The past few days have really been a blur. It all started with a Wednesday afternoon phone call from Kaela (my wife). I answered the phone like I would any other call only to have her inform me that her water had broken and my son was on the way.
“Everything is fine,” I told myself. “You’ve spent the last 9 months preparing for this and you’ve done this once before.” Trust me…I know how easy I have it. Aside from having my hand squeezed to an almost numb state, I’m in charge of making sure that Kaela has everything she needs, being her “rock” during this time.
As prepared as I was, I wasn’t at all. I’d forgotten how much it hurts me to see the woman I love in pain. All I could do was remind her that it was temporary and that the greatest reward on earth was at the finish line.
After about 4 hours of heavy contractions, a nurse poked her head through the door to our room and said, “It’s time to start pushing.”
At 12:09pm on 6.29.17, I met my son.
Rogan Noel Keene
Overwhelmed with emotion, I met Kaela’s eyes with mine and told her I loved her.
Once everything was settled down and Kaela was feeling up to it, i went out to the waiting room and got my daughter, the infamous Harper Rose Keene. When I called her name and told her to come with me, she hopped off her grandmothers lap and strutted out in front of the full waiting room, “My baby is here, I’m gonna go see him now.” She walked into the room and stayed calm, cool, and collected. She’s a big sister now. My little girl.
I stared at them from across the room and the reality of the situation sank in. At this moment everything is perfect. I’m happier than I’ve ever been in my entire life.
My sabbatical may have started a little earlier than I expected, but it won’t make it any less special. I’m so grateful to be in the position I am and to have this opportunity. Thank you all for reading.
-Zack
***side note…our Dr. For this pregnancy was Dr. Tadvick…he was out of town on a planned trip and wouldn’t be back until Sunday evening…so our delivery Dr. ended up being the on-call physician at Hendricks when Kaela went in to labor…the Dr. who delivered my son was Dr. Moscaro…she and the nursing staff were an absolute blessing***