34 years ago today

we gave birth to our first daughter, Misty Ann.
I haven't used the "Ann" for so long that it sounds strange.

We spent the first year of marriage in Cedar City where Gary played football and baseball at what was then Southern Utah State College. During the next summer, when we were expecting Misty, we stayed in Provo with Mom and Dad. Dad had cleaned out his wood shop in their basement (I realize now how much work that must have been for him) and made us a cute little bedroom.

She was due on August 14, so we had been anxiously awaiting her arrival. The anxiety was for more than about wanting to have our baby. Gary had to report to Cedar City for football training by Monday, August 25. He had a scholarship, which we didn't want to jeopardize, so he really did have to be there. But we definitely wanted him in Provo for her birth.

By Wednesday, August 20th, we were feeling pretty desperate. Back then they didn't induce labor like they do now. I went into the Dr. and he suggested I take caster oil. Well, that gave me some pains, but not enough to get anything going very well. Finally, after two days of labor, she finally arrived at about 5:30 pm on Friday, the 22nd.

She was the splitting image of Gary.
She weighed 7 lbs 4 oz but was 22 inches long.
She had legs that looked like string beans
they were so skinny.

Again, times were different back then. After holding her for a bit, they took her to the nursery and we didn't see her again until the next morning. However, it wasn't her that we saw first the next morning. The nurse brought a baby with lots of black hair and put her in my arms. She had a lot more hair than I remembered and her legs didn't look like string beans. After holding her for a minute, I looked her over a little more closely, checked her wristband, and found that she wasn't our baby! Once that was resolved and they brought us the right baby, there was no doubt she was ours. All along, we had decided that if the baby was a girl that we could name her Alisa. For whatever reason, after she was born, Gary brought up the name of Misty. I liked it, and it seemed to fit her, so that's what we went with.

She brought us great joy then.
She brings us great joy now.
So hard to believe that was 34 years ago.
In many ways it seems like yesterday.
In other ways it seems like a another lifetime ago.
And here she is expecting her 5th child.
She's more than quadrupled our joy.

We love you, Misty!
Happy Birthday