Andrew Leo Spangler was born in the last minutes of May 28. His introduction to the world in the operating room at Maryland General Hospital was not at all like the birth that we had been preparing for, the birth that started in our own home with a midwife and a heated tub, but we are on the other side of the mountain now. We are especially grateful to our midwife and her assistant who helped us navigate the unplanned entrance into the hospital, provided invaluable support, and stayed with us continuously for a day and a half.
Marie and baby Drew are now doing well now, though there is certainly a lot of emotional and physical healing that still lies ahead for Marie. Drew has made miraculous progress from his first moments of life on the outside, and joy has increasingly replaced stress as I have caught up on sleep (in a general sense). Mila has also revealed herself to be a perfect big sister, trembling as she controls all her impulses to squeeze her little brother, exhibiting a gentle and cautious touch as she pets his head. The future of this blog is now the story of a family of four.
