Last night, Ron's mom joined us as we celebrated Ron's birthday with a simple dinner. As we ate, she told us the story of the day that he was born.
"I had already started supper," she said, "but I wondered whether I ought to go to the hospital instead." She had called her friend Catherine, who came over to watch the other children (Ron was their fifth child) and to finish preparing the meal. Ron was born around 5:30 pm. (I think she made the right choice by going ahead to the hospital!)
After dinner, Mom told us another part of the story. (Let me insert here that at the time of Ron's birth, his parents had a son, age 10, and daughters, ages 8, 6, and 4.)
"Your daddy was so excited to have another boy - it had been 10 years - that he went out and bought birth announcements." Dad had written them out and mailed them himself, something that they didn't usually do. In his excitement, he mailed one of those announcements to his brother and sister-in-law, and forgot to fill out the information inside! But since the outside of the card had said, "It's a boy," they put two and two together and they shared many laughs about that blank announcement over the years!
We loved hearing these stories, and something struck me as I listened. In our day, having even a 3rd child sometimes raises eyebrows. ("But you already have a boy and a girl." "Don't you know what causes that?" and so on and so on...) But what a blessing to be child #5 and to be wanted and welcomed with such enthusiasm and love.
What a wonderful story she shared with you all! Happy Birthday to Ron!
ReplyDeleteYes, and I have a number of opinions about THAT, and I have an opinion about wishing Ron a very happy birthday! Let's do it! Fun, fun stories. Hope that they've been recorded for posterity.
ReplyDeleteJohn said, "Oh good! Ron was just in time for supper."
ReplyDeleteWhat sweet stories & great memories. Happy Birthday to your Ron :)
ReplyDeleteHow fun to hear stories of his "birth" day! Just in time for dinner, as Vee's John said!
ReplyDeleteDeanna
What a great story! Happy Birthday to Ron!
ReplyDeleteLook how cute she is! And you are so right about welcomed children after the first few. Happy Birthday to Ron.
ReplyDeleteA great family story. Aren't those kinds of stories just the best.
ReplyDeleteHappy Birthday wishes to Ron!
Happy birthday, Ron!
ReplyDeleteHappy birthday to Ron! Loved hearing about his birth story! Yep, good thing she headed out, lol. I have thought about that a few times too. I came from a family of 6 children. In today's world that would be considered HUGE. (and foolish, maybe even negligent by some). My oldest son has 5, and my youngest has 4 (my daughter's still working on hers, and my middle son is finally ready to get started) and they catch disapproval ALL the time. Sad really....so much more in life to be considered "foolish" for then how many children one has been blessed with. ENJOY your Sunday!
ReplyDeleteHow beautiful! I would say those were the "good ole days" though as with today, back then I am sure they didn't think that! This is a story to write down and pass on to the grans!
ReplyDeleteThings were a lot simpler....and cheaper. Today I kind of raise a brow, I don't mean to, but having 5+ kids today requires a lot of money. And a lot of these girls are stay at home moms. Obviously their kids going to college is not a big concern, or their hubbies must make fantastic salaries. I guess they have strong faith, and that is a good thing. And babies are a blessing from God.
ReplyDeleteThis story of a fifth child being celebrated made me smile. We are joyously awaiting Baby #6!
ReplyDeleteI think there are definitely a lot of misunderstandings about larger than average families. Having a larger number of children doesn't have to be really expensive. Of course it would be if you bought all the latest baby gear for each new child, but we've found most baby gear to be unnecessary and the items we do use can easily be enjoyed by more than one child. I'd say, other than food costs, we really don't spend much more with 5 kids than we did with 2. Also, kids from larger families can still go to college. I am one of 4 siblings and with scholarships and grants I was actually paid to go to a state university.
At the end of the day, larger families are just like other families in that they have to decide what is important to them and use their resources and time in those areas. No one can have it all :)
What a sweet story! Yeah, kinda glad she made the decision to head for the hospital. :-) My aunt and uncle had 2 kids. She always explained, 'Well, there was nothing more to try for. I had a boy and I had a girl.' LOL
ReplyDeleteOh yes...and Happy Birthday to Ron!
ReplyDelete