Today, let’s go fly Sky Lanterns … in Taiwan.
That process was thrilling and exciting. So was the drama of yesterday.
My daughter gave birth to her second child yesterday morning….in the foyer of the hospital right by the lift before we could go to the delivery floor. “Call Code Blue!” “Call Code Pink!” “Baby’s head is coming out.” “Can someone get the body out too?” “Stay clear please” “Stay clear” “Blanket please” “Blanket”….. …….. ……. A big commotion at the hospital lobby.
I thought I heard a big round of applause at some point of time. But I was too engrossed in the baby and my daughter. I could not recall the faces of those around to help. I only jotted down two names, the name of an emergency pediatrician and an OB doctor who happened to be on her way to coffee and who helped to extract the baby, after settling in the birthing room.
Oh! What an entrance! Imagine….this lobby is a tall glass-ceiling atrium with glass verandahs above where people could look down!
One schoolmate of mine commended that this child is a real no nonsense. She wasted no time….nobody’s time….the mother’s, the midwife’s and even the valuable hospital accommodation resource! She called her a Toyota LEAN baby, one that is supposed to maximize efficiency and effectiveness, improve performance and cut waste. Wow, I was impressed by this description.
In the absence of a blanket nearby, the team of emergency staff rushed the baby upstairs in my daughter’s jacket. “I hope they won’t mix the baby up”, I told myself as I saw them disappear into the elevator.
After undergoing 26 minutes of oxygen support to make sure the baby transit well into this outer world, the baby was fine. I am really grateful for the hospital and the rescue team’s support.
I feel blessed that the incident had not occurred while we were on the road amidst the rush hour traffic.
Both the mother and the baby were healthy and all were happy……as what John and I wrote on one face of our Sky Lantern…..”Happy. Happy. Healthy. Healthy.”
I went to Church this morning to thank The Lord for His blessing.
And…I wish all Happy and Healthy too.
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《Entrance of Simonne Aletheia》
Birth Time…..
“What time was the baby born?”, the rescue team asked while back in the birthing room. “I think, I THINK, it’s around 9:20 a.m…. Now is 9:xx. We were……”, I responded after working through the event through my mind just then. “But I am not so sure.” “An approximate time is good enough.” So….there we go….birth time…..9:20 a.m.
“I am sure someone down at the lobby would know,”, the pediatrician said. “Maybe, lots of tweets too.”
A boy or a girl…..
The rescue team said lots of people who were earlier in the lobby asked this question while we were working on the baby in the birthing room.
Who cares? All who were working around the baby knew. The parents knew it from the ultrasound months before.
It is a girl.
Birth Length…..52.5 cm
Birth Weight…..
“The weight is not important at this point. It is more important for the baby to have skin contact with her mom to recover from the cold she was exposed to earlier. If you like to get her weighed, I can do it for you.”, the rescue team pediatrician said.
No, we didn’t want to do that. So, we obediently waited. We….the parents and me.
Birth Day…..
“What is the date of today?”, the midwife asked while typing her report.
“Oh, I don’t know”, I responded spontaneously.
“It is April 24”, she said.
“Yes, the 24th,” my son-in-law confirmed.
(It is Year 2017, not to forget)
Birth Weight…..
Finally when the excitement was well over and before we moved out of the birthing room, the baby got weighed.
3140 gm or, 6 lb. 14.5 oz.
Name……
Simonne Aletheia Luu….as per the baby’s parents.
Chinese name….the baby’s grandpa will set it after he has consulted an astrologist on the child’s birth day and time. This saves everybody’s brain energy to think of names in advance.
Head size and shape…..
Oh, this will be neat to know…..
“The baby’s head is quite round, not that elongated,” my daughter said.
“Because she did not have long to go thru the birth canal!”
“Ho! Ho! Ho!”, I sat there laughing aloud. “So, next time when we saw someone’s head is round, we know how he or she got into this world!”
The whole room broke out with laughter.
BTW: the baby’s crown is 33.5 cm.
A newborn’s basic numbers. A very interesting story to tell, right?
Enjoy this album…..