I had trouble keeping Carmen until time to deliver her. She was born a month early - induced labor - and was a tiny 5 pounds...
Jonathan was different. Here's a short run-down of Feb. 10, 1978.
I was a full 9 months pregnant and as big as the side of the house. Got myself out of bed and had 1 piece of cheese toast and felt warm water running down my legs - my water had broken... "so that's what it feels like when your water breaks".... Thought I might need to call the doctor. His office said for me to come "straight to the hospital", so I called Charles.
He was the Lakewood High principal - dropped everything and drove the 3 miles to our house in Roseboro. We had to drive 12 miles to Clinton but first we had to go by Carmen's school to tell her what was going on. She was 8 and they let her come out to the car to kiss us bye. Our good friend Marjorie Gilbert was going to get her after school. Margie came to the house to tell us bye as we were going out the door to tell Carmen. I sponsored the JV and Varsity Cheerleaders and we had a basketball game that night. Charles always drove the van we traveled on - one phone call took care of that and the cheerleaders were "cheering us on"...
Got checked in at Sampson Memorial..... and was in labor. Hours of it... but we got in trouble. So much trouble with the cord around the baby's neck that I had to lay flat on my back or his breathing would be shut off. Great. One of my cheerleader's older sister was an RN and her shift ended at 3:00 PM. She had heard that we were in labor and delivery, came by to check on us, and decided to stay with me until it was over. She probably made THE difference in the health of Jonathan by being there to monitor every move I made to keep him breathing. We'll always be indebted to her for that.
Charles was dressed in whites to go into the delivery room, (looked doggone cute) but as the hours wore on, we realized we might have to take another direction. I didn't give a royal rip by this time because I was in so much pain. My doctor was chaperoning a high school dance that his daughter was attending and was keeping in close contact but around 9:30, they all decided we'd have to deliver by C-Section. I remember the rush and the ride downstairs, AND the operating room - can still see it. And Charles ended up in the hallway.
He had no sooner gotten seated before they walked out with Jonathan in their arms. 8 pounds, 8 ounces. About the time they were showing Charles, the hospital fire alarm went off. It was a drill but we didn't know it at that moment. (I didn't know anything - was knocked out)
The next thing I remember was Charles patting my cheeks saying, "It's a BOY, IT'S A BOY".... and he had already called Carmen and Mom & Dad.
The first time I laid eyes on our baby boy, I remember thinking how beautiful he was, but also how much bigger than Carmen he was and that he looked just like she did. That still grabs me. They had much the same features and it amazed me.
This hospital was going through some new way of thinking for new mothers and there was a no visitor policy, so only Charles could get in the room - not even Carmen. The next morning I had a stack of gifts from the cheerleaders waiting in my room. I remember that one of them was one of those beautiful wooden nursery lamps that I had wanted but could'nt begin to afford in those days.
We brought Jonathan home 9 days later to much hoop-la from neighbors and friends around Roseboro. We had meals coming in and baby gifts galore, all for a boy. That's the way they did it then or that's the way they did it in that neck of the woods. You had a baby shower for your first born, but no showers after that, just gifts after the baby arrived. The shop kids at school even made Jonathan a swinging cradle and brought it to us. It was beautiful!
Hard to believe that was 31 years ago. God is good! My pics are in the storage unit or I would post some....
Jonathan was different. Here's a short run-down of Feb. 10, 1978.
I was a full 9 months pregnant and as big as the side of the house. Got myself out of bed and had 1 piece of cheese toast and felt warm water running down my legs - my water had broken... "so that's what it feels like when your water breaks".... Thought I might need to call the doctor. His office said for me to come "straight to the hospital", so I called Charles.
He was the Lakewood High principal - dropped everything and drove the 3 miles to our house in Roseboro. We had to drive 12 miles to Clinton but first we had to go by Carmen's school to tell her what was going on. She was 8 and they let her come out to the car to kiss us bye. Our good friend Marjorie Gilbert was going to get her after school. Margie came to the house to tell us bye as we were going out the door to tell Carmen. I sponsored the JV and Varsity Cheerleaders and we had a basketball game that night. Charles always drove the van we traveled on - one phone call took care of that and the cheerleaders were "cheering us on"...
Got checked in at Sampson Memorial..... and was in labor. Hours of it... but we got in trouble. So much trouble with the cord around the baby's neck that I had to lay flat on my back or his breathing would be shut off. Great. One of my cheerleader's older sister was an RN and her shift ended at 3:00 PM. She had heard that we were in labor and delivery, came by to check on us, and decided to stay with me until it was over. She probably made THE difference in the health of Jonathan by being there to monitor every move I made to keep him breathing. We'll always be indebted to her for that.
Charles was dressed in whites to go into the delivery room, (looked doggone cute) but as the hours wore on, we realized we might have to take another direction. I didn't give a royal rip by this time because I was in so much pain. My doctor was chaperoning a high school dance that his daughter was attending and was keeping in close contact but around 9:30, they all decided we'd have to deliver by C-Section. I remember the rush and the ride downstairs, AND the operating room - can still see it. And Charles ended up in the hallway.
He had no sooner gotten seated before they walked out with Jonathan in their arms. 8 pounds, 8 ounces. About the time they were showing Charles, the hospital fire alarm went off. It was a drill but we didn't know it at that moment. (I didn't know anything - was knocked out)
The next thing I remember was Charles patting my cheeks saying, "It's a BOY, IT'S A BOY".... and he had already called Carmen and Mom & Dad.
The first time I laid eyes on our baby boy, I remember thinking how beautiful he was, but also how much bigger than Carmen he was and that he looked just like she did. That still grabs me. They had much the same features and it amazed me.
This hospital was going through some new way of thinking for new mothers and there was a no visitor policy, so only Charles could get in the room - not even Carmen. The next morning I had a stack of gifts from the cheerleaders waiting in my room. I remember that one of them was one of those beautiful wooden nursery lamps that I had wanted but could'nt begin to afford in those days.
We brought Jonathan home 9 days later to much hoop-la from neighbors and friends around Roseboro. We had meals coming in and baby gifts galore, all for a boy. That's the way they did it then or that's the way they did it in that neck of the woods. You had a baby shower for your first born, but no showers after that, just gifts after the baby arrived. The shop kids at school even made Jonathan a swinging cradle and brought it to us. It was beautiful!
Hard to believe that was 31 years ago. God is good! My pics are in the storage unit or I would post some....
