Lemon Joins the World

 A friend of mine is currently sitting in the hospital waiting for his wife to give birth to their son, his first child, and nervously posting about it on social media. He and I are both members of an online community for expat dads living in Korea. My friend started off posting questions about what to do when his wife's water broke and now, 11 hours later, he is getting ready to let us in on the first picture of his son. The internet truly is an amazing place.

I went through the same experience this summer. Well, not the same, exactly. My wife went into labor at 3 am, so it was off to the hospital for and early start to what would end up being one of the happiest days of our lives. After 7 hours of contractions, my wife gave the final push and my daughter Lemon was born. At a healthy weight of 6 1/2 pounds with a full head of hair, hearing and seeing this new life join the world was a privilege I will never forget. Her entire little frame was purple from her little fingers all the way down to her little toes, and after she was cleaned up a bit by the nurse she was plopped right down on my wife's chest and into her loving arms. My wife, the real hero in this story, held her as softly as she could, and when little Lemon heard my wife's voice for the first time, she opened her eyes and they just stared at each other in one of those moments. You know, like your first awkward kiss, or when your team wins the state championship, or when you say, "I do" and you mean really mean it. It was magical.

I am happy I was able to experience Lemon joining this world. There is a lot to worry about for a young girl, especially a child with parents from different corners of the world, but I knew from that moment on I would be there every step of the way to guide her as best as I can. I knew my life had forever changed for the better.