on the day he was born

It was a quiet Sunday morning.
I saw the sky turn colors as the sun came up through the hospital room window.

When the nurse told me that I was at a 10 and ready to start pushing, Kent and I looked at each other, feeling things we could never begin to describe. Knowing that our child was about to be born was deeply profound.
Within the next hour, we would be parents.

Nicholas's arrival was surprisingly serene. They placed his warm little body in my arms. He cried only long enough to reassure us that he was indeed breathing and healthy, and then he lay quietly,
looking up at us through squinty blue eyes.

They wrapped him up and placed him in the warming cradle. Kent stood by him, and the two of them stared at each other in mutual amazement.

There was something sacred about those first moments.

I loved him the moment I saw him, but the first time I truly felt like his mother was the next day in our cozy recovery room. Nicholas lay in the cradle next to me, awake but quiet. A nurse came in to take him to the nursery for some routine testing, and as she left with my baby, I felt like a very piece of my being was leaving with him. My heart was broken until they brought him back to me and I could hold him close in my arms.
And then I knew that my life had changed.

Nicholas has changed the flavor of our lives. He is silly, loving, sensitive, loud, curious, cuddly, and happy. There is a sparkle in his eyes. When he smiles, he fills our home with light and joy.
Every night we pray to Heavenly Father and thank Him for sending us this little boy.
This has been the best year of our lives.

Happy Birthday, Nicholas!