Tomorrow is your 2nd birthday. It feels like a complete lifetime since the day you were born.
Although we had a scare with preterm labor days earlier, we thought we were in the clear. I couldn't shake the feeling that we shouldn't be leaving Iowa City when they sent us home, but I wanted to stay positive. During that stay at UIHC they gave us the odds (they were not good), but shared that their numbers were better than most. I clung to that on the way back to Iowa City the night you were born.
Your Dad remembers speeding down I-80, but I remember calm, even joking around a bit in between contractions. We weren't sure what would happen once we got there but I think we wanted to push it out of our minds for the 50 minute drive.
I was waiting alone in the emergency room for a wheelchair up to labor and delivery (while your Dad was parking the car), and I just knew you would be coming soon. For me, the rest of the evening was fast. We slept little and by 3:30am (just a few hours after we arrived there) they announced they would be taking you by c-section. I was bleeding heavily and they prepped me for surgery.
I remember laying on the surgical table in a ball trying to get through one of the contractions and I felt something burst below. Someone yelled, "She's hemorrhaging. Get Dad in here now. We have to go." Even with these words, I saw your Dad and stayed calm.
When they got you out of my body, you stayed silent. In order to see you, I had to peer through a huddle of nurses working to intubate you and connect you to tubes and wires that would keep you alive the next couple of months. I teared up but did not cry. I was scared but wanted to be brave for you.
They wheeled you away to the NICU, where you would live your first 158 days. Still I did not cry. Maybe I was in shock, but I told myself that I needed to stay calm for you. I wanted you to feel and know that your birth day was a happy day. It was the day that you came into our lives. It was the day that changed everything...for the better. It was the day that I will never forget.
Because of you our lives are complete different. Completely better. It's been a wild two years - an experience that we fight to prevent in others' lives. I've often wondered why this happened to us, but I don't think I would change it now. You've made me better, braver and more grateful than I've ever been.
I cry now, not because I'm sad, but because I've seen a miracle with my own eyes. I've been able to personally witness how much you've overcome and it makes me filled with joy. I'm so thankful to the University of Iowa and the countless number of nurses and doctors that cared for you and cared for us.
You make us laugh with your infectious giggle. We are tickled with delight when you run - very fast I might add. We love watching you interact with your brother, even with you are body slamming each other. We love your cuddles and they way you back into us to sit on our laps to look at books. We enjoy your chatter, even when we can't understand you most of the time. We love your passion for blocks, cooking and helping around the house.
Thank you for being you, Alexander the Great. Happy Birthday!
