Willow Hope Gilbert

Just wanted to "show" everyone the reason why there have not been many post recently. On Wednesday at 9:31am, God gave us Willow Hope Gilbert. She was born 7lbs 11oz and 21" long. Mom (Darci) delivered her by c-section and is in the process of recovery. Will try to post something at least once this week, but if I don't you'll understand why.

Willow will be forever known as our "Blizzard Baby." We were due to be at the hospital by 7am on Wednesday, right in the middle of what was supposed to be one of the biggest blizzards in the last 20-30 years here in Detroit. As of Tuesday evening, just about everything was closed already for the next day - except the hospital. On Tuesday, Darci called twice to make sure the procedure was still on schedule and both times she was reassured that they would not cancel it. So, just to be on the safe side and to make sure we got there, we left on Tuesday evening and planned on sleeping in the hospital waiting room until 7am. The roads were pretty bad, you could barely see in front of you and the winds were about 30mph. The only thing that made the drive bearable was the we were one of the few out there driving.

Well, once we got there that evening, the lady at the front desk said, "Well, let me call and see if I can get you a room, there are a lot available since most of the c-sections that were scheduled have been canceled (they try to schedule them all once or twice a week)." Not good, because as we found out later, our doctor was one of the ones who canceled, in spite of the fact that we were told twice that it would not be.

So, Wednesday morning came around and the doctor on call came by and said if her doctor did not come, he would do it. Low and behold, a little while later her doctor came walking in the door and everything went off as planned. Mommy and baby came through the procedure successfully, and so we then spent the next couple of days recovering. The pediatrician for the hospital would come in during the mornings and check on Willow and became concerned about her developing Jaundice. Not that big of a deal, except it meant we stayed one extra night at the hospital and did not leave until Saturday.

Of course, when Saturday came, her doctor did not come by in the morning like the other days. That would have been great because we could have gone home in clear driving conditions. Instead, we were released at 3:30pm, right in the middle of an unexpected snow storm. About  4-6" fell in a short period of time, and there were a lot of people on the roads which made for less than ideal driving conditions. This is why she will be forever known as our Blizzard Baby.

Thanks to all those who prayed for us, and to those who will continue to pray for us. Especially for Darci, as the next month or so is rough, especially with 3 other daughters under the age of 7! Most people would have stayed home this first Sunday, but not Darci! Her and Willow were in church the very first Sunday. Very thankful for a faithful wife.