The Happiest Day of My Life

Out to dinner with reserve friends. Ty is in the red plaid.

I remember the day so well.  As far as I'm concerned it could have been yesterday.  (dreamy music, blurry dream like fading)...........................

HAPPY BIRTHDAY TY

My one and only child is a grown man of 31 today.  Like any mother he means the world to me.  I only wish I could celebrate with him today.  I love you, Ty with all my heart!

Now back to that dreamy state........................................

 My obstetricians were a group of 3 older Doctors.  The oldest being my main Doctor but I saw each one at a different visit so that I would be accustom to whomever might deliver my child.  It was the early years of being able to discover if you were having a boy or a girl.  Pampers even were fairly new.  Don't tell me, I want to be surprised.  Now remember this is 31 years ago, I was 18, 19 when Ty was born.  All the talk was natural childbirth.  Me and my silly young self, opened my mouth and said "I'd like to have my child naturally.  Yep, natural childbirth, no drugs".   It's taken nearly 31 years to laugh at that one.  

Months later.............My husband driving me to the hospital.  No contractions just back labor.  Already I think I'm dying.  After having the nurses do their part to clean me out I was stuck in a bathroom screaming for my life -  Can I Go Lay Down Yet?  Where Is My Husband?   Yes, that was the days of Dads being allowed into the delivery room and when I say Dad's, that's what I mean.  Just one person.  No family gatherings in a lovely birthing room back then.  Just a stark delivery room.  I don't remember a whole lot after that.  I kept blacking out, only waking up long enough to pull myself out of the bed by squeezing the life out of my husbands hand while screaming (ever so attractively, I'm sure) from the top of my lungs.  Within an hour I was saying drugs, make them give me drugs, I can't do this.  The drugs came and my memories of childbirth didn't return until 2 days later.  

I remember at delivery time telling the nurses, doctors and whoever would listen that I've got to pee.  Let me up to go to the bathroom - push, scream, push, scream, pass out.  

Here it is!  It's coming, the babies coming.  Loud savage screams from me.  The heads out, push Tracy push.  With dead seriousness from me (remember I was totally drugged at the time), I tell them leave it right there, I changed my mind, it's okay.  Just stop, leave it there!  A few more pushes, passing out for awhile.  I awaken when the Doctor says Tracy, Tracy.......It's a boy.  You have a son.  I remember this so clearly.  I looked at the Doctor ifand said Un-Un.  He said, yes you've had a son.  Again Un-Un, where?  Show me.  He points to the nurse who I assume was standing next to me holding my son and thinking, why in the heck is she standing why over there in the corner and I can't see with all those people around him.  I then promptly passed out again.

Yep, it's all true.  But I also remember my dad standing there when I was rolled out to recovery saying, he's got the Whittemore nose Tracy, he's got our nose.  A standing joke between my dad and me. Well any Whittemore really.  There were lots of family and friends there but I was too out of it to appreciate them.  The next day I called my Daddy and told him  I couldn't believe it I have a son.  We only had girls in our family for so long, no one really thought I'd have a son, including me.  I told my Daddy I couldn't believe it, I loved him so much.  I don't think I could have loved a daughter this much, I can't believe how much I love him.  I'm must have called Daddy back three times, saying the same thing before they could get back to the hospital.  I was a new Mother and I was in love!!!

As for that Doctor that never bothered to tell me there was such a thing as an epidural.  Well I learned that little secret while in the hospital AFTER delivery.  I asked his nurse why my Doctor never offered me that option.  She said he was very old fashioned and didn't believe in natural child birth and if a woman wanted to have natural child birth then it was natural all the way.  Great policy Pops.

The truth of the matter is I wouldn't have missed giving birth to Ty for anything in the world.  Thank you God for blessing me with the most wonderful, handsome, surfing, cowboy, soldier, truck driver Son in the world.  You are the reason I live and you fill my heart with love.