His Baby

Chapter 2: Welcome to the World

When I arrive at the woman's clinic, I walk in alone to check in. A few minutes later, I'm called back for my appointment. She checks my vitals and then instructs me to lie down and lift my shirt to reveal my stomach. An ultrasound technician walks in and puts some gel on my stomach. "Are you ready to find out if your baby is a girl or a boy?"

"Yes. I've felt like it's a boy, but I've always wanted a girl." A smile comes across my face as I see the 3-D picture of my baby.

The technician looks at the screen for a minute, then she looks at me with a smile. "I can happily tell you that you are having a girl." She turns the machine off. She prints out a few pictures from the ultrasound and then hands them over to me. "Come back in a month so we can check on her and you."

"Thank you, doctor." I walk to the front desk to make another appointment a month from now.Soon I get home from my doctor's office after finding out I'm having a baby girl. I felt deep down inside that the I was having a girl. Only four months until I have my baby girl. I can't do this on my own. I'm beyond scared, but I'm also excited to meet her and hold her in my arms.

The day of my baby shower has finally arrived. Tara and Sarah have set it all up in the banquet hall at our community center. The decorations are so beautiful. This baby shower will be fun because my friends and some of my family will be there.

"Maya, you are going to love the people we invited!"

"I hope you didn't invite like fifty people."

"Oh, come on. You will love it either way!" Sarah opens the two doors to reveal about a dozen people. "We wouldn't invite people you didn't want us to. Okay? Don't you love us for that?""Yes. I do. I really love you two like you are my own sisters." I hug them both tight, then walk over to say hi to my family and friends.

The baby shower begins with a few games Tara and Sarah picked out together. Everyone guesses things from my favorite color to my favorite place to shop. My cousin Tia beats everyone with three answers. The next game is unscrambling the words related to babies. I play along too, but I skip a few because I can't figure it out even if I think about it for at least a minute.

"Winner is Maya's mum!" We all applaud her as Tara gives my mum a prize for winning the game.

"So, one more game! Use the pink ribbon to guess how big Maya's stomach is all the way around!" Sarah gives each person a thin, pink ribbon roll and watches them cut different lengths.

After they announce the winner of the ribbon-around my belly game or whatever it's supposed to be called, I sit down in front of everyone and open gifts from my friends and family.

I open a bag and pull out a tiny, light pink onesie that reads: 'That was a long journey!' "I love it, Tia! Thank you so so much!" I hug her tight and then continue opening the rest of the gifts. I receive binkies, blankets, onesies, socks, bottles, many diapers, a stroller, a car seat, and a couple teething toys.

"I can't thank you all enough for being here. I thank you for all of the gifts!"

Two months before Emma is supposed to come, my water breaks in the middle of a birthday party for my cousin. I act casual and walk over to my mother to tell her what happened. "Mother, m-my water just broke, but please don't make a bi-"

"Maya's going into labor, everyone!" Everyone cheers, but my mum and Tia frantically run around, looking for the stuff they need to take us to the hospital.

"...big deal." I sigh and make my way over to the door to leave. My mum grabs her keys and helps me outside to the car. My cousin grabs the diaper bag and rushes out with us. She jumps in just before my mum takes off for the hospital.

"Emma is coming! My granddaughter is coming!" My mum can barely keep it together as she drives.

"Please concentrate on the road, mother."

After being in labor for over twenty hours, Emma is finally born by c-section. Her heart rate dropped because the umbilical cord was wrapped around her neck, but now the nurses and doctors say she is doing much better. She weighs five pounds even, and she's seventeen inches tall. They tell me she has brown hair and green eyes. When the doctor says she is doing much better, I finally get the chance to hold her. "What's her middle name going to be, Maya?"

"Rose. Emma Rose Swanson." I smile down at her as she yawns and opens her eyes a little. "You're beautiful, and I'm glad you're mine. And I'm ecstatic that I finally get to hold you in my arms and admire you."

The moment her eyes meet mine, I feel that bond that all mothers feel. She already knows I'm her mother, and I love her more than the world. "You're happy and healthy, and that's all that matters to me right now."

One of the last things I thought would have ever happened to me was a sixteen-year-old mother in high school. Even though it will be tough, I don't regret her. She is healthy and happy after she was born nine weeks early, and all that matters to me is that she's healthy.

The connection between a mother and her newborn baby is indescribable. There is so much love in each other's eyes. A mother develops many feelings for her child during pregnancy and the rest of the baby's life. There is not one single thing, not is there one person that can break the bond between a mother and her child.

"Welcome to the world, Emma Rose Swanson. This crazy, messed up, and extremely confusing world." I kiss her forehead gently."I'll never let any man hurt you ever. I promise you that, baby girl. I'll be your mother, your best friend, your guardian...I'll be your everything. I'll give you everything you need and want because that's how much I love you and how much I'll always love you."