Meeting Olive: Three Hours Old

The text arrived at 6:57am on Saturday morning, November 16, 2013.   I was sipping my cup of tea and finalizing the day’s task list.  It was mere days (almost down to hours) before I was flying to Asia and I had almost despaired of that text arriving before I left.

“Hey if you’re awake…you can come visit us at the hospital ;-)”

Thirty-one minutes later I was standing in line at the hospital’s Starbucks, dressed and parked and armed with my camera,  grabbing a peppermint mocha to deliver to room 4024.    The halls of a hospital are eerily deserted at 7:38am, by the way.  Patients are sleeping, nurses are hoping not to wake them, and visitors haven’t started arriving yet.   At the very end up the hall, around a unmarked corner, and tucked in behind a massive med cart, I finally found it:  room 4024.

We sipped on the Starbucks, I had my turn to cuddle the guest of honor, and then the party started.  Uncle, Cousin, Brother, Grandparents, Aunts and (more) cousins, too!)  All tip toeing in with muted anticipation, excited to meet the brand new family member, just three and a half hours old.

Happy almost-two-month-anniversary-of-your-birth, Olive!