Happy Happy Birthday Baby

According to my OB-GYN, Dr. Savage, Jamie was due to arrive February 22nd (my 2nd wedding anniversary). At the time I was pregnant, parents discovered their baby's gender the old-fashioned way -- wait until the baby was born. There were no ultrasounds or video tape of the baby in vitro. Experienced mothers with children of their own were deemed experts at determining whether the baby was a boy or girl. It depended on scientific evidence, such as how "low" the baby was positioned in the womb, the intensity and duration of morning sickness, and what foods you craved. Speculation surrounding the baby's gender was a 9 month process that changed with regularity. Baby colors were non-gender specific. Jamie's nursery was decorated in soft yellows, greens, blues, and pinks. Her layette, carefully washed, folded and placed at the ready in her dresser were also non-gender specific. Having confirmed that I was carrying only one child (twins were known to pop up randomly in my family), we were prepared for either a boy or girl, just so long as "it" had the requisite 10 fingers and 10 toes. I was convinced, however, that I was having a boy. Therefore, Jamie's name was going to be Christopher John. We hadn't even considered girl names. Once Jamie decided to make her grand entrance (some things never change), there was no slowing her down. My labor was quick and short-lived. Jamie Elizabeth made her debut at 7:44 a.m. , at the height of a full moon, weighing 6 pounds 12 ounces. A girl? Are you sure? Can you check again? For the first two days of Jamie's life, she had no name. Scrambling for a suitable name, we searched the phone book for candidates. Hmmm... the name Jamie suited our new baby girl perfectly! Notice how her name is spelled in the masculine form rather than the feminine version Jaime. After all, for almost my entire pregnancy, I was convinced she was a he. Her middle name was a logical choice. Her namesake is Nancy Elizabeth , my best friend since 5th grade. There she was. Our perfect baby girl, all soft and pink, and smelling like sweetness and sunshine. No one had a baby more beautiful or perfect than Jamie! I believed it then, and I believe it 31 years later. Happy soon-to-be birthday, baby!