A Child is born

Since I was on a roll about my starting labor to have Andrew, I thought that perhaps I should continue from there today. So, back to 11 December1972... We had a VW bug, a brand new forest green vehicle, which Dennis and I both loved. With the anticipation of a child arriving, we purchased a brand new VW station wagon, dark blue! So, that evening when we started our ride to Heidelberg, Dennis was driving the bug, and making me very worried, as he was going about 35 mph, on the Autobahn! For those of you who have been in Europe, you know that there generally is no speed limit, and everyone was whizzing by! His comment to me was that he was just being careful. Well, I know it was about 6:30 when we arrived at the hospital, they prepped me for delivery, and Andrew popped out about 9:30. Yes, I guess that was labor all day! There are things from the delivery that I remember: the nurse showed me the blood clot that had been getting the nourishment that should have been going to the baby! She said it was good thing I had delivered him so that he could get what he needed for food. I had planned to nurse my baby... I was all prepared, had a couple of training bras and had read a brochure! Well, they whisked the baby away as soon as they could, and told me that he was very small! he would probably be in the hospital as a premie for several weeks, and did I want to have the shot to stop production of milk. Of course, I said yes, as I understood that it meant several weeks of expressing milk to be fed from a bottle to him. That was a disappointment, as many Moms know. Well, the first thing the next day that I remember was walking down to the window to look at the babies. I had learned the lay of the place when I was in the hospital those days in November. When I arrived at the window to the nursery, there was the Rogers' box... a tiny baby inside with his eyes bandaged, his arms and legs secured with gauze bandages to keep him quiet. Someone discovered me, and took me back to the floor. Apparently, I was not supposed to be there to view him, as he was prepared for a time session in under the light for jaundice. I also found out that the box was called an "isolette", and since he weighed in at 4 pounds 4 1/2 ounces, he was getting some extra help breathing and living! WOW... no one had prepared me for all of this. This boy baby was our firstborn: Andrew Clay Rogers. He looked like a little old man, with the most beautiful blond hair, not only on his head, but all over his body... the "down" which I learned usually has disappeared from full-term babies. He had gorgeous blue eyes, and the nurses all took excellent care of him. They called him "Beach Boy" for he seemed ready to kick a beach ball or go out in the surf! He was an active baby, and became a favorite of those in the nursery. After a couple of days, I was sent home... 45 minutes driving time. There was no option for staying...this was an Army hospital... that was not an easy thing to do! We made the trip at least once a day, and you can be sure that we were tickled pink to be able to hold and rock him at 10 days! We had been able to touch him, but that day, we took the first pictures holding him, and started to really feel like he was truly ours. It became a daily ritual, to be there to feed him some meal, and when Andrew was 3 weeks old, weighing all of 5 pounds, we were allowed to take our baby home. One interesting thing: before we could leave the hospital, Dennis had to go to the stadthaus (city hall) to record Andrew's birth, our German baby had been born! Before we came home to the USA, Dennis traveled to Stuttgart and declared him a US citizen. As we made our visits to the doctors back at the hospital for our scheduled appintments, we were cautioned that "premature" babies often did not develop on schedule. They wanted us to be prepared for delayed behaviors... a scary thing to think about, when you are in a foreign country with no family around, and your best friends scattered around Germany or back stateside by this time. Andrew and I took many walks using our German carriage, and I loved that everyone living around us wanted to see the new American baby! He was ooogled over in German daily! Just to let you know, Andrew was never delayed developmentally, and has always been hyperactive, I thought! always looking for more to do and never sidestepping a challenge.When Andrew is around, I look up to him not only in height (not sure how tall he is, but he is taller than I am), but in awe and in wonder at the precious miracle that Dennis and I begot! I love you Andrew, and am so proud of you. Here we are on Maui, off jeeping, just the two of us! Andrew works as Hotel Manager for the Ritz Carlton Kapalua, and lives with wife, Sarah and daughters, Britt (9) and Anna (7) in Lahaina.