His Story

His Birth
Either our little guy is very laid back or a little stubborn, as he was the first baby we had to induce! What a new experience! We arrived at the hospital at 5am, and after much nervous waiting and praying (they are super busy before Christmas), we started Oxytocin/Pitocin around 7am, which I seem to be immune to. They upped the dose several times, and at 9am I still was not having productive contractions, so they broke my water. That sure worked! Hard labor kicked in, and little Stephen practically zoomed out a few hours later with only a few hard pushes. We were so glad to finally meet him! And what a cutie. He has a sweet little round face and looks so chubby to me at 9lbs! So he now holds the family record for the biggest and the latest baby! He just had to be unique!

His Name
Stephen
Saint Stephen was a deacon in the early church and the first martyr, dying courageously for the name of Jesus. Stephen was also the name of my late maternal grandfather who was a pillar of strength and faithfulness to my mother and her family.
Benedict
Saint Benedict was the founder of Western Monasticism, twin to St. Scholastica (we believe baby Stephen may have originally had a twin due to another amniotic sac which gradually shrunk and miscarried). St. Benedict left his inheritance to follow Christ and is known as the patron saint of a happy death because he died with a smile on his face and hands outstretched to Heaven. Benedict is also the name of our current Holy Father, Pope Benedict XVI!