Happy Birthday Lea!!

It is celebration season here at chez Kreisa and today we are celebrating Lea's 7th birthday!

She already had part of her present by going to the basketball game and today we will be going and getting her some good sports shoes and doing what ever she wants. Tonight we will have a BBQ with friends and her grandparents Ray and Louise who are visiting and continue the celebration!!

As we have always done we read the kids birth stories on their birthday.

Léa Rose Kreisa – Birth Story
March 21st, 2002 (First Day of Spring!) Paris, France

7:50 AM Left the house for the taxi stand down the street – ‘Gare Henri Martin’. Julia playing happily with Mel’s parents. The weather is cool, cloudy and dry. Not any cabs at the stand, which is unusual. Melissa getting anxious, John proposing to take the RER train in. Not the way Melissa wants the baby’s birthday to begin (crowded, underground train)! Taxi finally comes after 20/30 minutes. It is a Mercedes! Wahoo!

Still don’t have a girls name picked out! By the time we get to the hospital, we have agreed on Lauren, Anneka, Jenna or Léa. Last minute, JK says Léa doesn’t work for him. We are down to three…

8:35 AM Arrived Hospital American in Neuilly-sur-seine. Checked in and paid 5,000 Euro deposit – yikes! John breaks into a tiny sweat (probably only half the cost). The admissions people speak broken English, but we did pretty well understanding… Not too nervous. Up to the room (466) with a nice view. Everyone so far very friendly and helpful.

9:10 AM Nurses and midwife stopping by with instructions. Anesthesiologist too. Melissa unpacks (she is getting nervous now). Flurry of people in and out of the room. Mel has a shower with pink betadine. She thinks the gown should open in the front, not the back. Rather see boobies at this stage in her life… She agrees with John to go with the ‘back view’. Not very chic…

9:15 AM Head to the monitoring area to check baby’s heartbeat, contractions, etc. All seems ok.

10:00 AM Back in room. Nurse brings in meds. Neither of us understands instructions (French). Call nurse back to make sure. Mel takes 1st ‘happy pill’ but feels sick right away. Takes the stomach calmer and all is well again. Mel very relaxed. JK still discussing a name for a girl.

11:00 AM Still waiting in room. Mel dozing. JK reading magazines sent from Maguires (thanks Paul & Sheila!).

11:25 AM Orderly comes to take us upstairs (5th floor, top). Mel on gurney, goes in to surgical area. JK goes in to small waiting area. Looks like an old sunroom. Very bright with rooftop view. JK happy there is a coffee machine and a wooden box of fresh baguettes (not kidding!). JK figures out how to use the machine (no instructions) – very good.

Mel having different experience in operating room. Getting VERY nervous and a bit shaky. Four or five people all chatting very quickly in French. Putting in tubes and spinal anesthesia. Hurts a bit but mostly just a freaky, unsettling sensation. They lay Mel down and put the drape up. Mel can see what is happening in the reflection of the light on the ceiling. Nerves have turned to panic. Blood pressure drops then shoots back up. Mel starts crying. Doc says, “those don’t look like tears of joy”. Anesthesiologist very comforting and calming. JK comes in dressed in scrubs. Mel mouths that she is scared. JK starts telling Mel how no French scrub sizes were big enough for his male American hiney. Says he is sitting next to Mel with plumbers butt. Mel feeling better =).

12:20 Instead of deep breathing (no need) JK “coaches” Mel to concentrate on the view. Very nice of Paris rooftops. Lovely, beautiful distraction. Doctor says it is taking a while because she has to remove previous scarring from Julia’s C-section. JK keeps getting unwanted glimpses from the lamp reflection (yuck!).

12:32 Pace changes quickly and people begin pushing on Mel’s upper abdomen. Doc says baby is “stuck”. There is a lot of activity and out SHE comes!!! We hear her first cries but can’t see her right away. They put her up over the screen. She is cheesy, bloody and beautiful. Doc asks if those are tears of joy. Mel sobbing yes =). They take the baby away, but quickly bring her back wrapped in a blanket. We only get a few minutes to look and a quick kiss. JK goes out with her and Melissa gets put back together. They mark the baby bassinette with “fille (girl) Kreisa” since she still doesn’t have a name! Mel goes to recovery.

1:15 Mel in recovery obsessing on names. Happy with Rose for middle name. Can’t get a feel for the first name. Back in the room, JK is holding baby thinking it should be Léa.

2:00 Finally, all together. Mel tells JK he looks happy – asks if he has picked a name… He has a silly grin on his face and says yes, Léa.

Léa Rose Kreisa . . . perfect!