McGrath Moments

We had two births in the family this week. My sister had her first child last Sunday, October 11. His name is Carson James and he weighed in at 7lbs 15oz. Wow, what a day that was!! I am not going to go into all of the details of her labor and Carson's birth, as that is her story to tell, but after everything that occurred, I realized how much Braeden's birth still affects me today.

When Carson was born he was taken straight to the NICU. As many of you remember, Braeden was in the NICU for 5 weeks after he was born. As soon as I was allowed back to see my sister after her surgery and noticed the baby was not with her or James I started freaking out INSIDE. I would never allow her to see me break down after all she had just been through. Carson is at home now and all is well with him, but all these memories came flooding back after hearing he had to be taken to the NICU.

Those first few weeks of Braeden's life were the hardest of my life. Ed and I had just moved into this brand new house. I had been on bed rest for weeks and then on maternity leave for months, which means no income. It was freezing cold outside (the winter weather just seemed to add an extra something to my stress). And then I had this premature baby boy in the hospital that I would go and spend everyday with, only to sit there and wait for the next Dr's report on his progress-always waiting for them to say something that would forever change our lives. I can cry just typing all of this because IT WAS HORRIBLE!

All of these feelings came back with Carson. I didn't want Lindsey and James to deal with any of that. And thank goodness Carson is a trooper and he recovered quickly. What a cutie he is and a blessing to our family!

Ed's sister had her third child yesterday, October 17. His name is Emerson Cooper and he weighed 8lbs, 4oz. Congratulations to the Machanda's! We are excited to meet him.