A week ago tonight I got a call from Haley that she was having contractions and that baby girl was making her way into the world. The contractions were on and off, on and off until Friday morning. Then the long awaited call came, a text message on May 14, at 9:42 a.m. from Haley -- "In the
hospital. Waiting for baby."
After wrapping up some interviews and other business at my office, I made my way to the hospital around 12:30 p.m. and waited for the delivery to happen. I checked in with Haley and James and everything seemed to be
under control. So, I sat in my car in the
hospital parking lot for at least an hour, just waiting (I think I had a nap). Then I decided to go inside and walk around. I ended up in the cafeteria and had a late lunch -- baked salmon,
Au gratin potatoes, vegetables, and a Diet Coke. After eating, I found a nice comfy chair and
texted James and Haley -- back and forth. Around 2:30-3:00 p.m. James found me sitting and waiting. He told me he thought it
would be another hour or so. At 4:00 p.m., I made my way to a little waiting area in the labor and delivery area. At 4:10 p.m. I heard a baby cry -- it was so sweet -- but not our baby -- I overheard that it was a 9 lb. 6 oz. boy. I talked with the nurses outside of Haley's room and asked how things were going with her. They told me that Haley had been pushing for at least an hour and that sometimes with a first baby it can take two hours of pushing. Ouch! I sat back down and watched the rain outside. A little after 5:00 p.m., I heard another baby cry, much sweeter than the cry of an hour earlier -- this time I knew it was my granddaughter entering this crazy world of ours. I felt a quiet peace and almost
instantaneously, I was flooded with calls/texts from Annie, Willie, then Karl, then my mom! They all must have sensed the same feeling. And guess what -- we were all right -- she was finally here!
Text message from James received at 5:38 p.m.:
Molly Ardith Binggeli, 9 lbs. 3 oz., 21 inches, 5:05 p.m.
Text message from Haley received at 5:56 p.m.:
Come in!
I went into the delivery room and saw my sweet daughter and her husband and their beautiful baby daughter -- Molly! What an incredibly wonderful way to spend an afternoon! Molly was just minutes old and looking around and ready to take a drink from her first bottle.
Happy Birthday to my daughter. She is now an adult and an amazing one at that. She takes good care of her family and she is a great wife, mother, daughter, sister, granddaughter, niece, cousin, and now auntie to little Molly. She is smart and nice (to most people), and she has developed a cooking skill that surpasses any of mine. 
