Baby Ben

Benjamin Kniola -2/18/2003

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

~BABY BEN~

It was the year 2003 at North Collier Hospital Birth Center, where I was scheduled to have a C-section and expecting you, my third boy, Baby Ben.

As I lay there for the birth of you, I remember calling out to the doctors that it was the best C-section I ever had! Now you don't hear that every day. It was nothing like the one with your older brother, Nickolas, where I swear to God, I died twice and even saw "The Light." 😇  Later, come to find out, it was just the light above my surgery table. Ha! Too funny! It was my blood pressure that tanked and made me feel like I died. I still see it to this day though. But that's another story.

After your birth, they held you up over the sheet that separated my upper half so I could not see what was going on. I got a brief look at you as you cried and cried, all covered in blood. Good strong lungs I thought, as I laid there all cloudy, happy and numb. Then I looked over to smile at your Dad, and he wasn't there? Here your poor Dad was still out in the hallway and they forgot to call him in. Damn doctors!  Well, they whisked you away pretty quick, I never even got to touch you, barely saw you, yet I never questioned it. I was in total La La Land.

So they took you down to the nursery along with your Dad. I was taken into this quiet room outside of surgery and rested. Shortly after, your Dad came down to see me. By then, I was able to speak a little more clearly, now that the good drugs were wearing off. He told me all about you and I asked what you looked like. He said you were olive colored and with a mass of black hair, weighing in at 6 pounds-15 ounces. By that time, a nurse came and was ready to wheel me upstairs to my room. I was getting really excited to see you since I really hadn't even held you yet.

Once we arrived at the nursery, as I was still lying down on the gurney, I peered through the window and saw you for the first time. You were across the room in your little baby bed still screaming and crying with lots of black hair. Yet with much darker skin than what your Dad earlier described. But you were beautiful and you were mine.💗 I kept talking about how big you were and just couldn't believe how much hair you had? Then a nurse nearby openly said, "You have some explaining to do."

I had no clue what she was talking about... 

Your Dad, with your Aunt Mary there now, motioned the nurse inside the nursery to have you shown to me a little closer. As the nurse came closer to the window I was peering into, she picked up this baby I had never even seen before! I said to that nurse, "That's the wrong one," as I pointed over to the other baby. Your Dad responded, "No, that's him, that's Ben!"

Now at this point, I was really confused. By then my sister Mary spoke up and said, "Oh no honey, you're looking at the wrong baby."

Come to find out, this whole time I was lying there, I could only see the one baby across the nursery room, while everyone else, including your Dad and Aunt Mary, were standing up looking down at you the whole time. As they assumed I was too.

Thankfully, we all had a good laugh.🤣 I then peered over to the baby I thought was you in the first place, and realized he was a Hispanic baby born shortly after you. Now I know what that nurse meant.

Once I saw you for 'that' first time, I knew you were mine.💖 You may have had some black hair, but you very much white and looked just like your Grandpa Kniola.