On December 31, 1998 we celebrated New Year's Eve by finding out at midnight that we were pregnant with our first baby. We were so excited and yet a little bit scared to death! Were we really ready to grow up and take on the responsibilities of being parents and start raising kids when were were just kids ourselves? We lived in a small apartment in Provo while attending BYU. I was working full-time as a retail manager while Joe was finishing up his degree and working part-time in a Bio-chemistry lab. The plan was to graduate from college and then start medical school. So, we were going to have a newborn during medical school. What were we thinking?
The pregnancy went well. I was a little sick the first 6 weeks and had to eat something every couple of hours to avoid vomiting. However, my nose was extremely sensitive. For the first 6 weeks Joe had to do a lot of the cooking and get it done before I came home from work. If he was cooking beef or chicken, the smell would get to me and I would run to our apartment door and gulp in breaths of fresh air. Joe thought it was hilarious. There were a few times that I would get home before Joe and I couldn't bear the thought of seeing raw meat cooking so I would pick him up at the lab and then we'd go out to eat. One time I picked him up and as he was entering the passenger door, I opened the driver's door, leaned out over the car and threw up right there in the road! A guy was walking by and Joe yelled, "It's okay. She's pregnant!"
Things continued to progress well throughout my pregnancy and our little munchkin was growing and kicking like crazy. In April, just before graduation, we found out that we were having a boy. At first, I have to admit that I was a little disappointed just for a split-second. All of the siblings in Joe's family had boys and we wanted to be the ones with the first granddaughter on the Stuart side. However, the twinge of disappointment faded quickly when I saw that cute little guy squirming around on the ultrasound.
Joe proclaimed that our firstborn son's name would be Clark, after his grandfather, Clark Marcel Hillam, whom Joe absolutely adores, loves, respects, and looks to for an example. Luckily, I had no problem with that name since he became my grandpa too, accepted me as a granddaughter, and I feel the same way about him.
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| Clark broke his arm at 13 months old while climbing down from the couch |
Also, in April, we decided on a medical school after Joe was accepted to several different ones around the nation. The Uniformed Services University of Health Sciences (USUHS) is the military medical school in Bethesda, Maryland and was the decision we made. We were really excited to move across the country and explore the East coast. USUHS was a great option for us since Joe was ROTC and had an air force scholarship at BYU. The school came highly recommended and being in the military gave us a lot of benefits that we couldn't pass up. We also had the blessing and opportunity to earn a salary while going to school. I could quit working to stay home with our new baby and Joe would pay back time instead of monstrous student loans.
In August of 1999 and with just over 3 weeks until my due date, we loaded up our 2-door cherry red Honda Civic and travelled the three days across country to make our home in Maryland. We rented a 2 bedroom townhouse in Germantown and were excited to get settled and welcome our new little baby. Over the next few weeks, I got the house ready and Joe started medical school. I was loving all the time on my hands and couldn't wait to start taking care of a baby. I would watch TLC's "A Baby Story" every day so that I knew exactly what to do during labor and giving birth. I was going to be a pro!
Clark was due on September 1st and my mom flew out that day to be there to help me. Days went by and no baby. We were shopping, scrapbooking, walking the malls and outlets, drinking caffeine, and trying to get myself into labor but nothing was happening. My doctor said that he would let me go over 2 weeks before inducing me. TWO WEEKS?!?
On Tuesday, September 7th, I had walked the mall again with my mom and when I got home, my back was killing me. I was thinking this baby was never going to come out! We ate one of my favorite dinners--ham, cheesy potatoes, cherry applesauce Jell-O and rolls. At about 8:00 p.m., I had cleaned the kitchen and was standing over the sink cutting strawberries for strawberry shortcake when I felt and heard a POP! in my stomach and a gush went down my leg. I looked at Joe and said, "I think my water just broke!" Immediately I started contracting. I called my doctor at his house (I know, I'm terrible, but first kid, remember!) and he said, "Go ahead and take a shower and then head to the hospital." I said in surprise, "Do I have time to take a shower?" He chuckled and said, "Sure, if you want to." So I followed doctor's orders and took a really fast shower! I didn't even wash my hair! When I got dressed and ready to go, the contractions were getting pretty close and I was feeling the pain. Joe drove us to the hospital in a hurry and I yelled at him the entire way about speeding and jumping over every bump on the road. It was really hurting.
When we arrived just before 9:30 p.m., I was dilated to 3 centimeters and they were going to let me continue to labor before starting the epidural. Thirty minutes later, I was dilated to a 4 and they went to call the anesthesiologist. Thirty minutes later, he still hadn't arrived and I felt some pressure and proclaimed that I needed to push. They looked at me in shock and checked me again. I was dilated to a 9 and it was too late for the epidural. They broke down the bed and got me ready for delivery. My labor and contractions didn't hurt too bad but my back was killing me. They gave me a spinal for the back pain but the contractions slowed down. It was just after 11:00 and Dr. Stephens thought that I was going to deliver by midnight. After receiving the spinal, my back felt much better but my contractions and the pressure slowed way down. Clark was still doing fine and the contractions were constant but they told me just to take it easy. A couple of hours later, the spinal wore off and they told me to push. I pushed for three hours trying to get Clark out. At one point, I was squatting over the bed, holding onto a bar, using the law of gravity to get him to come down. At another point, I was kneeling on my hands and knees pushing but with no luck. I was extremely frustrated because this was not how it was on "A Baby Story". That kid did not want to come into this world!
At 5:02 a.m. on September 8, 1999, Clark was born sunny-side up with some assistance from a suction vacuum. He looked fantastic except for this huge reddish-purple goose-egg on his head. I exclaimed, "What is that? Will it go away?" The nurses chuckled and said it was from the vacuum and he would be fine. He was so cute with reddish-blonde hair and weighed 7 lbs. 7 oz. They cleaned him up, checked his vitals, and let me snuggle with him. We were so proud and excited to be parents. A couple of hours later, they decided to check him into the NICU. He had some fluid on his lungs from being in the birth canal so long and wanted to watch him. They would bring him to me so that I could feed him and change him but most of his time was in the NICU and most of my time was spent trying to sleep for those first 24 hours.
The next day, he was doing great and no longer needed to be in the NICU. I just held him all day long, tried to figure out nursing, stared at him, and thought he was the cutest baby ever to be born. Later that evening, we were both doing well so we were discharged and sent home to become our own little family. And here we are 11 years later . . .
Clark, we are so proud of you as our son. We love you so much and you are such an important part of our family. You are responsible and dedicated to doing the right thing. We are proud of your accomplishments and the choices that you have made and continue to make. Thank you for being the oldest and setting such a good example for your younger sisters and brother. We love your sensitivity and concern for others and trying to be the best that you can be. We love you and wish you a happy happy birthday!
