Wandering His Wonders: We are Grandparents!

We have been working our way north to Kansas City, waiting for that phone call that our son and daughter-in-law were heading to the hospital for the birth of our first grandchild. We knew we wanted to be situated in a campground near Kansas City before the due date, and we accomplished that. Then we got the news that they were planning to induce labor the very next day. What great timing! But all the beds in the birthing wing of the hospital were actually full that morning, so they delayed us until noon. That gave us a chance to meet Luke and Jordan for breakfast. As you can tell, we have a bun in the oven as we take a picture in the parking lot of "The Big Biscuit."

Jordan's parents had arrived the night before, so all the grandparents were poised and ready to go to the hospital. We stopped by Hobby Lobby for crochet supplies on the way, so we could "get our grandma on." We're crocheting baby headbands to keep us distracted during labor.

Actually, we had plenty of distractions. Jordan and Luke are game players, so they suggested we bring games to the labor room to help pass the time. We played cards, dice, and video games most of the afternoon. Here we're all staring at the I-pad, waiting for the next question in the JackBox game we were playing. Each player uses their smart phone as a game controller to answer questions and draw pictures. We got the impression from the nurses that this wasn't the usual protocol among mothers in labor.

We also rotated through the cafeteria downstairs for meals. There was a stunning group of tulips at their peak bloom right outside the cafeteria. Knowing that first babies are usually slow, we thought that we would probably be here all night.

But then things started happening both inside and outside. The expectant grandparents were escorted out as they were setting up for delivery. At the same time, we were upgraded from tornado watch to tornado warning. In the waiting room, we found out that the tornado sirens were sounding here in Overland Park.

With the sirens, the entire nursing staff went into motion. They moved all their patients from their rooms (with windows) into the hallways. Mark took a screen shot as the leading edge of the storm and the tornado warnings hit our area. Being from Oklahoma, we recognized the hook-shaped formations that indicate tornadoes. Instead of going out into the hall, Luke and Jordan got escorted into the operating room for the final pushes.

Because our son is a physician, Jordan's doctor invited him to suit up. He even got to deliver the baby and cut the cord. That's one happy father!

Meanwhile, the grandmothers are in the waiting room, pretending to crochet. But we are praying our way through a tornado, hoping that everything is all right. When Luke finally got around to text us that the baby had been born, there were lots of high fives and hugs in the waiting room. Once Jordan was settled back into her room, it was like the paparazzi had arrived with their cameras!

We finally got to meet our sweet little granddaughter--Carter Lynn. Her eyes were wide open for the first hour or two as she stared with admiration at her Mother. Jordan had done a great job!

The six of us had spent all day together, waiting for this seventh member of the family to arrive. We are blessed to be sharing this little granddaughter with a wonderful set of grandparents.

We wrestled Carter away from her parents in order to do the first pictures with the grandparents. We couldn't wipe the silly grins off our faces! It's love at first sight!