s given me the opportunity to have a baby and experience Him in a whole new way."