What title do I use today? A blessing was Born.

This morning as I layed in bed I got a phone call from a dear friend telling me that she and her husband were on their way to the hospital for the birth of their new granddaughter. I told her to let me go take a shower and I would be on my way. They are our "northern" friends, and Cathy and I tell others that we are sisters separated at birth. We spend a lot of our time teaching each other about our "regional" ways. We are their "southern" friends, and she believes that my husband knows everything and can do almost anything. It is so much fun when we go out to dinner and we will be talking about something and every once in a while one of us gets this totally loss look on our face. We just look at each other and just start to laugh.

Okay, back to the story about the baby. I got to the hospital about 9:30a.m. and got to go in and see Kim and Stan, the soon to be parents. Kim looked beautiful, even thought she had been in labor for about 8 hours, and Stan was right there beside her giving her the quiet strength that she needed. We left the room and went back out to the waiting room and just hung out with the family for a while. When Cathy and George, my friends, moved here they had to make sure that their children were going to come with them. Now let me explain this one to you. They have three girls, ranging in age from early thirties to mid twenties. But when they decided to move because of George's job they talked it over with the girls and their husbands. Kim wasn't married at the time, matter of fact she didnt even know Stan at the time. But the girls all decided to move down with their parents, and the husbands all were in agreement. So Cathy and George came down, found Cathy's dream home, and got settled. Then the girls started moving down, staying with their parents until their own homes were built. Kim finally came down and when she did she brought Stan with her. They said that they were just really close friends, but before long you could tell that they were more than just friends.

Cathy and George have such big, open hearts. They have family night every Sunday, all the girls are there with their families. Before long they were inviting our family to join them, and our tradition for "family night" was born. I love being around them, I think that they show others what it means to be "family". I am not saying that they have a perfect family, but they have a real family. They get upset with each other once in a while but no matter what they stand together as one. The love that they have for one another is so obvious, and one can only dream about having the same kind of family. I am a strong believer in family, cause when it comes right down to it all we really have in life is our family.

Anyway, I had to leave today and go to the studio, but my son Philip came and took over so that I could go back to the hospital. When I got there I found them still waiting. They hadn't left nor were they going anywhere. Even the brother-in-law and 6 week old baby boy was there. We got to go in and see Kim again and she was in heavy labor at this point, and you could see the pain in her eyes. But there was no panic in her eyes, and Stan was calm, at least on the outside. Kim told us that she thought that her mom should get the nurse because she felt the need to push. Cathy went and got the nurse, and let's just say that the time for the big event was there. We had all been picking times for the birth as we were sitting in the waiting room and all of sudden Cathy has a special look on her face. She started saying that she wanted the baby to wait and come after 4:00p.m.. I know it was one of those times that I had a lost look on my face, I'm thinking.....4:00? What is so important about 4:00p.m.? Do we get a discount on the room? A new doctor? What? Then she smiles and tells me that at 4:00 Kim and Stan would have been offically married for nine months. We figured about 4:15 would be more like it, and guess when our blessing was born? Nope, not at 4:15, but close. Sonya Rose came in to the world at 4:24p.m., weighing in at 8 pounds 4 ozs, and 18 inches long. Yes, she was and is beautiful. She looks like her daddy, but there is also some of Kim in her. When we got to go in and see the new little family, Kim took my breath away. There was a glow about her,and you couldn't tell that she had just given birth. Just beautiful. The joy and love in the room was so thick you could have just reached out and touched it. I stayed long enough to see the baby and then I just backed out to the room as everyone else was in there laughing, crying, kissing, and just enjoying their precious new gift. Even as I walked to my car I was surrounded by their love, and I smiled the whole way. What a special gift I had been given today, to be a part of such an occassion.

So as you say your prayers tonight please remember this new little bundle of joy and her parents, that God will grant them much joy, love, and laughter. That He will guide them in every step they take, and for the wisdom they will need as they walk down this new path.

Thanks, and remember to dream the impossible and to aim for it.
Charlie

I was very blessed today in the fact that this wonderful family allowed me to be a part of this very special time.