Sharon, despite the hesitation in her voice, is gracious enough to consent to our request. JoAnna and I arrive at the hospital shortly after midnight. My gut feeling is that we have a long day ahead of us, but how wrong I am. The intensity of Jo's contractions increase steadily. Once we're in the birthing room, I'm ready to crash but quickly realize that I need to be an active participant. I remember the head nurse who helped Jo with her breathing during Andy's delivery and use a face-to-face approach to guide her through her breaths. She nearly loses it worrying about the doctor's timely arrival, but she manages to hold and once she starts pushing it's a matter of minutes. I have a moment of concern when the head resembles a failed meat loaf, but then I'm not exactly sure what I'm looking at. Once the baby's head is visible, I see a look of determination that easily matches JoAnna's. Then there's a pause, and I feel there's too much blood. A few more pushes and the genitals are in view.
"Eddie's here!" I announce.
His skin and hair color appear to be much darker than Andy's intro into the world and initially his face seems plug ugly. For the next two hours, Eddie shows himself to be Mr. Mellow and as beautiful and healthy a baby as Andy was. While I'm holding him, I get the feeling that he hears me. The few times he opens his eyes, I swear I see a glint of recognition. Hi Dad! I was concerned that the birth of a second child would be a less emotional experience -- what first-born child wouldn't feel that way -- but the more I hold Eddie, the more I stare into his florid but perfectly formed face, a unique feeling of joy spreads through my body. As Eddie was being delivered, I was practically running in place. If only the camcorder had been set up to record the entire scene. Once I left the hospital, I felt the best thing to do was to avoid sleep. Once I shared the news with Greg, I informed Andy of his new status as big brother. His response? A negative one, but I wrote it off to sleepiness. He slept in until 8 and once he was awake wasn't convinced of the need to get dressed right away. We ate breakfast at Perkins and then visited Mom and Eddie. Andy proved to be a hyperactive chatterbox, but adorable nonetheless. He really is proud to be a big brother.
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