Pity the poor expectant mother who goes through an ordinary labor—she will have nothing to share with friends or family about the travails of her delivery. Ellie, on the other hand, no doubt will have plenty to tell about the birth Tuesday of her and Donny's daughter, Cecilia Jane Novak, their first offspring, Gilda's and my third grandchild.
I'm under strict restrictions not to reveal details but I can tell you that CJ, formerly known as Baby Freedom (conceived on the 4th of July and born during the festival of Passover, the liberation of the Hebrews from hundreds of years of bondage in Egypt), belied her nickname by staying inside the womb a week longer than forecast. She was riding high inside Ellie when last we saw her after the second seder Saturday night.
Contractions started Monday morning but Ellie didn't go to the hospital until after midnight. CJ made her entrance at 10:38 am Tuesday.
I don't mean to suggest extended delivery is harder on grandparents than parents but it is rather difficult just waiting around for news. As type-A personalities Gilda and I are not the best bystanders. The no-news-is-good-news mantra just doesn't cut it when waiting for a grandchild to show up.
But all is cobetzedek now that Cecilia Jane has arrived and everyone—mother, father, child and grandparents, in New York and Omaha—is resting comfortably.
(For those who might wonder, cobetzedek is derived from the Hebrew words hacol bestedek which translates to "everything is all right.")
I'm under strict restrictions not to reveal details but I can tell you that CJ, formerly known as Baby Freedom (conceived on the 4th of July and born during the festival of Passover, the liberation of the Hebrews from hundreds of years of bondage in Egypt), belied her nickname by staying inside the womb a week longer than forecast. She was riding high inside Ellie when last we saw her after the second seder Saturday night.
Contractions started Monday morning but Ellie didn't go to the hospital until after midnight. CJ made her entrance at 10:38 am Tuesday.
I don't mean to suggest extended delivery is harder on grandparents than parents but it is rather difficult just waiting around for news. As type-A personalities Gilda and I are not the best bystanders. The no-news-is-good-news mantra just doesn't cut it when waiting for a grandchild to show up.
But all is cobetzedek now that Cecilia Jane has arrived and everyone—mother, father, child and grandparents, in New York and Omaha—is resting comfortably.
(For those who might wonder, cobetzedek is derived from the Hebrew words hacol bestedek which translates to "everything is all right.")
