The Latest Addition

This is Jacob Curtiss "Jake" Moon.

He is almost 8 months old (at time of writing).

The night before he was born, everyone had just settled down into their beds.

 Aaron and I were on a phone call with Pop-Pop Dave wishing him a happy 69th birthday... 

when all of a sudden-something didn't feel quite right and POP! labor began. 

This was at 11pm on Monday, May 16th, 2016.

The on-call babysitters weren't answering their phone calls.

My mom was in Switzerland for work (United Airlines), and my neighbor Jessie, with a husband 

who wakes up at 4 a.m. each day, had turned her cell phone OFF for the night.

Weighing options, I made the quick decision to drive myself (with hazard lights on) 

to the hospital about 27 miles away.

Crossing the 2 lane 5 mile long Chesapeake Bay Bridge along the way.

While in early labor with faint contractions every 3-5 min.

I got to cut the umbilical cord. That was a first for me.

The midwife on call agreed to meet me at the hospital and I told her I estimated baby to be born within 5 hours- as that's how long Lorelei's birth lasted start to finish.

I was accurate on my estimation. He was born at 4:11 am on May 17th, 2017.

Aaron missed the birth but got to the hospital 

as soon as Jake's big brother and sisters made it to the school bus. 

The kids came to visit after school got out that day. Mo made it, too.

We had a hard time choosing his name- I wanted to name him Baillie DeWitt-

"Dewey" for short- 

as Baillie is a family name and DeWitt was a town that we passed in North Carolina often 

and I liked how it sounded like the Nike slogan: Just Do It.

Dewey was the last name of church friends in Virginia, too.

Aaron was not impressed.

Aaron countered with Spencer McDuffin. 

Just to show how crazy a name like Baillie Dewey sounded. 

We have a few friends with dogs named Bailey.

Going back to the drawing board the name Jacob struck my mind.

Aaron agreed to this name, instantly.

Jake's middle name is a nod to my grandpa, John Ronald Halderman.

He served on a ship in the early  1950s called the U.S.S. Curtiss.

He tested H- bombs in the Bikini Atoll.

He was lucky/smart and didn't swim in the water or drink the coconut milk 

from the area after the testing.

We would have named him Jacob Ronald but Jacob Curtiss has a better ring to it.

This is Jake in his going home outfit. A little red onesie and plaid bottoms to match big brother.

Jake's personality is really amiable. 

He likes to laugh at his siblings-

He sleeps cuddled up with mama all night every night 

and hardly wakes us up with needs other than to nurse.

He is crawling and has been since 6 months old- and is starting to climb steps as of yesterday.

He loves splashing in the bath, swimming trips to the YMCA,

watching the big brother swing around the ropes at the rock wall...

and I hope he's going to like his first airplane trip next week!

Monday's child is fair of face, (Annabelle and Natalie)
Tuesday's child is full of grace; (Jake and David)
Wednesday's child is full of woe, (Aaron and Lorelei and Papa John)
Thursday's child has far to go; (Grandma Freda and Mo)
Friday's child is loving and giving, (Pop-Pop Dave and Grandma Boo)
Saturday's child works hard for its living;
But the child that is born on the Sabbath day
Is bonny and blithe, and good and gay.(Grandpa Ron)