"Becoming a grandmother is wonderful. One moment you’re just a mother. The next you are all-wise and prehistoric". ~Pam Brown

The text message from Ryan came at 3:50 am, and it simply said, "We're headed to the hospital.  Sarah's water just broke."  I immediately climbed out of bed and headed to the shower.  This was the moment we had been eagerly anticipating for months - Lydia's birth day had arrived!  I was about to be a Mimi!  Finally!!  And while I expected the excitement and joy I instantly felt, I was completely unprepared for the wave of emotions that enveloped me as I stepped into the shower.  My child - MY baby - was at that moment enduring the pain of childbirth.  MY baby was having a baby, and the tears began to flow.  I was reminded once again of something I've known since September 21, 1990 - my heart is so wrapped around the hearts of my children, that when they hurt, so do I.  Literally.

Jeff (aka Pappy) and I were soon packed and on our way to Houston, and Ryan continued to update us by text message as we traveled.  Things progressed rapidly, and as we were walking in the door of the hospital, we got the final message, "Welcome, Lydia Grace Renz!" with a photo of new mother and baby.  And the tears flowed again - tears of joy, excitement,... and relief.  I will never forget the first time I saw Lydia and held her in my arms, as Lydia's mother - my daughter - looked on with tears rolling down her face.

The past few weeks have been such a blessing, as I was able to stay in Houston to help out the new parents, and enjoy some very sweet Mimi moments.  I made a conscious effort to soak in every single Mimi experience - changing diapers, giving Lydia her first bath, kissing those sweet cheeks, and my very favorite Mimi/Lydia newborn time - rocking her, especially between the hours of midnight and 3 am, when it was just the two of us.  (In fact, the first night she slept after her midnight feeding and didn't need rocking, I was a little sad!  I think her parents thought Mimi was crazy!)

Bath time

Sweet baby snuggles

My precious midnight view

But as sweet as those Mimi/Lydia moments are, there are other experiences from the past few weeks that I treasure equally.  Rajneesh wrote, "The moment a child is born, the mother is also born. She never existed before. The woman existed, but the mother, never. A mother is something absolutely new." On September 21, 1990, Sarah was born into this world, and I was blessed to be able to be there on September 29, 2015 when her other birth occurred - Sarah was born into a mother.

I've watched in awe as my baby loves, cherishes, and gets to know her baby.  I've been taken back in time as I remember learning with Sarah (and Becca) the things she is now learning with Lydia - how to be a mother.  I must say, Lydia has been blessed with one of the best ever!  And now, the bond I have with Sarah is even stronger, as she truly KNOWS how I love her, because she loves Lydia the same way.  I've also observed the new love of a Pappy, an Aunt B, and an Uncle Caleb - all of which speaks volumes of the deep love of our family.  And I've smiled as I've watched Lydia's wonderful daddy, and the new love he is experiencing, which has reminded me of another new daddy and his twin girls 25 years ago.  How blessed we all are.

What a wonderful experience my past few weeks have been, as I have been introduced to a whole new love with sweet Lydia, and grown in love for Sarah - my daughter who is now a mother.  And it's only just begun!  I have had major separation anxiety since returning home, and I miss them both terribly.  I look forward to being with them again, but until that happens I will be thankful for this other blessing I just enjoyed . . . a Facetime call from Lydia and her mommy.

"Perfect love does not come until the first grandchild."  ~Welsh Proverb