SAY WHAT ???

What do you mean she won't turn ? You're going to put that needle WHERE ??? OH NO YOU'RE NOT !!!

OK ... so 44 years ago on a Saturday afternoon/evening that was pretty much my conversation with the nurses and that damn person with that HUGE needle !! I was 20 years old, in fact I just had my 20th birthday not more than 2 weeks prior to this happening !!! My husband (at the time) was who knows where and I was at home with my mom (my dad went with friends of theirs to Cleveland to the horse races).

SOOOO after an all day food fest for me (yeah, trust me, I don't think a minute went by that I didn't have something in my hand to eat !! So when stomach pains started happening not long after 1pm I figured I just have a stomach ache. Come around 3pm my mom called the dr's office and they said YEP get her to the hospital. Soooo off we go "smh"

I get wheeled upstairs and mom asks "where is Dr. Sherman" .. oh he's not on call tonight Dr so and so was (sorry I can't remember Dr so and so's name but he was the dr where you would just lay on the examining table and say "yeah go ahead, do as you please", you know, the dreamy dr ?? PLUS he had an accent ... OY VEY !! That wasn't good enough for my mother - she stood at the nurse's desk and demanded they call Dr. Sherman MY DAUGHTER IS IN LABOR AND DR SHERMAN IS GOING TO DELIVER THIS BABY " yep ... the matriach of our family was PISSED !!!

They wheeled me into the operating room and did an exam - hmmmm nope, no baby down here, so they looked at the x-rays that were done that previous week AHHHH the baby is transverse, she never turned. WHAT DO YOU MEAN SHE'S SIDEWAYS !!!

About a month prior to all this happening I had a dream - a dream that something was wrong with my pregnancy but did end up having a girl and she had a head FULL of black curly hair. What I didn't dream about what that HUGE needle they wanted to put into my spine. "HERE HONEY, PUT YOUR FEET ON THIS STOOL, THEN PUT YOUR ELBOWS ON YOUR KNEES SO YOUR BACK IS HUNCHED, THAT'S IT, THIS WON'T HURT" !!! (Said the man holding that 2 foot long needle) HOW THE HELL DO YOU KNOW - HAVE YOU HAD ONE ?? The nurse said hold my hand honey and if it hurts you can squeeze my hand ... BAHAHAHA OHHH I bet she was sorry when I squished her hand for what felt like 5 minutes !!

Once that medicine was in - I was immediately numb from the stomach down and they wanted me to put my legs back up on the table .. yeah right, I can't even feel the damn things !!! Well you know the rest BUT back then, in the dark ages, if you had to have a c-section you were split like a thanksgiving turkey, from the belly button ALL the way down to your yoohaww !! (they should have put a zipper in because I did it 2 more times !! )

Low and behold I had a beautiful 6 lb 10 oz baby girl, 20 " long - perfect in every way :) :) They kept her from me for almost 2 days - they wouldn't tell me why they gave me a shot to dry up my milk, I sure didn't tell them to and by the time they allowed me to get up and out of bed, I almost passed out !!

The first time the nurse brought her into me the nurse leaned over close and said "may I ask you something" - SURE go for it "is her daddy black "?? Now understand folks, this was 1973 and even though I didn't take it the wrong way I just looked at her, my eye brows raised and lord knows what other type of look I was giving her. "NOPE, my husband is from Israel and his family is "sephardic" and just left it at that :) :)

Through out these 44 years that beautiful baby girl and I have had a whirlwind courtship - we've had our ups and downs (OY VEY HAVE WE HAD THEM) but all in all - she'll always be my baby girl (my other two were (I mean are) boys) and she'll always be the oldest.

I LOVE YOU CARAJOY - WITH ALL MY HEART

(Cara was around 1 and her cousin was 2 - folks thought they were brother & sister )

(Cara is the cutie on the grass)

(CaraJoy the day she received her Master's Degree from Ashland College getting a hug from her son)

(Auntie Cara has always ALWAYS had a soft spot in her heart for her bestest nieces !! )