Yesterday I turned another year older. It’s debatable if I’m another year wiser! ;)
Before having kids I wasn’t very interested in birth stories. In fact, I didn’t truly understand why moms would talk about them. Once I became pregnant though–I became a birth story junkie. I’ve heard dozens of first hand accounts and read hundreds more. I even enjoy talking about my own childbirth experiences (when appropriate), but I realized I didn’t really know my own birth story.
My kids have well documented birth stories and conception time frames. I recalled being told that my mom went into labor while watching television, but that was about all I knew. So, recently I asked her about my story.
{Mom with baby Darcy}
According to my mother, her due date was the end of December. However, I held out until January 18th, which leads me to believe my parents fooled around on (or about) April Fool’s Day. This could very well explain my sense of humor and that I was born a procrastinator.
Being the night owl that I am, she began having contractions late in the evening. After losing the plug around midnight, she walked around laboring at home for two more hours before heading to the hospital. My mom was 30 years old when she had me–about the same age I was when I entered motherhood. I was her fourth (and last) child and spaced several years after my sisters. After being admitted to the hospital, she squeezed my dad’s hand and said, “I’m too old for this.”
My dad was in the delivery room when I was born. It was still fairly unusual to see fathers in the delivery room in the early 1980s, but my dad felt it was important to be there for each of his kids.
They had no idea if they were having a boy or a girl. What a surprise I was! The nurse took me to be washed right away. She was concerned for a few minutes because she thought I looked a little blue.
Then my mom shared the sweetest and funniest thing I’ve ever heard about myself:
“The nurse gave you to me and you were beautiful. You were definitely overdue…you had wrinkly little old man hands.”
I love you, Mom and Dad. Thanks for bringing me into this world.