My Mom and Dad worked real hard to have me. They tell me it was a lot of work, but other people tell me that making babies isn't really work; it can be a lot of fun. I'm not sure who to believe. Anyway, my Mom and Dad were real happy when they found out I was on my way.
This is what I looked like when my Mommy was only 8
weeks pregnant. The book that Mommy was reading said that I was about the size of a lima
bean then, and since they didn't know if I was gonna be a boy or a girl, that's what they
called me!
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These are some pictures of my Mommy when she had been carrying me around for 4 months, 6 months, and during the last month before I came out. That's my sister Mingus checking us out in the first picture, and she and my brother MacKenzie are posing with Mom in the third picture. My Mom took good care of herself and had a very healthy pregnancy. I'm glad she did, 'cuz it made me a happy, healthy baby. |
In January, before I was born, a lot of Mommy's friends got together at her friend Stacey's house and had something called a "Baby Shower". I think it was an excuse to get together and party, but they say it was much more important than that. It was different than a normal baby shower because they let boys attend, too. Everybody participated in a couple of really special traditions that our friend Polly showed them. These traditions are part of a ritual called a "Blessing Way".
First, everyone sat in a circle and passed around a spool of thread. As they passed the thread around, each person wrapped it around their wrist. Then each person cut the thread for the next person and helped them tie it around their wrist. This was supposed to symbolize the cutting of my umbilical cord. After everybody had this thread thing tied on their wrist, Polly told them that they had to wear it until I was born! The idea is that every time they saw the thread, they would think of my Mom and send her good energy. What a cool tradition!
The other neat thing they did was to
ask everybody to bring a special bead. While everybody was still sitting in a circle, each
person gave my Mom their bead and told her a story about why the bead was special to them.
Now, my Mom has some really special friends, and they came up with some really amazing
stories to go along with the beads they gave her.
The thing with the beads is that my Mom is supposed to make a necklace out of all of them, which she did. Then she's supposed to wear the necklace while she's in labor, and all of the special thoughts and energy that the beads contain will help her to have the energy she needs at that tough time.
My Mom made a very neat set of labor beads and I know they helped her a lot during labor. If you look at the pictures of her with me right after I was born, you can see her wearing her labor beads. My Mom says she's going to give me her labor beads when I grow old enough to appreciate them.
A lot of our good friends were at my Mom's Baby Shower. The picture above shows Pat, Marilyn, Debbie, and Amelia. My Mom and Dad say that this was one of the most special things they've ever done, and were deeply touched by everyone's love and friendship.
My Mom's friends insisted on giving us lots of very nice gifts at her shower. I think most of them were clothes for me to wear or things to help Mom clean up all the little messes that I seem to always be making.
But one other very special gift came to us a
couple of weeks later. Our friends James and Polly and David and Rebecca invited us to
brunch one morning and surprised us with this amazing quilt that Polly and Rebecca had
made. The pattern is called "Tumbling Blocks". It's just the right thing for
those chilly Oregon winter nights! That's Rebecca on the left and Polly on the right,
showing off their handiwork. What a great gift-- thanks!
Okay, now to On to the
hospital !
Last updated: 12/22/2000, Brian Beinlich.
