Tonight is Christmas Eve, and Christians will be remembering the birth of Jesus. In our household we’ll not only be observing the celebration of that ancient birth but also awaiting the birth of our second child. Our new child’s due date is actually Christmas Day, and so far, after a couple of episodes of false labor, my wife has not yet given birth.

We’re doing a home birth for the second time. Although home birth is quite rare in our culture, my wife feels strongly that it is better for her. I’ve come to agree with her that it is a better option for many women. I haven’t done much research on the issue, but my understanding is that home birth is much more common in Europe than it is in the U.S. and that Europeans have a much lower rate of Ceasarean births.

Home birth seemed more common in northern California, where we were living when our first child was born. There one of our midwives lived five minutes away and the second was only a half hour away. Here in Minnesota our sole midwife is at least an hour away in Minneapolis - two hours away in bad weather.

Fortunately, the hospital is only five minutes from our house. However, we we don’t want to go to the hospital if we can avoid it, and so I’ve received some training in what to do if the baby comes quickly and under what circumstances I should call 911. My wife’s mother and brother are here now, so we will have help available.

Of course all of this has added a lot of anticipation and a certain amount of drama to our holidays this year. I pause now to give thanks for what I’ve been given, and I pray for poise and equanimity for the new birth, the coming year, and what I hope is a long career of fatherhood and Christian discipleship.

Peace to you all this holiday season.

This entry was posted on Monday, December 24th, 2007 at 12:17 pm and is filed under Autobiography, Family.